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The purpose of this paper is to examine how knowledge inflows and outflows interact to affect performance outcomes. Though previous studies have dealt with knowledge inflows and outflows, the quality and quantity characteristics of knowledge are often not taken into account, thus leaving a research gap with regards to the effect of their interactions on performance outcomes.

Based on Poisson regression analysis, this quantitative study fills the aforementioned research gaps by analyzing the ambidextrous configurations of knowledge flows from an ambidexterity perspective and examines their effects on two-phase performance (i.e. regular season and playoffs), using a longitudinal data set of National Basketball Association transactions from the 2003-2004 to 2014-2015 season.

The results suggest that the complementarity between knowledge inflows and outflows along the quality and quantity dimensions of knowledge, respectively, has a positive impact on two-phase performance, while the imbalance between knowledge inflows and outflows under the quality and quantity dimensions of knowledge, respectively, has a negative impact on playoffs performance (Phase 2). These findings suggest that organizations can balance knowledge inflows and outflows under a single quality or quantity dimension of knowledge. Furthermore, the interaction between the quantity of the inflows of knowledge and the quality of the outflows of knowledge and the interaction between the quality of the inflows of knowledge and the quantity of the outflows of knowledge are both positively related to two-phase performance. These findings suggest that organizations can balance knowledge inflows and outflows across quality and quantity dimensions of knowledge. Finally, the effects of the interaction between knowledge inflows and outflows on playoffs performance are greater than regular-season.

Organizations should leverage ambidexterity to manage/balance knowledge inflows and outflows across quality and quantity dimensions, further enhancing performance outcomes.

This study, first, provides new insights into knowledge flows by distinguishing between the quality and quantity of knowledge, the inflows and outflows of knowledge, constructing ambidextrous configurations of knowledge flows from an ambidexterity perspective. Second, it contributes to the relationship between knowledge flows and organizational performance by revealing how ambidextrous configurations of knowledge flows exert different effects on performance outcomes. Third, it adds to the literature of ambidexterity-performance relationships and expands it to the context of sports.

This empirical paper investigates the relationships between the amount of human capital that flows into a firm and two activities underlying a firm’s knowledge production, variation or change and knowledge retention. We track the flow of human capital within and across organizational and geographic space for all multi‐unit banks operating in the world foreign exchange trade industry from 1973 to 1993. The findings indicate that an increased reliance on past experience reduces how much human capital a firm imports in the future. This effect is moderated by a self‐reinforcing cycle of human capital inflow. Inflows of human capital also decline when a firm has recently adopted novel changes in its operations. The paper uses evolutionary thinking to define a model for intrafirm knowledge production.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of cross‐border diffusion of technology as a contributor to national economic performance at both aggregate and sectoral levels. Specifically, it aims to explore: the relationship between inflows of foreign technology and home country knowledge base; and the impact of international technology diffusion on indigenous productivity and international competitiveness.

Values of international trade in manufactured sectors as well as other data sources of economic and scientific performance are used to measure inflows of foreign technology, indigenous knowledge base, or international competitiveness at the aggregate and/or sectoral levels. This paper employs correlation and regression models for data analysis. Sectoral patterns are revealed based on various taxonomies for industrial systems.

At the aggregate level, it is found that there is a positive relationship between a nation's domestic knowledge base and inflows of foreign technology; and technology inflows, as well as home country knowledge base, significantly contribute to a nation's labor productivity (LP) and its international competitiveness. At the sectoral level, it is found that patterns of contribution from technology inflows to international competitiveness differ from industry to industry. There is a general trend of increase in the contributions from international technology inflows to a nation's international competitiveness over time and from lower to higher technology industries. However, for complex system technologies where tacit knowledge prevails, the diffusion of technology could be a significant challenge.

Empirical findings of this paper have significant public policy implications. National industrial policies should be sector‐specific to reflect the particular features of each industry. In the meantime, a proper balance must be kept between enhancing home country knowledge base and promoting inflows of foreign technology.

