Creating knowledge-based organisations by means of knowledge management and organisational learning

Abstract

Knowledge-creating organisations are successful. They have the ability consistently to produce new knowledge, circulate it through their organisations, and embody it in new products and services. Knowledge is a certain  source of competitive advantage and the challenge for organisations, therefore, is to share and manage it. This article distinguishes between information, learning and knowledge and describes various models of knowledge management. These models that focus on social construction share common ground with those on learning organisations. For knowledge management to be successful it is necessary to understand how people in organisations learn, how they implement what they learn and how they share their knowledge. This article concludes by discussing the flow of knowledge in a learning organisation and the various types of learning which take place in such organisations.