A Knowledge Management

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A Knowledge Management Roadmap for the UNDP

December 5, 2003 Senior Management Team Meeting
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Agenda
Context
Positions the present Knowledge Management effort
and presentation
Crafts UNDPs future state as a world-class
Knowledge Management Organization
KM Vision
Assesses UNDPs current state from the
perspective of its Knowledge Management capability
KM Present
Summarizes the top KM initiatives identified and
possible deployment scenarios
KM Initiatives
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Context

• Getting UNDPs collective development knowledge
  to the right people, at
  the right time!
• UNDP has a clear mandate to become a world-class
  Knowledge Management (KM) Organization in the
  field of Development.
• Over the last 2 years, UNDP has been focusing
  attention and resources on the ERP project as a
  core system to support operational
  decentralization and boost staffs efficiency.
  Building on the ERP dividend, the KM project
  is now expected to become UNDPs primary focus
  over the next 18 months.
• Experience from other KM organizations show that
  the KM project will be comparable to the ERP
  project in terms of scope and organizational
  change.
• The purpose of to-days presentation is to
  ensure that the proposed framework of UNDPs KM
  Deployment Plan is directionally correct. Based
  upon this discussion, a detailed design/plan
  (Phase 0) will then be developed over the next
  90 days.

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KM Vision
UNDP is the trusted Development advisor of
Governments. Its advices are both a body of
knowledge that the UNDP generates, acquires, or
re-uses and products that it provides these
governments with for spurring development ideas
and projects. At the end of the day, UNDPs
fundamental goal is to become a world-class
knowledge management (KM) organization creating
the best Development products for its
governmental clients. This goal implies a
profound reinvention of the UNDP enterprise.

• The basic tenet is that, in a fundamental shift
  in mindset and behaviors, we want to use
  knowledge management as a transformational tool
  to advance our mission, create powerful tools for
  each Country Office, and help us stay ahead of
  the profound changes needed to achieve the
  Millennium Development Goals.
• This implies that KM initiatives move to the
  forefront of UNDPs attention and investment
  priorities.

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• UNDPs KM Vision Cuts Through Binary Choices

AND

• UNDP will also be product-driven. UNDPs
  mission is also Thought Leadership and its KM
  agenda will incorporate original/
  thought-provoking research
• UNDPs KM Delivery will also be recognized for
  its quality. Branded UNDP Knowledge Objects
  (KO) will go through a formal editorial function.
  These KOs will be tagged according to where they
  fall in the validation cycle
• UNDP will also constantly mine the KOs generated
  by the field COs (best practices)
• UNDP will monitor the value assigned by its
  customers to its delivered KOs. It will organized
  its KM processes along market principles
  (feed-back surveys, self-assessment tools, etc.)

• UNDP will be client-centric. Its KM agenda will
  incorporate a systematic analysis of questions
  asked and its clients demands
• UNDPs KM Delivery will focus on speed. The
  timely delivery of knowledge will be monitored on
  an ongoing basis and measured in hours and days,
  not weeks or months
• UNDPs Knowledge Objects (KOs) will be generated
  by HQ (position papers, expert advice, etc.)
• UNDPs KM Delivery will continue to be
  non-chargeable

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KM Vision

• The following statements summarize our next 18
  month goals

• Premier Source of Development Information - UNDP
  is acknowledged world-wide as the premier source
  of information for what works and what doesnt in
  the Development area. The value of the knowledge
  we make available to respond to development
  challenges is perceived as equal or greater than
  the value of our financial contribution.
• Personalized Search to a Rich Knowledge
  Repository- Our clients enjoy a user-friendly,
  highly personalized access to Development
  information (knowledge objects), ranging from
  up-to-date, first-hand reports and case studies
  from field experience, to position papers on key
  development policy issues, drawn from global
  knowledge, research, and leadership thinking from
  our world-class in-house specialists. The
  perceived value of our is systematically
  monitored.
• Professional Effectiveness and Personal
  Empowerment -Each UNDP staff member has his/her
  own Portal with fully integrated and accessible
  tools to search information and/or relevant
  subject matter experts. He/she has the ability
  to join dynamic communities of interest/communitie
  s of practices to share knowledge and ideas.
• A Forum for All- UNDP functions as a portal for
  Development Knowledge tapping all possible
  sources of knowledge, whether internal or
  external. UNDP is organized to ensure that
  whenever someone needs to find something out, the
  relevant knowledge can quickly and easily be made
  available from anywhere it exists.
• Knowledge Culture- All UNDP staff understand that
  our collective knowledge is our most critical
  asset. Processes are in place to collect,
  organize, assess, share, and deliver knowledge in
  a timely and systematic manner. The efficiency of
  these processes is systematically monitored.

