How does knowledge matter? is the theme of the SMS conference, and there have been some great contributions. The CEO of power producer e.on explained very clearly how the company is building, capturing and sharing knowledge amongst many ‘communities of practice’ to enable them to build business and performance. Then David Steed, former CIO of Proctor & Gamble put this very succinctly in a discussion at the 2008 SMS conference. Asked ‘how does knowledge matter’ he emphasized the importance of speed to market in FMCG. “When a competitor withdraws from a market because they are still taking 18 months to bring products to market when you can do it in 6, you know you have a real capability offering sustained competitive advantage.” He went on to describe the intense knowledge and efficient, reliable processes that underlie this capability-of-speed. Nothing abstract or obscure – simple, tangible and measurable factors.