Knowledge, as intellectual capital in organizations, is one of the most valuable resources in the global economy; yet knowledge management research has been largely contained both within organizational boundaries and from the perspective of the West (in particular the United States). Here, the views of a diverse range of well-known academic researchers, industry leaders, and public policy experts have been brought together to show how knowledge and knowledge management perspectives vary across different cultures, in different contexts, using different processes for different purposes.

Knowledge management (KM) is frequently presented as a recent development born entirely of the business world. However, the intellectual origins of knowledge management are both deeper and broader than have been posited in the literature to date. Influences of philosophy, economics, education, psychology, information and communication theory, and library and information studies have been almost completely overlooked. This book links current and historical works to the development of knowledge management across domains and disciplines to give students and scholars a deeper appreciation of...