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The Knowledge-enabled Country OfficeUNDP as the
e-Development Advisor of Choice
The KM vision is about big changes and instilling
a constant focus on delivering valuable research
into UNDPs everyday practices
The Internet and specific KM technologies provide
the UNDP with the opportunity to create virtual
communities of practice between governments,
donors, the research community, and international
development organizations resulting in a
environment where each Country Office is the
center and repository of our collective
Development knowledge
Web Content Mgmt. Search Engine Portals
Personalization, multi-channel access and
on-demand access to specialists are key aspects
of that vision
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KMs Current State

• UNDP has already gathered components of a KM
  Organization
• 1. Content Management
• Practice Areas established
• Position Papers the lead-in to the menu of
  offerings, each presented as a one-page paper
  containing the main idea, which is backed up by
  the full depth of experience and consultations.
• Best Practice initiatives A few of the
  Knowledge Communities (Governance NHDR) have
  brought members together in action learning
  events to share their best efforts and gain
  insights into what works and what doesnt. Other
  attempts to identify and disseminate Best
  Practices have been initiated by the Gender unit
  in BDP, TCDC, the Bratislava SURF, etc.
• SURFs established
• Base taxonomy introduced
• Knowledge Objects introduced in PeopleSoft
  (e.g., project templates)
• Communication/Branding effort initiated
• 2. Tools Technology
• Search Engine and Content Management System
  selected
• e-Documentation project launched
• Knowledge Management Portal launched
  (PeopleSoft)
• 3. Staff/Process Alignment
• Practice Mapping established
• Talent Management process established

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Plotted along these five axes, UNDPs KM current
state shows both progress to-date and the
remaining gaps
1. Content
Management
Content Mgmt. Processes and
Specific Functions (e.g., Editorial) not in place
Base Taxonomy
5. Overall UNDP
2. Tools
and Technology
Infrastructure
SURFs
KM Tools not operational
E

-
Connectivity
To all COs
Practice Areas
Learning
Center
Documentation
Search
Engine
Content Mgmt.
System
Knowledge
Networks
Practice
Communities
Specialists Staffing
Practice Mapping
Incentives are not aligned
Portals,
HR processes not all operational
Communities
still in infancy
3. Staff/Policy
4.
Alignment
Communities
Legend
External bleu line represents best KM
organization Green line represents UNDPs current
state
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KM Initiatives

• 33 primary KM initiatives (see the opposite
  page) have been identified to allow the UNDP to
  migrate from its current state to a world-class
  KM organization.
• These initiatives are at various degrees of
  planning and design.

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KM Initiatives

• Again, the experience from organizations that
  have embarked on similar endeavors suggests that
  KM will be a major transformation project for the
  UNDP, comparable in scope, complexity and change
  management impact to the ERP (1) . The KM project
  will follow the same rigorous implementation
  methodology.
• To be completed in March 2004, Phase 0 of this
  KM project is designed to detail each of the 33
  initiatives listed earlier into a detailed
  blueprint for implementation, including specific
  workplans and alternative resource requirements.
  This blueprint will be presented to the SMT for
  validation.
• Phase 0 will also include a budget projection and
  a financing plan (including a business case for
  potential donors).
• As part of Phase 0, it is intended to
• Coordinate the planning and design of existing
  ongoing KM projects within the UNDP- Phase 0 KM
  Team and Steering Committee will already be
  multi-disciplinary and include representatives
  across multiple UNDP units
• Conduct a 3-day Design Workshop with large UNDP
  participation
• Assess opportunities to partner with external KM
  organizations/KM development projects, both
  within the UN and outside
• (1) This does not mean that the KM project should
  be of the same magnitude as the ERP in terms of
  investment. First, it will leverage the UNDP-wide
  connectivity now in place, and the large, ongoing
  computer training effort. Second, the ERP itself
  will largely simplify UNDPs work environment by
  harmonizing systems and practices. Part of UNDPs
  knowledge will also directly consists of the data
  managed in the ERP itself. Third, part of the
  investments requested to become a knowledge
  organization have already been made (e.g.,
  setting up UNDPs practice areas). Moreover,
  part of Phase 0 scope is to analyze and emulate
  best practices from the syndicated KM
  organizations to save both time and money.

