sharing the knowledge ??? 19

[xerf]

I have been thinking about this situation which often happens to me :

Sometime you might work / study hard to figure a path to solve a problem. After you spent plenty of time you finally figure out a solution .

However the solution is useful for many people at your job.

Then all your colleagues seeing that you solved that problem, ask you to show them how to solve the same problem.

Then this situation happens repeatedly and mostly is not reciprocal.

What would you do ?

 

[TheTick]

Continue to share. Keep knowledge in motion.

My position has never been weakened by sharing knowledge. As for the trolls who don't do so, don't mind them. They simply have other priorities. It's not worth the effort to turn them into "sharing creatures".

 

[handleman]

If you ever figure that out, please let me know. I may have a one-up on that one where I work. I've spent a lot of time learning VBA/Excel/Solidworks API, and I've written a lot of SW macros and Excel spreadsheets that are used by all other SW users in the office on a daily basis. Of course, I wrote them for my own use initially and shared with anyone interested. One of the other designers actually mocks me for doing this.

 

[EngJW]

Sounds like a good position to be in. Obviously your colleagues are aware of your contribution and chances are, someone higher up is as well. You can be worth more to the company if you're the guy to go to if help is needed. Knowledge is worth more when it is given away.

 

[Ashereng]

I went to my engineering manager, at the VP level, ask to put on an in-house training seminar, including catered lunch and juice. I brought a list of those colleague that want to know how I do something, figure something out, or use the tools I have developed, and an agenda with the time scheduled.

I got a great room, an audience, free food, time to put the course on, credit towards my continuing education with my PEng association, and recognition for what I know.

So far, I have done it once.

A 3 hour course in the corporate conference room, with lazer pointer, food, coffee and goodies. Every once in a while, a senior who ever drops in to take a look at what we were doing, and askes for the danish. Oh well. I'll take whatever recognition I can get.

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."
Albert Einstein
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[MadMango]

I pushed to have an intranet set-up for our company. It was installed locally on my machine, and I populated with as much company/department information as I could. It was shared with the deparment for about 2 months, then I showed it to my boss.

A year later it has gone company-wide with every deparment having their own sections, with their own information. Some people have wondered how they managed without the intranet.

I was tired of being bothered, having to explain things several times a week, or forwarding the same emails. I wasn't looking for recognition or reward, I just wanted people to leave me alone so I could do my job.

[green]"Art without engineering is dreaming; Engineering without art is calculating."[/green]
Steven K. Roberts, Technomad
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[GregLocock]

Well xerf, I think what we have here is an attitude problem. I bet you think you are quite the hot-shot. Are you the best in your company at EVERYTHING? If you are I apologise, but it seems unlikely. Maybe you are the best at what you do, terrific, that skill will come in handy. That skill may be solving tricky problems, that will definitely come in handy.

When I have time to sit down and solve a problem that no-one else has been able to solve for me, I write it up, and put it in the company's electronic library.In essence that is what you are doing. Make damn sure your boss knows that you are codifying knowledge.



Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[HVACctrl]

Its called teamwork. Many people don't understand the concept. Keep chopping away at it and ENCOURAGE others to do the same. If its not easy to ask them to share with you, you can at least encourage them to do so with others. If the coworkers are worth their weight, they'll come around. If not, I'm not sure what to say. I'd probabaly eventually get discouraged after I had exhausted all means to be a positive influence on a bunch of deadbeats.

Ed

 

[HVACctrl]

xref,
I just re-read your post after having just read Greg's just above. I don't think nor do I think anyone else thought that you were acting like "quite the hot-shot". I'm not sure why, but to me it looks like he took a pot shot there. Looking back, though, I actually think I remember him doing that in the past to one of my questions for advice. I would think negative, pointed responses like that would eventually discourage engineers from using this board for what it was intended- to share and learn from one another without getting the door slammed on your fingers. As I mentioned, I guess its a teamwork thing or lack thereof.

