\nIn short, it means that you should treat any knowledge as a resource that you must stock, preserve, polish, review and update. In this guide, we will discuss how to transform direct knowledge into such a resource, a training pool for your employees and a source of competitive advantage for you.<\/p>\n
MSP Knowledge Management Benefits<\/h2>\n
Having planned, well-structured and documented knowledge management practices has a number of benefits for your managed IT business:<\/p>\n
Evidence-based decisions.<\/strong> Since you have a central knowledge base, there is no room for decisions that are based on predictions, probability or just luck.<\/p>\n Ease of training.<\/strong> It will be easier to onboard new tech staffers<\/a> of any level of expertise and teach them according to your standards.<\/p>\n Issues are solved faster.<\/strong> Sometimes it is indeed faster and easier to ask a more knowledgeable coworker about a customer issue. However, if that coworker is offline, you'd better have a knowledge base to make your support a faster and more reliable process.<\/p>\n Fewer faults due to standardized processes.<\/strong> Once you have standardized the basic processes and routine operations, such as password resets, new PC installations, and so on, the chances of your tech staffers making mistakes, for example installing the wrong piece of software at a customer site, decreases.<\/p>\n No need for reverse engineering.<\/strong> Remember when that best-in-the-world T2 left your company in our intro? Once that happened, if you hadn\u2019t previously documented his or her knowledge, you'd have to get to your clients and collect the lost pieces of information about their infrastructures and typical issues.<\/p>\n Involves the team.<\/strong> Once your tech staffers figure out that they can help the whole company with their knowledge, they will become more motivated.<\/p>\n Further reading<\/span> How Your Employees Can Contribute to Your MSP Business<\/a><\/p>\n A basis for end-user documentation.<\/strong> Great end-user documentation<\/a> will not eliminate the need for your level-one support but it can reduce the number of basic support requests. This documentation is typically based on your knowledge base.<\/p>\n Learn how to create the basic types of documentation used by MSPs, and find best practices for properly documenting your processes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n While the knowledge management concept may sound as if it belongs to the enterprise space, where a dozen technicians can document each and every procedure, a managed IT provider of any size can actually make use of it. There are a number of easy steps you should follow to do that:<\/p>\n Define the target.<\/strong> You cannot just \u201cdo some knowledge management\u201d. It should be a distinctive target \u2013 creating new onboarding documents, a structural review of your customers\u2019 network maps, or building a knowledge base for your staffers. Don't try to create all the required assets at once; you will most probably fail to control the amount of information, which can typically result in mistakes.<\/p>\n Choose the delivery method.<\/strong> A document that is created but not delivered to the target audience is useless. You should define whether you will use an internal wiki, a document-sharing solution, or whether a simple shared spreadsheet will be enough.<\/p>\n Collect data and get rid of outdated information.<\/strong> Now you need to prepare the documents themselves. If you are reviewing already-created documents, make sure that they are up-to-date.<\/p>\n Create a structure.<\/strong> Some procedures and checklists are interconnected and should be used together. So you should create an easy-to-follow structure that is clear for any user, whether internal or external.<\/p>\n Further reading<\/span> How Checklists Can Power Your MSP Business<\/a><\/p>\n Review with the team.<\/strong> Remember, that your team is a source of knowledge -- oftentimes greater knowledge than yours.<\/p>\n Launch the assets.<\/strong> It's time to release the assets. Make sure they are delivered and the users understand how to work with them.<\/p>\n Review on a regular basis.<\/strong> Clear, concise, perfectly written but outdated assets are as good as useless. It is also a good practice to enlist an expert from your team to help you to review the documents and so reduce the chance of overlooking something or making mistakes.<\/p>\n Knowledge management is a systematic approach and should be embedded in, if not every organizational process, at least all the routines and scenarios you and your team typically encounter.<\/p>\n![\"WP](\"https:\/\/www.msp360.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/msp-documentation-guide-in-text.png\")
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<\/a><\/span><\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nMSP Knowledge Management Processes<\/h2>\n
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