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Phase 0 Deliverable- March 31, 2004
Knowledge Management Phase 0 Table of Contents

• Overall KM architecture design
• Detailed design documents
• - per initiative
• High-level KM policies and procedures
• Overall timeline and phases. Detailed workplans
• Staffing/resource plan (onetime and ongoing)
• Regionalization Plan
• Budget projections (onetime and ongoing)
• Communication Plan
• Proposed Project Structure (going forward)
• Funding Plan
• Donor presentation business case

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Deployment Options
Three contrasted scenarios can be envisioned to
deploy UNDPs KM project
Scenario Descriptive
Primary Pros Cons

• No major push. KM initiatives essentially follow
  current deployment rhythm

• Stealth change management
• No major investment needed

Pros
Scenario 1- Evolutionary Deployment

• No major progress to be expected within the next
  18-month horizon

Cons

• True transformation exercise taking advantage of
  the current change agenda
• Early KM benefits realization
• Simplified planning (no phasing-in)

• Major push planned to transform the UNDP as a
  full-fledged KM organization over the next 18
  months. All identified KM initiatives to be
  deployed in one Wave

Pros
Scenario 2- Big Bang

• All KM initiatives need to be implemented
  simultaneously
• Highest change management requirement
• Highest relative investment

Cons

• Phased deployment. Initiatives can be selected
  to balance quick hits, investment requirements,
  financing opportunities, and change management
• KM foundation will be in place within the
  required 18 month horizon
• KM project could take better advantage of the
  expected ERP dividend from a staffing/change
  management perspective

• Deployment will be phased. Phase 1 KM
  initiatives (to be defined) would be deployed and
  stabilized within 14 months (12 months after
  Phase 0). Phases 2 and 3 would follow. Phase 0
  will still define the overall deployment
  blueprint

Pros
Scenario 3- Phased Deployment

• Longer project
• Delayed KM benefits realization

Cons
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Deployment Options
The recommendation is to target Scenario 2
subject to donors funding availability. Should
funding be insufficient, a tailored Scenario 3
will be defined within the then-projected budget
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Appendix Initiative Briefs
C1. Standard Setting/Branding Function C2.
Content Capture Function C3. Codification/Indexing
Function C4. Editorial Function C5. Peer
Review/QA Function C6. Satisfaction
Survey/Feed-back Loop C7. Agenda Setting/Revised
Practice Area Planning Function C8. Customer
Support Function C9. Speech Writing Support
Function/Knowledge Sourcing Center C10. Donor
Intelligence Function T1. KM Portal - Branded
Shell T2. Personalization Tools T3. Content
Management System T4. Search and
Taxonomy/Indexing T5. eDocumentation and
ePublishing T6. KM Collaboration Tools T7 Request
Tracking System T8. KM Databases and
Directories T9. Value Analysis Tools T10.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) S1.
Practice Specialist Career Track S2.
Performance Indicator Strategy S3. Corporate
Staff Leveraging S4. Communication Strategy S5.
Competency Directory N1. In-Country Networks N2.
Communities of Practice Re-organization N3.
Cross-cutting Communities N4. UN Knowledge
Network N5. Global Expert Networks I1. KM
Learning Program I2. Operations/Maintenance
Strategy I3. Infrastructure Upgrade
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• Content Management
• Overall objective To establish a professional
  organizational structure to support the
  systematic acquisition, codification, retrieval
  and value assessment of knowledge
• C1. Standard Setting/Branding Function
• This initiative covers the deployment of a
  function/group of individuals in charge of
  establishing, and updating as appropriate, the KM
  templates and standards that will be followed by
  the whole organization.
• C2. Content Capture Function
• This initiative covers the deployment of a
  variety of processes and functions designed to
  facilitate the identification, documentation, and
  cataloging of knowledge objects throughout the
  organization. This initiative includes several
  components
• Formalization of part-time knowledge worker
  position in every CO to be responsible for CO KM
  initiatives as well as assisting CO staff in
  populating the CKR (computerized knowledge
  repository) with knowledge objects.
• Formalization of full-time knowledge coordinator
  position in every SURF to be responsible for
  overseeing customers satisfaction with our KM
  products, transmitting feed-back to the practice
  areas, coordinating knowledge capture within the
  region, overseeing knowledge delivery within the
  region.
• Setting up SWAT teams to assist regions/COs in
  documenting knowledge into formalized knowledge
  objects.
• C3. Codification/Indexing Function
• This initiative covers the systematic cataloging
  and indexing of knowledge objects, both internal
  and external. It includes the ongoing update of
  UNDPs taxonomy.
• C4. Editorial Function

