Education and training in the knowledge‐based economy

Abstract

PurposeKnowledge management (KM) has recently received considerable attention in the computer information systems community and is continually gaining interest by industry, enterprises and academia. As one moves into an era of “knowledge capitalism”, KM in combination with information management, will play a fundamental role in the success of transforming individual knowledge into organisational knowledge. The increasing economic importance of knowledge, which nowadays redefines the links among education, work and learning, makes the role of KM quite crucial. The main purpose of this paper is to propose new ways of using KM for the development of modern education and training.Design/methodology/approachThe paper presents the basic issues related to KM, by reviewing key contributions to the field. It then discusses the applicability of KM concepts and principles to education and training, presents real and successful examples and proposes innovative ways in order to apply KM techniques in this field.FindingsThe main finding is that KM can successfully contribute to the development of education and training in the context of the new knowledge‐based economy.Practical implicationsThe main implication is the need to explore how companies and organisations can efficiently and effectively adopt such KM approaches for education and training.Originality/valueThe distinguishing feature of this study is that it shows that the key concepts of KM can be used for education and training purposes, something that in turn can help companies to leverage the skills and expertise of its members and consequently to maintain and enhance their knowledge capital.