A Conceptual Framework of Antecedents and Impacts of Knowledge Quality on SMEs’

CompetitivenessNaser ValaeiInternational Business School, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

Norshidah Mohamed (Presenter)International Business School, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia http://www.ibs.utm.my

Nor Shahriza Abdul KarimPrince Sultan University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

11th WSEAS International Conference on E-Activities (E-ACTIVITIES ‘13)Nanjing, China, 17-19 November 2013

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1. Introduction

2. Research design

3. Problem solution

4. Conclusion

OUTLINE

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• Small and medium enterprises (SMEs)

• Engine of growth [50]

• Need to innovate in process and products/services to compete

• Requires knowledge to innovate

INTRODUCTION

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Knowledge Quality (KQ)

“extent to which the awareness and understanding of ideas, logics and relationships, and circumstances are fit for use, relevant and

valuable to context and easy to adapt” [56].

KQ is the usefulness and innovativeness of acquired knowledge [51].

INTRODUCTION .. CONT’

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Develop a conceptual framework on KQ, through examining its dimensions, antecedents and

impacts.

RESEARCH AIM

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RESEARCH DESIGN

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RESEARCH QUESTIONS

RQ1: What are the dimensions of KQ?

RQ2: What are the antecedents of KQ?

RQ3: What are the impacts of KQ?

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ONLINE LITERATURE SEARCHES

• Science Direct

• Emerald

• Ebscohost

• Springer

• Proquest

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PROBLEM SOLUTION

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DIMENSIONS OF KQ

• Intrinsic KQ – knowledge has quality by virtue of itself.

• Contextual KQ – considers the knowledge that is associated with the context of the task at hand.

• Actionable KQ – refers to the extent to which knowledge is expandable, adaptable, or simply applied to tasks.

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DIMENSIONS OF KQ .. cont’

• Accessibility KQ – refers to the degree of flexibility, ease of use, and ease of access.

Proposition 1: KQ is a second order factor model of intrinsic KQ, contextual KQ, actionable KQ, and accessibility KQ.

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• Absorptive capacity – refers to the learning capability of the company.

• Functional diversity – refers to the degree of hiring employees with different skills and expertise.

• Openness – refers to the capability to take advantage of external knowledge.

ANTECEDENTS

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• Organizational structure – how tasks are organized and people are coordinated. An organization with leaner structure is likely to have high degree of KQ.

• Organizational culture – “the way we do things..” A friendly organizational culture may provide a significant effect on the sense making processes of employees.

ANTECEDENTS .. CONT’

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• Technology – Technology utilization enables KQ.

Proposition 2: There is a positive relationship between functional diversity and KQ in SMEs.

Proposition 3: There is a positive relationship between absorptive capacity and KQ in SMEs.

Proposition 4: There is a positive relationship between openness and KQ in SMEs.

ANTECEDENTS .. CONT’

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Proposition 5: There is a positive relationship between structure and KQ in SMEs.

Proposition 6: There is a positive relationship between culture and KQ in SMEs.

Proposition 7: There is a positive relationship between technology utilization and KQ in SMEs.

ANTECEDENTS .. CONT’

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• Improvisational creativity – integrated intuition and spontaneity that result in improvisational knowledge.

• Compositional creativity – response generation and execution is simultaneous.

IMPACTS

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•Innovation – the result of creativity and takes place when creative acts are executed.

Proposition 8: There is a positive relationship between KQ and improvisational creativity.

Proposition 9: There is a positive relationship between KQ and compositional creativity.

Proposition 10: There is a positive relationship between KQ and innovation.

IMPACTS .. CONT’

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Proposition 11: Improvisational creativity and compositional creativity are positively correlated.

Proposition 12: There is a positive correlation between compositional creativity and innovation.

Proposition 13: There is a positive correlation between improvisational creativity and innovation.

IMPACTS .. CONT’

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ANTECEDENTS OFKNOWLEDGE QUALITY

Improvisionalcreativity

Compositionalcreativity

Innovation

KnowledgeQuality (KQ)

Functional diversity

Absorptivecapacity

Openness

Organizationalstructure

Organizationalculture

Technology

P1

IntrinsicKQ

ContextualKQ

ActionableKQ

AccessibilityKQ

P2

P3

P5

P4

P6

P7

SMES COMPETITIVENESS

P8

P9

P10

KNOWLEDGE QUALITY FIRST ORDER

P11

P12P13

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

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• Proposed a framework of KQ, its dimensions, antecedents, and impacts.

• Suggested an enhanced definition of SMEs’ competitiveness. This covers improvisational creativity, compositional creativity, and innovation.

• Built on the concept of KQ.

• Defined antecedents.

CONCLUSION

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THANK YOUnorshidah@ic.utm.my