When people make the difference: A person-organization fit approach in knowledge transfer offices

Abstract

Knowledge transfer office (KTO) personnel play a crucial role in the success of knowledge transfer processes through their motivation and other individual-level dimensions. Individual-level dimensions have been mostly overlooked when exploring the performance of KTOs. In this paper, we use a person-organization fit (P-OF) lens to explore the supplementary and complementary fit between employees and KTOs. We conducted a comparative case study of six KTOs in Italy with different performance levels. Our findings challenge the positive relationship between P-OF and performance by showing that the existence of P-OF is a necessary condition for performance but is insufficient to make it occur. Indeed, the nature of goals and values (i.e., motivational or hygiene) at the basis of P-OF represents an important aspect in establishing success. Our findings contribute to the knowledge transfer literature by shedding light on the overlooked relationship between P-OF and KTO performance.