This study aims to address the performance consequences of knowledge transfer within related diversified firms by distinguishing between knowledge outflows and knowledge inflows at the business division level.

Questionnaire data from a sample of 118 business divisions were analyzed using stepwise linear regression.

The results from a three-effect model for the analysis of knowledge transfer indicate that knowledge outflow improves division performance, while knowledge inflow damages it when absorptive capacity is weak. The overall effect of knowledge transfer is therefore beneficial with the exception of the cases of receiving divisions with low levels of absorptive capacity.

These results indicate that knowledge transfer contributes to overall corporate performance, since knowledge outflow impacts positively on division performance in all cases and knowledge inflow impacts negatively on division performance only in some cases. Setting aside the obvious task of promoting knowledge transfer within the firm, one important concern for corporate officers would be to prevent situations in which a division lacks the absorptive capacity to play its role within a corporate network.

This work contributes to existent literature by disentangling the effects of knowledge transfer according to different theoretical perspectives, and it provides an empirical examination in a setting which is intensive in knowledge transference, as is that of business divisions from related diversified firms.

Based on two dominant perspectives, team climate and knowledge integration, on team innovation, this study aims to propose a moderated mediation model to examine the interactive effect of inter-team trust and goal clarity on team innovation through knowledge inflows into a team. Considering the two perspectives at the same time will provide a more complete picture on our understanding on team innovation.

The research model is tested on 150 retail teams of a large apparel firm. Data are collected from two separate surveys, one to store managers and one to store staff members. Moderation mediation regression analysis is conducted on the survey data.

The regression analysis identified both a positive direct effect of goal clarity on innovation, and a negative moderating effect of goal clarity on the mediation of knowledge inflows between inter-team trust and innovation. In other words, inter-team trust is positively related to team innovation through knowledge inflows when goal clarity is low.

In this study, the authors identify an indirect and negative role of goal clarity on team innovation, and examine the mechanism and boundary of inter-team trust on team innovation. Managers are advised to foster a trusting environment and be aware of cognitive bias in their teams so that their teams can be more innovative.

The main purpose of this study is to explain the combined effects of host country weak network ties and absorptive capacity on the innovative foreign knowledge inflows of international high-tech small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Data are drawn from the two largest and most authoritative German Federal Government census-databases of biotech and nanotech SMEs. A structured survey questionnaire was administered and regression analysis adopted.

This study demonstrates weak network ties in the host country and developing absorptive capacity produce a combined effect that positively influences international high-tech SMEs innovative foreign knowledge inflows. Also, host country weak network ties and absorptive capacity when considered separately, each respectively, positively influence innovative foreign knowledge inflows.

The results help inform key personnel in international high-tech SMEs about the relevance of host country weak network ties and absorptive capacity for foreign knowledge inflows. In addition, the results help policymakers and think-tanks to promote tailored advice and guidance e.g. those policymakers implementing the EU Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan.

There is a recent call in the literature to combine network theory and absorptive capacity theory to better explain knowledge creation in the context of international high-tech SMEs knowledge sourcing. By addressing this call, the study provides a more refined and comprehensive account of international high-tech SMEs innovative foreign knowledge inflows.

With considerable attention paid to the motives and process of idiosyncratic internationalization trajectory of multinationals from emerging economies (EMNCs), little is known on whether, and if so how, new competitive advantages of EMNCs are created and accumulated over time. MNC and EMNC literature agrees on the importance of external and internal knowledge linkages in technological competence creation. By building upon this framework, this paper aims to evaluate EMNCs’ external and internal knowledge flow patterns by benchmarking their counterparts from mature industrialized countries (MMNCs).

This study analyzes US patents granted between 2000 and 2014 to leading innovation-oriented EMNCs from China and India, and their matched MMNCs. Being the first to use the US patent and citation data in studying leading innovation-oriented EMNCs, the authors use a descriptive statistical method.

