Give a Specialist Knowledge Access

Each specialist independently controls which knowledge it can read — from the public Knowledge Base, the internal Handbook, and assigned Library knowledge packs. Tighter scope = faster, more accurate retrieval. A billing specialist that only reads billing KB categories, billing procedures, and relevant billing knowledge packs will get better results than one that reads everything.

Before you start

• The specialist must already exist in the stack. If not, add a specialist first.
• Know which KB categories, Handbook categories, and Library knowledge packs are relevant to this specialist. If you haven’t built either yet, see Knowledge Base and the Handbook docs.
• You can only assign Library knowledge packs that have already been granted to this stack or workspace.

Steps

1. Open Settings → Agent Stacks and click into the stack.
2. Click the Orchestrator tab.
3. Click the specialist node on the canvas. The slide-out shows the specialist’s drilldown.
4. Click the Knowledge sub-tab.
5. Configure Knowledge Base access:
   Toggle the master switch on. (When off, the specialist has no KB access at all.)
   Pick Full to grant the specialist access to every KB category, or Select to pick specific categories and subcategories.
   In Select mode, check the categories the specialist should read. Subcategories are nested under their parent.
6. Configure Handbook access in the same pattern below: master switch, Full or Select, then pick categories.
7. Configure Library / Knowledge Packs access:
   Review the assigned knowledge packs list. This list only shows packs already assigned to the specialist.
   Click Add knowledge pack to open the slide-out.
   Search for the packs you want to add, then select one or more packs.
   Confirm the selection to assign the packs to the specialist. Only knowledge packs that have already been granted are available to assign.
8. Click Save (each section saves independently).

Verify it worked

• The Setup sub-tab’s summary card at the top of the slide-out should now show a non-zero Knowledge count.
• Open the Testing tab and ask a question that depends on KB content, Handbook guidance, or a Library knowledge pack the specialist should have access to. The reply should cite, quote, or follow it as appropriate for that source.
• Ask a question that depends on knowledge the specialist should not have. The reply should not include it.

Knowledge Base vs. Handbook — which goes where

The split matters because they’re treated differently:

• Knowledge Base — Customer-facing — Quoted and linked in replies
• Handbook — Internal — Used to guide behavior. Never quoted directly to customers
• Library knowledge packs — Shared reusable knowledge — Used when the assigned pack is relevant. Only granted packs can be assigned to a specialist

A refund-policy article: customer-facing → KB. The detailed step-by-step procedure for processing refunds: internal → Handbook. A reusable pack of billing terms, product limits, or plan details: shared knowledge → Library. The AI uses all assigned sources, but only customer-facing KB content should end up quoted in customer-visible replies.

Tighter scope tradeoffs

• Full access — One-click setup. Good when KB is small or all categories are relevant — Slower retrieval, more chance of irrelevant articles surfacing
• Select — Faster retrieval, more accurate citations, fewer cross-domain mistakes — More setup, must update when you add new categories
• Assigned packs — Reuses curated Library knowledge across specialists and stacks — Must grant the pack first, then assign it to each specialist that needs it

For stacks with mature KBs, Select is the right choice. For stacks just starting out, Full is fine — you’ll narrow it down as you see retrieval mistakes.

Troubleshooting

• Symptom: The specialist cites an article from a category you didn’t grant. Fix: check the Knowledge sub-tab — if Full is selected, the specialist can see everything regardless of which checkboxes appear ticked. Switch to Select to enforce.
• Symptom: The specialist can’t find an article you know exists. Fix: confirm the article’s category is checked in the specialist’s Knowledge config. Then check the article itself isn’t in archived or draft status — only published articles are retrievable.
• Symptom: You can’t find a Library knowledge pack in the Add knowledge pack slide-out. Fix: confirm the pack has been granted first. Only granted knowledge packs are available to assign to a specialist.
• Symptom: The specialist quotes Handbook content directly to a customer. Fix: Handbook content is supposed to guide behavior, not be quoted. Check the Handbook article — if it includes phrases like “Tell the customer that…” the AI may follow them literally. Rewrite the Handbook content as guidance (“When the customer asks X, the policy is Y”).

See also

• What is a specialist agent?
• What is the Knowledge Base?