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One of the key problems plaguing organizations is information keeping and sharing. As the company accumulates knowledge, it tends to be scattered among different groups. This can hinder effective collaboration, knowledge sharing, and productivity. Knowledge management aims to solve this common problem by making sure valuable knowledge can be accessed and put to effective use for the benefit of the organization.
In this article, we explain what knowledge management is, and how it can help improve business processes and the business bottom line.
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What Is Knowledge Management?
Knowledge management involves organizing and centralizing pieces of valuable company information in a systematic manner. Software helps gather this scattered institutional knowledge so that it is easily accessible, shareable, and updatable by all organization members.
Knowledge Management: A Key Strategy In Business?
A knowledge management system (KMS) is a tool or database that helps organizations manage and organize their knowledge. The information in a KMS can be anything from company policies to training programs to FAQ to employee manuals. An excellent example of a KMS is a corporate wiki.
A KMS system is a valuable asset for any business, large or small. However, knowledge management systems are different depending on the company.
The right system for your business depends on your specific needs and goals. However, all KMS systems share common features, such as a searchable database, a system for categorizing and tagging information, and tools for collaboration.
While a KMS can be a great way to improve operational, marketing, and e-marketing processes, it can also be a burden if it is not used or managed correctly. That is why having a data governance framework is crucial to ensure data consistency and quality are in check to improve decision-making. The system must provide solutions to the ever-growing need for big data and its advantages.
Having the right KMS system in place can improve your business’ functions, thus increasing its bottom line.
Here are several ways that a KMS system improves business processes:
Creates A More Efficient Workplace
A company may have information that can be valuable to employees, but if the information is scattered, it becomes challenging to retrieve. For instance, if you have the information in different Word or Google documents, it may take some time to locate.
Employees can spend an average of 1.8 hours per day, or 9.3 hours per week, searching for the correct information.
This delay in receiving information wastes time and costs money. However, making the knowledge more readily available to employees helps boost efficiency in the workplace.
When employees can quickly find the information they need, they spend more time working on projects and less time searching for data. A KMS can also reduce the duplication of work since employees can share knowledge and collaborate more easily.
When efficiency is achieved in the workplace, it leads to increased productivity, improved customer service, and increased profits.
Provides Fast Response To Queries
In an e-commerce context, a knowledge management system can be beneficial in ensuring that customers get answers to their queries accurately and promptly. This can help reduce the need for customer support staff as customers can self-serve using the KMS.
Let us say a customer wants to understand more about a product they’re interested in but wants to avoid reaching out to customer service representatives. If you have a KMS system tailored towards customer needs, your clients will be able to get all the help online.
Provides Better Insights for Business Decision Making
A knowledge management system improves the flow of information in a business. An excellent flow of well-organized and comprehensive information provides better decision-making insights.
With the information in a central location, it becomes easier to track trends and patterns. This can help organizations to make more informed decisions.
Furthermore, accessing the proper knowledge at the right time gives the company a competitive advantage. Timely decision-making makes accomplishing a team’s or company’s goals and objections easier.
Helps Teams Come Up With Effective Marketing Strategies
Marketing teams require knowledge regarding customer data, market research, competitor analysis, and more. With such information in a central repository, it becomes easier for marketing teams to access and use it to make better decisions.
In addition, creating a knowledge management system with data about your company’s teams and information flow from clients will aid in the management of the marketing team. The company will gain valuable insight into monthly achievements and team performance.
An effective marketing strategy can be the difference between a successful business and one that needs help finding its footing. So, with a KMS, you can easily track the results of your marketing campaigns so that you can adjust your strategy as needed.
Enhances Communication And Sales Collaboration
Statistics show that over 50% of workers in the U.S. claim that teamwork is essential to the success of their jobs. When all of your company’s knowledge is in one central location, it’s easy for employees to find and use it. In addition, it helps improve communication between employees, making it easier to share knowledge and solve problems.
Good collaboration can also reduce silos and lead to a better work environment, boosting productivity.
A KMS can help marketing and sales collaboration by providing a central repository for information that both departments can access. This can help both teams use the information to develop strategies and plans jointly and also to track and measure progress.
For example, when your marketing and sales teams collaborate, there will be less duplication of effort. Furthermore, there will be improved communication and understanding between the two departments.
Increases Employee Retention And Happiness
You have probably heard the saying, “A happy employee is a productive employee.” Investing in your employee is crucial if you want to increase their productivity.
Having a KMS in place can increase employee engagement, retention, and happiness by making it easier for them to find the information they need. When employees have quick and easy access to the information they need, they are less likely to become frustrated or disillusioned with their job.
Streamlines Employee Onboarding Process
Onboarding is considered difficult not only by the new employee but also by the HR team. This could be due to manual onboarding workflows, a lack of company culture, or poor communication.
New employees can quickly get overwhelmed with all the new information they need to learn, especially when it’s in different places. A KMS can help you organize this information, making it easier for employees to find what they need.
As a result, the system can reduce training time and get new employees up to speed. This enables them to start their tasks sooner, thus reducing training costs. You can also invest in an enterprise learning system to ensure the success of your corporate team.
Improves Customer Service
A satisfied customer is a repeat customer. Unfortunately, a customer will remember a horrible service experience more than they will a good one.
Customers who view a company’s customer service as good are 38% likely to recommend the company to family and friends, while 31% are likely to buy more. That’s why it’s crucial to give your customers excellent service.
One way to achieve this is by having a knowledge management system in your business. A KMS can help the customer service team by providing them with quick and easy access to the knowledge they need to resolve customer issues.
As a result, the system can reduce the time a representative spends on each call. Furthermore, it can improve customer satisfaction rates.
Besides helping customer representatives, a KMS system can also create a knowledge base for your customers. This knowledge base can provide customers with self-service options for resolving their issues. For example, they can find answers to their questions without reaching for help or use it to submit new issues or requests.
Take Away
The knowledge management system is designed to help organizations manage and streamline their business processes. It can help you save time and money by streamlining your operations and improving efficiency.
In addition, it improves communication and collaboration between employees, streamlines the employee onboarding process, and improves customer service.
As a result, you can stimulate innovation and evolve your company, enabling you to achieve your organization’s goal. If you have a small business, these tools can help grow your company.
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