Employee Knowledge Acquisition Behavior and Innovation in SMEs
Intan Soraya Rosdi, Azrena Mohd Noor, Nurazlin Mohd Fauzi
Faculty of Management, Multimedia University, Cyberjaya, Malaysia
Abstract
Continuous renewal of organizational knowledge is crucial for firms intending to produce innovative outputs. For SMEs, external sources of knowledge becomes especially important as their internal knowledge is relatively limited compared to that of large organizations. Based on a model of knowledge-driven innovation in SMEs, this study examines the perception and behavior of 221 employees in innovative Malaysian SMEs with regards to how their choices of using specific types of external knowledge sources subsequently influence the types of innovation produced by their firms. Results show that the employees use of either market-oriented or scientific-oriented knowledge sources determine the type of innovative outputs for their firms i.e. incremental or radical innovative outputs.The main contribution of this study is the emphasis on how employees knowledge acquisition behavior significantly impacts innovation at firm level.
Keywords: SMEs, knowledge management, knowledge sources, innovation, intellectual capital
Topic: Strategic Management & Ecosystem Business