Construction companies depend on the skill and expertise of their organizational leaders to ensure the company’s projects meet quality standards and client expectations while staying on time and on budget. Company leaders, including project executives, head contractors, senior structural engineers and chief architects, embody years of specialized experience and problem-solving skills that can be difficult to replace. When one of these professionals leaves the company, the impact on the organization and its clients can be significant—especially if there hasn’t been well-considered knowledge transfer as part of succession planning.
WHAT IS KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER?
Effective knowledge transfer is a deliberate, systematic process that ensures the valuable insights and expertise of seasoned staff are available to those remaining at the company. It is a key aspect of succession planning that involves identifying what knowledge needs to be shared, capturing that information, organizing it and making it accessible.
When done well, knowledge transfer can enable project continuity and preserve client relationships—even when a beloved, long-time leader has retired. Poor execution can result in project delays, heightened risks, unintended errors and strained client relationships. In the long run, it may cause the company to miss opportunities, lose business and relinquish market share.
Although most construction companies see the value of structured knowledge transfer, many do not seize the opportunity to do it consistently and comprehensively—in part because they don’t know how to start executing the comprehensive process.
Following are a few strategies to ensure a manageable yet meaningful process:
BE PROACTIVE
The more a company gets ahead of transferring a leader’s knowledge, the more likely it will capture critical information effectively and share it with the right people. Start having conversations early and encourage leaders to be active in these discussions. Ideally, knowledge transfer should be a partnership between the outgoing leader and those in the organization who need the information.
FOCUS ON THE VITAL FEW
Not every departing leader merits the same level of knowledge transfer. As such, it’s helpful to have a method for prioritizing where to concentrate. Because a company’s chief operating officer or director of operations has the broadest perspective on the organization, this position is well-suited to reflect on which leaders’ departures would have the greatest impact on the organization due to their unique insights, detailed knowledge or long history with the company. With these reflections in mind, the COO could implement a rating system to quantify the amount of resources to dedicate to knowledge transfer.
KEEP THINGS OBJECTIVE
The knowledge transfer process goes beyond leaders sharing their insights with their potential successors. In most cases, there are multiple people in the company that could benefit from receiving the leader’s knowledge. To ensure everyone who needs it can access it, the process should be objective and not personal. This may involve interviewing the departing leader to capture the information and then storing that information somewhere easily accessible.
BE SELECTIVE
Not every bit of insight and history needs to be documented, so it’s important to know what to identify. Concentrate on information the company will need going forward, whether to continue meeting client expectations, honor existing and future commitments, grow the company or avoid repeating the same mistakes. Some common things to ascertain include:
Specific skills, materials or details. This is some of the most vital information to collect because it’s often in the details where project success or failure lies. If, for example, a lead structural engineer has a process for selecting materials that they have refined over time and that has proven to be a differentiator in the marketplace, then capturing that process is critical. Or perhaps, a chief contractor knows the idiosyncrasies of different times of year and how they impact delivery, subcontractor availability, material characteristics, client timelines, etc.
Relationship nuances. Executive leaders will have long-standing client relationships the company will want to preserve. Understanding the subtleties of those relationships, such as what the client likes and doesn’t like, what they let go of and what they fixate on, will foster continuity even after the leader leaves the company.
History of successes and when things went awry. Leaders who have been with the company for a long time have seen both successful and less-than-successful projects. Having them document things the company should be sure to do, as well as specific things to avoid, can help the company repeat its wins and steer clear of past missteps.
DON’T BE SURPRISED BY HESITATION
Leaving a company is often a difficult decision, particularly once at the leadership level. It can be hard to face the reality that we’re all replaceable. How the company communicates about the knowledge transfer process could make the difference between a willing contributor and a hesitant one. To encourage participation, focus on the legacy the leader will leave and how the company wants to ensure that legacy remains strong. By capturing their insights, the company can foster continuity and reduce risk, which will ultimately help clients. Most leaders want to make sure their clients are taken care of, so anything they can do to assist with that is an attractive reason to participate. A company may also want to think creatively about incentives. Some companies consider giving a leader a bonus if they actively engage in knowledge transfer efforts before they leave.
It’s also important to humanize what comes next for the leader. Make sure they know how much they’re valued and going to be missed. If a person perceives they are valued by their company solely for their knowledge, they may feel that they no longer have a purpose once that knowledge is transferred. Recognizing their accomplishments and contributions to the organization’s overall culture and community is important for them to move past this perception.
ENGAGE IN THE KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER PROCESS
Knowledge transfer can be complex and multifaceted. However, taking the time to think through the nuances is valuable. Companies don’t have to do this alone. There are outside experts that could be helpful, especially those who understand the construction field, as well as the intricacies of succession planning.
When a construction company does knowledge transfer well, it can be certain that both the individual leaving and the individuals remaining have what they need, minimizing risk for the company and setting it up for long-term success.
SEE ALSO: PLANNING TO SUCCEED: ENSURING PROPER KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER BEFORE YOUR CONSTRUCTION LEADERS RETIRE
