Some institutional knowledge is just knowing where it was written down.
Some of it is trade secrets and so when the company is wound down it's sold as IP to another place.
Some expertise is contextual to the actual build of the equipment. Having a manual that said replace this O-ring every week in a blower or you'll suffer failures may not actually be expert knowledge anymore, It could be all that is stopping you from losing a million dollar piece of equipment or it could be what's causing you to lose productivity for an hour every week in a pagan ritual to the sacred maintenance document.
Being an expert and being able to chronicle that expertise are not just separate skills they're separate tasks. They might not know what is worth highlighting or they might prefer to read a book than to take on the extra task of writing it down.
Some of it is trade secrets and so when the company is wound down it's sold as IP to another place.
Some expertise is contextual to the actual build of the equipment. Having a manual that said replace this O-ring every week in a blower or you'll suffer failures may not actually be expert knowledge anymore, It could be all that is stopping you from losing a million dollar piece of equipment or it could be what's causing you to lose productivity for an hour every week in a pagan ritual to the sacred maintenance document.
Being an expert and being able to chronicle that expertise are not just separate skills they're separate tasks. They might not know what is worth highlighting or they might prefer to read a book than to take on the extra task of writing it down.