Why people don’t share their knowledge –and what to do about it

Stan Garfield

September, 2014

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Background• Ferdinand Fournies wrote

Why Employees Don't Do What They're Supposed To Do and What To Do About It• The book provides a comprehensive list of reasons people don’t do what they are

supposed to do• I adapted 13 of these reasons to help answer the question about knowledge sharing

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Why people don’t share their knowledge

1. They don't know why they should do it

2. They don't know how to do it

3. They don't know what they are supposed to do

4. They think the recommended way will not work

5. They think their way is better

6. They think something else is more important

7. There is no positive consequence to them for doing it

8. They think they are doing it

9. They are rewarded for not doing it

10. They are punished for doing it

11. They anticipate a negative consequence for doing it

12. There is no negative consequence to them for not doing it

13. There are obstacles beyond their control

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1. They don't know why they should do itLeadership has not made a strong case for knowledge sharing

• Have the leader of the organization communicate regularly on knowledge sharing expectations, goals, and rewards

• Tell stories of how sharing and asking helped those involved and the organization to achieve personal and business goals

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2. They don't know how to do itThey have

1. Not received training and communications on how to share knowledge2. Difficulty in sharing tacit knowledge

• Regularly communicate, conduct training and webinars, and present and operate information booths at Aeetings

• Provide web-based training and webinar recordings for all knowledge-sharing tools• Provide easy ways to share tacit knowledge

o Discussionso Callso Interviews

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3. They don't know what they are supposed to doOne or more of these conditions applies

1. Leadership has not established and communicated clear goals for knowledge sharing

2. People don’t think that their knowledge is valuable to others, so they don’t know that they should share it

3. People don’t realize that if they ask for help in publica. They will get more varied and useful responsesb. Not only will they benefit, but so will others

• Establish and communicate clear knowledge-sharing goals• Communicate and train on the value of

o What they know, if it is sharedo Asking and responding in public

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4. They think the recommended way will not workThey have received training and communications, but they

1. Don't believe what they are being asked to do will work2. Don’t like change

In small groups or one-on-one, show people that knowledge sharing does work byo Trying out actual exampleso Sharing success stories from otherso Providing personal tutorials on how to use the tools

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5. They think their way is betterThey believe that what they are used to doing is the best way

1. Working on their own2. Collaborating only with a small group of trusted comrades3. Using email, phone, instant messaging, and other, less-open methods

• Regularly share stories of how others are benefiting from sharing knowledge using the recommended ways

• Use the examples of respected leaders and experts to sway those stuck in their current ways to consider using better ways

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6. They think something else is more importantThey believe that there are higher-priority tasks than knowledge sharing

• Get all managers to model knowledge-sharing behavior for their employees• Get all managers to inspect compliance to knowledge-sharing goals with the

same fervor with which they inspect other goals

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7. There is no positive consequence to them for doing itFor sharing knowledge, they receive no

1. Rewards2. Recognition3. Promotions4. Other benefits

• Implement rewards and recognition programs for those who share their knowledge• Award points to those who share knowledge• Give desirable rewards to those with the top point totals• Let it be known that promotions depend in part on a consistent track record of

knowledge sharing

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8. They think they are doing itThey are sharing knowledge differently than the recommended ways

1. Phoning, instant messaging, or emailing trusted colleagues2. Sending email to distribution lists3. Private messaging

• Assign people to work with each community and organization to show them howo To use the recommended wayso The recommended ways work better than other ways

• Provide a new tool or process which is viewed as a killer appo Catches on quickly and widelyo Best way for the old ways to be replaced by new ways

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9. They are rewarded for not doing itThey

1. Hoard their knowledge, and thus get people to beg for help2. Receive rewards, recognition, or promotions based on doing other tasks

Work with all managers in the organization to encourage them too Reinforce the desired behaviorso Stop rewarding the wrong behaviors

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10. They are punished for doing itAs a result of spending time on knowledge sharing

1. They don't achieve other goals which are more important to the organization2. They are told not to waste time doing this

• Align knowledge-sharing processes and goals with other critical processes and performance goals

• Train managers on how to support, not punish, time spent sharing knowledge and learning

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11. They anticipate a negative consequence for doing itThey are afraid that if they share or ask in public, they will

