**3.3 Phase 3: Realization of the intervention**

316 New Research on Knowledge Management Models and Methods

management intervention, there should be a detailed budget plan should be estimated as well as an initial draft of the cost-benefit relationship. This information is essential for getting funds from corporate financial administration (Winkler & Mandl, 2007). Furthermore, it is necessary to define a task force to distribute responsibilities concerning the implementation of the knowledge management intervention, including the design (phase 1), the realization (phase 2) and the rollout (phase 3, formed with employees from different areas, e.g. business related, IT, human resources, worker council, and management.

To design an acceptance-oriented knowledge management intervention, a specific content analysis should be conducted making visible the actual situation and the desired goals of the planned knowledge management intervention. The content analysis should take into

 Individual aspects include the participation of employees and specific qualifications. It is important to include employees in the process from the outset in order to ensure that their actual needs are met. Even during the planning and conception phase, feedback of employees should be gathered continuously (Hinkofer & Mandl, 2004). To ease the employee's introduction to the innovation, it is necessary to implement qualifications that facilitate the utilization of the intervention (VBM, 2000; Tartlet, 2001). Moreover the content of the intervention should be practice-oriented and demand-oriented to foster

 Concerning organizational aspects, management support is a basic requirement for facilitating acceptance (VBM, 2000). The importance of the project is communicated to employees when it becomes integrated into the overall mission of the organization. Technical aspects are considered when using technical instruments to support knowledge management measures. It is crucial to select a suitable technology that focuses on the concrete needs of employees. The technology selection must also meet

Using the results of the content analysis, a differentiated concept concerning individual,

Fig. 2. Knowledge management needs analysis model

account individual, organizational and technical aspects.

**3.2 Phase 2: Design of the intervention** 

the use of the intervention.

the requirements for user-friendliness.

organizational and technical aspects can be developed.

Based on the conceptualization, considering individual, organizational and technical aspects, the realization of the intervention should take place. The realization of the intervention often is implemented on a technical system. Defining working groups responsible for different aspects e.g. technology are helpful and promote acceptance by employee participation. A usability test should be carried out to control the new intervention. Usability is a quality attribute that assesses the simplicity in dealing with user interfaces. Usability is defined by several quality components: learn ability, efficiency, memorability, errors, satisfaction or utility (Nielsen, 1994). It is advantageous to use multiple methods to identify as many constraints as possible. This could be done by a think-aloud method with task scenarios followed by a usability test through a questionnaire (based e.g. on QUIS and IsoMetrics). The QUIS (Questionnaire for User Interaction Satisfaction) was designed to assess users' subjective satisfaction with specific aspects of the human-computer interface. It includes specific *interface factors* such as screen factors, terminology and system feedback and *learning factors* such as system capabilities, technical manuals, on-line tutorials, multimedia, teleconferencing, and software installation (Chin et al., 1988). IsoMetrics is a user-oriented approach in software evaluation based on ISO 9241 Part 10 that includes seven dialogue principles: suitability for the task, selfdescriptiveness, controllability, conformity with user expectations, error tolerance, suitability for individualization, and suitability for learning (Gediga et al., 1999). After revision, the intervention will be ready for a pilot phase. Interviews and observations could identify some more obstacles that need to be solved before rollout.

#### **3.4 Phase 4: Rollout of the intervention**

The rollout of the intervention should follow a well-elaborated communication strategy, which takes into account the communication before, in-between and after the rollout. After the rollout, the intervention should be evaluated according to the goal setting with regard to the effects, including input factors on the individual, organizational and technical level, process factors concerning the implementation of the intervention and the outcome factors including the acceptance and utilization, individual and organizational effects. Moreover, a cost-benefit analysis can be taken into consideration. A summative evaluation of the project is crucial for ensuring continuous process improvements and the project's adaptation to the needs of the users.
