Leadership Role in Managing Knowledge to Support Operational Performance

Authors

  • Mohamad Irsan Febrian Institut Teknologi Bandung
  • Anggara Wisesa Institut Teknologi Bandung

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58344/locus.v5i7.6190

Keywords:

Knowledge Management Capability, Shop-Floor Leadership, Leader–Member Exchange, World Class Manufacturing, FMCG Manufacturing

Abstract

Inter-shift operational performance variation persists in many mature World Class Manufacturing (WCM) environments, even when technical conditions are held constant across shift groups. However, the organizational mechanisms underlying this variation remain underexplored. This study addressed this gap by examining how shop-floor leadership behaviors shape knowledge management (KM) capabilities and processes in an FMCG bar soap department where three shifts operated with identical equipment, standards, and WCM tools but demonstrated persistent differences in Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE). A qualitative single-case study design was adopted, based on ten semi-structured interviews with shop-floor leaders and personnel across all three shifts. The data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. The analysis generated thirteen themes, which were synthesized into a dual-perspective account of leader-mediated and peer-mediated knowledge dynamics. A cross-shift analysis linked each shift’s leadership profile to its observed performance trajectory. Leadership behavior emerged as a key organizational condition that activated or constrained KM capabilities, even when WCM infrastructure was nominally identical, through two interconnected pathways: a cognitive pathway, in which leadership shaped developmental opportunities that strengthened realized absorptive capacity, and a relational pathway, in which leadership presence, support, and psychological safety influenced whether tacit knowledge was shared and internalized. The study reconceptualized KM capability as an activation-dependent rather than infrastructure-dependent construct and demonstrated that the Socialization, Externalization, Combination, and Internalization (SECI) model’s socialization and externalization modes were particularly prominent in mature shop-floor environments.

References

Argote, L. (2013). Organizational learning: Creating, retaining and transferring knowledge (2nd ed.). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5251-5

Atapattu, M. M., & Huybers, T. (2022). Motivational antecedents, employee engagement and knowledge management performance. Journal of Knowledge Management, 26(3), 528–547.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006) Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3:2, 77-101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

Bryant, S. (2003). The role of transformational and transactional leadership in creating, sharing, and exploiting organizational knowledge. Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, 9(4), 32–44. https://doi.org/10.1177/107179190300900403

Chen, L., & Fong, P. S. W. (2012). Revealing performance heterogeneity through knowledge management maturity evaluation: A capability-based approach. Expert Systems with Applications, 39(18), 13523–13539.?https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2012.07.005

Cohen, W. M., & Levinthal, D. A. (1990). Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35(1), 128–152. https://doi.org/10.2307/2393553

Cua, K. O., McKone, K. E., & Schroeder, R. G. (2001). Relationships between implementation of TQM, JIT, and TPM and manufacturing performance. Journal of Operations Management, 19(6), 675–694. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0272-6963(01)00066-3

Donate, M. J., & Sánchez de Pablo, J. D. (2015). The role of knowledge-oriented leadership in knowledge management practices and innovation. Journal of Business Research, 68(2), 360–370. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2014.06.022

Ebrahimi, M., Baboli, A., & Rother, E. (2019). The evolution of world class manufacturing toward Industry 4.0: A case study in the automotive industry. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 52(10), 188–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ifacol.2019.10.021

Edmondson, A. C. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behaviour in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350–383. https://doi.org/10.2307/2666999

Edmondson, A. C. (2003). Speaking up in the operating room: How team leaders promote learning in interdisciplinary action teams. Journal of Management Studies, 40(6), 1419–1452. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6486.00386

Gold, A. H., Malhotra, A., & Segars, A. H. (2001). Knowledge management: An organizational capabilities perspective. Journal of Management Information Systems, 18(1), 185–214. https://doi.org/10.1080/07421222.2001.11045669

Graen, G. B., & Uhl-Bien, M. (1995). Relationship-based approach to leadership: Development of leader–member exchange (LMX) theory of leadership over 25 years. The Leadership Quarterly, 6(2), 219–247. https://doi.org/10.1016/1048-9843(95)90036-5

Inkpen, A. C., & Tsang, E. W. K. (2005). Social capital, networks, and knowledge transfer. Academy of Management Review, 30(1), 146–165. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2005.15281445

Ipe, M. (2003). Knowledge sharing in organizations: A conceptual framework. Human Resource Development Review, 2(4), 337–359. https://doi.org/10.1177/1534484303257985

Jones, E. E., & Nisbett, R. E. (1971). The actor and the observer: Divergent perceptions of the causes of behavior. General Learning Press.

