Knowledge management in electronic government : an exploratory study of local authorities in Malaysia / Kalsom Salleh and Syed Noh Syed Ahmad

Public sector organizations in developing countries have not received much
attention in the research literature of Knowledge Management (KM). The
potential impact of KM in the public sector organizations affecting the
stakeholders is greater compared to private sector organizations. This paper
explores the role of KM in Local Authorities in the broader perspective towards
achieving the Electronic Government (E-Government) orientation in Malaysia.
This research used a survey questionnaire distributed to all senior and
middle management government officers in a multiple case study of three
types of Local Authorities located in the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory and
the state of Selangor. These officers are responsible for strategic policies and
operational management in various departments of the Local Authorities.
The responses from the questionnaires will provide answers to two critical
areas: awareness and readiness of KM adoption in terms of physical assets
(KM technology) and intellectual assets (ICT skills and ICT trainings provided
to management staff) and also the perceived opportunities and challenges in
using KM as a strategic tool in developing knowledge - based civil service
and the implementation of E-Government.