Capturing tacit knowledge across different domains: Knowledge Community (K-Comm)

Capturing tacit knowledge is one of the major challenges faced by Knowledge Management Systems (KMS). Most such systems try to capture employee knowledge pertaining to a specific domain of organisational interest. However, every employee has much more to contribute apart from knowledge in a particular area. The sum total of his/her skills, interests and experiences make for rich knowledge. Our research focuses on maximising the knowledge potential of every employee across different domains. We have developed a system to identify an individual's knowledge areas, based on his/her strengths, experiences and passion. It will enable an individual to contribute and share knowledge with other individuals. When applied to the organisation, it should help increase the span of knowledge areas reachable by KMS, and make them more effective. We move from a scenario where there are few experts towards one where everyone is an expert, and has something to share.