Post-industrial economy and competitive positioning – the value of knowledge management and learning organisations

The authors' focus of interest is on the linkage of two concepts: Knowledge Management and Learning Organisaton. This article presents a summary of a much wider review of the literature concerned with these two concepts. The article brings together key areas of debate centring on the term knowledge and how knowledge derives from investment in intellectual capital, which organisations can subsequently transform into novel forms of assets. The authors discuss how the practice of Knowledge Management becomes embedded in organisations through an examination of contiguous concepts including learning, change and culture. The need for supporting systems is raised and the concept of enabling Knowledge Management by information technology so that communities of practice become established is identified. Finally the authors draw from the literature to conclude with their cognitive map of the Knowledge Management field that suggests linkages between the various discourses encountered in their review.