Although 20 years might seem like a long time, it seems like only yesterday that we began to study and develop the field of Knowledge Management in Israel.
Nevertheless, it is true that a 20th anniversary is a milestone and an opportunity to stop and reflect on our progress. These 20 years have seen not only the development of ROM Knowledgeware from a one-woman organization to its current state; it is the story of Knowledge Management in both local and global terms, since the development of ROM and the Israeli KM community are intertwined, as I hope that they will always be.
When we began 20 years ago, there simply weren’t any methodologies. I remember attending my first technology show in Las Vegas, participating in a break-out session dedicated to Knowledge Management. I tried to get the speaker, a senior at one of the big five leading KM in the world, to answer a simple question: what methodology do you implement and recommend? While he began his answer by referring to Nonaka's SECI model, he finally admitted that he approaches clients with a pen and pad coupled with some common sense.
I returned to Israel and developed my first methodology that states that every KM solution considers three aspects: culture, process and technology; content was added later. As time went by, we added methodologies as well as ideas for solutions, such as proposing a first professional portal for Comverse and a unique software tool for managing lessons learned and incorporating them into the MS Office environment. At that time when these platforms were suggested- they were innovational. Intranets, for example, were used for exclusively organizational purposes. So was managing lessons in an entire lifecycle that exceeds the lesson learning component.
Rom has developed along with the global KM scene. We have come a long way and I can proudly claim that while Israel is one of many countries involved in this phenomenon, it is a leading figure in more than one aspect of it. We were the first country to offer high school students an extended curriculum on Digital Information Disclosure with a substantial segment on Knowledge Management, complete with finals (equivalent of the American Regents system). We were the first to dedicate a session in the Israeli parliament on Knowledge Management (12/12/16). We have published three volumes describing the KM activities taking place in Israel, a unique project in itself. The fourth volume, as well as a translated compilation, are in progress. Furthermore, we are the initiators and significant members of the ISO KM Standard development committee, which is undoubtedly a prominent subject in any review of Knowledge Management in 2018.
We have accomplished a great deal, and still there remains a great deal to be accomplished. It is very satisfying to realize that the term 'Knowledge Management' is not foreign to organizations; however, much can be improved.
Before we go on with our important business, it is vital we stop and celebrate this 20th anniversary. Milestones are not only a time for reflection, they are also an opportunity to express gratitude. ROM will be celebrating this event in several forums. The workers and their families will spend a full day at a hotel celebrating, thanking the workers for their work over the years. We will also be holding a series of learning sessions along the year on various topics of Knowledge Management. Past, present and future customers can attend a session for free.
We also chose to dedicate this special edition of 2Know magazine to the meaning of Knowledge Management and its implementation as experienced by ROM workers. This serves as a testament to our belief that Knowledge Management is not merely a job, it is a calling. It is a calling that we all share.
Here's to 20 more years (at least…) of shared success!
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