When consultants talk about KM or propose a solution for organizations to improve profit margin by practicing KM correctly, the whole vision of the activities laid up for all staff to participate scares top management away. This is what I have encountered last year, for all KM practitioners who have the same experience, do buckle up your seat belt. 
Top: I want you to help us to improve our HR, we have been spending too much on training teambuilding and yet, we received more numbers of complaints than increasing profit margin.
Consultant: I see,… well sir, when you send your staff to training, what do you have in mind?
Top: What do you mean?
Consultant: Well, some organization sent their staff to training to comply with ISO, some because they have contributed to the Human Resource Dev. Fund, some just want to send their staff for holidays. (smile sarcastically) But some organizations really send their staff to learn to do a better job. Whats your take?
Top: All the above i guess.. hahahaha.. But you see, i dont think that what my staff need to learn , cannot be learnt from their seniors or from other staff. I mean, this is our business.. outsiders should not know more than the insiders. Correct me if i’m wrong.
Consultant (smiling) : Yes sir, so when you send your staff away to attend training and seminars alike, you dont expect them to become better?
Top : At first yes, but we have been doing business for 20 years.. the only person who can ‘think’ is me. We spent hundred of thousands for them but they never realized any of the ROI.
Consultant (smiling) : I see… i see.. But they did complain more? Correct?
Top : yeahhhh.. you can see this employee feedback form for yourself. (handing over a stack of forms full of grievance)
Consultant : What do your office do with this data?
Top : welll… i can go crazy reading and minding these complaints.. i just put it a side..
Consultant : But sir, if your staff have not gotten any better than before you develop them, do you think they will know this much to complain?
Top : What do you mean?
Consultant : Human can only react after being stimulated, they only know things are not right when they learn and able to make comparison. And, if we do not provide the right channel for them to improvise status quo, we will demotivate them even more than before we sent them to training.
Top : this channel and platform you are talking about.. you mean that we have to put more money for them to complain?
Consultant : some organization call this knowledge management. but really, knowledge management is much bigger than that. All complains shall be turned around as suggestion for improvement and all customers feedback can be used as an input for product innovation. Subject matter experts in your organization can share their knowledge and train the juniors..
Top : Yes, but i only pay them to do their work. Run the machine and shut up.
Consultant : ah..(softly)… ok…
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So KM believers.. Good Luck for us!
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