Kudos to Gina and Ken for creating a comprehensive book about knowledge capture and transfer. This topic has been in the news lately because company reductions-in-force have compelled managers to examine how to get company knowledge from the employees who are no longer there, how to capture knowledge from the ones who remain, and how to transfer that knowledge to a multigenerational workforce.This valuable book focuses on five basic steps of knowledge transfer - analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation - and arms readers with everything they need to make a business case for knowledge capture and transfer.
The book examines how the baby boomer phenomenon, generational distinctions, and learning preferences influence knowledge capture and transfer. In researching the book, the authors spoke to many companies about how they were able to implement a successful knowledge-transfer program. Those stories are part of a comprehensive look at this often overlooked critical issue. Unfortunately, the authors also found that many companies have put off capturing knowledge or don't have a culture that values this key business initiative.
This is a practical guide that describes how to assess a company's knowledge gaps, create a knowledge transfer strategy, and nurture a multigenerational culture that is all about collaboration and knowledge sharing. This book is written specifically for the workplace learning professional and is filled with information about how to link the program to staff goals, assess what the audience needs, communicate objectives, and create some detailed metrics.
The book makes a strong case against putting off creating a process for collecting knowledge from boomers before they walk out the door. The economy might have postponed the baby boomer exodus, but it is still approaching, and companies need to be prepared to retain quality information before it's too late.
This book is not only a good read, but it's a very good practical guide for how to build a knowledge-capture strategy and how to implement it. I give it three cups of coffee.