Knowledge Sharing Made Easy

TeamOJT Tip of the Month for October, 2005

One of the biggest advantages of TeamOJT is the sharing of knowledge among team members as they agree on the job tasks and the best way to perform the tasks. This team process is an especially good way to capture the best practices of senior employees before they retire. Otherwise much valuable expertise would be lost.

Normally, teams are made up of workers in one location who do the same job. (For example, employees in purchasing would make up a team, or a group of maintenance workers would work as a team.) But thanks to technological advances, today's teams can function anywhere, regardless of the location of the members. Global networks allow teams to work via e-mail or on-line in real time, making it easy to tap into the knowledge base of experts all over the world. This comes in handy when low skill and knowledge levels exist among design team members at any one location. It also allows off-site vendors to contribute specific expertise that might otherwise not have been possible. On-line collaboration enables team members to contribute whenever time is available, rather than having all team members meet at the same time.

Whether team members are in one location or different locations, groups of workers collaborating on identifying tasks and writing step-by-step procedures creates an active learning environment in which tasks continuously are examined and updated. Team members cooperate in solving problems and learn from one another not only during the writing of procedures, but on the job itself. They develop mutual respect and gain new perspectives.

Human Performance Applications
Phone: (206) 447-0860
FAX: (206) 447-3410
E-mail: diane@teamojt.com