Introducing knowledge management: one department at a time

In the first meeting, people tell me where things get stuck. The colleague who retires in two years and has everything in his head. The shift handover on a scrap of paper. The new hire who, after three months, still does not know whom to ask about what.

The second meeting is about getting it done. Who is involved, how much time will it cost the specialist departments, and do we start everywhere or somewhere first? I often hear two answers, and both rarely work well.

Everything at once. Some managing directors want to do it properly: one start date, all departments, off we go. I understand that. The problem is that everyone gets something new at the same time and nobody has time to look after it properly. The questions end up with the two people running the project.

The knowledge from documents and existing systems is available from day one. But what only exists in people's heads is captured in interviews, and those would then have to run in every department at the same time. Hardly any company manages that alongside day-to-day business. In the end, a little gets done everywhere and nothing gets done properly.

The never-ending pilot. The other extreme: a small team tests the software, usually the people who are keen on new technology anyway. After a few months, everyone is happy. And then it stays that way, because nobody decided beforehand what happens next.

You end up with a well-kept island, and the rest of the company never notices it. We often start with a pilot phase ourselves, by the way. The difference is that it is clear from the outset what comes next.

Start in one department, namely where the pressure is greatest. That might be service, maintenance or engineering.

There, hAiner first gets to know what people actually work with: data sheets, design documents, service reports, work instructions. It learns which questions keep coming up and, above all, who knows what. The documents stay where they are. We connect your existing file shares instead of moving everything.

Of course, a lot is not written down anywhere. We capture that in interviews with your colleagues. Every statement is recorded with name and date, so you can always see later who said what and when.

The second department joins once the first is running smoothly. Ideally, when someone from there asks of their own accord whether they can take part too. Why experiential knowledge in particular is so hard to secure is covered on our topic page Securing experiential knowledge.

As long as only one department is involved, hAiner helps within that department. It gets really interesting from the second one onwards.

An example: first engineering, then sales. Let's say you start in engineering. Knowledge is created there all the time: technical details on new products, changes to existing ones and the reasons why something was built one way and not another. Often only a fraction of this reaches sales, and usually late.

Once sales joins, that changes. As soon as a new product is released for sale, sales can raise it with customers and has the details straight from engineering, including the latest changes. If a customer asks what is different from the previous model, the salesperson finds the answer along with its source. And if it gets more technical, they know whom to call in engineering.

Anything not yet released stays in engineering. (Illustrative example, not a specific customer case.)

Questions like these simply go unanswered in many companies today. The knowledge exists, just in another department, and nobody knows whom to ask.

With every department that joins, these boundaries become a little more permeable. Eventually hAiner knows where in your company which knowledge sits, who has it and how the areas are connected. Hardly anyone in the company can say that about themselves.

And if hAiner does not know something, it says so and names the person who might know. Nothing is made up.

The first department matters, because everyone else will judge by it whether the approach is any good. Three questions help with the choice:

• Is someone leaving soon of whom everyone says “only he knows that”?
• Where are the same questions asked over and over, for example at shift handover or during onboarding?
• Where is there plenty of material lying around that nobody can find?

If a department nods at two of these, it is a good candidate. If things go well there, that is the best argument for the next one.

For ISO 9001 certified companies, there is another reason to get specific. Clause 7.1.6 of the standard requires organizations to determine the knowledge needed to operate their processes, to maintain it and to make it available to the extent necessary. The first department gives you a tangible area in which to show how you do this.

I know that “hAiner knows your company” can sound like surveillance to some employees at first. That is not what it is about. It is about where knowledge sits and who can help, not about who achieves how much.

Here, too, the step-by-step approach helps. Each department sees what happens to its knowledge before the next one joins.

If you have a works council, involve it right from the start, not when the third department begins. Under Section 87(1) No. 6 of the German Works Constitution Act (BetrVG), it has a right of co-determination over technical equipment designed to monitor employees' behaviour or performance. Whether and how this applies in your case is best clarified with your works council and your legal advisers. This section does not constitute legal advice.

Going step by step takes longer than one big start date. Exactly how long depends on the size of the company and on how much time your experts have for interviews. I cannot give you a reliable figure for that.

And hAiner does not replace the colleague with thirty years of experience. It makes sure that his knowledge does not retire with him and that the others know where to find it.

If you are considering which department you would start with, we would be happy to talk it through. Book an introductory call with live demo (45 minutes, free of charge).