Why is there no consensus on what knowledge management is?

Due to the multiplicity of meanings, there is no clear consensus about what knowledge management is, demanding to understand, in the light of the latest descriptions, which main aspects promote the absence of a harmonious agreement. This research intends to identify and analyse the intervenient that cause disagreements regarding the definition of knowledge management in order to support the proposal of a description that can be generalised. The bibliographic research was carried out to identify current definitions of knowledge management, being of an exploratory nature. Then, the identification of the intervenient that promote the absence of consensus were analysed and categorised by a qualitative approach, which made use of the content analysis technique. 192 intervenient were identified. The conceptual variations through the combined use of these terms explain the inconsistency of descriptions on knowledge management and the impossibility of reaching consensus. This analysis contributed for a new definition.

Automated summary

Due to the multiplicity of meanings, there is no clear consensus about what knowledge management is. This research identifies the factors that cause disagreements regarding the definition of knowledge management and proposes a new, generalizable description.