Transferring knowledge from universities to organizations by business students: Findings from a developing country

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore the significance of knowledge transfer (KT) from universities to organizations by employing in-service employees, who are working in organizations and at the same time studying in the universities, as the channel.

Design/methodology/approach

By using survey methodology, data were collected from 216 in-service business students via self-administered questionnaires and partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was applied.

Findings

The results revealed that intrinsic motivation, psychological hardiness, functional value and innovative culture significantly predict the acquired knowledge which henceforth positively affects KT.

Research limitations/implications

Data from business students of the single university were extracted which limits the findings, and hence directed future researchers to explore further.

Practical implications

Interactive, case study-based training and others implications are discussed to effectively transfer the knowledge from universities to organizations.

Originality/value

The role of in-service employed students is of significant importance, as students exist as an intermediary between organizations and universities, and so both universities and organizations should make maximum use of the said channel for an effective KT.

Citation

Raza, S.A., Najmi, A. and Shah, N. (2018), "Transferring knowledge from universities to organizations by business students: Findings from a developing country", Journal of Workplace Learning, Vol. 30 No. 3, pp. 199-215. https://doi.org/10.1108/JWL-06-2016-0054