The internet has made knowledge/information sharing so much more prominent worldwide than ever before, but there are still challenges at a few workplaces at all levels with information access continuing to be a privilege. Stakeholders often resist sharing information because they are afraid of losing a competitive advantage, they feel they have power and a special control with the information they retain within themselves. These stakeholders also lack trust and feel that they will not be appreciated or given the perceived level of importance by revealing information, hence pretend not to have the information being requested. Stakeholders who haven’t built professional relationships with team members are not willing to share information as they don’t see mutual benefit. Some stakeholders enjoy being in the limelight when reached out to for information as they think that is the value they bring to the table with information being siloed. I have also seen resistance when stakeholders are uncomfortable to state they are unaware, and have no clue when questioned on the details of why the are doing what they are doing:)
Knowledge sharing should be a consistent conscious effort as part of an organization’s culture, besides focus on technology which alone isn’t enough to create that culture. Promoting a transparent collaborative environment that measures performance and incentivizes employees for team accomplishments and not individual goals is key for team members to build trust, synergy, complement each other’s roles & responsibilities, greater creativity, make informed decisions, and contribute value to the bigger picture.
Knowledge sharing should be a consistent conscious effort as part of an organization’s culture, besides focus on technology which alone isn’t enough to create that culture. Promoting a transparent collaborative environment that measures performance and incentivizes employees for team accomplishments and not individual goals is key for team members to build trust, synergy, complement each other’s roles & responsibilities, greater creativity, make informed decisions, and contribute value to the bigger picture.