Research Roadmapping - Strategic Knowledge Architecture™

TKA's Strategic Knowledge Architecture™ service consists of an assessment of your overall research process, and key individual assets within that process, in light of your current strategies and future strategic challenges. It delivers a comprehensive evaluation and specific steps to improve your process—with a focus on its contribution to competitiveness and ROI.

Steps

  • Strategic Assessment.  TKA builds an overview of your organization's strategic situation, including current and likely future opportunities and threats.  This is done through internal and external interviews, and through review and assessment of business environment trends and drivers
 
  • Supply Side Inventory.  TKA builds an inventory of your current information assets (for example, reports and briefings) and process steps.  This is done through information producer interviews and document reviews
 
  • Demand Side Requirements.  TKA surveys your organization's information needs through user interviews and an independent review of trends in the competitive environment
 

  • Content Mapping and Gap Analysis.  TKA maps the assets and component data against current strategic requirements and a value-based financial model of your enterprise.  In this way we identify overlaps and gaps
 
  • Process Assessment and Evaluation.  Using the KVC Scorecard™ and other proprietary tools, TKA identifies strengths and weaknesses at the overall process level
 

  • Process Improvements.  TKA recommends and helps you implement improvements going forward, typically including:
    • Reduce content gaps and overlaps
    • Realign budgets in line with current and future strategic priorities
    • Identify and capture 'strategic leading indicators'
    • Re-focus and/or redesign reports
    • Streamline and optimize workflow
    • Train and/or re-organize staff
    • Build research plans and strategies
    • Integrate research processes and assets using CMS technologies such as SharePoint®
    • Develop and implement information sourcing strategies that optimize resource utilization

Examples

  • A large consulting firm had noted that their market analysis work products were not getting deserved attention from senior management.  TKA evaluated and redesigned key work products to improve their attractiveness, relevance, and usefulness to senior decision-makers—thereby raising the profile and effectiveness of the entire analysis function
 
  • A financial data provider selling to investment bankers hired TKA to interview individual i-bankers and systematically map their information needs.  This resulted in a series of information requirements for new products needed to penetrate this market more fully