KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE: AN EXPERIENCE FROM RABOBANK AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

Knowledge and information transfer have become important ingredients for an organisation's competitive advantage. Knowledge management has emerged as an overarching strategy to enhance knowledge creation, information transfer, utilisation, and reticulation in order to generate innovation and improve organisational performance. Part of this strategy involves the creation of Communities of Practice. These are networks of individuals with a common, shared purpose grouped together to facilitate knowledge building, idea creation and information exchange. The experience establishing Communities of Practice at Rabobank Australia and New Zealand is examined.