Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know by Thomas H Davenport  (14)  £6.99

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Synopsis
'With knowledge [as] the only source of sustainable advantage, bringing knowledge effectively to bear on customer problems is Secret No. 1 to success. Bob Buckman's story of turning a traditional company into something completely new and different is both practical and inspiring. "Building a Knowledge-Driven Organization" should become an instant classic' - Tom Peters.'Buckman Labs may have been the first company to realize that speed of knowledge sharing was a driver of cash flow and competitive advantage. Buckman pioneered collaboration around the globe to solve customer problems and create new business. This book is a powerful record of Bob Buckman's two decades of leadership and experience creating the deep cultural and human context for knowledge - and cash - to flow. If you want to know what works - and what doesn't - read this book' - Carla O'Dell, Ph.D., President, American Productivity and Quality Center, and author of "If Only We Knew What We Know: The Internal Transfer of Knowledge and Best Practices".'

A must-read for executives trying to drive a knowledge management program, or for that matter any technology-based initiative' - Dave Snowden, Director of IBM's Cynefin Centre for Organisational Complexity. 'Bob Buckman - arguably the first CEO to personally lead a knowledge-based corporate strategy - combines a bold vision with practical tips for how organizations can become team-based and knowledge- and solutions- driven' - Brook Manville, Chief Learning Officer, Saba Software; Former Partner and Director of Knowledge Management, McKinsey. 'Buckman Labs' technical experts and far-flung sales force conduct dozens of virtual conversations each day, trading tips on arcane points of paper and leather making, water purification and sewage treatment. In the process, they've made this closely held, Memphis Tennessee chemical company with $360 million in sales, a leading practitioner in the emerging field of knowledge management' - "The Wall Street Journal".'Buckman Labs has become a Mecca for other companies looking for "how-to" lessons in the art and science of knowledge management.

Executives from many Fortune 500 companies have made the pilgrimage to look and learn from a company that is fast, global, and interactive, and built on a system that is simple, powerful, and revolutionary' - "Fast Company".In the early 1980's, when Buckman Laboratories was scrambling to meet the rapidly changing needs of its customers, CEO Robert Buckman realized that an organization positioned for the future would have to be organized around knowledge - creating it, sharing it, and applying it - rather than around traditional corporate hierarchies and systems. He embraced this belief, and created a knowledge-sharing culture among Buckman Labs' 1400 associates serving in 80 countries. Buckman Labs became the undisputed pioneer and leader in implementing knowledge management."Building a Knowledge-Driven Organization" is a practical primer on how your managers and employees can move from "hoarding" knowledge in order to gain power to "sharing" it - building a global strategy that will allow your organization to respond faster than your competition to any customer's need, anywhere.

The book focuses on the hardest part of knowledge management - the people side - explaining exactly what it takes to get your employees to contribute to a knowledge system. Buckman explains how to turn a fragmented, geographically dispersed group of people and information into a seamless array of knowledge that can be directed whenever and wherever it is needed. He reveals that the greatest challenges are not technical but political - and explains how you can effectively orchestrate a culture change in your organization, drawing from the hard-won lessons learned by Buckman Laboratories in implementing its award-winning knowledge systems.You'll discover, as Buckman did, how to: be customer driven and customer centric in your knowledge sharing; break down hierarchies and build a knowledge-based corporate strategy; motivate and enable employees to share their expertise around the organization; implement the organizational values and climate of trust required for a knowledge sharing culture; and, push organizational knowledge to the front lines to solve customer problems and create new products.

"Building a Knowledge-Driven Organization" will show you how to solve your customers' problems rapidly, share best practices, increase productivity, and produce tremendous results.

From the Back Cover
"With knowledge [as] the only source of sustainable advantage, bringing knowledge effectively to bear on customer problems is Secret No. 1 to success. Bob Buckman's story of turning a traditional company into something completely new and different is both practical and inspiring. Building a Knowledge-Driven Organization should become an instant classic."

Tom Peters

"Buckman Labs may have been the first company to realize that speed of knowledge sharing was a driver of cash flow and competitive advantage. Buckman pioneered collaboration around the globe to solve customer problems and create new business. This book is a powerful record of Bob Buckman's two decades of leadership and experience creating the deep cultural and human context for knowledge and cash to flow. If you want to know what works and what doesn't read this book."

Carla O'Dell, Ph.D., President, American Productivity & Quality Center, and author of If Only We Knew What We Know: the internal transfer of knowledge and best practices.

