Matt Moore has come up with an excellent list of key challenges that one may encounter while trying to create a knowledge sharing culture. He adds that “these are not mutually exclusive but are often related to each other”.
- Time: Focus on achieving short-term objectives rather than longer term goals around upskilling/learning
- Space: People in different cities/countries/
- Compensation: Focused on individual performance.
- Technology: Lack of tools/infrastructur
- Silo Structures: Organisational groups that do not communicate/
- Lack of Trust: Other internal groups/individuals perceived as untrustworthy or competitive
- Power: Particular information or skills perceived as a personal differentiator. Sharing dilutes this power.
- Lack of Availability/
- Pride: "Not invented here" syndrome.
He also points out some of the important factors that impact the knowledge sharing culture in the positive sense.
- Focus on specific areas of collaboration & improvement with identified groups rather than generalised "sharing".
- Demonstrate the individual & collective value of these sharing efforts.
- Publicly reward examples of sharing (rewards not necessarily financial).
- Ritualising the sharing of experience/lessons/
- Role-models. Senior people have to share their experience.
Meanwhile, here’s a related post that I’d put together quite a while ago. One of the additional points being internal competition, which is a shade worse than natural silos.
2 comments:
Hello Nimmy,
I discovered your site recently and I am sure I will read it regularly.
Could I start by directing you to a post on my blog inspired by Matt Moore's list that gives 16 syndromes of anti-knowledge-sharing culture.
http://leveragingknowledge.blogspot.com/2007/03/organizational-cultures-not-conducive_20.html
Cheers
Peter-Anthony Glick
Thanks for leaving your comments, Peter! Looking forward to keeping in touch with your blog as well! :)
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