Knowledge Management at

Infosys and UnisysA comparison

by

Nikesh. N

Company background: Infosys

Infosysconsulting and software services organization

headquartered in BangaloreFounded in 19811, 00,000 employees in over 50 offices worldwide.

UnisysGlobal IT services and solution companyServes primarily in six verticals like financial services,

public sector, communications, transportation, commercial and media. Also manufactures high end servers

37000 + employees to serve the clients of more than 100+ countries

KM initiatives at Infosys

Education and Research Department in the year 1991

A fully fledged KM program began in 1999 with the launch of Kshop

Important features Learn once, use any where KM maturity model Incentive scheme- Knowledge currency unit.

KM initiatives at Unisys

centrally lead but de-centrally energized initiative

A formal initiative was launched in August of 2000

special focus on 11 critical success factors Architecturally, this is facilitated via the

knowledge.NET portal ‘Ask Knowledge’- NET expertise location management application.

More than 75 communities of knowledge are operational.

Analysis and Comparison of Knowledge Management framework at Infosys & Unisys

Both Infosys and Unisys are having units all over the world, and thousands of employees from different countries and cultures are working

Both companies have developed robust Knowledge Management system for taping both explicit and tacit knowledge needed to full-fill their business objectives and smooth flow of information within the organization and from outside environment.

Implementation strategies adopted by the two organizations are different in some aspects and similar in some other aspects.

KKMM CChhaarraacctteerriissttiiccss

Infosys Unisys

AAiimm To move towards a "Learn Once, Use Anywhere" paradigm.

To set up a system that defines the process,

tools and behaviors needed to deliver the right

content, in the right context, to the right people

at the right time.

OObbjjeeccttiivveess i. To minimise the efforts dissipated in redoing learning that has already happened elsewhere, and ii. Ensuring that Infosys employees (Infoscions) in contact with the customer have the collective and organised knowledge of the Infosys with them.

i. Transform the workforce to one that

capitalizes on business opportunities at every

turn.

II. Leverage experience

Leverage expertise

Hire & retain the best people

Unify the company

Develop organizational agility

Accelerate marketplace delivery

Enhance image of the company

Enhance stock valuation

GGooaall Delivering all organisational learning to benefit the customer.

Transform the way individuals in the

organization leverage knowledge assets to

support the fast action, optimal decisions and

innovation needed to drive customer value

SSttrraatteeggyy Knowledge Management Maturity Model. KMM- Knowledge Management Maturity Model is based on the realisation that path to achieve KM success involves significant changes: a. In the working culture, b. In the Processes of the organisation, and c. System in the organisation. ii. Instead of taking one giant leap a staged frame work is done under progressive development. The most well established model available today to/ for managing changes in phased manner is Software Engineering Institute's (SEI Carnegie Mellon Institute) Capability Maturity Model (CMM). iii. Further the purpose of KMM Model is twofold: a. To provide framework, this can be used to assess current level of KM maturity, b. To act as a mechanism to focus, and help prioritize, efforts to raise the level of KM maturity.

Based on critical Success factors identified.

They are

1. Align K M goals to the corporate strategy

2. Build the technology infrastructure to

support KM

3. Focus on strategic knowledge

communities

4. Establish a multi-dimensional framework

linking communities to the business

5. Approach KM as a holistic business

system

6. Establish community goals that align

business and member drivers

7. Integrate KM processes to business

process

8. Recognize that KM is a process, not a

project

9. Establish metrics and a performance

management process

10. Institutionalize KM to ensure that it is

sustainable.

They have strategized these initiatives through

centrally lead, but de-centrally energised

framework.

Comparison based on 8Cs frame work

Infosys Unisys

CCoonnnneeccttiivviittyy Sparsh- The Intranet – (CIP) The Central Information Portal. . ii. It forms the central information portal. iii. It consists of 5000 nodes: a. Spread across India-Based Development Centres/DCs b. USA based marketing office. Other technologies like video conferencing, wireless connectivity etc. are also established to foster better communication.

A suite of enabling technologies is being

employed for collaboration and connectivity.

