Repository Policy - 5% of CTC of all top mgmt employees earmarked to sharing the information required to create a repository for training/Sales

Dear All,

I am working with an IT company, and my Managing Director wants me to come up with a policy for earmarking 5% of the Cost to Company (CTC) of all top management employees towards sharing the information required to create a repository for training, sales, etc. We plan to reward team members with extra incentives for actively working on this initiative, but we will retain some portion of the CTC and make this a Key Result Area (KRA) for all top positions.

I kindly request all of you to share any policy you may have on this matter.

Regards,
Swati

Dear Swati,

Your query is not clear. Would you like to create a repository of what, and why do you wish to deduct the employees' salaries for this purpose?

Employee training is an integral part of the HR process. Why make internal training chargeable? Additionally, your MD wishes to design KRAs for this task. Does this imply that he would like to deduct a portion of the salary for active work and measure the work done by employees?

In any case, as mentioned earlier, please provide more details on your query. It seems like your MD wants to perform a magic trick, but while engaging in such illusionary activities, please consider the impact on employee motivation.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

Dear Sir,

My MD wishes to have a central knowledge repository for all training materials and other valuable resources. Therefore, he requires top managers to contribute and share their knowledge or training materials to be deposited in one place within the company. He proposes earmarking 5% of the CTC for sharing information, rewarding team members with extra incentives for active participation, while also making this a Key Result Area (KRA) for all top positions.

I hope this clarifies the requirements.

Please let me know if you need further assistance.

Dear Swati,

While the end result of the activity is laudable, the means are not!

Your MD wants to implement the "Knowledge Management" practices in the company. Creating a knowledge repository is important; however, the knowledge has to be extracted from the heads of the employees, classified according to the subject(s), and then stored in an organized manner. However, knowledge management does not just end here. The stored knowledge has to be used as well. Therefore, someone has to go to each department, identify their needs, and explain how to utilize the knowledge.

To accomplish all this, your company needs to appoint a Knowledge Officer (KO). The KO also filters knowledge from simple information. The storage of tidbits of data is not the objective. Therefore, the KO needs to have the depth to distinguish between the two.

Some top-notch IT companies have a Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO) to whom many KOs report. Their duty is to constantly search for knowledge, store it in an organized manner, and then disseminate it to the relevant departments. You may refer to the following links for additional information:

- http://www.ipedr.com/vol12/45-C115.pdf
- https://jose.carambolamc.com/implementing-knowledge-management-within-an-it-company/
- https://www.infosys.com/newsroom/events/Documents/pragmatic-approach-knowledge-management.pdf

Your MD needs to revise his approach to implementing knowledge management practices in the company. The current method poses the following risks:

a) Any unwanted deduction from employees' salaries is always resented and can lead to disgruntlement or demotivation. The cost of demotivation could outweigh the impact of a 5% deduction.

b) What if Managers/HODs pass off ordinary information as "knowledge"? Is it not akin to "passing off ducks as swans"?

c) Whether intentionally or unintentionally, what if Managers/HODs pass on misinformation?

d) Knowledge management involves documenting successes or failures in an organized manner. To do this effectively, one needs good drafting skills. What if the document is poorly worded and not understood by the user?

For now, the information provided above should suffice. There are additional risks to consider. For further details, please feel free to contact me.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar