Dairy Farmer's app wins business award

An app developed by a Tasmanian dairy farmer, the Knowby Pro app, has won at the 2025 Telstra Best of Business Awards.

Knowby, now helping workers in 70 countries, was the Tasmanian winner for Embracing Innovation category - chosen from more than 20,000 nominations nationwide.

The national awards will take place in Brisbane on November 18-20.

Ex-dairy farmer Grant Rogers developed the idea for Knowby out of frustration with employees repeatedly contacting him for the same instructions. 

Knowby Pro transforms the way instructions are created and shared by blending short-form video with concise text to deliver clear, step-by-step guidance. 

Drawing on the concept of cognitive load theory, the platform breaks down complex tasks into manageable steps, helping people learn faster and retain information more effectively.

It’s providing organisations around the world, big and small, with an affordable, easy way to create and share instructions.

‘A great idea is only a great idea if it solves a real problem,” Mr Rogers said.

“I developed a solution to solve a problem that I had on the farm and I never imagined the platform would be used in over 70 countries and growing. It turns out, lots of other business owners had the same problem.” 

Although Knowby was originally developed to support on-farm instructions, Mr Rogers was quick to point out that it is not strictly an ag tech product. 

The platform is designed to create clear, step-by-step instructions for any process, which is why it has gained traction far beyond agriculture. 

Today, Knowby is being used across a wide range of industries, from mining operations to office environments, wherever there is a need to simplify and share knowledge.

“We’ve shown our value across the full agricultural supply chain, and now leading companies in other industries are using it. I’m extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished,” Mr Rogers said.

“By simplifying how safety and product information is created and shared, we help organisations capture knowledge, improve productivity, and strengthen safety outcomes,” co-founder John Ansley added.

Knowby Pro also champions accessibility, with its AI automatically converting long-form video into step-by-step instructions and translating text into more than 140 languages, ensuring information is clear and inclusive for global audiences.