KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT, ABSORPTIVE CAPACITY AND ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE: A CASE STUDY FROM CHINESE SMEs

Based on the analysis of an innovative medium sized enterprise from mainland China, this paper investigated the knowledge management (KM) issues by focusing on its KM enablers and process. This paper attempts to investigate how Chinese enterprises absorb knowledge from external sources; how they developed culture to facilitate knowledge management processes; and what major challenges they raise for the future by looking at the case study of a Chinese SMEs (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises). The case study indicates that Chinese enterprises emphasized knowledge acquisition and the capacities of knowledge absorption, application, creation, sharing and integration as vital to sustaining competitive advantage for these firms. Corporative organizational culture also has significant impact on the knowledge management in those enterprises.