Liker, J. K. (2004). The Toyota way: 14 management principles from the world's greatest manufacturer. McGraw-Hill.

?yp-Wro?ska, K. (2016). World class manufacturing methodology as an example of problems solution in quality management system. Key Engineering Materials, 682, 342–349.?https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/KEM.682.342

McKone, K. E., Schroeder, R. G., & Cua, K. O. (2001). The impact of total productive maintenance practices on manufacturing performance. Journal of Operations Management, 19(1), 47–58. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0272-6963(00)00030-9

Mehta, A. M., Rauf, A., & Senathirajah, A. R. bin S. (2024). Achieving world class manufacturing excellence: Integrating human factors and technological innovation. Sustainability, 16(24), 11175. https://doi.org/10.3390/su162411175

Mendes, R. de C., & Mattos, M. C. de. (2017). Knowledge management and world class manufacturing: An initial approach based on a literature review. Perspectivas em Ciência da Informação, 22(2), 244–263. https://doi.org/10.1590/1981-5344/3103

Munir, M. A., Abbas, M. M., Qamar, A., Farooq, M., & Cohen, V. (2025). Managing volatile markets: A dynamic capability approach to analytics-driven performance in fast-moving supply chains for sustainable development. Sustainable Futures, 10, 101338.?https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sftr.2025.101338

Nguyen, H. N., & Mohamed, S. (2011). Leadership behavior, organizational culture and knowledge management practices: An empirical investigation. Journal of Management Development, 30(2), 206–221. https://doi.org/10.1108/02621711111105786

Nonaka, I., & Takeuchi, H. (1995). The knowledge-creating company: How Japanese companies create the dynamics of innovation. Oxford University Press.

Nonaka, I., Toyama, R., & Konno, N. (2000). SECI, Ba and leadership: A unified model of dynamic knowledge creation. Long Range Planning, 33(1), 5–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0024-6301(99)00115-6

Politis, J. D. (2004). Transformational and transactional leadership predictors of the “stimulant” determinants to creativity in organizational work environments. Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management, 2, 23–34. https://doi.org/10.1108/02621711111105786

Razzaque, A., Razzaque, N., Ali, M., & Al-Arayed, H. M. (2023). Knowledge management capabilities excel the long-term corporate sustainable development: A literature review (pp. 147–154). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17746-0_13

Senge, P. M. (1990). The fifth discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization. Currency Doubleday.

Szulanski, G. (1996). Exploring internal stickiness: Impediments to the transfer of best practice within the firm. Strategic Management Journal, 17(S2), 27–43. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250171105

Von Krogh, G., Nonaka, I., & Rechsteiner, L. (2012). Leadership in organizational knowledge creation: A review and framework. Journal of Management Studies, 49(1), 240–277. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2010.00978.x

Wang, S., & Noe, R. A. (2010). Knowledge sharing: A review and directions for future research. Human Resource Management Review, 20(2), 115–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2009.10.001

Yamashina, H. (2000). Challenge to world-class manufacturing. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 17(2), 132–143. https://doi.org/10.1108/02656710010304436

Zahra, S. A., & George, G. (2002). Absorptive capacity: A review, reconceptualization, and extension. Academy of Management Review, 27(2), 185–203. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2002.6587995

Zia, N. U. (2020). Knowledge-oriented leadership, knowledge management behavior and innovation performance in project-based SMEs: The moderating role of goal orientations. Journal of Knowledge Management, 24(8), 1819–1839. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-02-2020-0127

Downloads

Published

2026-07-29

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 7 (2026): JURNAL LOCUS: Penelitian dan Pengabdian

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Mohamad Irsan Febrian, Anggara Wisesa

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  • Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC-BY-SA). that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  • Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.