About us

We support qualified civil servants who enable the creation, organisation and exploitation of information and knowledge.

We are a professional community, working across departments, agencies, and arms’ length bodies (ALBs) to support and champion the creation, organisation and exploitation of information and knowledge. As a recognised profession in government, KIM forms a cornerstone of all government activity and there has never been a more exciting time to be part of this varied, diverse and inclusive profession.

These pages explain our profession, providing useful links and advice on development, contact details for some of the relevant bodies working in the KIM environment and wider access to members of the profession across government.

We recognise and support the diversity of the profession, making it more inclusive by setting out the different types of roles and career paths that exist; assessing whether there are other qualification and accreditation possibilities and other professional bodies that could be endorsed; and ensuring recruitment guidance reflects this greater flexibility, making it easier for vacancy holders to recruit the right people when filling KIM roles.

The KIM profession offers an opportunity to develop a range of skills that are relevant to roles government. We are leaders in managing change and working together and our skills make for more effective and efficient government. KIM touches every aspect of Departmental activity and those in the profession are in the privileged position of seeing the full extent of the work undertaken. We are keepers of the government’s history and ensure our departments remain transparent and are accountability to Parliament and the public.

Government Knowledge & Information Management Profession is part of the Civil Service.

Contact Government Knowledge & Information Management Profession

General enquiries

Email gkimhop@communities.gov.uk

Who we are

The Government KIM (GKIM) profession is one of the Civil Service Professions. It is made up of civil servants who curate knowledge and manage information in all its forms - assets that critically underpin the work of government.

GKIM professionals work in a range of disciplines, including information rights (Data Protection, Freedom of Information, Environmental Information Regulations), records management, information management, librarianship, knowledge management, information architecture and governance. They work in central Government departments, Government Agencies and Arm’s Length Bodies, and their careers may span many different disciplines and organisations.

The core KIM roles appear at the centre of the GKIM profession diagram (JPEG, 85.4 KB). Such roles are often filled by civil servants who have a recognised KIM qualification, or who have professional registration from the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP), Information and Records Management Society (IRMS), the Archives and Records Association (ARA) or the British Computer Society (BCS). Roles in the outer 2 rings may come under KIM, but this can vary in different Government departments.

If you are unsure whether you are in a GKIM professional role, please contact gkimhop@communities.gov.uk, who will provide advice and assistance.

Strong Leadership

The Government Knowledge and Information Management Profession is led by the Government Head of Profession. He/she chairs the GKIM Leaders network, made up of KIM Leaders (the senior accountable person for KIM) from each main government department and participating devolved administrations, which governs the profession and provides a forum for developing an integrated cross-governmental approach to KIM. This includes creating opportunities for knowledge sharing, developing KIM skills and convening working groups to look at specific areas of importance for the GKIM community.

The GKIM Head of Profession works with other government Heads of Professions, KIM Leaders and KIM professionals to:

  • build recognition among senior members of the civil service of the expertise of KIM professionals and the value they bring
  • improve the way departments manage information as an asset, ensuring it is protected, made accessible where appropriate and used effectively to inform decision-making and to provide efficient and effective public services
  • develop professionalism, a competency framework and learning opportunities to equip KIM professionals with the most up-to-date skills and career paths
  • unify specialist disciplines within the KIM profession to build a stronger community
  • raise core skills in managing knowledge and information across government

The GKIM profession skills framework

The GKIM profession plays a critical role in supporting all government activity. We’re custodians of the government’s history. We ensure our departments remain transparent and accountable to Parliament and the public.

The GKIM skills framework has both a generic set of skills and skills specific to each of the six GKIM disciplines.

These are:

  • Information Architecture
  • Information Management
  • Information Rights
  • Knowledge Management
  • Library Management
  • Records Management

The static version is available here:

For the next stage of development we are now working on a skills taxonomy that will be added to a new Government Skills Campus platform, in common with other professions.

We have been working with the Government Skills Campus team to agree the taxonomy of GKIM specialist skills which are unique to our profession, and the GKIM profession will continue to own its taxonomy of specialist skills.

We don’t yet have a confirmed date when the new Government Skills Campus will be launched but the Comaea (competency management tool) version of the GKIM Skills Framework has now been decommissioned in readiness for the move.

Professional Development

We help our KIM professionals to build the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to achieve their business objectives and to meet the challenges of delivering public services in the 21 century.

Building capability has personal benefits too, as professional skills and experience are recognised and valued, jobs become more rewarding, and professionals will be equipped to take their skills across the Civil Service.

