Capacidade absortiva mediando a relação entre processos de gestão do conhecimento, inovação e desempenho

Abstract

The constant changes that come by setting the business environment have mobilized researchers to investigate the factors that lead to innovate and achieve higher levels of performance. In this context, knowledge management has been considered as a promoter for the development and crucial for organizations to survive. However, the theory has pointed to the knowledge management processes as direct innovation and performance background, but not always considering the role of t absorptive capacity, which enables the Organization, assess, absorb and use the knowledge of best way. In order to fill this gap, the general objective of this thesis is to analyze the relationship between knowledge management processes, absorptive capacity, innovation and performance in the productive chain of the Apple from the links of production and packing-house. To validate the proposed measurement model and test the hypotheses proposed, adopted the methodological strategy of type quantitative-descriptive, investigated empirically through a survey, with 166 actors of the productive chain of the Apple, the segments of production and packing-houses in the States of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. The collected data were analyzed by means of structural equation modeling. The results obtained have provided strong support for hipotetizadas relations, which have shown that the processes of knowledge management influence significantly the absorptive capacity and the product and process innovation. Also indicate that the absorptive capacity influence directly the innovation, as well as, mediates the relationship between partially knowledge management and innovation. In addition, you can see that the innovation influenced positively the performance of participating organizations. As for the knowledge management processes, validated the modeling from the analysis by means of a second-order construct. Future research can target efforts to the construction of scales for the processes of knowledge management and absorptive capacity that take into consideration the peculiarities of the agribusiness sector. From a practical perspective, the relationships tested provide indications about the essential factors to ensure innovation and sustain superior performance. The findings of this study provide a theoretical and empirical that contributes to a better understanding of the importance of absorptive capacity as a mediator variable between the relationship of knowledge management and innovation to improve the performance of organizations.