Knowledge loss is a growing challenge…

This was a fun summer vacation project: writing this guest column. Naturally, I took on this challenge because the summer vacation is precisely when I have more time to think about the future—both that of our company and that of the industry. A chance to step away from the day-to-day hustle. My main reflections? Well… my fear of losing knowledge in the construction wholesale industry. If we forget to invest in that knowledge, we’ll lose our future.

All right, let me explain. First, the facts: in our field, we’re facing a wave of employees retiring. They’re all over 60 and have had wonderful careers in the construction (wholesale) industry, sometimes spanning three decades or more. Of course, I wish everyone a wonderful retirement. But… these people are taking a lot of knowledge with them. In short: the industry is losing essential expertise.

I’d also like to talk about ‘the youth of today.’ Of course, there’s a influx of new workers at the entry level in the construction wholesale industry. But… the work ethic of young people is fundamentally different. First, they change jobs more quickly than we—boomers—used to. And second, the majority don’t want to work full-time. Well, I do have some opinions on that, but we have to deal with it.

It should therefore be clear that knowledge transfer—and thus knowledge retention—is becoming a serious issue in our work. It’s precisely when I step back from the day-to-day hustle—as I am now—that I’m overcome by the anxious feeling that at some point we won’t be able to advise our customers as well, simply because that knowledge will be gone. I’m convinced that my fellow wholesalers recognize this. And I also fear that we’ll shift too much toward a price-driven strategy, when knowledge should actually be our USP.

Is there anything we can do about it? Yes… I advise everyone—if they haven’t already started—to build a digital knowledge base of everything you experience with your customers. Set it up in such a way that employees can easily retrieve information from it. Also, embrace smart digitization and AI. In addition, pay more attention than ever to training your own staff—from product training to sessions with suppliers. And make sure to regularly test your employees’ knowledge. Yes, call it an unexpected written quiz. Just as a mortgage advisor or a doctor must continue to maintain their credentials. Of course, provide smart e-learning modules, create comprehensive training and development plans for everyone, share your long-term plans, and… be a good employer.

It may be easier said than done, but that’s where the challenge lies. After all, we’re all caught up in the day-to-day, and as a result, we sometimes forget to actually put that vision for the future into practice. But we have to. Because we can’t replace all those aging workers who are retiring en masse with ‘the youth of today.’.

So: Invest in your future today. Otherwise, that future won't exist anymore.