Hill & Knowlton Looks for a New Knowledge Management System Keith Zimmerman

Case Summary H&K is a global public relations firm Headquartered in New York City 1,900 employees 68 offices 34 countries Old intranet system not helping the company Established new portal-type extranet Very effective today

The Old Intranet System Employees did not use it because… Completely unorganized and hard to use Data was outdated, inaccurate, and irrelevant Staff biographies were outdated Very important Employees wanted one-stop shopping for all knowledge instead of having to visit several places

The New Extranet System Turned to Intraspect Software to organize and consolidate past project knowledge Minimized impact when employees were replaced Made it easier to bring new employees up to date Organized and easily accessible for clients and employees Captures three essential buckets of knowledge Internal knowledge of H&K’s products and services External knowledge such as industry news and forecasts Client knowledge such as account activity and budgets Uses incentives to increase system utilization Bonuses, reputations, vacations, merchandise

Conclusion New system has boosted revenue Annual sales up from $302.8 mil in 2000 to $350 in 2004 Number of clients has grown exponentially More organized and easy to use Problem: Using incentives to increase use May cause jealousy and unrest among employees Some benefits not as attractive as others This could be fatal to H&K

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