In this super special Bonus Episode of NAKM Pod, 2/3 of the Empower KM team sit down for an honest, behind-the-scenes conversation about what it took to bring Empower KM to life in February 2026.

From the moment it started feeling real to the beautiful messes along the way, this team reflects on what we built, what surprised us, and what we'd do differently next time.

Take a listen!

Things to take note of:

www.empowerKM.com

Our new fancy email: team@empowerKM.com

Save the Date for Next Year:

February 15-19, 2027

solid dates TBD - but we're planning a virtual day, in person days and professional development workshops!

In this episode, Brittany and Rachel talk with Amy Carlton about her “accidental” path into knowledge management and what the work really looks like inside Novartis. From calling out the checkbox culture of “lessons learned” to redefining what KM actually means in practice, this conversation gets real about the discipline. We also dig into storytelling as a driver for buy-in, the influence of teaching on how we share knowledge, and why people—not tools—are at the center of it all.

Links:

The KM CoP Playbook Example

The unofficial Tattoo shop of NAKM in Dublin

Knowledge Summit Dublin

Jana Thuaud didn’t set out to work in knowledge management. She found her way there through environmental science, development work, and years of documenting what actually happens on the ground.

In this episode, she shares what that journey taught her about KM in the real world. Not the polished version, the human one.

Brittany and Rachel dig into why organizations are still defaulting to websites, repositories, and webinars in 2026. The honest answer? They’re easy to measure, easy to fund, and easy to explain.

They also get into:

• The gap between knowledge products and actual knowledge flow
• Why KM still gets treated like information management
• The role of culture, context, and access in global work
• What it really takes to build trust and connection across teams

The throughline is simple. KM doesn’t move because of tools. It moves because people decide it matters.

A grounded conversation that cuts through the noise and brings KM back to what it’s always been about: people, relationships, and making the work actually work.

Notes:
Check out this great webinar by Jana and her team - https://www.gefislands.org/webinar/islands-forum-setting-bar-synergized-sids-knowledge-chemicals-and-waste