Organizational Development for Knowledge Management at Water ...

the use of stories and storytelling. See the Department of the Navy case study The DON Moves
into the Knowledge World and the MQI paper From Stories to Strategy.
An important part of the change approach in KM is to overcome barriers before they become
barriers. One approach is to use a team or community to identify potential barriers, then
brainstorming ways to remove these barriers or negate their impact on the success of the KM
strategy or initiative being planned. In Case Example #22 managing unexpected threats is part
of the High Reliability Organizing (HRO) approach used by the US Forest Service. The Fahen-
Prusak article titled The Eleven Deadliest Sins of Knowledge Management draws attention to a
set of pervasive errors when implementing KM strategies and initiatives. Focusing on barriers in
drinking water utilities, participants were asked in the WaterRF 4003 survey, “What are the
barriers in your organization to implementing new initiatives?” Responses from over 200
drinking water utilities are included as 4003 White Paper #3.
Equally important is to identify and recognize what is working well. Built on the precept that
what we focus on becomes our reality, the Appreciative Inquiry approach helps empower the
workforce and facilitate receptivity to new ideas.
The Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources built in a robust community
engagement strategy to ensure stakeholder support of their NEWater project. See the
Singapore Case Study. Other ideas for involving stakeholders are included under community
outreach, media productions and stakeholder engagement.
MOVE ON TO EXECUTING
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