Knowledge Management Systems: Everything Your Team Needs to Know

Teams thrive when they have the information needed to do their jobs and build on each other’s hard work — but this requires clear processes and a well-maintained knowledge management system (KMS).

Knowledge management refers to the process of gathering, storing, and organizing information within a company. The goal is to capture valuable knowledge and make it accessible to your entire organization.

There are several ways to do this. For example, it might be how your team organizes its Google Drive so everyone can readily access files needed to complete a project —or how you share updates in a Slack channel to make them searchable. A well-designed knowledge management system helps your team share, find, and access knowledge easily.

What is a knowledge management system?

A knowledge management system (KMS) is a technology-driven platform designed to help organizations capture, store, organize, and share knowledge across teams and departments. The goal of a KMS is to ensure valuable information is easily accessible to those who need it, fostering better decision-making, innovation, and efficiency. A KMS can range from simple document management tools to sophisticated AI-driven platforms that provide personalized insights and recommendations.

In today’s fast-paced business environment, having a robust knowledge management system is crucial. It enables employees to quickly find the information they need, reduces redundancy, and uses collective knowledge to solve complex problems.

There are different types of knowledge management systems — ideally, well-integrated — that create a centralized internal knowledge hub where teams can access everything from project documentation to procedural guidelines. These include:

• Document management systems
• Content management systems
• Learning management systems
• Collaboration tools or work operating systems
• Dedicated knowledge bases

Slack enterprise search is one example of how a KMS functions within a work operating system. By indexing all conversations, files, and shared content, it turns your workspace into a searchable knowledge base. Teams can quickly retrieve past discussions, decisions, and documents without leaving their workflow, making knowledge management an integrated part of daily operations.

Benefits of a knowledge management system

Implementing a well-designed KMS offers significant benefits that directly impact your organization’s team knowledge sharing, performance, and culture. These include:

• Improved efficiency. Employees spend less time searching for information, leading to faster decision-making and increased productivity across all workflows.
• Enhanced collaboration. A KMS fosters a collaborative environment by making knowledge sharing seamless and accessible to all team members, regardless of their location or department.
• Better decision-making. With easy access to relevant information, teams can make well-informed decisions quickly while reducing the risk of errors.
• Knowledge retention. A KMS helps retain organizational knowledge, preventing the loss of valuable insights when employees leave.
• Innovation boost. By encouraging knowledge sharing and making diverse perspectives accessible, a KMS can spark new ideas and drive innovation across the organization.

Additionally, tools like Slack’s workflow automation can integrate directly with your KMS, ensuring knowledge flows seamlessly throughout your team’s daily operations.

Types of knowledge management systems

There are several types of knowledge management tools, each designed to meet different organizational needs:

• Document management systems. These systems store and organize documents, making it easy to retrieve and share them.
  • Example: Microsoft SharePoint

• Content management systems. These platforms manage digital content, allowing for easy creation, editing, and publishing.
  • Example: WordPress

• Learning management systems. These platforms are designed for training and development, enabling organizations to deliver educational content to employees.
  • Example: Moodle

• Work operating systems. These facilitate communication and collaboration among team members, often integrating chat, file sharing, and project management features.
  • Example: Slack

• Knowledge bases. These are centralized repositories that store information in a structured way, making it easy to search and retrieve. A well-organized knowledge base ensures teams can quickly find answers without interrupting colleagues.
  • Example: Confluence

How to build an effective knowledge management system

Building a successful knowledge management system requires strategic planning and thoughtful implementation, ensuring it becomes an integral part of how your team operates.

Step 1: Assess and document your knowledge needs

Identify the information your teams access most often, where knowledge gaps exist, and which processes would benefit most from improved knowledge sharing.

Step 2: Choose the right tools and platforms

Select from knowledge base software options that streamline and integrate with your existing workflows and technology. Consider scalability, search capabilities, user-friendliness, and mobile accessibility. You can also explore AI knowledge base solutions that use artificial intelligence to help organize, analyze, and retrieve information.

Step 3: Define clear organizational structures

Establish consistent naming conventions, folder hierarchies, and tagging systems to make information easy to categorize and retrieve.

Step 4: Create knowledge capture processes

Develop standardized ways for documenting procedures, decisions, insights, and results.

Step 5: Implement access controls and permissions

Balance open knowledge sharing with proper security measures to protect sensitive information while ensuring general knowledge remains accessible.

Step 6: Launch with training and support

Like any software, it’s helpful to launch it and provide training to show teams not only how to use the system but also why it matters and how it will make their work easier.

