Lost in Transition: The Existential Knowledge Void Crisis

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.

By Skip Powers
July 21, 2025

Recently, I walked into a team meeting at my new job in the private sector. I was feeling confident, rocking my white linen sport coat, sleeves casually pushed up. Underneath, a neon-hue baby blue T-shirt, jeans and yes, blue suede shoes and laces. I thought I was channeling Don Johnson from Miami Vice. It turns out I was channeling confusion!

One of my “much-younger” colleagues, dressed in the standard cyber programmer uniform of a tee and backwards cap, looked up and said, “Skip! You always dress to impress.” I grinned and replied, “Thanks! I am channeling my best Don Johnson look today!”

Silence. Blank stares. A few phones lifted, likely Googling “Don Johnson.” That’s when it hit me: I’m officially the “old guy” in the room. The analog professional in a digital workplace. The Don Johnson in a world of “Don’t Know (Don) Johnsons!”

But that moment was not about fashion. It was about something far more consequential: the growing disconnect between institutional knowledge and today’s workforce, and the peril we face when knowledge transfer is neglected or dismissed altogether.

The Hidden Emergency of Knowledge Loss

In 2012, I wrote a piece for the Bellevue University Human Capital Lab titled “What If? The Succession Crisis Pipeline,” which warned of the slow leak of institutional knowledge due to the Baby-Boom exodus and talent pipeline shortfall, reorganizations and lack of succession planning. Fast forward to 2025, and the leak has become a flood. Layoffs, RIFs, reorganizations, DOGE and AI-driven “efficiencies” are accelerating the erosion of institutional and organizational memory.

What is disappearing is not just the how; it is the why! The rationale behind critical decisions. The nuance of stakeholder relationships. The informal workarounds that never made it into the policy binder (and ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, etc.). The lessons learned that never made it onto a slide deck, TED Talk, TikTok or YouTube video.

What’s worse? Most organizations fail to realize what they are losing until it’s too late. We assume, “We’ll automate that.” But here’s the truth: you cannot automate tacit knowledge!

Why Knowledge Transfer Still Matters (Especially Now)

AI has, and will continue to, transform the knowledge and productive landscape. AI can summarize, predict and perform pattern matching. AI and Google cannot guide a new hire through a crisis or explain the quiet politics behind why a project failed previously. Public service does not scale cleanly with algorithmic code or AI prompts.

Tacit and explicit knowledge management is more than dumping files into a cloud drive; it is about building bridges between people, generations and purpose. It’s about:

• Establishing mentoring pipelines across experience levels
• Embedding knowledge capture into enterprise operations (onboarding, offboarding and programs)
• Creating a culture where it is safe (and expected) to share what happened (and not just the sanitized versions)

We must eschew the idea that experience has an expiration date simply because it does not plug into a database or algorithm.

Let’s Be Honest: KM is in Jeopardy

The dirty little secret? Most KM strategies fall flat. They are rushed, reactive or reduced to a checkbox on a project plan. A document saved but never read is not knowledge transfer… it is merely archival.

1. There are two major breakdowns:
2. Leaders do not prioritize it until the handoff is already in progress (or worse, after the loss has occurred)

The people holding the knowledge are not asked to share or are not supported when they try

KM necessity is not just about “Old Guys,” retirees or downsized organizations. Mid-career professionals are leaving, too, burned out or moving on. And with them goes the “glue” knowledge that holds organizations together. No backup. No redundancy. Just loss.

Making Knowledge Transfer Strategic (and a Little Sexy)

We need to flip the script (and the shirt cuffs). Knowledge transfer should be more than a last-minute scramble; rather, it must be a strategic, cultural priority:

• Host informal storytelling sessions. Encourage seasoned professionals to walk newer staff through “how we got here”
• Integrate legacy insights into onboarding. New hires need more than orientation; they require context
• Use AI as an enhancer, not a substitute. Pairing machine summaries with human mentorship is a must
• Celebrate wisdom, not just innovation. Recognize those who remember not just what we have done but what we have learned

And the next time someone walks in wearing blue suede shoes and referencing the 1980s, don’t roll your eyes. Ask them a question. You might uncover a lesson your agency needs.

Final Thought

In this era of change, the pace of technology is rewriting the rules, but we must keep the rulebook intact. Legacy (tacit) knowledge, shared carefully and purposefully, remains the key ingredient that drives good governance and principled public service.

As Adam Grant reminds us, “The most meaningful way to succeed is to help others succeed.” That includes helping the next generation understand not just what we did, but why we did it.

So before another brain walks out the door or slips through a layoff unnoticed, ask yourself: Are we preserving our institutional DNA, or letting it quietly vanish?

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Author: With a seasoned perspective and distinctive style, Dr. Skip Powers is an accomplished author, lecturer, former Senior Advisor in the federal sector, and current private sector integrator.  Dr. Powers brings a wealth of experience across several domains, including organizational development, leadership, emergency management, cybersecurity, and grants management. His unfiltered commentary cuts through the complexity, providing clarity and depth on even the most challenging topics.  Skip can be reached at [email protected]

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