Spatial spillovers in public expenditure on a municipal level in Spain

A key function of local governments is to provide a wide array of public services. The supply of these services has been found to create spatial spillovers among neighbouring municipalities. Although it is generally agreed that spillovers are present in models that explain government expenditures, their type—whether endogenous, exogenous or residual—and sign—whether positive or negative—remain ambiguous. In most cases, a subjective process is used to select the type of spatial regression model used in analysis, with mixed results. Per capita expenditures of ten subprogrammes (Security, Housing, Welfare, Environment, Social services, Employment promotion, Health, Education, Culture and Sport) are analysed for all Spanish municipalities with more than 5000 inhabitants in the 2010–2012 period. A Spatial Seemingly Unrelated Regression methodology in a panel framework is used to incorporate correlation between different subprogrammes and spatial dependence. Our results show that the three types of spatial effects are present. Furthermore, substantive dependence is positive in most cases, while negative residual dependence is observed in some.We gratefully acknowledge the contribution of three anonymous reviewers in helping us improve the quality of this paper. Prof. Fernando A. López , grateful for the financial support offered by the projects from Programa de Ayudas a Grupos de Excelencia de la Región de Murcia, Fundación Seneca (#19884-GERM-15) and Ministry of Economy and Competiveness (ECO2015-651758)

Linking knowledge corridors to customer value through knowledge processes

Purpose – Spanish banks which took rescue packages are trying to find innovative ways to improve customer value. The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent to which banks combine external knowledge with internal knowledge to build customer value. Design/methodology/approach – A firm’s knowledge corridor is an organizational capacity, referring to the ability to absorb external knowledge and utilize it in generating innovative outputs. This paper examines the relative importance and significance of knowledge transfer and knowledge storage/retrieval processes as bridges between ‘‘potential absorptive capacity’’ and ‘‘realized absorptive capacity’’ and its effects on the application of knowledge through an empirical investigation of 76 banks. Findings – The results are calculated using structural equation modelling. This leads to the main conclusion that a ‘‘realized absorptive capacity’’ is unlikely without being fostered by the transference and storage of new knowledge and it therefore requires empowerment by its facilitating factors. Practical implications – The key managerial implication of this paper is that the survival and success of banks requires that administrators and the organizations they manage meet the challenge of combining external knowledge with internal knowledge. Originality/value – This paper provides empirical support for the argument that the impacts of external knowledge move up from the individuals to groups and then the entire organization. This interaction represents a single-loop learning processMinisterio de Educación ECO2011-28 641-C02-0

Implementing telemedicine technologies through an unlearning context in a homecare setting

Despite the opportunities the health sector will offer as a result of the design and development of a technology infrastructure, the fact is that hospitals have been slow to adopt telemedicine technologies, largely because very few organisations are prepared to face this challenge. A possible explanation for the efficiency and effectiveness gaps of services provided by Hospital-in-the-Home Units (HHUs) may relate to the advantages and disadvantages of the knowledge processes that these units exhibit as a result of their different structural properties. This paper investigates the approaches that HHUs have used to update the knowledge of physicians and their members' knowledge of technology, and relates them to an unlearning context (UC) and improvement in the quality of health services. These relationships are examined through an empirical investigation of 55 doctors and 62 nurses belonging to 44 HHUs. The research findings suggest that the key benefits of a UC in HHUs are clear. It enables them to identify and replace poor practices and also avoids the reinvention of the wheel; it enables cost reduction by minimising unnecessary work caused by the use of poor methods and it enables improvements adopting new telemedicine technologies.Ministerio de Educación CO2008-0641-C02-02Junta de Andalucía SEJ-608

The effect of organizational memory on organizational agility: Testing the role of counter-knowledge and knowledge application

Purpose: Intellectual capital includes what employees know, and the agility to search and retrieve knowledge (organizational agility). Organizational agility could be seen as the result of using validated routines and protocols (knowledge application), but also as the result of using unproven theories, rumours, colloquial expressions or sayings (counterknowledge), which means that organizational memory may enable both the application of good knowledge and the mitigation of counter-knowledge. This study examines the links between a firm’s organizational memory, counter-knowledge, knowledge application, and organizational agility. Design/ Methodology/ Approach: Using SmartPLS 3.2.8 in a sample of 112 companies the following questions were addressed: Does the improvement of organizational memory result in the growth of organizational agility? Does the growth of counter-knowledge and knowledge application at the same time hinder the enhancement of organizational agility? Findings: The results support that organizational memory not only enhances the application of gained knowledge, but also allows the spreading of rumours, gossip, and inappropriate or false beliefs (counter-knowledge). Furthermore, results support that the knowledge that emerges from the development in parallel or simultaneous of counterknowledge and knowledge application provides bad references, which will lead to a degradation of organizational agility. Practical implications: When supporting organizational agility, managers should be conscious of the urgency of counteracting the misuse of counter-knowledge. Originality/ Value: These findings make an important contribution to what is potentially a barrier to innovation and creativity, helping managers overcome the problems associated with misunderstandings or wrong assumptions derived from counterknowledge