Learning Model

As a profession we follow the Civil Service recommended 70-20-10 learning model:

  • 70 percent of learning and development will be through on-the-job experience (for example, taking on new responsibilities, getting involved in different projects overcoming workplace challenges)

  • 20 percent through social interaction (for example, coaching, mentoring, volunteering, organising workshops, shadowing)

10 percent through formal skills training (for example, classroom based learning, e-learning, workshops or obtaining formal qualifications)

Learning Opportunities

Our provides details of organisations that can provide formal skills and social interaction type learning opportunities. In addition to this there are core Civil Service Learning courses on Leadership and Management, Project Delivery, Communicating and Influencing and Analysis that may be of value to GKIM professionals

If you are interested in being mentored or being a mentor please contact gkimhop@communities.gov.uk. Shadowing someone in your own or an external organisation can also be a good way to learn. Your Head of KIM will be able to advise you on this.

Participation in Professional Networks, formed by people with a common interest or expertise who get together in different ways to share knowledge, good practice and support each other, is another good way to develop. Joining a network will help you find out how other departments do things, keep up to date with developments in your subject area and allow you to make contacts.

Here are a few of the networks that exist in the KIM profession.

The Association of Departmental Record Officers (ADRO)

Represents all those responsible for or have an interest in records and information management in Government Departments, NDPBs or Agencies.

The aim of the Association is to provide a forum to discuss matters of mutual concern, to receive and share information, and when needed, to present a unified response to issues raised by The National Archives or other bodies.

To find out more about this community contact gkimhop@communities.gov.uk or apply to join the Knowledge Hub ADRO Group.

The Chartered Institute of Librarians and Information Professionals

Has a Knowledge and Information Special Interest Group’ for CILIP members working in or who have an active interest in knowledge and information management.

The Committee of Departmental Librarians (CDL)

Consists of Heads of Profession from each government department who meet quarterly each year to discuss procurement, copyright and other pressing matters faced by departmental library and KIM teams. Both the Copyright and Procurement Practitioners Group are sub-groups of CDL.

If you are interested in joining CDL then please contact gkimhop@communities.gov.uk.

Government Information Group (GIG) is a Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) special interest group. It organises professional training for its members on topical subjects such as freedom of information, mentoring, electronic publishing and information handling. It promotes CILIP’s chartership and fellowships in government departments and encourages the use by members and their organisations of the Continuing Professional Development Personal Profile.

Visits are arranged to government libraries and other national collections. As part of its policy of fostering contacts between members, the Group organises social activities.

If you are interested in joining GIG please contact Info.GIG@cilip.org.uk or look at the GIG pages on the CILIP website.

The Network of Government Library and Information Specialists (NGLIS):

  • provides an opportunity to network, socialise and keep in contact with Government information specialists
  • is a semi-formal organisation run by and for librarians and other information workers from government departments, agencies and other organisations
  • is non-profit making, funded by membership fees and income from courses and other events
  • is not affiliated to or funded by any government department or other organisation
  • is managed by members of the Committee, with assistance from other members and colleagues
  • is for anybody working within Government Information or anyone interested in Government Information. All members are welcome to join the committee or otherwise help with Network activities

To join NGLIS please contact nglispost@gmail.com or membernglis@gmail.com.

The Knowledge Mavericks

A Cross Government Knowledge Management (KM) Practitioners Group providing an informal and lively environment in which to share and develop good practice in KM within UK Government Departments.

The Group is based upon a Community of Practice model, runs face- to-face meetings about once every 3 months and encourages online discussion and input from fellow practitioners.

If you are interested in joining this group then please contact gkimhop@communities.gov.uk.

The Government Knowledge and Information Management Group

On Knowledge Hub is the central portal for the Government Knowledge and Information Management profession and is intended to provide a resource to support those working in GKIM on professional matters. It provides private space for KIM professionals to share ideas and practice. Register on Knowledge Hub to request to join the group.

The HMG Data Protection Implementation Group

On Knowledge Hub supports is a community group for information professionals responsible for Data Protection matters, offering an opportunity to share ideas and practice and ask questions. Register on Knowledge Hub to request to join the group.

The O365 Knowledge and Information Management User Group

Uses a FCDO hosted Microsoft Teams to discuss issues of interest to departments and organisations using Office 365. The group also meets periodically.To join the group via your Office 365 tenant contact GovernmentAudience@nationalarchives.gov.uk marking the email title as ‘O365 GKIM User Group’.

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