The global crisis scenario experienced in the last two years has brought significant changes to enterprises.
The strong drive for digitalisation, the introduction of hybrid working, the automation of many processes and the huge amount of data collected and produced require the ability to manage information in a more flexible, on-cloud and integrated way.
This, on the one hand, has challenged figures such as CIO, innovation manager, knowledge manager, IT manager and, on the other, led to the development and consolidation of some features that Knowledge Management systems can implement to meet these needs.
The priorities of Knowledge Management according to companies
According to research conducted by APQC, in 2022 Knowledge Management teams identified some activities as a priority, such as finding, mapping and managing critical knowledge, ensuring collaboration between teams, and implementing processes for the transfer of experience.
Although these needs may already have been addressed, realising a knowledge management strategy can be challenging. The characteristics of the company culture and the technologies used can make the difference, as well as the aspects that you choose to prioritize.
Innovating the company's knowledge management system is essential in today's rapidly changing business landscape. With the increasing need for digitalization, remote work, and automation, companies must adapt their knowledge management strategies to effectively manage information in a flexible, integrated, and cloud-based manner.
Furthermore, fostering knowledge sharing through internal communication systems and automatic content updates is vital in promoting collaboration and information sharing within the organization. With the rise of remote and hybrid work, it is essential to establish a structured approach to knowledge management and ensure that information is easily accessible to all team members. By utilizing knowledge management tools, companies can optimize the setup and update time of systems, facilitating efficient knowledge sharing without placing additional burdens on employees.
Another important aspect of innovating the company's knowledge management system is leveraging AI-powered solutions that utilize Natural Language Processing (NLP) to simplify training and knowledge transfer. Training teams on digital technologies and new innovations can be time-consuming and resource-intensive. However, with AI-powered solutions, companies can create user-friendly learning management systems that collect information, and best practices, and facilitate efficient knowledge transfer.
Lastly, supporting decision-making processes by identifying knowledge gaps and knowledge insights is crucial for optimizing methods and processes within the organization. By analyzing the knowledge base and monitoring how quickly employees can find the content they need, companies can gain valuable insights into areas that require improvement. This information can be used to create new content, fill knowledge gaps, and make informed decisions that enhance customer experience and overall organizational performance.
Overall, innovating the company's knowledge management system is essential in the current business landscape. By integrating knowledge bases, fostering knowledge sharing, leveraging AI-powered solutions, implementing self-learning capabilities, and supporting decision-making processes, companies can effectively manage information and drive success in the digital era.
For this reason, we at Pigro have collected the 5 knowledge management trends you should follow, if you haven’t already, to implement and innovate knowledge management in the company.
1. Integrate Knowledge Base system and Document Management system into the Knowledge Management strategy
One of the main tasks when it comes to knowledge management is to administer and manage the knowledge bases that users will then access and design an IT infrastructure based on a shared point of access.
However, the proliferation of information and data of all kinds makes it difficult for KM teams to actively manage all the knowledge that is often collected in a disorganized and fragmentary manner, creating silos that make it difficult to access.
Employing a knowledge management solution that centralises knowledge and integrates with all existing business systems helps provide a single point of access to all the documentation. It will be always easy to consult, according to company roles, without the need to find and rewrite content.
2. Foster knowledge sharing through internal communication systems and automatic content update
In large organisations, it has always been a priority to support business teams in knowledge capitalization and collaboration processes. Today, with the emergence of remote or hybrid work, it is increasingly necessary for companies to put an order in the knowledge management of various departments, to favourite information sharing.
Virtual collaboration in teams exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to APQC research (Virtual Collaboration: Rules of the Road). However, the creation of meetings, chats and temporary workgroups was not followed by the adaptation of the knowledge management approach. This has led to the knowledge produced by the teams becoming increasingly closed and sectorized, with the effect of decreasing the dynamism of the entire organisation.
To meet this need, together with the prioritization of knowledge sharing by top management, knowledge management tools can help with the optimisation of set-up and update time of the systems, without requiring additional efforts from collaborators.
With AI solution it’s possible to easily record and share best practices, documents and data of any type, without having to worry about finding the latest version, but automatically updating content in the knowledge base.
3. Focus on AI-powered solutions that use NLP to simplify training and knowledge transfer
One of the most time-consuming and resource-intensive activities is training teams on the use of digital technologies and innovations implemented in the enterprise. Once again, following the pandemic and the ensuing changes in the labour market, a risk scenario regarding knowledge transfer has emerged.
Having a few experts to whom everyone turns has become a danger. This is why it is essential to structure a learning management system that allows you to collect information, best practices and train newcomers, or those who need it.
In addition to methods (organics or systematics) that encourage knowledge transfer, it is useful to invest in tools that require fewer and fewer resources to get into operation. If your employees have to completely change their work routine, it will be harder for them to utilise a new tool.
Instead, thanks to Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing, KMS are increasingly intuitive and user-friendly. For example, you can search for information by asking simple questions in natural language, without the need to use keywords, tags, or know specific languages to find what you need.
4. Use self-learning to guide users to answers
A poor search experience increases the difficulty for employees to quickly find helpful information, because often various divisions don’t communicate with each other, or use different information storage and management procedures.
This may affect "search & discovery" processes, terms with which we refer to two different activities. While the first occurs when you search for the information you know exists (you know you need it to get the work done), the second indicates the discovery of content you don’t know to need because you don’t know about it.
A KM solution must be able to respond to these needs by guiding users to the answers: either in self-service mode (that is, by allowing easy retrieving of support content) or by refining search results for the assistance operators, such as the Help Desk and Customer Service. This can be done by suggesting information related to your role, tasks, search history, etc., thanks to the self-learning of artificial intelligence.
5. Support decision-making processes by identifying knowledge gaps and knowledge insights
One of the tasks often entrusted to Innovation Managers is suggesting how to optimize methods and processes to improve Customer Experience. The multitude of channels and the quality expected by increasingly experienced consumers have made the omnichannel presence integrated with all touchpoints more and more indispensable.
To do this, it is necessary to set specific digital goals and monitor progress, which is critical today to understand how to optimize decision-making within an organisation.
However, it is difficult to monitor all the activities carried out by various teams and especially the use they make of knowledge base content. Therefore, to understand which processes are slowed down and can be improved, a knowledge management system can help by identifying knowledge gaps. These can be easily filled by creating new content.
In addition, to make informed decisions and understand what problems need to be solved, it is crucial to analyze how quickly employees can find the content they need to do tasks.
Given the difficulty of tracking these KPIs, Pigro has developed the “Knowledge Insights” feature that allows you to measure the quality of the knowledge base, identify lack of information and provide suggestions to increase its efficiency.
How to convert tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge within your company
Would you like to know more about Pigro knowledge management with AI? Contact us!
