An internal knowledge base software acts as a centralized, cloud-based repository of information that allows employees and stakeholders to seamlessly access essential resources. As the single source of truth, it reduces time employees spend searching for answers—time that 54% of U.S. professionals admit to losing, often more than handling important emails.
In sharp contrast to the ‘information deficit’ observed during the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses today have access to a treasure trove of information that’s crucial to strategic decision-making and workplace efficiency. The challenge, however, lies in managing and ensuring easy and secure company-wide access to this data.
An internal knowledge base software provides a robust platform to store, categorize and implement your knowledge base. Be it human resources or software engineering, every department in your company stands to gain from an internal KB.
Advantages of Having a Well-Structured Internal Knowledge Base
Quicker onboarding and training
Even more time-consuming than hiring employees is training them for their roles and responsibilities. Studies show that it can take up to six months or more for a company to break even on its investment in a new hire, as they gradually get up to speed in the job.
An internal KB optimizes training and onboarding programs by bringing scattered learning and development modules into one database and improving new employee retention by nearly 82%.
Process standardization
Research shows that organizations that endeavor to standardize their business processes avoid redundancies, reduce costs and re-deploy the time saved into other value-adding efforts. It also helps teams better coordinate activities as per standards across internal task handover points.
Standards are uniform processes, established and approved by consensus, for consistently achieving the optimum degree of order. An internal knowledge base ensures that these best practices and documents do not get lost in a sea of information.
Employee productivity
Inefficient workflows are one of the leading causes of employee downtime. An internal knowledge base streamlines procedures, reduces time spent searching for SOPs and drives productivity.
In addition, the ability to quickly look up required information also contributes to improving the efficiency of employees. A company with a strong culture of documentation fosters better communication, collaboration and satisfaction among its team members.
Effortless collaboration
Information silos and stunted innovation often go hand-in-hand. No matter the size of your company, effective communication and collaboration are key to growth. A robust, easy-to-access internal knowledge base eliminates these barriers and sets the foundation for organizational agility and long-term success.
Whether it’s sales or product development teams, a single source of truth empowers employees to solve problems independently, enabling quicker, more agile responses to market shifts.
What Information Belongs in Your Internal Knowledge Base?
Internal knowledge bases house a wide range of key data and resources across departments such as:
Human resources
- Employee handbooks
- Onboarding materials (e.g., checklists, orientation presentations)
- Employee policies (e.g., leave, attendance, code of conduct)
- Compensation and benefits documentation
- Job descriptions and role expectations
- Employee performance review templates
- Training materials and employee development programs
- HR compliance regulations (labor laws, safety guidelines)
- Recruitment and interview guidelines
- Employee wellness and support programs
- Diversity, equity, and inclusion resources
- Employee contact lists and organizational charts
- Exit interview feedback and procedures
- Conflict resolution and grievance procedures
- Health and safety policies
Marketing & sales
- Marketing collateral (brochures, flyers, product sheets)
- Brand guidelines and style guides
- Sales scripts and templates
- Buyer personas and customer journey maps
- Case studies and testimonials
- Marketing campaigns and performance metrics
- Competitor research and analysis
- Lead generation strategies and tactics
- Content calendars and blog post plans
- Sales training materials
- Product demos and video resources
- Pricing guides and discount structures
- Email templates for outreach and follow-ups
- Market research reports and insights
- Social media strategies and content
Support teams
- Knowledge base articles (FAQs, troubleshooting guides)
- Customer support scripts and templates
- Product manuals and user guides
- Service level agreements (SLAs)
- Common customer issues and resolutions
- Helpdesk ticketing systems and procedures
- Troubleshooting checklists and diagnostics
- Contact lists of key team members for escalation
- Product release notes and updates
- Support team training materials
- Customer feedback and surveys
- Product and service knowledge updates
- Incident response and escalation protocols
- Refund, warranty, and return policies
Operations
- Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
