Reflection of embedded knowledge culture in communications of Australian companies

Abstract

ABSTRACTManaging knowledge and fostering a knowledge-sharing culture are essential in meeting the expectations of such diverse stakeholders as business owners, investors, current and prospective employees, business partners, customers, and the public. This paper describes how the adoption of knowledge management is reflected in communicated company values and principles by analysing the occurrence of knowledge-related keywords in the online resources of selected companies in Australia. The results show that companies are publicly communicating knowledge creation, sharing, and management-related topics, with knowledge sharing being the most frequent topic. The extent of communicating about knowledge-related issues differ between large organisations and SMEs; large companies mention relevant keywords significantly more frequently in their documents than SMEs. This indicates that knowledge management penetrates deeper into larger companies’ values and philosophy.