Managing digital workplace communications to maximise knowledge transfer: A collaborator's perspective

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to understand the motivations of collaborators using digital technologies at work to improve knowledge transfer in their organisations. A quantitative exploratory study is conducted using an online survey that was completed by 123 collaborators at different companies in the service, manufacturing, and retail industries. The findings indicate the motivations that employees have when using several digital tools in the workplace - information transfer, social interaction, convenience, immediacy and surveillance. Furthermore, it sheds light on the importance of such tools for their work, the type of content they share through each medium, and the perceived effectiveness of each digital tool in terms of knowledge transfer. We recommend that managers measure the perceived motivations behind the use of digital tools in their organisations and identify those that are capable of providing more than two motivations to their users. This research contributes to the literature by analysing the intersection between knowledge transfer, digital tools, and the uses and gratifications theory.