The Mediation Role of Engineers’ Performance Factors in the Influence of Social Capital on the Desire to Share Tacit Knowledge

Abstract

Organizations that wish to remain competitive in the knowledge age must be willing to make significant efforts to acquire, communicate, exchange, and sustain knowledge. Specifically, tacit knowledge significantly influences an engineering firm’s core performance and is one of the growth characteristics. However, relatively few studies have been conducted to examine the processes that mediate this link. The goal of this study is to investigate engineers’ performance factors as a strategy for moderating the effect of social capital and the desire in sharing tacit knowledge. A survey of engineering managers was chosen, and responses were received and analyzed using SPSS and AMOS 24. The findings reveal that an improvement in engineers’ performance is likely to increase knowledge sharing in the company. Simultaneously, to facilitate knowledge sharing, engineering managers should encourage engineers to participate in social and other events.

This paper is unique in examining how social capital effectively addresses the need to share tacit knowledge by presenting an insightful viewpoint on engineering performance.

Keywords:

• Tacit Knowledge Sharing
• Engineers Performance
• Social Capital
• Willingness to Share
• Knowledge Management

EMJ Focus Areas:

• Engineering Management Profession
• Knowledge Management

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Social Science Fund of China [19BTQ035].

Notes on contributors

Fredrick Ahenkora Boamah

Fredrick Ahenkora Boamah is currently a PhD candidate in the school of Management at Zhengzhou University and has over 15 years of experience working on engineering management projects. Boamah is a professional engineer and a member of the International Association of Engineers, Institution of Engineering and Technology-Ghana, Ghana Institute of Construction, and a student member of the American Association of Civil Engineers.

Jianhua Zhang

Jianhua Zhang is a professor at the school of Management, Zhengzhou University. He had holds a Bachelor of Engineering and Doctor of Management from Tongji University, Shanghai, China. Currently, he is a professor and doctoral supervisor of Zhengzhou University. His research focus on knowledge service, knowledge management, and innovation management, he has published 112 papers.

Sherani Sherani

Sherani Sherani is also a PhD student in Management Science and Engineering and has a research interest in Information Behavior, knowledge management, innovation management, e-commerce, IOT’s applications, eWOM

Ziao Cao

Ziao Cao male, Han nationality, born in 1992, from Zhengzhou, Henan. Bachelor degree in Economics from McMaster University in Canada; Master degree in Philosophy of Science and Technology from Zhongyuan Institute of Technology, Research Field: Technological Innovation and Intellectual Property; From September 2021, studying Transportation in School of Management Engineering, Zhengzhou University Professional doctorate, research direction: service management.