Examining the Impact of Antecedents of Firm Performance on Companies in South Africa

Elizabeth Chinomona

doi:10.22610/jebs.v10i6a.2649

Abstract

The aim of this study is to establish the impact of social media, information sharing and knowledge sharing on firm performance among companies in South Africa, Gauteng province in particular. In as much as the issue of social media communication has received great benefits and growth within organisations, little has been researched about the impact of social media on job performance, knowledge sharing and information sharing among companies in the Gauteng province, South Africa. Social Identity Theory (SIT) has been used to explain the associations in the model. Questionnaires were distributed to both management staff and lower level employees in the companies in Gauteng province of South Africa. This study used a quantitative research methodology using Smart PLS software. This software was employed to test the relationships among the four hypotheses. The results showed that there is a positive and significant relationship among the four proposed hypotheses. Basing on the findings of this research, recommendations were made to both the top-level employees and lower level employees in the companies in South Africa. This study is expected to have real-world and academic implications to policymakers for the companies in South Africa. On top of this, the study will provide new insights and added first-hand knowledge to the existing body of literature which is meagre in South African companies.

Highlights

The importance of this study is to establish the impact of social media, information sharing and knowledge sharing on firm performance of companies in the Gauteng province of South Africa
Factors such as social media, information sharing and knowledge sharing are instrumental in high firm performance
The study further confirms that firm performance is at its peak when the social media, knowledge sharing and information sharing support are highly valued by top management and low-level employees too

Summary

Introduction

The importance of this study is to establish the impact of social media, information sharing and knowledge sharing on firm performance of companies in the Gauteng province of South Africa. There are four empirical goals of this study which are to investigate the relationship between social media and knowledge sharing, examining the association between social media and information sharing, to scrutinize the relationship between knowledge sharing and firm performance and lastly to establish the relationship between information sharing and firm performance. The significance of the study is to investigate the influence of the predictor which is social media on mediators which is knowledge sharing and information sharing and the outcome variable which is firm performance. Pooe, Mafini and Loury-Okumba (2015) argued that communication is a basic prerequisite for the attainment of organisational goals and objectives in terms of customer relationship and organisation’s relationship. The survival of any organisation depends on its operational communication competence (Sidorova, Amaboldi & Radaelli 2016)

Objectives

Methods

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion