Personal knowledge management (PKM) is a process of collecting information that a person uses to gather, classify, store, search, retrieve and share knowledge in their daily activities (Grundspenkis 2007) and the way in which these processes support work activities (Wright 2005).
More recently, research has been conducted to help understand "the potential role of Web 2.0 technologies for harnessing and managing personal knowledge" (Razmerita, Kirchner & Sudzina 2009).
Dorsey (2001) identified information retrieval, assessment and evaluation, organization, analysis, presentation, security, and collaboration as essential to PKM (cited in Zhang 2009).
The learning dimension entails expanding pattern recognition and sensemaking capabilities, reflection, development of new knowledge, improvement of skills, and extension to others.
An aim of PKM is "helping individuals to be more effective in personal, organizational and social environments" (Pauleen 2009, p. 221), often through the use of technology such as networking software.
It has been argued, however, that equation of PKM with technology has limited the value and utility of the concept (e.g., Pollard 2008, Snowden & Pauleen 2008).
Individuals use these tools to capture ideas, expertise, experience, opinions or thoughts, and this "voicing" will encourage cognitive diversity and promote free exchanges away from a centralized policed knowledge repository.