Abstract:
In many countries, people are retiring earlier than ever before and the retirement of the baby boom generation over the next two decades further intensifies this trend. Accompanying this phenomenon, is the potential loss of organizational knowledge or memory, defined here as “the means by which knowledge from the past is brought to bear on present activities, thus resulting in higher or lower levels of organizational effectiveness”, (Stein, 1995,p.22). The loss of valued organizational memory through the departure of experienced workers may equate to a loss of the organization’s competitive advantage. Organizations, while recognising that older workers possess valuable ‘organizational memory’ seem to assume these same workers will readily divest themselves of that knowledge, if given the opportunity. Furthermore, offering experienced workers the opportunity to act as a mentor to pass on their knowledge is often mentioned in the management and related literature as a way of attracting and retaining these workers. However if having organizational memory equates to competitive advantage in organizations, it also does so for individuals, particularly in times when the personal career is no longer bounded by the organization. Employees (even older workers) in the possession of considerable organizational memory may, or may not be willing to divulge that information to others, for a number of various reasons. This paper investigates the assumed relationship between an individual’s estimated level of organizational knowledge/memory and their attitude to mentoring others. It suggests a programme of research to test this relationship empirically. The proposed research aims to go beyond the prescription of “mentoring others” as a general panacea for utilising the skills and experience of workers while ensuring the transfer of potentially threatened knowledge within organisations, by suggesting other motivations that may be operating when employees are invited to share their prized knowledge.