What if you received a memo from your administration informing you that your department would now be merged with another department? The heads of both departments will be replaced with a CIO and you are to be housed in one building. How would you react? It would be unsurprising if your response was not well​. 

And that is why trust is such an important component in knowledge management and employee adaptability (Association of Project Management, 2014). An organization’s KM processes can facilitate the sharing of knowledge between employees because they themselves “likely possess the information and knowledge needed to adapt” (Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal, 2015). Having the ability to participate in conversations and contribute ideas and opinions help create an environment in which employees are more open to be aware of and accept change (Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal, 2015). But, if the organizational culture is not conducive to constructive exchanges and the structure of the company creates independent silos, change is hard. Integration is difficult. And communication suffers. It jeopardizes the chance for change to be successful. But, if change is approached first as a conversation with the opportunity to contribute ideas garner feedback, then outlined, initiated, implemented, and accessed, it can be successful—and if not, you can learn from the process.

Through the simple implementation and support that allow for opportunities for employees to learn and share knowledge, combined with the creation of an environment of trust and collaboration, directly affects employee job satisfaction—for the better (Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal, 2015).  Add in the fact, that now, as millennials are taking over entering the workforce, their (our) satisfaction comes from meaningful relationships, learning opportunities, and believing in a cause and a meaningful impact on the world (Lewis, 2015). In the end, by adopting knowledge management solutions, organizations will be helping themselves and their employees. Job satisfaction goes a long way and contributes to the willingness to share knowledge, expertise, and remain in the organization longer (Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal, 2015). And really, in the end, wouldn’t you as an employer, want your employees to be happy?

Guest Blogger CaseyAnn Salanova is a graduate student at Kent State University studying Knowledge Management and Library and Information Science. She currently heads the Interlibrary Loan department and serves as the Core Team Leader at Schmidt Library at York College of Pennsylvania.​

Works Referenced

Association of Project Management. (2014, April 10). We really need to talk about knowledge management [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwMzpJa6Y-w&feature=youtu.be

Becerra-Fernandez, I., & Sabherwal, R. (2015). Knowledge Management Systems and Processes. New York, NY. RoutledgeTaylor& Francis Group. 

Lewis, Katherine R. (2015). Everything You Need to Know About Your Millennium Co-Workers.Fortune. Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2015/06/23/know-your-millennial-co-workers/

Silo Image. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.thehumanenterprise.com.au/Images/marketing-offers/Public-Engage-WebPage-Image.png ​​