Libraries as Precursors for Effective Knowledge Management

Abstract

The development of knowledge management in recent years has become the key concern for librarians and libraries. This paper reviewed the evolution of knowledge management, the various conceptualizations of KM by different scholars, the rise of KM especially with respect to tacit and explicit Knowledge management. It was clear that explicit knowledge is documented knowledge while tacit knowledge is the knowledge that resides in the head of the individual.KM was then discussed visa avis its relationship with libraries and librarianship, IT, Resources Sharing and Networking in libraries for effective KM, KM and library user satisfaction, lastly the paper encouraged the use of good library quality staff for effective knowledge management. This is because a good quality staff would be involved in transfer of knowledge both tacit and explicit from experienced staff to new staff members for maximum user satisfaction. . The paper concluded that librarians/libraries in the digital and knowledge age should be in charge of knowledge management in their respective organizations in order to leverage the intellectual assets of their organization and to facilitate knowledge creation.