"They Care, We Share": Perceived Fairness in Performance Appraisal Systems on Knowledge Sharing

Abstract

The strategic importance of knowledge especially under dynamic business conditions makes it imperative to primarily understand the creation of the knowledge base. This paper employs mixed-method approach to understand the various triggers that motivate the knowledge sharing behavior of the IT employees working in Indian firms. Firstly, a qualitative study that comprised of thirteen in-depth interviews aimed to capture the participants’ understanding of, the context and the factors that trigger knowledge-sharing behavior. The fairness in performance appraisal, manager’s support, and career success were found to be the key triggers. Then, a quantitative study of 105 IT professionals examined the effect of the identified variables. Results suggested a positive relationship between perceived fairness in performance appraisal and knowledge-sharing behavior and the mediating role of career and hierarchical success between perceived fairness in performance appraisal system and knowledge-sharing behavior. The implications for both theory and practice have also been discussed in detail.