Give Employees Control to Share Their Knowledge

It not only culture, but the employee desire to learn themselves.

Whether the process is in industrial or business or ???.

The next generation of employees, have to have the desire to learn. And learning it, can't be done with a magic wand. To learn things like process, you have to understand intrinsic processes that would support the initial process.

And this is not easy.

As an instructor and an electrician at a government facility I/we (brother and sister workers) often find it difficult if not impossible to find the information, ie. prints, notes, manuals for "legacy" buildings and equipment.

We often spend days researching and tracing out problems, all while trying to work safely and without impacting science or research. I am a firm believer in new employees shadowing older, more experienced ones. Everything can not be learned from a training video or seminar. Older equipment and buildings are like people and you have to learn their quirks.

Up to date prints, manuals, and access to manufacturers information in a localized repository is a great start.

I am also a big advocate of there is usually a better mouse trap, and that information is never wasted, if you "know" why you do something, instead of just doing it, you become the better mouse.

Just my two cents

A two pronged fork in a lot of cases. How many people are insecure in their jobs and like to hold onto all the information in order to hang onto their pay cheque? I have never been one to hold onto information, it is vital to share in order for a company to survive. Always listen to any employee, especially new ones for they may bring in added knowledge. Always encourage questions. As I say to all my new employees "there is no such thing as a stupid question, only a stupid answer". Both can a learn a lot by questioning existing practices.

You also have to leave room for people to learn, and I have found the best way, at least in my company, is to let people make their own decisions. Letting them do that - with some input if they ask for it, or starting guidelines, makes them think deeper into the consequences of their decision. Yes, they may not all be good ones, but everyone (almost) learns from their errors. Problem solving? Again let them to their own resources but offer assistance if they ask for it.

That's the way I see it, and it seems to work for me. After all, even I don't have all the answers. And I won't be around for ever to answer the questions either.

That's a great point--insecurity is a huge roadblock for knowledge management. I think it's a struggle to establish and maintain a safe environment to promote knowledge sharing and often envision corporate higher-ups trying to coax knowledge out of employees as if they're kids or something.

That said, tangible incentives for sharing always help...

"Corporate" attitude/culture is what I think is the key. I've worked for "my way or the highway" bosses before. Eventually I was asked/told to leave, but that was OK by me. In more than one case, the one(s) who told me to leave, was(were) in short order, escorted off the premises by higher ups.

I make a point all the time now, to thank my people for the work they do. That goes a long way, at least in my case.☼

That's my 2¢ worth.

Along the same lines: http://insights.globalspec.com/article/1630/making-knowledge-management-a-part-of-your-organization-s-culture