You’ve seen them, you’ve worked with them, you may have even been one – the Knowledge Hostage.  The person or group of people who are indebted, subjected, and controlled by an individual that purposefully hoards information and holds back on sharing their knowledge to keep you coming back to them. People who find their security, self-esteem, and value to your organization in the fact that they know more than others can be dangerous to the sustainability of the organization.  You know the type, they tell you “just enough” for you to do “just enough” and then you must come scurrying back for more crumbs from the table.

For some it’s an ego trip, for others it’s security, for others it’s simply a demonstration of power:  “I know what you don’t, na-na-na-na-na-na”.  If the stakes weren’t so high, it would be funny, but it’s not.  

Let me also say there are some situations where people are willing knowledge hostages.  Imagine, if you will, the leader is trying to share knowledge and no one wants it.  Silly?  Not really.  You see some people have figured out that if they “know better” then they must “do better” so in their minds, ignorance is bliss – if they don’t know they can’t be held accountable.  Or so they think.

Here are some signs you may have a knowledge hostage situation in the making:

1. It’s virtually impossible for you to take a day off because the office/organization can’t function without you there.
2. The people closest to the problem aren’t allowed or capable of making decisions regarding the problem.
3. There are no detailed work-flow processes and procedures.  Everything is in someone’s head.
4. You can’t find important documents when certain people are absent and work must wait for their return.
5. You spend an inordinate amount of time asking “permission” to do the tasks associated with your job. 
6. You’d like to discipline, remove, or fire an employee or board member, but you can’t because they’re the only one that knows what’s going on.
7. When people leave (retire, fired, quit, etc…) everything starts from scratch. 

In my work over the years I have seen my fair share of knowledge hostages and I’d like to believe I’ve done my part to show them the path to liberation.   Here are three simple steps you take to liberating the knowledge hostages within your organization:

• Cross-train:  Everyone should know how to do someone else’s job.

• Examine & adjust your culture of recognition & reward:  Are people rewarded for knowing what others don’t know, or are they rewarded for sharing what others need to know?  Have you created unhealthy competition within the organization that stifles internal collaboration and cooperation?  

• Document:  Create flow-charts, process manuals, procedure manuals that explain how you do what you do.

I encourage you to do your part to release the knowledge hostages in your organization today. 

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