Knowledge Management Systems: Theory and Practice

Knowledge management is becoming more and more important in a changing business climate, as organizations are faced with tremendous competitive pressures. Technological developments such as e-commerce have made company strategies and customer interfacing more visible, so this resource-based view of strategy has become a key issue in gaining differentiation in the eyes of the customer and maintaining competitive advantage. Knowledge management skills and processes are crucial to this, as they leverage a company's renewable, reusable and accumulating assets. This book provides an essential guide to the area of knowledge management, and specifically highlights new developments such as Knowledge Management Systems. Featuring insights and perspectives from contributors from the UK, Europe and the USA, this book presents cutting edge theory and evidence about the use of information technology for the management of organizational knowledge. The book is split into three sections: Experiences in KMS Practice, featuring practical case studies taken from well-known companies and organizations Designing KMS Enterprise Architectures, explaining different structures for integrating and sharing knowledge within an organisation Implementing KM Solutions, which demonstrates the fundamental principles to implementing systems, and the hurdles that must be faced This book covers a fast-growing topic in great depth, and will prove invaluable to students taking Knowledge Management courses on degrees in Business, Management or Information Systems. It is also a useful guide for practitioners contemplating new technological developments in the field.