An Empirical Model to Foster Innovation and Learning Through Knowledge Sharing Culture

In today’s knowledge-based economy, knowledge is the most important resource for an organization to gain competitive advantage (Stewart 1996). Knowledge creation, sharing, and dissemination are the main activities in knowledge management. Being part of knowledge management (KM) process (Kim and King 2004), knowledge sharing is the exchange of experience, events, thoughts, or understanding of anything. Knowledge sharing culture is viewed as an important process because it results in shared intellectual capital (Liao et al. 2007). Knowledge sharing culture is defined in many ways: Culture with a positive orientation to knowledge is the one that highly values learning on and off the job (Davenport et al. 1998); positive attitudes of leaders and colleagues toward knowledge processes (Dobrai and Farkas 2008); people would share ideas and insights because they see it as natural rather than something they are forced to do (McDermott and O’Dell 2001); and a way of organizational life that enables and motivates people to create, share, and utilize knowledge (Oliver and Kandadi 2006). Knowledge sharing culture impacts the organization in many ways – at individual, group, and organizational level.