How to avoid fragile knowledge in support
I don’t know what’s the matter with people; they don’t learn by understanding; they learn by some other way-by rote, or something. Their knowledge is so fragile!
— Richard Feynman (Nobel-winning physicist and noted creep)
Anyone who made it through school (or taught it) has seen the gap between knowing the correct answer and understanding why it is the answer. Last minute cramming of facts results in knowledge with a half-life measured in hours, but it can work when the school exams are designed to reward rote recital. When a school’s metrics are tied to funding and support, those metrics are not always designed to test for deep learning.
Fragile knowledge is equally rife outside of school, and within customer service. How many times have you tried to have a conversation with a service rep who mostly repeats the same scripted answers, even when they don’t really apply?
Is that rep truly incapable of being more helpful? Probably not. They’re just employed within a system built on fragile knowledge. Those companies make little investment in long-term training, and offer few paths to growth. That means higher turnover and inexperienced staff with little trust or authority to take alternate actions or make nuanced judgements.
Therefore the level of service is brittle. It might work acceptably for (if we’re charitable) 80% of the common cases, but for anything outside of those bounds the service quality shatters into unhelpful shards.
If you’re running a service department, then that’s your challenge to address. Attempt to build a support system based on deeper knowledge, one that can flex and adapt to the infinity of situations we face in support.
Even if you’re not in charge, you can be responsible for your own learning. Here are some ways to get started:
Lean in to curiosity. Ask for the “why” behind rules and procedures, read through explanations and decision records. Try to grasp their underlying logic.
Teach what you know. When you have learned something, share it with others and help them understand. Rephrase it in plain language. You’ll quickly discover where your learning is lacking.
Make knowledge connections. As you build up knowledge, make an effort to spot connections and patterns, places where knowing about one system helps explain another. Keep connected notes for yourself.
Try to break things. Look for the edge cases and the boundaries where your existing knowledge doesn’t apply.
Be ok with not knowing (yet). If you’re willing to admit that you don’t understand it, people will usually help you, or you’ll discover they don’t know either!
One common usage of deep understanding is in helping customers deal with changes to your products and services. If you really grasp the why and how of the change, you can do a much better job of helping them navigate it.
Here’s me getting motion sick on a swing I found in the local forest as I talk about handling change in support.
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This article first appeared in The Supportive Weekly, Mat's email newsletter for anyone who wants to create better customer experiences. Subscribe now...it's not boring!
Mathew Patterson
After running a support team for years, Mat joined Help Scout, where he helps people deliver better online customer support. Subscribe to The Supportive Newsletter or find him on LinkedIn.
