Knowledge Management in the Public Broadcast Industry: A Case Study

Much has changed since one of the large Public Broadcasters in the UK went on air with its first Radio broadcast on November 14, 1922. In those early days radio broadcast technology was brand new and there were no rules, standards or an established business purpose to guide its pioneers. Consequently, it was a bonanza for innovation and experimentation that led to a rapid development of new solutions to issues when they presented themselves. Technical Knowledge was shared and documented in a variety of ways and places which were sufficient for the near constant state of flux the technology was in. Requirements for knowledge management quickly grew, particularly with the advent of a regular TV service in 1936, which added a whole new level of complexity to keeping programs on air. Its mission to 'inform, educate and entertain' was not limited to the news and shows broadcasted but extended, and still does, into providing new technology companies and broadcast engineers opportunities to add value and learn. Today the important British Broadcaster has more than 20000 employees. It is arguably the strongest national broadcasting influence in the UK and its World Service arm offers radio and television services in 27 languages. All of the broadcast technology and first line IT is now supported by the Technology Operations department. Studio infrastructure, radio and TV broadcast software and hardware, network technology and business support systems all need to work seamlessly to keep the often vital services on air. Apart from the systems developed in house, engineers need to be familiar with a large variety of hard-and software supplied by commercial companies. This flood of information requires a fine balance between managing it in an organized fashion to enable wide spread knowledge activation and providing enough freedom for innovation. This case study paper outlines the challenges of and possible solutions for implementing a successful knowledge management initiative in the creative broadcast industry and a publicly funded organization. It is based on two and a half years of practical work, describing methods for integration into a Service Management (ITIL) guided operations framework, engaging diverse technical staff, building a suitable knowledge management system and content architecture as well as implications for management and leadership involvement in similar programmes. The described outcomes identify consistent management of knowledge and its information foundation as a key to unlocking creativity in an age of information overload. Linked to this are lessons learned.