The Relationship between Informal Knowledge Sharing Network and Individual Learning in Organizations: Does the Structuring of Activities Matter?

Abstract

Capitalizing on organizational network theory, we address the relationship between informal-knowledge-sharing-network characteristics (in-degree and out-degree centrality) and the level of internal and external learning. Specifically, the paper examines differences in the use of various relationships when employees are learning internally or externally and explores the moderating role of the perceived organic structuring of activities. The results show the employees resort to informal-knowledge-generating relationships (informal in-degree) to obtain knowledge internally, whereas, when learning externally, employees rely on informal-knowledge-sharing relationships (informal out-degree) to disseminate the knowledge they obtain from outside the organization. The anticipated moderating role of the organic structuring of activities is not confirmed, holding important implications for both theory and practice.