Knowledge Management for the Micro Enterprise: A Taxonomy

Abstract

Knowledge Management Systems enhance innovation, increase operational efficiency, and improve decision-making in business organisations. The administrative and resource overheads required to implement and maintain such systems, however, inherently exclude the smallest of firms from reaping these benefits. This paper aims to identify, evaluate, and summarize the distribution of research on knowledge management and supporting systems across business size classifications with a particular focus on micro-enterprises. It also seeks to establish if existing knowledge management models, practices, and systems have invested due consideration in their design to cater for the limited resources typically found in the micro-enterprise. It contributes new insight into the applicability of knowledge management systems to micro-enterprises and stimulates a possible re-think of how such systems can cater for the specific constraints of this prolific business type. This taxonomy provides a thorough analysis of 168 research papers from a total of 10511 papers published in reputable conference proceedings since 2012. It focuses on key knowledge management themes covered, including the size of the enterprise, the adoption challenges, the potential benefits, the technologies used, and the aspects of the knowledge management cycle that are being employed. Furthermore, it draws on this analysis to highlight the appropriateness of existing knowledge management systems to the distinctive risk and opportunity characteristics of the micro-enterprise.