A Comparative Study of Knowledge Management Assessment in Business Excellence Awarded and Non-awarded Organizations in India

The changing business scenario worldwide has transformed the way organizations compete and survive in the global marketplace. Globalization has forced economies to re-look at their organizational structures, core competencies, leadership, culture and strategy formulation and implementation. Indian organizations too have undergone transformations to become world class using knowledge as their core competency. An attempt has been made to understand how the various dimensions of Knowledge Management Assessment Tool (KMAT) distinguish between those organizations which have been awarded for business excellence awards and those which have not been awarded or trying to work for this award. A sample of 57 top and middle level executives of 16 private and public sector organizations from India participated in the study.1 The results show that organizations awarded for business excellence fare better on all dimensions of knowledge management as compared to non-awarded ones. Further, t-test is used to identify the statistical differences between the mean scores of the items that constitute each dimension of KMAT. The t-test results reveal that Knowledge Management Process, Culture and Measurement aspects of Knowledge Management are better structured in award-winning organizations. The article also emphasizes on the improvement areas in developing best practices of Knowledge Management for enhancing performance and excellence in business. Since Knowledge Management is a key element for achieving business excellence, the findings of the study can serve as input to organizations for developing knowledge intensive processes to facilitate business excellence.