VIDEO: Knowledge has no rank

This was a key theme of a discussion between information executives Major Barry Byrne, Chief Information and Knowledge Management Officer at the Irish Defence Forces, and Rita Zonius, Head of Internal Digital Communication at ANZ.

"Try and turn the old paradigm of knowledge is power – and hoarding of knowledge is power – on its head."
Major Barry Byrne, Chief Information & Knowledge Management Officer, Irish Defence Forces

“In some commercial sectors they call it ‘working out loud’ or ‘collaboration’,” Byrne told BlueNotes on video. “It’s a sense that with anything you are working on, you have a responsibility to your colleagues and the organisation to share that knowledge.

“Try and turn the old paradigm of knowledge is power – and hoarding of knowledge is power – on its head.”

Zonius said a key plan of getting organisations to embrace such a mindset is getting leaders of businesses onside.

“Through their use of enterprise social networks it makes it ok for their people to do the same,” she said, reflecting on her experience installing an ESN at ANZ. 

Byrne said encountering resistors along the way when pushing such cultural change is inevitable, even when a positive end result is obvious.

“Privacy concerns are massive,” he said. “Convincing end users of the viability of what you are proposing… is key.”

The two execs also touched on growing volumes of information and giving a voice to the unheard across an organisation. Watch the video above to find out more.

Sue-Ellen Atherton is a contributing editor at BlueNotes