{"id":1963,"date":"2022-07-18T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-18T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.golinks.com\/blog\/?p=1963"},"modified":"2024-10-01T12:43:31","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T19:43:31","slug":"jira","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.golinks.com\/blog\/jira\/","title":{"rendered":"A Deep Dive Into Knowledge Management Tools: Jira"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There are a number of elements that go into empowering maximum productivity and efficiency across an organization. What is one of those elements? The right knowledge management tool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But with so many options on the market\u2014many of which have different features and functionality\u2014it can be hard to figure out which tool would actually be the best internal knowledge management software for your organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why it\u2019s so important to understand what each knowledge management software has to offer. And today, to help drive that understanding, we\u2019re going to take a deep dive into one of the more well-known knowledge management tools on the market: Jira<\/a>. Read on to learn more about the Jira software, its knowledge management pros and cons, and how to use Jira to improve knowledge management and sharing across your organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Images courtesy of Jira<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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What Is Knowledge Management?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before we jump into how to use Jira for better knowledge management, let\u2019s take a moment to define what knowledge management is exactly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Knowledge management is a fairly broad term; it covers any processes, methods, systems, or policies that allow organizations\u2014and the employees working within those organizations\u2014to better store, organize, manage, and share information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building off of that definition, knowledge management tools (which, depending on the features and functionality they offer, may also be called knowledge sharing tools) can be defined as any tool or software that encourages and facilitates knowledge management and\/or sharing across an organization. For example, a software that allows employees to share access to documents for real-time collaboration or a framework that allows teams to better organize information could both be considered knowledge management tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Knowledge Management Methods<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now that you understand what knowledge management is, let\u2019s dig a little deeper into how knowledge management actually happens within an organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are two primary methods that companies use for knowledge management and sharing; they\u2019re known as the push method and the pull method.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to how each method works, the names are extremely telling. When using the push method of knowledge management, organizations take the lead on \u201cpushing\u201d information out to their teams whenever necessary. So, for example, let\u2019s say there\u2019s a retail organization that\u2019s rolling out new policies on how to manage their locations. If they were using the push method, leadership would send out those policies to employees directly. The workers wouldn\u2019t be responsible for requesting the information on their own; that knowledge sharing initiative would be spearheaded by the organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The pull method is the opposite. With the pull method, employees are responsible for requesting (or \u201cpulling\u201d) information when they need it. So, using the above example, if the organization was using the pull method, once employees were made aware that new policies were being put into place, it would be up to them to search for those policies\u2014for example, by requesting the documents directly from their supervisor or by searching the company\u2019s knowledge base.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, to summarize, the main difference between the push and the pull method of knowledge management is who takes the lead on responsibility for managing and\/or sharing the information at play. With the push method, the organization is responsible, proactively sharing the information they deem important or necessary\u2014while the pull method relies on employees being proactive and requesting the information or knowledge they need, when they need it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One other important thing to highlight is that the push method and the pull method of knowledge management aren\u2019t mutually exclusive; most companies embrace both methods, depending on the situation. For example, organizations might use the push method to push out news that impacts the entire company (like changes to corporate policies or the announcement of a leadership change)\u2014and then use the pull method for more department, team, or role-specific knowledge management needs (like accessing client data or training materials). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What Is Jira?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You understand what knowledge management is. You understand the different methods companies can use to manage their knowledge management efforts. Now, let\u2019s get more in-depth on an actual knowledge management tool: Jira.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Developed by the team at Atlassian<\/a>, Jira is a knowledge management tool specifically designed to support agile software teams. With Jira, agile teams are able to organize their projects into one simple, clean interface\u2014and easily track updates, metrics, changes, and releases as they move their projects and sprints forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Jira
Image courtesy of Jira<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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From a knowledge management perspective, there are a lot of benefits to be had when using Jira, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n