The main focal point is Enterprise knowledge

portal (Knowledge. Net). For knowledge

community members, knowledge.Net provides

a workspace where documents and other work

products can be stored, reused and most

importantly shared among fellow community

members. The enterprise portal is

complemented by other collaboration

technologies like teleconferencing, bulletin

boards, calendars and tools like place ware and

NetMeeing.

Infosys Unisys

CCoonntteenntt Eighteen different content types have been identified such as case studies, white papers, book reviews and product reviews, Frequently Asked questions, and event materials etc.

For easy retrieval, each document is tagged by one or more paths though knowledge level hierarchy.

Each document is also associated with composite Knowledge Currency Unit rating awarded by subject matter expert

Knowledge created posted by individual employees is also earning KCU when they get used.

The central point of content creation,

storage and dissemination is through

Knowledge.Net

. Knowledge communities within Unisys

use knowledge.Net as platform to share

their views and ideas across all countries

and units.

Another significant thing is Ask

knowledge.NET which is an expert

location management application which

makes tacit knowledge retrievable

usable and reusable. It does this by

making someone’s tacit knowledge

accessible to others via enabling

collaboration.

Ask knowledge.Net integrates with

knowledge. Net’s search and portal

technology

Unisys also established some

asynchronous systems like Bulletin

board system, Unisys Forums etc. To

foster collaboration.

CCuullttuurree The aim of KM initiative in Infosys is to move towards a culture where knowledge sharing is built into the organizational fabric. Creating such a culture of sharing is governed by principles that have much in common with Metcalfe’s Law - as more people grow convinced of the benefits of participating in the knowledge-sharing movement; it becomes easier to convince more people to buy in. Infosys adopted a judicious mix of motivation, facilitation and awareness mechanism to develop a knowledge culture within the organization across all units.

KM system attempt to make a positive cultural

change through communities and not through

any specifically named programs like ‘cultural

change’ or behavioural change’. Special

programs may create a feeling among

employees that they are forced for a change.

Instead, Community Operations Team in

looking at their community outcomes to

identify who is critical to achievement of an

outcome and then how their behaviour or the

behaviour of their manager, department head or

people they are dependent upon will affect their

ability to achieve the outcome.

Infosys Unisys

CCaappaacciittyy Infosys management decided to locate the KM team in its Education & Research (E&R) group of Infosys corporate University to enable the team to enforce changes in the organization as a whole, they bolstered the KM team's influence by giving it a high-level steering committee that included many members of the board of directors and several other heads of business units.

To educate people on the KM values and the

importance of KM to the company, various

programmes are being conducted. KM@unisys

is introductory e-learning course currently

available though Unisys University which can

introduce Unisys employees to the value the

company places on KM, the investment being

made in building a KM infrastructure, an

individual’s personal responsibility to help

growing Unisys knowledge assets and the

required behaviours for KM to work. Another

programme is Leadership at Unisys.

Infosys Unisys

CCooooppeerraattiioonn

Infosys collaborates and shares its knowledge with Academia and other partners. Its campus connect programs act as forum. Some of the best practices of Infosys may be shared with educational institutions and also aligning the needs of colleges, its students, faculties with those of the IT industry. Infosys has set up collaborations with many institutes to upgrade their employees in different domains. It also has set up many in house programs too.

Through Unisys collaborative extranet, system

is sharing the knowledge with its clients,

employees and business partners. Extranet team

rooms act as the central point for

Collaboration, Discussion, Content

Management Content Development, Content

Sharing, Content Distribution, Auto Alerting

and Access Control. Unisys is having an

industry partner’s portal where consumer

oriented industry news and solution portfolio,

who is who and client details and engagement

etc are available.

CCoommmmeerrccee

Devised Knowledge Currency Units (KCUs) whereby employees can award points to knowledge assets posted by their colleagues, and can award points to knowledge assets posted by their colleagues, and can also earn points when their own posted knowledge assets are utilized or ranked by their colleagues. These can be encashed in to gifts at a local e-tailer.

Unisys introduces different reward programs.

Achievement awards for excellence are meant

for individuals or teams who achieve

outstanding technical or professional results.

Short term achievement awards are meant to

provide immediate recognition for outstanding

contributions to a job related goal within a

workgroup. Unisys treats KM

behaviour/contribution as a part of measurable

objective in an employee’s performance plan.

