# Knowledge Sharing: How 190+ Contributors Enhance Projects [Linda Krestanova](https://www.strv.com/blog/authors/linda) Communications Manager --- There is strength in numbers. For us at STRV, this means that while one person’s knowledge can be impressive, sharing that knowledge and accumulating insights from other astute minds results in something irreplaceable: A culture with no walls. What does this mean for our clients? Well, say you hire a team of two engineers. Working with any of our experts gets you access to the collective knowledge of the entire team. That’s years of experience, countless points of view that cover every angle and the analysis of all possible outcomes. The STRV culture is built on helping each other out. Since 2004, this has always been the case—and it is among the values which have a profound meaning to all of us. Even during hiring, this sense of collaboration is a must-have. Should a candidate show signs of individualistic tendencies, it’s a no-go. **STRV’s emphasis on teamwork fuels every single project, without fail.** If, for example, a designer feels unsure about whether an advanced visual aspect can be properly translated into code by a frontend engineer, he/she simply reaches out to the Frontend team and the answer is readily available. If a QA (Quality Assurance) tester works with a product in a field to which he/she is new, there is undoubtedly a person on the team with the necessary experience. There’s no need to spend time searching for who that is. We know each other, our histories, our talents. So, most often, we know who to turn to straight away. In terms of organized sharing, our documented knowledge is open to any team member who needs it; we provide clear guides on how to access it, and where. Every piece of newly attained expertise (from a project, a workshop, etc.) is distributed via numerous communication channels. And just as we hold talks and workshops for the community outside of STRV, we do the same for our own team. There are many sides to knowledge sharing. In simple terms, the way we share what we know can be separated into three categories: - **Department-wide** (The regular, often daily knowledge sharing within each team.) - **Company-wide** (The knowledge sharing of departments with other teams.) - **Community-wide** (The events and open-source resources for non-STRV professionals.) We go more into specifics with department-wide sharing, but have included a summary of our company-wide sharing practices and community-wide endeavors at the end of the article. As always, we want the information here to be as transparent and accurate as possible—which is why we’ve decided to describe the knowledge sharing processes of Engineering, Design and Product Management separately. All information outlined below was provided by the **Chief Design & Engineering Officer Marian Fusek; Creative Director Ales Nesetril; and Chief Product Officer, Katerina Douskova**. ## Engineering Knowledge Sharing *Engineering includes iOS, Android, Backend, Frontend, Machine Learning and QA.* ### Department-wide Knowledge Sharing - **Weekly or Bi-weekly Team Meetings:** A thorough overview of the past week(s), these meetings include learnings from recent projects, discussions about notable challenges and how they were (or will be) handled, as well as presentations about the newest industry updates. - **Quick Update Sessions:** Often going hand-in-hand with the meetings above, these sessions are tailored to be an ideal space for sharing coding tips, ideas, common bugs, experiments, etc. - **Cross-project Reviews:** To get feedback about their code from a fresh pair of eyes, engineers often have their code reviewed by an engineer who is not a part of the given project. This allows for ideas that may not have been considered by people working on the project long-term. These reviews are especially welcome for engineers who are alone on a project. - **Pair Coding:** The perfect setup for active feedback, pair coding allows engineers to learn from one another by coding together and discussing approaches live. It is also a great way of mentoring more junior colleagues (although it is useful for engineers of any level). - **Mentorship:** Engineers with an exceptional grasp of certain technologies mentor those looking to advance their skills, or who are newer to the team and may need guidance on STRV approach. - **General Knowledge Base:** Followed by everyone in their respective departments, this is a compilation of all information and guides. It includes coding best practices to keep code clean, facilitate product scaling, and ease onboarding. - **Example Projects:** Project templates help engineers put best practices into use quickly, enabling smooth project transitions while maintaining certain patterns that promote familiarity without hindering innovation. - **Event/Conference