Developing a Knowledge Retention Strategy Now Saves Valuable Organizational Resources Later

The wastewater utility community faces a significant loss of knowledge as a result of current and pending employee retirements. Utility managers may be tempted to think that the solution to knowledge loss is to simply "write it all down." However, this approach is not well suited to retain all types of knowledge, or to transfer it to new employees. Utility managers must use a blend of approaches that includes tools such as document repositories, mentoring programs, use of retirees and organizational learning and training. Using pilot programs to learn and expand their efforts, together with measuring the effectiveness, will help them design and expand programs with the greatest likelihood of success. With the support of top leadership, utilities will be able to successfully meet the challenge ahead.