Generational knowledge transfer and retention strategies

PurposeThis study reviews strategies organizational leaders and human resource practitioners can deploy to develop knowledge transfer and retention succession planning strategies for older employees to mitigate generational organizational knowledge loss prior to retirement.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a questionnaire with 28 baby boomer employees and leaders of baby boomers at a large federal agency. Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used. Questions asked participants about knowledge transfer, retention strategies and how challenges to counter baby boomer knowledge loss are addressed in the workplace.FindingsDevelop succession plans using standard operating procedures and job aids to reduce knowledge loss and enhance retention. Deploy hands-on training to share historical knowledge, enhance relationship building, mentoring programs, cross-training opportunities, retention incentives and document process improvement. The strategies are supported by organizational learning and knowledge management theories.Originality/valueThis study contributes to organizational leaders' and human resource practitioners' knowledge transfer and retention succession planning strategies to counter generational knowledge loss.

Rigidity in crisis: The impact of OHSAS 18001 certification on production repurposing during COVID-19

It is important for firms to repurpose production responsively during a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic, to seize the market opportunity and create social value. However, occupational health and safety (OHS) can also be a concern in a crisis, and adherence to OHS management systems can undermine a firm's responsiveness in repurposing decision making. We adopt the "capability-rigidity" lens to construct a connection between OHS management standards (i.e., OHSAS 18001) and firms' adaptation responsiveness. After sampling 734 listed Chinese manufacturing firms, our match-based analysis reveals that firms certified with OHSAS 18001 were less responsive during COVID-19 in terms of production repurposing than those without the certification. Yet, certain experience, namely, prepandemic manufacturing of related products, experience of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic, and being geographically located close to firms that produced medical supplies, could attenuate this effect. We discuss the implications of our findings in the context of and adding to the literature on safety management, certified management standards, and organizational adaptation and learning.

The drivers of the digital transformation in the healthcare industry: An empirical analysis in Italian hospitals

In recent years, driven by the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, digital transformation in the healthcare sector is becoming increasingly important. Digital healthcare technologies, if adopted in a targeted manner and imple-mented in a cost-effective way, make it possible to reduce healthcare inequalities, improve the quality of healthcare provided and increase the well-being of citizens. The importance of digital transformation in healthcare is also attracting interest from academics. However, at present, there are few studies aimed at examining the degree of digital transformation in healthcare and the drivers of the adoption and implementation of digital solutions by healthcare facilities. This study aims to fill this gap by analysing the level of digital transformation of Italian hospitals and the factors that can affect this level of digital transformation. The analysis, conducted on a sample of 103 hospitals, shows a positive and significant impact of the hospital size, hospital age and hospital teaching status on the level of digital transformation. Furthermore, in relation to hospital complexity, it shows a positive effect of the presence of the emergency room and a non-significant influence of the number of hospital departments on the level of digital transformation.

Bridging the Gap Between Academia and Business

The tertiary education sector in all countries has been affected by the social impact of the COVID-19 era. The provision of ‘on-line' or ‘hybrid' teaching has enabled some education to continue but other aspects of campus life, such as postgraduate and other laboratory-based research activities, have been curtailed. The public hygiene strategy of cutting back some businesses through the COVID ‘lockdown' has also interrupted some of the links between industry and universities, although some universities have expanded collaboration with local government and other agencies to work for recovery. Despite the effect of COVID, the demand for premium knowledge by individuals on which to build their careers has not diminished. In many countries both government and society have intensified their interest in universities with the view to them taking an increasingly active role in economic and social development. This expanded activity is now commonly described as a ‘third mission' (TM). The development of TM has been growing across the whole of the international tertiary education spectrum for more than fifty years. Individual universities have developed deeper working relationships with industry, business, and the public sector. One of the consequences of COVID on universities has been to accelerate the need to put in place TM related activities, thus bridging the gap between academia and business. This chapter explores the issues and reflects on some aspects of the third leg mission for universities in an international context and particularly in the Arab World. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

