KnowledgeMapandProcessMapOverview

WhatIsaKnowledgeMap?
Muchlikeanexplorerwhofollowsatravelmapinthewilderness,organizationsuseknowledgemapsto locatekeyinternalknowledgeandexpertswhocanpointtheway.Aknowledgemapactsasasnapshot intimetohelporganizationsunderstandwhatknowledgetheyhaveandwhereweaklinksexist.Italso revealswhatindividual knowledgeorexpertiseis criticaltoa processorfocusarea.Justliketheroad map in your car, however, maps quickly become dated as your organization changes, new employees replace older experts, and new goals emerge. Knowledge mapping is a dynamic activity, not a static collectionofdustyknowledgemaps.Theprocessoflinkingyourbusinessgoalsandstrategiestogether withyourknowledgeassetsiswherethepowerofthistoollies. Knowledgemappingshouldstartwiththebusinessofthebusiness.Whatarethecriticalbusinessgoals orcapabilitiesthatseniormanagementorcustomerswillfocusonintheupcomingbusinesscycle?What arethestrategiesthatmanagementisemployingtomeetthosegoalsorcapabilities?Whatprocesses linktothosegoals?Finally,whatknowledgeassets(eitherpeople,expertise,orcontent)doyouhaveto makethoseprocessesworkasecientlyaspossible?Wherearethegapsinyourknowledgethatmight preventthoseprocessesfrommakingthenecessaryimpact?Howdoestheknowledgelandscapehelp informbusinessmanagersaboutwhatneedstobeadded,changed,orimproved? Figure1isanexampleofaknowledgemap.Thetoprowofthemapdepictsthebusinessprocesssteps thatemployeestypicallyengageinwhenattemptingtosellaproductinsidearetailestablishment.The leftcolumnrepresentsthefunctionsandregionsthathaveanimpactonthatprocess.Insidethecellsof themap,wehavehighlightedsomeoftheinformationthatyoumightwanttocaptureinamap.This ExpertiseTacitmapisonlyoneofmanytypesofknowledgemapsthatcanbeused.Inthiscase,the organization wished to identify what expertise was needed inside of the decorator services business function.Organizationscanusethismaptoidentifykeyexpertsorrolesthatcanbeinterviewedforbest practices, participate in afteraction reviews, or provide insight about tasks within the process.

Page1of7 2009APQC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.KIDK00683

Figure1.ExpertiseTacitKnowledgeMap

Page2of7 2009APQC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.

TheKnowledgeFlowProcess
Once youve uncovered the strategic goals, strategies, and processes that drive your business, it is important to consider how knowledge typically ows through the organization. This knowledge ow process,depictedinFigure2,outlinesaconventionalcontinuouscycleofknowledgecreationanduse. StartingintheupperrightofFigure2: CreateThe creation of knowledge and information happens everyday in many dierent ways newexperiments,creativeimplementationplansfornewclients,ortweakstoastandardoperating process. IdentifyUncovering or highlighting new or existing knowledge or information is a critical step in theknowledgemanagementchain.Thismayhappenaccidentally,aspartofaknowledgeaudit,orin abrownbagluncheon. CollectTheprocessofcollecting,capturing,andstoringknowledgeorinformationinamedium. ReviewValidationorevaluationofknowledgeorinformationforrelevance,accuracy,anduse. ShareTheactofpushingknowledgeorinformationtoothers.Thismayhappenbystoringassetsin a database or standard format, or by sending an email, hosting a presentation, or talking in the hallway. AdaptThe process of altering knowledge or information one receives or learns to t local and currentconditions. UseThemostimportantstepintheprocessofmanagingknowledgereusingtheinformationor knowledgetoimproveoutcomes,processes,and/oractivities.

Figure2.KnowledgeFlowProcess

Page3of7 2009APQC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.

KnowledgeMappingandProcessMapping
Teams begin mapping their knowledge by identifying the core processes that need improvement. Process mapping is a wonderful precedent activity for knowledge mapping because it ensures that knowledge links to the ways people work. As we will discuss, it is not absolutely necessary to map a process when creating a knowledge map, but doing so will help ensure that you are focusing on improving business processes as well as provide a classication system for the knowledge and information you are mapping. A knowledge map can explicitly denote the knowledge needed for successful business process completion, as well as the gaps in knowledge and connections needed to improve. By connecting each phase of a business process to the current knowledge available, a knowledgemanagementpractitionercancreateamapthattraceswhereknowledgelives,andmake plansforimprovingit.UsingAPQCsProcessClassicationFrameworkcanhelptoillustratethevarious areaswhereknowledgemappingcanmakeasignicantdierenceinbusinessperformance.

