I'm trying to find a word that is used to describe something that is generally accepted and well known, but is not necessarily written down or properly defined. The word is one I have used in the past but for some reason my neurons are not firing properly and I can not remember the word.
Synonyms include: pragmatic, standard, well known, experiential, practical, empirical, observed, accepted.
You might use it in a sentence such as
Most of the instructions are based on <blank> information by a variety of
individuals.
or in a slightly different form
Their <blank> experiences in the field define the way the business operates.
[edit]I've added my own answer because I have since found the word I was looking for: Anecdotal. My synonyms above were slightly inaccurate, although the sentences, along with what I wanted to use the word for, still works as I intended it to based on the actual definition.[/edit]
Best Answer
For your first statement I would offer: established
For the second: collective
Although I would note that semantically, the second sentence is not quite right- Those experiences could help to shape the way the business operates or they inform the processes adopted by the business, but the experiences cannot, in and of themselves, define the way the business operates.