Abstract
In the search for sustainable competitive advantage, managing knowledge is critical not only for large organizations but also for Small and Medium sized Tourism Enterprises (SMTEs) where limited resources and the lack of the strategic direction are prevalent. Findings from the literature review suggest that, in relative terms, SMTEs are less ready for implementing knowledge management projects than are large organizations. It is also suggested that SMTEs are in need of practical strategic guidance if they are to make the most of the, often under-exploited, knowledge within and available to their organizations. For the support of SMTEs’ initial needs for knowledge management, this paper proposes a strategy aimed at harnessing explicit knowledge and strategic activities based on an extensive analysis of the literature. The proposed strategy contains actionable steps with timelines and milestones that can be implemented and modified iteratively by SMTEs, with in-built assessment and measurement mechanisms. The results of our study suggest that implementation itself can be flexible as well as iterative with no need for all the steps outlined for an improvement of the knowledge management process to be followed.
Keywords
- Knowledge Management Strategy Search this journal for Knowledge Management Strategy (opens in a new tab)
- Knowledge Activities Search this journal for Knowledge Activities (opens in a new tab)
- Small and Medium sized Tourism Enterprises (SMTEs) Search this journal for Small and Medium sized Tourism Enterprises (SMTEs) (opens in a new tab)
References
- ABS. (2003a): Australian National Accounts: Tourism Satellite Account 2001-2002 , Cat No. 5249.0. Canberra: Australian Bureau of Statistics.
- ABS. (2003b): Small Business in Australia 1999. Canberra: Australian Bureau of Statistics.
- Applebee, A., Ritchie, B., Demoor, S., & Cressy, A. (2000): The ACT Tourism Industry Internet Study: attitudes, perceptions and adoption. Canberra: Centre for tourism research, University of Canberra.
- AP&QC International Benchmarking Clearinghouse (1996): Knowledge management: Consortium benchmarking study final report. Houston: American Productivity & Quality Centre.
- Australian Government (2004): Knowledge Intensive Service Activities in the Software Industry. Canberra: Department of Industry Tourism and Resources.
- Baum, T., Wood, R., Morrison, A., McLennan, R., & Baum, B. (1998): International Benchmarking and Best Practice Study of Training and education for Tourism, Glasgow: Scottish Tourism Research Unit, University of Strathclyde.
- Bohn, R. (1994): Measuring and Managing Technological Knowledge, Sloan Management Review , 61 - 73.
- Boisot, M. H. (1998). Knowledge Assets: Securing Competitive Advantage in the Information Economy. New York: Oxford University Press.
- Brooking, A. (1996: Introduction to intellectual capital . Cambridge, England: The Knowledge Broker Ltd. Brown, J., & Duguid, P. (1998): Organizing knowledge, California Management Review , 40(3): 90-112.
- Bukowitz, W., & Williams, R. (2000): The knowledge management field book . London: Prentice Hall.
- Cameron, K. S., & Quinn, R. E. (1999): Diagnosing and changing organizational culture . Reading: AddisonWesley.
- Coakes, E. (2004): Knowledge Management-a Primer, Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 14: 406.
- Collins, H. M. (1993): The structure of knowledge, Social Research, 60 (1): 96-116.
- Davenport, T. H., & Prusak, L. (1998): Working knowledge: How organizations manage what they know. Boston, MA: Harvard business School Press.
- Drucker, P. F. (1988): The coming of the new organization, Harvard Business Reviews , 45-53.
- Drucker, D. (2001): Knowledge mgm’t revised-theory doesn’t equal practice, Internet Week , 846.
- Eccles, R. (1991): The Performance Measurement Manifesto, Harvard Business Review , 131-137.
- Edvinsson, L., & Malone, M. S. (1997): Intellectual Capital: Realizing Your Company’s True Value by Finding its Hidden Brainpower . New York: Harper Business.
- Fletcher, L. (1997): Information retrieval for intranets: The case of knowledge management, Document World, 2 , 32-34.
- Garvin, D. A. (1993): Building a learning organization, Harvard Business Review, 71 : 78-91.
- Grant, R. M. (1991): Prospering in ally competitive environments: organizational capability as knowledge integration, Organization Science, 7: 375-387.
- Grant, R. M. (1996): Toward a Knowledge-Based Theory of the Firm, Strategic Management Journal, 17: 109.
- Hansen, M. T., Nohria, N., & Tierney, T. (1999): What’s your strategy for managing knowledge? Harvard Business Review, 77(2): 101-116.
- Hibbard, J. (1998): Cultural Breakthrough, InformationWeek, September.
- Hughes, H. (1992): Economics for the Hotel and Catering Industry. Hutchinson, London.
- Kakabadse, N., Kakabadse, A., & Kouzmin, A. (2003): Reviewing the knowledge management literature: towards a taxonomy, Journal of Knowledge Management , 7(4): 75-91.
- Kaplan, R. S., & Norton, D. P. (1996): The Balanced Scorecard . Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
- Kaplan, R. S., & Norton, D. P. (2001): The Strategy-Focused Organization . Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
- King, B., Bransgrove, C., & Whitelaw, P. (1998): Profiling the Strategic Marketing Activities of Small Tourism Businesses, Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing , 7(4): 45-59.
