Sharing knowledge effectively isn’t as easy as it sounds. We share how to navigate sharing best practices with lots of people, processes and tools in the way
Sharing best practices sounds like one of those self-explanatory phrases you hear in business.
Does what it says on the tin.
But, in actual fact, it has quite a bit of nuance to it. And beyond that, it’s quite tricky to do.
But we know that one key way to improve business performance is in fact, sharing best practices.
Studies show that companies with a strong knowledge-sharing culture can increase productivity by up to 40%.
Knowledge-sharing sounds simple on the face of it.
But sharing knowledge effectively requires more than just the occasional exchanging of ideas.
It involves a structured approach to identifying what works, documenting it in a way that’s easy to understand, and making it accessible to everyone who can benefit.
In this blog, we’ll go through:
- What sharing best practices means
- The benefits of sharing best practices
- Tools you can use to share best practices
- Top tips on how to share best practices
Let’s get started.
What is sharing best practices?
Sharing best practices is the process of openly exchanging methods and processes with the goal of improving performance across a business.
The sentiment is simple: leverage the collective wisdom of your people to encourage learning, save time, avoid unnecessary mistakes, and improve performance.
In any organisation or team, sharing best practices is a cornerstone of continuous improvement.
But that sounds like fluff on the surface doesn’t it.
Sharing best practices doesn’t need to be fluffy.
It’s about openly exchanging tried-and-true methods, processes, or approaches that have proven to deliver great results.
When individuals, teams, or departments share what works well, everyone gains the opportunity to learn, adapt, and grow.
Think of it this way: instead of reinventing the wheel every time, sharing best practices allows everyone to benefit from collective wisdom.
Why is sharing best practices important?
When just one person knows how to do something correctly, you get stuck with a bottleneck.
The benefits of sharing best practices go beyond just efficiency.
It encourages cross-team communication, builds trust, and aligns everyone towards common goals.
For better business results, sharing processes so multiple people can achieve the same results usually impacts productivity and profitability.
A win-win if you ask us.
When your people are sharing best practices, you can stand to benefit from multiple benefits.
However, successful sharing doesn’t just happen organically.
It requires the right tools, platforms, and an environment that encourages openness without fear of judgment.
Whether it’s through workshops, collaborative platforms, or simple one-on-one discussions, the goal is to make knowledge-sharing a seamless part of the workflow.
💡 Pro Tip
An LMS facilitates the sharing of best practices by providing a centralised platform for knowledge exchange through discussion forums, collaborative tools, and resource libraries. It enables you to capture, standardise, and disseminate processes and strategies to allow for consistent learning.
Learn more about our LMS
Benefits of sharing best practices
Sharing best practices can significantly improve team performance and foster a culture of continuous learning within your organisation.
By openly exchanging knowledge and effective strategies, you can avoid reinventing the wheel and accelerate growth.
In fact, if you prioritise knowledge sharing you are 20% more likely to improve project outcomes, according to a recent study by the American Productivity & Quality Center (APQC).
This collaborative approach not only boosts efficiency but also drives innovation across departments.
But what other benefits does sharing best practices have?
1. Find internal subject matter experts
Leveraging internal subject matter experts fosters a culture of continuous improvement and learning.
These experts can share their specialised knowledge and insights, enhancing the overall skill set of the team and ensuring that high standards are maintained across the organisation.
2. Create a learning culture
Sharing best practices encourages the development of a learning culture within the organisation.
When employees continuously learn from one another, it promotes innovation, adaptability, and a proactive approach to solving problems, leading to sustained growth and success.
3. Begin internal relationships
The process of sharing best practices can initiate and strengthen internal relationships.
Collaboration and communication across different departments and teams build a sense of community, enhancing trust and cooperation which are crucial for achieving common goals.
4. Improve productivity
By adopting and adapting best practices, organisations can streamline processes and eliminate inefficiencies.
This leads to higher productivity as employees spend less time reinventing the wheel and more time on value-added activities that drive business success.
5. Removing knowledge gaps
Sharing best practices helps in identifying and closing knowledge gaps within the organisation.
This ensures that all employees have access to the critical information they need to perform their jobs effectively, leading to better decision-making and improved performance.
6. Break down information silos
When best practices are documented and shared, the organisation safeguards against the loss of institutional knowledge.
This is particularly important when employees leave the organisation, ensuring that their expertise is retained and can be transferred to others.
