A knowledge base is a comprehensive collection of information, resources and best practices that helps companies efficiently access relevant data, guidance and procedures to optimise their business processes and improve support.
"Having knowledge but lacking the power to express it clearly is no better than never having any ideas at all" - Perikles
What is a knowledge database and why is it relevant?
The practical use of a knowledge database is of great importance in today's organisational structures of companies and institutions. A knowledge base helps companies to organise their knowledge, best practices and standardised procedures and make them accessible in order to increase efficiency.
Using a knowledge base can help organisations to efficiently manage and access the resources and information they need. This can save companies time and money and optimise their business processes.
Efficient knowledge bases are based on structured procedures and provide a centralised platform where users can easily access the information they need to increase the quality of company processes while improving support for customers and internal management.
How to create and manage a knowledge base well?
Creating and managing a knowledge base is a process that varies depending on the use case and application. The process requires the selection of the right systems and tools that enable the user-friendly and efficient capture, storage and provision of knowledge content in a wide variety of formats. It is important to consider the needs of the organisation, the use cases and the requirements of the employee team.
Process example of knowledge generation:
By creating a structured knowledge database, access to relevant information can be simplified. Clear and thoughtful knowledge base deployment and management is critical to ensure that users can access the information they need to do their jobs efficiently and increase customer satisfaction.
Best practices for knowledge base deployment and management include implementing new content, regularly updating the database and ensuring that information is findable and organised in a user-friendly way.
How can a knowledge base improve customer service?
A well-structured knowledge base can significantly improve customer service by centralising query handling and making it more time-efficient. By centralising supporting content, support teams can easily access relevant information to efficiently answer customer queries and speed up problem resolution processes.
Using the right technology to create a knowledge base in a support department is crucial to ensure that information is accurate and easily accessible. Effective knowledge bases can help to optimise support processes and reduce troubleshooting times, which in turn leads to an improved customer service experience.
Implementing a knowledge base in the support department makes it possible to manage and consistently publish frequently asked questions (FAQs), Instructions, documentation and guidelines, solution approaches and other relevant content in a centralised location. This significantly increases the efficiency of the support team and optimises the support process.
The benefits of a centralised knowledge base for companies
The advantages of a centralised knowledge database for companies are manifold. By storing knowledge and information centrally, employees can access relevant data quickly and easily, which increases efficiency and productivity within the company. It also enables a consistent and standardised knowledge base, which improves the quality of decision-making processes and reduces the risk of errors. A centralised knowledge database also promotes collaboration and knowledge sharing between employees, as everyone can access the same pool of information. In addition, it enables better control over confidential information and protects against the loss of knowledge when employees change or leave. Last but not least, a central knowledge database helps to promote a learning organisation, as it supports the continuous development and use of knowledge within the company.
The importance of user-friendliness and navigation in knowledge databases
The importance of user-friendliness and navigation in knowledge databases cannot be underestimated. A well-designed and user-friendly interface enables users to access the information they need quickly and efficiently. Clear and well-structured navigation paths help users to find their way around the database and locate the desired content. This leads to increased productivity and efficiency when using the knowledge database. Poor usability and poor navigation, on the other hand, can lead to frustration and loss of time as users struggle to find the information they are looking for. It is therefore essential to pay particular attention to usability and navigation when developing a knowledge base. This includes the use of clear categories and keywords, a logical structure of the content and the implementation of suitable search functions. A good user experience in the knowledge database can make a significant contribution to successful knowledge management in an organisation.
Tips for creating and maintaining a high-quality knowledge database
Creating and maintaining a high-quality knowledge database requires a few important steps.
- Create clear and understandable content that is easy to find in the database.
- clearly structure the information and use appropriate keywords and tags.
- regularly reviewing and updating to ensure the information is always up to date. A regular review can also help to remove outdated or irrelevant information and make room for new and relevant content.
- User-friendly database so that employees can easily access it and find the information they need.
- Cross-company use: In addition, the database should be organised in such a way that it can also be used by different departments and is not limited to a specific group of employees.
With these tips, a high-quality knowledge database can be created and maintained that offers real added value for the company.
"If you have knowledge, let others light their candles on it" - Margaret Fuller
The EcholoN Knowledge Base
The central element of EcholoN is the integrated, multidimensional and associative knowledge base. Even in the low-cost Express Edition for small and medium-sized companies, it is linked to a ticket system that enables faults, enquiries or other reports from customers and employees to be recorded quickly. All the information required for processing is clearly listed here, for example about the enquirer, the process or possible solutions.
