Knowledge Management: An Organizational Capabilities Perspective

TLDR

The new economy demands that organizations derive economic value from their knowledge assets, yet senior managers often struggle to transform firms—especially those with long process histories and established success—into knowledge‑based organizations. This study investigates effective knowledge management through the lens of organizational capabilities. The authors model a knowledge infrastructure—comprising technology, structure, and culture—and a knowledge process architecture—encompassing acquisition, conversion, application, and protection—using survey data from over 300 senior executives. The findings offer a framework for assessing a firm’s competitive predisposition when initiating a knowledge‑management program. Keywords: knowledge capability, culture, infrastructure, structure, social capital, structural equation modeling.

Abstract

Abstract A hallmark of the new economy is the ability of organizations to realize economic value from their collection of knowledge assets as well as their assets of information, production distribution, and affiliation. Despite the competitive necessity of becoming a knowledge-based organization, senior managers have found it difficult to transform their firms through programs of knowledge management. This is particularly true if their organizations have long histories of process and a tradition of business success. This research examines the issue of effective knowledge management from the perspective of organizational capabilities. This perspective suggests that a knowledge infrastructure consisting of technology, structure, and culture along with a knowledge process architecture of acquisition, conversion, application, and protection are essential organizational capabilities or "preconditions" for effective knowledge management. Through analysis of surveys collected from over 300 senior executives, this research empirically models and uncovers key aspects of these dimensions. The results provide a basis for understanding the competitive predisposition of a firm as it enters a program of knowledge management. Keywords: KNOWLEDGE CAPABILITY KNOWLEDGE CULTURE KNOWLEDGE INEY WORDS AND PHRASES TEGRATION KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT PROCESSES KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT STRUCTURES ORGANIZATIONAL CAPABILITIES ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE SOCIAL CAPITAL STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE