Assessing knowledge management systems implementation in Ghanaian universities

Abstract

Knowledge management (KM) is regarded as a strategic asset and a source of competitive advantage for organisations. While the issues of KM have been widely discussed by many researchers, there is a paucity of studies pertaining to the role of KM in enhancing the performance of universities, especially Ghanaian universities. Similarly, there is the lack of formal strategy that would provide an appropriate framework for these systems to ensure maximum utilisation of available knowledge for competitive advantage. Due to this, Ghanaian universities have been continually reinventing the wheel each time they lose knowledge through expertise leaving the universities. This loss of knowledge through expert staff exiting raises the need to have systems and strategies in place that will help the universities to capture that relevant knowledge. The research thus set out to address these problems by assessing the implementation of KM systems in Ghanaian universities and the strategies that could be adopted to manage and safeguard knowledge as a competitive advantage and for future use. A survey and a mixed method research approach, which encompasses a questionnaire and interview schedules, were used to collect data from the stratified sampled respondents. One hundred and eighteen (80.27%) questionnaires were successfully received from the respondents, while all nine interviewees successfully responded to the interviews. Pattern matching, content analysis and explanation-building were used to analyse the qualitative data. The Microsoft spreadsheet and SPSS software were used to analyse the quantitative data and descriptive statistics in the form of tables, pie charts and histograms were used to present the findings. The findings of this study showed that: the concepts of KM was universally understood by the respondents; KM processes were effective; systems and facilities such as internet, intranet, e-mails, mobile technology and DVD/VCD/CD were used to facilitate KM at the universities; leadership, culture, technologies and strategies were the KM enablers; e-learning, coaching and mentorship, communities of practice, and storytelling were the main strategies used to manage and safeguard knowledge; and KM systems had a positive impact on the universities. The study finally formulated an integrated KM framework to guide the implementation of KM systems in universities.