Proceedings of the 12th European Conference on Knowledge ...

KM as a Solution for <strong>the</strong> Shortage <strong>of</strong> Competent
Employees in SMEs at <strong>the</strong> Developing Country (Case
study: Vietnam)
Thi Hai Hang Nguyen 1 , Lubor Homolka 2 , Zdenek Molnar 3 , and Roderick
J.Macdonald 4
1,2 Faculty <strong>of</strong> Management and Economics, Tomas Bata University in Zlin,
Czech Republic
3 Faculty <strong>of</strong> informatics and Statistics, University <strong>of</strong> Economics, Prague, Czech
Republic
4 Faculty <strong>of</strong> Management &Technology, School <strong>of</strong> Business, University <strong>of</strong>
Quebec and Montreal, Canada
nghaihang@fame.utb.cz
homolka@fame.utb.cz
zdenek.molnar@vse.cz
macdonald.roderick@uqam.ca
Abstract: This paper presents partial results from <strong>the</strong> first empirical study <strong>of</strong> KM in SMEs <strong>of</strong> Vietnam. A
preliminary survey had revealed that KM is an important issue for SMEs in Vietnam. It also identified <strong>the</strong> main
motivation for SMEs to implement KM-related activities (<strong>the</strong> search for solutions to a chronic shortage <strong>of</strong>
competent employees) as well as <strong>the</strong> two probable main causes for this shortage: (1) <strong>the</strong> departure <strong>of</strong> employees
from SMEs and/or (2) remaining employees not learning how to work effectively. Using statistical analysis and
fuzzy methodology, this paper formally verifies whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> inferences from <strong>the</strong> preliminary study really hold for
<strong>the</strong> general population <strong>of</strong> Vietnamese SMEs, and from <strong>the</strong>re proposes obvious actions to be taken to solve <strong>the</strong>
shortage <strong>of</strong> competent employees. The findings presented in this paper help us understand more about <strong>the</strong>
operations <strong>of</strong> SMEs in developing countries and suggest a feasible approach to initiate KM for SMEs.
Keywords: Knowledge, knowledge management (KM), SMEs, Vietnam
1. Introduction
Most KM research focuses on big and resource-rich corporation (Wong, 2005), and, after more than
30 years <strong>of</strong> development, studies about KM practices in SMEs are still rare. The present paper hopes
to fill that void in a small way both by its own limited empirical contribution and by exemplifying how
such research (knowledge management in small to mid-sized firms) may be conducted in <strong>the</strong>
particular context <strong>of</strong> developing countries. As well, <strong>the</strong> empirical research was conducted in Vietnam
partly with <strong>the</strong> desire as to find ways to implement KM for SMEs <strong>the</strong>re. KM is still a new and
unpopular concept in Vietnam (Vu, 2008) not only for businesses but also for government and o<strong>the</strong>r
regulatory authorities as well as consultant companies. Fur<strong>the</strong>r, previous studies in KM have focused
on companies/organizations that had already implemented KM. The present research does not
suppose such implementation.
A preliminary survey conducted at <strong>the</strong> beginning <strong>of</strong> 2010 revealed that, SMEs in Vietnam are doing
<strong>the</strong>ir best to deal with KM issues although unaware <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> academic terminology (Nguyen et al.,
2010). This was surprising. SME’s in Vietnam tend to leave strategic management “for later”. Since
KM is part <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> strategic management <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> firm, because it is more closely linked to innovation
ra<strong>the</strong>r than <strong>the</strong> day-to-day business <strong>of</strong> survival, and finally because it is mostly intangible and difficult
to measure and justify, it is not a field to which such SMEs are likely to dedicate much effort. The
preliminary survey also identified <strong>the</strong> main motivation for SMEs to implement KM-related activities: <strong>the</strong>
search for solutions to a chronic shortage <strong>of</strong> competent employees. Observation and miniconsultations
with some SMEs business owners suggested two probable main causes for this
shortage: (1) <strong>the</strong> departure <strong>of</strong> knowledge employees from SMEs and/or (2) o<strong>the</strong>r employees don’t
learn how to work effectively.
This paper partly presents <strong>the</strong> empirical data collected from 87 SMEs in Ho Chi Minh City – <strong>the</strong>
largest city <strong>of</strong> Vietnam and <strong>the</strong> most important in economic terms. The findings presented in this
paper could help academics and practitioners understand more about <strong>the</strong> operations <strong>of</strong> SMEs in
Vietnam and in o<strong>the</strong>r developing countries as well as to suggest a feasible approach to initiate KM
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