عوامل تعیین کننده انتقال دانش اجرای برنامه ریزی منابع سازمانی (ERP)

Our study examined the determinants of ERP knowledge transfer from implementation consultants (ICs) to key users (KUs), and vice versa. An integrated model was developed, positing that knowledge transfer was influenced by the knowledge-, source-, recipient-, and transfer context-related aspects. Data to test this model were collected from 85 ERP-implementation projects of firms that were mainly located in Zhejiang province, China. The results of the analysis demonstrated that all four aspects had a significant influence on ERP knowledge transfer. Furthermore, the results revealed the mediator role of the transfer activities and arduous relationship between ICs and KUs. The influence on knowledge transfer from the source’s willingness to transfer and the recipient’s willingness to accept knowledge was fully mediated by transfer activities, whereas the influence on knowledge transfer from the recipient’s ability to absorb knowledge was only partially mediated by transfer activities. The influence on knowledge transfer from the communication capability (including encoding and decoding competence) was fully mediated by arduous relationship.

The worldwide market of ERP packages has been estimated as growing at an annual growth rate of 4.8% and exceeding $21 billion in 2010 [1]. According to the editorial in Information & Management [12], IS usage and resource management issues were most heavily investigating in the past decade, and knowledge management is an upcoming area. Knowledge and the capability to create and utilize knowledge are important sources of a firm’s sustainable competitive advantage. Globalization, M&A and strategic alliances have made effective knowledge transfer central to a firm’s success. ERP implementation requires a wide range of knowledge. Without external help, hardly any organization can implement ERP successfully; external support is usually available from the software vendor. The benefits of ERP depend on the client’s operation, maintenance, and upgrading skills and knowledge, which can be learned, acquired and transferred from a consultant. Based on prior studies, Dong-Gil et al. [11] developed and examined an integrated theoretical model of knowledge transfer (from consultant to client) in the context of ERP implementation. Adopting a “source-recipient” model, they proposed that knowledge transfer was influenced by three types of factors: knowledge, communication, and motivational. However, they explored knowledge flow only from consultant to client, but knowledge flows in both directions. Gupta and Govindarajan [14] examined knowledge flows into and out of the subsidiaries of multi-national corporations (MNCs). Therefore, we developed and tested an integrated model to explore knowledge transfer between implementation consultants (ICs) and key users (KUs). There are two parts in the model: part one describes the ERP knowledge transfer from ICs to KUs, and the other the business knowledge from KUs to ICs. The knowledge exists at four levels: individual, group, organizational, and inter-organizational. We explored ERP knowledge transfer across organizations at the individual level.

Beginning with analysis of the bidirectional knowledge transfer between KUs and ICs, we explored the determinants of successful knowledge transfer in ERP implementation projects. Four sets of factors (characteristics of knowledge to be transferred, source, recipient, and context) were shown to have different effects on ERP knowledge transferred from ICs to KUs and on business process knowledge transferred from KUs to ICs. We further revealed the full- and partial-mediator nature of transfer activities between the recipient’s absorptive capacity and the ERP implementation knowledge transfer, and the full-mediator of arduous relationship between communication encoding competence and ERP implementation knowledge transfer.