Partnering with AI to Solve Knowledge Problems | KM 3.0 Podcast Series - Episode 7

December 5, 2025 Christopher Parsons

In this episode of Welcome to KM 3.0, we talk with Todd Henderson—Director of Practice Improvement at Boulder Associates—about how one of the most inventive thinkers in our community is using AI, structured inquiry, and thoughtful experimentation to reshape how knowledge flows inside an expert-driven firm.

Todd takes us inside a series of real-world practices: from building a repeatable “conversation-to-content” pipeline that makes it effortless for subject matter experts to share what they know, to designing a medical planning accelerator that surfaces hidden assumptions, closes knowledge gaps, and strengthens a critical area of practice.

We also explore some of Todd’s more experimental work—building lightweight role-play scenarios to help teams practice difficult client interactions, designing short internal “med talks” to spread tacit expertise, and prototyping ways to use AI during medical planning interviews without losing the human nuance that matters most.

This episode is rich with practical ideas: how to extract high-value insight from busy experts; why interviewing novices reveals blind spots an organization can’t see from the top; and what it looks like to treat AI as a thinking partner—not a replacement, but a tool that sharpens inquiry, surfaces missing knowledge, and helps teams build a more resilient understanding of their work.

If you’re interested in designing learning organizations, exploring how experimentation can reshape learning inside AEC firms, or understanding how AI can help teams think more clearly—this episode is for you.

The AI and Expertise Paradox

December 3, 2025 Christopher Parsons

I found myself in a fascinating conversation with the COO of one of our clients last week. We were talking about something I’ve been circling around for months, but this discussion finally snapped the pieces into place.

It’s what I’m starting to call the AI and Expertise Paradox.

We all know the demographic story by now. Baby boomers are retiring in large numbers and there aren’t enough Gen Xers to replace them.

In AEC, that often means we’re losing some of the deepest technical knowledge in our organizations—codes, construction standards, quality practices, the kind of judgment that only comes from decades of watching real projects go from concept to completion.

Technical experts possess the kind of deep smarts that can look at a drawing and feel that something isn’t quite right.

And they are retiring.

At the same time, we’re seeing a wave of AI-powered tools arrive that promise to help fill the gap. Automated code checks. QA/QC scanners. Plan reviewers that highlight potential issues a junior architect or engineer would never recognize. Assistants that allow someone to work across jurisdictions with different codes and standards and at least have a baseline level of support.

In some ways, it feels like knowledge augmentation—almost like the moment in The Matrix when the character Tank uploads the knowledge to fly a helicopter into Trinity’s brain.

Similarly, there are numerous emerging AI tools in our industry which, if they deliver on their vision, will enable a junior team member to run a basic code review, an expert who is stretched thin across multiple projects to offload routine checks, or an architect or engineer working on a project in a different region to get a helpful second set of eyes on local code compliance.

On the surface, this looks like the perfect solution: AI tools that allow those with less expertise or who are super busy to do more.

But here’s where the paradox emerges.

Discovering the Value of AI Through Experimentation | KM 3.0 Podcast Series - Episode 6

November 7, 2025 Christopher Parsons

In this episode of Welcome to KM 3.0, we talk with Jim Martin, Chief Information Officer, and Jess Purcell, Design Technology Manager from Shepley Bulfinch about how one of the country’s most forward-thinking AEC firms is using AI, video, and thoughtful processes to reshape how knowledge is captured, shared, and sustained.

Jim and Jess walk us through a range of real-world practices—from compressing 200-hour technical documentation projects into five-hour video-first workflows, to using AI search as a tool not just for discovery but for surfacing outdated or irrelevant content. They also share how their team is managing the shift from informal knowledge sharing to intentional knowledge transfer—especially in the context of rolling out a new learning management system.

This episode is full of practical insights: how short, modular videos make knowledge more durable; why it’s essential to choose learning technology that fits your culture; and how caring more, leading behind the scenes, and crafting thoughtful processes can produce extraordinary knowledge sharing outcomes.

