Sharing knowledge in the public sector: two case studies

In important areas of the public sector, client service depends on cooperation and collaboration among workers in different organizations or agencies. Examples include social services, education and health care. By sharing knowledge across organizations, workers can improve the quality of the service they provide. Technology to facilitate this knowledge sharing is widely available and a number of businesses have demonstrated how to put it to productive use. But the diffuse nature of many public sector settings imposes particular demands on knowledge management. Here I recount two experiments to promote knowledge sharing in the public sector: an early, unsuccessful effort to link social services workers; and a recent, substantially more successful undertaking to interconnect a large number of public school teachers. These experiences suggest the considerable potential of knowledge sharing in the public sector and underscore some of the challenges faced in that arena.