Investigating the use of decision logs to preserve institutional knowledge in student-led programmes

Student-led groups and programmes experience high annual leadership turnover due to graduation, making it difficult to retain institutional knowledge. This research explores the adaptation of a Decision Log (DL) from engineering project management as a low-cost tool to capture and access key decisions in such contexts. As a method familiar to engineers, the DL also enhances students’ work readiness. A case study was conducted within ENG ME!, a peer mentoring programme at a medium-sized New Zealand research-intensive university, to evaluate its effectiveness. Findings from focus groups and interviews with staff and students show that documenting decisions and their rationale provides long-term benefits to student-led programmes. The DL supports continuity, encourages accountability, and promotes deliberate decision-making. It also enables future leaders to understand prior actions, enhancing programme resilience in dynamic environments. The structured flexibility of the DL helps manage change while preserving context and intent, reducing the risk of repeated mistakes or lost knowledge. This approach is particularly suited to student-led initiatives with frequent leadership transitions, offering institutional memory with minimal administrative burden. Further investigation is recommended into the broader application of this method in educational settings with similar turnover challenges.