How to Successfully Implement a Knowledge Management System for the Mechanical Engineering Department at Gating Incorporated

Abstract

Gating Incorporated is a leader in design and manufacturing of consumer products. What began as a brainstorming session around a card table by a handful of engineers has evolved into a collaborative effort of hundreds of associates. With this explosive growth, it has become imperative that Gating Incorporated instill a Knowledge Management System to retain the vast amount of tacit knowledge. New products are critical for consumer product companies, so finding ways to capture the knowledge of a corporation and make it readily available to everyone is paramount to promoting innovation and ensuring long-term success. Knowledge Management (KM) experts have written much on the history of Knowledge Management Systems along with the most common reasons why they fail. Even though questions remain about the development of benchmarks for the implementation of Knowledge Management Systems, there are strategies that often coincide with successful implementations. This paper is comprised of a comprehensive plan, utilizing some of the strategies, for the implementation of a Knowledge Management System for the Mechanical Engineering Department at Gating Incorporated.