Search results
1 – 10 of over 8000Adeel Tariq, Muhammad Saleem Ullah Khan Sumbal, Marina Dabic, Muhammad Mustafa Raziq and Marko Torkkeli
As sustainable performance has a central role in the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) performance literature, this study aims to examine the influence of networking…
Abstract
Purpose
As sustainable performance has a central role in the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) performance literature, this study aims to examine the influence of networking capabilities in enhancing sustainable performance through knowledge workers’ productivity and digital innovation. It also examines the sequential mediating role of knowledge workers’ productivity and digital innovation on networking capabilities and SMEs’ sustainable performance relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 308 knowledge workers in the information technology sector and analyzed using the Hayes Process Macro bootstrapping method to test the proposed hypotheses.
Findings
Results indicate that knowledge workers’ productivity and digital innovation individually and sequentially mediate the relationship between networking capabilities and SME’s sustainable (economic and environmental) performance, surprisingly, they do not act as a mediator between networking capability and SME’s social performance. SMEs should prioritize investments in the professional development of their knowledge workers through training and skill enhancement programs. This investment equips knowledge workers with the tools to effectively use the knowledge and resources acquired through networking. Thus, knowledge workers may improve performance by using these resources to tackle challenges.
Research limitations/implications
Although this research focused on this specific context, it is prudent to acknowledge that additional factors may also exert influence on sustainable performance within SMEs, factors that managers may consider when making decisions. Methodologically, the cross-sectional design of this research poses a potential limitation, as it does not allow for the complete elimination of endogeneity concerns. However, it is worth noting that scholars have endorsed the use of cross-sectional data in cases where management researchers aim to expand beyond well-documented and longitudinal data sets.
Practical implications
This research offers practical recommendations for SMEs to improve their sustainable performance through networking. SMEs should seek partnerships with complementary knowledge to improve operations and for other performance-oriented benefits.
Originality/value
This study adds significantly to the literature on sustainable SME performance by studying the interdependent effects of networking capabilities. It also represents the individual and sequential mediation mechanism that links networking capabilities to SME success through knowledge worker productivity and digital innovation.
Details
Keywords
The purpose of this paper is to review existing literature on organizational learning (OL) through networking activities in tourism and hospitality (T&H) research. Referring to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review existing literature on organizational learning (OL) through networking activities in tourism and hospitality (T&H) research. Referring to theories and concepts from the mainstream literature in OL and inter-organizational network research, the study provides an overview of the existing level of knowledge in T&H research, elaborates theoretical and practical implications and suggests future research directions.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic literature review approach was used to identify and analyze relevant literature. The literature search involved six scientific online databases, namely, EBSCOhost, Emerald, ProQuest, Sage, ScienceDirect and Web of Knowledge, which were systematically scanned with defined keywords. Relevant articles were evaluated, selected, analyzed and synthesized to find out what is already known and what is yet to be known.
Findings
A total of 69 articles were identified that present insights into OL through networking activities in T&H research. The review reveals that the resource, and especially the knowledge-based view of the firm, social capital theory, the relational view and trust and agglomeration theory represent insightful theoretical approaches to study OL phenomena and OL outcomes such as innovation, value creation and competitive advantage.
Originality/value
According to the author’s information, this paper represents the first attempt to provide a comprehensive review of T&H-specific OL literature from a network perspective. The findings call for increased attention to this research field, especially regarding the adaptation of OL concepts to a T&H-specific context as a networked industry.
Details
Keywords
Stefan Thalmann, Ronald Maier, Ulrich Remus and Markus Manhart
This paper aims to clarify how organizations manage their participation in networks to share and jointly create knowledge but also risk unwanted knowledge spillovers at the same…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to clarify how organizations manage their participation in networks to share and jointly create knowledge but also risk unwanted knowledge spillovers at the same time. As formal governance, trust and observation are less applicable in informal networks, the authors need to understand how members address the need to protect knowledge by informal practices. The study aims to investigate how the application of knowledge protection practices affects knowledge sharing in networks. The insights are relevant for organizational and network management to control knowledge risks but harvest the benefits of network engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors opted for an exploratory study based on 60 semi-structured interviews with members of 10 networks. In two rounds, network managers, representatives and members of the networks were interviewed. The second round of interviews was used to validate the intermediate findings. The data were complemented by documentary analysis, including network descriptions.
Findings
Through analyzing and building on the theory of psychological contracts, two informal practices of knowledge protection were found in networks of organizations: exclude crucial topics and share on selected topics and exclude details and share a selected level of detail. The authors explored how these two practices are enacted in networks of organizations with psychological contracts.
Originality/value
Counter to intuition that the protection of knowledge can be strengthened only at the expense of knowledge sharing and vice versa, networks benefitted from more focused and increased knowledge sharing while reducing the risk of losing competitive knowledge by performing these knowledge protection practices.
Details
Keywords
Marcus Pietsch, Chris Brown, Burak Aydin and Colin Cramer
In organisational and innovation research, the term “open innovation” refers to the inflow and outflow of knowledge to and from organisations: with open innovation theory…
Abstract
Purpose
In organisational and innovation research, the term “open innovation” refers to the inflow and outflow of knowledge to and from organisations: with open innovation theory suggesting active exchanges of knowledge with external actors leads to the development of exploitable new ideas. In the field of education, however, the exchange of knowledge with external parties represents a paradigm shift. In response, this article presents findings from research design to explore the nature and composition of school innovation networks, and the effects of such these networks on knowledge mobilisation.
Design/methodology/approach
The study draws on data from a representative random sample of 411 German school leaders. Respondents were asked to detail their engagement in open and closed innovation activity and their school's external collaborations during the last 12 months. A latent class distal outcome model was developed to examine whether different types of collaboration associate with different knowledge mobilisation processes.
Findings
The study findings suggest that schools in Germany mainly use internal knowledge for innovation, with external knowledge exchange taking place on a very limited basis. Knowledge mobilisation varies depending on the innovation network. The authors use the findings to indicate new insights for how schools can further innovate learning and teaching in future.
Originality/value
Although there is increasing discussion on Professional Learning Networks in schools, the discourse on knowledge mobilisation within educational networks is limited, making concept of open innovation so far completely absent from discourses on school improvement. This paper initiates the population of this new research space.
Details
Keywords
Silvia Rita Sedita, Valmir Emil Hoffmann, Patricia Guarnieri and Ermanno Toso Carraro
This paper aims to analyze how knowledge networks can be configured within a value chain and provide evidence of the coexistence of multiple knowledge networks in the same value…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyze how knowledge networks can be configured within a value chain and provide evidence of the coexistence of multiple knowledge networks in the same value chain.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical setting is the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG wine cluster in the Veneto region of Northeast Italy. Data was collected through the administration by telephone of a semi-structured questionnaire to 37 oenologists, sales managers, production managers and owners of bottling companies in the district. The authors used social network analysis tools to map knowledge networks in the Prosecco cluster.
Findings
The results shed light on the importance of singling out knowledge networks in clusters at the value chain level to aid practitioners and researchers in this field. In fact, this research proves the existence of knowledge networks specificities related to the various phases of the production process.
Research limitations/implications
This study has certain limitations. The most relevant is connected to the choice to limit the analysis to a specific cluster. Future research might extend this type of analysis to multiple clusters in different locations.
Practical implications
The authors explain that in the cluster they studied, internationalization, as a common objective, might be made easier if firms could establish a more developed sales knowledge network.
Social implications
The relational approach to value chain enables disentangling specific roles of each actors. The social dimension of the value chain is taken in consideration.
Originality/value
The authors show that a firm operating in the wine industry can have different knowledge networks in the same value chain. This work adds to previous literature on knowledge networks in clusters by shedding light on an important, but still understudied aspect in the cluster functioning. Knowledge diffusion in clusters is not only uneven but is also value chain stage specific. By intersecting literature on knowledge networks, value chain and cluster research, the authors proposed a new perspective of analysis of the wine industry.
Details
Keywords
Domitilla Magni, Roberto Chierici, Monica Fait and Kelly Lefebvre
Building upon the insights of the resource-based view and internationalization theories, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role networks play in SMEs' readiness for…
Abstract
Purpose
Building upon the insights of the resource-based view and internationalization theories, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role networks play in SMEs' readiness for internationalization. By investigating three different types of knowledge sharing, namely economic-setting, market-specific and customer-specific, the study analyzes their effect on SMEs' readiness for internationalization.
Design/methodology/approach
The four research hypotheses derived by from the analysis of the literature have been investigated by applying the multiple regression technique. By means of an online survey, 300 valid questionnaires were collected and information from a sample of Italian SMEs belonging to 11 agro-food consortia have been analyzed.
Findings
The results suggest that SMEs' readiness for internationalization could be supported by sharing customer-specific, market-specific and economic-setting knowledge with other firms operating within the same agro-food consortium. Additionally, data analysis highlights a negative relation between the risk perception in the process and readiness for internationalization, suggesting the importance of knowledge sharing in reducing the criticality issues of being a newcomer entering international markets.
Originality/value
From a theoretical perspective, this study aims to fill the gap in knowledge management and international relationship marketing literature. Since proposes a combination of different kinds of knowledge that contribute to reducing the criticalities SMEs must face by identifying useful information to be conveyed within the network. From a managerial perspective, the study provides useful insights for the agro-food sector, highlighting how experiential and network knowledge constitutes a pre-condition for managing internationalization complexity and discovering opportunities on foreign markets.
