Knowledge management is, in its most simplistic form, “knowing what you know.” But it really isn’t all that simple. Knowledge management gurus, such as Tom Stewart, Karl-Eric Sveiby, and Thomas Davenport, have written books and papers about how to best capture, share, value, and use knowledge in an organization. Setting up the structures and providing education to facilitate knowledge flow in companies can be a lengthy and costly process, and benefits are hard to measure.
But what can be done to derive tangible value from in-house knowledge? How does a company protect its know-how, use it as a competitive advantage, and disallow other competitors from discovering and tapping that valuable asset? Intellectual property (IP) can be used as a vehicle to secure the rights of a company’s powerful innovations.
Our clients ask:
- How does knowledge management relate to IP?
- Can we protect valuable company knowledge from leaving with departing employees?
- How can we increase ROI by using our know-how?
- What ways can we use to extract and capture knowledge effectively in our organization?
There is a definite connection between knowledge management and IP. Company employees are the creative force that generates the knowledge that can be mined for possible IP.
- Extracting ideas from key employees, through invention scanning, to ensure that knowledge is not only inventoried, but also assessed for potential protection through IP.
- Designing intellectual asset management processes that include trade secret protection measures, so that valued knowledge remains in the company, even when employees leave the company.
- Facilitating an ipStrategy® to help align the business with the IP that is, or could be, developed.
- Educating employees and managers, through invention courseware, about the leverage to be gained from IP.
Companies that devote time and resources to knowledge management should also document and protect their valuable information and hard-fought business advantage. Connect knowledge management with IP management to create a powerful and protected engine for your business.
To obtain more information or discuss your unique challenges please contact us.
