Who needs the 'knowledge' bit?
Now 35 years ago you basically designed it, made it, sold it and then invoiced. Quality, customer care and people development were regarded as costs. If you had a leg of lamb on a butchers slab in 1973, 80% of the cost would be in the raw materials and labour. In 2008 if you buy a Marks and Spencer precooked, frozen, lamb mousaka, 80% of the cost is in the intellectual capital behind the product, packaging, marketing and other 'knowledge' artifacts.All businesses are competing in a knowledge world whether they like it or not. However you cannot develop and sustain competitive advantage on products alone because they will always be copied by competitors. You cannot do it on technology because competitors will copy that. Explicit knowledge is no use because that can be downloaded. It is unique tacit knowledge that is the basis for developing and sustaining competitive advantage and that lives in people's heads. People only share and develop that knowledge with others when there is clarity of direction and high trust. Only then do you get great performance, relationships where one and one makes three or even four. Just as in a committed personal relationship.
I'm in six companies, morning, noon and night on Monday and Tuesday and all I am doing is applying elements of this model in six Board Rooms. They are all grappling with the sheer speed of change, the change of circumstances, and I am helping them to develop great relationships, because that is how you get great company performance in a knowledge world.
posted by Tim @ 1:11 AM
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