What Are Knowledge Workers? The Role of Knowledge Workers

Knowledge workers are workers who have acquired specific skills and proficiencies through formal training and who apply their know-how toward creative problem-solving. Knowledge workers bring expertise to their daily work, which allows them to lead initiatives and participate in high-level decision-making. As such, executives treat employee knowledge as a valuable asset. Examples of knowledge workers include computer science programmers, engineers, pharmacists, academics, architects, and product designers.

Austrian-American management consultant Peter Drucker first coined the term ”knowledge work” in his 1959 book The Landmarks of Tomorrow, which predicted that advances in information technology would create a class of knowledge workers whose primary assets were their mental skills. Drucker foresaw an information age where businesses could gain a competitive advantage by designing initiatives that exploited the strength of these knowledge workers.

When hiring managers and human resources officers seek knowledge workers, they look for three core characteristics.

1. 1. Theoretical knowledge: Knowledge workers can process abstract concepts known as theoretical knowledge. This makes these white-collar workers different from blue-collar workers who may specialize in one particular tangible skill but who struggle to think abstractly. Knowledge workers’ ability to process theoretical knowledge makes them flexible coworkers who can download new knowledge or skills in a short time.
2. 2. Innovation: The best knowledge workers can think outside the box and supply the kinds of unorthodox perspectives that lead to organizational innovation. When knowledge workers join a new organization, they can offer innovative insights that long-standing stakeholders may not possess. This innovative perspective can unlock new ideas, whether that’s a novel product design, a new marketing campaign, clever workflow automation, or insightful new performance metrics.
3. 3. Communication skills. Knowledge-sharing runs hand-in-hand with strong communication skills. This does not mean that every knowledge worker must be a seasoned orator; in some cases, coworkers communicate most effectively through text or presentation decks. No matter how they communicate, individual knowledge workers must distill complex ideas and align all team members in a shared initiative.

In today’s knowledge economy, the line between information workers and knowledge workers may blur, yet these workers perform different types of work. When knowledge workers and information workers collaborate, their teamwork can turbocharge a company’s ability to develop new products and expand to new markets.

1. 1. Information workers: Information workers gather specific information and funnel it upward for its analysis and comprehension. Their role in a work environment centers on amassing information rather than analyzing it.
2. 2. Knowledge workers: Knowledge workers use information to make decisions and innovate. This type of work does not necessarily involve acquiring raw data. Peak knowledge worker productivity occurs when others collect data and knowledge workers focus on knowledge management and creative innovation.

Get the MasterClass Annual Membership for exclusive access to video lessons taught by business luminaries, including Sara Blakely, Chris Voss, Robin Roberts, Bob Iger, Howard Schultz, Anna Wintour, and more.