What is Operational Knowledge? Inputs, Process, and Outputs
It is more complex, more unique, and changes more frequently.
In the book Hidden Potential, Adam Grant says the following when discussing the theory of Learning Styles:
Fans of learning styles would have us believe that verbal learning is good for one person and auditory learning is good for another person. But learning is not always about finding the right method for you. It’s often about finding the right method for the task.
The same is true when we think of transferring knowledge. Different types of knowledge need to be transferred in different ways. A demonstration, recipe, and story are all mediums for transferring knowledge. But a recipe won’t help me understand macroeconomics, and a story is not the most efficient way to help me make waffles.
Right task, right tool.
The better we understand what Operational Knowledge is, the better we can choose the right tool to transfer it.
Inputs, Process, and Outputs
Employees respond to inputs all day long. These might be tasks they need to perform, questions they get asked, or problems they need to solve.
For each input, they have to follow a process that usually consists of a set of tools and steps. If they use the right tools and follow the right steps you end up with the right output.
Let’s look at an example from a financial institution:
Input: Someone asks, “Can you add a joint owner to my account?”
Process/Tools: The employee will follow a specific set of steps using a specific piece of software.
Output: The joint owner is added correctly.
Other types of inputs might be:
“I’m getting error 23024!”
“When is the delivery date?”
“How do I cancel this invoice?”
Each input expects a certain output. But you only get the desired output if you follow the right steps using the right tools.
These steps form what we call Operational Knowledge, and it is very different from other types of knowledge. Operational knowledge is the actionable information employees need to:
Perform tasks
Answer questions
Troubleshoot problems
What Is Unique About Operational Knowledge?
Operational knowledge is:
Highly specific to the business
Often complex
Constantly changing based on inputs, tools, and steps
Usually stuck in people’s heads
What Happens When They Don’t Know the Steps?
When an employee encounters an input and doesn’t know which tools are steps to follow to respond to it they are stuck. So what to they do?
They either make something up (and usually make a mistake) or reach out to a co-worker for help. Either action costs the business time and money.
What employees need is a way to find and follow guidance on their own when they recognize an input.
How Do People Capture and Transfer Operational Knowledge?
They do “show and tell” training, create binders, write sticky notes, or create massive PowerPoint decks with answers to every question that has ever come up. However, none of these systems were designed to deal with complex and ever-changing information.
Many times it is transferred through Zoom calls or Slack/Teams messages.
But none of these methods are effective at transferring knowledge that is complex and constantly changing.
If you want to transfer operational knowledge efficiently, you need a system specifically designed to handle complexity and change.
Your PowerPoint deck won’t cut it.
Some Homework For You
Start noticing all the inputs you respond to in your job. How do you know what steps to follow? Are you working purely from memory, or do you have written “recipes” to guide you?
The more you rely on memory, the more your organization depends on tribal knowledge to operate.
If you want to learn about Knowledge Operations and how to transfer operational knowledge more efficiently, check out the recordings from our Knowledge Ops Summit.