Summary: An answer from a company knowledge base still needs to be checked against its sources, scope, and version. Carrying source details alongside retrieved passages gives reviewers a route back to the evidence and makes missing conditions or outdated references easier to spot.
A knowledge-based answer is easier to use when it includes both a conclusion and the material supporting it. A response such as “This request is eligible” leaves someone with another search to do. The relevant document and passage give them a place to start checking.
In retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), that connection can get lost between three stages: what the system retrieves, what the model uses, and what the user receives. A fluent answer can still be difficult to verify when the source details disappear along the way.
ZGI's knowledge retrieval node can return retrieved text alongside source information, including document names and passage identifiers where available. Connecting both outputs to the rest of the workflow gives downstream steps the information needed to build a traceable answer.
Concept illustration: source information travels with the content so a reviewer can return to the relevant material.
Find the passage that supports the claim
Consider a procurement team checking a service term. A supplier may have a framework agreement, an amendment, and a project-specific confirmation. An answer saying “The term is one year” still needs context: which agreement, which project, and whether a later amendment changes the dates.
The phrase “one year” might refer to a warranty, a renewal period, or an additional service. Keeping the surrounding conditions is often more useful than listing several document names at the bottom of an answer.
A practical response format includes the conclusion, supporting passage, document name, and any unresolved points. For dates, amounts, or eligibility conditions, give the reader enough information to check the claim against the original. This also makes handoffs easier: the next person can follow the evidence without repeating the search.
Pass source details through the workflow
It is easy to send only the retrieved text to a model and ask for a summary. That produces a readable response, but the relationship between documents and passages may be lost.
In ZGI, plan how the text result and source resources will be used downstream. The passages supply context; the source information supports references. Then specify which claims need supporting material and how the response should mark information that the retrieved content does not establish.
Display the metadata that is actually available. If a source provides a document name but no page number, retain the name. Add page numbers, version identifiers, or clause locations only when they come from the source. Asking a model to fill in those gaps can create references that look precise but cannot be checked.
Some conclusions depend on more than one passage. A main agreement may define the service period while an amendment changes the start date. Keep both pieces of evidence connected to the conclusion, and check that they apply to the same project before combining them.
Check whether the answer goes beyond the evidence
A genuine citation can accompany an overly broad claim. A document may allow an extension “subject to approval,” while the answer leaves out that condition. A policy may apply to one region while the response extends it to every customer.
Review the answer and its supporting passage together. A useful evaluation set covers direct lookups, questions requiring several documents, conflicting versions, and questions the available material cannot answer. For each example, record whether relevant content was found, whether the reference can be located, and whether the answer preserves the conditions.
Those checks point to different fixes. If the passage was retrieved but the answer dropped a qualification, revise the generation instructions. If source fields disappeared, inspect the output mapping. If two versions conflict, resolve the document-management issue. Each failure then has a specific place to investigate.
Include the review path in the final response
Start with a business area whose source material has a clear scope, such as internal policy questions or a defined set of supplier agreements. Connect knowledge retrieval to the generation step in ZGI, include evidence fields in the response design, and check their alignment with real questions.
Keep the final answer compact: a conclusion, the relevant passage, and a reference the reader can follow. Route missing information or conflicting conditions to the responsible person. Readers can use the short answer immediately and inspect its basis when the decision calls for a closer look.
GitHub: https://github.com/zgiai/zgi
Gitee: https://gitee.com/zgiai/zgi
Top comments (0)