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Why Innovations in Social Media & STEM Will Affect KM in 2015

At APQC, the end of the year is always a time to talk strategy. That means reflecting on where knowledge management is headed, what innovations and trends are impacting the field, and what we can do to support our members’ KM goals. I have a lot of conversations along these lines with different people, but the most fruitful ones tend to involve APQC’s CEO and resident KM expert Carla O’Dell, who always gives me food for thought about what’s going on in KM and what “the next big thing” will be.

This fall, Carla and I had an opportunity to sit down with Andy Moore, publisher of KMWorld Magazine for a wide-ranging conversation on the past, present, and future of knowledge management. We talked about APQC’s recent research on developing and leveraging experts and how KM is positioned to help science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) organizations with big challenges around work force demographics and the blindingly fast pace of change. We also talked about the forces driving resurgent interest in KM, recent innovations in the KM toolkit, the impact of social and mobile, and what motivates people to share their knowledge.

If you’re thinking about your 2015 strategy and where knowledge management is headed, check out Andy Moore’s interview with Carla and me. You can also read our article on Using KM to Leverage and Develop Experts in the same issue. Then let me know if you think we’re right—or if you have different ideas about the future direction of knowledge programs and initiatives. I’m scoping some research on KM future state, so I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas in the comments.