Taxonomy: A Knowledge Sharing Enabler
David L. Smith, Joseph A. Busch, Ron Daniel · SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition · 2004
Abstract As companies have begun to share information using intranets and internets, more information is available than the average person can absorb. A simple internet search using any search engine can return hundreds to thousands of documents that may contain only bits of information that one is required to integrate into useful knowledge. Successful implementation of internet and intranet portals, knowledge management, and content management requires a systematic approach to classifying information. The classification framework, or taxonomy, allows content owners to categorize their content so that it becomes more useful to a broader audience. Taxonomy allows knowledge seekers, whether they are researchers or the general public, to easily find and re-use information rather than recreate it. Taxonomies are not new; in fact most work groups organize their information around a hierarchy that developed over several years. In most corporate environments, each product line or functional group organizes its information from its internal viewpoint rather than from a broader viewpoint. Use of a broader viewpoint would however, encourage content sharing beyond the product line or group. To be successful the digital world must eventually merge these independent hierarchies toward a common taxonomy. This paper details the development of an enterprise-wide taxonomy for a diverse, global oil and gas services company. The paper describes implementation of the taxonomy, including the application of taxonomy to a comprehensive content management system, to knowledge management initiatives, and to effective portal design. Challenges and lessons learned are also presented, the most significant of which are issues surrounding the means to get people to think differently and do things in different ways.