Knowledge Base Explained

The elevator pitch for a knowledge base, or a simple knowledge base definition, is that it’s an information repository that holds content created, managed, and maintained to assist with corporate operations – such as IT support – or customer-related needs. It provides on-demand support by providing the knowledge people need when they need it (via a knowledge delivery mechanism such as a self-service portal).

In terms of IT support use (and there are many possible internal and external-facing use cases), an IT knowledge base has traditionally had a dual purpose – on the one hand, facilitating IT support personnel in their support of others and, on the other, allowing end-users to self-help. The content of a corporate knowledge base can also be used to power newer artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled capabilities such as generative AI chatbots.

The information stored in a knowledge base can come from various sources. In an IT support context, subject matter experts (SMEs) will create focused knowledge base content to provide resolutions to common issues and answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs). A help desk knowledge base can also hold manuals, runbooks, and other information IT support staff or end-users might need to know.

Types of knowledge base

Typically, there are two types of knowledge bases: internal and external. An internal knowledge base might be called a business-to-team (B2T) knowledge base, and an external knowledge base might be called a business-to-customer or consumer (B2C) knowledge base.

• Internal knowledge bases. These are employee knowledge bases that provide the information that employees need when they need it. There can be different “flavors” of an internal knowledge base. For example, IT, HR, and Facilities might all operate their own knowledge bases, and these might serve business function staff, the people they support, or both. In the case of an HR knowledge base, it might include:
  • Company and team structure information
  • Company policies
  • HR processes
  • Employee onboarding material
• External knowledge bases. These are customer-facing knowledge bases and might be described as a help center. They’re typically built around FAQs to help save customers time when they need product or company information. An external knowledge base might include:
  • FAQs
  • Interactive or downloadable user guides
  • Tutorial videos
  • Troubleshooting help
  • Product-related information such as warranties and release notes.

A knowledge base allows relevant knowledge and information to be captured, curated, managed, and shared with people (or processes) as and when they need it. What’s stored within a knowledge base is decided upon by relevant business stakeholders, which will likely change over time. For example, FAQs that deal with common queries might be reviewed quarterly to better reflect the needs of the people seeking knowledge or information. Or how-to guides will need to be refreshed as new technologies are employed or different solutions are identified.

In addition to the IT support knowledge base examples shared above, a knowledge base might include various other types of knowledge or information. For example:

• Product or service information
• Policy documents
• Operational best practices
• Video tutorials.

Ultimately, the contents of a knowledge base will depend on its value to people seeking guidance or assistance.

A knowledge base centralizes essential information and makes it easier to access. For employees, internal knowledge bases can improve employee efficiency and productivity, and external knowledge bases can increase customer satisfaction. The importance of a knowledge case will ultimately depend on its use case and how well it works. For example, in terms of internal knowledge bases:

• For IT support teams, a knowledge base facilitates troubleshooting and provides end-users with quick self-help access to answers to how-to and support questions
• For HR organizations, a knowledge base not only facilitates issue handling and self-help but also distributes key employee information such as company policies and payday details.

These internal knowledge bases are often modeled on the success of customer-facing capabilities, where customers can get the answers they need independently. They free up staff to handle more important work, customers and employees feel accomplished because they self-helped, and it’s faster for people. An effective knowledge base means “better, faster, cheaper” operations and outcomes.

Templates and examples of knowledge bases

Knowledge base population is easier when templates are used to enforce a structured approach to capturing and presenting information. Example knowledge base templates include:

• FAQ templates – these templates include a clear question and a concise answer. For example, “How do I connect to the network?”
• How-to guide templates – these templates capture a step-by-step approach to undertaking an activity to achieve something. For example, “How to set up an email account.”
• Troubleshooting templates – these templates usually start with an issue statement along with the potential causes and solutions. For example, “Unable to send email.”
• Policy and procedure templates – these templates share information on how things work in a company based on agreed rules and best practices. For example, a mobile telephony device use policy might cover legitimate work use cases and personal use limitations. It might also leverage other company policies like software installation and internet use.

Knowledge bases are often accessed through other digital capabilities, such as knowledge base portals or company websites. The screenshot below is of the ManageEngine.com website’s customer knowledge base:

A knowledge base collates, manages, and shares company knowledge and information. Internal and external knowledge bases have similar but different benefits, fulfilling two distinct needs.

