Human Beings have complicated habits on this planet as much as their actions are unexplainable. Almost 25% of the 21st Century has passed, and there isn't a valid explanation for why employees attempt Knowledge Hoarding.
What is Knowledge Hoarding?
Knowledge Hoarding is a term assigned to the activity where employees keep critical information to themselves for many reasons like Fear of Negative Feedback, Leverage of being critical or maintaining competition among fellow employees.
Following are the reasons why knowledge hoarding is considered the worst sin to commit in a hybrid workplace:
Hindrance in Work Flow:
When employees restrict information to themselves, they naturally contribute to loss of pace and productivity in the long term. For instance, a particular problem occurs in the software, and the only guy who knows how to solve it is on a day off, then the entire day will be lost understanding troubleshooting from him. If the problem-solver guy had shared the information with his colleagues, then productivity wouldn't have been lost, and the problem would have been solved in due time.
Mistrust Prevails
If an employee receives information and plans to hoard it, he plants the seed of mistrust. Information always leaks in the organization somehow, and along with that, if the carrier of the information is also leaked, it creates a lack of trust for that employee. It would have been better if he had shared the information with his colleagues, but after the secret is revealed, everyone will think twice before trusting the employee. This leads to a deeper problem where the lack of trust among employees leads to a loss of coordination and planning.
Derailed Communication with the Outside World
Restricting knowledge restricts interaction with the outside world to a more significant extent. The employee who interacts with the outside world has to regularly ping people to answer the queries he faces from the outside. If he gets all the information suited for his role, he won't have to let the customer or supplier wait for on-call or on email; instead, he'll be quick in answering the queries and satisfy the outside world.
Organizations may struggle to run
This idea comes in when the employee retires or leaves the place. Most of the managers or directors do their job and go home. They don't groom the ones under them for the future to come. And when they retire or leave the company, their successors struggle to carry on the legacy they leave behind. If the seniors don't hoard knowledge and guide their juniors in every way they can, these juniors flourish in the future. This is because the mentoring and their skill combine places a positive and productive effect on their work.
The Psychological Effect:
Employees who hoard information mostly feel isolated. No matter what reason they consider hoarding information, they'll always face negative psychological impacts. Their work efficiency will lower; they will restrain themselves from getting involved in learning circles or avoid social gatherings.
Therefore, it is essential to eradicate the knowledge hoarding culture for the reasons mentioned above. To do that, always visit BHyve.io for more information and methods to stop knowledge hoarding in your organization.
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