IOSR Journal of Business and Management (IOSR-JBM) e-ISSN: 2278-487X, p-ISSN: 2319-7668. Volume 16, Issue 7. Ver. IV (July. 2014), PP 08-19 www.iosrjournals.org www.iosrjournals.org 8 | Page Impact of KM Infrastructure Dimensions on Knowledge Acquisition and Capture–A Special Reference to Auto Component Small & Medium Sized Enterprises of Pune Region Dr. Lavanya Ranganathan (HOD-MCA Department, Pratibha Institute of Business Management, Pune, India) Abstract: Knowledge Management(KM) is a key concept in today’s business world. Knowledge is an intellectual asset for each organization. Knowledge Management, the systematic management of organizational knowledge - a strategic corporate asset thus is captured, transferred, shared and, utilized for organizational competitiveness. To get the most value from a company's intellectual assets, KM practitioners should maintain and manage it for long term benefits. It is imperative to acknowledge the knowledge and such a discipline of KM is now well-established in many large organizations and they practice in a better way. This has been neglected amongst Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs) especially the auto component firms. Therefore, this research study has been conducted in Auto Component SMEs of Pune Region to understand KM Infrastructure dimensions such as culture, employee participation, leadership, rewarding with incentives and training and mentoring followed amongst the SMEs and its impact on Knowledge Acquisition and Capture dimension of KM process. The findings appear that in SMEs, there is a significant impact of training and mentoring on knowledge acquisition and capture. Rest of the KM infrastructure dimensions like culture, employee participation, leadership and rewarding with incentives are not having significant impact on Knowledge acquisition and capture. Keywords: SMEs, Auto component firms, Knowledge Management, KM Infrastructure dimensions, Knowledge Acquisition & capture I. Introduction Knowledge is an intellectual asset for each organization. The organization must know how to utilize this intellectual asset to improve their business productivity and reduce costs. To get the most value from this intellectual assets, KM practitioners maintain that knowledge must be shared and serve as the foundation for collaboration. Leveraging this knowledge within the organization gives a competitive edge. Employee knowledge and experience, is a vital corporate asset. KM seeks to best use that asset through knowledge sharing and documentation. An increasing amount of studies are being conducted and published examining primary issues in relation to knowledge management practice and the element of human resource that are connected to it (Polanyi, 1966; Nonaka and Takeuchi, 1995; Davenport, 1998, Zack, 1999; Prusak, 1999). Consequently, the role of knowledge in organizational survival is considered as crucial factor in many organizations. In the same way (Davenport and Prusak, 2000) research study found that knowledge is the only source of sustainable competitive advantage and (Senge 1990) states that an enterprise market value is increasingly dictated by its intellectual capital. Knowledge management is a key concept in today’s business world. Evidence of this fact is apparent if one only peruses the current business, management, and organization literature. On the surface, it looks as if knowledge management just appeared toward the end of the 1990’s. Some regard knowledge management as a business fad or craze (Swan, Newell, Scarbrough, and Hislop, 1999, p. 275), but the concept reveals that there has been considerable thought and research into it, and many of the world’s most successful corporations, businesses, and organizations are investing considerable resources in this enterprise (Alvesson and Karreman, 2001, p. 995). Knowledge is increasingly recognized as a key business imperative and has positive impacts for organizations in terms of efficiencies, effectiveness and competitiveness (Alavi and Leidner 2001, Grover and Davenport 2001). While there are many reasons for pursuing knowledge management (KM), many organizations challenge that KM can lead to significant improvements in current operational performance, future capacity and adaptability to changing customers’ needs and market conditions (Cross and Baird 2000,