Reflections on customer knowledge management in e-business

Rowley, Jennifer (2002) Reflections on customer knowledge management in e-business. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 5 (4). pp. 268-280. ISSN 1758-7646

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Abstract

Customer knowledge is an important asset for all businesses. The rhetoric of e-business emphasises the opportunities for knowing customers in the digital economy. This article sets the context with a brief summary of the key characteristics of the knowledge management paradigm. This is used as a platform for the themes that form the core of this article: defining the knowledge that the organisation requires; knowledge tools and the relationships between data, information and knowledge; the role of customer communities in CKM; bounding and structuring organisational knowledge communities; ownership of knowledge assets; integrating customer knowledge across channels; and comparing customer knowledge management with customer relationship management. The overarching message of the article is that customer knowledge management is not just about data. Organisations need to develop strategies that enable them to capitalise on the dynamic integration of systems and people.