Fostering Innovation Through Knowledge-Centered Principles: A Case Analysis of Singapore Airlines

With the emergence of the knowledge economy, organisations are beginning to see a need to apply knowledge management (KM) practices to their business activities. While knowledge management (KM) has gathered considerable momentum in order to be a vital source of competitive advantage, how its role could harvest knowledge assets for innovation has yet to be established firmly. This paper aims to address this issue by examining how innovation can be fostered through knowledge-centred principles. It first describes the globalisation of economies and the coming of the new knowledge age as the backdrop to Singapore’s vision of transiting into a knowledge economy. Then, it discusses how KM practices can be harnessed better for innovation management and explains why organisations should foster innovation by adopting an evolving set of knowledge-centred principles. Next, based on a case analysis of Singapore Airlines (SIA), it provides a theoretical review of these principles. Finally, it outlines the future challenges of exploiting knowledge for innovation.