Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/87421
The firm was also expanding into niche practice areas, and the KM group began drafting a standardized legal skills taxonomy to better facilitate how colleagues could support each other internally and also how we could more efficiently serve our clients. An attorney skills profile database was developed to capture legal and other expertise (e.g., bar admissions) and to provide functionality for searching across offices and specialty areas. It was also at this time that I foresaw the need for additional staff to support this function. We had a managerial-level technical librarian who oversaw the intranet and other KM technology projects (such as West FOXNET: ATTORNEY SKILLS PROFILE EXAMPLE km) as well as a Web designer. However, we also needed a dedicated KM developer to support our custom coding projects. Over the next few years, the team expanded to include a knowledge services team of six, consisting of a director, a Web designer/developer, a junior Web developer, an application developer, a KM systems administrator and a data steward. This team works closely with the other teams under the KM umbrella: research services, acquisitions/collection development, research/ KM training, competitive intelligence, and risk mitigation. Various administrative departments and legal practice groups also continued to build upon their respective pages, and these groups gradually contributed additional content and resources. Since KM research staff regularly attend practice group meetings, we were able to better understand the groups' needs and became more comfortable and adept at suggesting solutions. This forum continues to be a good opportunity for us to provide informal intranet training and for soliciting feedback on future projects and functionality. Over the years, we have become not only the go-to specialists for content and research but also the go-to staff for architecting more efficient ways to communicate and share resources. Teamsites: Internal Communication and Collaboration Communication is key, but collaboration is paramount. In her Law Library Journal article, "Thinking About Technology… Collaboration Versus Communication," Darla Jackson defines communication as: "sharing … information that already exists." And she defines collaboration as a way of working jointly that "results in the generation of new knowledge, new options or new products." FoxNet began as a platform to share information, but it evolved into more than a communication platform. It became collaborative in nature to fit the firm's and attorneys' needs. We integrated a search function into the attorney profiles and workflows to support firm 18 AALL/ILTA White Paper