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Content Management (Continued) C8. Customer
Support Function The intent is to let clients
direct inquiries to our analysts, either by
e-mail, phone, virtual workshops, and even
face-to-face interactions if needed. The intent
is also to continuously monitor the efficiency of
our knowledge delivery. This initiative covers
the function needed to allow the logging,
tracking, and triaging of information requests,
as well as the facilitation of interactions
(e.g., organization of a virtual workshop). Part
of that functions role is to shelter our
analysts time while allowing a beneficial,
two-way interaction when needed. C9. Speech
Writing Support Function/Knowledge Sourcing
Center UNDP produces an inordinate amount of
speeches. There is a pending demand to search for
prior speeches on similar topics/data to support
a new speech. This initiative covers the creation
of an executive support function to answer
speech/data queries. C10. Donor Intelligence
Function This initiative covers the development
of a function designed to coordinate donor
information (including up to date contacts)
throughout UNDP. Primary Phase 0 Content
Management Deliverable Overall organization
chart, with role definition, staffing and
location recommendations. High policies and
procedures for each initiative.

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Tools Technology Overall objective To
select, deploy, and operate the integrated set of
tools needed to support knowledge
management T1. KM Portal - Branded Shell The
Knowledge Management Web-based portal is the
organization branded launchpad providing access
to all knowledge tools, directories, databases
and communities. An staff member or affiliate's
access to local, regional and global knowledge
systems is controlled by the role-based
login. T2. Personalization Tools The KM portal's
personalization tools utilize role-based
definitions, profile settings controlled by the
user, and optionally, usage patterns of the user
and others to customize the portal with user
appropriate content and alerts. T3. Content
Management System The Content Management System
provides tools to manage the acquisition,
preparation, categorization, presentation, and
archival of multiple content types. T4. Search
and Taxonomy/Indexing The search engine uses
knowledge domain taxonomies, metathesauruses,
content indexes, user profiles to yield highly
targeted and prioitized search results. T5.
eDocumentation and ePublishing Documentation
Management indexes the organization's documents
and parts of documents of multiple types (on-line
formatted, scanned, photos, sound, video) for
access on-line (if available) or in printed form.
Demand Publishing produces "just in time"
printed documents (including compendiums of
selected sections) on request to multiple
locations. T6. KM Collaboration Tools KM
Collaboration Tools include project management
teamrooms, live videoconferencing, whiteboard
on-line collaboration, chatrooms and discussion
threads to facilitate collaboration of teams or
communities. T7 Request Tracking System A
Request Tracking System tracks the client source,
contact information, channel, type, status of
requests for knowledge based requests,
suggestions and client interactions. It also
supports a view over time of contacts from a
single client source through various channels
(phone, email, Web) and provides a repository for
trend analysis. T8. KM Databases and
Directories KM Databases include knowledge bases
to support specific domains or disciplines and
knowledge directories linking users to knowledge
experts and repositories. T9. Value Analysis
Tools Value Analysis Tools leverage data from
Client Surveys, on-line Personalization trending
and cross-channel Request Tracking to evaluate
and attribute value to an organization's
knowledge assets. T10. Customer Relationship
Management (CRM) Customer Relationship Management
tools can be used to maintain a knowledge base of
contact information, interactions, activities and
interests of UNDP's clients and potential
donors. Primary Phase 0 Tools and Technology
Deliverable Overall technical architecture
showing tools/technology interactions and
interfaces. High level hardware capacity
planning. High level design of the primary screen
flows/online interactions.

