Get in the Know About Knowledge Management

The Kaieteur Institute for Knowledge Management has developed an interesting model that might be the start of a solid taxonomy for knowledge management. Considering digital knowledge exchanges and their knowledge business models, the institute has compiled a list of knowledge markets -- organized based on their characteristics.

-Knowledge auctions
-Knowledge stores or malls
-Expert knowledge or question and answer exchanges
-Intellectual property exchanges
-Stock market or investment knowledge exchanges
-E-Education or e-learning exchanges
-Community oriented or social capital knowledge networks
-Intellectual capital exchanges (human capital, talent, work, job, project, free agent, or professional services exchanges)
-Vortexes (vertical or industry specific knowledge markets)
-B2B knowledge exchange

Not only is the taxonomy a useful tool when considering your own personal and organizational approach to knowledge management, the roundup is a good source of place to go for answers and ideas. What categories might be missing from the taxonomy? Is this an adequate framework?

Here to read more.

Just How Overpaid is Corporate America?

Top executive paychecks in 2003 were, as usual, off-the-charts amazing. However, overall raises for corporate leaders actually slowed considerably. The chief executives in BusinessWeek's 54th annual Executive Pay Scoreboard saw their average salary, bonus, and long-term compensation increase 9.1% last year, to $8.1 million, a far cry from the double-digit gains that were common in the 1990s. And they had better get used to it. A combination of increasingly independent boards, angry shareholders, and a likely rule change that would make it easier for big investors to oust clueless directors has many boards revamping pay packages in ways that should keep a lid on massive paydays far into the future.

Just think, these folks are getting paid more to send hundreds of thousands of YOUR jobs offshore. Aren't you glad that Corporate America has it's priorities straight?

Go here and weep.

MoneyTree Survey: Check It Out

The MoneyTree Survey is a quarterly study of venture capital investment activity in the United States. As a collaboration between PricewaterhouseCoopers, Thomson Venture Economics and the National Venture Capital Association, it is the only industry-endorsed research of its kind. The MoneyTree Survey is the definitive source of information on emerging companies that receive financing and the venture capital firms that provide it. The study is a staple of the financial community, entrepreneurs, government policymakers and the business press worldwide.

Go here.

Be Careful How You Count Those Jobs

Last year, Fairfax County was one of the country’s only jurisdictions to show job gains, a fact that the county’s Economic Development Authority likes to point out. Many of those jobs, EDA officials say, came to the county through the agency’s efforts. But executives at some of the businesses the EDA lists as adding jobs or office space dispute the numbers presented by the EDA. Some also said the EDA was not responsible for their decision to expand in the county.

The EDA, a county agency, works to attract and retain businesses from around the world to Fairfax County, touting the area’s high-tech workforce, quality of life and proximity to the country’s center of government and an international airport. A large part of the EDA’s efforts are centered around helping Fairfax businesses expand in the county and launching advertising campaigns overseas to attract foreign companies here.

Here to read more.

Here is a Different Idea

Buffalo Niagara Enterprise is trying to get some development officials to come to summer camp.

The "camp" is a three-day economic development event that the local group is sponsoring as a way to bring about 15 targeted site selectors, real estate developers and corporate officials to the region for a series of educational programs, along with plenty of sightseeing and recreation time.

And their families are invited, too.

It's all part of a push by the economic development and marketing group to build closer ties to the targeted development officials by staging an event that lures them to the region and then gives BNE officials the chance to use the down time to show off the area's museums, tourist sites and other regional assets along the way.

Here to read more.

Venture Capital Research

Here is a great source for research information to support venture investing. Go here.

Stemming the Offshore Tide

Click here to see what people are thinking about how to reduce the flow of jobs to offshore locations. This is a reader's poll by Fast Company Magazine. Thirty percent say it should NOT be stopped.

Building a Middle Class in Russia

As we destroy our middle class here in America, it's interesting to hear how developing countries are trying to build one. Hopefully building a middle class in other places does not come at the expense of destroying ours here. I keep reminding myself that I am a globalist.

Go here to read more.

Intel on Offshoring

Computer giant Intel has defended its policy of moving jobs to overseas markets where the cost of labour and other overheads are lower.

