A serious pleasure of living in Brussels is the company of experts from across Europe who are pursuing interesting and progressive thinking in a wide variety of endeavors.
One such expert, Briton Cheryl Cooper, is an innovative knowledge management expert with whom I shared a recent dinner, discussing among other things, how best to integrate what’s considered “knowledge management” with the various streams of activity and messaging that’s increasingly being called “enterprise communication.”
With benefit of a well-prepared meal and a modest amount of Cremant de Loire, we distinguished four distinct streams of information flowing through organizations at the same time:
Positioning: The organization’s core promises and behavioral boundaries—embodied in the organizational brand, along with its values and ongoing practices. This flows through the organization’s external communications, is generally embedded in the in the tone and content of the news and direction it circulates, and is often reinforced by peer behavior.
News/Direction: The information that tells people what to do and when. This flows mainly through formal internal communication and line management channels, and incorporates official definitions of the impacts of external news.
Opinion: This information is designed to influence the recipient and how he or she acts. It mainly comes informally from peers and colleagues but may also come from external stakeholders, or as embedded justification in official news and direction.
Knowledge: Knowledge is the information that tells an individual how to act effectively on the news and direction he/she receives. It is again generally found from peers and colleagues, though it can come as embedded instructions or can be harvested from intranets, databases and case studies.
What is significant here—indeed, what opens up the possibility of an integrated communication model that takes both the formal and informal flows of information into account, while differentiating it into its factual, instructional and attitudinal components—is that this model recognizes the legitimacy and importance of peer opinion and influence as a behavior and performance driver within organizations.
Moreover, news/direction, opinion, and knowledge do not flow in isolation. In fact, the flow often requires conscious effort to differentiate, and the spread of social media inside and outside the enterprise boundary will only accelerate the flow of unofficial information, be it what normally constitutes ‘communication’, ‘knowledge’ or intertwined information.
In my view, recognizing the role of the peer as a core channel of communication and knowledge holds the key to developing a durable information system in the face of radical changes in organizational shape, and in communication technologies.
Mike Klein is a Brussels-based communications pro, and long-time member of IABC boards at the country and regional level, and can be reached athttp://intersectionblog.wordpress.com.
