I was privileged to participate as a panel member at a LexisNexis webinar this week discussing the advantages and challenges of generative AI in the legal workplace. We reviewed the opportunities and risks that AI represents for the legal profession. One of the topics I was thinking about afterwards is the impact AI will have on our relationships with fellow professionals in terms of knowledge sharing. Currently if we are really stuck with a professional problem, we consult colleagues who hopefully will share their knowledge. Will this eventually be enhanced or even replaced by a conversation with ChatGPT? AI is incredibly powerful – the image above was generated using Bing AI.
Knowledge sharing in the professional world is a challenge in its own right. I have broadly encountered two types of professional in my working life. Firstly, those who tend to hoard knowledge and keep it close to their chest because they think it will give them some advantage. And second those colleagues who will always give you their time and experience on the basis that this may be reciprocated and, in any event, even if it isn’t will benefit the organisation as a whole.
I firmly believe sharing knowledge openly will bring benefits across any professional practice. See this blog 7 Ways to Improve Knowledge Sharing Across Your Organization which starts “Knowledge sharing is the process of transferring tacit (undocumented) and explicit (documented) information from one person to another. In an organization, sharing knowledge not only increases productivity, but it also empowers employees to do their jobs effectively and efficiently”. It then proposes ways to achieve this including:
“a workplace culture that encourages free exchange of knowledge and expertise within the organization. It creates an environment where employees work together and share ideas and feedback to achieve their overall business objective.”
See this Forbes article Why Knowledge-Sharing Must Be At The Center Of Any Professional Partnership which suggests “While a lack of knowledge-sharing can create added barriers for your professional partnerships, successful knowledge-sharing has the opposite impact, creating a true sense of empowerment and engagement among both parties.” It also recognises that knowledge sharing can play “a vital role in establishing a relationship a baseline of trust” which “enables collaborative relationships”.
Creating an environment which encourages sharing knowledge is challenging in its own right without any consideration of AI’s potential contribution. See this Harvard Business Review article Why Employees Don’t Share Knowledge with Each Other which proposes that even though knowledge sharing “leads to greater creativity, more innovation, and better performance, for individuals, teams, and organizations.” Still “many employees withhold what they know — a phenomenon known as knowledge hoarding or knowledge hiding”. It concludes “Effective knowledge sharing is essential for all organizations, yet many struggle to get employees on board. Our results suggest that if managers want to encourage more sharing, they need to design work so that people want to discuss what they know.”
Overlay the impact of generative AI on knowledge sharing and you create a different set of challenges. Will professionals forsake asking their colleagues as a source of potential wisdom and just converse endlessly with ChatGPT or its equivalent?
At present I don’t see this happening as the human touch is still essential. Yes, AI will have an important role to play in knowledge sharing but will not supplant us as individuals with our unique knowledge base and skill set. See for example this blog The Power of AI Knowledge Management which proposes that “Combining AI with knowledge management is changing how businesses grow, use and manage their knowledge bases while improving knowledge management solutions.” It concludes “AI impacts knowledge management, opening up many possibilities for organizations. AI-enabled businesses are more agile and efficient, staying relevant in the marketplace.”
See also this blog The Role of AI in Knowledge Sharing which suggests that AI “is becoming indispensable for businesses that aim to make their knowledge sharing and management processes more efficient and impactful.” It proposes that “In the realm of knowledge management, Generative AI can be a game-changer. Imagine having an AI tool that can not only curate articles but also generate new content based on existing data. Generative AI algorithms can analyze your organization’s existing knowledge base, identify gaps or areas for improvement, and then generate new articles, FAQs, or guidelines that fill those gaps.”
Knowledge sharing is critical to all professional organisations. As the American industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie observed “The only irreplaceable capital an organization possesses is the knowledge and ability of its people. The productivity of that capital depends on how effectively people share their competence with those who can use it.”
Artificial intelligence used correctly has immense potential to support and enhance knowledge sharing. I like this quote from Larry Page former CEO of Google:
“Artificial intelligence would be the ultimate version of Google. The ultimate search engine that would understand everything on the web.”
And it may well be that failing to use AI will place a professional practice at a disadvantage. Paul Daugherty Chief Technology and Innovation Officer at Accenture suggests “The playing field is poised to become a lot more competitive, and businesses that don’t deploy AI and data to help them innovate in everything they do will be at a disadvantage.”
