Competence and Knowledge at Work

The theme of this book is long career competence in the workplace and competence of course includes a range of skills, ability and knowledge, which makes it possible for the individual to function and contribute in the workplace. What is considered appropriate competence will vary in different organisations and be dependent on the work, profession or tasks an employee is expected to carry out. The close link between competence and work means that it is not enough to simply know something; one must know how to carry out a task. There are many theories of knowledge and how competence is developed and used; here we focus on how competence and work-related knowledge have been conceptualised and how they have been used in relation to older employees. We include organisational knowledge, situated knowledge, professional knowledge and expertise and discuss how these concepts might be useful in understanding late career competence and older employees.