Page 26 - Service Delivery Review_Volume 14_Number 3_2022

KM CoP Case Studies

Hybrid CoP marks KM Milestone

Sebenzile Zibani, Deputy Director for Knowledge Management and Innovation at the
Department of Public Service and Administration, provides an overview of the inaugu-
ral session of Communities of Practice (CoP) in the Public Service.

A “first” in the Public Service

Successfully hosting the first session of Communities of
Practice (CoP) in November 2021 was yet another milestone
in the cause of Knowledge Management (KM) in the Public
Service. Not only did the hybrid session – with limited physi-
cal contact and online - continue the trend of hosting virtual
KM events. The use of the interactive online collaborative
“flipchart” tool, Miro Board, was more than fun as it added
the “human touch” to many a virtual workshop, otherwise
often noted for their passivity.

In his opening remarks, the Department of Public Service
and Administration (DPSA) Deputy Director-General for
Electronic Government Services and Information Manage-
ment, Mandla Ngcobo, touched on the relationship between
KM and the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).
Reflecting on the leadership and governace theme of the
CoP session, DDG Ngcobo acknowledged how lack of sup-
port from government departments’ senior management
echelons generally inhibits the institutionalisation of KM.
Leadership and governance in KM

KM director at the National Treasury (NT), Ditshego Magoro,
used the experiences of her department to illustrate how
leadership can influence and support KM governance in the
organisation. In addition to providing a profile of the NT KM
Strategy, Magoro outlined the key success areas in the im-
plementation of KM in her department and shared the fol-
lowing learnings drawn from their efforts over more than a
decade:
■ An evidence-based approach is best in
demonstrating the value of KM to the Executive
■ Open yourself to be audited and allow for
peer review.
■ Do not use a one size fits all approach to KM
implementation in the organization – spent time
on education and create space for building trust
before moving on with KM implementation.
■ Demonstrate the value of KM by focusing on the
business process.
■ Commit to change management
■ Focus on a quick win. Start working with the units
that show interest in your organisation.

26 Volume 14 No.3 of 2022 | SERVICE DELIVERY REVIEW