The Search for an Integrated KM Framework

The learning and knowledge that we have, is, at the most, but little compared with that of which we are ignorant. Plato Knowledge management (KM) is a vital and complex topic of current interest to so many in business, government and the community in general, that there is an urgent need to expand the role of empirical research to inform knowledge management practice. However, one of the most striking aspects of knowledge management is the diversity of the field and the lack of universally accepted definitions of the term itself and its derivatives, knowledge and management. As a consequence of the multidisciplinary nature of KM, the terms inevitably hold a difference in meaning and emphasis for different people. The initial chapter of this book addresses the challenges brought about by these differences. This chapter begins with a critical assessment of some diverse frameworks for knowledge management that have been appearing in the international academic literature of many disciplines for some time. Then follows a description of ways that these have led to some holistic and integrated frameworks currently being developed by KM researchers in Australia.