Employees' perception on knowledge sharing within the Limpopo provincial treasury
Date
2016-08-10
Authors
Rambiyana, Richard Thilivhali
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Abstract
Knowledge sharing is a critical component of knowledge management and a new
phenomenon in the South African public sector. To introduce knowledge sharing
in government, the Department of Public Service and Administration included it
as one of the core management competencies for senior management service
officials. There is a general perception that government employees are not keen
to share what they know, as sharing empowers your colleague to compete with
you for power and promotional opportunities.
The purpose of this research study was therefore to investigate the perception of
staff members on knowledge sharing activities in Limpopo Provincial Treasury
department. In particular, the study was aimed at answering the following
questions about the department: (1) What is the perception of employees on
knowledge sharing as a catalyst to achieve operational and service delivery
objectives? (2) What is the readiness level of LPT employees to share their
experiences and know-how for the benefit of the institution?
This was a qualitative research. The data was collected through the
questionnaire distributed to employees grouped in two stratas, namely senior
management and middle management services. Discussions were held, mostly
with members of the dysfunctional knowledge management committee and other
identified staff members. Relevant departmental documents were also reviewed
as part of the research process.
The outcome of the study is that the state of employees’ perception towards
knowledge sharing is generally positive but in practice, there is little knowledgesharing
taking place due to unconducive organisational culture and lack of
leadership to position knowledge management as a strategic focus of the
department. The study recommends that LPT adopts knowledge management
as a strategic focus and put plans in place to preserve institutional memory
Description
A research report submitted to the faculty of commerce, law and management, university of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of master of management (in the field of public and development management).
YEAR: 2015