Mobile Knowledge Management

Abstract

Whereas knowledge management (KM) has gained much attention in the field of management science and practice as the eminent source of competitive advantage (e.g., Davenport & Prusak, 1998; Drucker, 1993; Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995; Probst, Raub, & Romhardt, 2003), one issue has been largely neglected: The aspect of mobility. Conventional solutions for knowledge management systems (KMSs) have in common that they are designed for stationary workplaces and consequently require the corresponding infrastructure—that is, personal computers and fixed-line network access. Thus, they do not cater for business processes in which workers move around in or outside the premises. The result is that knowledge support for mobile workers is often rather restricted, once a task has to be performed outside of the office.