- Workflow diagrams and process maps
- Inventory management and logistics guidelines
- Vendor management documentation
- Supply chain procedures and guidelines
- Operational efficiency reports and analytics
- Compliance documentation (e.g., health and safety regulations)
- Incident response protocols and emergency procedures
- Resource allocation and scheduling documents
- Risk management strategies and frameworks
- Operational performance metrics (KPIs, benchmarks)
- Maintenance and repair logs (for equipment and facilities)
- Employee shift schedules and task assignments
- Change management documentation
- Operational budgets and forecasting
Legal
- Company contracts and agreements (client, vendor, employee)
- Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs)
- Corporate governance documents (e.g., board meeting minutes, resolutions)
- Intellectual property documentation (patents, trademarks, copyrights)
- Compliance documentation (industry regulations, laws)
- Privacy policies and terms of service
- Legal templates (e.g., letters, forms, contracts)
- Litigation documents and case summaries
- Employee legal policies (e.g., harassment, discrimination)
- Legal precedents and research
- Risk management and liability forms
- Data protection and security guidelines
- Regulatory filings and reports
- Legal opinions and memos
Finance & accounting
- Financial statements (balance sheets, income statements)
- Budgeting and forecasting documents
- Accounting policies and procedures
- Payroll and compensation guidelines
- Tax filings and documentation
- Accounts payable and receivable records
- Expense tracking and reporting templates
- Financial forecasting reports
- Audit trails and financial audits
- Banking and loan agreements
- Investment portfolios and reports
- Profit and loss analysis
- Capital budgeting and funding strategies
- Cost management and reduction strategies
- Debt and credit management procedures
Product development teams
- Product roadmaps and timelines
- Product specifications and requirements
- Feature request logs and prioritization
- User stories and acceptance criteria
- Product release notes and changelogs
- Wireframes and prototypes
- Customer feedback and surveys
- Market research and competitor analysis
- Product vision and mission statements
- Product performance metrics (e.g., user adoption, NPS)
- User personas and use cases
- Cross-functional collaboration notes (with marketing, sales, support)
- Testing and quality assurance documentation
- Beta testing reports and feedback
- Product training materials
Software engineering teams
- Technical documentation (APIs, architecture diagrams)
- Code repositories and version control guidelines
- Development workflows and best practices
- Technical specs and user stories
- System design and architecture documents
- Bug and issue tracking reports
- Deployment guides and checklists
- Build and release notes
- Testing protocols and procedures (unit, integration, user testing)
- Security and compliance documentation
- Incident management and troubleshooting guides
- Change management logs
- Integration and third-party software documentation
- Developer onboarding materials
- Sprint and release planning documents
- System performance reports and monitoring dashboards
Senior management
- Strategic plans and objectives
- Organizational charts and reporting structures
- Budgeting and financial reports
- Company policies and procedures
- Meeting notes and action items
- Project management documentation (e.g., timelines, roadmaps)
- Departmental goals and KPIs
- Risk management frameworks
- Business continuity and crisis management plans
- Leadership development resources
- Performance metrics and reviews
- Executive communications and announcements
- Cross-functional collaboration guidelines
- Change management plans
- Vendor and partnership agreements
In case of sensitive data that needs to remain confidential, internal knowledge base softwares provide role-based access, ensuring only authorized individuals can view restricted content.
On the other hand, external knowledge bases are public-facing platforms where customers and potential clients can access important information about your company’s products and services. These often include help articles, FAQs, how-to guides, and user manuals.
How To Choose the Right Internal Knowledge Base Software for Your Business?
An internal knowledge base software enhances organizational efficiency by helping teams overcome information overload and streamline inconsistent procedures. Here’s a 3-step guide to picking the right internal KB for your business:
Step 1: Evaluate your current situation
Determine whether you need an internal knowledge base software by auditing your current workflows. Here are a few questions that help draw a clear picture of your current knowledge management processes:
- How is your organization’s knowledge being currently managed?
- Do you have documentation that’s dispersed across different repositories such as shared drives, emails, physical folders and more?
- How do your employees access this information?
