Impact of HR practices & policies on the knowledge sharing in a firm

 

Impact of HR practices & policies on the knowledge sharing in a firm

 Let us briefly examine some of the HR processes and practices that should be aligned to strengthen knowledge management.

At the stage of induction of new executives into the organization, coaching and mentoring systems are meant to transfer knowledge, exposure during training to variety of functions, units and geographical locations helps knowledge awareness / transfer.

Employees will benefit from "Mentorship," not only during the initial months but also for a long time after that. The role of the mentor in the later period would be to challenge the executive to look beyond the obvious, look for past learning and base decisions on a more informed platform.

Job rotations: Well-planned job (role) rotations across geographical locations and businesses in a firm help not only people development, but also provide an important vehicle for transfer of knowledge and best practices, even though an organization cannot obviously depend on this as the main source of knowledge transfer.

Networked organization: A networked organization with people playing multiple roles, being part of multiple teams -- a vertical team (Business / category) as well a horizontal team (function / knowledge domain), is the way forward to effectively "leverage collective knowledge" of an enterprise. HR should play a key role in developing such a networked organization, through sponsorship and or facilitation of knowledge communities (teams), cutting across formal organizational silos.

Training: Learning and knowledge are inter-linked. Knowledge strategies should encompass learning initiatives and knowledge initiatives need to converge with training initiatives. A Company's training program needs to focus on functional and business specific skill development programs as well as competency development focused programs.

Knowledge communities :Knowledge communities (Teams), as the owners and users of the knowledge, should play an active role in developing suitable course material for the functional and business specific courses.

Learning and Development: Knowledge management cannot be practiced without a clear focus on "learning" within the organization. E- Learning is online learning. It is made available through company web sites (Intranets). It allows the learner to enroll into courses or programs of their choice and acquire knowledge at their own pace at the place of their choice. Corporate online universities, exclusive learning space to induct managers or develop future leaders, on going programs for sales personnel and induction into new products and services are some of the e-learning offerings, some of the companies are making available to their employees to develop themselves. E-Learning provides the benefit of convenience -- allows the learner to do the learning at his or her pace, flexibility -- Learner does not have to sacrifice a training program because of its clash with customer or personal visit, and ease of learning. Experience in US / Europe seems to confirm that e-learning also saves costs. As of now Bandwidth might pose some constraints, but with fast changing IT infrastructure, even in India, this could offer interesting opportunities.

Culture change: Leveraging collective knowledge is possible only when people value buildinng on each other's ideas and sharing their insights. Much of this shaped by the culture of the organization. In some cultures, where knowledge is seen as power, knowledge sharing may be seen to be in conflict with the individual's personal interests (individual excellence / competitive advantage). Therefore, institutionalization of Knowledge Management requires HR to focus on managing the culture change / mindset of the people to strengthen collaborative team working and knowledge sharing.