Analysis of Knowledge Sharing through Donating &

Collecting
as the Basis of Learning in the Innovation Process
in Small and Medium Scale Enterprises/SMEs
(A Case Study of the West Sumatran SME in Indonesia)
Presented in the 7th DAAD Workshop on
Concepts of Learning in the Process of Work in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam, 31 October 4 November 2016

Hafiz Rahman, PhD

Senior Lecturer in Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Small and Medium Scale

Enterprises/SMEs
Department of Management, The Faculty of Economics Andalas University
Padang - INDONESIA

Agenda of the Presentation

1. Rationale and Background of the Study
2. Problem Statement
3. Objective of the Study
4. Literature Review
5. Framework of the Study
6. Method
7. Findings and Analysis
8. Conclusion
9. Next tasks ...

Rationale
Institutiona
l
supports

Network
Finance
Technolo
gy

SMEs

Internal/
organisatio
nal
capacity

Business
environme
nt

Storing
Marketin
g
Knowled
ge
gap
Innovatio
n

Capture

Donatin
g

Sharing
Applicatio
n

Transfer

1. Background

SMEs as a business entity need to maintain their competitive

advantage by undertaking innovation as the basis for
sustainability of the business and increasing their business scale

SMEs however, need to consider the element of knowledge as

one of the main conditions to undertake innovation process

To get sufficient knowledge within parties inside SMEs, SMEs can

undertake knowledge sharing, in terms of knowledge donating
and knowledge collecting, which allow members of the
organisation to absorpt sufficient knowledge to undertake
innovation process

2. Problem Statement
How can process and implementation of knowledge sharing
through donating and collecting be used as the basis of learning
for innovation process in SMEs? What would be the sensible
pattern of innovation in SMEs resulted from this process?

3. Objective
a.

b.

To analyse the process and implementation of knowledge

sharing through donating and collecting in SMEs as the basis
of learning for innovation process.
To get an insight and perspective regarding knowledge
sharing as the basis of learning in innovation process in SMEs.

4. Literature
a. The improvement of organisational performance is strongly associated with
individuals learning process and transfer of learned knowledge to the workplace,
Song et al. (2008).
b. The adoption of knowledge will enable the flow of information to be spreaded
within the firm and further, it can positively create values of the firm (ODell and
Hubert, 2011).
c. Knowledge within the firm is a unity of three elements: [a] people, [b] process
and, [c] technology, Dzunic, et al. (2012) and it usually is undertaken in several
stages: [a] knowledge creation, [b] knowledge capture, [c] knowledge storing, [d]
knowledge sharing and, [e] knowledge application, Macintosh (1995).
d. Boer et al., (2011) mentioned that knowledge sharing is defined as a process
which closely related to communication and learning. Developing knowledge
sharing in an organisation can establish a better transformation in performances
across activities in that organisation.

d. Slavkovic and Babic, (2013): knowledge management has a direct and positive
impact on process innovation, administrative innovation and every
improvement in the processes related to knowledge management will also
encouraging innovation in the organization, which ensures competitiveness in
the long term period
e. Nonaka and Takeuchi, (2005) mentioned that sufficient knowledge sharing
process will influence innovation in the organisation since it can create
collective learning and rises collective benefits for members of the organisation
since it can also supply knowledge within the organisation at large
f. Quintana et al., (2011): an innovation is in essence new knowledge, and
therefore that it is possible to conceptualize innovation as an outcome from a
knowledge-based perspective.
g. So, the essence of innovation process and the innovation as an outcome of that
process depend on the existence of knowledge in an organisation, in which the
collective knowledge of the people inside the organisation plays a major role to
perform innovation.

5. Framework of the Study

6. Method

The study uses SMEs in West Sumatra Province in Indonesia as its

context.

It is an empirical based study

It has a qualitative method in terms of descriptive study as its main

approach,

Data is collected by an in-depth interview

Data instrument is the interview list

The study operates content analysis as its main data analysis.

A case study approach is used to collect data and information from the
informants of the study, which are owners and employees of SMEs in
West Sumatra Province in Indonesia.

7. Finding and Analysis

a. In terms of knowledge donating, this study considers the following
dimensions as its unit of analysis:
[a] ability of colleagues of an employee to understand new knowledge,
[b] awareness to share information with colleagues inside the
department
[c] willingness to share skills with colleagues inside the department
[d] ability of colleagues outside of the department to understand the
knowledge given to them
[e] willingness to share information with colleagues outside of the
department
[f] willingness to share skills with colleagues outside of the department
b. The study has found that people (owner and employees) in the case study
context have undertaken all dimensions of knowledge donating.

c. Related to knowledge collecting which has the dimensions of:

[a] the willingness of colleagues inside the department to
answer every question which has been asked by other
colleagues
[b] the willingness of the colleagues inside the department to
inform every skill that he/she has
[c] the willingness of colleagues outside of the department to
answer every question which has been asked
[d] the willingness of colleagues outside of the department to
inform his/her skills
[e] the use of social software in the company
this study has found that in terms of points [a], [b], [c] and [d],
the case study company has undertaken all of those dimensions.

d. The study found that

. the communication process,
. open-space working place,
. trust,
. long-term relationships among the employees and
. harmonious relationship between the employees and owner of
the company

are the main factors that influence both the knowledge donating and
knowledge collecting process as the elements of knowledge sharing
in the case study company.

e. Employees and employer in the case study company are doing the
following pattern of innovation after they share knowledge with each
other:

[a] implementing small adaptations to the product voluntarily, in order to

reach and to fill demands from potential customers
[b] re-introduce products after some small adaptation and improvements
[c] efficiency to the existing products
[d] improvement of customer service to the existing cutomers
f. Analysing the pattern of innovation that has been conducted by the case
study company, we believe that it is sourced and it is as a response to
customers demand and need. In other words, the majority of the pattern
of innovation undertaken by the company is based on the orientation to
customers which is well known as market-pull innovation.

g. In the view from innovation as a field of study, market-pull

innovation is closely related to the concept of incremental
innovation/exploitative innovation.
h. Considering the scale and the ability of SMEs, this study confirms
various studies and researches, which have found that the most
SMEs are usually undertaking incremental innovation as the main
modus of innovation.

8. Conclusion
a. It can be inferred from the study that knowledge sharing has allowed an
equal dissemination of information between people in SME. Employees
and owner can spread an equal information, exchanging and transfering
knowledge as well as share experience one to each other.
b. This situation has led to the creation of a conducive environment in which
learning processes can be smoothly undertaken. Such learning processes
between people in the company will facilitate the innovation process that
is planned-scheduled-schemed and executed by the company.
c. The majority of the dimension of innovation undertaken by the company
is based on the orientation to its customers => also well known as a
market-pull innovation, which is closely related to the concept of
incremental innovation/exploitative innovation

Linking Knowledge
Sharing
and Innovation Process
in SMEs
Institutiona
l
supports

Network
Finance
Technolo
gy

SMEs

Internal/
organisatio
nal
capacity

Business
environme
nt

Storing
Marketin
g
Knowled
ge
gap
Innovatio
n

Capture

Donatin
g

Sharing
Applicatio
n

Transfer

Next tasks ...

Knowledge gap
Indicators (NFPIs)

Non-Financial Performance

Mechanisms of knowledge transfer to close the

knowledge gap in SMEs

Knowledge sharing between SMEs in the same industry

and, in SMEs in a value chain

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