Knowledge sharing in Asian public administration sector: the case of Hong Kong

Purpose – The paper seeks to investigate how culture, attitudes and barriers affect knowledge sharing in a Hong Kong government department. Design/methodology/approach – Interviews and survey instruments were used to collect data for qualitative analysis. Findings – Knowledge management and knowledge sharing were welcome ideas in the Hong Kong government department. Informal and tacit knowledge sharing took place but the Chinese culture remained as a barrier to knowledge sharing. Research limitations/implications – As this is a study of one government department in one particular country, the findings may not be sufficiently generalizable. Practical implications – Senior management in the public administration sector should be made more aware of what knowledge management can do to help improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness. Originality/value – The study is an in‐depth analysis of one large government department's use of knowledge management, which has not been studied before. This study and its findings contribute significantly to the knowledge of how culture will affect knowledge management in the public administration sector.