Knowledge Management Processes in Thermal Hotels:An Application in Afyonkarahisar Province, Turkey

Abstract

As a result of globalization and intensive competition, knowledge and knowledge management has become the main factor that determine the market value of the enterprises or organizations. With its increasing importance knowledge has become an important component in creating competitive advantage and business capital has begun to be distinguished as physical capital and intellectual capital. As a basic resource of intellectual capital, organizations have to effectively and systematically manage this knowledge in order to survive and create sustainable competitive advantage in long term. In simple terms, knowledge management refers to creation, adaptation, dissemination and usage of required knowledge within organization and among organisations through a well-planned process. Hence, knowledge management express a certain process and this process consists of certain steps such as acquiring, creating, documenting, disseminating, sharing and use of knowledge. Especially in 1990s, with the increasing attention to knowledge management (processes), it has become one of the most debated management concepts and numerous studies conducted in the scope of this emerging concept. Contrary to its popularity in business management literature, it’s seen that number of studies on knowledge management (processes) in hospitality industry is very limited. Thus, knowledge management is a relatively new concept for hospitality management literature and much more detailed studies need to be conducted in order to understand the knowledge management and knowledge management processes in hospitality industry. In this context, this study aims to draw attention to knowledge management in hotels by evaluating knowledge management processes in thermal hotels. Within the scope of research the knowledge management processes applied in thermal hotels has been determined through conducting questionnaire surveys. Percentage and frequency tables are used to present participants’ demographic characteristics and learn participants’ views about knowledge management processes. Finally, discriminant analysis determines differences between participants’ views based on their demographic characteristics. Keywords: Knowledge, Management, Thermal Hotel, Afyonkarahisar, Turkey