Managing Competitions in Knowledge Management Activities
- Dr. Moria Levy
- Apr 1, 2007
- 4 min read
Marketing of Knowledge Management Activities
Marketing knowledge management activities are an integral part of ongoing operations. It serves us both as a tool to cultivate awareness of knowledge management in general and as a tool to promote specific knowledge management activities. One of the marketing tools is competition. This tool is not available every day and constitutes a peak activity of knowledge management, and we must manage it properly to get the most out of it.
Target Audiences
When managing a competition, we must decide which channels to operate it through: facing users, facing content experts, or facing both audiences together (holding two parallel sub-competitions). The method of managing the competition, as well as the measurement method and prizes, will be different in each of these channels. Care must also be taken not to mix them, as such a process can cause damage to both audiences: to users, whose usage potential is always lower than that of content experts (within their domain), to content experts, if we block them from participating in the users' competition, when in practice they diligently invest a lot in the activity, and competition can be an important tool to reward them. Not including them can create unnecessary bitterness.
Purpose
The purpose of the competition is determined according to the target audience. If we are competing users, our goal is to expose them to knowledge management capabilities and their advantages, reduce apprehension about using the tool, and/or get people accustomed to it.
The purpose of a content expert competition can be breaking the routine in a repetitive activity, rewarding content experts for their ongoing activity, encouraging content experts to engage in activity, and/or increasing the connection between content experts and their colleagues who share knowledge with them (for example, the headquarters they represent).
Competition Duration
A knowledge management competition can be short—about three weeks—or long—about four months. If we build a long competition, interim reports on the competitors' status should be collected and published monthly to create tension and maintain it for the said period.
Measured Target Unit
An interesting issue in competitions is whether we measure the individual or measure and compare between groups. In principle, a competition of groups is recommended where possible. In this way, it is possible to consolidate the groups (sections, departments, etc.) around knowledge management and to cause positive pressure from the active members on their colleagues. It is recommended that the measured units do not exceed units of ten people (otherwise, it is difficult to achieve the effects above). There are pros and cons when the competition is of content experts: on the one hand, we seek to encourage the content expert, who is the central active factor in knowledge management, so the competition may be individual, as he is the main investor. On the other hand, in places where the content expert represents several people who share knowledge and serve as an integrator for them, there is a preference for group competition, which encourages the ongoing activity that should be shared.
What Will Be Measured
A prize for users is recommended to be awarded based on several key parameters:
Amount of use – the highest average amount of use (per employee in the unit) (weight 50%). If the competition is individual, there is, of course, no need for averages.
Outputs - declared unit outputs from knowledge management tools (30%).
Contribution - contribution to knowledge management activity: adding missing topics, suggesting content, and/or updating activity leaders and content experts regarding outdated content (20%).
When the competition spans several months, each unit is given a monthly score, and the final score will be the sum of the scores from the previous months.
A prize for content experts is recommended to be given (one-time, not monthly) based on the results of a user survey examining the following criteria:
The content area that provides an optimal response to user needs (weight 40%).
Content area rich in its contents (weight 20%).
The content area is organized and clear to read (weight 20%).
The content area is up-to-date in its contents (weight 20%).
As mentioned, the measurement will be both qualitative and quantitative and will be based on measurement tools existing in the portal platform. If none exist, it should be examined whether and how a partial competition can be carried out, as long as it is exhaustive.
Marketing the Competition
The competition itself must also be marketed to help its success. During the competition period, it is recommended that activities of mention be carried out, including distributing teasers that create building tension regarding the nature of the winners and the nature of the prizes to be distributed. It is recommended to leave the prizes as a surprise but to give hints while surveying the users regarding their nature. Hints will be given through knowledge management tools and email (concerning knowledge management tools). The leaders' data will be published monthly if it is an ongoing competition.
Hard work? Probably yes. A competition is not a trivial matter. It is also clear that it comes at the expense of other knowledge management activities. A competition is an important tool. It is important in places where we have started activities and need to advance them. It's not wise to establish knowledge management solutions and neglect them. It's better to establish fewer and also invest in promoting and maintaining them. After they get used to using it, and if the managed content contributes to the group and the organization, our need for intervention will decrease, and use and updating will become a daily routine. Then, we will also see rewards for our labor.
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