Knowledge Brokers in a Policy Context - Essay Example

?Sur Lecturer Knowledge brokers in policy context Knowledge brokers have the opportunity to do wonders in their job s. However, nothing great comes without challenges that tend to bring the success of achieving objectives down. These challenges range greatly across the board up to and including such challenges that arise from dealing with the different stakeholders who rely on the sorts of information that comes from these brokers of knowledge. Some other challenges include the research methods and how the findings are relayed to the different stakeholders with vested interest. These brokers may experience further difficulties like selecting criteria of how to engage their stakeholders in defining their research objectives and patterns (Hargadon 42). Selecting an appropriate ambassador may also bring forward some form of challenge as this selected individual is the one to carry the face of the firm that carries out the activities of a knowledge broker. The selection should be flawless as any form of undue process in selection may pose a challenge to the firms. Some other challenges that can come in the way of the knowledge brokers include such challenges as managing interactions with stakeholders within acceptable limits. Some stakeholders may be difficult in a way to handle and hence this may be a major challenge that other brokers may crumble as they tend to check a way forward in dealing with such cases (“Knowledge Exchange”). The knowledge brokers may be working on a flat plan without settling down to lay the objectives. This may also pose a threat in achievement of desired results if they are not fully planned for and hence this too may end up countering the development agenda that these knowledge brokers have in mind (Hargadon 48). The knowledge brokers and their firms should also have a plan on a systematic way of availing results and outcomes through acceptable networks that are practitioner oriented. Doing anything else to this effect may have to backfire and end up being a challenge that will bring the firms down. The firms should also lay the strategies that will work towards distilling results and their strategies for maintaining long lasting legacies. However most of these firms lack the expertise to carry out such distilling processes and that means that a challenge will be witnessed as soon as the legacy flops (Brown 486). So some of the solutions that can be facilitated to curb such challenges can involve such remedies as: as for the challenge of trying to keep up with the stakeholders by trying to encourage them to invest ideally in the broker’s firm through time, resources and effort. The solution to this challenge is to try as much as possible to involve the stakeholders and to give them the need to place their trust for you. If the relationship at the beginning is a good one, then the engagement should be fair throughout the period of the project. This approach needs much attention and hence the firm should conduct a good sense to determine the road taken by the research. After establishing that, then many more stakeholders will show interest and hence feel free to work with you. – SUE Researchers (Tsui L et al) For the challenge that comes from finding it hard to engage the stakeholders in the definition of various important aspects of the research. It should not still be debatable whether to involve the stakeholders, as the firms should go ahead and incorporate them in decision making on the kinds of design the research should have. The stakeholders should be allowed to assist in determining whether an approach is feasible or not. Serious members of the stakeholders’ board should be able to tell what befits the firm and what doesn’t. With this approach, the problem of having to determine the level of indulgence of the stakeholders would be fully answered (Hargadon 50). One other challenge that is faced by the knowledge brokers may be that of that their research findings reach the desired audience and that the said findings are found to be relevant by those who are going to use them. The solution that can curb this form of challenge is by first of all trying to understand the audience and getting to know which forms of knowledge needs can they look forward to receiving from the knowledge brokers. The brokers should assess the kinds of people they are dealing with, their interests as well as the kinds of language appeals to them more. Understand the kind of understanding and preferences that the stakeholders have on the kind of market field of choice (Issues Team). Background research should be done to specifically understand the intended audience so as to establish their needs that should be addressed in the research. The consumers who eventually use the end product of the research may unfortunately fail to get involved during the actual period the research is being conducted, but to make it relevant, co-creation of the research material should be done by opting to involve as many consumers as possible and this will in effect increase likelihood of involving as much relevant information as can be accounted for (Brown 487). The other challenge that is faced by knowledge brokers is that of breaking down the clarity to stakeholders on the formal benefits and having to convince the release of required fund that would enable the firms carry out their research well. The major way to go about this is to consider who to involve in the decision making and to gauge their benefits to the firm. Laying down a good sense of understanding of where the research is headed and giving out this information will act to encourage potential stakeholders amongst other partners. - SUE Researcher. Trying to build a consensus with the stakeholders can also work towards curbing this challenge (“Knowledge in policy”). The stakeholders should be able to determine how the goals are set in both the long and the short terms as well as how to achieve them. The more they put into these activities the more they will feel involved in decision making. The stakeholders should also be made to realize the actual benefits of working with your firm. The real benefits will ensure they stay engaged and this may mostly work well with small projects that are keenly monitored. The larger firms may rely on gaining benefits from experts who are hired to constitute new panels (Hargadon 65). One other challenge that is witnessed by the knowledge brokers is that of selecting a way of improving the image and how the consumers view the comprehension of results that a research firm brings forward. To curb this problem, secondments are recommended as they are quite good at raising awareness about the research. The same secondments increase versatility as well as the understanding of those who are involved in carrying out the research; the secondments also create the possibility of a chance for opening up a form of conversation with between the audience and the researchers (“Policy Cycle”). While trying to make the end users involved in the whole process, the firms need to understand the fact that the consumers are not quite ready for research capacity. Their understanding has to be boosted to an all time high level as we tend to manage our own communication abilities. We need to manage to gauge what we as the researchers want, what we can consider relevant to release to the hands of the consumers of the knowledge that research findings bring forth. What we release should be understandable. We need to involve the advocates who participated in the research to be able to show us the reason why we should find the results of their studies interesting (Hargadon 70). Making the results available after all is done has also been a major challenge. The knowledge brokers should assess the situations that revolve around the release of the findings that have been arrived at after the research. The solution to this is through looking at the research from an academic angle that will make it necessary to be published later on in journals. Doing this should be well taken care of and translated well to fit into the expectations of different customers and audiences. Publication of professional institutions can also boost the credibility of the findings as it will be more appealing, especially to the audience that is keen to detail (Brown 488) In conclusion, knowledge brokers should go out of their way to get to the bottom of each challenge as stated alongside many more so as to manage quality of their service delivery. For the sake of the consumer as well as stakeholders satisfaction that will make many more people feel the urge to conduct business or any other engagements with the brokers of knowledge. The results from the research practitioners and the feedback gotten from those who use the end product should enable us to find out what is actually important if the challenges noted above are to be curbed for the benefit of offering better service delivery. Works Cited “Knowledge Exchange”, Types of Engagement and Dissemination Activity “Knowledge in policy”, Edinburgh: University of Edinburg “Policy Cycle”, Edinburgh: University of Edinburg Brown, Mark. The Honest Broker: Making Sense of Science in Policy and Politics, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007, 485- 488 Hargadon, Andrew. Brokering Knowledge: Linking learning and innovation, Research in organizational Behavior, 24(1); 2002, 41-85 Issues Team, Knowledge Exchange in the Research Cycle, Edinburgh: Heriot-Watt University, 2008 Tsui L et al. “A handbook on knowledge sharing: Strategies and recommendations for researchers, policymakers, and service providers”. Community University Partnership for Study of Children, Youth, and Families, 2006, Web. 28 March 2013. Read More