Anyway, it looks like you have been given some good advice from others. Something I didn't menntion is that I was in a similar situation and wanted others to contribute to one another. Some tried, some didn't care and some did. But it took a while. Some just aren't wired that way. A side effect, totally unexpected and unsolicited was that I did get promoted faster than others becuase our boss noticed it. Most of the coworkers didn't hold it against me either becuase they saw and respected my drive and my sincere effort to help everyone in any way I could.

Ed

 

[svanels]

Consider it like a balloon. To get to higher heights, you have to throw, the ballast (knowledge) away.

Knowledge is worth more when it is given away

The guy who keeps his knowledge, you know what will happen to him?

He will be doomed to stay at the same level, because everytime something happens, he will be called for every tiny problem, and will not have time to educate himself. Untill someone smarter finds another alternative and the knowledge keeper becomes redundant.

Document it, share your ideas, show them how you did it, and they will help themselves. Your name will be the first one they look for when there are new opportunities.

 

[jmw]

I love to share knowledge.
I build up my own special skills simply because I work in a particular niche.
The best part is to be recognised as sharing.
It often doesn't take as sometimes what you want to share isn't easily understood and that's a two way street also.
When people try to share their special knwoledge with me I sometimes think they think I am a lame brain.

As HVACcntrl says, its teamwork and its what should be encouraged by companies... for one thing, HR calls it succession planning... one day you will move on and they want to be sure that special skills don't dissappear with you. For another shared knwoledge makes the company work better.

In a well run company, failure to share is to be discouraged but it happens.
One guy I know would have kept all his logs in secret writing if he'd thought of it sooner but keeping his own private knowledge was his way of protecting his job... even though now retired they still have to call him back.
Attempts to foster an apprentice on him (explicitlly tasked with learning the "knowledge") failed as he proved very uncommunicative.

This is not a good situation.

The companies problem was they left him too long to his own devices; one of those people very difficult to manage and hence frequently "dumped" on other managers, he managed his situation very nicely but a better educated management and HR take care to try not to let it happen again.




JMW

http://www.ViscoAnalyser.com

 

[MrMojito]

Sharing of problem solving information is not always known or recognized by company leadership. In such situations, those who spent the time to solve the problem look like they took more time to work on a project than those who reuse the information to work on similar projects at later dates. Guess who looks like the hero to management? This is the situation where I currently work, so many workers here don't share.

 

[21121956]

Hello everybody:

xerf, in our Power Plant it seems to be the same situation for me. I am really sure that I am not "the best one" in some specific subjects, but I put a lot of efforts studying, subscribing to technical magazines, searching on the web, libraries and, of course, I always visit the best virtual place (Eng-Tips Forums), in order to find solutions to our problems.

I have always asked myself: why my colleagues can not do the same? at the end, we all have to walk the same road and to share responsibilities. Why they have not the minimal interest in to improve their knowledge and, on the contrary, they remain waiting for a solution?

And sometimes, believe it or not, when a solution come up, some of them just make a small change and, automaticly come in front line claiming for applauses or recognition for that.

Some years ago, when I was in Argentina attending an specialization course, one of our mentors give to us the following advice: "permitan que el conocimiento trascienda", this in a free translation comes to be: "let the knowledge to spread".

So, I like to share my little knowledge with the people, specially with those that make their best effort.

 

[jmw]

xerf, HVACcntrl,
reading the posts again I think I more fully understand what Greg meant by:

Well xerf, I think what we have here is an attitude problem. I bet you think you are quite the hot-shot. Are you the best in your company at EVERYTHING?

In an environment where you are the only one sharing (giving) your knowledge, that is exactly what the "non-sharers" (taking but not giving) will be thinking and probably saying.
You are casting pearls before ungreatful swine who won't use what you give them; some people prefer to make their own mistakes and keep on making them rather than take advantage of someone elses generous sharing.

Like most things in the work environment, success requires alignment of attitudes from the management down to the rank and file.
Take your pick; customer service, suggestion schemes, knowledge sharing or anything else; if the management don't send out clear signals, it can't work as it should and any one individual enough to do something positive off their own bat is bound to be regarded with suspicion: they are the white wolf and the pack will turn on them.

