Richness versus Reach

Another perspective that accelerated the enthusiasm for KM and the development of knowledge products is the 'richness versus reach' thesis of Evans and Wurster. They pointed out that the nature of communication has drastically changed. Until now, one had a choice of richness or reach, but one could not achieve both simultaneously. A face-to-face conversation, for instance, is rich in content, nuance and interactivity but poor in reach. A radio or TV broadcast has great reach but is poor in interactivity and nuance. Communication strategies were always an either-or choice. With the Internet, it is argued that we can craft systems that provide both richness and reach. This has necessitated a rethink on how information and knowledge are shared within organisations, an important concern of businesses wishing to harness knowledge. Knowledge products targeted to specific domains, together with the use of the web as the delivery medium, we believe can provide the richness and reach sought for in organisations