Wrap-ups:** Summaries written and discussed team-wide after attending external meetups or conferences, ensuring everyone stays updated on industry trends. - **Internal Research:** When time permits, engineers experiment with new technologies and share findings via repositories, presentations, or articles. - **Slack Channels:** Each department has a dedicated channel for quick sharing and discussing industry news, with daily interactive communication. ## Design Knowledge Sharing ### Department-wide Knowledge Sharing - **The Buddy System:** Each designer on a project is paired with a fellow designer for ongoing review, supervision, and collaboration. - **Show & Tell Sessions:** Design critiques and feedback sessions where designers present current work, fostering understanding and diverse perspectives. - **Team Updates:** Every two weeks, designers discuss updates within the design sphere and broader tech industry impacts; also reviewing design principles. - **Nonstop Ad-hoc Sharing:** Given the smaller team size, designers constantly share advice and input informally. - **Figma:** A collaborative design tool containing all project and past designs, enabling easy review and feedback. - **Utilizing Confluence:** A comprehensive documentation and knowledge platform for design guides, onboarding info, and processes. - **Slack Channel:** Daily, interactive sharing of industry news and insights. - **Event/Conference Wrap-ups:** Post-event summaries discussed team-wide for the latest trends and learnings. ## Product Knowledge Sharing ### Department-wide Knowledge Sharing - **Sharing Retrospectives:** Post-project reviews highlight what went well and what could improve, shared across the product team. - **Product Learning:** Bi-weekly sessions with external experts keep product managers informed about recent developments. - **Onboarding with All Teams:** New PMs conduct one-on-ones with engineering and design leads, reviewing team guidelines. - **30-day Buddy:** New PMs are paired with a buddy for guidance and adherence to STRV standards. - **Utilizing Confluence:** Organized documentation on KPIs, project cycles, onboarding, and more. - **Slack Channel:** Daily sharing of industry updates. - **Nonstop Ad-hoc Sharing:** Highly active collaboration among team members with diverse expertise. - **Event/Conference Wrap-ups:** Summaries and discussions after external events to stay aligned on trend developments. ## Company-wide Knowledge Sharing *Examples generally applicable across departments.* - **Open-source:** [STRV Tech Playground](https://www.strv.io/?ref=strv.ghost.io) for questions, learning, contribution, and community sharing. - **Internal Workshops & Presentations:** Cross-departmental knowledge sharing sessions. - **Slack Channels:** Active channels for updates and discussions at STRV. - **Utilizing Confluence:** Shared workspace for documentation, project updates, and collaboration. - **In-depth Articles:** Monthly expert-authored posts, e.g., highlights from the iOS team or design insights ([engineering content](https://www.strv.com/blog/tag/engineering?ref=strv.ghost.io), [design content](https://www.strv.com/blog/tag/design?ref=strv.ghost.io)). ## What STRV Does for & With the Community ### Community-wide Knowledge Sharing - **The STRV Academy:** Practical engineering courses with lessons, code reviews, homework, and mentorship, condensed into weeks. - **Workshops, Talks, Networking:** Events on engineering, design, and product management, sharing recent projects, trends, and learning outcomes ([events](https://www.strv.com/events?ref=strv.ghost.io)). - **Design Portfolio Reviews:** Feedback sessions by senior designers for external professional designers. - **University Lectures:** Repeated invitations to speak at top universities and events. - **Guidelines & Best Practices:** Shared through channels like [InsideSTRV on our blog](https://www.strv.com/blog/tag/inside-strv?ref=strv.ghost.io). - **Open-source:** Our space to ask questions, learn, contribute, and spread knowledge accessible to all ([our space](https://www.strv.io/?ref=strv.ghost.io)). - **In-depth Articles:** Monthly publications by our experts, including insights and experiences, e.g., the iOS team’s tech highlights. ## What Knowledge Sharing Means to Us Sharing everything we know makes us all better. You can’t grow on your own. We will never, ever stop looking for new ways to learn from each other. We’re a team of enthusiasts who want to be up-to-date on everything, at all times. The projects that land on our doorstep often take on the newest tech, and our clients look to propel straight to the top. We are the partner who helps them do so—and the only way we can continue to deliver on that promise is to always be one step ahead of the competition. Our dedication to knowledge sharing allows us to do just that. --- Don't miss anything