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• Staff/Policy Alignment
• Overall objective To engage our global network
  of development practitioners to provide timely
  and high-quality Knowledge Objects to ensure
  knowledge management features in the recruitment,
  learning and career development of all staff and
  provide the appropriate incentives to achieve
  this aim.
• S1. Practice Specialist Career Track
• UNDPs relevance and value will grow as more of
  its thematic specialists come from its own talent
  pool. This initiative covers the definition of a
  Practice career track as a viable career option
  for every staff member with the interest and
  ability to become one. Potential components of
  this initiative include to
• Recognize thematic specialists as core staff
  with a promising future in UNDP, having longer
  term contracts with salary scales comparable to
  managerial staff.
• Make Practice positions more attractive to
  top-rated outside specialists as well, by
  dramatically streamlining and shortening
  recruitment processes and offering competitive
  conditions of service.
• Develop a Practice Specialist career track,
  starting from entry level as a National Officer,
  moving to regional responsibilities and then to
  global responsibilities even while remaining at
  the same duty station.
• Organize UNDP learning and career development
  initiatives around the four Practice levels
  (Members, Practitioners, Developers, Experts),
  and giving the Practice Leaders responsibility
  for promoting staff to the Expert level.
• Include in the specialist career track periodic
  opportunities for thinking and research, such
  as taking a year off to be a visiting lecturer
  at a university.
• S2. Performance Indicator Strategy
• A competitive advantage of UNDP as a knowledge
  organization is its ability to draw on real-time
  experience and expertise from every developing
  country across the globe. Therefore every staff
  member should be expected to contribute whenever
  needed. This initiative covers the definition and
  deployment of the appropriate processes, policies
  and procedures to incentivize staffs ongoing
  contribution to the knowledge repository.
  Potential components of this initiative include
• Knowledge acquisition and publication should
  feature in the Terms of Reference of every staff
  member (including project staff).
• Staff performance assessments that reward
  quality contributions to knowledge networks, for
  example by promoting staff exchanges between
  country offices or to SURF offices for short-term
  assignments or introduce a credit-point system
  as a currency for exchanging knowledge providing
  knowledge communities with grants for
  workshops, research or other collective projects.
  For this to occur, knowledge sharing and
  networking must be made one of the major RCA
  competency categories, addressed in the staff and
  management scorecards, and as a development
  activity in the learning plan.
• Unit Management Results Framework indicators
  that reward knowledge codification as well as
  knowledge sharing.

