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Organizational Strategy for Knowledge Sharing:

Benefits to Frontline Contracting Professionals

Breakout Session # WC10-392

Name Randy Adkins

Knowledge Director

Alphaport Inc

radkins@alpha-port.com

9374226516

Date July 19, 2010

Time 200 - 315

3

• Alphaport, Inc. is a technology business dedicated to providing a full spectrum of critical engineering services and product development to aerospace organizations, since 1999.

• Women-Owned HUBZone Business

•Three Business Sectors•Knowledge Management Services and Training

• Aerospace Engineering Solutions

• Product Development

3 Factors Contributing to Interest in KM

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1.Organizations feel overwhelmed by their own information

• Data, information, knowledge, reports, emails, web pages, shared drives, information silo’s, etc.

2.Organizations want to control their information • Knowledge is a primary strategic mission asset

3.Organizations aware of the bottom-line results produced by knowledge

5

Resource savings from not “re-create the wheel”

Improved decisions from replicating proven practices and share lessons learned

Reduce gaps and foster performance improvements

Value Proposition

Strategic Factors That Drive Success

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– Leadership: Do leaders value expertise and organizational knowledge

– Strategic Focus: Demonstrated vision for organizational expertise

– Resources: Adequate resources applied to knowledge

– Intellectual Capital: Workers are aware and have access

– Community: Collaborative culture of openness and sharing

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Leveraging Contracting Knowledge Study

1. Is our organization exchanging information

about successes, failures, ideas and initiatives with our

counterpart contracting offices?

2. To the extent we are not, why not?

GS-13 PCO

Virginia

Study Objectives:

GS-12 Buyer

Japan

GS-9 Buyer

Colorado

Deployed Contingency Contracting Officer

Study Conducted by Lt Col Kurt Stonerock

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Do You See a Lot of Value in Inter-Org Knowledge Sharing with Peers?

“For non-routine issues, I think there’s a lot of value in contracting personnel from different contracting orgs exchanging ideas, initiatives, &

lessons learned.”

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

91%

Would You Like Contact Informationof Inter-Organizational Peers?

91%

AGREE

OR

STRONGLY

AGREE

Web 2.0 Video

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Mentoring

On the Job

Support

Online Learning

Communities of Practice

Sharing Ideas

Water Cooler

Integrated Knowledge Environment

Formal Classroo

m

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Interesting! I just received an “alert”

about a PBSC checklist that DHS is

using!

Give me names & phone numbers of peers who have developed multi-functional PBSC specifications!

Give me a listing of PBSC training modules other

contracting organizations are successfully using!

Let me see if anyone in my

community has an answer to this

PBSC question…!

GS-11 Buyer

Dynamic Tension

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Informal

Local

Tacit

Open

Laissez Faire

Formal

Global

Explicit

Controlled

Regulated

Each organization must find the

proper balance among solution

variables

Implementation Strategies

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• Have a vision

• Start small, find a topic with high interest (poll staff)

• Identify “experts” within and outside your organization who are willing to share their knowledge

• Determine best methods to share knowledge

• Brown bag, VTC, question and answer, storytelling

• ID one person to capture event and post

• Conduct After Action Reviews; what did we learn, not what did we do wrong

• What went well

• What would you do differently

Make It Easy / Make It Fun

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• Create low barriers to participate

• Do not limit to your organization, find likeminded people in other locations/organizations

• Use available technology

• Create an email group to share what is captured

• Incentivize: Reward participants

• Get presenters in front of the “boss”

• Acknowledge those who attend

• Staff meetings/emails/newsletters

Actions

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• Have a vision

• Align organizational goals to support sharing expertise

• Target high payoff areas that support strategic objectives

• Keep it simple and integrate within how you do business

• Encourage people to participate, develop rewards

• Start small think big

• Develop a coalition of the willing

• Yes, it does take time

• Measure results

KRMITS Approach

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KM Implementation - Strategic planning / alignment - Vision/Goals

Organizational Development - KM leadership - Organizational Knowledge Management Maturity Model

Change Management - KM buy-in / commitment - Process integration

Facilitated Sessions - Workshops - Measures

KM Maturity Model

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Intellectual Capital

Resources Focus Leadership Community

5 - Optimized

4 - Managed

3 - Defined

2 - Disjoined

1 - Initial

NOMINAL Data

Negotiating