Investigating Barriers to Knowledge Management Success: A Conceptual Model and a Comparative Case Analysis

What barriers obstruct the success of knowledge management programs? This paper has integrated studies on the barriers to knowledge management (KM) into a theoretical framework. Based on this framework, five cases documenting failed KM initiatives were analysed. The analysis gives a clear picture about why certain KM projects fail. The high failure rate of KM can be explained by the supply-IT based approach many organisations adopt when it comes to their KM programs. To increase the success rate of KM projects, companies should go beyond the one-dimensional thinking, e.g. technology, and adopt an approach where all the ingredients of KM operate in a synchronised way.