Key determinants of knowledge sharing in an electronics manufacturing firm in Malaysia

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that affect knowledge‐sharing attitudes in Malaysia, with emphasis on a manufacturing firm and how this attitude influences their intention to share knowledge.

This is a survey research conducted within a manufacturing firm. The questionnaire was developed by adapting items and concepts from prior works, and by developing a new variable, kiasuism. A census sampling method was used to select participants for this research. The data derive from a case analysis in a manufacturing company in Malaysia. The analysis was based on 141 valid responses.

The findings indicate that collectivism, social network, social trust, shared goal, incentive systems, kiasuism and self‐efficacy emerged significant except for individualism. A unique finding is that kiasuism emerged as proposed, which suggest that future works could focus more on this variable to highlight its impact in a firm's ability to share knowledge. Overall, the data support our framework and indicate that knowledge sharing among employees in Malaysia's private companies is gaining grounds.

The limitations of this research include the case study approach adopted, which does not allow the generalization of the results beyond that of the firm being studied. The implications emanating from this research is that the ability of a firm, especially electronic manufacturing firms, to harness internal resources and capabilities to enhance knowledge sharing among employees, would be critical for the firm to maintain a competitive position in the marketplace.

This paper provides specific backgrounds of the key factors that could affect the effective implementation of knowledge‐sharing initiatives in a firm, particularly those in the manufacturing sector. The findings suggest key implications for practice and research involved in knowledge‐sharing activities in their firms and related initiatives.