People-focused knowledge management

People have different cognitive styles and “intelligences”
(Gardner 1983). When groups of people are educated and
trained or provided with cognitive work supports based on a
single model of cognitive functioning, the results are often dis-
appointing across the enterprise. The problem is that people
have differing abilities to assimilate and utilize provided infor-
mation. To the extent practical, we must provide different modes
of communication or staff positions with people whose cogni-
tive style matches the type of work to be performed (Helander
1990).
Stress impairs retrieval from long-term memory. People who are
hurried, perform under pressure, feel threatened, uncomfort-
able, or angry, are constantly interrupted, or work in noisy 
environments experience a reduced ability to use all they know
in their efforts to deliver work. People who are content, feel
motivated, happy and relaxed, and work in pleasant and effec-
tive environments generally are able to deliver better quality
work, and although they appear to be in stressful situations, they 
are able to work fast and to deeply engage themselves in what
they do.
The impact of example behaviors and role models is more
important than we recognize from our normal practices. Many
leaders tend to minimize communication between subordinates
and rank-and-file. They often provide terse and ineffective com-
munications to direct work and describe how they wish their
employees to behave and perform. They may not act as role
models or provide living examples. By neglecting to provide con-
ceptual and explicit guidance, they make it difficult for other
people to act in the desired manner since they have not under-
stood in-depth what is desired. People are uncertain about how
to operationalize the desired behaviors — they cannot copy
example behavior since that is missing. People are not provided
with motivation to copy their leaders’ behaviors since those are
behaviors they do not respect; they do not see that their leaders
find it necessary to act in the desired way. Without leaders acting
as role models, new criteria for performance and behavior do
not become part of enterprise culture. As a result, people do not
understand or feel motivated to act as the enterprise desires —
although that would be most effective and valuable for them-
selves, the enterprise, and other stakeholders.
ch03.qxd 5/3/04 2:35 PM Page 67

---

68
People-Focused Knowledge Management