Content Editor in the Knowledge Management System
- Sivan Arar Reuven
- Feb 1, 2008
- 4 min read
Co-written with Sagit Salmon
Behind the scenes of every knowledge management system stands a professional and experienced team of content editors whose entire role is dedicated to this function.
Content editors are not subject matter experts, meaning they don't necessarily have professional knowledge in the field they are writing about and don't generate the information themselves.
On the other hand, they are not merely typists who input content created by someone else into the system.
Content editors (called information coordinators or information specialists in some organizations) receive raw information from the organization's information producers (marketing, service and sales units, information systems, etc.) and are responsible for two main things:
Building content templates for various topics
Processing the raw information and entering it into the knowledge management system according to the content templates, so that the information is presented to the user in a concise, accurate manner adapted to the requirement of providing information quickly.
What Skills and Competencies are Required from a Content Editor in the Knowledge Management System?
Customer Service Experience
It is recommended that the employee grows from within the organization and has experience in customer service. This benefits us twice: both professionally and from a service perspective. From the professional aspect, I am familiar with some of the content worlds. As mentioned, the content editor is not the information producer. Still, familiarity with the professional field they write about contributes to and eases the writing process in the management system, saving learning time. From the service aspect - the knowledge management system is a body that provides service to internal organizational customers, and an employee with service experience can better understand user needs and respond to them in the best possible way.
Good Information Processing Ability
Additionally, the employee should have good information processing skills, ability to separate primary from secondary information, and written expression skills. As mentioned, content editors receive raw information from various sources in the organization, which they need to process, summarize, separate essential from non-essential, and present to users in simple language in a focused, clear, and unambiguous manner. For example, an operational procedure for a marketing campaign is distributed to various departments responsible for implementation: logistics, advertising, legal department (for appropriate contracts), engineering, information systems, etc. Such an operational procedure serves as raw material that is transferred to content editors in the knowledge management system. As raw material, the procedure contains much information irrelevant to service providers, and this is where content editors' role comes into play. They are responsible for extracting relevant information according to predefined content templates and editing it so that users see all relevant information—and only relevant information—necessary for customer service.
It's ideal if the content editor can write information in a marketing and persuasive manner, not just informatively. This ability can also be acquired over time through writing experience.
Teamwork
As part of a team, the content editor must demonstrate willingness and ability to work collaboratively, since team members often need to support each other or jointly lead content processing and writing processes.
Responsibility and Independence
Content editors need responsibility and independence in their roles—for timely information updates and distribution, the quality of published content, and ongoing maintenance.
Initiative and Creative Thinking
A content editor needs initiative and creative thinking to help process an idea or need into information that adds value for users, present work processes with a horizontal perspective, identify red flags in advance, and present solutions for them.
Key Challenges Facing a Content Editor in the Knowledge Management System
From this, we can outline the central challenges facing a content editor in the knowledge management system:
Time Management - The content editor must handle multiple tasks while meeting tight deadlines, requiring excellent time management skills. Our commitment is to provide them with the necessary tools, monitor their work, and guide them continuously.
Measuring the Content Editor's Performance - It's difficult to measure their work because we expect high productivity on one hand and quality outputs on the other. Measuring only by output quantity will harm quality and vice versa. We must find a way to balance these aspects while ensuring equilibrium is maintained between them.
Appreciation and Recognition - The content editor's work is extremely important for customer service. Suppose information isn't organized in the knowledge management system in a way that aligns with service providers' work processes. In that case, the service provider will struggle to serve customers if the presented information doesn't appear in a user-friendly, unambiguous, and complete manner. Due to the previous challenge mentioned, due to positioning in the organizational structure (see article: "Positioning of Knowledge Management in the Organizational Structure"), and because knowledge management teams are typically recruited from within the organization's service division, content editors and their work don't always receive the recognition they deserve.
So What Do We Have?
Experience in customer service
Familiarity with the organization and some of its content domains
Ability to process information and separate essential from non-essential
Written expression skills
Ability to work both in teams and independently
Responsibility
Initiative
Creative thinking
All of these form the foundation for recruiting suitable employees who compose a winning team together.
Recognizing and addressing these challenges will empower content editors and prepare the ground for their full potential.
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