The SMEs and me
For me, the joy of being a Knowledge Manager is when you get to work with a Subject Matter Expert (SME) and distill their years of research, study, education, experience and brilliance into bite-sized morsels of wisdom that can be easily absorbed by others. It’s like watching a lightbulb go off. It is almost as if their eyes are saying “Eureka! Finally, I can see it all in front of me – and so can everyone else!”
Brilliant people should spend their time being brilliant – they can’t sweat whether their PowerPoint, 4-hour training session or 300-page manual is an effective learning strategy. They can’t keep fielding every call, chat, email for help with the basic principals of their work. They want to get back to their work – not spend time figuring out how to explain it.
SMEs are the ones who have the deep and specialized knowledge that is essential for creating high-quality content and solutions for our clients. They are also the ones who can help me identify the gaps and opportunities in the existing knowledge base and provide feedback and validation for the new knowledge assets that I create.
What can a SME expect from a good Knowledge Manager?
I will always seek to establish trust and rapport. I am going to have genuine interest in your expertise, acknowledge your contributions, and communicate clearly and frequently. Trust and rapport also enable me to ask more probing questions, challenge assumptions, and solicit honest opinions from the you.
I’m going to ask good questions to understand your needs and expectations. Before starting any project or task, I always make sure to understand what the SME expects from me, and what I expect from them. This helps me align my goals and priorities with theirs, and avoid any misunderstandings or conflicts later on. I also pride myself on identifying and using peoples preferred style of communication, feedback, and collaboration, and adapt accordingly.
I’ll leverage your organizations strengths and compensate for any weaknesses. The SMEs I work with always have a lot of strengths: deep domain knowledge, analytical skills, and problem-solving abilities. On the other hand, there are typically some unavoidable weaknesses, such as lack of time, writing skills, or familiarity with the target audience. As a knowledge manager, I try to leverage those strengths by asking them to provide input on the most critical and complex aspects of the content or solution, and compensate for any weaknesses by taking care of the less essential or more tedious tasks, such as formatting, editing, or proofreading.
One of the main challenges of collaborating with SMEs is to motivate them to share their knowledge and expertise with me. After all, subject matter experts are typically busy professionals who have many a ton of responsibilities and demands on their time. In order to combat that, I provide value and recognition to SMEs in various ways. I show them how their knowledge can benefit the organization and the clients, how it can enhance their reputation and credibility, and how it can help them learn new things and improve their skills. I also recognize and appreciate their efforts by giving them positive feedback, thanking them publicly, and sharing the outcomes and impacts of our collaboration.
SMEs are not only sources of knowledge, but also mentors, coaches, and partners who can help me develop my own expertise and skills. By working with them closely, I gain insights into their domain, learn new concepts and techniques, and discover new perspectives and approaches. I can also share my own knowledge and experience with them and help them improve their own processes and practices.
Maybe after reading this you realize that working with a Knowledge Manager isn’t half-bad. If you’re interested in seeing how Knowledge Management can help you achieve your goals faster and smarter, contact me!
