As an old movie buff, I still remember that line from a John Wayne movie, probably “The Alamo”, where he had just been witness to a parade of dandily-attired spit-shined troops marching in front of the reviewing stand.  That question should ring through the ages in all of its allegorical glory, no matter what you undertake.  When it comes to deciding whether or not to create a knowledge product [or any product, for that matter], the question instead becomes:

“Very pretty, but does it add value that the customer will pay for?"

If you are a frequent reader of my articles, please forgive this brief restatement, but for the newcomers to my work , one of the founding principles of my KnexusTM model of knowledge exchange is that: “The knowledge economy is, first and foremost, an economy.”  The meaning and value of intellectual capital can only be realized in the marketplace.  Even internal processes must be managed so that they serve markets and customers as directly as possible.