Critical operational knowledge becomes disconnected from strategic decision-making. Frontline employees may see emerging asset risks, deterioration patterns, and practical constraints long before they appear in corporate reporting, meaning investment and lifecycle decisions can be made without some of the organisation’s most valuable knowledge.
- Tacit knowledge and documented knowledge are fundamentally different because much operational understanding comes from experience rather than formal records.
- The progression from Data to Information to Knowledge to Wisdom requires organisational context before raw observations can meaningfully influence decisions.
- Organisational hierarchy can unintentionally filter information as operational observations move through multiple management layers.
- Psychological safety affects escalation because people need confidence that raising concerns or challenging assumptions will be taken seriously.
- Experienced workforce knowledge can disappear quickly when organisations fail to capture critical knowledge before people move roles or leave.
- Knowledge needs to be captured without creating unnecessary bureaucracy so the process does not become more burdensome than the value it provides.
- Frontline insight should connect with strategic planning so operational experience can influence investment, risk, performance and lifecycle decisions.
Real World
When I became program manager for a major manufacturing standardisation initiative, one of the first things I did was leave the project office. I spoke with engineering, design, supply chain, HR, production and even people in the paint booth because I wanted to understand where previous projects actually hurt. The site manager initially told me, in considerably more colourful language, that project managers belonged in the front office. I disagreed and eventually found myself a desk in the corner near production planning. It turned out to be one of the better decisions I made on the program.
The people closest to the work knew things that weren’t visible in project reports. At kickoff, we deliberately created an open forum where functions and even the unions could talk about what hadn’t worked on previous projects and what needed to be different. We then used the asset lifecycle to show how those experiences connected rather than treating them as isolated complaints. That taught me something I still believe strongly: frontline knowledge doesn’t automatically travel upward simply because it is valuable. Organisations must deliberately create mechanisms that let operational experience influence tactical and strategic decisions. Otherwise, strategy becomes an increasingly polished description of a business that doesn’t actually exist.
Change Management Perspective
One of the greatest organisational change opportunities is creating a reliable pathway between frontline knowledge and strategic decision-making. Experienced operators and maintainers often know things about assets that no dashboard can fully capture, but organisations frequently lack a structured way to turn that knowledge into information that can influence strategy.
I would focus on creating mechanisms that let knowledge move vertically through the organisation without adding unnecessary bureaucracy. That means listening, validating, translating and connecting operational observations to risk, performance and organisational objectives. Organisational change should not simply push strategy downwards; it should also create the conditions for operational knowledge to travel upwards.
Key Takeaway
The organisation may have more asset knowledge than it realises it simply hasn’t created a way for that knowledge to travel.
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