It's hard not to create an allegory out of the absence of our scheduled May presenter, Devon Scheef, and her topic of Knowledge Sharing.  Ms. Scheef is someone who has developed an expertise in the topic, and quite suddenly, unintentionally, she was unable to join us.  President Elect Jeffrey Hansler stepped in to take her place.

And here's where the metaphor comes in.  48% of managers and supervisors are eligible for retirement this year.  Does each of those managers have someone who is able to step in and fill their shoes?  

"Why haven't two decades of sustained knowledge-sharing efforts been more successful? " asked Beverly Kaye, Ilana Maskin, and Devon Scheef in their 2011 article: "Knowledge Transfer as Wisdom Sharing."  The article points out all the repositories of expert knowledge, from databases and wikis to communities of practice, lack a human element.  For his part, Mr. Hansler was prepared with sheets of presenter materials and leaders notes.   

The meeting participants we interviewed believed Jeffrey did just fine.

"I really liked the risk profile," shared ASTD-OC Past President Rhonda Askeland. "Identifying the potential knowledge pits was helpful and something I will share with my clients."

"I gained insight about limitations of information shared based on people "staying in the box" of what they should/could share." added Rhonda.  "It was also helpful to reinforce the internal/external knowledge sharing paradigm."

Angela Vanhorn walked away from the event inspired to demonstrate and model the value of sharing and mentoring in the workforce.  She saw that doing so would "create engaged employees who will collaborate and relate their ideas and wisdom."

As always, our community shared their wisdom during the meeting.  "Participants shared several creative ideas that appeal to the audience’s “human side,'" said Angela. "Which can be utilized when presenting or facilitating to a diverse group of participants."

Which brings us back to the allegory that so neatly leapt into our lap -- good documentation may be a fine starting point for the person taking over someone else's role, but it's the combination of that knowledge and experiences that provides for better learning opportunities.

Did you attend May's Knowledge Transfer Learning Event?  Share your insights in our comments.