This article was originally published on April 11, 2016. It was updated and revised in May 2025.
At first glance, open knowledge and knowledge management might seem like two sides of the same coin — both focus on knowledge, after all. But in practice, they serve very different (and often complementary) purposes.
At FireOak, we’ve worked with organizations navigating both areas: those trying to share what they know with the world, and those trying to protect, organize, and sustain what they know internally. Understanding the difference — and the connection — between open knowledge and knowledge management can help your team clarify priorities, build smarter systems, and make better use of what you know.
What Is Open Knowledge?
Open knowledge refers to information, research, or data that is intentionally made freely available to the public — ideally in ways that are reusable, accessible, and well-documented.
It includes:
- Open access research
- Open educational resources (OER)
- Open government data
- Open-source software and documentation
The goal of open knowledge is broad dissemination and public benefit — removing paywalls and restrictions so information can be used, remixed, and built upon.
What Is Knowledge Management?
Knowledge management (KM) is the set of practices, systems, and strategies an organization uses to:
- Capture what it knows
- Organize it for internal use
- Share it across teams
- Protect it from loss or misuse
KM focuses on internal value — making sure that people inside the organization can find, use, and retain critical knowledge as people move on, teams grow, or systems evolve.
Where They Overlap
Despite their different end goals, open knowledge and KM often overlap in practice:
- You can’t share knowledge externally until you know what you have internally.
- Strong internal KM helps ensure that open knowledge outputs (like research publications or datasets) are high quality and traceable.
- Both require clear structures, consistent documentation, and governance.
For example: a UN agency may be building an open data portal for public access — but it also needs internal systems to manage version history, metadata, and data quality across teams and time zones.
Why This Matters Now
We’re seeing a growing number of organizations — from academic institutions to advocacy-focused nonprofits — trying to do both: manage knowledge internally and make it open externally.
But success requires intention. Without strong KM, open knowledge efforts can feel chaotic or superficial. Without openness, KM can become siloed or overly protective.
The key is to be clear about purpose:
- Who needs access?
- What level of openness is appropriate?
- How will this knowledge be maintained over time?
Final Thoughts
Open knowledge and knowledge management aren't in competition — they’re partners in a well-functioning, mission-aligned ecosystem. One helps the world learn from your work. The other helps your team work smarter and protect what matters.
At FireOak, we help organizations build both: KM systems that work behind the scenes, and open knowledge practices that align with your values, mission, and capacity.
