Knowledge Transfer

Make sure Cornell doesn't lose important knowledge when you lose a team member!

The Knowledge Transfer Checklist process provides a simple, standardized approach to capture critical position information beforen an employee transitions to a new Cornell role or leaves the university. 

The intent is not to document everything, but rather capture information pertinent to keep work moving forward, reduce disruption, and minimize risk during staffing changes. All information captured should be clear and accessible to others.

When it’s useful

• When an employee is exiting their position (i.e., promotions, transfers, retirements, resignations, other separations)
• To share during the Onboarding process for a new employee
• To prepare for interim support during a planned leave of absence
• Proactively capturing key information to support unexpected exits as part of strategic business continuity planning 

Why it’s used

• Prevent disruption in critical work during transitions
• Retention of unique institutional knowledge
• Faster onboarding for new hires

Knowledge Transfer Checklist 

This checklist is designed to help ensure a smooth transition of responsibilities. We have created a template you can use, but feel free to capture transfer information in whichever format that works best for you. For example:

• Knowledge Transfer Checklist Template
• Word or Google documents
• Excel or Google Sheets
• Existing job aids or SOPs
• Shared folders or Smartsheets

Important Tip:

• Passwords should never be shared. Coordinate technology and application access changes with IT.

Below is a checklist of potential topics to address during an employee knowledge transfer discussion. It may be helpful to send your exiting employee the Knowledge Transfer Checklist in advance of your discussion so they can think about each topic and record any information they think is important to share with you. 

Checklist Topics:

• Core position responsibilities
• Recurring tasks & corresponding timelines
• Active projects
• Upcoming milestones/dates
• Key workflows (SOPs)
• Systems, tools, platforms
• Email accounts, shared materials (i.e., Box folders)
• File naming conventions (may be helpful for employee to clean up and organize electronic files)
• Key internal partners
• Key external contacts
• Standing meetings & communications
• Known risks & challenges
• Ideas for process, program, practice, etc. improvements