Proceedings of the 12th European Conference on Knowledge ...

4. Case studies
4.1 Eni
Ettore Bolisani, Francesca Gambarotto and Enrico Scarso
Eni is an oil multinational with more than 70,000 people in 70 countries. The business includes
several activities from exploration <strong>of</strong> reserves to refinery, distribution, and accessory services. This
implies a variety <strong>of</strong> activities and pr<strong>of</strong>essional skills and competencies: technical, economicmanagerial,
legal, and political skills. Eni’s business combines routines (day-by-day extraction <strong>of</strong> oil
from a well) that call for efficiency and standardization, with project-based activities (discovery <strong>of</strong> a
new reserve, or implementation <strong>of</strong> a new production site), where <strong>the</strong> research for new solutions is
<strong>of</strong>ten required. The Exploration and Production (E&P) Division (where <strong>the</strong> KM programme started)
deals with <strong>the</strong> search for new reserves and <strong>the</strong> production <strong>of</strong> oil. These risky and capital intensive
activities, characterised by long cycle time and leading-edge technology, imply several KM
challenges:
different competences have to be combined in any new project. To do this numerous “islands” <strong>of</strong>
specific knowledge must be connected;
efficiency and innovativeness must be balanced. Even when new projects differ from <strong>the</strong> old
ones, <strong>the</strong>y always call for past knowledge as well;
employees are <strong>of</strong> different nationalities. Cultural richness is a value, but hinders <strong>the</strong> effective
sharing <strong>of</strong> knowledge;
despite <strong>the</strong> increasing use <strong>of</strong> scientific methods and ICT applications, pr<strong>of</strong>essional experience is
still essential for interpreting uncertain data and taking decisions;
project life cycle extends over decades. To deal with retiring workforce, it is needed to capture <strong>the</strong>
people’s experience and avoid <strong>the</strong> impoverishment <strong>of</strong> company’s knowledge.
In light <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se challenges, Eni started a CoP-based KM programme aimed to:
create an environment that facilitates knowledge exchanges between operating lines and
experienced pr<strong>of</strong>essionals;
capture individual experience and transform it in established company assets;
increase interactions among different pr<strong>of</strong>essional groups.
The pilot project started in 2004, and by 2005 <strong>the</strong> system had covered 90% <strong>of</strong> subsidiaries. Initial
investments amounted to 5 Million €. Training involved 1,900 pr<strong>of</strong>essionals for a total <strong>of</strong> 450 meeting
hours, for illustrating potential benefits for both <strong>the</strong> company and <strong>the</strong> employees. Initially, five CoPs
were created, each one focusing on a core activity. O<strong>the</strong>r six communities have been established
next, and later five more.
The CoP system was designed to support <strong>the</strong> company’s “knowledge cycle”. CoPs are made around
“experts” having decades <strong>of</strong> service, who are <strong>the</strong> main source <strong>of</strong> knowledge and <strong>of</strong>fer solutions to <strong>the</strong>
problems encountered by line pr<strong>of</strong>essionals operating “on <strong>the</strong> ground”. The qualification <strong>of</strong> expert is
assigned on request, based on a “peer assessment” by colleagues. Currently, experts <strong>of</strong> a CoP are
between 10 and 40, are geographically dispersed, and are trained specifically for KM. There is no
rigid hierarchy, so everybody can contribute with a “good idea”. To speed up operations and avoid
“anarchy”, a Facilitator was designated with <strong>the</strong> task to improve relationships among experts and <strong>the</strong>
o<strong>the</strong>r members, and to connect a CoP with <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs. Facilitators also monitor <strong>the</strong> respect <strong>of</strong>
participation rules, and <strong>the</strong> response time to a request <strong>of</strong> advice. CoPs are assisted by an Enabling
Team, directed by a Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO). CKO, Enabling Team and communities are
supported by a KM Team, who specialise in communication and ICT: <strong>the</strong>y run a Web Portal, manage
document repositories, organise meetings and training sessions, etc.
To facilitate <strong>the</strong> acceptance by <strong>the</strong> formal organisation, a non-invasive structure was chosen. All KM
roles were defined formally, but not included in <strong>the</strong> organizational chart. They overlap existing
organisational levels. Due to <strong>the</strong> transverseness <strong>of</strong> CoPs and <strong>the</strong> intrinsically “intangible” nature <strong>of</strong>
<strong>the</strong>ir activities, flexible membership and voluntary participation is allowed. CKO and his collaborators
compound <strong>the</strong> only staff completely assigned to KM, while CoPs’ members continue to carry out <strong>the</strong>ir
“business as usual”. Their roles and hierarchical dependency are established by <strong>the</strong> conventional
chart, but for KM <strong>the</strong>y refer to a different and self-governed structure. CoP experts can devote up to
10% <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir working time to KM activities, during which <strong>the</strong>y respond to <strong>the</strong> Enabling Team. Each
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