There is a growing view that many have struggled in business through a lack of knowledge and courage. Is it time to invest to grow knowledge?

In recent weeks, many have been struck by how many Execs are off the pace and there is a growing frustration within teams due to the lack of real planning and activity within companies. It is naturally creating disengagement.

Many have noted how internal discussions seem to become almost intellectual debates rather than possess a real focus on creating change in services and actions. There is a growing view that many Head office execs lack the depth of knowledge and the "courage" to create the change needed and hence the drive in focus lies in how companies can build this knowledge and invest in growing industry "intelligence".

Before the pandemic, many senior executives, across all industries noted their concern over the erosion of knowledge which naturally happened with the lack of tenure in roles and the resulting “narrowness” in thinking. These concerns have become even more illustrated and of concern during the pandemic. There is a real need for new frameworks which do help build knowledge.

However, the landscape is also a touch more complex with the real gulf being seen in the perspective between the baby boomers, millennials and Gen Z. This was noted yesterday with a number of young bankers complaining about the long hours being demanded and a number of senior players noting their private concerns over the lack of commitment and hunger being shown. The counter argument is that work-life balance is more important today and the long hours are an unacceptable expectation. They will also note that work today demands longer hours than many actually delivered in the 80s and 90s so it is a false argument.

With the growth of modern comms, this argument has fair merit so the argument over hours is irrelevant. The real battleground is over knowledge and intelligence. It is even deeper than that as many today are asking for sustainable businesses being built but these require stronger relationships and these have been eroded and there is fair concern that skills in building relationships and trust need development.

There is a real need for new frameworks, new solutions to be developed and built. It will need to be frameworks which place investment in knowledge share at the heart.