Step 7: Establish a plan to maintain the KMS

Assign ownership for regularly updating the KMS to make sure the latest documents are easily found and outdated content is archived.

Level up your team’s knowledge management system

If you’re ready to improve knowledge management at your workplace, get started by considering the following recommendations:

Create a culture of collaboration

A successful KMS relies on a culture of collaboration. Encourage your team to share their knowledge openly, reward contributions, and create an environment where learning from one another is valued.

Identify your experts

Every organization has experts with valuable insights. Identify these individuals and make sure their knowledge is captured in your KMS. This can be done through interviews, workshops, or by having them contribute directly to the system.

Focus on what’s meaningful

Not all information is equal. Focus on capturing high-impact knowledge that will drive results. Prioritize quality over quantity to ensure your KMS remains a reliable resource.

Be adaptable

The business environment is constantly evolving, and your KMS should evolve with it. Regularly update the system to reflect new information, technologies, and processes. Encourage feedback from users to continually improve the KMS and make sure it meets the organization’s needs.

Five best practices for maintaining your team’s knowledge management system

“Having a knowledge management system [isn’t] productive at all,” said David Chaudron, an organizational psychologist and managing partner of consulting firm Organized Change. “Using it is.”

For a KMS to be truly effective, it must be integrated into your organization’s daily operations. Your strategy should include plans to train your teams on how to access and regularly use it, as well as demonstrate its value by keeping it updated and aligned with current business goals. When knowledge management becomes as natural as checking email or joining a meeting, adoption increases, and the system provides maximum value. Here’s how:

1. Keep things simple

A huge part of getting your team comfortable with knowledge management is to avoid overwhelming them with systems that are confusing or unnecessarily complex.

“Part of our ethos at RunRepeat is to not be bogged down by processes and tools that we don’t fully utilize, so we’ve designed a simple system using really only four pieces of software for most of the team: Slack, Google Drive, [Google] Hangouts, and Trello,” said Paul Ronto, chief marketing officer of RunRepeat, an athletic-shoe review site. “Between these four, we are able to really communicate and share knowledge and information in real time with the ability to pin, tag, assign, and attach any pertinent information.”

The processes, systems, and frameworks you use to manage knowledge at your organization are up to you — but if you want to increase efficiency, simplify wherever you can.

2. Involve your team in the process

“Allow your team to have a say,” said Erin Bailey, a partner at digital marketing agency Matrixx. “They’re the ones who will be dealing with knowledge management most, so it’s important to make sure they’re comfortable with the procedures. Plus, they may even have some better ideas.”

Getting your team’s input on what kind of knowledge management system they’d prefer is valuable for decision-making and helps reduce resistance to the chosen tool. When teams feel ownership over the tools and processes they use, they’re more likely to embrace them.

3. Create an environment of knowledge-sharing

It doesn’t matter what knowledge management systems you have in place: if you don’t foster an environment that promotes the free exchange of knowledge, your team may hold back and avoid sharing valuable insights.

“In competitive work environments, employees try to outdo one another and are less likely to share what they know with others,” said Dana Case, director of operations at MyCorporation. “It’s important for organizations to adopt a knowledge culture where information is shared instead of safeguarded for professional gain or benefit.”

Encourage teams and departments to work together and share how their knowledge can aid other teams. Reward people for sharing ideas, and give individuals and teams the credit they deserve when they do.

“The more your employees understand one another, their varied backgrounds, and what experience they bring to the team, the better they’ll work together and share that tacit knowledge,” said Ronto. “As people begin to understand that all boats rise with a rising tide, they will be less likely to hoard their knowledge.”

4. Keep things consistent

For your team to embrace your knowledge management practices and increase productivity as a result, you need to be consistent in how you share, store, and organize information.

“We utilize Office 365/OneDrive, which is where all client files are kept and organized by fiscal year and project,” said Bailey. “There is a firm structure for how files are organized and named to minimize confusion. Consistency is key and needs to be applied across all client folders.”

Consistency creates predictability, and predictability makes your knowledge management system intuitive. When everyone follows the same organizational principles, finding information becomes second nature.

5. Ask for feedback

The only way to be sure that the knowledge management system you’re using is right for your team is to ask them.

“Always ask for feedback,” said Case. “It’s important to know if your organization’s training tools or practices were effective. Do your employees understand how to use the new system? Does the training guide need to be updated?”

Feedback on your systems and processes helps you identify what works and what doesn’t — and helps you keep improving until you have the systems that best fit your team. Regular check-ins, surveys, and open channels for suggestions ensure your KMS stays relevant and effective as your organization grows and evolves.

Knowledge management system FAQs