"A must-read for executives trying to drive a knowledge management program, or for that matter any technology-based initiative."

Dave Snowden, Director of IBM's Cynefin Centre for Organisational Complexity

"Bob Buckman arguably the first CEO to personally lead a knowledge-based corporate strategy combines a bold vision with practical tips for how organizations can become team-based and knowledge- and solutions- driven."

Brook Manville, Chief Learning Officer, Saba Software; Former Partner and Director of Knowledge Management, McKinsey

"Buckman Labs' technical experts and far-flung sales force conduct dozens of virtual conversations each day, trading tips on arcane points of paper and leather making, water purification and sewage treatment. In the process, they've made this closely held, Memphis Tennessee chemical company with $360 million in sales, a leading practitioner in the emerging field of knowledge management." The Wall Street Journal

"Buckman Labs has become a Mecca for other companies looking for "how-to" lessons in the art and science of knowledge management. Executives from many Fortune 500 companies have made the pilgrimage to look and learn from a company that is fast, global, and interactive, and built on a system that is simple, powerful, and revolutionary." Fast Company

In the early 1980's, when Buckman Laboratories was scrambling to meet the rapidly changing needs of its customers, CEO Robert Buckman realized that an organization positioned for the future would have to be organized around knowledge creating it, sharing it, and applying it rather than around traditional corporate hierarchies and systems. He embraced this belief, and created a knowledge-sharing culture among Buckman Labs' 1400 associates serving in 80 countries. Buckman Labs became the undisputed pioneer and leader in implementing knowledge management.

Building a Knowledge-Driven Organization is a practical primer on how your managers and employees can move from "hoarding" knowledge in order to gain power to "sharing" it building a global strategy that will allow your organization to respond faster than your competition to any customer's need, anywhere. The book focuses on the hardest part of knowledge management the people side explaining exactly what it takes to get your employees to contribute to a knowledge system. Buckman explains how to turn a fragmented, geographically dispersed group of people and information into a seamless array of knowledge that can be directed whenever and wherever it is needed. He reveals that the greatest challenges are not technical but political and explains how you can effectively orchestrate a culture change in your organization, drawing from the hard-won lessons learned by Buckman Laboratories in implementing its award-winning knowledge systems. You'll discover, as Buckman did, how to:

-Be customer driven and customer centric in your knowledge sharing
-Break down hierarchies and build a knowledge-based corporate strategy
-Motivate and enable employees to share their expertise around the organization
-Implement the organizational values and climate of trust required for a knowledge sharing culture
-Push organizational knowledge to the front lines to solve customer problems and create new products

Building a Knowledge-Driven Organization will show you how to solve your customers' problems rapidly, share best practices, increase productivity, and produce tremendous results.

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews   Excellent Insights into a Knowledge Management Pioneer, 14 Aug 2005 By  Martin (LONDON, London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews This is a truly an excellent book, clearly written avoiding technical vocabulary, explaining HOW Bob Buckman and his Management team, from the early 1980s started to achieve breakthroughs in the effective transfer and sharing of knowledge to build sustainable competitive advantage. There is an excellent Introduction as to what has been achieved and then an explanation of how and particularly why they did what they did. Buckmans' leadership is clearly a key feature but the reader is left to deduce this as the author himself attributes all that has been achieved to his people - the associates who successfully made the cultural shift to effective knowledge-sharing, a shift that probably helped keep the company as a relatively small player in a growing global market in business in the late '80s and early '90s. There is, though. little reticence on Buckman's part regarding 'lessons learned' - where they 'got things wrong' this is clearly stated and then shows how they eventually got them right. We get insights into long-term iterative organisational learning with clear relevances to both Drucker (who prophisized the Knowledge revolution) and Senge (who showed the benefits of organisations becoming 'learning organisations'. The book is peppered with a mix of 'guru' and other quotes, all of which are relevant and help give the book a very 'personal' hands-on feel. The final chapter explains how other organisations can benefit from pursuing knowledge-focused strategies and indicates how knowledge leaders Buckman, having gained real market advantage through the intelligent and effective use of information and knoweldge, intend to 'stay ahead'. I feel sure they will. Fully recommneded for anyone studying 'Knowledge Management' or 'Change Management' - the book is about both but ultimately shows how Bob Buckman displayed "loose-tight" leadership - he remained 'in control' whilst empowering the employees in a growing global organisation to help him build a successful business and they temselves build rewarding and satisfying careers. A remarkable Win-Win story.  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) › See all customer reviews...		Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews