In addition, in many smaller firms

In addition, in many smaller firms the owner-managers take on a central position (Bridge
et al., 2003). In such an environment it is not uncommon that the processes of business
planning and decision-making are limited to only one person (Culkin and Smith, 2000). This
centrality also signifies that those people in particular are responsible for recognising the
benefits of knowledge management to support the firm’s operations. However, SMEs’
day-to-day business operations specifically require close attention (Hofer and Charan,
1984). This very often results in situations where insufficient time is available for strategic
issues. This in conjunction with a lack of financial resources and expertise (Bridge et al.,
2003) frequently results in most knowledge being kept in the minds of the owner and some
key employees rather than physically stored or shared through substitution arrangements