The productivity impact of short-term labor mobility across industries

The restrictions on labor mobility imposed in the COVID-19 pandemic heighten the need to review in detail the role of mobility in improving productivity and fostering economic growth. In this study, we carry out a comprehensive analysis of business visits (BVs) understood as a productivity-enhancing intrapreneurial strategy, using the most extensive set of data available, covering 33 sectors and 14 countries during the period 1998–2013. Our database merges unique information on expenditures on BVs by sector, country, and year, sourced from the US National Business Travel Association, with OECD and World Bank productivity data. We find that BVs raise labor productivity in a significant way, but short-term labor mobility exhibits decreasing returns, being more crucial in those firms, sectors, and countries characterized by less mobility and by lower productivity performances.Plain English SummaryCOVID-19 has imposed restrictions on labor mobility and this turns out to be relevant for productivity and economic growth. Business visits (BVs) are a proper proxy (unique information is taken from the US National Business Travel Association) to measure short-term mobility. Sectoral data in 14 countries over the period 1998–2013 are used. Results do reveal that BVs have a positive impact on labor productivity. However, this effect is more relevant in those sectors and economies at a lower stage of productivity evolution, i.e., the lower the initial productivity level, the larger the effect of BVs on productivity. Therefore, BVs play a relevant role in sectors and countries lagging behind in terms of productivity. Policy makers should foster, in the post-pandemic recovery, short-term labor mobility through adequate incentives and tax exemptions, particularly in those sectors where BVs are less frequent and where productivity growth is below the average.

A Virtual Reality Lab for Automotive Service Specialists: A Knowledge Transfer System in the Digital Age

Under the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an accelerated transition from the traditional form of knowledge transfer to online learning. Our study of 344 automotive students showed that the success of this transition depends on the readiness to introduce special digital tools for organizing knowledge and conducting practical forms of classes. In this regard, a modern digital form of organizing and transferring knowledge to automotive service engineers in the form of virtual laboratories was developed and presented in the article. The work scenarios, functionality, and minimum technical requirements of virtual laboratories as software systems are described and reviewed in the paper. The rationale for the effectiveness of the application, based on the results of using 109 university students in training practice, is presented as a result of the research. An analysis of the distributions of the student survey results and their training progress revealed differences at the p = 0.05 significance level. This confirmed the hypothesis that the use of methods for teaching engineers special disciplines and language skills using VR technologies is much more effective than the traditional one. An increase in students' interest in learning was revealed, and their performance improved markedly. This proves that the immersive nature of VR technology makes it possible to better assimilate the studied material, increase the level of motivation of future car service specialists, and also allow the organization of the transfer of knowledge online. The very process of knowledge transfer becomes the point of acquiring new digital competencies necessary for high-tech industries. © 2023 by the authors.

Impact of virtuality on trust, reciprocal relations, and knowledge-sharing behaviors

This non-experimental quantitative survey research examined the impact of virtuality on knowledge-sharing behaviors (KSB) in teams. It investigated the relationship between trust and reciprocal relations (RR) with KSB amongst virtual teams (VTs). It also explored the differences in teams' trust, RR, and KSB when they moved from a non-virtual to a virtual environment during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study used a sample of non-supervisory employees who had experience working on a non-virtual team (before the pandemic) and a virtual team (during the pandemic) from organizations located in Canada. The study used a random probability sampling strategy to generate the sample. Qualtrics, a third-party survey company, recruited the participants using inclusion and exclusion criteria. The variables were measured using the VTTS (Sarker et al., 2003), ARRS (Yi, 2009), and KSBS (Bock et al., 2005) survey instruments. All survey instruments met sufficient reliability and validity standards. The surveys were administered online to participants who met the inclusion criteria and signed the adult informed consent form. The data collected was analyzed using IBM's SPSS version 28. Spearman's rank-order correlation assesses the relationships between the variables. Virtual team trust and RR significantly and positively correlated with KSB amongst VTs. The t tests were used to evaluate the differences in trust, RR, and KSB between the non-virtual and virtual team environments. There was no significant difference between non-virtual and virtual teams for trust, RR, and KSB. A review of the KSB's mean and median statistics revealed that teams' knowledge sharing is low whether members are in a non-virtual or virtual work arrangement. According to the evidence, trust and RR are essential to social exchange behaviors. The data indicated that virtuality did not impact teams' trust, RR, or KSB during the pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Linking online and offline intergenerational knowledge transfer to younger employees' innovative work behaviors: evidence from Chinese hospitals