We also explore what it means to cultivate discernment in an age of AI, and how Shepley’s hybrid work model has made them double down on intranet-based connection, informal mentoring, and social learning.

If you care about making knowledge more accessible, adaptable, and human—this one’s for you.

I hope you enjoy it.

Best,
Chris

WEBINAR | Real-World AI for AEC: How 5 Firms Are Creating Business Value through Knowledge Management

November 6, 2025 Knowledge Architecture

Featured Guests

Christopher Parsons, Founder and CEO, Knowledge Architecture

Webinar Summary

Are you taking advantage of the data gold mine your AEC firm is sitting on? Is the institutional knowledge of your firm’s most valuable professionals available to others? Christopher Parsons of Knowledge Architecture shares 5 “We Gotta Try That!” examples of AEC firms applying an Intranet + AI Search solution to unlock the full value of their in-house knowledge:

BWBR created a healthcare upskilling series with 18 learning modules, best practice guides, and expert-curated content. AI search makes it all accessible to new hires so they can quickly get answers to their questions.
Turner Fleischer combined structured standards, #TechTalk videos, a searchable eTutor library, and an internal learning academy to build a robust KM foundation. AI search delivers just-in-time answers that support technology adoption at scale.
Boulder Associates uses expert interviews to capture knowledge, such as seismic compliance strategies and Bluebeam project workflows. AI search then surfaces this expertise so project teams can get answers and connect directly with in-house experts.
Bora Architecture & Interiors built a digital twin of their sustainability lead, Corey Squire, by integrating his best practices, project reflections, and even his book into their intranet. AI search (aka “Robo Corey”) now helps employees find standards, strategies, and subject matter experts for sustainable design decisions.
Shepley Bulfinch created a comprehensive onboarding knowledge ecosystem, answering questions such as “How do I get staffed on projects?” or “Who knows Affinity Photo in Houston?” in the flow of work. AI search allows access to answers long after orientation.

Enjoy!

BEHIND THE SCENES | How We Built Synthesis AI Search

October 30, 2025 Knowledge Architecture

Featured Guests

Christopher Parsons, Founder and CEO of Knowledge Architecture
Sean Mahan, Director of Software Engineering, Knowledge Architecture

Webinar Summary

Ever wonder how AI solutions actually work?

In this behind-the-scenes session, Christopher Parsons (Founder and CEO) and Sean Mahan (Director of Software Engineering) share how Knowledge Architecture designed and built Synthesis AI Search, tracing its evolution through multiple generations of design and engineering. You’ll see the real problems they set out to solve, the obstacles they overcame, and the lessons they learned along the way.

This is a deep dive for the curious—ideal for anyone who wants to understand how AI retrieves, reasons, and improves over time. We explore architecture diagrams and code concepts in plain language, connecting each layer of the system back to design strategy and business outcomes.

By understanding how AI search works, you’ll also gain insight into how to capture and structure knowledge more effectively, helping your firm better connect the right person to the right knowledge at the right time.

We close with a look ahead at how Synthesis AI Search is laying the foundation for knowledge agents—AI-powered assistants that will help your firm make better use of its collective knowledge, streamline workflows, and accelerate learning.

Enjoy!

LEARNING LAB | How Learning & Development, Knowledge Management, and Marketing Drive Growth and Attract Talent at Shive-Hattery

October 28, 2025 Knowledge Architecture

Featured Guests

Greg S. Kanz, Marketing Director, Shive-Hattery
Amy Anderson, Knowledge Manager, Shive-Hattery

Webinar Summary

Shive-Hattery is redefining its value proposition by placing expertise at the heart of its growth and recruitment strategy. By aligning learning and development, knowledge management, recruiting, and marketing, the firm accelerates business development while positioning itself as a destination employer.

In this session, Marketing Director Greg Kanz and Amy Anderson, Knowledge Manager, share how Shive-Hattery is leveraging initiatives like Shive-Hattery University, AI-powered internal search, and firmwide knowledge-sharing efforts to scale expertise and deepen collaboration. They also highlight programs like the Emerging Professionals Program, designed to engage early-career staff in meaningful, hands-on learning.

