Soft organizational memory: a new insight using resource-based theory

Purpose This research aims to bridge the gap in the literature by developing a model to investigate individual work performance (IWP) within small and medium enterprises (SMEs) using soft organizational memory (OM) and additionally aims to test the role of learning and growth (LG) as a mediator in this relationship. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was developed and adopted from previous studies and distributed to a sample of 320 employees from middle and bottom management levels in Jordanian SMEs. Data were collected and analyzed to test the proposed model employing structural equation modeling (SEM) through AMOS23. Findings The study finds that soft-OM positively and directly impacts IWP and LG. Besides, the results show that LG directly affect IWP. Surprisingly, LG mediate the relationship between soft-OM and IWP within SMEs. Practical implications Establishing a store for internal knowledge in such a progressively active environment is probably inadequate; however, knowledge needs to go beyond that among the firm and external structures such as clients, business allies and education and research organizations. This, in turn, will allow building streams of knowledge, consequently attaining an adequate level of performance. Originality/value The originality of the current study departs from the fact that stock and flow of knowledge are different. The knowledge stock is the collection of human capital that an organization's employees retain, such as employees' knowledge, capabilities and skills. In contrast, the flow of knowledge expresses the practices that allow the transfer of competence and experience across time, geography and organizations. The current research findings propose that the decomposed approach helps understand the multifaceted associations represented in the knowledge management (KM)-performance linkage that cannot be speculated utilizing a complex model.