PurposeLittle is known about when younger employees' intergenerational knowledge transfer (IGKT) – behaviors of acquiring knowledge from older employees – improves their innovative work behaviors (IWB), especially in hospitals. Taking into consideration the moderating roles of individual absorptive capacity (AC) and organization size, this study aims to develop a theoretical model to account for the associations of both online and offline IGKT with younger employees' IWB.Design/methodology/approachThe model was tested with a survey of 202 Chinese younger doctors (40 years old and below). Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze the data.FindingsThe results showed that both online IGKT and offline IGKT have significant positive relationships with younger doctors' IWB. Individual AC can strengthen the relationship between offline IGKT and IWB, and organization size can weaken the relationship. However, both individual AC and organization size do not significantly moderate the relationship between online IGKT and IWB.Originality/valueThe findings extend the understanding and application of individual-level knowledge-based view and media synchronicity theory by exploring the relationship of knowledge acquisition from older doctors through both online and offline communication channels with younger doctors' IWB.

Training effectiveness and organizational learning: Evidence from Vietnam's hospitality industry

PurposeThis paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.Design/methodology/approachThis briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.FindingsThe results suggest that organizations should develop a systematic process for training and should measure the effectiveness of the training they organize;not all training will lead to the desired learning outcomes.Originality/valueThe briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Artificial intelligence-based group decision making to improve knowledge transfer: the case of distance learning in higher education

In this paper, we propose a method based on multicriteria classification and a dominancebased rough set approach (DRSA) to support teachers in decision making. The objective is to use teachers' knowledge and preferences to identify ‘atrisk students', i.e. students who are likely to drop out, and ‘leader students', i.e. students who are likely to help their peers, in distance learning. The proposed method is composed of two phases: phase I builds collective decision rules from teachers' preferences, and phase II classifies students into two decision classes: ‘atrisk students' and ‘leader students'. This method was designed, tested, and validated in higher education, with teachers who have acquired rich experience in teaching in online-synchronous mode since the Covid-19 pandemic. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Modifying Knowledge Risk Strategy Using Threat Lessons Learned from COVID-19 in 2020-21 in the United States

2020 and 2021 have shown us that the likelihood of extreme events is more significant than we would have expected. Due to extreme circumstances, organizational resources are stretched to their limits, making organizations more vulnerable to attacks affecting their knowledge systems and knowledge assets. This paper conducts an intelligence-based threat assessment by analyzing published reports on events during the 2020-21 period against a set of five knowledge risks to identify threats and determine if they increase the likelihood of these risks occurring. We identify six possible changes in knowledge risk strategy to mitigate these threats: proper knowledge identification, guidelines for employee online behavior, identification and evaluation of online communication channels, re-evaluation of how work is to be performed, creation of knowledge capture processes for departing personnel, and performing a knowledge risk re-assessment. Additionally, we conclude that organizations need expertise in identifying and countering misinformation and disinformation to defend themselves from these new cyber threats. ©The Authors.