Unmaintained knowledge
Once the enquiry has been processed and the ticket closed, the knowledge gained is transferred directly to the knowledge database and is immediately available to other employees in the system. Many simple problems and customer requirements can be solved in this way. For more complex problems involving different departments, solutions can be determined in a structured manner and documented without gaps.
This unmanaged knowledge, which may previously have only been held by individual employees in the company, is systematically recorded in this way and made available to the entire organisation. This increases efficiency and improves the quality of user and customer support.
It is important to regularly update and maintain this knowledge to ensure that it is always correct and up-to-date. Opportunities should also be created to identify and add new knowledge to the database. This can be done through regular training sessions, team meetings or an internal knowledge management system, for example.
By systematically utilising and maintaining experiential knowledge, companies can ensure that they have a valuable resource to solve problems quickly and effectively while increasing customer satisfaction.
The knowledge base process - How does unmaintained knowledge become maintained knowledge?
The process of how data and information become knowledge is freely definable in EcholoN as a process flow. This process can vary depending on the use case from different industries and areas. In general, the standard knowledge base process can look like this:
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1. collect data
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Information and data sources are identified and collected. This can be from internal company databases, external sources, expert knowledge about products and services, other sources of information or simply from resolved tickets.
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2. filtering and sorting
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The collected data and information is checked for relevance and quality. Unimportant or incorrect information is sorted out, while relevant and correct information is retained.
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3. classifying and structuring
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The collected and filtered information is organised and structured into categories or topics in order to create a clear and easily accessible knowledge base.
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4. generate knowledge
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New insights and knowledge are generated based on the analysed data. This can take the form of reports, documentation, best practices or other sources of knowledge.
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5. save knowledge
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The knowledge generated is stored in a knowledge database or knowledge base so that it is available for future use.
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6. provide knowledge
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The stored knowledge is made available internally within the organisation or to external partners and customers. This can be done through training courses, documentation, online portals or other means of communication.
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7. maintenance and updating
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The maintained knowledge is regularly updated and reviewed to ensure that it always remains up-to-date and relevant.
This workflow from data collection to the maintained knowledge base transforms unmaintained knowledge into maintained knowledge that is available for use and application in various areas and industries.
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8 Knowledge management
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A continuous process of knowledge management is established to ensure that knowledge is effectively utilised, shared and further developed.
By defining and implementing a knowledge base process, companies can better organise, manage and use their knowledge to improve their business processes and be successful.
EcholoN Data Workflow System as a data collector for all data sources
This is possible because EcholoN offers its own workflow engine with which any company processes can be modelled and mapped. In addition, any internal and external data sources can be seamlessly integrated into the knowledge base process via the data workflow system.
Because all workflows are also linked to the integrated knowledge base, the company's knowledge database grows with every work step completed and is expanded to include process-relevant information. This can be used in the daily work environment to process customer enquiries by email, ChatBot or telephone more quickly, for example. Extracts from the KNB can also be prepared directly for customers, suppliers or other stakeholders, for example in the form of web-based FAQs in self-service. This means that frequently occurring questions or problems can be clarified more quickly and without delay, while more complicated issues can still be resolved by direct contact, for example by telephone or email.
A decisive advantage of EcholoN as a central knowledge database is its extensive flexibility: the software is divided into modules and can be expanded at any time during operation to integrate new functions. Of course, access to the existing knowledge in the knowledge database(s) is retained. In this way, knowledge management can be gradually introduced throughout the organisation and used in more and more areas of the company.
The EcholoN search - intelligent search function for all use cases
EcholoN has a powerful and flexible search engine with full-text search, which can be customised using search connetors. The configuration can be used to set which objects and properties are to be searched for. This results in search schemas that provide precise information for the application and the user role. When the results are displayed, data records linked to the object are also shown. For example, the associated processes (tickets), contracts, CIs, etc. are presented directly for the contact.
The search results are displayed in a hit list, from which further details are displayed in a preview. The results can be refined with facets and filters, and objects found can be "parked" or opened directly.
Thanks to EcholoN's powerful search engine, it is also possible to search within documents, emails and other file formats and find relevant information. The search results can also be used in combination with other EcholoN modules, for example to directly execute actions or create reports.
The EcholoN search therefore offers an effective and user-friendly way of searching for and utilising specific information within the system.
The EcholoN search also offers the option of searching for similar-sounding terms - phonetic search - whereby search suggestions such as "Did you mean xy" are displayed. Logical operators such as AND, OR, "+", "-" etc. can also be used. The search also has a fuzzy logic algorithm that compares and weights word families and word fragments. This makes it easier to find words by searching.
Maybe also interesting:
- Blog article: Knowledge management, knowledge database, Wiki & Co
- Blog article: What is a FAQ and what does it mean?