Across modern organisations, knowledge has become one of the most valuable and fragile resources. Employees are expected to make fast decisions, solve complex problems, and adapt to constant change. Yet much of the knowledge they need to do so is scattered across emails, documents, personal experience, and informal conversations. In this context, digital systems are often viewed as tools for efficiency, rather than for learning or knowledge sharing.
But what if some of the software already embedded in everyday work is quietly shaping how organisational knowledge is captured, accessed, and used?
This question is particularly relevant for Business Process Management Systems (BPMS). These systems are widely adopted to organise, automate, and monitor how work is carried out across organisations. They guide employees through tasks, define responsibilities, and ensure processes are followed consistently. Traditionally, BPMS have been understood as tools for coordination and control. However, growing evidence suggests that they may also play a much deeper role: acting as repositories and conduits of organisational knowledge.
BPMS as hidden knowledge infrastructures
Every business process requires knowledge. Employees need to know what to do, how to do it, in what order, and under what conditions. This knowledge can be explicit, such as written instructions, forms, or rules, or tacit, drawn from experience and shared informally among colleagues.
BPMS sit at the intersection of these two worlds. When processes are modelled in a system, knowledge is embedded into workflows, task descriptions, decision rules, and data fields. Over time, these systems can accumulate a significant amount of organisational know-how. The question is not whether BPMS contain knowledge, but whether employees actually use them as tools for managing and applying that knowledge.
Recent research conducted among experienced BPMS users indicates that this does not occur automatically. Employees only use BPMS to support knowledge-related activities when they perceive the system as genuinely useful for that purpose.
Why usefulness matters more than obligation
In most organisations, using a BPMS is mandatory for completing tasks. Employees must follow the system to complete their work. However, using the same system to capture insights, consult embedded knowledge, or support decision-making is usually optional.
However, the mandatory use of the system to manage processes does not automatically translate into the use of knowledge. Employees may comply with process requirements without ever relying on the system as a source of knowledge. What makes the difference is perceived usefulness, not for completing tasks, but specifically for managing knowledge.
When employees believe that the system helps them access relevant information, learn from past cases, or make informed decisions, they are far more likely to utilize it for knowledge management. When they do not, the BPMS remains a procedural tool rather than a cognitive one.
This finding challenges a common assumption in digital transformation strategies: that embedding knowledge into systems is enough. In reality, knowledge only becomes active when people trust and value the system that contains it.
Information and knowledge quality: the decisive factor
Among all the factors analysed, one stands out clearly: the quality of information and knowledge provided by the BPMS.
Employees are more likely to use a BPMS as a knowledge tool when the information it generates is accurate, timely, relevant, and easy to interpret. Poorly structured content, outdated instructions, or incomplete data quickly undermine trust. When that happens, employees fall back on informal channels, asking colleagues, relying on memory, or creating workarounds outside the system.
This has important consequences. Knowledge silos emerge, learning becomes uneven, and organisations lose the opportunity to improve processes based on accumulated experience. In sectors such as public administration or regulated industries, weak knowledge support can also affect service quality.
Why system quality is not enough
Interestingly, the system quality alone does not guarantee that a BPMS will be used for knowledge management. A system may be reliable, fast, and well-integrated with other tools, yet still fail to support knowledge use.
High system quality contributes to user satisfaction and enables employees to perform their tasks more smoothly. However, satisfaction does not automatically lead to knowledge-oriented use. Employees may be satisfied with a system while still ignoring its knowledge features.
This finding highlights a subtle but crucial distinction:a system can work well without being cognitively useful. To unlock the knowledge potential of BPMS, organisations must go beyond technical performance and focus on how knowledge is embedded, presented, and connected to real work situations.
Training, support and the invisible role of learning
Another key insight concerns training and support. Employees are more likely to engage with the knowledge embedded in a BPMS when they understand how and why it is there. Training helps users see the system not just as a sequence of tasks, but as a source of guidance, learning and shared understanding.
Support services also send a powerful signal. When organisations invest in helping employees use systems intelligently, they reinforce the value of learning and knowledge sharing. When support is absent, employees are unlikely to explore advanced or optional features, including those related to knowledge.
From a social perspective, this matters because poorly supported digitalisation can widen gaps within organisations. Some employees become “power users”, while others remain excluded from the knowledge embedded in systems. Inclusive training helps reduce these disparities and contributes to a fairer digital workplace.
Implications for organisations and public policy
For organisations, the message is clear. If BPMS are to support not only efficiency but also learning and decision-making, perceived usefulness for knowledge management must be actively cultivated. This means investing in information quality, designing processes that make knowledge visible and relevant, and aligning system features with real user needs.
For policymakers, the findings are equally significant. As public administrations increasingly rely on process automation, the quality of internal knowledge management has a direct impact on citizens. When public employees can access and apply reliable knowledge through BPMS, services become more consistent, transparent, and responsive.
Policies that promote digital transformation should therefore look beyond adoption rates. They should encourage human-centred system design, continuous training, and the long-term integration of knowledge into everyday processes..
Implications for organisations and public policy
For organisations, the message is clear. If BPMS are to support not only efficiency but also learning and decision-making, perceived usefulness for knowledge management must be actively cultivated. This means investing in information quality, designing processes that make knowledge visible and relevant, and aligning system features with real user needs.
For policymakers, the findings are equally significant. As public administrations increasingly rely on process automation, the quality of internal knowledge management has a direct impact on citizens. When public employees can access and apply reliable knowledge through BPMS, services become more consistent, transparent, and responsive.
Policies that promote digital transformation should therefore look beyond adoption rates. They should encourage human-centred system design, continuous training, and the long-term integration of knowledge into everyday processes.
Digital transformation is also a knowledge transformation
BPMS are often described as neutral technologies that simply enforce workflows. This research shows that they are far more influential than that. They shape how knowledge is stored, shared, and used, but only if employees perceive them as useful for that purpose.
When people see digital systems as allies in thinking and learning, organisations benefit from better decisions, continuous improvement, and more resilient processes. When they do not, valuable knowledge remains unused.
Digital transformation, ultimately, is not just about automating work. It is about enabling people to use what they know—and to learn from what others have already done.
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Journal reference
Martín-Navarro, A., Lechuga-Sancho, M. P., & Medina-Garrido, J. A. (2023). Determinants of BPMS use for knowledge management. Journal of Knowledge Management, 27(11), 279–309. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-07-2022-0537
