The tip of the iceberg: tentative first steps in cross-organisational comparison of knowledge management in development organisations

Abstract

This paper investigates the variety of knowledge management (KM) and learning policies and strategies that have been developed by various development organisations in the past decade. It draws upon over 30 case studies yet offers but a glimpse of the current reality because organisations are usually not documenting or publicising their learning-focused activities. The paper first sets the scene in terms of knowledge and learning strategies and provides a brief overview of various strategies and models being followed. After an analysis of the drivers of a knowledge strategy, the paper explores which elements are likely to be found within strategic approaches, and then concludes with a cross-case comparison, an outlook on trends, and issues for further research.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge with gratitude the comments provided by Valerie Brown and Ivan Kulis on earlier versions of this paper.

Notes

1. The Fourth International Conference on Grey Literature (GL ′99) in Washington DC, in October 1999 defined grey literature: ‘[t]hat which is produced on all levels of government, academics, business and industry in print and electronic formats, but which is not controlled by commercial publishers’ (GL’99 Conference Programme. Fourth International Conference on Grey Literature: New Frontiers in Grey Literature. GreyNet, Grey Literature Network Service. Washington DC, USA, 4–5 October 1999.)

2. www.km4dev.org.

3. The overview is available at: http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=phFVXYvI3SDYqq4Xf81FBTA&hl=en

4. www.ikmemergent.net

5. (1) Expertise, and skills acquired by a person through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject, (2) what is known in a particular field or in total; facts and information or (3) awareness or familiarity gained by experience of a fact or situation.

6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning (accessed 15 January 2009).

7. http://www.km4dev.org/index.php/articles/c204.

8. www.dgroups.org/groups/pelican and Dgroups www.dgroungs.org.

9. Personal communication with Jane Carter, 5 January 2009.

10. See http://www.greenchameleon.com/gc/blog_detail/dead_km_walking/.

11. Various trends and issues around monitoring and evaluation of learning and KM approaches are presented in two IKM Emergent working papers by Hulsebosch et al. (in press) and Talisayon (2009).

12. Rio declaration on environment and development, 1992, available at http://www.un.org/documents/ga/conf151/aconf15126-1annex1.htm.