The Influence of Knowledge Management on the Competitiveness of Government Organisations

Abstract

Due to increasing instability in modern economies Government organizations need to become competitive. In relation to this Knowledge Management (KM) has been rapidly growing recently as a source of influence on organisational development practices. During the past decade research has largely failed to show the importance of KM initiatives in creating synergy with other initiatives that lead towards organizational competitiveness. This investigation addresses whether KM holistically influences organisational excellence, specifically in the context of the government sector. In order to determine the relationships between KM and organisational excellence identified in the literature, and increasingly used in practice, a quantitative survey approach was undertaken using a series of researcher-developed scales. Building on the literature review Organisational Competitiveness (OC) was identified as important in relation to KM. The conceptual framework that was designed tested the concept of the holistic influence of KM on organisational excellence. Some six hundred and twenty five valid responses were collected from top and middle management from fifty four government organizations in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Following this a model was statistically tested according to the research hypothesis by regression analysis then Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The results revealed strong and significant correlations amongst organisational development practices. Although the holistic influence of the model could not be confirmed, findings show positive KM influence on organisational development practices, thus KM is an essential factor for government organisations. This concept of a holistic model needs to be further subjected to empirical investigation to explore its viability.