Wednesday 24 April 2019

KM plans at NASA

This blog has often argued for Knowledge Management Plans as part of a KM Framework. Here is NASA's take on the topic.


This document makes the following points:

  1. The plan is a requirement for all projects and programs at NASA, under the NASA Procedural Requirements and NASA Policy Directives.
  2. The KM plan is part of the project or program plan, and there is a place-holder on the standard NASA project plan template for KM
  3. The project manager crafts the KM plan in cooperation with KM support.
  4.  The Knowledge Management Plan should
    •  Bring value to the project by driving learning from other projects
    • Bring value to subsequent projects through capturing and sharing knowledge and lessons
    • Leverage available resources
    • Be realistic in terms of cost and schedule implications; and 
    • Be flexible enough to adjust to the evolving needs of the project.
  5. The KM plan has three components:
    • Defining how the project will "Learn before" through accessing the knowledge of others (for example through Peer Assist, through reviewing collections of lessons, or through use of processes and procedures within which lessons have been embedded)
    • Defining how the project will "Learn During" its activity (for example through use of After Action Reviews, creating a Lessons Log, or interfacing with key communities of practice)
    • Defining how the project will "Learn after" the project is over (for the example through the use of Retrospects to identify and document lessons, and Knowledge handover meetings to share these with others)/
  6.   Special credit for KM Plan tool content goes to NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Center Office of the Chief Knowledge Office (OCKO) and Barbara Fillip, former Knowledge Lead, Flight Projects Directorate.

Try KM plans in your own organisation, wherever you conduct large projects that need to learn from, and share knowledge with, each other. 

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