CCaappiittaall Infosys highly values the importance of Knowledge Management and it believes in incremental modelling. Management is providing adequate financial support to Knowledge Management department and its activities. Latest figure could not be gathered as it is not published in the net.

Unisys treats Knowledge Management

activities as utmost important for the

organization and invest adequate amount for the

activities. Exact amount could not be collected

as it is not published in the web.

BBeenneeffiittss Profit improvement and making money through information. Increase in share value in India and abroad/ Wiser Infoscions through continuous Human Resource Development, Lean Production through enrichment in system, process and technological standardisation, vii. Achievement of CMM, KMM, ISO, PCMM, IIIE technology and human resources benchmarks. i. Standardised knowledge acquisition procedure, ii. Standardised knowledge development process, iii. Infosys has knowledge encyclopaedia on all the relevant subjects, iv. High amount of knowledge sharing, v. Knowledgeable and Wise Infoscions are long term asset for Infosys, Wise Infoscions is the term used for the individual and common wisdom of Infosys employees and employers, vi. Improved Infosys brand name, as it provides end-to-end solutions to its clients, vii. Employee involvement and organisation belongingness among them, viii. Better interpersonal excellence among all Infoscions/ Infosys stakeholders. ix. Talent retentions through employee job satisfaction. x. Continuous improvement in the customer satisfaction. xi. Infosys is able to beat the competitors with riding high on the KM instead of business intelligence.

The knowledge community concept accepted at

Unisys takes a holistic approach to KM

100 % services employees with KM

performance objectives.

100% six sigma lean projects managed with

share point /project server

36,000 + share point users

11,600 + employees are using their

personalized my sites for communication

14,000 + site collections are created.

1110 collaboration team rooms

70 + officially charted knowledge communities

200 + executives tracks Sharepoint for

opportunities

More than 3,600 3D-VE solution blue print

asset captured

AAwwaarrddss Winner of MAKE (Most Admirable Knowledge Enterprise) award from the year 2003 onwards. In 2009 also Infosys is selected for Asian MAKE award. In the year 2005, Infosys has been included in the hall of fame list of MAKE.

Unisys knowledge portal has got DCI/DM

Review Portal Excellence Award in 2005 and

20th Annual CIO 100 Awards of CIO Magazine

in 2007.

Findings

Key features of KM frame work in Infosys are as follows

1. A K M team in the learning Unit2. Decentralized Architecture3. Incremental Scope4. Content first, then collaboration5. Voluntary participation6. An in-house solution

Key feature of KM frame work at Unisys

1. Centrally lead, but decentrally energized initiative

2. Based on critical success factors identified3. Knowledge communities are initiated by an

expert committee appointed by the Management

4. KM@Unisys ( an introductory course ) by Unisys University

KM system: similarities

Similarities1. Vision and Objectives aims for customer

satisfaction2. Adequate technology backups & 24 x 7

access to all3. Measures to build Knowledge culture and

capacity4. Introductory courses5. Cooperation with outside world like

academic communities

Contrasts

StrategyInfosys follows KMM- Knowledge Management Maturity Model Unisys identified some critical success factors to be followed

for the building of KM system. They have strategized these initiatives through centrally lead, but de-centrally energised framework.

Knowledge communities Infosys allows making of communities by interested group

employees But in Unisys, communities are centrally formed by expert group

specifically set up for this purpose. 70 + officially chartered knowledge communities are set up.

Conclusion

Both Infosys and Unisys have recognized the importance of proper Knowledge Management System and implemented using proper strategies suitable for their environment.

From the survey results it is evident that almost all employees of the both organization have understood the value of KM to the organization and the individuals.

Both companies have won international awards for setting up and running efficient KM system in respective companies.

Both companies are trying to incorporate latest trend in KM research and development by setting up separate KM research team in respective companies.

References

http://www.icmrindia.org/casestudies/catalogue/IT%20and%20Systems/ITSY055.htm ( (Infosys Knowledge Management Initiatives )

www.indianmba.com/Faculty_Column/FC724/fc724.html (Pedagogies of Knowledge Management at Infosys)

http://www.iirusa.com/upload/wysiwyg/M1947/Online%20Docs/IIR_M947_Rehmet.pdf (Unisys frame work for Knowledge Management)