Wissensmanagement als Top-Down

“Top-down” is indispensable for the implementation of GM. This means that clear and specific instructions are required which should at the end of the day result in improved specialist output. Generating specialist output such as laws, programmes or reports from these policy instructions takes place within the context of specialist internal implementation. The use of a knowledge management system can support this. In the introductory phase of GM, top management should determine at the stage of establishing competencies how and by whom gender knowledge should be provided in all departments of the organization. Flows of information may be organized via events, in-house communications, intranet, Internet, etc., and the development of competence with regard to gender knowledge may be generated via training courses. Management staff must here decide who should be given the job and at what point in time of, for instance, giving support in access to data that are differentiated in terms of gender and what research should be commissioned to close gaps in knowledge.

It is possible that members of staff with gender competence will have to be persuaded to share their gender knowledge. Management should therefore make the usefulness of sharing clear by acknowledging gender knowledge as a special resource and as gender competence. This can be done for instance by introducing gender knowledge as a staff evaluation criterion and as a criterion for appointment.

At the same time, management may not neglect to keep gender equality and the implementation of GM in proportion with other organizational aims such as economic viability. This means that gender equality issues should be integrated into any specialist goal. In respect of knowledge management, a way must therefore be found to create a frame of reference between strategic goals and to give these goals appropriate weighting against each other. Staff cannot otherwise see that paying attention to gender aspects is part of their day-to-day specialist work.

You can find more information on the implementation of GM as a top-down task here.

• „Gender Mainstreaming als Organisationsentwicklung“. Vortrag von Petra Ahrens und Jochen Geppert auf der Fachtagung des GenderKompetenzZentrums: „Implementierung von Gender Mainstreaming in der öffentlichen Verwaltung - Chancen und Herausforderungen der Organisationsentwicklung“, Berlin, 27. Juni 2005.
• Bargmann, Holger: „Führungsinstrumente und Wissensmanagement – oder: Was ist Wissen wert?“. Beitrag auf dem Ver.di-Kongress „Wissen ist was wert“ 12./13. Februar 2003 in Bremen. http://www.wissen-ist-was-wert.de/vortraege/werkstatt3_bargmann.pdf
• Fachtagung des CIWM/wissenstransform an der Georg-August-Universität Göttingen: „Wissensmanagement in gleichstellungsorientierten Netzwerken“, Tagung für Wissenschaft und Praxis, 3.-5. März 2005. http://www.wissenstransform.de/