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• Staff/Policy Alignment (Continued)
• S4. Communication Strategy
• A cultural barrier to knowledge management exists
  for many staff members in UNDP and this is
  possibly the largest obstacle to corporate
  development in this area. Each and every staff
  member across UNDP needs to recognise the value
  that knowledge can have to their everyday work
  and the core business of the organisation. In
  order for this to be made possible, senior
  management needs to set an example by
  prioritising tasks that relate to the acquisition
  and publication of knowledge. This will involve
  an element of risk taking, moving away from the
  traditional project management approach. Possible
  specific actions to help change the mindset
  include KM has to be seen as high on UNDPs
  priority list. This initiative is to produce
  such a message, both internally and externally.
  Potential components of this initiative include
• Regular messages from Regional Bureaux Directors
  to staff encouraging them to share knowledge as
  well as monitoring and reminding staff to tap
  into resources in the Knowledge Repository.
• COA should prepare an aggressive communications
  strategy, featuring UNDP KM project as a new and
  exciting approach to development cooperation,
  which promises to change the way the world
  perceives UNDP.
• DRM should actively solicit donor resources to
  help build the internal architecture needed for
  example, funding the full-time learning
  manager/knowledge manager in each country office.
• OBR should pursue the reconceptualization of
  UNDP staff resources on the Practice Specialist
  career track as chargeable against Programme
  budgets, drawing on the GCF as the precedent.
• Finally, the above knowledge management strategy
  needs to be supported by a comprehensive external
  communications strategy, featuring UNDPs
  knowledge services as a new and exciting approach
  to development cooperation, which promises to the
  change the way the world perceives UNDP.
• S5. Competency Directory
• This initiative covers the development of a
  competency database for UNDP staff. It also
  includes the development of a referral tracking
  system.
• Primary Phase 0 Staff/Policy Alignment
  Deliverable

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Networks and Communities Overall objective To
build and support communities of interest and
communities of practice N1. In-Country
Networks This initiative covers the creation by
CO staff of in-country knowledge networks,
comprised of project staff and practitioners in
the development community and in Government.
Whenever a committee, a working group, or a
professional association is established, UNDP can
play the role of facilitator by creating a
network through a mailgroup (using the local
language where appropriate.) The UNDP staff
member acts as a bridge between the global
knowledge networks and the in-country networks
adding value to the knowledge product. N2.
Communities of Practice Re-organization This
initiative covers the re-organization of existing
communities of practice/ knowledge networks with
the aim of rationalizing the number of- and
improving the quality of the Knowledge networks
to allow for more effective, efficient knowledge
sharing. Guidelines and policies/procedures will
be finalized and then systematically introduced.
Compliance to the guidelines will be assured by
making this part of the task of Knowledge Network
Facilitators, and incorporated into an agreement
when individual staff members subscribe to a
network. N3. Cross-cutting Communities This
initiative covers the development of ad-hoc
communities of practice and communities of
interest, outside of the established practice
delimitations. N4. UN Knowledge Network A large
component of the project knowledge sharing to
support the achievement of the MDGs involves
establishing communities of practice with UN
sister agencies. Agreements will be reached with
interested agencies to apply the approach
developed by UNDP, offering them access to
facilitation resources, and to the network and
codification processes developed or under
preparation. Communities will be encouraged to
link their agendas to a global UN knowledge
Services approach. Non-resident UN Agencies will
be urged to work more closely with SURFs as a way
to link their support services with country
support. Linkages with professional communities
will be expanded for research, consulting support
or professional development. This initiative
covers the definition of a strategy for linking
UNDP into a UN-wide Knowledge Network. N5.
Global Expert Networks UNDP professionals should
join (or initiate, where they dont exist) expert
external networks in the field of their
professional expertise e.g. with UN System
agencies, other donor agencies, the NGO
community, research organisations, think-tanks,
academic institutions and professional
associations. These networks would be a source
of talent for UNDPs own policy support services,
and would promote information sharing among
professional peers, increasing the total
knowledge about what works and what doesnt in
development. This initiative covers the
definition of a strategy for linking UNDP into a
large Development Knowledge Network. Primary
Phase 0 Networks and Communities
Deliverable Communities guidelines, policies and
procedures. White paper of UN/Global Expert
Network collaboration possibilities.

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Infrastructure Overall objective To ensure a
UNDP-wide enabling infrastructure is in
place I1. KM Learning Program This initiative
covers the development of a KM training
curriculum, using wherever possible an action
learning and review approach. I2.
Operations/Maintenance Strategy This initiative
covers the definition and deployment of UNDPs
ongoing KM operations. I3. Infrastructure
Upgrade This initiative covers the definition
and upgrade of UNDPs infrastructure (including
CO connectivity), if needed, to support KM
applications. Primary Phase 0
Infrastructure Deliverable Definition of
UNDPs KM-related maintenance/operations needs.
Preliminary analysis of UNDPs infrastructure
upgrade requirements, if any.