- Is the data easily accessible or do employees have to look into multiple locations to find something?
- If so, is there a system that lets employees know where to find what they need?
- Does your organization have a culture of knowledge documentation? How much of it is documented so far?
- How many documents are your employees working with? Is it tens, hundreds or thousands of documents?
- Is any of the knowledge not documented? Does any of it reside only in the minds of a few employees?
- Who can access your knowledge?
- Do all departments have access to knowledge?
- Is sensitive information protected from unauthorized employees?
- How often is your knowledge base updated?
- Do your employees find the data relevant and helpful?
- Do you have checks in place to ensure its accuracy and effectiveness?
- How often do you review the knowledge for updates?
- Do you have a clear editorial process?
- How are you alerting employees of critical information updates? Via email?
Step 2: Create a list of requirements based on your goals
Clearly defining the outcomes you want to achieve with an internal knowledge base is crucial for effectively communicating your needs to prospective vendors. Ensure these outcomes address the needs of all stakeholders, allowing you to assess how well the solution aligns with your requirements.
Your goals might include:
- Reduced call transfers
- Improved user experience
- Reduced efforts in searching for resources
- Higher first call resolution rate (FCR)
- Reduced onboarding time
- Consistent and quality tech support
- Centralized hub of information
Step 3: Questions to ask internal knowledge base software vendors
When evaluating potential vendors for knowledge base software, it’s important to consider the logistics of implementing such a system. Here are some key questions you can consider asking:
- What is the typical timeline for implementing the knowledge base?
- What type of support do you offer during the implementation process?
- What ongoing support is available after implementation?
- How long does it take for all users to be fully active?
- Can you walk me through the standard implementation process?
- What does my IT team need to prepare for during implementation?
- Are user licenses role-based (e.g., different licenses for authors, admins, and regular users)?
How AllyMatter Supports Your Internal Knowledge Base Strategy
Growing companies need more than just storage for their documentation. AllyMatter’s knowledge management platform provides the structure and security your team needs to scale effectively.
Our smart approval flows ensure critical documents move through proper channels without bottlenecks. Granular access control means sensitive information stays protected while keeping essential resources accessible to the right team members. With complete audit trails, you maintain visibility into document changes while supporting compliance requirements.
The platform’s intelligent organization features, including smart tags and metadata search, help teams find information quickly. Built-in signatures eliminate the need for external tools, while version control ensures everyone works with current information.
Building your knowledge management foundation
Knowledge management transforms how growing companies operate, turning scattered information into a strategic advantage. The key lies in choosing a platform that grows with your needs while maintaining the security and structure your team requires.
Start by auditing your current knowledge management processes, then select tools that support both immediate needs and future growth. With the right foundation, your internal knowledge base becomes more than storage; it becomes the backbone of efficient operations.
Join the AllyMatter waitlist to be first in line for streamlined knowledge management.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What’s the difference between an internal knowledge base and a shared drive?
An internal knowledge base offers structured organization, search capabilities, and access controls that shared drives lack. While shared drives simply store files, knowledge bases provide smart categorization, version control, and user permissions that make information truly accessible and secure.
How do we ensure employees actually use our internal knowledge base?
Success depends on making the knowledge base the easiest way to find information. This means having a logical structure, reliable search functionality, and keeping content current. When finding answers becomes faster than asking colleagues, adoption naturally follows.
What’s the best way to migrate existing documentation to a knowledge base?
Start with your most frequently accessed documents and organize them by department or process type. Audit existing content for accuracy and relevance before migration. Establish clear ownership for different content areas to ensure ongoing maintenance.
How often should we update our internal knowledge base content?
Review and update content based on usage frequency and change rates. High-traffic documents may need monthly reviews, while stable policies might only require quarterly updates. The key is establishing regular review cycles and clear ownership for each content area.
Can we control who sees what information in our internal knowledge base?
Yes, modern knowledge base platforms offer role-based access controls that let you set permissions by department, team, or individual user. This ensures sensitive information stays secure while maintaining easy access to general company resources.
