Three‐dozen knowledge‐sharing barriers managers must consider

Purpose Knowledge sharing is the corner‐stone of many organisations’ knowledge‐management (KM) strategy. Despite the growing significance of knowledge sharing's practices for organisations’ competitiveness and market performance, several barriers make it difficult for KM to achieve the goals and deliver a positive return on investment. This paper provides a detailed review of current KM and related literatures on a large number of possible knowledge‐sharing barriers with the purpose of offering a more comprehensive and structured starting‐point for senior managers when auditing their organisation's current knowledge base and knowledge‐sharing requirements. Design/methodology/approach This article reviews and discusses over three dozen potential knowledge‐sharing barriers, categorising them into three main domains of recently published works: individual/personal, organisational, and technological barriers. Findings The extensive list of knowledge sharing barriers provides a helpful starting point and guideline for senior managers auditing their existing practices with a view to identifying any bottle‐necks and improving on the overall effectiveness of knowledge‐sharing activities. Practical implications Managers need to realise, however, that a particular knowledge sharing strategy or specific managerial actions will not suit all companies and that there are differences to be expected between MNCs and SMEs, private, public sector, and not‐for‐profit organisations. As such, the implementation of knowledge‐sharing goals and strategies into an organisation's strategic planning and thinking will vary greatly. Originality/value The main discussion of this paper brings together a large range of knowledge‐ sharing barriers in an attempt to indicate the complexity of knowledge sharing as a value‐creating organisational activity.