Watch and learn how this integrated approach supports business growth and talent attraction, creating a culture where learning fuels long-term success.

Enjoy!

How Lionakis Built a Distributed Network of Design Technology Change Agents

October 22, 2025 Christopher Parsons

The design technology landscape has fundamentally changed. What was once a manageable stack of tools has become a sprawling ecosystem—and the questions coming with it are no longer just about what the tools can do, but how they work right now, in this specific project context, under these particular constraints. Meanwhile, technical knowledge itself has a shorter shelf life than ever before.

This creates an impossible burden for centralized DT teams. No matter how talented or dedicated, they eventually hit the same breaking point: there's simply too much surface area to cover. Knowledge can't travel fast enough through a hub-and-spoke model when every market sector, project type, and team operates differently.

In this issue of Smarter by Design, we explore how Lionakis has approached this problem by making a fundamentally different organizational design choice. Rather than growing their central team, they distributed expertise into project teams—creating a network of 30 embedded change agents who bring design technology support directly to where the work is happening.

What makes their Design Technology Support Specialist (DTSS) program so compelling isn't just that it works—it's how it works. It scales support without scaling headcount. It builds resilience into the organization. And it transforms how knowledge moves through the firm—from hub-and-spoke to peer-to-peer, from reactive to proactive, from bottleneck to network.

But this distributed organizational design also does something else: it creates the foundation for AI-powered learning tools to amplify the network even further. By externalizing expertise from the core DT team's heads into structured digital learning content, Lionakis is making that knowledge accessible not just to humans, but to AI search and knowledge agents that can surface the right answer at the right moment. The human network and the digital infrastructure work together—each making the other more powerful.

This is a story about what happens when you stop trying to be everywhere at once and instead design conditions under which expertise can live close to the work. It's about the shift from instructor to architect, from delivering answers to building systems that help people find them. And it is a glimpse into the future of what the AEC learning organizations of the future will look like.

Aligning AI with Firm Values | KM 3.0 Podcast Series - Episode 5

October 9, 2025 Christopher Parsons

In this episode of Welcome to KM 3.0, we sit down with Kate Grimes, Director of Knowledge at Snøhetta, for a wide-ranging conversation about how one of architecture’s most respected design studios is navigating the AI era—without losing what makes its culture special.

Since joining the firm in 2012, Kate has helped Snøhetta build its first knowledge management program from the ground up. She shares what it’s taken to build momentum with AI in a firm that prizes technological experimentation and innovation—while still prioritizing human connection.

We explore the tensions between speed and thoughtfulness, innovation and risk, structure and improvisation. From developing AI strategies that honor studio culture to reimagining learning and development through modular content, Kate shares a vision of KM that’s as much about people and values as it is about tools and data.

You’ll hear stories about how Snøhetta is using AI to augment its design process, bridge gaps in custom coding, and connect team members to the right knowledge at the right time. We also talk about how on-demand learning can create space for deeper human connection, and why being thoughtful about when and how to use AI might be the most important design decision of all.

Kate’s insights are thoughtful, pragmatic, and grounded in real-world practice. If you’re thinking about the future of knowledge, culture, or learning in your AEC firm, this conversation will give you a lot to think about.

I hope you enjoy it.

Best,
Chris

Automating AEC L&D: Possibilities and Limitations

October 7, 2025 Christopher Parsons

For as long as I’ve been thinking about learning and development in AEC, the guiding ambition has been clear — deliver the right knowledge to the right person at the right time. It sounds simple, but anyone who’s managed L&D in a design firm knows how complicated that really is.

When people have timely access to the right resources, they are better prepared for the projects in front of them, more confident in their roles, and more likely to grow into future leaders. But timing matters. If knowledge arrives too early—before there’s a chance to apply it on a real project—it often doesn’t stick. If it comes too late, you can miss a golden learning opportunity.

