Codified knowledge, knowledge resources, design, application and implications on effectiveness in institutions of higher education in Kenya

Abstract

Effective knowledge management in institutions of higher education is critical for sustainable strategic competitive advantage. However, little information is available on how knowledge management enhances internal effectiveness in institutions of higher education. Despite the high investment in Information Communication Technology and staff development among institutions of higher education little progress has been made in Knowledge Management practices. Challenges in institutions of higher education exist in converting tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge to enhance internal effectiveness. Codification and validation processes can be lengthy and may imply an investment by an institution which may hamper the efficiency and effectiveness of formal knowledge protection methods. This paper analyzed the mediating effect of knowledge resources, design and application in the relationship between codification strategy and internal institutional effectiveness in one public and one private university in Kenya. The objectives were to analyze the influence of codification strategy on internal effectiveness in institutions of higher education, the mediating role of Knowledge resources, design and application in the relationship between codification strategy and internal institutional effectiveness. Purposive and simple random sampling procedures were used to select the study area and respondents (246), respectively. The Process Macro Model 8 was used in data analysis. The results indicated a strong direct positive relationship between the codification strategy and internal institutional effectiveness. The indirect serial mediation was significant for the private University and partially significant for the public university. The study concludes that serial mediation was full in the private university but not in the public university. The study recommends institutions of higher education to choose appropriate knowledge management strategies.