A modern game of telephone: Knowledge sharing, remote work, and organizational crisis in a public library system

Many organizations rapidly shifted to remote work operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This quantitative research study investigated how knowledge sharing within a public library system changed as a result of remote work operations and identified impacts to knowledge sharing, including barriers and catalysts. The participants in this study included staff within a large public library system, including librarians, regional managers, and members of the library system leadership team. Participants provided demographic data and responses to Likert scale agreement questions related to the concepts of communication, connection, and knowledge sharing. This data were analyzed using correlational and ANOVA tests. Additionally, participants provided narrative responses related to their experience with knowledge sharing during the transition to remote work. Responses were quantified based on inductively identified themes using an organizational learning framework as the basis for the analysis. Correlational analysis found that asynchronous communication had a positive relationship with knowledge sharing, while connection to staff outside the team and the organization was negatively related to knowledge sharing. Analysis of variance showed no statistically significant difference in ratings of knowledge sharing based on demographic groupings;however, the contextual theme analysis did indicate that participants experienced knowledge sharing in remote work operations differently across demographic factors. The study findings led to five recommendations for leaders of the partner organization and other leaders navigating organizational crisis onset by the abrupt transition to remote work operations coinciding with the COVID-19 global pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Rethinking the path from evidence to decision-making.

Evidence-informed decision-making is increasingly recognized as a standard for policymaking in many fields, including public health. However, many challenges exist in identifying the appropriate evidence, disseminating it to different stakeholders, and implementing it in various settings. The Israel Implementation Science and Policy Engagement Centre (IS-PEC) was established at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev to "bridge the gap" between scientific research and policy. As an illustrative case study, IS-PEC is conducting a scoping review on strategies to engage senior citizens in Israel when developing health policy. In May 2022, IS-PEC brought together international experts and Israeli stakeholders to increase knowledge in the field of evidence-informed policy, develop a research agenda, strengthen international collaborations, and create a community for sharing experience, research, and best practices. Panelists presented the importance of communicating clear, accurate bottom-line messages with the media. Also, they highlighted the once-in-a-generation opportunity to promote the uptake of evidence in public health due to the increased public interest in evidence-informed policymaking post-COVID-19 pandemic and the need to build systems and centers to support the systematic use of evidence. Group discussions focused on various aspects of communication, including challenges and strategies when communicating to policymakers, understanding the nuances of communication between scientists, journalists, and the public, and some ethical issues surrounding data visualization and infographics. Panelists participated in a passionate debate regarding whether and how values play a role when conducting, analyzing, and communicating evidence. Takeaway lessons from the workshop included that going forward, Israel must create lasting systems and a sustainable environment for evidence-informed policy. Novel and interdisciplinary academic programs must be developed to train future policymakers in various fields, including public health, public policy, ethics, communication, social marketing, and infographics. Sustainable professional relationships between journalists, scientists, and policymakers must be fostered and strengthened based on mutual respect and a shared commitment to creating, synthesizing, implementing, and communicating high-quality evidence to serve the public and individual wellbeing.

Gamification using Octalysis Framework in Knowledge Management System for Vocational High Schools during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Knowledge management systems enable teachers and students to interact directly in the knowledge transfer process during the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, applying the gamification concept in vocational disciplines could enhance the quality of teaching to increase motivation and student learning outcomes which tend to decline. Octalysis Framework, which supports the gamification concept, consists of eight cores that focus on creativity, self-expression, social dynamics, logic, thinking, and ownership depicted in an octagon making an application more fun and helpful to motivate users to enjoy and be involved in an activity. This condition is crucial and urgent in the Covid-19 pandemic that requires online and student-centered learning. This study discussed the application of Octalysis Framework-based Gamification in a Computer Learning Knowledge Management system in Vocational High Schools during the Covid-19 Pandemic. The Gamification concept with the Octalysis Framework was implemented in the Knowledge Management System. Some game mechanics in a non-game context consisting of four phases, namely the Discovery, Onboarding, Scaffolding, and Endgame was applied to improve student performance and motivation in learning. Meanwhile, The Knowledge Management System software achieved an overall quality score of 5.14 out of 6 (85.6 percent of quality achieved) covering functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability, and portability characteristics of the ISO 9126 quality indicator. © 2022 IEEE.

