Improvement Service

Knowledge management (KM) is about building and using organisational intelligence to improve performance. Collectively councils have the knowledge to support ongoing improvement across the whole sector. KM helps people tap into this knowledge. It gives people the tools to improve the way they capture, share, re-use and adapt knowledge. It reveals what works and helps people build on experience to ensure better practice, strategy and policy. A resource designed to help local authorities improve their knowledge management has been launched by the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA).

The online resource includes an introduction to knowledge management (KM), which outlines its component parts and explains the benefits of knowledge management to local government; a KM library of tools, techniques and case studies; and advice on putting together a KM strategy for your organisation covering areas such as where to start, key KM activities and setting KM objectives for staff. The resource can be accessed via the IDeA website at http://www.idea.gov.uk/idk/core/page.do?pageId=8152457

An interview with the IDeA's Head of Knowledge and Learning further explains why local government should embrace knowledge management.

The Improvement Service has also published its KM strategy for 2007-2011, setting out our focus on helping to increase and improve knowledge sharing across Scottish local government. Our aim is to foster an environment that encourages knowledge to be created, captured, shared, learnt and exploited for the benefit of all of local government, its partners and its customers. The document, which is an update to the 2005 strategy, outlines the drivers and vision which underpin our commitment to this way of working and the approaches we will use to achieve this vision.

The KM strategy can be downloaded from this site. Further KM resources and information about IS work in this area can be found in the KM document library .