THE UNOG LIBRARY PKM PROGRAMME

In the last days you might have noticed a couple of Broadcast messages from the UNOG Library in your Lotus Notes inbox. For “a series of unfortunate events”(as author Lemony Snicket would say), none was perfect, but both of them mentioned a mysterious, new Library programme: the PKM.

CRISTINA GIORDANO,
PKM COORDINATOR, AND THE PKM TEAM

What is PKM? Another UN acronym? Actually, no. PKM stands for Personal Knowledge Management. Personal Knowledge Management is a challenge that all organizations, big or small, profit and non-profit, national and international, must face in today’s world. Technology has radically changed the way people work. With the advent of globalization, all organizations are required to become more flexible and ready to adapt to a fast-changing environment. Staff members are no longer expected to spend all their life in one post, they are asked to move around and take up different tasks, arising from a work environment in perpetual evolution. This is particularly important for the UN, whose field of action is universal and constantly shaped by new demands from the international community. But how can you build a flexible, yet competent staff to respond to all these different demands ? In today’s world none can claim universal knowledge anymore. In particular, how can staff have access to information that is vital for their work, when they need it and from the best and most authoritative sources ? How can people be encouraged to reach out and look for information in a better and more efficient way?
Libraries and archives are, by definition, repositories of knowledge. They are also places whose work has been greatly affected by the new technologies. They have quickly adapted to the computer and the Internet revolution and have developed skills for retrieving meaningful information in the fastest possible way. It is therefore not surprising that the libraries at the UN have taken the lead in the personal knowledge management within the organization.
The movement started in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library (DHL) in New York, that has even changed its name to DHLink to reflect this new mission.
The PKM programme was introduced in Geneva in the last quarter of 2006. Following a pilot phase, it was launched in July 2007, after receiving UNOG Senior Officials’ endorsement. It is coordinated by Sylvie Jacque and Cristina Giordano, assisted by nineteen enthusiastic volunteers from all sections of the Library. The reference librarians, of course, are among the most active members of the team, but they are not alone : cataloguers, archivists and staff of the Acquisitions Unit also play an important part, each with his unique experience.
From the beginning, the Geneva PKM Programme has focused on improving staff’s skills for retrieving critical information they need for their work. This means sharing the knowledge the Library possesses in the field of various electronic resources, ranging from the online catalogue to UN and external databases, and demonstrate efficiently how useful they can be by conducting individual (or small group) coaching sessions. The main goal of the PKM programme in Geneva is to empower staff and improve its productivity, by coaching employees on the best ways to access knowledge, use technology and learning resources in the context of their unique job. As PKM members like to say : “Spend less time looking for information and more time using it !”. Research, indeed, can be made easier and more productive : so many resources (including for UN documents) are available, but staff members still do not know about them. PKM is there to fill this knowledge gap.
Last, but not least, the PKM Programme would like to change the image of the UNOG Library. The Library is no longer a solemn, boring place where most people working at the Palais have never been during their career. The Library is a dynamic, reliable information partner you can always count on. If you have a question, an information need, ask the Library first and you can be sure you will get an answer in the shortest possible time ! And with PKM, you do not need to come to the Library, the Library will come to you. If you are interested, just contact the PKM team (librarypkm@unog.ch, int. 72295) and a couple of trained librarians will visit you in your office, whenever it suits you, for a short interview to assess your information needs and set up personalized coaching sessions tailored for your specific requests.

For more information visit the PKM iSeek page : http://iseek.un.org/webpgdept883_24.asp?dept=883