University and Industry Collaboration in the Era of Smart Specialisation: Empirical Research on Sustainable Knowledge Transfer

The coronavirus disease-19 pandemic has forced universities worldwide to develop stronger crisis responses in order to support the surrounding communities more effectively. These solutions are based on collaborations between higher education institutions and industries that facilitate knowledge co-creation. Historically, universities have been knowledge-intensive institutions capable of producing additional findings through research. Currently, these organisations' most important contributions to national economies are related to universities' development of fresh knowledge and technical expertise. In parallel, all industries' business environments have become extremely dynamic, which requires companies to focus on new solutions, rapid development and cost efficiency. To cope with these pressures, industries have been forced to search for new partners, so university-industry collaboration (UIC) has become a key resource for managers seeking to promote innovation and technological development. This study explored the relationship between research and innovation based on smart specialisation strategies and UIC, including the roles of university-industry (U-I) joint research and academics' motivations for interacting with industries. Based on data collected from 841 Portuguese and Spanish researchers, the results reveal that smart specialisation policies' effects on UIC are driven by U-I joint research development and university faculty members' motivations for co-operating with industry professionals. The findings indicate that U-I research activities and universities' incentives to collaborate with industries fully convert smart specialisation strategies' effects into higher levels of U-I knowledge transfer. © 2022, Academic Conferences and Publishing International Limited. All rights reserved.

Information in times of crisis: the case of the Spanish University during the pandemic

COVID19 has been the topic that has occupied the most space in the media around the world. We could say that there has been unprecedented media saturation. The mass media have had the challenge of reporting rigorously and searching for the truth in a situation of confusion and crisis never seen in recent times. This article aims to show an analysis of the information offered by the media about the Spanish university reality, during the state of alarm. We were interested in determining the informational treatment that the Spanish digital press made on the Universities in Spain and what was the image reflected on the strengths and weaknesses of Higher Education during the pandemic. To achieve this objective, an attempt was made to find out the degree of importance that the media gave it in their agendas and whether there was a dominant discourse on the part of the Spanish newspapers. It was also analyzed whether the information provided by the most widely circulated newspapers corresponded to the reality of the University situation and its essential issues. This study helped us to conclude the relevance that Higher Education obtained in a crisis such as the one we have experienced and how the media transmitted that reality to us.

Emerging Market versus Western Expatriates in Japan during the Covid-19 Pandemic

In this paper, the term "EMex" is coined to refer to emerging market expatriates who had to adjust to working and living in Japan during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Social Identity Theory is applied together with the Grounded Theory to develop a more nuanced picture of how EMex coped with the adjustment process. We found that EMex were confronted with various challenges, some of which were somewhat similar, while others were quite different compared to those experienced by the Western expatriates. All the interviewees in this study spent most of their assignment duration in Japan at their home office. Occasionally, when EMex were allowed to go to their office, they were assigned to special projects with international teams, and so they did not have any contact with non-English speaking local (Japanese) managers. Like Western expatriates, they also missed in-person meetings with their workma-tes at the office;in spite of their IT literacy, they also faced challenges conducting online meetings from their home office. EMex were not given housing allowance, and this added to the difficulty in adjusting to living in Japan compared to Western expatriates. Moreover, their motivations and perspectives of the future differed from those of Western managers, who had a more secure future with their company. Also EMex faced out-group categorization issues by host-country nationals (HCNs) even if some of them planned to extend their stay in Japan after their assignment ended.

