An Application of Agent-based Modeling and Simulation in Tacit Knowledge Transfer Effectiveness and Individual Performance through the Consideration of Feedback Mechanism

Abstract

Tacit knowledge transfer is essential since it is considered as a source of sustainable competitive advantage in an organization. According to the previous study, source, recipient, knowledge characteristic and transfer mechanism play important role in determining the effectiveness of tacit knowledge transfer. Moreover, this study also considered the relationship between tacit knowledge transfer effectiveness and individual performance. An agent-based modeling approach was employed in this study since the approach is considered perfectly qualified in dealing with a complex system like knowledge transfer. This study aimed to investigate the change of individual work performance with the consideration of the feedback loop mechanism in the model using the agent-based approach. Data used in this study were collected from 15 university laboratories in a university in Indonesia. Three scenarios with various conditions are generated in this study. The result of all scenarios indicates that several strategies can be implemented in real condition to enhance organization member work performance based on the simulation output. In addition, there is a finding that recipient characteristic likeabsorptive capacity is a key driver to enhance knowledge transfer effectiveness and individual performance.