That’s why the topic of automation drew so much energy in our recent conversations with private beta cohorts about Synthesis LMS. Could technology finally solve the “right person, right time” problem? What if assignments, reminders, and learning paths could run on autopilot?

It’s an exciting vision. But as we talked it through, a more nuanced picture emerged. Automation will help—sometimes enormously. However, you can’t automate all delivery of learning content. Just as we’ve learned with AI, automation without a human in the loop can quickly go off in wild directions. The real challenge isn’t simply automating more, but deciding when and how to keep humans close to the process—ensuring assignments come with judgment, empathy, and context.

PODCAST | Knowledge Is Power: How AEC Firms Are Leveraging Data to Win Smarter

October 2, 2025 Knowledge Architecture

Christopher Parsons, our Founder and CEO, recently Katie Cash from Smartegies on the AEC Marketing for Principals podcast to talk about how knowledge management is evolving in the AI era. The episode is called “Knowledge is Power: How AEC Firms Are Leveraging Data to Win Smarter.”

They discussed how the upside of AI for AEC marketing is enormous: faster research, better positioning, richer storytelling, and time saved on repetitive work. But that those gains depend on high-quality firmwide knowledge. Marketers are discovering that AI doesn’t magically retrieve the right information from existing systems and network drives — it only accelerates what has been made accurate, structured, and accessible.

Christopher and Katie also explored why marketing teams are increasingly becoming the builders and stewards of their firms’ knowledge foundation.

Enjoy!

Listen or Read:

🎧 Spotify
🎧 Apple Podcasts
📖 Full Transcript

KA Connect 2025: Talks Are Up!

September 23, 2025 Christopher Parsons

All of the talks from KA Connect 2025 are now available.

For folks who are new to our community, KA Connect is our annual knowledge and learning management conference for the AEC industry.

We had a great time sharing knowledge, building connections, and getting smarter together as a community around the theme of "Unlocking the Promise of Knowledge Management with AI” in the fresh mountain air of Sundance, Utah.

Please feel free to share these talks with your friends and colleagues.

Enjoy!

Leveling Up as Learning Organizations

September 21, 2025 Christopher Parsons

We’re about ten weeks into the private beta for Synthesis LMS and the biggest lessons we’ve learned so far aren’t really about technology at all.

At first, there was a flurry of activity in the LMS. Firms jumped in, created content, uploaded videos, and built out their first courses. It was exciting to watch. But what happened next was just as important. Across both beta cohorts, people paused and said, “Oh, I see — if we really want to take advantage of this new technology, if we really want to maximize the opportunity here, it’s going to take more than just building content. We’re going to need to level up as learning organizations.”

And by that I don’t mean throwing away what firms have already been doing. Quite the opposite. These are some of the smartest firms in our community, and they’ve been investing in knowledge sharing and informal learning for years. They have lunch & learns, peer-to-peer mentoring, recorded talks from subject-matter experts, even entire libraries with hundreds of videos.

Those are strengths, and they’ve served firms well. But what we’re realizing together is this moment calls for something more. It’s not just about uploading content into a new tool. It’s about taking the next step, rising to the next level, and moving toward becoming modern AEC learning organizations.

That means going beyond volunteer-driven knowledge sharing into something more curated, something built around adult learning principles and intentional knowledge transfer. Because while serendipitous learning is valuable, firms are starting to recognize that it won’t be enough — not on its own — to prepare people for the challenges in front of them.

RECORDING | Moody Nolan's Approach to Putting Knowledge in the Flow of Work with Synthesis and Guardian Inbox Summary

September 9, 2025 Christopher Parsons

On September 9th, Christopher Parsons joined Chris Shafer of Guardian and Nick Bower and Bryan Payne of Moody Nolan to explore how Moody Nolan integrates Synthesis and Guardian to foster a culture of continuous learning and excellence.

During the live session, Moody Nolan showcased how their commitment to education and training comes to life through innovative technology integration — empowering their team, elevating project quality, and driving consistent success.

They explored:

The Synthesis LMS
Using Guardian for real-time training in Revit
How Moody Nolan uses Synthesis and Guardian together

Enjoy!

