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Abstract: Purpose - Reviewing the literature from 2000 until 2020, this paper aims to analyse the nature of existing research on customer knowledge management (CKM) and outlines a future research agenda. Design/methodology/approach - Selected articles on CKM are examined using a structured literature review methodology. The paper analyses 75 articles published from 2000 to 2020 within journals specializing in the fields of management, information systems and marketing. Findings - CKM is a research area of growing importance especially in the marketing and IS domains. Findings show different definitions of the construct depending on the examined field. Additionally, qualitative research on customer knowledge management is scarce and there seems to be a lack of understanding concerning CK creation, collection, transfer, and dissemination within the firm. Originality/value - The paper integrates the literature on CKM within a framework that links the antecedents, consequences, and moderators. Finally, the review identifies 3 research streams to extend the literature and outline key practical implications: implementation, firm performance and, customer engagement. Paper type - Literature review
Keywords: systematic literature review; customer knowledge management; antecedent; moderators; consequences; research agenda
1. Introduction
First used in 1995 by Andrew Orent in the banking sector, the notion of "customer knowledge" (CK) has become increasingly popular in management literature. Today, customer knowledge is a central concept in business management. According to a Google Scholar search conducted in May 2021, the term "customer knowledge" was cited in 37400 references. Publications on the subject find their application in various fields, especially, management, information systems and marketing.
Customer knowledge is an essential asset for organizations (Kohli & Jaworski, 1990) and consumers are constantly changing (Stuart-Menteth et al., 2006). To organizations, it is crucial to capture those changes and adapt to them. The consumer is deemed to be "individualistic" in the 1980s, "hedonistic" in the 1990s and "creative" in the 2000s. Today, consumers are considered active "co-creators", capable of agency in their market (Cova & Cova, 2009; Leclercq et al., 2016). Hence the importance of developing customer knowledge management for researchers and practitioners alike. By proposing a systematic review of the literature covering twenty years of research on the subject, this article paints a comprehensive and up- to-date picture on customer knowledge management. Based on 75 articles published in...