The relation between knowledge transfer and productivity in knowledge work

Abstract

Within the modern ICT-enabled knowledge work context, questions related to access to information and knowledge-sharing practices have received growing research attention. However, there is still surprisingly little empirical research exploring the actual impact of effective knowledge transfer to work productivity. The purpose of this paper is to fulfil this research gap and empirically study whether there are any differences in subjective work productivity based on how the knowledge worker perceives the level of information flow and knowledge transfer within the organisation. Furthermore, the aim is to determine whether there are differences between the extent to which the positively experienced information flow and knowledge transfer impact experienced work productivity. Through the survey method, data were collected from 998 knowledge workers from Finland in various sizes of organisations. The quantitative data were analysed using SPSS software descriptive statistics, correlations and U-tests. The practical value of the study is in the analysis results. The paper presents the value of information flows and knowledge transfer to knowledge work productivity. This increased understanding will help managers to evaluate the effects of investing in supporting information flows and knowledge transfer within their organisations.

Keywords:

• Knowledge transfer
• information flow
• work productivity
• organisational performance
• knowledge work
• survey