leadership matters
Passing
the Torch
By Karen Stone, CHRE
Knowledge transfer is most typically thought of as an inten-tional
strategy to capture and share the knowledge and
insights from one individual to another. We think of
knowledge transfer, or “KT,” as occurring at an employee’s
retirement or when an employee promotion or transfer happens
and they pass the reins to someone else. In years gone by, we might
have seen a key task list and instructions around both “what” to do
and “how” to do it; however, more recently we are seeing both tan-gibles
and intangibles regarding the job and leading organizations
are capturing these in the KT plans.
Professionals transitioning out of decades-long careers have so
much more to share beyond the nuts and bolts of the job. They are
often the stewards of culture and they just know how to get things
done. Their experience, insights and institutional memory are a
rich source of knowledge that, when fully leveraged, can accelerate
the successful onboarding of their replacement. The intangibles
they pass along ensure important and valued cultural artifacts are
sustained – just as we see in our family life where treasured tradi-tions
are passed down from one generation to the next.
Some experts refer to this type of less explicit knowledge as
“tribal knowledge,” which you will read about in this month’s cover
feature. You will also read some key strategies from experts about
how to effectively structure knowledge capture and pass it along
in a durable way.
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HRPROFESSIONALNOW.CA ❚ JUNE 2018 ❚ 5
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