Talking Knowledge Strategy on the Bold Brand Show

September 5, 2025 Christopher Parsons

I recently joined Josh Miles on the Bold Brand Show for an episode called The Secrets to Unlocking Your Firm’s Knowledge.

In our conversation, we explored how AEC firms can use knowledge strategy not just to organize information, but to win work, grow stronger, and future-proof their business. We talked about how smarter collaboration, better content, and emerging tools like AI are helping firms tackle real challenges today while building long-term advantage for tomorrow.

Here’s a guide to the conversation:

4:18 – What does knowledge management look like in an AEC firm?
9:21 – How KM solves the real problems AEC firms care about
11:54 – What every AEC firm should know about critical knowledge transfer
16:14 – How AI agents are becoming part of the AEC workforce
19:04 – How AEC firms know it’s time to invest in knowledge management
24:00 – What AEC firms should expect when implementing a Synthesis intranet
26:56 – Why intranet projects in AEC are really about change management
32:27 – Do AEC firms still need to organize information in the AI era?
47:30 – Why video is supercharging knowledge management in AEC firms
52:41 – Why AEC firms “built to sell” are just better firms—even if you never sell

I hope you enjoy it!

Best,
Chris

▶ Watch or Listen:

📺 YouTube
🎧 Spotify
🎧 Apple Podcasts

Knowledge Management is Everyone's Job | KM 3.0 Podcast Series - Episode 4

August 30, 2025 Christopher Parsons

In my view, Katie Robinson, Chief Marketing Officer at LS3P, has built one of the most inspiring knowledge management programs in the AEC industry. What began as a creative solution to gather project data for proposals over a decade ago has grown into a firmwide practice where knowledge management truly is everybody’s job.

Today, Katie leads a small but mighty KM team—while also orchestrating the contributions of over 120 LS3P employees who capture and share project data as part of the firm’s Data Manager program. It’s a remarkable model for scaling KM beyond a single department.

In this episode of Welcome to KM 3.0, Katie shares how LS3P’s Data Manager program empowers emerging professionals to make project data collection both sustainable and developmental, giving them mentorship opportunities while providing the firm with reliable information.

She also describes how Expert Hours—casual, live, recorded conversations with subject-matter experts—have become a powerful way to transform everyday storytelling into searchable knowledge that fuels marketing, mentorship, and practice alike.

Along the way, we explore how LS3P is driving business value with AI, preparing to fold learning and development into their KM program, and experimenting with innovative new ways to capture and expand project data. Katie’s story is full of practical wisdom on how to start small, solve real problems, and build momentum for KM in AEC.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

Best,
Chris

Essential Content Reviews: Keeping Firmwide Knowledge Fresh and Relevant at AKF Group

August 27, 2025 Christopher Parsons

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the relationship between AI and firmwide knowledge—not just how AEC firms use knowledge to power AI, but how AI is pushing them to care for their knowledge more intentionally.

When employees use AI-powered tools like Synthesis AI Search to ask questions, they’re finding useful answers from knowledge distributed across content silos and content types, including video. But these benefits are also revealing something else: the quality of those answers depends entirely on the quality of the content behind them.

Outdated content leads to outdated answers. Gaps in documentation mean missed opportunities. Conflicting versions create confusion.

As a response, AEC firms are becoming much more attuned to the importance of maintaining high-quality, up-to-date knowledge across the business. They’re not just investing in AI. They’re investing in the knowledge powering the AI—acquiring it, updating it, and retiring it when it no longer serves the firm.

This raises an old but important question:

How do you keep a large intranet from decaying over time?

Instead of treating a new intranet launch as a one-time project, it may be more helpful to think of it like painting the Golden Gate Bridge. Crews begin at one end, make their way across, and by the time they reach the other side, it’s time to start again. The goal isn’t to finish, but to stay in motion—a continuous cycle of proactive care. And the earlier you can establish that rhythm, the healthier your knowledge base will remain.

