The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has launched the Hydropower Knowledge Sharing and Succession Planning Toolkit, designed to help hydropower organizations manage workforce transitions. This new resource aims to mitigate the risk of knowledge loss and support effective succession planning.
In response to significant retirement rates and worker attrition within the hydropower sector, the toolkit addresses the industry’s need for robust knowledge transfer strategies. NREL’s report, U.S. Hydropower Workforce: Challenges and Opportunities, highlights the difficulties in recruiting and preparing new workers, emphasizing the potential for substantial organizational knowledge gaps.
The toolkit takes a two-pronged approach – knowledge sharing and succession planning – to help all hydropower organizations prepare for worker turnover and avoid operational disruptions due to knowledge loss.
It offers a structured five-step plan to guide organizations through succession planning and knowledge sharing processes. These steps include assessing risks, documenting essential skills, and creating strategies to maintain and transfer critical knowledge. The resource includes worksheets, questions, and other tools to facilitate comprehensive planning.
Funded by the US Department of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), the toolkit is available for free to hydropower industry partners.
