Knowledge Management at Cap Gemini Ernst & Young - Abridged

Cap Gemini (CG) purchased the consulting unit of Ernst & Young (E&Y) on May 2000 to complete geographical presence, since CG was mainly European and E&Y was well located in the American market. The resulting firm, renamed Cap Gemini Ernst & Young (CGE&Y), was heavily based on knowledge not only to run the business but also to successfully complete the integration process. The knowledge management (KM) model and experiences each firm followed before the purchase took place, were substantially different in terms of organizational structure, technological platforms and contribution mechanisms. CG was more technological and decentralized than its partner E&Y, which was more centralized, had higher contribution rates and a stronger teamwork culture. However, these differences seemed to be compatible and even complemented each other. Nevertheless, putting the two KM initiatives together was not an easy task and deciding the KM approach that CGE&Y should follow was a necessity as well as a challenge that needed to be accomplished.