Commitment to Learning, Knowledge, and Strategic Renewal: Do Family Firms Manage Them Differently?

Abstract

Nowadays, knowledge is considered a critical resource through which organizations can develop sustainable competitive advantages and obtain superior results by allowing to transform themselves and to adapt to their environment. Hence, this research has a double purpose: first, to explore how commitment to learning determines the development of knowledge management practices (mainly, generation, flow, and storage) and how such practices impact small-sized and midsized firms’ strategic renewal and, second, to explore if previous relationships are different for family and nonfamily firms. To test our model, we conducted an empirical study based on a sample of 238 Spanish small- and medium-sized enterprises. Structural equation modeling in the form of partial least squares was used to test the measurement model and hypotheses. In order to assess the moderating effects of organizational context (differences among family and nonfamily firms), we adopted a multi-group approach using two subsamples. Results show that commitment to learning and knowledge management practices are the main undercurrent of strategic renewal. Furthermore, family and nonfamily firms are less heterogeneous than we expected at first sight.