The Role of the Chief Knowledge Officer at Xerox

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A new vocation has developed within corporations that drastically impacts the way companies manage their information and internal knowledge. This position has many titles, but most commonly is referred to as the CKO, the chief knowledge officer. The responsibilities of this position primarily focus on managing unstructured information and internal knowledge. Xerox refers to this raw data as assets, or more formally, “intellectual capital,” “knowledge assets,” or “intangible assets.” Because knowledge management is considered a tactical occupation, Xerox considers the CKO a part of the upper management team. An effective CKO should be able to create an alignment with unambiguous knowledge and culture within a company (Leibowitz, 2002).

As the knowledge management evolution began to catch on during the 1990s, companies began to view the chief knowledge officer position as a way of expanding their organizations. The CKO position has since progressed, and while some companies are committed to the notion, others are questioning whether the CKO model is appropriate for their needs and have adapated similar leadership archetypes (Lelic, 2005).

Committing to a knowledge management program, Xerox had several items to consider. The company evaluated the needs and interests of its consumers and its market interests to determine the consequences it may have on the company outcomes. Xerox created 10 domains, which came from studies performed at other businesses. The domains they formed are: “sharing best practices and knowledge, instilling responsibility for knowledge sharing, capturing and reusing past experiences, embedding knowledge in products, services, and processes, producing knowledge as a product, driving knowledge gener...

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Leibowitz, J. (2002). The role of the chief knowledge officer in organisations. Research and Practice in Human Resource Management, 10(2), 2-15. Retrieved from http://rphrm.curtin.edu/au/2002/issue2/knowledge.html.

Lelic, S. (2005, March 14). Death of a CKO: The evolving nature of knowledge leadership. Inside Knowledge, 8(6). Retrieved from http://www.ikmagazine.com/xq/asp/txtSearch.competitive+intelligence/exactphrase.1/sid.0/articleid.36D7D686-9610-423E-85FE-32BD83395274/qx/display.htm.

Powers, V. J. (1999). Xerox creates a knowledge-sharing culture through grassroots efforts. Knowledge Management in Practice, 4th Quarter(18), 1-4. Retrieved from http://www.realcom-inc.com/pdf/Xerox/pdf.

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