How technology is solving the problem of organizational memory loss

Expertise powers every successful business. The knowledge of its employees is what gives a company longevity and hones its competitive edge. But protecting organizational knowledge isn’t easy. Every time an employee leaves or a restructure occurs, important information and knowledge can be lost.  

New technologies can help you protect critical knowledge and skills. With the right tools, you can capture crucial expertise, cut costs, and reduce onboarding and training time.

Customizable mobile apps, artificial intelligence (AI), and smart wearables can record, store, and share business knowledge at scale. And they can do it faster, more effectively, efficiently, and economically than almost any other available option.

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The impact of organizational memory loss

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The loss of organizational knowledge can cause major issues. Let’s look at an example:

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John has been an employee at a processing plant for 20 years. He knows how to work all the machinery on the floor, knows the safety procedures, and knows the roles of every person in the company. He’s often called upon by management to share his ideas on how operations can be improved or the best way to tackle a problem. When there’s a new hire, John is the one who trains them.   

But then John retires. And although management knew this was coming, no measures were taken to preserve John’s knowledge. So, when he walks off, all his years of expertise go with him.

Suddenly, production slows down because no one else knows how to properly operate an old machine. Innovation stalls because there’s no voice of experience to guide decision-makers. New hires have to make do with insufficient training, or third-party trainers have to be brought in. Without an experienced employee on the floor, the risk of workplace accidents and injuries increases.

Productivity suffers, safety levels decrease, and employee satisfaction levels drop. The only things that do go up are the related costs. All because one critical employee left and took their expertise with them.

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The importance of organizational knowledge

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Whether it’s the skills of a seasoned machine operator or your Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), knowledge is a valuable asset. One that impacts virtually every aspect of your operations.

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There are three types of shared business knowledge:

• Documented knowledge: Manuals, policies, reports, data.
• Undocumented knowledge: Individual skills and expertise.
• Embedded knowledge: SOPs, routines, norms.

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Your employees' knowledge is what keeps daily operations running smoothly. Safe and efficient procedures and policies are based on the experience of long-term workers. This expertise also helps train new staff and upskill current employees. 

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This deep pool of shared knowledge also helps business leaders make more informed decisions. With some practical advice from the frontline, managers can avoid repeating past mistakes and adapt processes to match what actually works on the floor.

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Being able to get guidance, assistance, and training from more experienced workers increases job satisfaction and raises productivity. So it makes sense to put in place measures to capture and protect the knowledge of your people. But this is easier said than done. Unfortunately, the collective knowledge of your employees is constantly at risk of being lost.  

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What causes organizational memory loss?

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Change is a constant in business. But change also chips away at organizational knowledge.

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Here’s how change impacts your business:

• Every time an employee leaves, they take valuable experience and knowledge with them. 
• Manuals become outdated, leaving existing staff with incorrect resources. 
• Updates to procedures and policies aren’t always shared effectively, leaving some employees out of the loop. 
• Mergers or restructuring can split up departments and teams, disrupting the informal and formal flow of information.

Every time a change happens, it puts the shared knowledge of the business at risk. But avoiding change doesn’t help protect important knowledge.

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Old programs can make it difficult to store and access information reliably. Operational procedures become outdated. Without proper documentation practices, processes that worked well in the past can be lost over time.

Whether your business is moving fast or staying steady, holding on to the experience and expertise of your employees is no easy task. But what if this didn’t have to be the case? What if technology could solve the problem of organizational memory loss?

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Technology as a solution to organizational memory loss

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Technology is changing the workplace. While it’s fine to be cautious about new technologies, taking advantage of the tools that actually do work can be a significant boost to your operations.

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Traditional methods of recording skills and knowledge can’t keep pace with today’s digitized world. Manuals and documentation can be lost, destroyed, or become obsolete. Although modern knowledge management systems are part of the solution, they can also easily become outdated. And both methods fail to capture the employee experience and expertise that really keep a business running.

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Cutting-edge tech like AI-powered apps and smart wearables is providing real solutions to the problem of organizational memory loss. These solutions are available to you, right now.

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If we go back to the above example, we can see how smart tech can solve many of the problems faced by operators today. With the right technology, management doesn’t have to let all John’s hard-won expertise slip away. Instead, they give John the tools he needs to record his insights and advice:   

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John is provided with a pair of smart glasses or a smartphone to record his exact actions and his instructions as he performs a task or operates a machine. His training sessions and advice on safety and daily operations can also be filmed. With the freedom to act naturally and provide real-world advice, employees like John can pass on their skills and experience to others.

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All of this video and audio can then be processed by AI. In minutes, the AI can produce training with step-by-step guides, quiz questions, and manuals. AI can even translate the audio into different languages. John’s valuable knowledge can be captured, stored, and shared with any employees who need it. Whether they’re on the factory floor or across the other side of the globe.   

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How to protect essential expertise and experience 

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AI can turn operational knowledge into custom training content faster than ever. That's why we built Genius.

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Now, you can instantly generate training materials from videos, presentations, or documents. Training materials can be translated into 35+ languages with 97%+ accuracy. 

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Once you have a collection of materials, it’s fast and easy to create role-, site-, and process-specific SOP training. The progress of trainees can be tracked, and updates rolled out instantly. Employees at every level can have access to the most valuable, relevant, and current information.

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Using a pair of smart glasses, a smartphone, or a video camera, workflows and processes can be recorded from the operator’s perspective. It doesn’t matter how loud the environment is, as any background noise is automatically filtered out.

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Leveraging the power of AI greatly cuts down, or even eliminates, time and resources spent on admin, content creation, and training. Employees can learn from experienced hands and are automatically alerted to mistakes or missed procedural steps. Onboarding becomes faster and safer, and compliance issues are avoided. Most importantly, the expertise of your people stays with your business.

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We make tech work for the frontline workforce. Our new AI product Genius makes it easy to keep key skills within your company. 

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Get in touch to see how Genius can help preserve your organization’s knowledge today.