Holding it in

So I read David DeLong's Lost Knowledge the other week. DDL's "Six Mistakes to Avoid When Implementing An Aging Workforce Strategy" are a pretty solid place to (not) start. A post on ACT-KM also generated some good responses from people (esp. Arthur Shelley, James Grey & Lindsay MacDonald) & some particularly useful material from TVA.

There was also a debate between those who wanted to pragmatically start somewhere (even if it's when those key personnel are about to retire next week) and those who advocated a particular approach which often identifying these people years beforehand. These kinds of debates seem to recur on ACT-KM and often seem to be between those who have to implement something within an organisation (however messy and flawed that might be) and the expert who wants to do it the "best" way.

In truth, the first time your organisation tries to consciously deal with a knowledge retention issue, it will probably screw it up. The key expert will be identified the week they are going to retire and a hasty interview may identify a couple of useful things. Everyone will say that this kind of thing is important and we should do it better. The critical thing will be: Can you use this experience to generate enthusiasm for a more sustainable approach?