Knowledge Management in Intranets

Knowledge sharing happens partially with technology, and also successfully without software. For this post, let’s focus on the first: technology. When we look at web-based KM tools, then they are normally hosted in the companies’ intranet. In my experience, these knowledge sharing tools are often add-ons to the classic intranet platform. Recently, many people argue (see also New Edge in Knowledge, chapter 1 ‘Primary Directives’) that knowledge sharing activities should happen in our daily work, in order to overcome usage barriers. Then, knowledge sharing tools that are an add-on might not be the right approach. Therefore, I would like to put some thoughts about corporate intranets together; what are they used for and how can they contribute to knowledge sharing in our daily work.

When discussing intranets, I would like to suggest that they are used for the following topics (I admit, this is an idealistic view):