The Moderating Effect of Social Media Usage on Factors Influencing Workplace Knowledge Sharing: Towards a Predictive Model

Chan Shun Hall Room 208

Knowledge sharing (KS) has become increasingly critical in today's knowledge-driven economy. In a society where organizations, groups, or even individuals are striving for success and competitiveness, people consider knowledge as a key strategic asset. For this reason, KS has turned out to be a key managerial aspect in various organizations. Knowledge sharing enhances organizational learning, innovativeness, and competitive advantage. Despite its growing importance, knowledge sharing remains a challenge in many organizations, especially in developing countries. Much of the organizational knowledge is not shared among employees. In consequence, some knowledge-intensive companies such as those in the insurance sector face the challenge of knowledge loss. When employees depart from a company, their experiences, trade secrets, insights, contacts, information, and relationships go with them if the organization does not identify, capture, and share that knowledge within the company. In addition, the business world is fast changing. Technology has affected various business operations including KS. The emergence of new technologies necessitates that organizations consider new ways of sharing knowledge such as using social media, without which they may lag while others progress. Existing literature has shown that knowledge management (KM) is an emerging concept in developing countries. Most KS and transfer studies are from developed countries (Asrar-ul-Haq & Anwar, 2016). Hence, similar future studies in developing nations, Kenya being one of them, are required. Moreover, some scholars have maintained that much work still needs to be done to better uncover the potential of information and communications technology solutions regarding KS (Caporuscio, Ferretti, Leone, & Schiavone, 2020). For organizations to continue to access, create, and share knowledge effectively, there is a need for continued studies on how the emerging digital platforms affect people's interactions and KS (Kane, 2017). Therefore, in this cross-sectional survey study, the researcher investigated the moderating effect of social media usage (SMU) for workplace KS during the socialization and externalization stages of the organizational knowledge creation cycle in insurance companies in Kenya. In particular, the study assessed the influence of SMU on the relationships between the individual factors (trust, altruism, expected reciprocity, self-efficacy, and expected rewards) and KS behavior of insurance employees. The researcher used a structured questionnaire in an online format, composed of 7 scales adapted from previous studies, to collect data from insurance employees in Kenya. A total of 274 employees completed the survey. The researcher then analyzed the data using descriptive statistics, Pearson's Correlation, and hierarchical regression. The results indicate that SMU significantly moderates the relationships between three individual factors (trust, altruism, and self-efficacy) and KS. The resultant model is significant (F [4, 254] = 187.022, p < .001). Further, findings show that KS and SMU for KS are not optimized among insurance employees in Kenya, which could result in knowledge loss. Therefore, insurance companies should promote a culture of KS supported by trust, altruism, self-efficacy, and relevant SMU. These findings will benefit insurance companies' managers, employees, policymakers, and scholars in promoting workplaces that encourage KS.