The findings offer empirical insights of the scale, scope and quality of EMNC technological competence creation. Moreover, in contrast to existing EMNC literature, it is found that EMNC parents have been the most important center of EMNC technological knowledge generation. The matched group comparisons of external and internal knowledge flows further reveal detailed similarities and differences of competence creation between EMNCs and MMNCs, and among EMNCs.

This study represents one of the first attempts to investigate the post-internationalization technological competence creation of EMNCs by using a novel data source. This study sets the foundation to deepen the understanding of EMNC technological competence creation. The findings suggest interesting propositions and offer important implications for future researches.

The purpose of this paper is to report on lab experiments conducted to determine what impact managerial top-down knowledge transfer has on a middle manager’s individual ambidexterity and decision performance.

The authors designed an experimental approach using a business simulator to test the hypotheses with middle managers. The methodological approach provides the authors with a framework to enhance the middle manager’s understanding of how to attain superior short-term financial results by exploiting current resources, in addition to mastering new strategies to avoid a potential business bankruptcy.

The results suggest that top-down managerial knowledge inflow benefits middle manager strategic decision making, as well as his/her short- and long-term performance. Nonetheless, the best short-term results were achieved by those middle managers that mastered both exploitation and exploration activities simultaneously.

The contribution of this paper is to identify and test a control mechanism called top-down inflows that enhance middle manager’s ability to exploit current resources to increase financial performance, and exploring new strategies to avoid a business bankruptcy.

This paper aims to investigate to what extent knowledge inflows have taken place among professional Malaysian workforces and what the significant employee‐related factors of knowledge transfer are. The development of technology parks at Technology Park Malaysia (TPM), Kulim High Tech Park (KHTP) and Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) is the focus of the discussion.

Data were collected through a self‐administered survey to 300 local professionals; and 51 percent responded. A multiple regression was used to identify the significant determinants of transfer of knowledge.

Knowledge transfer from foreign expatriate, parent and peer subsidiary companies to local professionals is at a moderate level. The overall multiple regression shows that workplace learning, personal time management, symptom of replication, adaptation and innovation, and work experience significantly contribute to the transferring of expertise to local professional employees.

The success of companies in today's competitive economy lies more in their knowledge and intellectual capital rather than other resources. Therefore, transferring new knowledge from foreign multinational corporations (MNCs) to local workforces is a basic step for future sustainable competitive advantage. Empirical evidence from previous research shows that information and communication technology can facilitate the transfer of knowledge. This is not covered in this study.

Training mechanisms must be designed in such a way to promote in‐plant training or employee attachment at the parent company or foreign peer subsidiaries.

The paper shows that the success of knowledge transfer depends on the absorptive capacity, the organizational learning climate and the willingness of foreign expatriates in multinational corporations to transfer knowledge. This is an empirical indication of knowledge inflows within Malaysian technology parks, which is a relatively new topic to be explored.

An organization can be understood as a knowledge network in which teams send and receive knowledge. Many studies have explored knowledge sharing across teams but did not consider the direction of knowledge flows (KF), specifically how the knowledge inflow (KIF) and knowledge outflow (KOF) can be induced and influence team activities differently. To fill this gap, this paper distinguishes between KIF and KOF, examines their antecedents and consequences and considers how KIF and KOF within a team moderate the relationship between antecedents and KF of a team.

This study used structural equation model analysis of a sample of 341 individuals within 73 teams from four companies.

The results suggest that IT support is essential because it influences both KIF and KOF. However, only KOF has a significant effect on team performance suggesting that ambidexterity is not always necessary. In promoting KOF, increasing task interdependency is also effective. The effect of IT support varies with the level of KIF diversity.

The findings emphasize the importance of distinguishing KOF from KIF in a team’s knowledge network under the theoretical lens of ambidexterity. Identifying how IT support influences KF and how these flows separately affect team performance can provide useful insights into managing and facilitating KF in an organization.