Overview

In an effort to maximize the collective knowledge and experience of individuals, organizations have utilized technology to collect and distribute this information. Storytellers were the first repositories of this collective knowledge. Eventually writing allowed for the building of libraries which was the first great expansion of knowledge repositories. Johann Gutenberg created the next piece of the puzzle with the printing press, making it easier for all levels of knowledge to be captured and distributed. Finally in modern time we have learned to create databases which store exponentially larger amounts of common knowledge and experiences in a searchable, electronic format.

Presently we find ourselves on the cusp of another leap forward for the distribution of knowledge. My proposal is to build a knowledge mapping database that provides all participants with the information they need in any number of formats in real-time. This system will fundamentally change the way the State of Ohio does business; in doing so it will drive business and residents to the State of Ohio.

I call this the Human Knowledge Mapping system. The mechanics of the system can be implemented using primarily off-the-shelf products while the soul of the system will be the employees of the State, then students, then business professionals and finally individual citizens. Through the growth of this system it is possible to dream of a day when all Ohioans, and perhaps all the people of the world, can interact and grow the collective knowledge exponentially.

Summary of Benefits and Initiative Intersections

The scope of this system will leverage current resources in such a way that several current initiatives will benefit. The intersections with these initiatives will not only help this system grow but will help these initiatives to exceed their initial expectations. Below is a short list of the collaboration between this system, the initiatives and realizable benefits.

• A primary benefit is that a rapid, real-time response to inquiries will be available to all State of Ohio employees across agencies.
• Human Resources will have access to a cross agency listing of employee knowledge backgrounds, based on current responsibilities as well as previous positions and extracurricular based knowledge.
• OAKS will benefit directly through this exponential growth of personnel information which will expand agency participation and use of the OAKS system.
• Internal Customer Service will improve immediately through the sharing of experience and knowledge when working through standard procedures or previously undocumented and unexpected scenarios.
• External Customer Service will improve as the system expands. By allowing the public at large to utilize this real-time system, many issues will be resolved more efficiently. Industry engaged in business with the State will be able to resolve issues more efficiently which will increase participation and investment.
• Disaster Recovery efforts will benefit from a wider pool of knowledge to fill positions in the event of a significant loss of personnel or in the event that certain activities require greater resources. Using physical mapping mash-ups with this system will provide information about where local and regional resources can be most efficiently relocated.
• The Healthy Ohio Initiative identifies issues with healthcare worker shortages. Upon wider implementation of this system specific shortages and resources can be assessed and resources can be reapplied appropriately.
• The Broadband Ohio Network Initiative has a focus on innovation, research, education and economic competitiveness via OSCnet. This system will utilize Broadband Ohio and OSCnet to create greater collaboration between organizations and individuals, substantially affecting all of the listed focuses.
• The Knowledgeworks Initiative looks to use human resources and technological resources in a way to improve High School, College and Adult Education. This system would provide greater collaboration between educator and learner. The system will open up greater channels for the pursuit of knowledge in education.
• The Advantage Ohio Initiative can be expanded by providing detailed reports about concentrations of knowledge, locations of these bases and specific needs to businesses interested in investing in Ohio. New markets will be exposed as greater reporting about resources and needs occurs.
• Via the development of this system the State of Ohio will establish itself as the most technologically innovative government body in the world.

System Mechanics and Function

The Human Knowledge Mapping system begins with a relatively simple procedure. A sample group will develop lists of what they feel they have to offer as knowledge. This knowledge will include current job analysis, previous work experiences, personal hobbies and other extracurricular based knowledge. It is not necessary that all of the knowledge be professionally related however, as part of the documentation, lists should be separated into professional, non-professional, current and previous experiences. This will give users a more comprehensive understanding of the support they are receiving. Through compilation of these lists common terms will be grouped together under headings which will then develop into a matrix of modules; or, for a more visual context these could be considered islands of knowledge.

The primary components that make up the system will include a chat screen live on every participant’s system, a database, a chat window with active text on agency websites along with a data collection tool. This knowledge information will be added to the system database which could be a part of the OAKS database. A user will enter a question into the agency website chat window. The question will be read by the system which will then use keywords to search the database and determine which islands of knowledge are related. The islands will be identified to the user so that they can see which connections their question has made; this gives the user a chance to refine their question further. All of this will be done using a graphical interface which cues the user to choose narrower keywords (tags) so as to make the system as efficient as possible.

Once the question has been refined the user submits it which broadcasts it to the chat window of all participants who reside on the related islands of knowledge. Assuming the question broadcasts to several people any number of them may participate in the chat. During this chat period the system will record the full session. Links may be shared which the system will follow and record a snapshot of for future reference. File sharing will be limited to include virus protection as well as document protection scans. The recorded chat session is then stored in the database with a record of all participants, the initial question and searchable keyword text. For the initial installation of the system this chat function will use keyboarding but future releases could have live voice or video capability added.

At the end of the session the user who asked the initial question will be emailed a transcript of the chat session and will be invited to participate in the system. If they choose to participate then they will enter their personal knowledge information and, once accepted, they will be given access to the desktop chat program. As the system grows the recorded chat sessions will be included in the initial keyword search so that in some cases a new chat session will not be required to get the user the information they need. These searches will also include access to related links, screenshots and files found in the text searchable chat sessions.

The chat sessions will be secure and the fact that they will be recorded 100% of the time will dissuade system abuse. Initially the system would be utilized for internal state functions but could quickly be implemented with local government co-ops as well as educational institutions. Eventually the chat window would be active on the State of Ohio website allowing for citizens and industry professionals to quickly resolve issues they have in the course of doing business with the state.

As mentioned earlier, all of the key software components already exist. Current examples of similar pieces of software can be found in wide use in private industry and on personal websites. The key difference is the way that this system will bring these software components together. For example, Hewlett Packard provides support via chat sessions which are recorded and then emailed to the user along with a follow up questionnaire. Blog sites running WordPress regularly utilize tagging tools which provide a visual search experience by assigning larger font sizes to tags that relate more directly to the current topic and slowly taper off as the tags lose relevance. This software also displays the tags in a visually stimulating way such as a layered circular design. Web search engines such as Ask.com provide instant links to multiple media types during search queries. This would be beneficial as other resources are added such as video, audio and graphical or photographic information. Wikipedia currently uses this collaborative style content building and provides yet another dimension of this system. You can look at any number of thousands of sites that use Google maps to create mash-ups of information with physical locations. As you can see the mechanisms necessary to deliver such a system are widely available.

By using Service Oriented Architecture the system will allow for quick and easy enhancements as participation increases and needs are realized. The key element to making this a successful system is in its simplicity which will draw in participants. Since this is a collaborative support system, support costs will be low because the participants in the system will provide the user support.