Period of Adjustment, M*A*S*H 4077th, Season 8, is an episode where Corporal Klinger has to learn to fill the shoes of the much beloved Corporal “Radar” O’Reilly.
It is also as scene that everyone has seen repeated everywhere from boardrooms to lunchrooms.
A key person, who had accumulated skills and knowledge about a position retires, is transferred or promoted.
There follows a hellish period while their replacement learns where the supplies are stored, the key people to alert to problems, when to start prepping the boss for meetings, etc.
It seems like they will never get any of it right, until one day, without our really noticing it, they do.
They keep getting it right, until that person retires, is transferred or promoted. Then the hellish period begins again.
What if we could capture that organizational knowledge?
Organizational knowledge that wasn’t written down.
Topic maps help capture organizational knowledge because your staff can:
- write down what they know
- how they know it,
- when it is important to know it,
- in their own terms.
When your staff gets the opportunity (and tool) to express their knowledge is up to you.
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PS: Can someone help me update this example?
I haven’t watched much TV since the end of M*A*S*H and more recent examples would be a good thing. Thanks!