Abstract
Many of the employers fear a reduction in productivity when employees use social networking sites (SNSs) such as Facebook for non-work purposes during office hours. Employers then have started regulating SNSs usage at work, but extreme monitoring and blockage of SNSs can spoil the relationship between employers and employees and can negatively affect organizational knowledge (OK). Therefore, this study investigates the effect of using SNSs on OK by employees at work. Collecting data from employees working in national and multinational organizations and using structural equation modelling for data analysis, the results showed that using SNSs for business activities and for emotional disclosure enhanced OK. In contrast to these findings, work deviation caused using SNSs decreased OK but had no effect on productivity. Finally, the study concluded that the benefits of using SNSs at work are increasingly growing but require transparent policies to reduce employee distractions.
Highlights
Knowledge is an essential resource for organizational growth, especially for organizations striving in unpredictable environments to sustain competitive advantage (Miller & Shamsie, 1996)
Collecting data from employees working in national and multinational organizations and using structural equation modelling for data analysis, the results showed that using Social networking sites (SNSs) for business activities and for emotional disclosure enhanced organizational knowledge (OK)
Measurement model was evaluated in terms of reliability as well as convergent and discriminant validity
Summary
Knowledge is an essential resource for organizational growth, especially for organizations striving in unpredictable environments to sustain competitive advantage (Miller & Shamsie, 1996). Most organizations do not possess all the required knowledge within their formal boundaries but depend on connections outside organizations to obtain further information (Wasko & Faraj, 2005). Members of the organization, such as employees and employers, require expanding their knowledge base to derive and revive organizational innovation. Organizational members are interested in business networking and making linkages to the people outside the organization to develop new business contacts, grab new ideas and get opinions on different issues and processes that may be useful for their personal growth and their organization. Social networking sites (SNSs) have drastically changed the way people connect, share, communicate and interact with each other.
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