Documenting tacit knowledge on film
The knowledge that matters most is the hardest to write down. Film captures the reasoning behind the decision, not just the decision.
Last reviewed 17 augusti 2026 by the Fenny editorial team · editorial policy
Tacit knowledge is what a practitioner knows without being able to state it: how a machine sounds when it is about to fail, when a customer is about to walk, which shortcut is safe and which is not.
Written documentation captures steps. It rarely captures the judgement between the steps, because the person writing does not see it as remarkable.
The method that works is concrete: talk about real cases, ask why at every turn, and let the person think out loud. Film preserves that thinking in a form colleagues can learn from.
Where tacit knowledge tends to sit
- Production and maintenance — reading machines and materials
- Sales — judging a deal and a relationship
- Engineering — knowing which trade-offs are acceptable
- Care and service — handling situations no routine covers
- Leadership — culture, tone and unwritten rules
- Craft trades — technique that is shown rather than described
How it works
- 01Case selection
We identify concrete situations where judgement, not routine, decided the outcome.
- 02Interview design
Questions are built around cases so reasoning is prompted rather than summarised.
- 03Filmed interviews
Recorded in the working environment, often with the work itself in frame.
- 04Editing and chaptering
Cut into short, searchable sequences per situation.
- 05Internal delivery
Packaged for onboarding, internal training or the intranet.
Price ranges
| Level | Price range | What's included |
|---|---|---|
| One role | From SEK 60,000 | One practitioner, one recording day, chaptered material. |
| Several roles | SEK 90,000–180,000 | Interview series across roles or shifts, structured chapters. |
| Programme | From SEK 200,000 | Organisation-wide documentation with a reusable structure. |
Excluding VAT. An exact price is quoted after the first conversation. See the price guide for knowledge transfer.
What affects scope and price
- Number of roles and recording days
- Whether the work itself needs to be filmed alongside the interview
- Chaptering and packaging for your onboarding system
- Confidentiality requirements and locations
- Language — Swedish, English or subtitled in both
Frequently asked questions
Why is written documentation not enough?
Written routines capture steps. Tacit knowledge is the judgement between the steps, which the practitioner rarely sees as worth writing down.
How do you get someone to explain what they do instinctively?
By talking about concrete cases rather than general process, and by asking why repeatedly. An outsider's naive questions do most of the work.
How long does it take?
Four to eight weeks from first meeting to delivered material for a single role.
What does it cost?
From SEK 60,000 for one role and one recording day. Broader programmes are SEK 90,000–180,000.
Where do we start?
With the role that would take longest to rebuild if the person left tomorrow.
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