During the recent suicide bombing of the CIA base in Afghanistan, many critical employees died, including one who reportedly possessed knowledge that will be very difficult to regain. Although the methods used to record and share information in the CIA differ from the methods used in most businesses, the loss of a critical employee can be equally devastating for all types of organizations.

Events like this one act as a reminder of the importance of knowing the skills, competencies and knowledge held by employees. If--for whatever reason--an employee leaves an organization, who will be able to step in and replace that employee? Who has the necessary skills and knowledge? The ability to clarify this relies upon a well-maintained performance management system.

Communication throughout an organization is another contributing factor. Are top performers required to update information and communicate critical information regularly? Do key employees have performance goals that relate to the transfer or recording of key information? If they do not, why not?

If the performance of an organization would suffer if one individual were to leave the organization unexpectedly, then a plan should be in place in case this occurs.

References:

Smith, R. Jeffrey, Joby Warrick and Ellen Nakashima. “CIA bomber struck just before search.” The Washington Post  [www.washingtonpost.com]. January 10, 2010.