Knowledge management in local government: The case of Stellenbosch Municipality

Shamin Gaffoor,Fanie Cloete

doi:10.4102/sajim.v12i1.422

Abstract

Knowledge management (KM) was a well-founded management approach that held significant benefits for public sector organisations. KM as a management philosophy had an impact on various components of an organisation and it could therefore significantly advance organisational efficiency. The successful implementation of KM initiatives had to be ensured because, different organisational processes and departments had to collaborate and functional silos had to be eliminated. KM required long-term commitment and dedication from all organisational members. Furthermore, there were certain knowledge management enablers in an organisation that needed to be developed and that were necessary for the achievement of organisational effectiveness. These enablers were the organisational culture, human resources, information technology, organisational structure and, the organisation’s strategy and leadership. This article assessed each of these enablers and how they impacted on an organisation’s KM efforts. Stellenbosch Municipality was used as a case in point. The article further examined how local governments were able to effectively implement KM practices as strategic tools used to achieve service delivery and operational goals. The article concluded with a number of recommended strategies, (1) to develop the KM enablers that were present in organisations and (2) to aid the implementation of successful organisational KM initiatives.

Highlights

The demand for more efficient and effective delivery of services in South Africa has increased over recent years
In line with trends in other developing countries, South Africa has embraced the businesslike reforms advocated by the New Public Management (NPM) school of thought, that manifests in the government’s legislative prescript White Paper on Transforming Public Service Delivery of 1997 (WPTPSD)
The goals of the study were, (1) to investigate the extent to which Stellenbosch Municipality demonstrates readiness for implementing Knowledge management (KM) practices in its organisation through the assessment of existing KM enablers present in that organisation and (2) to identify general principles demonstrated by Stellenbosch Municipality that can be used for wider application in the South African local government sphere

Summary

Introduction

The demand for more efficient and effective delivery of services in South Africa has increased over recent years. In line with trends in other developing countries, South Africa has embraced the businesslike reforms advocated by the New Public Management (NPM) school of thought, that manifests in the government’s legislative prescript White Paper on Transforming Public Service Delivery of 1997 (WPTPSD). This prescript forms part of the policy document, commonly termed ‘Batho Pele’ (‘People First’ in Sotho), that reflects the customer-centric nature of South Africa’s service delivery reforms and contains eight guiding principles for public sector institutions in their efforts to deliver services efficiently and effectively. Through the implementation of KM practices, local governments could be in a position to deliver the best possible services, function effectively and operate in an environment characterised by transparency and accountability

Objectives

Results

Conclusion