Knowledge management (KM) has been a focus of Asian Productivity Organization (APO) activities for well over a decade. A two-day meeting to review and update the KM Facilitators Guide (KMFG) and KM Tools and Techniques Manual (KMTT) under the Program Development Fund was held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 16 and 17 February. The KMFG and KMTT are used by NPOs and other KM practitioners as references in providing training and consultancy services in APO member countries.

The APO KM framework was created to provide a common understanding among member countries, in particular among NPOs, based on practical experience in KM from several countries in Asia, along with best practices from Australia, Europe, and the USA. Upon adoption of the APO KM Framework in 2007, an expert group was established in March 2008 to develop a training guide and implementation approach based on it.

The KMFG was compiled by representatives from India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, UK, and APO Secretariat to help NPO trainers and consultants to understand KM and provide guidance on its implementation to their consultancy clients. It gives easy-to-follow instructions on delivering training in the APO KM framework, including detailed notes on the key messages of each slide, trainers’ notes, and making the transition to the next slide. To supplement the KMFG, the KMTT was developed in 2009.

The APO decided to review the two documents in view of recent trends and developments, particularly in various applications of ICT related to KM. It was also necessary to update the original guides since they were developed almost a decade ago. Specifically, the review was conducted to make the KMFG and KMTT more relevant, in sync with the digital economy, and therefore more useful for NPOs and KM practitioners today. The review was conducted under the guidance of Chief Expert Ron Young, CEO/CKO of Knowledge Associates Cambridge Ltd., St. John’s Innovation Centre, Cambridge, UK. The three experts for the review included: Consultant of Strategic Knowledge Management and Innovation Rudolf D’Souza (India); Senior Lecturer Dr. Ida Yasin of Putra Business School (Malaysia); and Principal Consultant Praba Nair of KDi Asia (Singapore).