Time management is another key to innovation and the growth of knowledge. Many organizations and companies spend a lot of time developing new products, manufacturing a product, providing services, or selling their product, but little time is invested in creating , managing, and sharing knowledge. This ironic considering a wealth of knowledge can lead to new and bold innovations in their field. Investing time in knowledge management does not have to be done on top of existing tasks by an organization but can be done simultaneously which saves time and reduces the need for extra resources.

But investing time in knowledge management does not have to be done alone because it could be more taxing on an organization. It can be done as a collaborative effort with other organizations with an invested interest in the same area.

Key To Innovation

For Hallmark they proposed that the innovation has a formula. They suggest: Connectivity + Content + Culture = INNOVATION.

CONNECTIVITY
The level of connectivity depends on how well a network individuals are communicating with each other internally and externally. Good connectivity allows for the seamless flow of information from one are to another. Connectivity is important on all levels whether it is interpersonal, through technology, or the structure of an organization and its rules.

CONTENT
Innovation is also dependent on the quality of the content no matter it's form. This content must be relevant and up to date, and must be maintained and expounded on to create innovation.

CULTURE
The culture of organization very key to innovation. This deals with the type of atmosphere and ease of a particular organization. If the atmosphere more of a hierarchical structure the flow of ideas is strained and therefore innovation is limited. However if the structure of an organization is more level between different departments and individuals the flow of ideas is much better and these ideas are the foundation for great achievements in innovation.

Another important source of knowledge not only comes from the organization itself. Sometimes knowledge and ideas come from the top-down, the bottom-up, but other times the source of knowledge and creativity can from outside the of the organization. This is important because the goal is to obtain as much knowledge as possible, because knowledge becomes capital. By easing the barriers within an organization and the barriers that separate the organization from the outside it allows for an easier flow of knowledge, resulting in a large accumulation of knowledge.

Building a Knowledge Community at Hallmark:

A major point that was emphasized was the importance of grass roots as the source of creativity and knowledge. Most of the time when people want to credit an organization they always look to the people at the top who usually make the calls on big decisions. But many companies are beginning to recognize the importance of a bottom-up structure, rather top top-down structure to facilitate to the creation of ideas. There are more people at the bottom of the organization and many of them are newer to the organization with fresh ideas. And when management eases rules and regulations it gives employees more options and be able to operate and think out side of the box. When managemnt steps back and allows for more freedom in decison making it inspires the rest of the organization to want to particpate. Participation rises significantly because lower employees feel empowered and that there ideas and contribution to the organziation actually matter. This changes the team dynamics within an organization and creates a whole new level of potential for the organization.

At Nucor Steel executives wanted to put Nucor at the spear of creativity and innovation in it's field. Their answer for this was focusing on social ecology. They wanted to create a social environment for Nucor employees at all levels of the company that promoted a creative atmosphere. They also wanted to create an environment that invited employees to share information between each other to create a network effect. Employees would bring their ideas together to solve tough issues and provide the answer for difficult decisions.

One way Nucor was able to do this was because it allowed employees to have more freedom in there decision-making without having to consult with higher-ups. Employees had more freedom to consult between each other and with others who were outside of the organization, as well.

The second issue that Partners Healthcare faced was the issue of medical errors due to the lack of knowledge management. Many of the patients were being misdiagnosed or given the wrong medication for their condition. This resulted in a big contrast between the image that Partners Healthcare presented the community and the reality of what was happening under their care. These medical errors were complicating the health of patients who were already sick. The solution for this was an IT system that centralized all of the knowledge from doctors and staff and combined in large database that made that knowledge readily available. This order entry system kept track of patients's medical histories and provided up to date information on advances in the field.

In the case of Partners Healthcare there problem was that a solution for two key issues that they faced. The first was that Dr. Goldszer needed to stay up to date all the latest discoveries in his fields and have knowledge of all the changes that were occurring in the field and on top of that he had to be mindful of all the disesases and conditions he would encounter. However this was not the case alone. Dr. Goldszer had to do all those things while doing his job as a doctor and caring for patients. For him this was an overwhelming task but he to do it. The solution was "to bake specialized knowledge into the jobs of highly skilled workers - to make the knowledge so readily accessible that it can't be avoided." In other words an IT system was created that turn all of Dr. Goldszer's complex jobs into one simpler operation.