KM governance: the mechanisms for guiding and controlling KM program

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Purpose: To establish and sustain their KM programs organizations need to establish mechanisms to ensure their governance. KM programs require business integration, senior management involvement and decision making authority. The present research investigates the KM governance mechanisms organizations use to guide and control their KM programs. The research seeks to contribute to a better understanding of the governance of KM and to support organizations in the development of their KM programs.
Methodology: The study employs multiple case research methodology to analyze the KM governance arrangements of twelve international organizations and identify patterns in their governance configurations.
Findings: The analysis identifies a range of structural, process and relational mechanisms that are critical for governing an organizational KM program. Different patterns among the KM governance mechanisms are identified which lead to the development of generic KM governance typologies.
Research implications: The development of the KM governance framework allows future research to systematically investigate the KM governance phenomenon. As the present study is based on a configurational analysis future research should particularly target the performance implications of different KM governance configurations.
Practical implications: The research provides insights into the diversity of KM governance mechanisms and their impact on a KM program. The KM governance framework can assist managers in reviewing their present and prospective KM programs and thereby support benchmarking or re-organization efforts.
Originality: Building on prior research that has focused on individual KM governance aspects, the present study adopts a comprehensive perspective integrating structural, process and relational governance mechanisms.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)3-21
Number of pages19
JournalJournal of Knowledge Management
Volume16
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2012

Bibliographical note

This article is © Emerald Group Publishing and permission has been granted for this version to appear here (please insert the web address here). Emerald does not grant permission for this article to be further copied/distributed or hosted elsewhere without the express permission from Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

Keywords

  • KM governance
  • governance
  • IT governance
  • knowledge management
  • KM function

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'KM governance: the mechanisms for guiding and controlling KM program'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this