Both teams overseeing the change need to ensure that the transfer of all forms of knowledge and information is effectively managed. They should develop a communications plan to ensure any users or customers of a function being transferred receive an uninterrupted service as far as possible. They should also ensure that the changes are communicated widely within both organisations.
Communications should include:
- staff at all levels whose work is closely affected by the transfer of functions
- Private Offices, Parliamentary and Ministerial Correspondence Units
- enquiry services, call centres, help lines and libraries
- major suppliers for example paper records storage suppliers
- IT providers for example where one or both of the organisations have outsourced their IT
If knowledge champions or officers have been appointed within the organisations, they should also be fully involved in ensuring business continuity across the transition. Both organisations should ensure that risk registers covering records and information are updated following the change.
Vital records transferred should be added to the receiving organisation’s business continuity and disaster plans and removed from the transferring organisation’s plans.
The transferring organisation should consider how to capture knowledge which is not written down or held in a formal way.