Journal of Information & Knowledge Management

What barriers obstruct the success of knowledge management programs? This paper has integrated studies on the barriers to knowledge management (KM) into a theoretical framework. Based on this framework, five cases documenting failed KM initiatives were analysed. The analysis gives a clear picture about why certain KM projects fail. The high failure rate of KM can be explained by the supply-IT based approach many organisations adopt when it comes to their KM programs. To increase the success rate of KM projects, companies should go beyond the one-dimensional thinking, e.g. technology, and adopt an approach where all the ingredients of KM operate in a synchronised way.

Knowledge management success is a hot issue in SMEs. It is obvious that several important factors must be considered for successful implementation, but most small and medium firms have no idea what factors should be considered most heavily. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to expand the base of knowledge in that area, and empirically test the relationship between personal capabilities within SMEs and knowledge management system success. Six factors related to personal capabilities were measured: ambition, skills, behaviour, tools and techniques, time management and personal knowledge. The results of the study indicate that there is a significant relationship between these factors and knowledge management system success.

This paper investigates the impact of blogging on knowledge processes and proposes a way to manage collective knowledge. Qualitative methods are used to collect data through individual semi-structured interviews, think-aloud protocols, focus groups, and document analysis. Data analysis is pursued with the use of the qualitative software package Atlas.ti^®. This qualitative research contributes to our understanding of how a self-organised group of individuals involved in a temporary joint project in the Kingdom of Bahrain creates, transfers, retains and shares knowledge in a blog and provides insights into the knowledge management processes. It reveals the impact of blogging on knowledge management and examines issues concerned with the individual, the groups, and the organisation. It also suggests strategies on how to improve the management of an effective blog. Findings contribute to the debate on knowledge management processes and provide insights for academics and practitioners who are interested in a new theoretical approach connecting individual knowledge to collective knowledge, as well as to those studying online repositories and new information technology tools for the management of organisational knowledge. Future research should be conducted on how blogs may impact the effectiveness of organisational communication. Empirical research should also be conducted to explain how internal and external bloggers contribute to the development of organisational expertise.

KM principles often apply to large companies (more than 200 employees), where issues of general management and skill sets, as well as resources, often require comprehensive and multi-department solutions. However, many small businesses experience the same issues of knowledge sharing and management, but may find boundaries in the development and implementation of programs. How can small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) benefit from KM principles? What areas in the traditional literature immediately apply, and what boundaries arise? Often encompassing multiple roles, managerial practices, and efforts in microcosm, how can these smaller companies provide the structure and impact needed to make KM principles work for them? This work analyses the problems that small businesses face in the collection, dissemination, and storage of company knowledge, including issues of technology, communities of practice, and "stickiness" for best-practice goals. The definitions of small business, as outlined by the European Commission and U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), will serve as a useful tool for scope and discussion. This research will explore three key classifications of traits — structural or systemic, communication, and qualitative — through a review of the areas in which the challenges of small businesses, because of their size, imply somewhat different approaches to KM.

Motivation is a force that leads people to act or perform. Motivating staff is a key element in making workers productive. It has the potential to increase incentive, put staff members at ease, and derive some satisfaction from their jobs. Factors that motivate staff vary across the professional, para-professional, and non-professional levels. The research here is a study of motivation techniques used by managers of Kuwait University libraries to improve employees' job satisfaction levels. In the process, it examines techniques and issues that motivate library staff and how these differ among professionals and non-professionals. It appears that high productivity depends on the level of library workers.

In their attempts to communicate innovation, technical writers produce what Everett Rogers calls "technology-embodied information," per the Diffusion of Innovations theory. This study focuses on technical writers working for multinational software firms in the Philippines and seeks to explain their function as gatekeepers in the information traffic between development centres and software users. The practices of technical writers — representative of eight software companies — are collected, described, and analysed according to qualitative design. The study uses the focus group discussion as its primary research tool, triangulated by portfolio and process documentation analyses. Key themes are presented in step-flow. The study illustrates technical communication tasks such as user profiling, knowledge capture, and information delivery within the framework of technology transfer.

Knowledge management is a growing discipline and its structure and boundaries have been examined using different perspectives. This study is based on the KM curricula of 13 graduate degree programmes for producing a KM framework, based on the collective wisdom of curriculum designers of these programmes. Analysis of curricula was conducted at two levels of course titles and course descriptions. Keywords and phrases were identified and listed, then reduced into relevant categories in three successive exercises of subtraction. Each identified term was treated as a module. If a module was offered in more than one programme or course, the number was provided for the occurrence in order to indicate the emphasis it received in different curricula. Thus, we have been able to identify major categories of KM curricula in these schools. There is a need for academics and experts in the field to further validate these results in subsequent research.

Land, labour, capital, raw materials, innovation, human resources, research and development have all been credited as sources of sustainable competitive advantage (SCA). Yet sources of sustainable competitive advantages continuously change, and transformations in the business environment cause shifts in the sources. A viable method to generate sustainable competitive advantages is knowledge management, and this study empirically links the concept of knowledge management to sustainable competitive advantage. The study investigates how knowledge management practices can be employed to improve strategic positioning and competitiveness in service industries, particularly business schools.