中外企业间差异对知识转移的影响研究

Understanding Knowledge Transfer in Sino-Foreign Buyer-Supplier Relationships

有效的知识转移是组织联盟取得成功的关键因素之一。然而在跨文化的战略合作中,实现有效的知识转移经常存在着一些障碍,容易导致双方合作的失败。首先,确定企业间管理和技术的差异性是阻碍企业间知识转移的两个重要因素,进一步提出选择适当的沟通媒介以及采用合适的控制机制可以降低差异性对知识转移的作用。基于中国制造业和国外企业建立供应关系的178家企业的调查研究,发现企业间管理差异性对知识转移存在着负向作用;面对面的沟通方式有助于降低管理差异性的负向作用,而基于信息技术的沟通方式有助于降低技术差异性的影响;社会控制机制的使用有助于中外企业合作中的知识转移。最后,探讨了研究的理论贡献和实践意义。

Effective knowledge transfer is critical to the success of inter-organizational alliances. However, achieving effective knowledge transfer is often problematic in cross-cultural strategic cooperations, and is a primary cause of failure in many such relationships. The article first identified inter-firm diversity in management and technology as two major impediments of knowledge transfer, and posited that selecting appropriate communication media and employing control mechanisms could help organizations reduce the impact of inter-firm diversity on knowledge transfer. Based on a cross-sectional survey of 178 Chinese manufacturing firms that have entered into strategic buyer-supplier relationships with foreign Western firms, the research found that inter-firm diversity, more specifically managerial diversity, indeed has a negative influence on knowledge transfer. The empirical results also supported the hypotheses on the moderating effects of communication media and control mechanisms, indicating that while IT-based communication media are more effective in alleviating the effect of technological diversity,face-to-face communication helps in moderating the negative impact of managerial diversity on knowledge transfer.The use of social control mechanisms was found to be effective in enhancing knowledge transfer in Sino-foreign alliance. Implications for theory and practice were discussed.