But ultimately AI will in my view be a servant improving knowledge sharing for human professionals. I asked ChatGPT for its views which support this overall conclusion. Its response was “AI can complement traditional knowledge sharing by automating certain tasks and providing quick access to information. However, the human touch, empathy and critical thinking that professionals bring to knowledge sharing are unique and irreplaceable. AI is a tool to enhance, not replace, human expertise.”
Knowledge sharing in the professional world is a challenge in its own right. I have broadly encountered two types of professional in my working life. Firstly, those who tend to hoard knowledge and keep it close to their chest because they think it will give them some advantage. And second those colleagues who will always give you their time and experience on the basis that this may be reciprocated and, in any event, even if it isn’t will benefit the organisation as a whole.
I firmly believe sharing knowledge openly will bring benefits across any professional practice. See this blog 7 Ways to Improve Knowledge Sharing Across Your Organization which starts “Knowledge sharing is the process of transferring tacit (undocumented) and explicit (documented) information from one person to another. In an organization, sharing knowledge not only increases productivity, but it also empowers employees to do their jobs effectively and efficiently”. It then proposes ways to achieve this including:
- Create Spaces for knowledge sharing to happen
- Lead by example
- Have experts share their knowledge.
“a workplace culture that encourages free exchange of knowledge and expertise within the organization. It creates an environment where employees work together and share ideas and feedback to achieve their overall business objective.”
See this Forbes article Why Knowledge-Sharing Must Be At The Center Of Any Professional Partnership which suggests “While a lack of knowledge-sharing can create added barriers for your professional partnerships, successful knowledge-sharing has the opposite impact, creating a true sense of empowerment and engagement among both parties.” It also recognises that knowledge sharing can play “a vital role in establishing a relationship a baseline of trust” which “enables collaborative relationships”.
Creating an environment which encourages sharing knowledge is challenging in its own right without any consideration of AI’s potential contribution. See this Harvard Business Review article Why Employees Don’t Share Knowledge with Each Other which proposes that even though knowledge sharing “leads to greater creativity, more innovation, and better performance, for individuals, teams, and organizations.” Still “many employees withhold what they know — a phenomenon known as knowledge hoarding or knowledge hiding”. It concludes “Effective knowledge sharing is essential for all organizations, yet many struggle to get employees on board. Our results suggest that if managers want to encourage more sharing, they need to design work so that people want to discuss what they know.”
Overlay the impact of generative AI on knowledge sharing and you create a different set of challenges. Will professionals forsake asking their colleagues as a source of potential wisdom and just converse endlessly with ChatGPT or its equivalent?
At present I don’t see this happening as the human touch is still essential. Yes, AI will have an important role to play in knowledge sharing but will not supplant us as individuals with our unique knowledge base and skill set. See for example this blog The Power of AI Knowledge Management which proposes that “Combining AI with knowledge management is changing how businesses grow, use and manage their knowledge bases while improving knowledge management solutions.” It concludes “AI impacts knowledge management, opening up many possibilities for organizations. AI-enabled businesses are more agile and efficient, staying relevant in the marketplace.”
See also this blog The Role of AI in Knowledge Sharing which suggests that AI “is becoming indispensable for businesses that aim to make their knowledge sharing and management processes more efficient and impactful.” It proposes that “In the realm of knowledge management, Generative AI can be a game-changer. Imagine having an AI tool that can not only curate articles but also generate new content based on existing data. Generative AI algorithms can analyze your organization’s existing knowledge base, identify gaps or areas for improvement, and then generate new articles, FAQs, or guidelines that fill those gaps.”
Knowledge sharing is critical to all professional organisations. As the American industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie observed “The only irreplaceable capital an organization possesses is the knowledge and ability of its people. The productivity of that capital depends on how effectively people share their competence with those who can use it.”
Artificial intelligence used correctly has immense potential to support and enhance knowledge sharing. I like this quote from Larry Page former CEO of Google:
“Artificial intelligence would be the ultimate version of Google. The ultimate search engine that would understand everything on the web.”
And it may well be that failing to use AI will place a professional practice at a disadvantage. Paul Daugherty Chief Technology and Innovation Officer at Accenture suggests “The playing field is poised to become a lot more competitive, and businesses that don’t deploy AI and data to help them innovate in everything they do will be at a disadvantage.”
But ultimately AI will in my view be a servant improving knowledge sharing for human professionals. I asked ChatGPT for its views which support this overall conclusion. Its response was “AI can complement traditional knowledge sharing by automating certain tasks and providing quick access to information. However, the human touch, empathy and critical thinking that professionals bring to knowledge sharing are unique and irreplaceable. AI is a tool to enhance, not replace, human expertise.”
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