Analyzing Kb Gaps

Analyzing KB Gaps

Overview

Uses the Knowledge Base as a proxy for where users struggle. Identifies high-volume topics, missing guidance, and opportunities for better self-service or AI-assisted resolution.

When to Use

• Have KB article exports to analyze
• Want to understand what users struggle with most
• Exploring AI assistant opportunities
• Planning documentation improvements

Core Pattern

Step 1: Gather Sources

Read files in:

• inputs/knowledge_base/ - KB article exports
• outputs/insights/voc-synthesis-*.md - VOC insights (if available, for correlation)

Step 2: Analyze Article Coverage

For each KB article (or category), note:

• Topic / Category
• Article count
• Last updated date
• Estimated complexity (simple how-to vs. complex troubleshooting)

Step 3: Identify Gaps

Look for:

1. High-volume topics - Many articles = users struggle here
2. Outdated articles - Not updated in 6+ months
3. Missing topics - VOC mentions issues with no KB coverage
4. Complex troubleshooting - Multi-step processes that could be simplified

Step 4: Assess AI Opportunities

For each gap, evaluate:

Step 5: Generate Output

Write to outputs/insights/kb-gaps-YYYY-MM-DD.md:

---
generated: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM
skill: analyzing-kb-gaps
sources:
  - inputs/knowledge_base/*.md
  - outputs/insights/voc-synthesis-*.md (if used)
downstream:
  - outputs/roadmap/Qx-YYYY-charters.md
---

# KB Gap Analysis: [Date]

## Executive Summary
[2-3 sentences: What's the state of KB? Where are the biggest gaps?]

## Coverage Overview

| Category | Article Count | Last Updated | Complexity | Gap Score |
|----------|---------------|--------------|------------|-----------|
| [Category 1] | N | YYYY-MM-DD | Simple/Complex | High/Med/Low |
| ... | ... | ... | ... | ... |

## High-Volume Topics
*Categories with most articles (signal: users struggle here)*

| Topic | Article Count | Sample Titles | VOC Correlation |
|-------|---------------|---------------|-----------------|
| [Topic] | N | [title1, title2] | [Yes/No/Unknown] |

## Missing / Outdated Articles

| Gap | Type | Evidence | Priority |
|-----|------|----------|----------|
| [Topic with no article] | Missing | VOC mentions in [file] | High |
| [Article X] | Outdated | Last updated [date] | Medium |

## AI Opportunity Assessment

### Safe to Automate (Low Risk)
| Opportunity | Type | Rationale |
|-------------|------|-----------|
| [Better search for X] | Search/IA | Articles exist but hard to find |
| [Guided wizard for Y] | Guided resolution | Clear steps, no judgment needed |

### Automate with Caution (Medium Risk)
| Opportunity | Type | Guardrails Needed |
|-------------|------|-------------------|
| [AI assist for Z] | AI-assisted | Must cite source article, human review |

### DO NOT Automate (High Risk)
| Topic | Reason |
|-------|--------|
| [Billing disputes] | Financial, requires human judgment |
| [Data deletion] | Compliance, irreversible |
| [Access control] | Trust/security sensitive |

## Recommendations
1. **[Recommendation]** — Evidence: [source]
2. ...

## Sources Used
- [file paths]

## Claims Ledger
| Claim | Type | Source |
|-------|------|--------|
| [High volume in X] | Evidence | [article count] |
| [Users struggle with Y] | Evidence | [VOC file] |

Step 6: Copy to History & Update Tracker

• Copy to history/analyzing-kb-gaps/kb-gaps-YYYY-MM-DD.md
• Update alerts/stale-outputs.md

Quick Reference

Common Mistakes

• Counting wrong: "Many articles" → Exact count: "47 articles"
• Missing VOC correlation: KB analysis in isolation → Cross-reference with VOC
• Underestimating risk: "AI can handle billing" → Compliance topics need humans
• No priorities: "Everything is a gap" → Rank by impact
• Stale analysis: Using old VOC → Check VOC synthesis date

Verification Checklist

• All KB files read
• Article counts accurate
• Outdated articles identified (6+ months)
• VOC correlation checked (if available)
• AI opportunities categorized by risk
• DO NOT automate list includes compliance/billing/trust topics
• Recommendations backed by evidence
• Metadata header complete
• Copied to history, tracker updated

Evidence Tracking