Three sets of knowledge base templates designed for Data and Analytics groups
Streamlining Data and Analytics Knowledge with Templated Documentation
In an effort to improve transparency and efficiency, the Data and Analytics (D&A) team at our company has established a comprehensive knowledge base. This resource is divided into four main sections: Company and D&A Vision, Onboarding & Technical guidelines, Retro meeting notes, and Docendo discimus.
The knowledge base is structured around three groups of documentation templates: D&A external documentation, D&A shared documentation, and D&A internal documentation. Each group is designed to cater to different audiences and content types.
The Company and D&A Vision section outlines the Data and Analytics vision in line with the organizational vision, provides guidelines for booking holidays and out-of-office hours, and details the core working hours.
The Onboarding & Technical guidelines section is subdivided into organizational onboarding, technical onboarding, and the definition of done criteria per different data areas. This section serves as a comprehensive guide for new team members.
Documenting the development process and outcomes is crucial in data roles, and the Data and Analytics team employs shared documentation to log meeting notes, development ideas, and team-related business knowledge for planning future analytical use cases.
Predefined templates can help ensure systematic and transparent documentation delivery, making it easier to find needed answers amidst the sheer volume of information. These insights are based on datasets gathered from multiple sources across the organization.
The shared documentation is visible only to specific groups of users (teams) within the organization, while the internal documentation is more detailed and specific, holding team-only relevant information. The external documentation structure includes sections such as About D&A Team, End-user data insights, Development insights, and Data & Analytics monthly updates, designed to share general information with clients, partners, or the public.
To create effective templates for documenting a Data and Analytics knowledge base, it's essential to develop structured, consistent, and purpose-specific templates. Common structural elements for all templates include title and version control, table of contents or navigation aids, clear headings and subheadings, consistent font styles and sizes, use of visual aids, defined metadata fields, a section for feedback, updates, or revision history, and more.
These structured template approaches help teams align, improve speed and clarity, and support varied stakeholders in the Data and Analytics knowledge ecosystem efficiently. Furthermore, they save time when creating new documentation, as templates are created for every section.
In addition, the Docendo discimus section is designed to share helpful everyday resources and non-work related ideas or conference plans, while the Retro meeting notes section contains the weekly organizational and inter-team updates, sprint (re-)planned tasks, and the summary of the past weeks' concluded tasks.
The goal of the external documentation is to share general information about the Data and Analytics team, the analytical development process, cross-department data insights, and team development updates. The knowledge base should be a central collaboration hub for the Data and Analytics team and other teams. A fragmented or duplicated information architecture can result from a growing Data and Analytics team, but by implementing these structured templates, we can mitigate this issue.
Technology plays a crucial role in the creation and organization of the Data-and-Cloud Computing knowledge base, as seen in the use of documentation templates for efficient and transparent documentation delivery. The Data-and-Cloud Computing team employs this technology to structure their knowledge base, ensuring that information is easily accessible and organized for various audiences and content types.
