Inspiring hard work, loyalty, new ideas, and creativity in downsized or transformed organizations is the most compelling challenge for companies today. The problem is that most companies are awful at collecting market and customer information and then commercializing internal knowledge. How bad? The preeminent management expert, Peter Drucker, said that “approximately 90% or more of the information any organization collects is about inside events.”[i]
So, how can companies secure knowledge from their stakeholders? New ideas are rewarded and encouraged. Knowledge is protected and managed as any other business asset. Cultures are changed to encourage out-of-the-box thinking and to induce knowledge sharing. If organizational experiences and wisdom can be shared then it would provide a powerful competitive force to enhance revenues. Information could be shared among diverse business units, plants, teams, and work cells. Applications in one area could transfer to other areas. Some companies even have a new position, Vice President of Knowledge Management.
[i] Drucker, Peter, “The Future That Has Already Happened,” Harvard Business Review, September-October, 1997, p. 22.