Knowledge Management is seen by some as just one more trendy business idea that has not quite lived up to its promise. What KM is actually about seems not entirely clear, and of those I have spoken to there are some rather diverse perspectives.

According to a recent article by Martin White in EContentMag.com, who borrows his title from elsewhere, Knowledge Management involves neither knowledge nor management. Any administrator of an academic organisation could tell about the difficulty of managing those that create, share, and convey knowledge. At best, management can administrate the context in which knowledge is created, and therefore act as a facilitator. But knowledge is personal and complex. It is not a commodity that can be organised and controlled according to strict rules.

Should we then eschew the term KM in favour of Knowledge Exchange, or KE, as suggested by Martin White? "Exchange" of knowledge certainly points toward the voluntary, personal, and networking nature of knowledge. But we are also concerned with the creation of knowledge, and with maintaining a context in which knowledge can flourish. And further than this, in the business context, the focus is clearly on improved company performance.

Whatever we call it, the knowledge dimension of productive work is closely related to the culture, values, and mission of a particular organisation. The latter are not managed! They are fostered, cultivated, developed. They are as vital a component for success as aspects of a business that can be managed.

My suggestion is that we talk of attending to the knowledge dimension, and reserve management to information and resources that form part of the knowledge enabling infrastructure. Perhaps the technology should be referred to as KSM, Knowledge Support Management.

KSM on its own, as many have proven over the last few years, does not in and of itself bring any improvement to business success. Cultivating the knowledge dimension is not a quantifiable process. But, as with culture, values, and mission, the organisations that stand out are those that have got it right.