Craig Barrett, the chief executive of the American group, said "offshoring" was only fuelling controversy because the United States was in the run-up to the presidential election in November.

The company, along with others, has come under fire for the practice as the US economy gains ground but has struggled to increase the number of new jobs created.

Many have said that Intel, whose profits have been increasing, should be helping to spark the home employment market. But Mr Barrett said:

"You shouldn’t think of offshoring as a recent phenomenon. This has been happening for decades. It seems the press has just discovered it recently because it is an election cycle, especially in the United States."

And he said Intel, the world’s largest maker of computer microchips, would continue outsourcing jobs as it seeks to build its operations in south-east Asia, where it has major plants in Malaysia and the Philippines.

Here to read more.

Global Manufacturing Growing

The current upturn of global manufacturing operating conditions continued during March, with the latest PMI data from around the world pointing to a further broad-based expansion of the manufacturing economy. The Global Manufacturing PMI – a composite index produced by JPMorgan and NTC in association with ISM and IFPMM – registered 56.9, up from 55.8 in February, to suggest a pick up in the rate of growth from the previous month's substantial pace.

The Global Manufacturing PMI is based on responses from approximately 7,000 companies worldwide, operating in countries that account for roughly 76% of total global manufacturing output. PMIs signalled growth in all except one of the nineteen countries for which March data were available. The expansion of the global manufacturing economy was again led by the US, although sharper growth was also recorded in Japan, the Eurozone and the UK. Worldwide manufacturing production increased for the eleventh successive month in March, with the latest data pointing to a further substantial rise in output. The Global Manufacturing Output Index registered 59.4, up from 58.1 in February, to signal a sharper rate of expansion than one month ago. All of the major industrial nations reported marked growth of production during March, with the rate of increase picking up in the US (which recorded the sharpest growth), Japan, the Eurozone and the UK.

Here for more.

Top Metros for Business Growth

Here are the top ten metros from a business investment standpoint during the 2001-2003 period:

1. Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, Ill.-Ind.-Wis., 336
2. New York-Newark-Edison, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa., 291
3. Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich., 201
4. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas, 185
5. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J., 143
6. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minn.-Wis., 141
7. Indianapolis, Ind., 116
8. Cincinnati-Middletown, Ohio-Ky.-Ind., 111
9. Columbus, Ohio, 107
10. Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, Ohio, 96

Here to read more.

Top Small Cities for Business Growth

According to a recent, small city business growth ranking by Site Selection Magazine, here are the top ten small communities:

1. Traverse City. MI.
2. Plattsburgh, NY
3. Bowling Green, KY
4. Mooresville, NC
5. Danville. IL
6. Effingham, IL
7. Morristown, TN.
8. Statesville, NC
9. Richmond, In.
10.Cullman, AL

Here to read more.

Telework as an ED Strategy

Have you considered teleworking as an economic development strategy for your area? Perhaps you should. Please read on.

Not everyone agrees on just what constitutes a teleworker. The International Telework Association & Council defines one as an employee who works at home, at a client's office, in a satellite office or telework center, or on the road at least one day per month. Even restricting the definition to an employee who works from home at least one day a month, there are 23.5 million teleworkers in the United States. Using research firm IDC's more-conservative standard of three or more days per month yields a population of 8.7 million telecommuters.

However these workers are defined, their numbers are increasing, at least by some measures (as with the total population, growth rates vary depending on how teleworker is defined). To be effective from home, they typically rely on a computer, often a laptop that travels back and forth from home to office; an Internet connection, preferably broadband and not dial-up; a telephone; maybe a fax machine; and, increasingly, a growing range of corporate-based software applications that can be accessed from home.

Also close at hand, of course, are family members, pets, and maybe the plumber, coming sometime between 10 and noon. With distractions, obligations, and temptations in abundance, productivity is bound to suffer. Isn't it?

Not necessarily. Most corporations with large numbers of teleworkers report productivity increases, not declines. "A number of companies fear their workers will be at home with their feet up in front of the TV, and that's just not the case," says IDC analyst Merle Sandler. "You can put measures in place to see if employees are actually producing what they are expected to produce."

Here for more.

