TABLE OF CONTENTS Information technology (IT) is now at the heart of the modern corporation, and those companies that have established truly effective knowledge and risk management (KRM) frameworks have usually employed several IT systems to help them capture, distribute, analyze, and record relevant information as part of a broader knowledge management program. Those systems usually are a combination of several common platforms found in most modern companies:
The organization's intranet for communication
Access for employees to the Internet and the Web for external information
Knowledge management systems for identifying company experts and decision makers and providing them with necessary information and contacts
A central database structure for storing and retrieving documents and data
Decision-support systems
Multiple specialist systems and databases for risk and incident management
Environmental health and safety (EHS)-compliance systems
Customer service and customer resource management (CRM) systems
Each of these systems is important in an integrated KRM approach, and most are already available in one form or another in stage two companies. A company can truly begin to manage its risk in the most effective way only when these systems are used as part of a KRM approach.
Most stage two companies have already implemented many of the systems that make up a strong KRM foundation. Any U.S.-based company that manufactures or assembles products, for example, will have some system in place that helps to monitor compliance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) or Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements. A corporate call...