Leaders' Networking Behaviours in a Time of Crisis: A Qualitative Study on the Frontline against COVID-19

What do leaders do when they interact with followers and stakeholders in a time of crisis? What networking behaviours do leaders manifest in such a context of emergency? We answer these questions through qualitative research and cluster analysis conducted on a sample of leaders involved in community management in the most affected region in northern Italy during the three key phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings span a period of 18-months and show that leaders display a behavioural repertoire that includes six networking actions. Grouped together, these actions identify three clusters of leaders: Churners, who engage mainly in network generation and network termination;Divergent leaders, who manifest high levels of network conflict and re-construal;and Sense-makers, who are high in network deepening and teleology. Our research contributes to unveil the idiographic micro-foundations of networking behaviour during organizational jolts.

Smart tourism: antecedents to Indian traveller's decision

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the tourists' perception of smart tourism with the application of virtual reality and design a framework of smart tourism with elements of VR for Indian Tourism especially in the periods of the pandemic COVID-19. The ever-evolving and unprecedented COVID 19 situation had posed extreme challenges for the travel and tourism industry. In such conditions, it is becoming increasingly necessary to rely on digital technologies, ICT and smart tourism. ICT has served as a catalyst for innovations in tourism.Design/methodology/approachThis study investigates the impact of smart tourism and virtual reality technology on the perception of tourists towards travelling decisions during and post COVID-19 scenario. The respondents involved in the study were tourists travelling in India, the tourists come from different parts of India. A structured questionnaire has been administered to collect data from 224 travellers across India. The questionnaire consisted 22 constructs. The constructs in this section were measured using a five-point Likert scale ranging. In the first step, the first order Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) is carried out, by using the software IBM AMOS-20. The initial model is generated ix constructs, and outcomes are used to analyse the model's goodness of fit and construct validity. In the second step, Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is carried out to do the path analysis of the proposed model. The effect of relationships amongst the theoretical constructs is also analysed using SEM.FindingsThe findings imply that the application of smart tourism along with virtual reality forms a positive perception of tourists and provides a sustainable platform for tourism organizations in Indian tourism. Virtual reality-based tourism has emerged as alternate for the tourism industry during the times of Covid, which in long run can be seen as a substitute to traditional tourism. The increasing use of blue ocean concepts, to delivery high-value experience at low cost has complimented the tourism industry. The researchers have made a modest attempt by proposing a blended model of smart tourism with virtual reality as a blue ocean strategy and which would ultimately facilitate the sustainability of the Industry by creating multi-dimensional values of experience for tourists in India.Research limitations/implicationsThe researchers have made a modest attempt by proposing a blended model of smart tourism with virtual reality as a blue ocean strategy, which would ultimately facilitate the industry's sustainability by creating multi-dimensional values of experience for tourists in India.Originality/valueThis qualitative study designs a smart tourism system with the use of the recent advances in ICT and Virtual Reality (VR), as a bridging solution and the saviour of the tourism sector in India during COVID 19. The integration of ICT into the travel experience has resulted in the social phenomena of smart tourism. This has led to a rise in use of smart tourism tools among tourism service providers.

Can information sharing predict fresh produce supply chain performance amid the COVID-19 pandemic? A social learning perspective

Purpose This research aims to provide a predictive model assessment on the effect of information sharing on fresh produce supply chain (FPSC) performance during the COVID-19 pandemic by incorporating information quality as an important part of information sharing, as well as cognitive and affective appraisals as part of a social learning process (mediators) into the model. Design/methodology/approach An online survey was conducted on 197 small fresh produce (fruits and vegetables) retailers in Indonesia during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data were analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) particularly PLSpredict supported by SmartPLS 4 software. Findings This research reveals that information sharing is positively and significantly associated with information quality and that the two constructs are not directly associated with FPSC performance. The path analysis suggests that the effect of information sharing on FPSC performance is fully mediated by cognitive and affective appraisals to the information-sharing activity. It also suggests that the effect of information quality on FPSC performance is fully mediated by affective rather than cognitive appraisal. This model shows a high predictive power and highlights the pivotal role of the learning process during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originality/value This research is the first to employ a predictive model assessment in PLS-SEM to empirically predict the effect of information sharing on FPSC performance using a social learning perspective, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.