By Simon Hodgson
Cap Gemini SA will fulfill its promise to deliver knowledge management (KM) modules by the end of the year, in line with the joint announcement it made with Microsoft Corp (CI No 3,669) in May. The French IT services firm is to offer applications which address specific business problems, such as enabling new employees to get up and running quicker, says Geoff Smith, business development manager for Cap Gemini’s knowledge transformation services division.
The Cap Gemini offering will include consultancy, advising firms on best practice and how best to tailor their businesses to make the most of KM. Smith says that the technology area is, relatively speaking, the easy bit. The firm will offer modules on new employees and ones leaving the company, as well as a blue-print for a knowledge community. He says that this will entail all of the traditional features of document management, with workflow, collaborative knowledge management, document storage, updating facilities and version recording. It includes a framework for employees to exchange business information and find experts on specific subjects within a company.
In addition, says Smith, Cap Gemini will be looking to include pattern recognition software from small specialist firms looking to sign distribution deals. This software allows the KM suite to learn from user patterns and update documents automatically using neural technology instead of simple keyword searches.
Cap Gemini is currently in the middle of a two weeks roadshow around the UK alongside Microsoft, demonstrating its KM strategy, promoting the KM gospel to non-believers and trying to enlist customers for its ‘K-Audit’, launched in May as part of its partnership with Microsoft (CI No 3,669). The K-Audit challenge involves firms hiring teams made up of between three and six Cap Gemini and Microsoft consultants for a period of six to eight weeks. The cost of the exercise depends on the size of the company, Smith estimated that prices might be between $16,000 and $1.6m.
