Strategic knowledge management and evolving local government

If you build it, will they come? Exploring the success factors of knowledge management systems in the Malaysian public sector

The current study investigates the factors that influence the success of knowledge management systems in the public sector. This study integrates the DeLone and McLean Model with critical organizational factors. The model has been tested on the data collected from 158 employees in the public sector in Malaysia, the study found that knowledge content quality has a higher significant impact on the use of knowledge management systems than system quality. Perceived usefulness also has a greater impact than user satisfaction in determining the system's overall success. Among the organizational factors, leadership is the most significant determinant of success. However, the culture of sharing, perceived trust, and incentives do not significantly influence the use of knowledge management systems. The findings suggest that public sector organizations should focus on both system and organizational factors to implement successful knowledge management systems.

Challenges of knowledge management in the public sector: evidence from the King Abdullah Award for Excellence in Jordan

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to undertake an exploration of the challenges related to knowledge management (KM) within public sector organisations in Jordan.

Design/methodology/approach

There was the adoption of a qualitative method to achieve the objective of the study, with content analysis undertaken on ten assessment reports, so the results of the content analysis could be validated. A total of 20 semi-structured interviews were conducted within the sample organisations. The sample was made up of ten public sector organisations that had participated at least twice within the King Abdullah Excellence Award with acknowledgement within their reports of failure to achieve results that were satisfactory for KM.

Findings

KM challenges identified reflect various aspects of different factors, such as organisational structure, culture, KM processes and the evaluation of KM. In practical terms, the main KM-related challenges for the Jordanian public sector are considered to be a lack of a culture of teamwork to support sharing and exchange of knowledge, lack of required documentation for the building of organisational memory needed for processes of KM, lack of training for KM, lack of clear vision and strategy for KM and lack of proper methodologies for the management of internal knowledge and weaknesses in the integration of information and data.

Originality/value

The study puts forward a conceptual model that can be used in assessing the challenges that managers face when they seek to implement KM in organisations within the public sector. The challenges of KM within the public sector have been studied widely, in general; however there is an importance to gaining better understanding of how to overcome those challenges. Compared with most of the existent studies, this particular research has offered detailed, specific insights into challenges for KM within the public sector, along with provision of a conceptual model that other researchers could use in the future.

Effects of knowledge management on the management of health and social care: a systematic literature review

Purpose

The purpose of this study is twofold. First, it suggests that knowledge management (KM), as an academic discipline and managerial practice, provides valuable perspectives and tools to help health and social care management cope with both existing and future challenges. Second, it reviews the existing evidence on the effects of KM on the management of health and social care. Based on the results of the review, an evaluation framework for the effects of KM is proposed.

Design/methodology/approach

The literature review was conducted using the guidance of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement to search the Web of Science and SCOPUS databases. The search terms included “knowledge management”, “healthcare” and “effect.” Academic articles published between 2010 and 2020 were included.

Findings

The study identifies six main categories among the effects of KM on the management of health and social care as follows: enhanced understanding of customer needs, improved organizational performance, better targeted decision-making, improved quality of service, behavioral or cultural change and improved risk management.

Originality/value

This study contributes by summarizing the literature on the effects of KM on the management of health and social care and proposing avenues for future research in this area.

Knowledge management in local governments in developing countries: a systematic literature review

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the state of research into knowledge management within local government in developing countries, to identify themes that have been studied and to identify important gaps in the literature that can inform a research agenda going forward.

Design/methodology/approach

A structured literature review method was used in this study. The authors reviewed academic literature published between 2009 and 2019. A total of 15 articles were identified and reviewed.

Findings

The findings reveal that, few authors have contributed to knowledge management within local government in developing countries and there is little international collaboration between authors. The authors found limited methodological and theoretical diversity and rigor in the reviewed work. The review identified themes that have been researched but evidenced a lack of guidelines and frameworks developed to promote knowledge management initiatives within local governments in developing countries. Overall, it was evident that this area was still little explored. As a result, there are many possibilities for future research.

Originality/value

This study provides a comprehensive systematic literature review of papers published on knowledge management in local governments in developing countries, identifying themes that have been studied and gaps for further research.

Knowledge management practices and systems in county governments in developing countries

Purpose

While several studies have indicated the critical role played by the ability of countries to exploit knowledge as an economic resource, it would appear that there have been very few studies conducted on understanding the practices adopted by governments in relation to exploring knowledge, particularly in Africa. The purpose of this study is to investigate the prevailing knowledge management practices and technological solutions used by governments to support knowledge management.

Design/methodology/approach

To address the research objective of this study, semi-structured interviews and document analysis were used. The interviews were conducted with both senior and junior county officials from five counties in Kenya, with a total of 31 county officials participating. Further, various county documents were analysed both to seek convergence and corroborate the interview findings.

Findings

The study findings revealed that no systematic knowledge management practices existed in the county governments in Kenya, which were investigated. On the few occasions that the study did find evidence of knowledge management practices, these practices were isolated, informal, uncoordinated and rarely documented and/or communicated. Furthermore, the study found that there were inadequate policy frameworks in place to support knowledge management practices. The study also revealed a scarcity of relevant technological solutions tailored to support knowledge management practices.

Research limitations/implications

It was, thus, hoped that this research would promote an understanding of the prevailing local circumstances that hinder the effective utilisation of knowledge management practices and systems. The study recommends that county governments develop the capabilities required for creating and sustaining an enabling knowledge management environment through frameworks and policies that foster knowledge management practices and systems. The findings have practical implications for the way in which county governments in Kenya and other developing countries may improve their knowledge management practices and adopt appropriate technological solutions to support such practices.

Originality/value

Much of the existing literature on knowledge management is focussed on exploring such practices in large businesses. Studies centred specifically on the analysis of knowledge management practices in county governments in Africa, and how technological solutions may be used to build such practices are conspicuously lacking in the relevant literature.