Identifying and Prioritizing Knowledge Management Criteria in the Institute for Trade Studies and Research

Purpose: The mission of research and educational organizations has turned them into knowledge-based organizations, which requires an appropriate and clear strategy in order to function effectively and achieve the vision. Therefore, this research aims to identify and prioritize knowledge management requirements in the Institute for Trade Studies and Research. The requirements of knowledge management were prioritized based on research literature, standard questionnaires, and brainstorming according to the views of experts and managers of the Institute for Trade Studies and Research by the fuzzy Delphi method, and the application of distance techniques.
Methods: The current research is practical in terms of its purpose, and in terms of research method and data collection, it is a descriptive survey. In terms of the basis of the type of
data collected, it was quantitative and the tool of data collection was a questionnaire. The experts
of this study are the directors of the Business Studies and Research Institute, and knowledge management specialists in 2021. Based on the judgmental sampling method, samples were selected according to their expertise. Research criteria were extracted from the study of knowledge management in institutions. Next, to analyze the criteria of the research, two questionnaires
were distributed among the experts: Fuzzy Expertise and Codas Prioritization. Expertise questionnaires with the fuzzy Delphi technique, and the priority assessment questionnaires were evaluated with the CODAS technique. Due to the fact that the categories of the questionnaire were obtained from the background review of valid international and domestic articles in the fields of knowledge management in institutions, both the expert assessment and priority assessment questionnaires have good validity. Also, due to the selection of the appropriate sample size
(15 people) and screening criteria, the priority questionnaire was reliable. The sample size in this research was equal to 15 people, which is a good number for expert-oriented methods with a judgmental nature.
Findings: Based on CODAS analysis, the first priority is the alignment of knowledge management activities with the vision and mission of the organization, the second priority is the provision of a communication field for the organization's people through communication technologies (Internet, intranet, chat room, webinar, etc.), the third priority Support of high-level executives for knowledge activities, the fourth priority is the existence of systems to attract and transfer new ideas and experiences, the fifth priority is a database for the archive of completed projects, the sixth priority is to continuously update the specialized knowledge of the organization, the seventh priority is to promote employees' awareness of the benefits of employment. Knowledge, the eighth priority, the existence of the process of receiving users' needs through executive units and their direct participation in the implementation of projects, respectively, have 8 priorities in the knowledge management requirements in the organization. Appointing the manager of knowledge programs to develop the knowledge assets of the organization; Creating business teams based on information technology; Development and expansion of the cause and purpose of knowledge management with the help and support of senior managers to establish knowledge management in the Institute of Business Studies and Research; Instead of considering knowledge management as a system for maintaining and storing its knowledge, the Institute of Business Studies and Research should create databases by creating a knowledge map to identify all the personnel of the organization and store their information according to their special expertise and knowledge, to have access to that information when needed to meet the needs of the organization.
Conclusions: Identifying and prioritizing the needs of knowledge management in the organization helps managers to allocate their limited financial, time, and human resources to the preferred and prioritized issues to implement knowledge management.