Page 19 - DPSA - Service Delivery Report

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT Is the Public Service ready for Knowledge Management?
The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) has con- cluded an assessment of the state of the implementation of knowledge management (KM) within the Public Service. In this article DPSA KM spe- cialist, Sebenzile Zibani, takes us through the highlights of the findings.
In March this year the Learning and Knowledge Management (LKM) unit of the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) officially released the results of the long-await- ed Public Service Knowledge Man- agement Maturity Assessment report. Two main objectives underpinned the necessity for undertaking the assess- ment. The first was to evaluate how advanced the respective Public Ser- vice organisations are in terms of un- derstanding and implementing knowl- edge management practices. The second, and perhaps most crucial, is that results of the assessment would inform the DPSA on the kind of support needed to ensure that the similar lev- els of maturity are attained across the Public Sector.
Introduction
The Minister for Public Service and Ad- ministration (MPSA) is legally required to set up uniform norms and standards in the interest of efficient and effective service delivery. Likewise, the KM Ma- turity Assessment was not conducted as an end in itself. It is informed by an appreciation of the potential role that KM plays in not only enhancing the performance of the Public Service,
High
Figure 2: Maturity level grid
but also in driving innovation. Apart from seeking permission to conduct the assessment at their respective na- tional and provincial departments, the circular that DPSA issued to Head of Departments (HoDs) required them to nominate designated KM specialists or delegated persons who played a key role in completing the assessment tool.
Methodology
Using a spreadsheet with programmed calculations, the KM Maturity Assess- ment instrument was undertaken across seven broad categories and with a total of 105 statements. The seven categories had a potential score of between 0 and 30 individually, and 210 collectively (7 x 30).
Thus, the total ranges of between 0 and 210 measures KM maturity from
Maturity: 189-210
Refinement: 147-188
Expansion: 126-146
Initiation: 84-125
Reaction: 42-83
KM is mainstreamed in the institution. KM implementation is continuously
evaluated and improved.
Stable and 'practiced' KM activities that are integrated with everyday work process.
Beginning to recognise the need to manage knowledge.
KM unplanned and random. KM activities are non-systematic and ad hoc.
CAT
CATEGORY SCORES
Score
Max. Score
1
KM LEADERSHIP & GOVERNANCE
0
30
2
BUSINESS ALIGNMENT
0
30
3
PEOPLE & CULTURE
0
30
4
TECHNOLOGY
0
30
5
KNOWLEDGE PROCESSES
0
30
6
LEARNING & INNOVATION
0
30
7
MONITORING & EVALUATION
0
30
TOTAL SCORE
0
210
Figure 1: Assessment tool
the minimum range score of between 42 and 89 to a maximum range of be- tween of 189 and 210 on the maturity grid. The two extreme points coincide with the “reaction” and “maturity” levels of the implementation of KM.
The matter of sampling is worth not- ing for context. Forty-seven nation- al departments were targeted by the maturity assessment tool. Of 24 that identified people to complete the as- sessment tool, 17 submitted these to the DPSA. Altogether 113 provincial departments were targeted and of these, only 52 submitted completed assessment tools:
Findings
At the national level of government, of all departments that submitted only three are still in the reaction phase, while the rest are in the initiation phase. This seems to suggest an ac- knowledgment of the need for KM at national level. The three departments that are in the reaction phase demon- strate a clear picture that the manage- ment of knowledge happens randomly and these activities are not systematic but materialise unexpectedly. At pro- vincial level, of the 51 departments that submitted, 24 are in a reaction phase, 19 are in the initiation phase, and seven are in expansion phase and
Volume 12 No.3 of 2019 | SERVICE DELIVERY REVIEW 17
Maturity