SAIC's KM Methodology
Implementing an Effective KM Solution
Based on a methodology pioneered in British Petroleum,
SAIC's approach to capturing and reusing knowledge has been refined
through successful application in many FORTUNE 500® companies and
government organizations over the last several years. SAIC focuses on
delivering performance improvement where a business or operational
imperative exists and where knowledge can make a difference to the
desired performance outcome. Our approach distinguishes itself from
other approaches in the following ways:
- You and SAIC design, develop, and implement the KM solution as one
team enabling you to understand in depth what is done and how to do it
so that you can sustain and maintain the investment you have made,
creating internal ownership for the outcomes.
- You and SAIC devote an equal amount of attention to
- delivering specific, tangible, business or operationally driven performance improvements and
- embedding core KM practices and skills in the people impacted by the new practices.
- You and SAIC ensure the approach meets your people and teams "where they are" in terms of culture, process and technology.
- You and SAIC integrate the SAIC Learning and Performing Processes
model, a common, set of people-facing, forward-looking, core KM
practices which are easily understood, supported, and performed on the
job, resulting in an embedded, sustainable way of working.
- You and SAIC leverage existing investments in your technology base
while deploying only when necessary, new, scalable enabling processes
and technologies at minimum risk within controlled pilot environments.
A proven pilot project approach is followed. Opportunities are
assessed and prioritized against a set of proven criteria. A specific
business or operational improvement is then targeted for delivery by
applying the following phased approach:
Phase 0 - Identify and Select Pilot Projects
The focus of this phase is to create awareness of the possibilities
of KM-based performance improvement among business or operational
leaders and stakeholders, identify potential pilots, and then assess and
select a pilot for delivery. You will use a set of standard KM project
selection criteria customized for your context and used to rank pilots
based on their potential knowledge-based business or operational
benefits, leadership advocacy, transferability of learning and results,
and overall project feasibility.
Phase 1 - Customize Pilot Process and Create Stakeholder Alignment
The focus of this phase is to engage key pilot project stakeholders,
including the relevant leadership team, staff and other contributors to
customize the KM methodology to fit the specific business improvement
needs of the pilot. Necessary buy-in is created and a plan is developed
and agreed to that fits both the operational tempo and needs of the
participants.
Phase 2 - Capture Key Learnings and Good Practices
The focus of this phase is to elicit and capture your operational
know-how to fill the knowledge gaps needed to meet the pilot performance
improvement targets. The majority of knowledge generation and capture
will be performed using Learning and Performing
activities comprising on-the-job team learning processes before, during,
and after major activities and supplemented when relevant through a
series of individual interviews:
- "Learning before doing" is supported through the Peer Assist
process which targets specific challenge, imports knowledge from people
outside the team, identifies possible approaches and new lines of
inquiry, and promotes sharing of learning with each other through a
facilitated meeting.
- A U.S. Army technique called Action Reviews aims to get people to "learn while doing" by answering four questions immediately afterwards:
- What was supposed to happen?
- What actually happened?
- Why are they different? and
- What can we learn to do about it today?
- At the end of the project a process called a Retrospect
encourages team members to look back at the project to discover what
went well and why, with a view to helping a different team repeat their
success and avoid any pitfalls-"learning after doing".
- In parallel with these learning sessions, KM support staff will perform Interviews to elicit additional know-how from key knowledge sources within, and sometimes outside, the work activities.
As part of the project team, you will capture, distill, and codify
the key learnings, experience and good practices from these facilitated
sessions and interviews, and package them in the form of a re-usable Knowledge Asset. This Knowledge Asset will be highly accessible and visible to others on your organization's intranet.
Phase 3 - Establish and Leverage Communities of Practice
The focus of this phase is to engage and enable relevant
practitioners inside and outside your local pilot business or
operational target areas to share and transfer know-how and good
practices to your work teams involved in the pilot. At least one
Community of Practice (CoP) will be established for subject area
practitioners contributing knowledge to the pilot.
In the course of capturing this knowledge, you and SAIC will
facilitate the development of a Community of Practice (CoP), a
cross-organizational group of people who share common skills and
practices in the business or operational processes being applied in the
pilot. The initial members of this community will be the practitioners
interviewed in the learning processes mentioned above, along with others
applying this knowledge on the job in the pilot. You will learn the
skills necessary to coach and support this Community to take on the
responsibility to keep the Knowledge Asset current to help ensure the
transferability of their collective know-how throughout the
organization.
Phase 4 - Adapt and Apply Best Practices in Pilot Operations
The focus of this phase is to enable and ensure the know-how gained
from your pilot work teams, CoP interactions, and other sources are
applied on the job to improve existing processes and deliver the agreed
to performance targets.
Relevant good practices and lessons learned will often be found in
other practice areas. Those involved in the pilot will be coached and
encouraged to take immediate advantage of this know-how and experience
from outside their team and adapt and apply it to their work activities.
Phase 5 - Train and Coach Internal KM Practitioners
The focus of this phase is to transfer and embed KM competencies and
techniques in your co-delivery team members participating in the
delivery of the pilot effort. The lead responsibility for delivery of KM
practices is purposefully shifted from the SAIC KM consultant to your
team members over the duration of the pilot.
Phase 6 - Monitor, Review and Optimize Pilot Learning and Impact
The focus of this phase is to manage efficient tracking and
completion of the pilot deliverables. Our results will be documented in a
report and presentation that includes a review of the benefits achieved
versus planned, KM strategy recommendations for broader implementation
based on KM pilot learnings and practices.
Throughout the pilot process, local KM support staff participating in
the delivery of the pilot will be trained and coached in the KM
practices and skills used by the KM consultants. Using a phased approach
combining modular training courses for each KM practice and skill-set
and on-the-job coaching, the lead responsibility and delivery of KM
practices is purposefully shifted from the KM consultants to local KM
staff over the duration of each pilot.
A Steering Team comprised of the lead KM consultant, the local KM
support team leader and the business leader for the pilot area (and
business leaders of other KM pilots underway) will be established to
help guide and steer the pilot effort. Critical issues and cross-pilot
learning will be summarized for the Steering Team to facilitate their
guidance and any decision-making required at their level.
The knowledge management experience gained from the pilot(s) will be
captured in the form of another Knowledge Asset, and local KM staff will
be encouraged to continuously update and maintain the organizations
collective knowledge in KM. This knowledge will be used as input to
support the organizations development of a broader KM strategy for
post-pilot consideration and implementation.
At the conclusion of the project, performance will be assessed
against the initial objectives and targets in the performance agreement.
The KM pilot delivery team may also identify steps to extend the
learning process into follow-on projects, ongoing activities, and other
parts of the organization. This assessment will become part of a final
pilot project report to the Steering Team.
The following diagram illustrates how the SAIC Learning and
Performing Model delivers the performance goals of a specific
operational or business team.
