The pathway
How you actually get there, here
How you become one varies far more by country than what one does. This is the UK route. Most people take one of these ways in; the right one depends on where you're starting from.
- 1
From Manager, Knowledge Strategy (Level 5)
2-4 years in a Level 5 role.Skills to master
- Transitioning from managing managers to owning a significant P&L and driving cross-functional strategic alignment at the VP level. Developing a deeper understanding of enterprise-level financial management and board-level reporting.
You're ready to move on when
- Consistently exceeded targets for KM program impact and team performance.
- Successfully led a major KM initiative with significant cross-functional dependencies.
- Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders outside of your direct reporting line.
- Developed a clear vision for the future of KM within your domain and started building a roadmap.
- 2
From Head of Content Strategy (outside KM)
3-5 years in a similar senior leadership role.Skills to master
- Deepening expertise in structured content, taxonomy, and enterprise search. Adapting content strategy from external marketing/product focus to internal knowledge and operational efficiency. Understanding the unique challenges of internal knowledge capture and sharing.
You're ready to move on when
- Managed large content teams and complex content ecosystems.
- Proven ability to tie content initiatives directly to measurable business outcomes.
- Strong understanding of information architecture and content governance principles.
- Demonstrated interest and experience in internal knowledge sharing and operational efficiency.
- 3
From Senior Product Manager (Knowledge Platforms)
3-5 years in a senior product leadership role.Skills to master
- Shifting from product ownership to strategic functional leadership. Developing expertise in content strategy, taxonomy, and organisational change management. Building and leading a diverse team of knowledge professionals, not just product managers.
You're ready to move on when
- Successfully launched and scaled knowledge-related products or platforms.
- Deep understanding of user needs for knowledge discovery and consumption.
- Strong technical acumen and ability to partner with engineering teams.
- Demonstrated leadership of cross-functional teams and strategic roadmap development.