WHYDOYOUPROCESSMAP?
Ensuresthateveryoneunderstandsthesharedvisionofaprocess. Providesanaccuratesnapshotoftheprocess. Aidsinidentifyingnonvalueaddedtasks. Facilitatestrainingofnewemployees. Assistsindeterminingwhereinprocessmeasuresneedtobeused.

HOWDOYOUPROCESSMAP?
Therearedozensoftexts,courses,andmodelsforprocessmappingthatyoucanprobablyndinside your own organization or on the Internet. Figure 3 depicts an example of a fairly standard cross functionalprocessmap.Thestepstocreateaprocessmapfollow. Step1: Identifyasmallteamthathasdeepknowledgeoftheprocesstobemapped;includeasmany functionalareasasneeded. Step2: Labelthefunctionsthatengageintheprocessyouaremapping,startingwiththecustomerin the boxes along the left side (for a sales process this may involve sales, sales support, marketing,andregulatory). Step3: Identify the steps within the process and place these in the correct lanes on the map (steps mayincludeidentifytargetcustomer,assessneed,andenterorderintosystem). Step4: Sequence the steps until all within the group are satised that the process is adequately mapped. Step5: Drawallconnectionlinesbetweenthesteps.

Page4of7 2009APQC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.

Figure3.ProcessMapExample

Page5of7 2009APQC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.

 UsetheshapesbelowinFigure4tocreateyourprocessmap.

Figure4.StandardProcessMappingShapes

Page6of7 2009APQC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.

CONSISTENTFACTORSFORSUCCESSINPROCESSMAPPING
Communication is key. It should take no more than a single sheet of lettersize paper to communicatetheactivitiesinaprocess. Useasinglelevelofdetailonly.Donttrytoteverypossibilityontothemaporowchart.Ifyou needmoredetail,addanotherlevelofmap. Have verbnoun agreement. Maps and owcharts show action, and so should processes and activities. Labelinputsandoutputs.Thesearenouns.Keyconsiderations:nooutputsequalnovalue. Postitnotesandpencils.Usinglargeformatpaperwiththesereducesthefrustrationlevelforthe inevitablechanges.

LINKINGPROCESSMAPSTOKNOWLEDGEMAPPING
Today, processes represent the language of most businesses. In order to simplify the building of a classicationsystemforknowledge,manypractitionersagreethatknowledgemapsshouldbeapplied asoverlaystoprocessmaps.Thisindicatesknowledgeowandgapsinknowledge.Aswewilldiscuss later,knowledgemappingdoesnotalwayshavetorelatetoaspecicbusinessprocess;instead,itmay be used to link knowledge to strategic goals, competencies, expertise areas, and/or job functions. However,aclearunderstandingofthebusinessprocessesthatdrivethosegoals,competencies,orjobs is critical to creating a map that allows you to take action. At its core, the knowledge mapping team shouldlookateachprocessstepandaskwhatknowledgeisneededtosuccessfullycompletethatstep, whatknowledgeexists,andwherethatknowledgecanbeaccessed.Otherquestionsaboutthesources, recipients,format,andbestdeliveryvehiclesforthatknowledgehelptoeshoutthedetailsthatmake themapmoreuseful.

ABOUTAPQC
For over 30 years, APQC has been on the leading edge of improving performance and fostering innovationaroundtheworld.APQCworkswithorganizationsacrossallindustriestofindpractical,cost effective solutions to drive productivity and quality improvement. We are a memberbased nonprofit currentlyservingmorethan500organizationsinallsectorsofbusiness,education,andgovernment.

CONTACTINFORMATION
123NorthPostOakLane,ThirdFloor Houston,TX770247797 phone:+17136814020or8007769676 fax:+17136818578 email:apqcinfo@apqc.org www.apqc.org

Page7of7 2009APQC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.