Designing and Validating a Model of the Impact of Knowledge Capital on Organizational Performance: Emphasizing the Mediating Roles of Organizational Learning, Innovation, and Decision-Making Quality

Ali khorramdoust¹

1) PostDBA Student, Center for Open Education and Skill Development, Allameh Tabataba’i University

IOI Code : AAHC-ACZBKE
Publication : National Conference on Management, Commercialization, Knowledge-Based Economy and Investment for Production(impeb.ir)
Abstract :
    In the knowledge-based economy, the competitive advantage of organizations depends less on physical assets and increasingly on their ability to identify, develop, integrate, and utilize knowledge resources. Knowledge capital, comprising human capital, structural capital, and relational capital, is regarded as one of the most important intangible organizational resources for creating sustainable value. Despite numerous studies examining the relationship between knowledge capital and organizational performance, a fundamental question remains: through what mechanisms does knowledge capital contribute to improved organizational performance? The present study aims to design and propose an integrated framework for explaining these mechanisms. In the proposed model, knowledge capital is considered the independent variable, organizational performance the dependent variable, and organizational learning, innovation, and decision-making quality the mediating variables. The theoretical foundation of the model draws upon the Resource-Based View (RBV), Intellectual Capital Theory, the Knowledge-Based View of the Firm, and the literature on organizational learning and innovation. A review of the literature indicates that knowledge capital can strengthen an organization s capacity for learning, the creation and implementation of innovation, and access to the information and expertise required for effective decision-making, thereby influencing organizational performance through these pathways. Accordingly, the proposed conceptual model incorporates both direct and indirect relationships among the research constructs, and a set of empirically testable hypotheses is developed. For the empirical validation of the proposed model, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is recommended. The main contribution of this study lies in moving beyond the examination of a simple direct relationship between knowledge capital and organizational performance and instead explaining the mechanisms through which knowledge capital is transformed into organizational value through three complementary pathways: learning, innovation, and decision-making quality.

Keywords : knowledge capital intellectual capital knowledge management organizational learning innovation decision making quality organizational performance structural equation modeling