Using Knowledge Management to Prevent Bottlenecks and Disrupted Operations – A Case Study

The extent to which a company makes use of the collective insights and expertise that it accumulates over time—what we refer to as institutional knowledge—can significantly impact operational performance. When successfully captured and made easily accessible to employees (and to machines and the systems we work with), institutional knowledge can propel efficient and effective processes, enabling the company to function like a well-oiled machine. However, when institutional knowledge is poorly managed, bottlenecks and disrupted operations inevitably emerge. These disruptions typically stem from two primary flaws. First, companies may fail to capture knowledge entirely, leaving it trapped in the minds of individual employees.