Pennsylvania Investing in Itself

Much of Gov. Ed Rendell’s economic stimulus package was signed into law last week, but other million-dollar pieces are still in play. Already, $1.1 billion of the package is law, signed by Rendell Thursday immediately after it passed the Senate.

Still to be decided are the fates of his $640 million Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program; a $250 million bond for water and sewer improvements; and an $800 million bond issue being proposed to protect open space and environmentally sensitive areas. Both bond issues must be approved by voters during the primary on April 27.

About $330 million of the environmental bond money would go toward cleaning former industrial sites, known as brownfields, for redevelopment. An additional $170 million would be used for revitalizing older communities like Pottstown, Royersford and Phoenixville, and $300 million would be used to improve and acquire park land.

In addition to passing voters’ muster, both bond issues must be approved by the General Assembly.

More here.

Koreans Investing in Steel

According to a survey by steel industry lobbying group Korea Iron and Steel Association (KOSA), domestic steel companies plan to invest 3.06 trillion won ($2.7 billion) in facilities this year, up 88 percent from 1.62 trillion won last year.

The estimated surge in facility investment is attributed to implementation of plans intended to boost production capacities and expand value-added products. Steel makers are preparing to meet the sharp surge in steel demand expected in China and other overseas markets over the next few years.

Here to read more.

Offshore Location Attractiveness Index

You MUST read this one.

A.T. Kearney has just released its 2004 Offshore Location Attractiveness Index. The annual index is a tool to help companies understand and compare the factors that make countries attractive as potential locations for offshore services. It measures the viability of countries as offshore destinations based on their financial structure, people skills and availability, and business environment.

Which countries rank the best?

1. India
2. China
3. Malaysia
4. Czech Republic
5. Singapore
6. Philippines
7. Brazil
8. Canada
9. Chile
10. Poland

Download the index report here.

Business Futures

Predicting the future of business is never easy, but it doesn't have to be a blind gamble. Savvy managers constantly engage in clear-eyed futurism to anticipate changes that may lurk over the horizon. The process starts by examining known trends, testing scenarios, and constructing a narrative about where business is headed.

Consider what's happening with smart tags, such as radio frequency identification (RFID). These wireless microchips are already used by large companies to track products in real time. Wal-Mart is requiring its top 100 vendors to employ the technology by next January. Target is using RFID today to track containers moving from port to port. Microchip tags will give companies the ability to monitor the location and condition of individual products anytime, anywhere in the world.

Specialization and outsourcing are also here to stay. Nimble, highly focused companies are taking advantage of short production cycles and global markets to create new products and new business models. Dell is the best-known example: Its dynamic connection to roughly 60 core suppliers allows the PC maker to cycle inventory through assembly facilities in just six hours.

Project these realities a few decades into the future -- say, to the year 2020. RFID chips will become ubiquitous, providing unprecedented information about manufacturing processes and consumer behavior. Meanwhile, as specialization becomes the order of the day, vertically integrated companies may be supplanted by networked constellations of business partners. What does the world of business look like then?

How does all this impact economic development in the future?

Here to read more. (Subscription required)

Dealing with the Human Side of Enterprise

The 21st century has not been kind so far regarding job creation. Mass layoffs and the productivity boom have added up to weak demand for workers. Employers, on the other hand, are enjoying unprecedented leverage over paid help. But managers who have exploited this buyer's market by lowballing salaries and expecting much more from their workers for much less are about to experience what my friends in the counterterrorism trade call "blowback."

Seething below the surface of the American workforce is a huge reservoir of animosity, and you'll be hearing stories like Smith's more and more in the coming year. When the national unemployment rate, which currently stands at 5.6 percent, falls below 5 percent, we'll see the dynamics of the job market shift into reverse. Get ready for another seller's market -- ? la the late 1990s -- and a mass round of musical chairs among the most skilled and talented employees.

This hypothesis is based on more than anecdotal evidence, although there's plenty of that. Consulting firm Accenture (ACN) reported last summer that about 40 percent of all middle managers were secretly looking for new jobs. And in a survey released at the end of last year by the Society for Human Resource Professionals, a stunning 8 out of 10 workers declared they'd launch their own job hunts as soon as the labor market improved.

Here to read more. (subscription required.)