This paper reviews knowledge management in the context of a franchise business operation, with a focus on tacit knowledge barriers. In a franchise organization, the transfer of knowledge occurs on multiple levels and has an added level of complexity because of the number of partners and relationships. Tacit knowledge transfer should occur vertically between the franchisor and franchisee, as well as horizontally between franchisees. This literature review distinguishes five barriers to knowledge transfer at the tacit level. By identifying these five barriers and offering potential solutions, this examination provides insight around future research studies which could address these barriers. Solutions may be in the form of how franchisees and/or franchisors are selected, adoption of new shared learning processes, or the creation of cultures that work in collaboration vs. competition. The five barriers examined in this research include: Trust, Maturation, Communication, Competition, and Culture. [This paper was published in: Academy of Human Resource Development (AHRD) 2010 Americas Conference Proceedings (pp. 1278-1302).]