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The Role of Organizational Culture 261

Box 7.9
An example: Hill and Knowlton

Hill and Knowlton International Public Relations-Public Affairs established a knowledge
commerce methodology for its 1,700 employees worldwide. The goal was to conduct
consultations in such a way that the absorbed experience of that project is captured in a
knowledge base and is reusable for a new client.
A product launch with a client in the US, for instance, could be replicated worldwide
without the same level of man-hours. Replication does not imply exact duplication, but
rather abstraction of the key points of what makes it an effective launch. Captured knowl-
edge could include a checklist of product launch activities, a critical path outlining execu-
tion priorities, and competitive intelligence. Hill and Knowlton ’ s approach to KM
implementation was a three-pronged one: Decide on a technology platform; get people
motivated to use the KM resources; and integrate KM practices with people ’ s daily work.
IT integrated the platform with in-house e-mail and also organized editors into roles as
coaches and knowledge arrangers and categorizers. Senior management rejected the idea
that compensation for knowledge contributions was best conducted through infrequent
performance reviews.
One of the biggest benefi ts of a knowledge economy has been the cross-pollination of
ideas and abstract thinking across the company. H & K ’ s work is organized around practice
area (i.e., crisis management or investor relations) and industry vertical (i.e., healthcare or
technology). H & K is trying to break down service silos quite a bit. If someone develops
an account plan in crisis management that could be applied to other groups, they try to
open up people ’ s minds and identify information applicable to those other areas, like
investor or government relations.

Change is greatly hindered if mistakes and any requests for help or collaboration
are perceived as undesirable behaviors and/manifestations of weakness or incompe-
tence. For example, if in an organization you are expected to have all of the answers
and asking someone for assistance implies that you are not qualifi ed to be in your job,
this will greatly diminish the number of requests for help. If, on the other hand, the
organization ’ s role models and reward systems actively promote, support, and value
such interactions, then cultural change will be greatly facilitated. Steps must be taken
to ensure that employees do not lose face or status if they admit to not knowing
everything and, concurrently, employees who provide knowledge and assistance are
rewarded.
Finally, another important cultural barrier lies in the lack of a common language
among knowledge workers. Natural language barriers exist, particularly in multina-
tional companies, and translation costs can be prohibitive. However, there are other