- Knapp, E. M. (1998): Knowledge management, Business and Economic Review, 44 (4).
- Levinthal, D., & March, J. (1993): The myopia of learning, Strategic Management Journal , 14 , 95-112.
- Lituchy, T., & Rail, A. (2000): Bed and Breakfasts, Small Inns, and the Internet: The impact of technology on the globalisation of small businesses, Journal of International Marketing , 86-97.
- Machlup, F. (1980): Knowledge: its creation, distribution, and economic significance. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
- Marchant, D. A., Kettinger, W. J., & Rollins, J. D. (2000): Information Orientation: People, Technology and the Bottom Line, Sloan Management Review, 41(4): 69-80.
- Matlay, H. (2000): Organizational learning in small learning organizations: an empirical overview, Education and Training , 42(4), 202-211.
- McAdam, R., & Reid, R. (2001): SME and large organization perceptions of knowledge management: comparisons and contrasts, Journal of Knowledge Management , 5(3):231-241.
- McKellar, H. (2000). KPMG releases: KM report, KM World , March .
- Meyer, M., & Zack, H. M. (1996): The design and implementation of information products, Sloan Management Review, 37(3): 43-59.
- Nonaka, I., & Takeuchi, H. (1995): The knowledge-creating company. Oxford University Press.
- Ogden, P. (1998): Comment: Benchmarking and best practice in the small hotel sector, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 10(5) : 189-190.
- Polanyi, M. (1996): The tacit dimension. London, UK: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
- Poon, A. (1993): Tourism, Technology and Competitive Strategies. CAB International, Wallingford: Kapitel 5.
- Roos, G., & Roos, J. (1997): Measuring your Company’s Intellectual Performance, Long Range Planning, 30(3): 413-427.
- Rowley, J. (2000): Knowledge organization for a new millennium: Principles and processes, Journal of Knowledge Management, 4 (3): 217-223.
- Scarbrough, H., Swan, J. & Preston, J. (1999): Knowledge management: A literature review. London: Institute of Personnel and Development.
- Schein, E. (1997): Organizational Culture and Leadership (2nd Ed). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
- Schein, E. (1999): The corporate culture survival guide. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
- Smith, A. D. (2004): Knowledge Management Strategies: a Multi-Case Study, Journal of Knowledge Management , 8: 6-16.
- Sparrow, J. (2001): Knowledge management in small firms, Knowledge and Process Management , 8(1): 3-16. Srikantajah, T. K., & Koening, M. E. D. (2000): Eds. Knowledge Management for the Information Professional . Medford, New Jersey: ASIS Monograph Series.
- Stewart, T. A. (1997): Intellectual capital: The new wealth of organizations. New York, Currency: Doubleday.
- Storey, D. (1994): Understanding the Small Business Sector, London, Routledge.
- Teece, D. J. (1998): Capturing Value from Knowledge Assets: The New Economy, Markets for Know-How, and Intangible Assets, California Management Review, 40, 55.
- Tourism Victoria (2002): Strategic Business Plan 2002-2006 Melbourne , Tourism Victoria.
- Uit Beijerse, R. P. (2000): Knowledge management in small and medium-sized companies: Knowledge management for entrepreneurs, Journal of Knowledge Management , 4 (2): 162-179.
- Wenger, E. (1998): Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning and Identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Wiig, K. (1993): Knowledge management foundations: Thinking about Thinking-How People and Organizations Create, Represent and Use Knowledge. Arlington, TX: Schema Press.
- Zack, M. H. (1994): Electronic messaging and communication effectiveness in an ongoing work group, Information & Management, 26 (4): 231-241.
- Zack, M. H. (1999a): Managing codified knowledge, Sloan Management Review, 40 (4): 45-58.
- Zack, M. H. (1999b): Developing a knowledge strategy . California Management Review , 41 (3): 125-146.
Downloads
No downloads have been recorded for this article yet. Figures appear here once readers begin downloading the full text.
How to Cite
Share this article
License
Author (s) should affirm that the material has not been published previously. It has not been submitted and it is not under consideration by any other journal. At the same time author (s) need to execute a publication permission agreement to assume the responsibility of the submitted content and any omissions and errors therein. After submission of revised paper in the light of suggestions of the reviewers, the editorial team edits and formats manuscripts to bring uniformity and standardization in published material.
This work will be licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) and under condition of the license, users are free to read, copy, remix, transform, redistribute, download, print, search or link to the full texts of articles and even build upon their work as long as they credit the author for the original work. Moreover, as per journal policy author (s) hold and retain copyrights without any restrictions.
Keywords
- Knowledge Management Strategy Search this journal for Knowledge Management Strategy (opens in a new tab)
- Knowledge Activities Search this journal for Knowledge Activities (opens in a new tab)
- Small and Medium sized Tourism Enterprises (SMTEs) Search this journal for Small and Medium sized Tourism Enterprises (SMTEs) (opens in a new tab)
Section
Published
Submissions
Have research to publish? Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies welcomes submissions.
Make a Submission