Knowledge + Learning = Performance

One of the hardest challenges of knowledge work is how to convert tacit knowledge to explicit so that it can be shared. So before we begin with a discussion of how to convert tacit knowledge to explicit, let’s first define what is meant by tacit versus explicit knowledge. Often tacit knowledge is considered knowledge that people carry in their heads or bodies and which is gained through learning or personal experience. For tacit knowledge, think of the things which you are so expert on that it’s difficult to explain them; like breathing, you just do them. On the other hand, explicit knowledge is easy to put your hands on, since it is knowledge which has already been captured and written down. For explicit knowledge, think of all the books on your shelves or the manuals and procedure documents created by your company.

Many of the examples of explicit and tacit knowledge I think of actually can be considered two sides of the same coin, e.g., cooking or repairing an automobile. One can read books and follow instructions on how to do both (explicit knowledge), but true mastery comes through the tacit knowledge built through experience. Skills that are predominantly psychomotor or kinetic (e.g., dance, massage, pottery, etc.) are something that may always remain predominantly in the realm of tacit knowledge. Yes you can read books about these subjects, but to become skilled requires practice of a physical nature. However, tacit knowledge in procedural or task based areas can be much more easily converted into explicit knowledge.

In my work as a workplace learning and performance improvement specialist, I’ve seen and led many projects that did just that—took the tacit knowledge of experts and turned it into explicit knowledge (to then ideally be turned back into tacit knowledge for the new learner). These often will involve the analysis and conversion of the expert’s knowledge into a process flow (complete with decision points), and then further delve into what the expert thinks, does, says, and feels at each step in the process.

Recently, I’ve worked on projects such as this for (1) how to make compensation decisions and (2) for how to lead the construction effort for high-rise office space. In the first case, the compensation department wanted managers to start using better judgment when deciding raises and bonuses so that they could truly differentiate their pay and reward high performers. This had previously been the tacit knowledge belonging to only compensation specialists and occasionally experienced managers. I worked with the compensation department to turn their tacit knowledge (i.e., rules of thumb, personal experience, and decision points not previously articulated) into something any manager making compensation decisions could use. This was then used to create training and an online simulation where the user made the compensation decisions for a small department of employees and received feedback on a number of factors including adherence to budget and guidelines plus how well they differentiated their pay decisions.

In the second example, we worked with the construction management function of a real estate investment trust to develop a consistent process for how they manage the construction and build-out of office space to meet their prospective and current tenant’s needs. Later, when this company chose to eliminate the construction function and train their property managers to take on these responsibilities, I worked with them to capture the remaining tacit knowledge of the experienced construction managers to create a knowledge base and training for the property managers.

- Robin

Copyright Robin Donnan 2007. All Rights Reserved.
Performance Associates, Inc.