How to capture practical knowledge from employees.
A useful knowledge interview asks someone to explain how they handled an actual task. Choose one practice that others need to learn and ask a person who uses it regularly.
Start with a specific recent example
Ask the person to start at the beginning and describe what they noticed, what they did and why. Find the decisions that would otherwise get lost in a generic description.
Ask about failure and exceptions
When does the routine break? What do you do first if it does? How can a less experienced colleague recognize that they need help?
Make the result easy to use
Use a short checklist for predictable steps, a worked example for judgment calls or a walkthrough when seeing the task matters. Keep the audience and moment of use in mind.
Check it before sharing
Ask someone familiar with the work to review the material for accuracy. Invite a colleague new to the task to flag steps that need more detail.
Getting started