Question: What is knowledge management and how is it relevant to contact centers?
Answer:
DMG defines knowledge management (KM) as a structured methodology and technology framework that is used to capture and curate the collective information of an organization, industry, clients, customers, partners and employees, transform the data into knowledge assets, and systemically distribute them for the achievement of organizational objectives.
As a contact center application, knowledge management equips front-line employees with the information and tools to deliver a great customer experience (CX). Customers expect to interact with knowledgeable brand representatives who can resolve their inquiries, ideally in the first contact. At the same time, the volume of information front-line staff is expected to master is extensive, and continues to grow. Additionally, contact centers need adequate tools to support an increasingly remote workforce, which includes an effective knowledge base. Work-at-home (WAH) agents are not able to turn around and ask a peer or supervisor a question about a product or how to handle an inquiry; instead, they need an easy-to-use and accessible source for enterprise information. And, companies need the right tools to train and prepare newly hired WAH agents and other customer-facing staff, who may now be located anywhere in the country, to address a broad range of inquiries across multiple channels. All employees, whether they work in a contact center or other departments, on-site or remotely, need access to online training, process and procedures and other enterprise knowledge that is easily searchable and accessible on tablets and other mobile devices. Knowledge management is an essential tool for addressing these opportunities. A KM solution can accelerate the employee onboarding process, and assist all front-line workers by serving-up context-based knowledge assets in the form of real-time guidance so they can properly address a voice or digital inquiry or resolve a case. It’s important to keep in mind however, that the knowledge assets targeted at contact center agents and enterprise employees can also be leveraged for external-facing purposes focused on customers. A well-designed KM solution uses an optimized search capability to find and deliver the right answers to their audience of users—internal agents, back-office staff, or customers and prospects—in the most appropriate format based on the channel and constituent.