Need to know

Agencies earn their living by knowing certain things better than their clients.

They can even build a truly great business by knowing a certain combination of things better than anyone.

But what are the things your agency needs to know?

And how well does everyone in your team currently know them?

Where are the knowledge gaps?

Given how central these questions are to the operation of your agency, how clear a picture do you feel you have of the answers?

You won't be alone if that picture is a little blurry.

Having a knowledge map is therefore the first step in the Knowledge section of the SPARK framework.

It's easy to get started with one. Identify the things your agency needs to know — core skills, sector expertise, technical skills, specific tools, key professional practices, and so on.

Then score each of your team members' mastery level for each area of knowledge. You can use descriptions, numbers, t-shirt sizes, colours, or whatever suits your culture to describe each mastery level.

This will give you an overall assessment for the agency as a whole for each type of expertise.

Where are you strongest? Where are the gaps? Where does your critical knowledge rest in the minds of just a few key people?

Knowing what you need to know, and how well you know it, is vital for a knowledge business like an agency.