Lean Knowledge Management: How NASA Implemented a Practical KM Program

Lean Knowledge Management Helped Change NASA's Culture and It Can Do the Same for Your Organization. NASA suffered three human spaceflight tragedies and Lean Knowledge Management was a major tool that helped NASA management implement massive cultural changes. Traditional knowledge management is too often regarded as overly complicated or a wasteful bureaucratic exercise, but Lean Knowledge Management can become a critical component for your organization to operate effectively, efficiently and safely. Lean Knowledge Management simplifies the process by: Clearly defining your organization's key employees, Filtering the enormous amount of internal "information" into "critical knowledge". Utilizing a myriad of resources to get this critical knowledge to the people who need it most - the very people that can make your organization successful. Repetitive mistakes and failures can cost an organization millions of dollars in lost revenue, scrap, and even lawsuits. Lean Knowledge Management strips away the academic jargon and implements a practical, cost-effective, organic program emphasizing lessons of the past. Knowledge is free! Your hard-earned corporate knowledge is right in front of you, why risk losing it and having to pay for it all over again? Knowledge is power! Lean Knowledge Management is a structured plan to harness that power for your organization.

About the Author :
Mr. Forsgren started his career as a mechanic apprentice at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio and, after ten years of night school, earned an undergraduate and then graduate degree in engineering. In 2005, Mr. Forsgren transferred to NASA Headquarters in Washington D.C. to manage agency training and in 2013 was appointed the director of the Academy of Program/Project and Engineering Leadership (APPEL). In 2016 he was given the additional responsibility of serving as the NASA Chief Knowledge Officer until his retirement in 2021.

Review :
I've been following Roger and his team's work at NASA starting with APPEL well over a decade ago...and to this day, I often refer, (and refer others), to it for guidance and best practices. What has resonated with me from the beginning was its simplicity and common sense approach toward capturing and sharing knowledge--using a creative mix of formal, informal interventions based on maximizing peer-to-peer collaboration. This book IS a blueprint for anyone starting and operating a robust KM model in their organization without the complexities.--Jerry Colello, Director-Knowledge Management, Pratt & Whitney Aircraft, Raytheon Technologies Corporation Knowledge has to be captured and then transferred to a new project where it can be used. Project professionals need to be trained in its use. Roger Forsgren's delightful book clearly explains how NASA achieved that.--Dr. Rodney Turner, Former President and Chairman at International Project Management Association Too often, Knowledge Management has been seen as a somewhat confusing and ineffective process, but now Roger Forsgren unravels the complexities and clearly demonstrates how an organization's culture can be transformed. By focusing on critical knowledge and utilizing the practical tools described in Lean Knowledge Management, any organization, even a research and development one, can reduce overall costs, gain process efficiencies, product reliability, and grow customer satisfaction. This powerful tool helped transform NASA by learning the difficult lessons of its past and it can help any organization develop a culture of safety, efficiency, and dependability.--Dr. Andrew Liou, Executive Vice President, Foxconn Technology Group