Regarding internal knowledge bases, the benefits relate to better enabling staff and business service and support processes while delivering better experiences and outcomes to the employees or customers being supported. Examples include:

• Increasing staff productivity – service provider staff or the people they serve can quickly find the help they need.
• Improving experiences – this benefit is twofold. First, service provider personnel are better equipped to handle employee or customer requests. Second, employees and customers can self-help, speeding things up and offering empowerment.
• 24/7 support availability – knowledge and information are accessible around the clock, meaning that people can self-help at any time of the day or night (including when the IT service desk is closed).
• Higher first-contact resolution rates – the required answers are potentially at people’s fingertips, meaning that more issues can be resolved without research or escalation to third parties.
• Speeding up employee onboarding – a knowledge base helps new employees understand company policies and processes. In the case of service providers, such as IT support, a knowledge base enables new employees, in particular, to handle incidents and service requests with minimal experience.
• More consistent service delivery – knowledge bases facilitate the standardization of service provider operations and outcomes.
• Employee or customer empowerment – people can find the answers or help they need independently.

Generative AI improves corporate knowledge management and knowledge base capabilities in various ways, including:

• Automated content generation – Generative AI synthesizes information from existing data sources to fill gaps in knowledge bases with relevant, accurate content.
• Quality checking – checking for inaccuracies, outdated information, and inconsistencies within the knowledge base.
• Semantic search enhancement – Generative AI improves knowledge base search functionality by understanding the context and semantics behind queries.
• Data extraction and structuring – extracting valuable information from unstructured data sources and then transforming it into a structured format that’s easier to store, search, and analyze within a knowledge base.
• Conversational responses to queries – providing direct answers to user questions, sourcing information from the knowledge base.
• Personalization – Generative AI tailors the information provided from a knowledge base based on user preferences and past interactions.

Domain-specific large language models (LLMs) can be used to provide very focused knowledge base management capabilities.

A knowledge base plays a central role in knowledge management by serving as a foundational tool for organizing, storing, and retrieving knowledge within an organization. There are two key functions:

• Providing a central repository for knowledge – a knowledge base is where all relevant knowledge and information is stored and managed. This can include documents, FAQs, how-to guides, training materials, and best practices.
• Facilitating knowledge and information sharing – all authorized employees and customers have easy access to the same consistent and accurate information.

An effective knowledge base can:

• Support decision-making
• Help improve efficiency and productivity
• Speed up employee onboarding and training
• Enhance employee and customer support
• Support consistency
• Facilitate scalability
• Preserve personal and organizational knowledge.

There are various steps required when building a knowledge base. These steps include:

• Verifying the need for a knowledge base – don’t create a knowledge base just because you can. Instead, use it as a solution to a business problem or opportunity.
• Defining the knowledge base’s purpose and scope – for example, is it internal or external? The scope of the knowledge base relates to the specific topics or areas covered and the aims of its use.
• Conducting an initial knowledge gap analysis – to identify what key knowledge content needs to be created to meet the knowledge base documentation requirements.
• Identifying the technology required to deliver the knowledge base – having the right technology in place will make a significant difference to knowledge management success.
• Determining the knowledge base structure – this is the hierarchy of the knowledge base that users can easily follow.
• Creating knowledge articles – using clear and concise language that knowledge base users can easily follow.
• Implementing a search capability – the search functionality must be optimized to consistently deliver accurate and relevant results.
• Maintaining the knowledge base – create processes to review and update knowledge base articles regularly.

Tips to create knowledge base content

After identifying the purpose and scope of a knowledge base, the creation of knowledge base content involves:

• Understanding the knowledge base users – their needs, challenges, and the questions they might have
• Keeping knowledge articles simple – plain language and jargon avoidance will usually help, with short sentences and paragraphs making the content easier to understand
• Using consistent and structured formats for different knowledge article types – this helps users quickly scan the content to find what they need
• Optimizing for search – organize knowledge base content so that it’s easily discoverable
• Updating the content regularly – this includes removing outdated information and adding new content as needed
• Testing usability – have new employees test the knowledge base to see if they can find the knowledge or information they need
• Measuring knowledge base suitability and success – track how often knowledge articles are viewed and whether they are helpful.

In addition to the above knowledge base tips, there are various knowledge base best practices to consider before starting with knowledge base creation and use. These best practices include:

• User-centric design – create the knowledge base around the needs of the users, not the thinking of the knowledge content creators
• Invest sufficiently in the search functionality – make this an essential knowledge base capability; after all, knowledge has limited value if people can’t find and use it
• Don’t overlook accessibility and mobile responsiveness – as with the above search bullet, ensure that people can access what they need in the manner they want or need to access it
• Incorporate feedback mechanisms – allow users to rate the helpfulness of knowledge articles to improve the knowledge base capability
• Use analytics to track usage patterns – this includes popular content and search behaviors
• Build the knowledge base for scalability and security – plan for your organization’s growth and increasing traffic and content volume, and protect sensitive information
• Consider offering multilingual support – a knowledge base inaccessible to non-English speakers will likely limit its effectiveness.