Details
Keywords
As intermodal logistics networks play a crucial role in enhancing the entire logistics performance, effectively managing the intermodal logistics network has become a significant…
Abstract
As intermodal logistics networks play a crucial role in enhancing the entire logistics performance, effectively managing the intermodal logistics network has become a significant strategic consideration in international logistics. The existing literature stresses that inter-organizational knowledge exchange is essential to successfully integrating logistics components and for maximizing logistics performance in the long run. These contentions ensure that knowledge exchange between intermodal logistics network entities-such as shipping lines, port terminal operators, freight forwarders, road and rail freight operators and other related logistics operators-are key factors in facilitating the successful integration of an intermodal logistics network because an intermodal logistics network is an integrated part of the entire international logistics system. This paper aims to investigate the question of how intermodal logistics network entities can successfully exchange knowledge with each other, and whether the knowledge exchange can contribute to the effective integration of the intermodal logistics network. For this, this paper adopts the social network embeddedness perspective in order to identify a useful inter-organizational relationship mechanism within the intermodal logistics networks, allowing the facilitation of knowledge exchange among the network players. A conceptual framework will be developed for the exploration of the aforementioned relationships between the social network mechanisms, i.e. network density, tie strength, knowledge exchange among network entities, and intermodal logistics network integration. Following the parameters of this framework, the theoretical and practical implications will be discussed.
Details
Keywords
Åshild Lappegard Hauge, Gro Sandkjær Hanssen and Cecilie Flyen
The paper aims to compare and evaluate two Norwegian municipal networks for climate change adaptation, to see how such networks should be initiated and implemented as a means of…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to compare and evaluate two Norwegian municipal networks for climate change adaptation, to see how such networks should be initiated and implemented as a means of achieving adaptation measures within municipalities.
Design/methodology/approach
The findings are based on 12 qualitative interviews taken from two case studies, and the results are explained in relation to the multilevel network framework and environmental psychology.
Findings
Multilevel networks can promote learning and identification of specific actions in connection with climate change adaptation. The aim should be to establish interdisciplinarity, with participants from at least two authority levels. Representatives should be in positions that enable them to introduce acquired knowledge to the organization and influence its application. A network requires organizational commitment, during the initial phase and throughout the follow-up process. Municipal leaders (mayors) must be aware of the network, act as signatories to relevant documents, and be familiar with participating representatives. Commitment to knowledge application within the organization also requires that participants understand where and how to work strategically to convert new ideas into action.
Practical implications
This paper presents practical and research-based guidelines for the management of climate change adaptation networks at municipal, county and national authority levels.
Originality/value
This paper combines political science and environmental psychology perspectives as a means of analysing network achievements. A psychological approach may help to promote a greater understanding of why and how network knowledge is transferred.
Details
Keywords
Tuotuo Qi, Tianmei Wang and Nuo Chen
This study aims to analyze the structural characteristics of knowledge exchange in Zhihu Lives to provide feasible suggestions for improving the creative enthusiasm of knowledge…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to analyze the structural characteristics of knowledge exchange in Zhihu Lives to provide feasible suggestions for improving the creative enthusiasm of knowledge providers.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses the domain classification of Zhihu Lives to construct a cross-domain knowledge exchange network.
Findings
This research makes the following findings: the small-world effect exists in the sponsorship network and is conducive to enhancing the learning willingness of knowledge providers; significant sponsorships and strong learning willingness exist among knowledge providers; the knowledge exchange is obvious among the fields of education, reading and writing, business and lifestyle and the fields of music, film, games, art, the internet, science and technology, design, financial economy and occupation; and knowledge exchange is obvious among the internal fields of education, reading and writing, and business and life style, between the internal fields of music, film, and games and art and between the internal fields of the internet, science and technology, design, financial economy and occupation.
Originality/value
This study can provide practical suggestions for the following development of the platform by analyzing the special phenomenon of knowledge exchange in the present stage of knowledge exchange.
Details
Keywords
Rabiya Nawaz, Maryam Hina, Veenu Sharma, Shalini Srivastava and Massimiliano Farina Briamonte
Organizations increasingly use knowledge arbitrage to stimulate innovation and achieve competitive advantage. However, in knowledge management its use in startups is yet…
Abstract
Purpose
Organizations increasingly use knowledge arbitrage to stimulate innovation and achieve competitive advantage. However, in knowledge management its use in startups is yet unexplored. This study aims to examine the utilization of knowledge arbitrage by startups, specifically during COVID-19.
Design/methodology/approach
This study employed an open-ended essay methodology to explore the drivers and barriers that startups face in utilizing knowledge arbitrage. We collected data from 40 participants to understand the role of knowledge arbitrage in startups’ knowledge management practices.
Findings
This study’s findings highlight the significance of knowledge arbitrage for startups. The benefits identified include organizational benefits such as building networks, innovating new products and achieving competitive advantage and financial benefits such as cost reduction and sales growth. The study also identifies several technological and organizational drivers and barriers that startups confront during knowledge arbitrage.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the existing literature on knowledge management by extending our understanding of knowledge arbitrage’s role in startups. Additionally, it sheds light on the importance of knowledge arbitrage for startups and the challenges they face, particularly in a disrupted environment reared by COVID-19. The study provides insights for the scholars and practitioners interested in effective knowledge management in startups.
Details