Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the gap between knowledge management (KM) practices and key strategic enablers in public universities. For this purpose, a 57-item survey on two dimensions--"use" and "importance"--was used as the instrument for this study. Design/methodology/approach: The questionnaire was administered to academics of four public universities which fall under the Malaysian Technical University Network. Findings: The results from 191 responses show that the academics of public universities find the KM practices and key strategic enablers to be important but are not used as much. Research limitations/implications: This research has overcome the gaps identified through the use of a set of KM practices and key strategic enablers. These variables could be replicated in different settings, across different economies, with the possibility of incorporating more constructs. The small sample size and the cross-sectional nature of the study suggest that a larger sample size through a longitudinal study is required in future research. Practical implications: The recommendations proposed will provide strategic directions for the management of public universities to deal more effectively with the KM practices and key strategic enablers. Originality/value: This study has extended knowledge in KM, specifically concerning the importance and use of key strategic enablers of KM. Moreover, it is amongst the first empirical works to examine the use and importance of KM practices and key strategic enablers in unison. (Contains 5 tables.)