KM in China: Western heads in Eastern hands?

The purpose of this paper is to present a case for effective knowledge transfer, management and protection between the West and the East, with an emphasis on cultural aspects.

The paper describes the background of KM programs in China for Western companies and the three‐step approach for its implementation.

The three‐step KM approach was effective in managing knowledge flows from the west to the east. Key lessons are that responsible KM, while doing business in China, is not about stopping knowledge flows but rather about assessing the knowledge, its channels and recipients; and that the cultural factor is key to successful KM in a global context.

Although the paper is based on projects in China, this three‐step approach for knowledge transfer, management and protection in China can be applied by any organization that needs to share effectively across borders.

The social implications could be a higher awareness of the cultural factor for KM in different global contexts, and a more people‐oriented approach to doing KM.

Much has been written about doing business in China and much has been written about knowledge management. The paper is unique as it combines these two vast domains by way of a very practical and proven project case. It is also original, as dealing with knowledge in China by Western companies has been dominated by legal measures, not KM approaches.