Most knowledge bases fail because they become dumping grounds. Without ownership, freshness, and context, retrieval systems surface outdated or irrelevant content.
A functional knowledge base starts with operational intent. Each object should answer a specific decision question: “What policy applies?” or “Who approves this exception?” If an object does not support a decision, it does not belong.
Next, add governance. Every object needs an owner, a review cadence, and a citation trail. The point is not perfection — it is trust. People need to know where information came from and when it was last reviewed.
Finally, design for retrieval. Use structured tags, consistent summaries, and clear titles. This makes the system usable even without advanced AI.
When you treat the knowledge base as a product, not a repository, it becomes a durable source of operational truth.