JMW

http://www.ViscoAnalyser.com

 

[zdas04]

xerf,
People respond to problems differently. Too many engineers will always use the same set of tools every time, regardless of the nature of the problem. A few will seek out focused solutions to problems. Those few will have a tendency to want to share their innovations for a lot of reasons (maybe they just want to be recognized, maybe they want to add to their peer's tool sets, etc.).

I've always found that the latter group were the ones that tend to survive layoffs, get interesting projects, and (often) not get promoted into management ranks ("you're just too valuable on xyz project, maybe when it is done we'll look at you for vacancies at that time"). If you can live with a life of good salaries and interesting (and often stressful) projects then keep on sharing. If you will feel that you're a failure if you don't run the circus then stop it and get your recognition for more politically correct endevours (the Christmas Party committee is always looking for a few good men, and past members are running the company).

David

 

[BelspringKen]

You should keep looking for solutions to problems. That will keep your skills sharp. Make sure those who are above you know that you are bringing solutions to the "team".

If you are saving time and money, make sure it is known by those above you.

 

[epoisses]

xerf,

Yes this is perfectly normal. How to be an effective organisation:
rule 1: share your knowledge
rule 2: don't reinvent the wheel
The one rule can't exist without the other one.

 

[THEReifleman]

Remember one thing above all; unsolicited advice is seldom welcome. I enjoy sharing my knowledge with anyone who asks and enjoy more learning from those who know. But I don't often appreciate nor value knowledge/advice that is is foisted on me. It is most often offered by those who enjoy listening to their own voice or value their advice more than it merits.

I often seek input from my peers about things I'm working on because I know it's likely that they will have a point of view I haven't considered. I discovered I needed to voice that in the begining of the question because I often got a response that indicated they were disdained with my lack of common engineering knowledge. No, I just understand that different experiences yield different results. And engineers (people) generally like to help others. This approach gives me a myriad of options to consider and I often as not select a better path than my original.

 

[HVACctrl]

OK,
For those out there who feel like hording knowledge will help them to appear to be the all-knowing gurus; for those who feel like not sharing will enable others to solve problems faster than it took you, who struggled to find the answer. Keep it up. You are the people who will still be in the same position 25 years from now and will be wondering how the new graduate passed you up and left you so far behind. You will write it off by coming up with excused like, "he kissed the boss' butt" or whatever makes your feeble little mind feel better. ITs OK, we need people like you. It takes all kinds. The more selfish, arrogant, scared workers like you, the more we shine!

Why are you so scared about your abilities that you feel if you share your knowledge people will then know what you know and your stock will drop? Are you tat marginal in your capabilities? That's kind of sad. I'm glad I don't have to be so self-conscious about my abilities that I need to create a moat around myself to hoard all my knowledge and attempt to make myself seem superior.

Unsolicited advice? That's not what is required. One method is to create a folder on the server that anyone can access. Within it, add Word or Excel (or whatever)Documents explaining a problem that you battled through to a resolution. Co-workers can access it whenevr they want. If they stumble across the same problem, hopefully your pearl of wisdom will be ther for theor benefit. They can draw from the well at their own accord.

This is leadership. This is teamwork. If you can't understand it, I hope, for your own benefit and career that you will one day. But I understand that the weak and marginally capable will fight it.

Ed

 

[HVACctrl]

Another thing:
If we as a department can help one another out and save time, guess what? The company benefits from our efficiency. When the company benefits, we benefit by greater raises, greater bonuses. Step out of the box. No one is trying to cram unsolicitied advice down anyone's throat.

I've gotten that and I think it sucks. One guy I work with, for example: after I built a control panel, he had to come by and say, "I would have done it differently..." in a condescending manner. Why couldn't he swhow up during the process? Why couldn't he be a little more constructive and not gloat at what he perceived to be an inferior way?

We need to come together and drop the damn egos and help each other out in a RESPECTFUL manner.

By the way, the negative, cynical guy I mention has pretty much stagnated and not budged an inch in his career, but actually digressed over the past 25n years. Its sad.

Ed