Exploring the enablers and microfoundations of international knowledge transfer

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the enablers and barriers influencing international knowledge transfer at the team-level in the context of product innovation within an emerging-market multinational enterprise (EMNE) in the insurance industry. Design/methodology/approach: The research applies an exploratory case study design considering an emerging-market multinational insurance company headquartered in Colombia. Four subsidiaries (El Salvador, Chile, Argentina and Colombia) and the Corporate Office (headquarter) served as the research sites. It also adopts an interpretive research approach providing a grounded theory framework linking international knowledge transfer and product innovation. Findings: The empirical findings emphasize the central role played by the enablers (i.e. shared vision, empathy and knowledge sources) in facilitating international knowledge transfer, which, in turn, enhances product innovation. More important, however, is the detailed explanation that the paper provides regarding the enablers’ microfoundational antecedents in terms of key activities that are performed at the team-level. Research limitations/implications: The grounded theory framework was constructed using data collected in a single firm associated with a particular industry and regional context. The study only considered a single aspect of knowledge management (i.e. knowledge transfer). Other aspects of knowledge management systems, such as knowledge creation and knowledge application, should be used for explaining product innovation in EMNEs more comprehensively. Practical implications: The study suggests a set of enabling conditions and activities that should be adopted by managers of EMNEs to improve international knowledge transfer with the aim of triggering product innovation. This includes the design of strategies for strengthening empathy among geographically dispersed teams by providing opportunities for regular live videoconferences among team members aimed at building close bonds, fostering trust and creating a sense of belonging in which participants get to know each other better and to establish a shared vision and a set of guiding principles and commitments for how the team will work. These suggestions are particularly important today when several multinational enterprises (MNEs) have been forced to rearrange their workplace by replacing face-to-face interactions with virtual work dynamics due to the COVID-19 crisis. Originality/value: Previous studies have confirmed that international knowledge transfer positively influences MNEs’ innovative performance. However, no studies have been conducted linking both variables in the context of EMNEs in Latin America in the service sector. The research tries to fill this gap. Besides, the paper introduces empathy as a novel enabler for international knowledge transfer and a moderator able to diminish the negative effect that cultural differences and geographical barriers have on the knowledge transfer process.