Knowledge audit is a systematic examination and evaluation of organizational knowledge health, which examines organization’s knowledge needs, existing knowledge assets/resources, knowledge flows, future knowledge needs, knowledge gap analysis as well as the behavior of people in sharing and creating knowledge. In one way, a knowledge audit can reveal an organization’s knowledge strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats and risks.

In order to transform an organization into a learning organization and ensure an effective knowledge management strategy, a knowledge audit should be conducted, which will provide a current state of knowledge capability of the organization and a direction of where and how to improve that capability in order to be competitive in this fast changing knowledge era.

2.0 Objectives of Knowledge Audit:

1. K-audit helps an organization to clearly identify what knowledge is needed to support overall organizational goals and individual and team activities.

2. It gives tangible evidence of the extent to which knowledge is being effectively managed and indicates where improvements are needed.

3. It explains how knowledge moves around in, and is used by, that organization.

4. It provides a map of what knowledge exists in the organization and where it exists, revealing both gaps and duplication.

5. It provides an inventory of knowledge assets, allowing them to become more visible and therefore more measurable and accountable.

6. It provides vital information for the development of effective knowledge management programmes and initiatives that are directly relevant to the organization’s specific knowledge needs and current situation.

7. It helps in leveraging customer knowledge.

3.0 Components of a Knowledge Audit

A Knowledge audit can have the following components (not necessarily need to be in order):

A. Knowledge need analysis
B. Knowledge inventory analysis
C. Knowledge Flow analysis
D. Knowledge mapping

A. Knowledge Needs Analysis (K-Needs Analysis)
The major goal of this task is to identify precisely what knowledge the organization, its people and team possess currently and what knowledge they would require in the future in order to meet their objectives and goals.

Knowledge need analysis can help any organization to develop its future strategy.

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