Designing a Pentahelix-Based Digital Knowledge Management System for Rural Enterprises: A Prototype from Tomini Bay, Indonesia
, Lanto Ningrayati Amali, Raflin Hinelo, Mohamad Syafri Tuloli, Alfian Zakaria, Muhammad Rifai KatiliThe research aimed to design, develop, and test a system that enabled reciprocal knowledge flows between government, academia, business, media, and community stakeholders.
The research problem addressed in this study concerned the absence of an integrated, digital knowledge management (KM) system that could operationalize the Pentahelix framework to strengthen the management and governance of VOEs. Despite policy frameworks such as Government Regulation No. 11/2021, which formalized the operational mechanisms of Village-Owned Enterprises (VOEs) and emphasized entrepreneurship and community empowerment, challenges persisted in translating these frameworks into practice.
Employing a research and development (R&D) approach with Agile Scrum, the study engaged eight VOE managers from four villages in the Tomini Bay region of Gorontalo Province to elicit requirements through interviews, observations, and questionnaires. The system was developed iteratively over four sprints and implemented functionalities such as user authentication, collaborative forums, a knowledge repository, and analytics dashboards. The platform design utilized Unified Modeling Language (UML) diagrams to model workflows, actor roles, and class structures. System testing applied black-box and white-box approaches, complemented by sprint reviews and user acceptance testing.
This research contributed to the body of knowledge by offering both a conceptual framework and a tested prototype for digitally mediated multi-stakeholder collaboration in rural enterprise development.
The findings underscored that digital KM platforms, when anchored in multi-stakeholder frameworks, served as strategic enablers of rural development. Evaluation demonstrated high system reliability with 100% functional test pass rate and optimized query response times (reduced by 60-75%). User acceptance testing revealed strong adoption potential, with Perceived Usefulness (M = 6.2/7.0), Intention to Use (M = 6.0/7.0), and Overall Satisfaction (M = 5.9/7.0) scores indicating high levels of satisfaction. Task completion rates improved from 72% in Sprint 1 to 95% in Sprint 4. The integration of the platform with potential e-government and e-commerce systems suggested significant implications for participatory governance, market democratization, and rural economic empowerment.
Practically, by presenting a tested prototype developed using Agile Scrum methodology that served as a model for similar initiatives in developing countries.
Theoretically, by extending the application of KM and Pentahelix frameworks to rural enterprise contexts.
The platform’s adaptability to diverse digital readiness contexts signaled its transferability to other rural regions, provided that localized adjustments were made.
Future studies could explore the integration of automation, advanced analytics, and recommender systems while further evaluating the longitudinal impacts on business performance, collaboration intensity, and community well-being.
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