A perceptual study on KM orientation in Indian private engineering institutions

Abstract

Purpose

The environmental challenges of digitalization, globalization, and industrialization, which are growing at a fast pace, require serious attention. As a result, the old structures of the education system established in pre‐independent India and in place during most of the twentieth century are now required to undergo drastic changes. The introduction of ICT and knowledge management systems (KMSs) in Indian education for achieving these new visions would require enormous changes in the system. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to analyze the perception of teachers about KM orientation in Indian engineering institutions in the National Capital Region and to propose a conceptual model to assess KM orientation in private engineering institutes in India.

Design/methodology/approach

Research data were collected using a questionnaire from teachers of private engineering colleges of the National Capital Region in India. A total of 200 questionnaires were distributed to the teachers in private engineering colleges of the National Capital Region in Ghaziabad covering about ten private engineering colleges in the region. The validity of the constructs was assessed by means of factor analysis and the reliability of the scales was judged using Cronbach's α.

Findings

Factor analysis produced five factors of KM orientation after deleting those items with a factor loading of less than 0.50. The results indicate that five attributes – i.e. knowledge acquisition, knowledge dissemination, leadership, culture and technology – are important dimensions of knowledge management orientation in engineering institutions.

Research limitations/implications

This paper can provide reflections and inputs to other technical institutions for developing a successful knowledge management framework.

Practical implications

The paper reveals the knowledge infrastructure and resources used by Indian engineering institutions as a benchmark for better performance.

Originality/value

From an examination of the literature, only a few studies of application of knowledge management in engineering colleges have been reported in India, which reveals that KM as a tool in higher education has not received much attention.

Citation

Sharma, V. (2012), "A perceptual study on KM orientation in Indian private engineering institutions", International Journal of Educational Management, Vol. 26 No. 3, pp. 234-251. https://doi.org/10.1108/09513541211213327