Training and Development: Touchy Matters

Modern learners are no longer enamoured with socialising virtually.

• Knowledge era individuals have different, but reasonable expectations
• Organisations will have to realign their focus to meet those expectations

In addition to keeping pace with rapidly evolving business and market demands, organisations must respond to the needs of an ever contracting and expanding workforce. These challenges alone put tremendous strain on those in-charge of knowledge management. Added now is the task of adopting different knowledge management practices as what has been done until now is nearing expiry date. Is there a new approach to enable organisations compete with these diverse and dynamic demands? Or, is it that organisations will buckle under the pressure and fail to meet the expectations of the knowledge era and its workers?

Status quo

A while ago, employees could and would update and upskill themselves by reading a few documents. But, as one learning expert says, “The reality of knowledge management today is that people need tacit knowledge and know-how directly from the source.” This requirement is not of knowledge workers alone. Modern employees expect:

• Direct interaction with those who have excelled
• First-hand information on what went right and what went wrong
• To hear success stories from the horse’s mouth
• Support from those who have ‘been there and done that’
• Guidance from experienced hands while on the job

These expectations highlight the need for human interaction. Although modern employees can ‘work the world’ from their cubicles, they no longer want to be lone learners. Although well-connected virtually, they want their online connections to translate into face-to-face interactions, especially while learning. Affirming this is a recent a survey of 1,300 participants, who were asked to rank the effectiveness of different learning opportunities. A whooping 88 percent chose interpersonal interactive opportunities over e-learning. The survey further highlighted the importance employees place on human interaction in gauging training effectiveness. “Relational interaction is now more important to learners than documents, data and facts,” says the survey. So, how can organisations adapt their learning opportunities to these new requirements?

The execution

Knowledge managers must refocus their efforts on the following areas to cater to the new requirements:

• Identify knowledge sources
• Review and measure knowledge flows
• Ensure the flow is free and fast
• Provide knowledge guardians
• Tapping sources

Frequent layoffs, mergers and acquisitions have tampered with existing knowledge flows, making it difficult to identify and access knowledge sources. A learning expert comments, “The stream of information and knowledge has been interrupted and people are floundering to find footing.” As typical knowledge agents disappear or become hard to find, organisations will have to tap into less obvious knowledge sources.

According to knowledge management gurus, excellent knowledge sources are available among the working class. These are individuals who have gained valuable exposure and experience over a period of time and have been sharing it with their colleagues in the form of advice, suggestions and other on-the-job interventions. Without expecting recognition for their contribution, these individuals become valuable components of knowledge flow.

By offering support to those who need the most, and at a time when it is required the most, they make critical contributions to knowledge transfer. Organisations do these individuals great disservice when they fail to recognise the roles they play. “Leveraging them (grassroots knowledge champions) for greater visibility and use is the first step towards realigning the focus of learning,” says an expert.

Social mapping

In the same direction is the merging practice of ‘social mapping’, also referred to as ‘social network analysis. This analysis reveals whom people approach for information and help. Is it that they follow the chain of command or do they get in touch with old hands on a need basis? By answering such questions, the analysis reveals internal trends in knowledge seeking and sharing. With the popular and active sources of knowledge transfer identified, organisations can leverage them better in their knowledge initiatives.

A better understanding of how knowledge is transferred is essential to create a smoother and more egalitarian process for knowledge sharing. Therefore, the analysis also answers the following questions to determine the health of existing knowledge flows:

• Does information get stuck at any level or is an individual becoming a bottleneck in the flow of information?
• Is information lost or distorted at any level during the flow?
• Is the flow smooth between departments, peers and colleagues?

Acknowledging the importance of the role grassroots knowledge champions play in knowledge management and acceding to the fact that individuals should be encouraged to reach out to their colleagues freely will improve both the learning environment and the quality of learning.

With knowledge sources identified, the next few efforts include measuring knowledge flows, making them smoother and providing knowledge guardians. A description of these efforts will be discussed in part two of this two-mailer series.

Reference:
The ManageMentor