The ability to create relationships of trust and sharing, so valued in family
life, has taken on new importance in the workplace. As our economy
is based more on knowledge, the single most important asset in many
organizations is the knowledge worker who has the ability to learn from others,
create new knowledge, and transfer that knowledge to co-workers.
In organizations where informal conversation is seen as
time-wasting, the rule has been to "Stop talking and get back to
work." This rule may have been appropriate to the assembly
lines of the industrial age, but it is not helpful in the workplace of the
information age. The life-blood of the knowledge economy is
conversation. Through all kinds of talk in the cafeteria and
hallway, in bull-sessions around the water-cooler, phone visits, shop-talk over
coffee, knowledge workers are often sharing critical business information.
Perhaps they'll sketch a new idea on a napkin or ask a challenging question
that will change another's thinking so that a fresh insight comes to
mind.
Data and information can be transmitted electronically,
but it is nearly impossible to transfer knowledge by technological means
alone. That is because true "working knowledge" contains
values, personal experience, expert insight, and emotion.
For one person
to actually absorb knowledge coming from another person usually requires
direct contact between people -- what the military calls "face
time." Second best can be "voice time" -- contact by telephone. To understand, we often need to get the
"feel" of the knowledge as conveyed through all the senses.
Because knowledge is "alive" and has a personal flavor, it needs involvement of
the heart and gut as well as the head. It doesn't thrive in hard-copy or electronic captivity.
Some time ago I had several serious
computer problems. I dutifully read through the detailed manuals
and found some information that seemed relevant. Then I spent a lot
of time trying things -- few of which I fully understood -- worrying that I
might create even worse problems.
Giving up, I
came to my senses and hired a knowledgeable computer science student to help me
for a few hours, and that made all the difference. His "felt
knowledge" conveyed a quiet confidence, and his simple, well-paced
explanations made sense. I experimented; he gently coached and
corrected. After a short time, I
"got it" and was able to manage on my own with much more confidence
than any manual could provide.
To share, acquire and even create working knowledge, we need the
abilities to establish rapport and create trust, to suspend premature judgment,
ask good questions, listen for connections among ideas, and honor diverse
perspectives. And, certainly, we need to know when to talk and when to remain
silent and receptive. The new knowledge economy requires such
conversational skills so that we can learn from each other.
Leaders in some of America's most successful companies
such as Intel have removed the barriers that used to discourage "learning
conversations" and now actively reward employees for sharing
knowledge. They are encouraging "communities of
practice," informal groups where novices can learn from more experienced
people. They make it easy to have access to anyone who has the useful
knowledge you need by arranging open spaces and eliminating closed doors.
Other companies are experimenting with new approaches like "Appreciative
Inquiry," an informal process for drawing out knowledge of what has worked
best in the past.
Because the
greatest portion of the knowledge assets in any organization is not in manuals
and data bases but within the minds of its people, and because most knowledge
transfer takes place informally, the "soft skills" for effective
relating to other human beings will continue to be needed. With the right skills and attitudes, a CEO
can learn from a worker on the assembly line, a General Halftrack can pay attention
to a lowly Lt. Fuzz, and left-brained engineers and right-brained customer
service folks will be able to learn from one another.
Might a better
rule for organizations in this new knowledge economy be: "Stop working and talk it over"?