Rediscovering lost knowledge

Peter Edge joins Joanne Lockwood to explore what happens when organisations fail to notice, capture, and transfer the expertise that keeps work moving. Using stories from policing, education, the NHS and specialist manufacturing, Peter illustrates how “lost knowledge” isn’t abstract—it shows up as cost, disrupted performance, demoralised teams, and repeated onboarding that drains leaders’ time.

They discuss why knowledge often walks out of the door unnoticed: leaders who don’t listen, cultures that treat people as replaceable cogs, appraisal and performance systems that miss real contribution, and environments where people hoard expertise because they don’t feel trusted or safe. The conversation connects knowledge retention to staff retention, succession planning, and the practical discipline of identifying single points of failure through simple risk assessment.

The episode also touches on how COVID and remote/hybrid work changed informal learning and “water-cooler” mentoring, and how organisations might rethink communication, trust, and flexibility so that learning and connection aren’t dependent on being in an office. Throughout, the focus remains on building workplace systems that recognise value, support progression, and prevent critical expertise from disappearing.