That’s why I want to revisit a story from the KA community that feels even more relevant today than when it was first shared at KA Connect back in 2019. It’s the story of how AKF Group, at the time a 500-person multidisciplinary engineering firm with nine offices in the U.S. and two in Mexico, built a simple but powerful process for keeping their knowledge fresh—and how that process became the foundation for what we now call Essential Content Reviews.

You can read more about the Essential Content Review Framework on our website, under Intranet Best Practices. But what I want to share here is the origin story—how one firm, led by a thoughtful and practical knowledge manager named Shannon Kaplan, created a rhythm of content care that’s still shaping how our community maintains knowledge today.

Company Wide Teams: How AEI Turns Lessons Learned Into Firmwide Knowledge

August 6, 2025 Christopher Parsons

Every day, on every project, lessons are happening inside AEC firms. But without the right infrastructure, those insights often remain tucked away in meeting notes or siloed with project teams—making it likely that future teams will repeat the same mistakes on their projects.

It doesn’t have to be this way. With the right infrastructure in place, AEC firms can learn faster than one project at a time and turn individual insights into organizational knowledge.

At Affiliated Engineers, Inc. (AEI), Company Wide Teams (CWTs) provide that infrastructure. For more than 25 years, these peer-led, cross-office teams have served as the scaffolding for firmwide learning, continuous improvement, and leadership development. The idea is simple but powerful: Don’t just share lessons, learn from them—and not just as a project team, as an organization.

The structure is clear and repeatable. Project lessons are identified and prioritized during monthly CWT meetings. From there, lessons are shared across the firm through a variety of lightweight formats: curated presentations, short-form write-ups, and open technical forums. When a lesson points to a deeper need, it’s operationalized—transformed into templates, toolkits, or shared guidelines—improving how the whole firm works.

Of course, none of that happens without trust. AEI has also invested deeply in building a culture where people feel safe naming their mistakes, confident their insights will help others grow.

What follows is a look at one of the most durable and dynamic knowledge-sharing programs in the AEC industry—what it looks like in action, and what other firms can learn from it.

Unlocking Sustainability with AI-Powered Knowledge Management | KM 3.0 Podcast Series - Episode 3

July 30, 2025 Christopher Parsons

Years ago, Corey Squire told me he believed that knowledge management was the secret to unlocking sustainability in architectural practice. At the time, that insight struck me as bold and prescient. Now, after watching Corey apply that philosophy across his roles at Lake Flato, through his consulting work, and most recently as Director of Sustainability at Bora Architecture & Interiors, I believe it’s something much more: a model.

In this episode, Corey walks us through how Bora is transforming sustainability from a siloed department into a shared operating system—powered by a thoughtful culture, a living knowledge base, and now, AI Search. He shares how their Synthesis intranet (Chaco) helps capture institutional knowledge from experts and make it accessible to the entire firm, freeing up time for deeper innovation and mentorship. We talk about the importance of pairing sustainable knowledge with a supportive culture, and the flywheel effect that happens when you give people not just facts, but context and clarity about why design choices matter.

Corey’s insights are grounded, generous, and deeply practical—shaped by his own experience building firmwide programs, writing the AIA Framework for Design Excellence, and publishing People, Planet, Design, a book that blends design philosophy, actionable strategies, and an entire chapter on knowledge management as the foundation for sustainable practice.

Whether you're trying to scale sustainability, upskill your teams, or figure out how AI fits into your firm’s future, this is a conversation full of takeaways you can borrow, adapt, and implement.

Enjoy!

INTRANET TOUR | Refabricating DSX: How Diamond Schmitt Is Evolving Its Knowledge Platform for AI Search + Learning

July 24, 2025 Knowledge Architecture

Featured Guests

Jeanette Parker, Director of Knowledge Management
Wendy Gomoll, Manager, Knowledge Management
Sam Horton, Learning and Development Manager

Webinar Summary

In this webinar, you’ll see how Diamond Schmitt is strategically evolving their knowledge platform to capitalize on emerging capabilities in AI-powered search and learning management.