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LOST KNOWLEDGE
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Published: October 19, 2007
It's a sure bet your company will be setting up lots of banners and signs over the next few years.
Will they say 'best wishes on your retirement' - or 'going out of business'?
Experts say employers aren't doing enough to prepare for an impending wave of baby-boom retirements.
Companies that aren't encouraging experienced workers now to pass along their knowledge and skills to younger employees could face operational disruptions and major competition once baby boomers are gone.
'There's going to be a gap of straightforward, cultural knowledge that's just going to be missing,' said Jack Vinson, president of Evanston, Ill.-based consulting firm Knowledge Jolt Inc., and adjunct professor of knowledge management at Northwestern University.
'Not only is this a large group of people coming to retirement age - it's the last generation that's had long-term employment,' Vinson said. 'They're the last group that's had 20 or 30 years with the same company.'
Experienced employees don't only know how a business is run, Vinson said. They also have relationships with vendors, clients and customers. They know the company's history. They know what's been successful in the past - and, just as importantly, what's failed, and why.
In a recent survey, some employers admit they're not doing enough to address the boomer knowledge issue.
Monster Worldwide, parent company of online career search giant Monster.com, recently polled 550 high-ranking human resource managers at companies across the country. The respondents said they're aware of the imminent baby-boom retirements, and know that it will lead to a shortage of workers - and important skills.
However, only 12 percent of human resources managers said they felt their organizations were doing enough to deal with knowledge retention. What's more, less that one-fourth said their firms have a formal process in place for knowledge retention.
'A Work In Progress'
Some local companies are taking steps to retain knowledge in their organizations.
At Raymond James Financial in St. Petersburg, the company is creating a series of videos to commemorate its 45th anniversary. The films help younger workers understand the firm's history and culture.
Raymond James Financial also brings young and experienced workers together through several initiatives, according to Human Resources Director Courtland James.
For example, some recent business school graduates work directly with the company chairman for two years under the Assistant to the Chairman Program. The Options Program introduces new workers to people in different departments. The Senior Leader Networking Program connects young managers to senior executives.
James said Raymond James Financial will know if its information retention efforts are working if there's no disruption in business as large numbers of baby-boom employees begin retiring.
If customer service quality falls, 'you'd be concerned that some of those cultural aspects didn't carry over,' he said.
Raymond James Financial constantly evaluates its strategy.
It's considering launching other initiatives, such as a formal mentoring program.
'This is still a work in progress,' James said. 'We've got a lot of the pieces, but it's something we're trying to build on. I think a lot of businesses right now are really working at this.'
Getting Started
Jeff Quinn, director of Monster Intelligence for Monster Worldwide, says every company has different needs, so every company will need a different strategy for dealing with knowledge retention.
However, the Monster survey lists some general recommendations to help organizations address the issue:
•Appoint a senior-level executive to be responsible for organizational knowledge
•Identify the information that needs to be retained, and the workers who possess it
•Provide incentives for employees to share information
•Create companywide tools, such as blogging forums, that employees can use to share knowledge
•Establish mentoring programs
Most importantly, senior executives need to create a workplace where people are encouraged to share information.
'Management has to send the right signals; people can't hoard information,' he said.
Reporter Dave Simanoff can be reached at (813) 259-7762 or dsimanoff@tampatrib.com.
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