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A report released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 1996 on The Knowledge-Based Economy estimated that more than half of the total gross domestic product (GDP) in the developed economies was knowledge-based. Today, production is increasingly based on the exploitation of ideas rather than material thingsÐintangibles. An illustration of the increasing dematerialization of the economy is the fact that the average weight of a real dollar's worth of American exports is now less than half of its weight in 1970. In addition, knowledge workers account for eight out of every ten new jobs. Knowledge management (KM) is the hottest thing since reengineering. According to Peter Drucker, the fact that knowledge has become the resource, rather than a resource, makes the new society different. Ideas become capital,``human resources''and even``human assets''turn into``investors''who put their human capital into an enterprise. Discussions of``core businesses''are largely replaced by discussions about``core competencies.''More than 40,000 Internet pages, more than 300 books and thousands of articles deal with knowledge management. KM is becoming more and more a way of life in successful organizations. It is an integral part of their day-to-day operations and an enabling methodology that integrates individual and corporate objectives. KM can also be a major competitive forcemultiplier. Last year, for example, Hallmark Cards Inc. announced its goal to triple its business by 2010 through the effective use of the company's knowledge. Utilization of state-of-the-art knowledge is now the critical ingredient for …