The Conversational Company

Rediscovering ‘Banana Time’ in the Knowledge Economy

For most of us, going to work is not just an economic act motivated by the need to earn money. Increasingly it is also a social act, during which we develop relationships, form bonds, explore opportunities for personal growth and share knowledge.

Smart employers recognise that, beyond the need to make workplaces congenial places for employees to enjoy their work and get on with their colleagues, they also benefit from creating cultures and working environments where employees can create value through collaborating and building know-how that can benefit the business.

At its most rudimentary, the humble conversation lies at the heart of this complex array of processes and this paper will look at what we know about the evolution of conversations at work and why they have become more important in helping organisations to foster employee engagement and even generate commercially exploitable intellectual capital in the so-called ‘knowledge economy’.