Who Best Knows the Company? Cognisco Explains How to Retain Knowledge Custodians

by TMT Editor

Because proper staffing levels become a moving target, an economic recession can throw a workforce into flux. At the same time, retention of the best performers becomes as important as ever. But whose contributions best support operations, and how can an organization identify these people? One common denominator among top performers is their knowledge of the company; they possess the institutional knowledge that leads to efficiency. Organizations that retain these knowledge custodians position themselves favorably for the staffing challenges that come with recessionary conditions, according to Cognisco, provider of online employee assessment and learning solutions. The following article -- which recently ran at Onrec.com, as well -- provides further detail.

Do you know who your knowledge custodians are?
By Mary Clarke, Chief Executive of Cognisco

Clarke will be a speaker on Nov 3-4, 2009, in Chicago at www.Onrec.com/Exp2009 for the session titled "Circumvent the Costly Effects of Training an Unqualified Employee." A full bio and session description are available at http://www.onrec.com/profiles/mary_clarke.html.

In today’s challenging economic climate, companies across the board have been forced to re-examine company spending and cut budgets.  Unfortunately, for businesses in many sectors, this has meant an increase in layoffs.  The American unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent last month, increasing from 7.2 percent at the beginning of 2009.  The situation is dire for all parties involved, but for executives it means maintaining normal business practices and production levels with reduced employee numbers.

In times like these it’s more important than ever for executives to have a clear view of their employees’ knowledge, competence and confidence so that they can utilize their current staff in the most effective way possible.  Every company has employees that qualify as “knowledge custodians.”  These are the go-to people that have mastered the ins and outs of the business and are a consistent and reliable resource for other employees.  For executives dealing with extensive layoffs, it’s critical to identify these people, not only to ensure that their positions are preserved, but also to utilize their knowledge and skill in the training of others.  

A knowledge development program is one tool that can help executives in any sector gain a clear view of their current staff.  Often, successful knowledge development programs revolve around consistently administered employee assessments, which provide a holistic view of the individual employee and measure competence and knowledge in conjunction with confidence.  Including a measurement of confidence allows for a more complete view of the employee, because if employees lack confidence in a skill or knowledge set, they are less likely to fulfill their potential.  On the flip side, if employees have unwavering confidence in incorrect knowledge, they pose an increased risk to the organization. 

By utilizing assessments as a part of knowledge development programs, executives can identify their knowledge custodians and ensure that their skills are fully utilized.  In some cases, this could mean a promotion in which the knowledge custodian is given more responsibility within the company.  In other cases, it could mean recruiting the help of the knowledge custodians to train and educate those lower on the company ladder.  In any situation, the identification of top-performing employees can only prove beneficial to both the executives and employees alike, especially in difficult financial times that demand increased business efficiency as job numbers are reduced.  

Employee assessments can also prove helpful in other ways.  When executives and managers are faced with the difficult decisions of choosing employees to let go, assessments can help them make these decisions in a fair and justified way.  They also provide valuable insight for other forms of intervention, such as redeployment, coaching, mentoring and training.

The current economic situation is not easy for anyone.  In stressful times like these, business owners and executives need as much help as they can get when faced with the difficult prospects of letting employees go, redistributing responsibility, and moving forward on reduced budgets without decreasing productivity.   Employee assessments help the company decision makers identify their knowledge custodians and make the most of these people’s skills and experience.  A clear understanding of your workforce is invaluable in today’s economic climate.  It could easily mean the difference between becoming a business survival story and falling victim to the economic recession.