While the roles of a CLO and CKO often have similar elements, there are unique responsibilities that each one holds. The role of a CLO is to “leverage learning through the culture of an organization, the type of knowledge and learning it wants to emphasize, and how technologically focused it is” (Dalkir, 2005, p. 292). The CKO, on the other hand, is responsible for “formulating [a] knowledge management strategy, handling knowledge management operations, influencing change in the organization, and managing knowledge management staff” (Rusonow as cited in Dalkir, 2005, p. 290). This brief will examine the strategic planning role of CLOs and CKOs, compare their roles and responsibilities, and provide a profile of the individuals in these roles at a national nonprofit organization.
Strategic Planning Role of CLOs
The strategic planning role of CLOs revolves around establishing the strategic importance of learning, leveraging learning as a key linkage within the organization, and managing learning as a business. It is critical that CLOs demonstrate the strategic importance of learning in the organization. This can be done through efforts targeted to both the senior leadership team as well as within the learning function. With the senior leadership team, Baldwin & Danielson (2000) encourage CLOs to raise the level of inquiry and work with the senior leadership team to craft the business strategy rather than play a support role of only helping to rollout or implement new business strategies. Jones (2007) encourages CLOs to work with the senior leadership team to help “leaders to take a look at the talent implications of the strategies and initiatives that they have going on” and to integrate “development into conversations about corporate objectives…[plus] show senior line management how learning relates to their strategic goals and teach them their role in the development process” (p. 52). Within the learning function, Phillips (2004) encourages CLOs to develop a strategic plan including determining the mission, vision, values, and strategic objectives for the learning organization plus “identifying stakeholders, audiences, services, and scope of the [learning] function” (p. 50).
The second key strategic planning role of CLOs is leveraging learning as a key linkage within the organization. In fulfilling the strategic role of CLO, Baldwin & Danielson (2000) argue that this position needs to ensure that there is a strong strategic linkage and business case established for all initiatives and to link “directly to the strategic direction of the firm” (p. 12). Phillips (2004) recommends linking learning “to the business issues to ensure that learning requests are not based on faulty assumptions or inadequate analyses” (p. 52). Finally, the third key strategic planning role of CLOs is managing learning as a business. This begins by working with the senior leadership team to set the preferred investment level and strategy that can include any of the following options: “[1] let others do it…[2] invest only the minimum…[3] invest [the same as] the rest…[4] invest until it hurts…[or 5] invest as long as there is a payoff” (Phillips, 2004, p. 50). Once the investment level is set, the CLO needs to “produce tangible value for the investment” in learning through tracking and managing by critical performance measures (Baldwin & Danielson, 2000, p. 13).
Strategic Planning Role of CKOs
Turning now to CKOs, Awaza & Desouza (2004) argue that CKOs are responsible for “[1] institutionalizing knowledge sharing incentives, [2] breaking knowledge bottlenecks in the organization that impede smooth knowledge flows, [and 3] embedding knowledge into the work practices and processes” (p. 343). Bonner recommends that CKOs work to “locate knowledge within a company and find ways to capture, distribute, and create more of it” (p. 37). Furthermore, CKOs are responsible to:
1. Leverage the technical infrastructure to better manager the transfer and flow of explicit knowledge assets.
2. Foster and develop social mechanisms to enable the exchange of tacit know-how, skills, and abilities.
3. Manage the flow of knowledge between an organization and its business partners…
4. …set the direction, structure, and give direction as [to] how to manage the content in [knowledge] repositories, from a logical point of view. (Awaza & Desouza, 2004, p. 341)
Comparison of CLO and CKO Roles and Responsibilities
To compare the responsibilities of the CLO and CKO, Awaza & Desouza (2004) do an excellent job of simplifying the differences by arguing:
CKOs are mainly responsible for leveraging existing knowledge resources in the firm [and] CLOs are mainly responsible for managing the knowledge generating agents of the organization…[by] infusing them with new training and development so that they can create knowledge to be managed. (p. 342)
In other words, the CLO and the learning function should focus on functional skill development and creating capacity to create knowledge while the CKO and knowledge function takes the output of learning and focuses on dissemination, providing access, and promoting an environment and opportunities for knowledge creation and sharing.
References
Awaza, Y. & Desouza, K. (2004). The knowledge chiefs: CKOs, CLOs, and CPOs. European Management Journal, 22(3), 339-344.
Baldwin, T. & Danielson, C. (2000). Building a learning strategy at the top: Interviews with ten of America's CLOs. Business Horizons, 43(6), 5-14.
Bonner, D. (2000). Enter the chief knowledge officer. Training & Development, 54(2), 36-40.
Dalkir, K. (2005). Knowledge management in theory and practice. Burlington, MA: Elsevier Buttwrworth-Heinemann.
Jones, T. (2007). Raising the stakes: The strategic role of the CLO. Chief Learning Officer, 6(11), 52.
Phillips, J. (2004). The CLO's critical role: Nine areas for action. Chief Learning Officer, 3(12), 50-53.
- Robin
Copyright Robin Donnan 2008. All Rights Reserved.
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