Knowledge Management as Key Factor in Project Performance

Master's Thesis from the year 2004 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, grade: very good, University of East London, 96 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: Most organisations are aware that in today's highly competitive environment managing effectively their knowledge is the only way to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. One of the primary areas to which knowledge management can be applied is the field of project management. An increasing number of business sectors are adopting a project approach to carry out a range of essential activities where valuable knowledge is gained. Knowledge from projects is an important resource for further projects, because projects solve innovative and interdisciplinary tasks. However, the majority of organisations do not manage the information gained through past projects. Failure to transfer knowledge from past to future projects leads to wasted activity and unnecessary expenses by 'reinventing the wheel'. Therefore, knowledge management is a critical success factor for many projects.The purpose of this Management Report is to approach knowledge management from the perspective of project management. The main objective is to define how knowledge management can be enhanced within a project by analysing suitable tools and relevant theories. The research is based on the high-speed train project XY of the company XXX. This project is an important milestone for XXX to improve its market position in Spain. The knowledge gained through the XY project will be the key factor for the success of the further high-speed train projects.The main finding of the case study highlights that there is a lack of formal knowledge management activities at the project. The project team focuses mainly on personal interaction for transferring knowledge and information technology is not used to its full potential. A hybrid approa