Do You Know the Types of Knowledge?
This infographic details:
- Three knowledge types in the enterprise that you should be aware of, and what each does.
- Characteristics of each knowledge type, showing how difficult they are to capture but how valuable they are when successfully documented.
- Various nooks and crannies throughout your business where all of this knowledge can be found — both physically, digitally, and elsewhere.
As remote work normalizes into just “work”, an organization’s survival could be said to depend on its ability to capture, document, and disseminate organizational knowledge. Since asking a question is no longer as simple as leaning over a cubicle wall, the ability to find and leverage knowledge in a virtual space will differentiate leaders from laggards.
Unfortunately, our own research shows that employees are struggling more and more to find needed information to do their jobs. To effectively use knowledge throughout the company, your organization needs to understand the kinds of knowledge at its disposal — and where they exist. Only then can you implement a knowledge management strategy.
While not an entirely new idea, knowledge management has taken on new life with the advent of the computer. Simply put, knowledge management is information management. It's a company’s approach to developing, sharing, using, and, of course, managing the information — the knowledge — that’s been collected throughout the organization’s lifetime.
Thing is, there isn’t just one type of knowledge. There are actually three — explicit knowledge, implicit knowledge, and tacit knowledge — and the more you capture and document, the better long-term effects your knowledge management strategy can have on your organization.
But before adopting a knowledge management system, you should have a good grasp of the different types of knowledge, what characterizes them, and where they can be found. This will help you better understand where to find knowledge in your company — and how to evaluate its usefulness.
Knowledge management that encourages knowledge sharing can beneficially impact your organization in many ways. It can help in your service & support department, enabling agents to do their best work. Instead of relying on hunches, they have expert knowledge at their fingertips. It can help in your customer experience, allowing customers to turn abstract concepts into informed decisions. They can self-serve answers to their problems on their own, or even gain a better understanding of their purchase — turning them into brand evangelists.
And it can help improve business processes throughout the workplace. Surprisingly enough, when workers have the information they need to do their jobs, they feel more empowered to do their best work. From onboarding and training all the way to team collaboration and knowledge base maintenance, having a strong knowledge management foundation can help your business grow in many ways.
But that all starts by understanding the different kinds of knowledge. Download our free infographic today.
