Think of a knowledge management system as a virtual warehouse for all of your company’s information. Having a knowledge management system helps companies be more efficient, smarter, and faster in their day-to-day operations. On top of that, a knowledge management system provides customer support teams with the information they need to do their jobs more effectively.
Most companies have some sort of knowledge management system, but some businesses are knowledge champions. They are using knowledge management software and document management systems to give themselves a competitive advantage.
What is knowledge management?
In more depth, a knowledge management system is cloud-based software that helps companies manage the information they need to run their businesses.
It helps businesses share, organize, use and transfer company knowledge including:
- tacit knowledge
- specialized knowledge
- explicit knowledge
- step-by-step processes for customer support operations
- customer satisfaction data
- information for new employees
- customer requests
- user feedback
- company documents
What are the benefits of a knowledge management system?
A robust knowledge management system has several key benefits. These are improving business processes, quicker problem solving, and better employee support.
Knowledge management systems improve business processes.
Lost productivity caused by time wasted searching for the right information is a problem in most organizations. Effective knowledge management software like Capacity brings together organizational knowledge in one place so a company’s employees don’t have to comb through web pages and internal documents to do their jobs.
Knowledge management software also makes it easy for employees to promptly complete tasks without wasting time on internal conflict or miscommunication.
Employees carry out their work more efficiently with an internal knowledge management system. However, in today’s world, customers expect instant access to information and customer support.
Knowledge management programs like Capacity give website visitors access to relevant knowledge, which improves the customer experience and increases customer satisfaction. They make it easy for website visitors to find their answers rather than having to contact customer support.
Knowledge management systems solve problems more quickly.
One of the biggest benefits of a powerful knowledge management system is that problems are solved much more quickly, saving time and money. Many businesses never find solutions to the biggest problems because leaders don’t have immediate access to the right information.
An effective knowledge management system can improve business processes by making them more efficient. With knowledge management systems, employees can share their ideas, which makes it easier for companies to find solutions in a shorter amount of time.
Knowledge management systems provide better employee support.
Companies that treat employees like valuable assets have low employee turnover, which increases profitability. One way that companies can increase employee satisfaction is by providing easy access to team knowledge.
By creating a structure to store and organize information, a good knowledge management system makes it easy for employees to easily access the exact information they need when they need it. This means that team members can get immediate access to support materials without having to wait for other departments to respond.
New employees benefit tremendously because they can easily access training programs and don’t experience frustration or embarrassment when they’re not sure how to do something.
Employees also benefit from the streamlining of customer support operations because they don’t have to answer the same questions every day. An online help center with access to knowledge base articles makes it easier for customers to find answers on their own. This frees team members to carry out more interesting and rewarding tasks.
What to look for in a knowledge management system:
When comparing knowledge management systems, there are a few things to consider.
- Look for Intelligent Document Processing: Knowledge management systems powered by Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) automatically update business knowledge, removing the need for employees to update manuals.
- Consider Artificial intelligence: AI technology makes it possible for companies to predict customer demand, troubleshoot technical problems, and innovate by predicting which products or services customers will need in the future.
- Compare the ease of use: An intuitive interface and a user-friendly structure are important attributes of any knowledge management system. If the system is difficult to use for customers and employees, then its value quickly diminishes.
- You may need cloud storage: Employees need access to knowledge management systems from any computer, tablet, or smartphone. A knowledge base that can be accessed from various devices makes it easy for employees to check in, even if they are out of the office.
- Look for chatbot functionality: Chatbot functionality facilitates access to existing knowledge through natural language conversations. This means that employees don’t have to undergo extensive training across a range of systems. Instead, they can simply ask the chatbot questions in an application like Slack. Chatbots also make it easier for the swift resolution of customer support tickets without the intervention of human agents. Customers can find the information they need without explicit knowledge of terminology or technology. If a customer asks a question and the answer is not in the company’s knowledge base, chatbots can route the inquiry to the right human agent.
How can Capacity help?
Knowledge management systems are becoming more advanced by the day.
Capacity is a support automation platform with knowledge management powered by artificial intelligence. It helps companies manage and share knowledge while building solutions for any business challenge.