Friday 29 October 2010


Known Knowns and formal collection


In this blog post I introduced a Boston Square
which explored the four ideological quadrants of KM, based on Connect vs Collect, and on Formal vs Informal.  I was using this diagram to look at different starting points for KM, and making the point that we need to look at a blend, or spectrum, of approaches, rather than sticking to one corner of the diagram.

I was at a conference this week with the NATO JALLC (Joint analysis and Lessons Learned centre), where John Redmayne, one of the JALLC suggested a development of this diagram. John's point was that the segments of the diagram can be associated with the four components of the Rumsfeld matrix - the known knowns, unknown knowns etc. John's diagram is shown to the right.
Here the lessons databases hold the known knowns - the things we know we know, and which can be formally shared and stored. The formal networks are where we ask questions about the things we know we dont know, and so can set up networks to address them. The wikis are where the unknown knowns come to light, as people collaborate and share, and discover things that we know as a group. And in the social networks, we may luck upon the things we never knew that we didn't know, through serendipity and change encounters.

I like this analysis, as it suggests that each of the qudrants, and each of the tools, may have its own role to play, and that each complements the others. And in addition, it starts to point out which role each quadrant may play. It also reinforces the need for a blend of approaches, rather than choosing just one.

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