NPR - IMAGINING THE FUTURE: TRANSFERRING KNOWLEDGE TO THE NEXT GENERATION

Abstract:
To ensure that farm businesses remain competitive and profitable it is essential that knowledge is transferred to the next generation of farmers.  Traditional familial transfer of knowledge is becoming less relevant therefore new solutions are required to efficiently transfer knowledge, particularly to new entrants to farming and those returning to farms later in life. Finding effective and efficient ways to transfer informal knowledge to prevent poor decision making that could result in long-term disadvantage is very important.  This paper highlights two strategies commonly employed within the construction industry that could be applied in the agricultural sector; the multi-layering of maps and ‘quick start guides.  Both of these have clear merits which include providing clear formats for capturing and sharing knowledge with the ability to be used as a ‘living’ document which can be updated as and when new knowledge becomes available. In addition these formats can also be used as a boundary objects to initiate and stimulate the transfer of knowledge which cannot be easily articulated or recorded.
Keywords: knowledge, knowledge transfer; knowledge artefacts, new entrants, succession