Who should steer a KM program?

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in the driver's seat
Originally uploaded by jenny downing

I blogged recently on the Knowledge Management steering team, and got a supplementary question (which is a very good question) – who should be on the steering team?

If you think of a Knowledge Management framework as a combination of People, Process, Technology and Governance, then you are going to need steer from four quarters

• If we think of the People aspect as referring to the roles and accountabilities related to KM, then the People-related steer will come from HR, and from Learning and Development. You should have the head of HR and the head of L&D on your steering committees.
• Knowledge Management processes will need to be built into the work process. You will therefore need a steer from senior people in the main activity areas. For example the Head of Marketing, the Chief Engineer, the head of the Project Office all might be suitable contributors to the steering team.
• Technology steer will come from the CIO and/or the CTO.
• Governance steer will come from the head of HR, as they are best placed to address the issues of performance reporting and incentives.

Ideally, your steering team should be between 6 and 10 people, and you should be able to create your own steering team list based on the advice above.