7. Reduce the impact of reliance on your experts
Sharing best practices mitigates the risks associated with over-reliance on a few key experts.
By democratising knowledge and skills across the workforce, the organisation becomes more resilient and capable of maintaining high performance even in the absence of its top experts.
The best tools for sharing best practices
We love a helpful tool that can contribute to an easier life.
And for sharing best practices, there are a whole host of tools available:
- Knowledge management systems
- Internal communication tools
- Intranets
- Learning management systems
- Document collaboration tools
Let’s look at each one in more detail to see how these tools can help:
Knowledge Management Systems
Platforms like SharePoint, or Notion allow organisations to create, organise, and share documentation, best practice guides, and other resources.
These systems often include features for collaboration and version control.
Internal communication tools
Tools such as Slack, Microsoft Teams, or Yammer enable real-time communication and collaboration.
They support the sharing of best practices through channels, group chats, and file sharing.
Intranet platforms
Custom intranet solutions provide a central hub for company-wide announcements, resources, and collaborative spaces where best practices can be shared and accessed by all employees.
Learning Management Systems (LMS)
Systems like Totara or Moodle facilitate the creation and distribution of training materials and courses.
Related: What is a learning management system
These platforms can be used to develop and deliver content on best practices to employees.
💡 Pro Tip
Want to discover what features make our Learn LMS stand out? From gamification to branding of tenants, you get all the features of Totara, plus more!
Document collaboration tools
Google Workspace (Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides) or Microsoft Office 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) allow multiple users to collaborate on documents in real-time, making it easier to create and refine best practice documents.
How to share best practices in the workplace
It’s all well and good understanding what best practices are and implementing the tools you need to share them, but there’s more work to be done yet.
Sharing best practices in the workplace involves several strategies to ensure that knowledge is effectively communicated and utilised by all employees.
Here are some steps and methods to facilitate the sharing of best practices:
1. Identify and document best practices
Identify successful methods, strategies, or processes through regular observation and analysis of workplace performance.
From there, you can create detailed documentation of these best practices, including step-by-step guides, case studies, templates, and checklists.
2. Use the relevant tools and platforms
Implement platforms like SharePoint, or Notion to store and organise best practice documentation, and Slack or Microsoft Teams to create dedicated channels for sharing best practices.
Encourage regular updates and discussions within these channels to keep the information dynamic and relevant.
Ensure these systems are easily accessible and user-friendly for all employees.
3. Conduct training sessions and workshops
Organise regular training sessions, workshops, and webinars to educate employees on best practices.
You could use video conferencing tools such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams to reach remote employees or allow employees to learn on their own schedules.
Remember to implement an LMS to create courses and training modules where you can host this learning content, as well as many more resources.
4. Promote peer-to-peer learning
Establish mentoring programmes where experienced employees can share their knowledge and best practices with newer or less experienced colleagues.
Encourage job shadowing and cross-departmental projects to facilitate knowledge transfer.
5. Encourage learning from the first day
Investing in the right onboarding software means you can ensure your teams are prepared from their very first day.
Related: Build a better onboarding experience
It’s easier to create good habits from the beginning than it is to retrain existing employees, so it is worth investing in proper onboarding.
6. Recognise and reward knowledge sharing
Create a culture that values and rewards the sharing of best practices and as part of that, you should recognise and reward employees who actively contribute to the dissemination of knowledge through incentives, awards, or public acknowledgment.
With this, you can ensure that best practices are shared and integrated into daily operations. This can lead to improved performance, efficiency, and innovation.
Wrapping up
Sharing best practices is another key learning and development challenge that L&D professionals are keeping an eye on this year.
Sharing best practices is a cornerstone of any successful organisation, fostering a culture of continuous improvement, collaboration, and innovation.
Implement effective strategies and leverage the right tools and you can ensure that valuable knowledge is disseminated throughout the workforce, in order to drive productivity and excellence.
Ready to take your knowledge sharing to the next level?
Discover how our LMS can streamline the process of documenting, sharing, and adopting best practices across your organisation.
Book a demo today and see how our LMS can empower your team to achieve their full potential.
FAQs
What does sharing best practices mean?
Sharing best practices means the process of documenting, distributing, and implementing the most effective ways of working within an organisation.
What are some examples of sharing best practices?
Some knowledge sharing examples include user manuals, training documents, used methodologies, best-proven practices, storytelling, lessons learned, eLearning, forums and discussions.