LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT
LEARNING FROM KNOWLEDGE SHARING:
The Relocate Awards 2020 provided a showcase for best practice both in the arena of relocation and global mobility, and also for global people management. Much can be learned through the sharing of knowledge from the Award winners and other entrants in terms of strategic and operational excellence. Dr Sue Shortland, Head Judge explains.
A
ll businesses are repositories of knowledge. Knowledge is explicit and tacit. Explicit knowledge is readily accessible, often being incorporated into text (such as policies and other written materials) and is thus
readily available to read, digest and embrace. Tacit knowledge is personal, context specific and more difficult
to communicate as it is held by individuals. Often individuals are unaware of the knowledge that they hold, using it daily with ease but not necessarily recognising its significance to the business or to others in the workforce. The Relocate Awards are a valuable way of making tacit
knowledge explicit – and for the good of everyone in our sector and the people we support.
MAKING THE DIFFERENCE – SHARING TACIT KNOWLEDGE Accessing tacit knowledge is critical for organisational success. Businesses cannot move forward without the contributions of their people. It is here that being able to draw upon tacit knowledge becomes of immense significance. As such it is important to overcome both the paradoxes of tacit knowledge transfer and evaluation. In the transfer paradox valuable tacit knowledge is the ‘stickiest’
challenge; in the evaluation paradox it is valuable tacit knowledge that is the most difficult to evaluate and assess.
Knowledge diversity is an asset if it is shared effectively.
However, this hinges on ability and willingness to disseminate and absorb information. For example, disseminating information by using examples of problem solving drawn from people’s tacit knowledge can assist in the creation of explicit knowledge. HRM practices that influence knowledge absorption include
job design, performance management, and rewards and incentives. Structural mechanisms such as teamwork, the use of virtual working, social media and communities of practice all support knowledge dissemination and absorption. A social architecture that maximises the value of social capital
via networks, underpinned by a shared global mind-set, also supports enhanced knowledge diversity.
“THE KEY KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER CAME FROM THE EXAMPLES OF HOW DIFFICULT ISSUES WERE MANAGED”
26 | RELOCATE | SUMMER 2020
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