1. Lose their status as a guru – no one will have to come begging to them at the time of need

2. Fail to achieve other more important goals3. Be perceived as wasting time4. Be criticized or ridiculed for being ignorant

• Position knowledge sharing as being a critical success factor for the organization• Train managers on how to support, not punish, time spent sharing knowledge and

learning• Provide positive reinforcement for those who share and ask in public, and monitor

interactions to intervene to mitigate any negative responses

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12. There is no negative consequence to them for not doing itKnowledge sharing is not

1. Set as a performance goal, inspected, and enforced2. Tied to advancement3. Part of the culture of the organization

• Set knowledge-sharing goals, and get all managers too Implemento Inspecto Enforce

• This needs to come from the top – it will happen ifo The leader of the organization insists on ito Managers check up on compliance

• Let it be known that promotions are denied for those who have not shared their knowledge

• Help promote a positive culture where asking and sharing are valued and celebrated

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13. There are obstacles beyond their control

They1. Are discouraged or not allowed to spend time sharing2. Don't have access or can’t connect to systems for sharing3. Don't have strong English language skills for sharing with those outside of their

country

• Embed knowledge sharing into normal business processes• Provide ways to collaborate when not connected (e.g., using mobile devices or email for

threaded discussions)• Encourage those with weak English skills to share within their countries in their native

languages• Offer language translation tools and services

Knowledge Sharing Process

RepositoriesTeam SitesDiscussions

Answer orsolution

Question, problem,or need

Knowledge in Documents and

Databases

Explic

it

Knowledge in People

Taci

t

Measu

rem

en

ts &

Rew

ard

s

Polic

ies

& P

roce

du

res

Reply PostSearch

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Share insights,problem solutions,

& reusable content

Archive answersfor future

reuse

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Demand-driven knowledge sharing1. Someone has a question, problem, or need

2. They search existing knowledge repositories and communities to see if there is an existing answer – if so, they use it

3. If no answer is found, they post their question, problem, or need to the relevant community

4. Other members of the community respond with their answers – the answers may include links to content in other repositories

5. The answers are automatically archived so that future searches will produce useful results

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Sharing tacit knowledge

1. Someone wants to share• an insight• a nugget of knowledge• a solution to a problem which others may face

2. They post to a relevant community

3. They may choose to write up their knowledge more formally, thus turning it into explicit knowledge

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Sharing explicit knowledge

1. Someone wants to share reusable content• a document, presentation, or recording• a process, procedure, or template• a tool• a software source code module• some data

2. They upload the file containing the content to the appropriate repository

3. They post to related communities to let the members know about the file, including a link to it

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Knowledge-sharing componentsPeople1. Person with a question, problem, or need2. Community members who respond with answers and solutions3. Knowledge brokers who monitor discussions to ensure that answers are

provided

Process4. Collaboration process to support asking and answering questions5. Policies and procedures for sharing knowledge6. Measurements and rewards for sharing knowledge

Technology7. Structured repositories8. Collaborative team sites9. Threaded discussions

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Explain the available options for sharing knowledge

1. Community2. Enterprise Social Network3. Repository4. Intranet5. Team site6. Wiki

Share a link. “Here is a link to the latest Forrester Wave report on social networking.”

Ask a question. “Has anyone encountered this problem before, and if so, how was it solved?”

Find a resource. “Looking for a specialist in retirement benefits to help win a bid in Calgary.”

Answer a post. “Here are links to three relevant quals in the quals database.”

Recognize a colleague. “Thanks to @dpalmer for hosting an excellent planning session today.”

Inform about your activities. “Will be in the Philadelphia office today; does anyone wish to meet?”

Suggest an idea. “Local office TV screens should display the global Yammer conversation stream.”

Tell people how to share knowledge

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For additional information

• Join the SIKM Leaders CoP http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/sikmleaders/• Twitter @stangarfield• Site http://sites.google.com/site/stangarfield/

Stan GarfieldImplementing a Successful KM Program (author)

Successful Knowledge Leadership:Principles and Practice(chapter author) The Modern Knowledge Leader:A Results-Oriented Approach

Gaining Buy-in for KM (chapter author)

LinkedIn Posts https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/2500783