Effects of Knowledge Management on Electronic Commerce: An Exploratory Study in Taiwan

Abstract

The Internet-enabled e-commerce field provides capabilities for firms in all sectors to reach global buyers and suppliers. Knowledge management provides frameworks to manage intellectual capital as a valuable organizational and strategic resource. Current literature on e-commerce and knowledge management primarily emphasizes the benefit of knowledge management for innovative e-commerce operations. Do knowledge management practices significantly benefit electronic commerce? If so, does the relationship work in the other direction? Does a firm’s e-commerce applications significantly benefit knowledge management practices, as well? To test these exploratory propositions, empirical data were collected from companies in a variety of industries in Taiwan, a country emphasizing e-commerce initiatives. The results revealed significant relationships between the way businesses implement electronic commerce projects and how they experiment with knowledge management concepts, as well as interesting benefits and difficulties in implementation. These relationships were found to operate in both directions, offering reinforcing effects as well as connections.