The Baby Boomer generation is readying for retirement. Some are retiring early or, having found an urgent social consciousness, are abandoning their lucrative corporate positions for more “meaningful” employ. In this weak economic climate, no one seems particularly concerned about their departure. Belt-tightening is the current modus operandi, layoffs are rampant, and the empty positions may be considered merely fewer pink slips to deliver. But what about the expertise, knowledge, and corporate wisdom that has become an inherent element of these human resources? Organizations are “leaking” corporate knowledge.
Two years ago when I left my corporate VP position after 28 years with the company, no one showed any interest in knowing what files or other documentation I left behind. They were, however, quite interested in having me sign a legal document stating I wouldn’t take any corporate property out the door with me. I left current operational information with the staff still in place. I also discarded and shredded quite a bit of historical material that I used as references or templates for projects and tasks when I didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. There simply wasn’t time before my departure to try to explain it all. Besides, no one seemed interested.
The departure of a single individual does not constitute a corporate tragedy (except, perhaps in the case of a Steve Jobs-type who is almost synonymous with the Apple brand). What amazes me is that I don’t believe corporate senior executives have any idea what information they may or may not be losing as individuals skip blithely out their doors. Certainly this is not a new problem; but with the job-hopping habits of generations following the Baby Boomers, we may be fast-approaching the peak of the issue in our lifetimes.
Thoughts about remedies:
· Extend documentation policies into better retention and storage practices.
· Before the de-rigueur exit interview, have an in-depth, structured conversation with the departing employee to ask about their legacy knowledge and any related documentation they think is vital to the company.
· Create a culture where organizational knowledge is clearly valued.
· Incent employees to contribute and document key learning for future reference and use.
· Employ database and query technology to store and access the information.
· Consider having a Knowledge Committee that pursues documentation of critical information.
· Establish a Knowledge Officer position to assign clear responsibility to gathering the wealth of knowledge and establishing a method for mining it.
