start in KM if you are a law firm leader

1. Read up on KM theory and take training courses and advice from experts, but …
2. Look to your own business’s problems – no KM for its own sake, focus on the business problems which need solving.
3. Understand what knowledge is critical to your organisation and focus your efforts on the knowledge which gives you a competitive advantage.
4. Focus on breaking barriers to knowledge sharing – most lawyers gain intrinsic value from sharing their knowledge and will share if the barriers are removed.
5. Measure the changes which result from key KM projects – balance quantitative, qualitative, leading and lagging measures in order to minimise the risk of gaming.

To learn more about the basics of KM for law firms, join Helene Russell, author of the Law Society’s “KM Handbook”, in London on 2nd October for “KM: The Works”, a day’s training in KM and strategy.