Defeating 'Doh!' Moments: Securing Corporate Tribal Knowledge With ChatGPT

Tribal knowledge - it's the secret sauce, the hidden 'oomph', the whispered wisdom passed on through the generations.

Or, in corporate speak, it's that unwritten knowledge within an organization that only comes from 'been there, done that' experiences.

Historically, it's the lifeblood of our evolution.

But capturing this elusive wisdom in the 21st century?

Well, it's like herding cats, but with more paperwork.

Why should we care?

Well, it's not because it makes great fireside stories (although it totally can).

It's the historical bedrock of innovation, problem-solving, and decision-making.

But why is it so hard to capture?

• It's like a Secret Club: Tribal knowledge is often informal, locked away in the minds of individuals. If they leave or retire, they might just take the secret handshake with them.

• Ignorance Ain't Bliss: Sometimes, we simply fail to recognize the hidden goldmine of tribal knowledge, leading to potential knowledge gaps and lost expertise. Ouch.

• The Mute Button Effect: Cultural barriers, such as competition or fear of redundancy, can discourage folks from sharing their knowledge. We've all seen that 'mute' button in action during Zoom calls.

• The 'Ain't Nobody Got Time for That' Syndrome: Capturing tribal knowledge requires time and effort, and in our espresso-fueled, fast-paced work environment, that's a luxury not many can afford.

The Retirement Tsunami: Wave Goodbye to Your Expertise?

As our veteran employees hang up their boots and head for the golf courses, they might just take that precious tribal knowledge with them.

And trust me, that's not good for business.

Here's why:

• Puzzle Pieces Missing: Without tribal knowledge, your organization is like an incomplete jigsaw puzzle.

• Back to Square One: New hires could waste time solving problems that have been resolved before.

• Lost Opportunities: Without past insights, opportunities for innovation and improvement may be overlooked.

• Where's Our Mojo?: Lose your tribal knowledge, and you risk losing a chunk of your organizational culture and decision-making prowess.

Let's Get Chatty About Tribal Knowledge

Tribal Knowledge can be broken into three parts -

1. Hands-on Experience

Hands-on experience equips us with knowledge and insights we gain from real-world tasks or projects. It's like the practical skills a software industry marketing pro develops:

• Content Creation: Crafting blog posts that resonate with the audience.

• Audience Segmentation: Using data analytics to understand customers and tailor campaigns to their needs.

• Lead Nurturing: Designing personalized email campaigns that guide prospects through the buyer's journey.

This kind of learning is evident across various fields.

It's seen when coders learn new programming languages or when a chef perfects a cooking technique.

For AI like ChatGPT, such hands-on experiences can offer a rich context for prompts. For example, a marketing manager can provide specific examples from their lead nurturing experience for the AI to learn from.

How to reflect in prompts to guide ChatGPT - As a practitioner, your direct experiences in tackling real-world situations can provide a rich context for prompts. Let's look at a software marketing manager's experience in lead nurturing. The manager could construct a prompt like this:

"Based on my experience in lead nurturing, I've created a series of educational emails addressing common software buyers' challenges. Below are examples of these emails. ChatGPT, please review these and provide recommendations for improvement."

The manager has provided the AI with a context, i.e., lead nurturing, and specific examples to learn from. This hands-on approach is great for creating contextual prompts.

Learning from Past Projects

Part of experiential knowledge is reflecting on previous projects - understanding what worked, what didn't, and how challenges were overcome.

Suppose you've implemented a quality metrics tracking system in a project.

You can use that experience to design a prompt for the AI, giving it the outcome of your experiences, the process you went through, and the lessons learned.

The lessons can then be packaged in the form of written articles using ChatGPT and videos using text to video tools like Visla.us and fliki.ai.

Lessons like these come from fields like architecture, marketing, education, and more!

The Power of Trial and Error

Lastly, there's the invaluable power of trial and error.

Whether it's marketing strategies, product design, or entrepreneurial decisions, we learn a lot by experimenting.

For instance, a project manager who has had to adapt communication styles to different stakeholders can ask the AI for additional strategies.

By providing specific examples of your trials and errors, you give the AI rich data for generating informed responses.

"I've had to tailor my communication to both technical and non-technical stakeholders in past software development projects. I will provide you specific examples of my trials and errors, and give you rich data for generating informed responses.You can then use that to create next set of emails, I need to send"

By providing specific examples of your trials and errors, you provide the AI with rich data from which it can learn and generate new informed responses based on that learning.

Wrap Up: The Future Is Chatty

The moral of the story? Don't let your tribal knowledge fade into the sunset. Embrace the power of AI, harness the wisdom of your people, and keep know-how secure.