A model of organisational knowledge management maturity based on people, process, and technology

Abstract

Organisations are increasingly investing in knowledge management (KM) initiatives to promote the sharing, application, and creation of knowledge for competitive advantage. To guide and assess the progress of KM initiatives in organisations, various process models have been proposed but a consistent approach that has been empirically tested is lacking. Based on the life cycle theory, this paper reviews, compares, and integrates existing models to propose a General KM Maturity Model (G-KMMM). G-KMMM encompasses the initial, aware, defined, managed, and optimising stages, which are differentiated in terms of their characteristics related to the people, process, and technology aspects of KM. To facilitate empirical validation and application, an accompanying assessment tool is also developed. As an initial validation of the proposed G-KMMM, a case study of a multi-unit information system organisation of a large public university was conducted. Findings indicate that G-KMMM can be a useful diagnostic tool for assessing and guiding KM implementation in organisations. © 2009 World Scientific Publishing Co.