This being a nearly two-year-old post, we no longer follow what I posted above. We now have a custom field where the KB number (and version) are inserted. We use that for post-mortem and KCS coaching activity data. We do not put the KB permalink in any field. If the agent wants to send the article to the customer, they have the option to copy the link and paste it into Customer Visible notes themselves.
And while I agree with other comments about wanting to know the specific version of the article that was used to resolve, I think it's less important than getting the permalink to the customer (versus a version-specific link). Driving the customer to the self-service portal at every opportunity is the most important side effect of sending a permalink.
I can't comment on your experience with your PDI, but it seems odd that the OOB action would not be to use the permalink. Which UI are you using? Classic or Polaris (workspace)?