Why Open-mindedness Needs Time to Explore and Exploit Knowledge

It is clear from the literature that in situations where organizations and their members face changing environments, it is necessary that mechanisms (learning) exist to capture the new knowledge which enables the firms to address those changes. This article examines the relative importance and significance of the existence of an `open-mindedness context' to the existence and nature of `organizational learning'. We include time as a variable in the analysis and focus on the need to unlearn at a moment (T) in order to learn more efficiently at a moment after (T+1). These relationships are examined through an empirical investigation of 107 Spanish small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within the telecommunications industry. The results indicate that the effects of exploration and exploitation of knowledge at moment T+1 is conditioned by the existence of an `open-mindedness culture' at moment T

Environmental knowledge management: A long-term enabler of tourism development

A review of the literature confirms that there is a need for knowledge management frameworks which support knowledge creation, particularly in those organisations having to operate in a changing environment. Socialisation, externalisation, combination and internalisation continue to be key processes for the creation of knowledge which enables organisations to successfully address environmental challenges. This paper examines the relevance and importance of a SECI model as an enabler of the processes of reusing and updating the environmental knowledge of an organisation. The research reported has confirmed that time is a key component of the implementation of a SECI model in organisations operating in a changing environment. Thins been confirmed that such a strategy should focus on the reuse of prior environmental knowledge as a mechanism to establish within the organisation a context where new knowledge management processes are understood and adopted by employees. The paper also examines the relationship between environmental knowledge and organisational performance indicators. These relationships are examined through an empirical study of 87 companies in the Spanish hospitality sector. The results of the study indicate that environmental knowledge at any given time (T) is significant in predicting the knowledge management processes that may be successfully implemented at a later point in time (T + 6 years). (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Knowledge management practices and the enhancement of customer capital: the importance of time

Actualmente, los responsables de las pequeñas y medianas empresas (PYMES) debido al hecho de tener que vigilar continuamente sus empresas a la búsqueda de mejoras en las relaciones con sus clientes y trabajadores, están otorgando un papel cada vez más estratégico a las prácticas de gestión del conocimiento. No obstante, hay situaciones donde las organizaciones y sus miembros se enfrentan a entornos cada vez más inciertos, por lo que es necesario reconsiderar las prácticas de gestión del conocimiento que se han venido desarrollando en la empresa desde sus inicios. Estas prácticas, en forma de procesos y rutinas, pueden basarse tanto en conocimiento tácito como explícito y también necesitan ser continuamente reconsideradas de cara a la captación de nuevo conocimiento. En tales circunstancias, sería necesario modificar e incluso eliminar parte del conocimiento existente al objeto de asegurarnos de que los empleados tienen acceso a conocimientos lo suficientemente actualizados como para que mantengan o garanticen las relaciones que las PYMEs tienen con sus clientes. Nuestro trabajo examina el impacto que un contexto de “mentalidad abierta” (openminded) en la organización existente en un momento dado (T) tiene sobre las actuaciones que intentan reconsiderar los conocimientos organizativos en un momento posterior (T+1). Analizamos además la relaciones entre los procesos de aprendizaje/conocimiento explorativo y aplicado sobre el capital relacional. Se utiliza para ello evidencias empíricas procedentes de 107 PYMES del sector de las telecomunicaciones en España, utilizando la técnica PLS.Actualmente, los responsables de las pequeñas y medianas empresas (PYMES) debido al hecho de tener que vigilar continuamente sus empresas a la búsqueda de mejoras en las relaciones con sus clientes y trabajadores, están otorgando un papel cada vez más estratégico a las prácticas de gestión del conocimiento. No obstante, hay situaciones donde las organizaciones y sus miembros se enfrentan a entornos cada vez más inciertos, por lo que es necesario reconsiderar las prácticas de gestión del conocimiento que se han venido desarrollando en la empresa desde sus inicios. Estas prácticas, en forma de procesos y rutinas, pueden basarse tanto en conocimiento tácito como explícito y también necesitan ser continuamente reconsideradas de cara a la captación de nuevo conocimiento. En tales circunstancias, sería necesario modificar e incluso eliminar parte del conocimiento existente al objeto de asegurarnos de que los empleados tienen acceso a conocimientos lo suficientemente actualizados como para que mantengan o garanticen las relaciones que las PYMEs tienen con sus clientes. Nuestro trabajo examina el impacto que un contexto de “mentalidad abierta” (openminded) en la organización existente en un momento dado (T) tiene sobre las actuaciones que intentan reconsiderar los conocimientos organizativos en un momento posterior (T+1). Analizamos además la relaciones entre los procesos de aprendizaje/conocimiento explorativo y aplicado sobre el capital relacional. Se utiliza para ello evidencias empíricas procedentes de 107 PYMES del sector de las telecomunicaciones en España, utilizando la técnica PLS

Managing counter-knowledge in the context of a pandemic:challenges for scientific institutions and policy makers

Counter-knowledge comes from unverified sources of information such as hoaxes, rumours or partial lies. It creates an atmosphere of lack of trust that often leads individuals into making risky decisions. In contexts of high uncertainty, the flow of counter-knowledge is likely to increase. Although scientists and scientific institutions can provide knowledge based on evidence and verifiable facts, they may find it difficult to react to the proliferation of counter-knowledge which affects their own credibility. This paper adopts concepts derived from the knowledge management field to shed light on this problem. Examples from the recent history of Italy are discussed. Useful lessons for the public and policymakers are derived. These lessons become particularly relevant in the context of a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic, as the world experiences a combination of factors that provide a fertile ground for the emergence of both scientific knowledge and social counter-knowledge