Preparing
for Conversations
with Robert Taylor
SiLK:
Where KM and SSL Find True Happiness
Robert
Taylor
Unisys
London, United Kingdom
 Biography
Counselor, Sensemaker, Imagineer,
Navigator
Robert Taylor is a management consultant
with a 20-year specialization in knowledge consulting, starting
in the mid-80s in the time of knowledge based
systems and bringing us right up to date with knowledge management
as we know it today. In the earlier part of his career Robert
worked in the big practices of Touche Ross (now Deloitte) and
KPMG, helping many, diverse organizations come to grips with
the KM concept -- but he is equally proud of his time 'on the
tools' in more recent times when he spent a five-year stint 'in-house',
architecting and implementing the global KM approach for Unisys
Corporation.
Most recently Robert has trained and practiced
as a Six Sigma Lean (SSL) Black Belt and it is this that has
led him to the concept of SiLK: Sigma | Lean | Knowledge -- the
inter-working of SSL and KM together.
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IK
Report: Using the Whole Brain
At Unisys, KM and Six Sigma get along
as smooth as Silk
No two management approaches could be more
different than Six Sigma Lean (SSL) and Knowledge Management
(KM). SSL's centre of gravity is in the industrial economy -
machines, production and engineering - while KM is the knowledge
economy (you know the scenario).
But the differences are more fundamental
than that. They are, well, neurological. SSL is mainly a 'left
brain' point of view. That is to say, it is rational, logical,
numerical - quite unKM-like. Knowledge management is more 'right
brain' - visionary, complex, social and so on. Whenever the subjects
of SSL and KM arise, the thinking is usually dominated by a left-
or right-brain thinker and the only thing both sides agree on
is that 'oil and water don't mix'. But once in a while, a timid
voice suggests that the two approaches can effectively work and
be blended together, even though they are quite different. Usually
no one pays much attention to that voice . . . Meet Rob Taylor,
he's a Six Sigma 'black belt' (see page 18, 'About Six Sigma')
and architect of a management programme at Unisys that blends
Six Sigma, Toyota-style 'lean' manufacturing principles and KM
into a single working partnership.
 Read the whole story.
PDF
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Pre-dialogue
remarks
Can and should KM and SSL be brought together?
Are they complementary views or in eternal conflict? What is
the likely benefit? How high is your interest and knowledge of
SSL? Want to know more, seen enough, or in blissful ignorance?
What about your SSL colleagues? Are they keen to collaborate
with KM?I believe that these two views need to take better notice
of each other and come together to leverage the power of using
both the left and right brains of the organisation together.
But I also feel that there is mutual suspicion of each other
in both camps - and that is holding back a more 'complete' approach
to business improvement.
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