Basex Names The 'Knowledge Worker' Its Person-of-the-Year; Microsoft, Xerox and Factiva Join In Honoring The Knowledge Worker

Business Wire, Dec 22, 2004

NEW YORK -- Basex, a leading research and consulting firm and the authority on the productivity of knowledge workers and how information technology impacts them, announced its Person-of-the-Year for 2004 - the 'Knowledge Worker.'

The knowledge workforce today is the lynchpin to an organization's success, as the world morphs into a knowledge economy. This change represents a significant challenge to managers, who are accustomed to managing workers in more traditional roles.

Knowledge work represents a very different economic model. The minimum cost of tools and technologies that supports these workers, estimated to be between $5,000 and $10,000 per employee per year, is growing steadily, yet most companies have failed to recognize the changes they need to make in how they conduct business and manage their workforce.

Instead, companies need to look for ways in which they can view and manage their human resources as a pool of intellectual capital - raw material for the knowledge economy. Knowledge workers spend 15 percent of their time each day searching, and 50 percent of these searches fail - at an annual cost of $6,000 per worker. In addition, companies have yet to recognize the high cost of 'lag time,' the unproductive time that represents 90 percent of overall knowledge processes which exists because companies continue to provide their knowledge workers with outmoded tools. In aggregate, lag time costs the corporate world approximately $25 billion in 2004 and will increase by 15 percent in 2005.

"It's great to see Basex honor the knowledge worker for its 2004 Person of the Year award," said Jeff Raikes, Microsoft group vice president, Information Worker Business. "There is a global change happening in the way we work - a need to be more responsive and more connected to people and information, and a move away from the desk, the office and traditional hours. In today's environment, information workers have more options on how and when they work, and access to more tools to meet their work needs than ever before. It's exciting from a business, technology, and innovation perspective to witness the greater productivity among individuals, teams, and organizations in this new world of work and how it continues to evolve."

According to Anne M. Mulcahy, chairman and chief executive officer, Xerox Corporation, "In every enterprise, there are workers who are thinking up better ways to capture, manage and deliver information and knowledge. These knowledge workers hold the key to growth and productivity in today's information-driven business world. Now more than ever, they need solutions and services that streamline the way knowledge flows through the workplace.

"Smarter document management plays a key role in this effort. That's why we're focusing our strategy on delivering better ways to work with documents and the information they contain. And that's why we're focusing on helping knowledge workers think more, do more and contribute more."

"Today's competitive environment requires the ability to comprehend and manage vast amounts of information from multiple sources," said Clare Hart, president and CEO of Factiva. "It's not surprising that the Knowledge Worker is Basex's 'person of the year,' recognizing the criticality of this role, and the systems that support it, to the success of the enterprise. As a result, smart companies are employing technologies that enable their employees to make better decisions, faster."

An example of a company that has implemented best practices for knowledge workers is HP, which was able to shorten the lag time in its content management process from approximately 39 days to 21 days, a 46 percent improvement.

Information technology has played a significant role in facilitating this change; the market for knowledge worker tools and applications is a $50 billion one.

"The Person-of-the-Year designation recognizes the impact which knowledge workers are having on the economy," said Jonathan B. Spira, chief analyst at Basex. "Without the knowledge worker, much of the business world would come to a standstill. Companies haven't figured out how to manage the knowledge workforce, and the average company with 1,000 employees loses over $12 million annually as a result."

In celebrating the Knowledge Worker as Person-of-the-year, Basex announced the publication of Managing the Knowledge Workforce: Leading, Motivating, and Supporting The Knowledge Economy, by Jonathan B. Spira. The book will be available for sale in January 2005 at http://www.basex.com/poty2004; the table of contents, index, and chapter excerpts are now available at no charge.

About Basex

Basex is the recognized expert in Collaborative Business Environments, the intersection of content, knowledge and collaboration within the enterprise and beyond, and the authority on the productivity of knowledge workers and how information technology affects them. Basex created the Knowledge Worker Impact Quotient (KWIQ) to answer the needs of IT buyers for a better understanding of the impact tools and technologies have on both the workplace and on the people who use them. The company has been cited by KMWorld as one of the "100 Companies that Matter in Knowledge Management". Basex has a 22-year track record of accurate research and visionary analysis that drives its clients to make the right business and technology decisions for their organizations. More information on Basex can be found at http://www.basex.com