Knowledge management practices within higher education institutions in the UK

Knowledge Management (KM) is widely regarded within the business world as an essential tool to underpin both efficiency of operation and quality of delivery. To date however, such practice is relatively under-developed in UK higher education; indeed, recent history of UK higher education is sprinkled with examples of failure in the effective management of knowledge. This paper uses the findings of a survey conducted within the United Kingdom on the current and intended KM practices in Higher Education institutions (HEIs) to investigate how effectively KM is being applied within HEIs to enhance competitiveness, looking at the contributing factors that hinder or promote KM within this context. To date, no agreed approach to managing organisational knowledge has been commonly accepted, and several isolated, and at times diverging, notions are being advanced. A literature review on KM practices in UK HEIs suggests that few have dedicated processes that are institutionalised to leverage knowledge in order to spur innovation, improve instructional and support service, or maximize operational efficiency and effectiveness. It is also suggested that even fewer utilize the benefits of KM for competitive advantage. Given that universities generally can be historically, locationally and financially very different, and that there has also been a much greater exposure of the UK higher education system to market forces since the 1990's, the paper examines whether these contributing factors have any impact on the KM practices within HEIs. To what extent are HEIs moving towards adopting KM principles given the changing environment of HEIs? Are HEIs starting to realize the benefits of adopting KM principles to enhance efficiency and competitiveness? What are the current and intended practices within the UK? What are the factors that hinder or promote the implementation of KM within Higher Education? These and other questions related to KM are considered.