Title: Knowledge Management Adoption and Diffusion Using Structural Equation Modeling
Abstract: ABSTRACTKnowledge management facilitates the firms and employees to deliver better products and services and hence achieve competitive advantages and profits. The issues of knowledge management have drawn much attention form industry and academia. However, few reports have been found available investigating how knowledge management is adopted and diffused in organizations. This paper adopts structural equation modeling to investigate employees' cognitions pertaining to knowledge management and their impacts on knowledge management activities based on Innovation Diffusion and Technology Acceptance Model with empirical data collected among the life insurance enterprises in Taiwan. The results indicate that perceived usefulness and subjective norm significantly influence the employees' attitudes toward knowledge management, and the attitudinal factor significantly affects knowledge management practice. The findings assist organizations to recognize the value and associated obstacles of knowledge management. This paper also presents the instrument and comprehensive model which provides directions for future research.JEL: D83, M10KEYWORDS: Knowledge Management, Structural Equation Modeling, Life InsuranceINTRODUCTIONKnowledge can be the essential resources to create sustained competitive advantages since it is closely related to specific organizational structure and culture, and intrinsically difficult to imitate (Alavi and Leidner, 2001). Davenport and Prusak (1998) define knowledge as a fluid of framed experience, values, contextual information and expert insight that provides a framework for evaluating and incorporating new experiences and information. The knowledge-based view argues that firms are the enablers of knowledge creation and applications, and organizational capabilities or competencies are seen as clusters of knowledge sets and routines that are translated into distinctive activities (Grant, 1996; Teece, Pisano and Shuen, 1997). Much research views knowledge management (KM) as a matter of extracting the right knowledge from employees' memories and storing it in networked computers for later distribution (Kuo, 2008; Tiwana, 2001). However, hoards of information or knowledge are of little worth (Alavi and Leidner, 1999). Yang and Wu (2008) indicate that people owing specific knowledge could enjoy some benefits and unique positions and people who share their knowledge with others might lose their unique positions accordingly.A hallmark in the contemporary knowledge-intensive economy is the ability of organizations to realize the economic value from their collection of knowledge and the associated assets (Gold and Segars, 2001). Whereas a number of organizations have launched extensive KM efforts, many of their projects are simply information projects in reality, and when these projects yield some consolidation of data but little innovation in products and services, the value of KM is cast in doubt (Gold and Segars, 2001). Yang (2004) signifies that the life insurance industry in Taiwan mostly put emphases on developing IT for supporting KM, whilst the recognition among the employees, who play important roles in embarking on KM, has not been reached extensively.Consumers could purchase life insurance as a means of managing risk (Omar, 2007). Ostaszewski (2003) advocates that life insurance is designed to protect individuals against the risks of premature death and superannuation. Different from other industries, the products sold by the life insurance business are relatively invisible and untouchable (Hsiao, 2003). The employees play an important role in conveying the knowledge and services to the customers in the life insurance industry. Life insurance services possess experience and credence properties due to a large amount of expertise and professional knowledge (Chen, 2009). Bargas-Avila, et al. (2009) reported validation of Intranet satisfaction questionnaire implementing online survey in cooperation with an international insurance company employing about 6000 people. …
Publication Year: 2014
Publication Date: 2014-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 6
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