The importance of knowledge transfer

Given the fast-paced nature of the current economic climate and how quickly businesses need to develop and adapt to changing pressures or opportunities, one thing that is becoming more and more important is the proper use of intellectual capital and leveraging resources for knowledge transfer.

Interim managers are highly skilled, senior-level resources for knowledge transfer and can support end-user businesses through a project’s roll-out as well as through the upskilling of permanent employees. They can provide a roadmap for onboarding replacement senior-level staff and ensure change management is well embedded across the organisation, thereby providing long-lasting value long after the engagement has finished.  

What is knowledge transfer?

Knowledge transfer is the sharing and dissemination of information, knowledge, methodologies, and intellectual property. It can be a great way to approach incorporating new means of problems solving or of overhauling entire business processes and systems.

Types of knowledge transfer gained from interim managers

Given the way that interim managers build their careers and service offering, they can provide exceptional knowledge transfer in serval different ways depending on the type of project they’ve been brought on to deliver.

Knowledge transfer could come on a project-specific basis, allowing permanent employees to learn about a particular type of technology, tool, project management style or methodology used by the interim to oversee a project like a merger or acquisition, crisis management,  systems implementation, etc. This allows your permanent employees to not only gain valuable new skills and competencies, but it also ensures a project’s legacy value once the interim’s contract has ended.

How to implement a knowledge transfer plan using an interim manager

Facilitating knowledge transfer can be a simple process but you should ensure that the interim knows that this forms a vital part of their engagement, and, therefore, should be clearly outlined in the statement of work. From there knowledge transfer can be achieved by coordinating a series of processes and systems:

Unify systems and tech

Over the course of an interim’s engagement, lots of seminal pieces of work or documentation will be created. Having a unified system of sharing or access to those documents and the thought processes behind them will be vital for new employees to understand major undertakings within the company. Ensuring this is accessible to everyone who needs it now and in the future could be as simple as making sure the interim uses a document sharing platform, internal shared drives or project management software.

Cross-training

 Knowledge transfer is most efficient if more than one person can benefit from the interim’s subject matter expertise or industry experience. Providing training sessions for teams and departments will help ensure that insights are widely shared, and that knowledge is disseminated across the organisation.

Sharing sessions

Ensuring there are ample opportunities for sharing can be a great way to benefit from knowledge transfer in a less formal way. This can be as simple as social gatherings or impromptu coffee mornings for your team with the interim present, allowing the interim to organically share knowledge and experience with a wider group of people.

Knowledge transfer needs to be tailored to meet the needs of your business,  to keep momentum on a project after it’s finished or to allow a new permanent hire to get up to speed quickly. Oakwood Resources can help accelerate your business opportunities by sourcing interim managers who are assessed based on their skills and experience, and who can work alongside you to deliver successful outcomes for your business’ operational needs with tailor-made knowledge transfer plans.

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