Knowledge-Based

We are Knowledge-Based

We believe the more we know, the more we can help. As we learn and increase our knowledge, we can better serve each other.

Who hasn’t heard of the rise of the knowledge worker? Today you’ve got to have your head in the sand if you’re in the service industry and don’t know that knowledge is one of our strengths. Those with the knowledge and skills get ahead, get more interesting projects, get promotions, are picked out of the crowd, and are noticed by leaders and customers. At an Outside-In® company, knowledge is really our new currency. The more you have, the more choices you can create for yourself. Job titles do not really matter anymore, what you know does.

On the business side of things I want all of us to be able to say that we really care about being Knowledge-Based. When all of us know that Knowledge-Based is an important goal, the collective energy and results that can come from this create momentum and almost take on a life of its own. That is the goal. I always wanted a company where I felt I could learn something everyday, and that I was reminded of that everyday. No one wants to be the smartest one in the room.

I was taught that there is always a gap between what we are capable of and what we are. When my father, Alan was a young manager in the financial services industry he had an influential manager and role model who used to challenge him. He would ask Alan if he was working up to his capabilities and if he understood the gap between his efforts, his learning, his results, his knowledge and what he might actually be capable of in all facets of his performance.

This became a turning point. Not all by itself of course, but Alan made a series of small adjustments that helped him be successful. I have gotten tremendous mileage myself out of this premise. Are you aware of and working on the gap between who you are and what your capable of? Have you ever tried hard every day to study and close the gap? That is one of the ways to get ahead. To be effective in an intrapreneurial environment that values proactivity, ideas, failure and risk taking, learning and advancement. Most of us go through life on autopilot. Imagine studying your gap and doing your best to close it inch by inch…

Knowledge-Based gives all of us the gift of trying to close that personal gap. I think it starts with some humble pie; we have to say out loud that we don’t have all of the answers. We have to have some drive and trust to be focused on being better. Without either, this concept fails. We can’t have know-it-alls, and we can’t have complacency.
So I have taken the risk and made knowledge something to covet. Our true goal is to share your knowledge. This is where our saying “Everyone is a learner and everyone is a teacher” really comes from. At times we play the role of teacher. Just ask my teenage son about the all times he has helped me with the DVD clock or my smart phone settings! But, I obviously get to play teacher in many life situations for my son Josh! All of us play both roles if we’re willing.

In our environment we have an absolute right to learn and an obligation to share what we know. This is really not a problem! We always get that we share willingly and easily! We all will stop and help each other all of the time. This is just a very special, important part of our culture. Helping others.

The real message about Knowledge-Based is that we are only as good as you are. Your knowledge contributes to our collective knowledge base. The weak link in a chain is the one that does not have the knowledge. Our customers count on us to know what we are doing in our field. Our customers expect us to know all there is to know about career, talent acquisition, great customer service, project management, account management, process mapping, leadership, change skills and on and on. The content is endless, and we never stop. I hope that is the fun part here. Knowledge is forever. As we reshape our company purpose and desire to have an even bigger impact on our world around us, knowledge takes on an even more grandiose place in our company.