KNOWLEDGE CREATION, TRANSFER AND PRODUCT INNOVATION IN AGRO-ALLIED FOOD COMPANIES IN ONDO STATE, NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

It is generally accepted that the innovative activities of an organization depends strongly on her ability to create and transfer knowledge. It is a common knowledge that Agro allied food companies in a developing country like Nigeria have not been coming up with innovative products in the last several years This study investigated how knowledge creation and its subsequent transfer influence product innovation in agro allied food companies in Ondo State, Nigeria.

The survey design was adopted for this study. Six agro allied food companies with a total of 406 employees in Ondo State formed the population for the study. Total enumeration technique was used to include all 406 employees in the study. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire; tagged KCTPIAFC which gave a Cronbach alpha value of 0.89. The study’s response rate was 100%. Descriptive statistics (frequency counts, percentage distribution, mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Product Pearson Moment Coefficient. Correlation and regression analysis) were used to analyse data.

The findings revealed that agro allied food companies carry out both knowledge creation and knowledge transfer activities on a high level with an overall mean of 3.6 and 3.5 respectively. These two activities has in turn improved product innovation in agro allied food companies. The study equally shows that there was a significant positive relationship between knowledge creation and product innovation (r = .357, p < .05); there was also a significant positive relationship between knowledge transfer and product innovation (r = .244, p < .05); Knowledge creation and knowledge transfer jointly contributed 16.9% to the variation in product innovation in agro allied food industry (R² = .169, P<.05) therefore an increase in knowledge creation and transfer  activities will result in an increase in product  innovation among agro allied food industries. 

The study concluded that product innovation in agro allied food companies in Ondo State, Nigeria is high; knowledge creation and transfer is also high. The study recommends; professionals should be employed in agro allied companies to plan and execute innovative programmes as well as the establishment of more agro allied food industries- based training centres where leadership and managerial courses in agricultural programmes will be taught as a means of transferring knowledge so as to improve product innovation; equally the study recommends more research centres to conduct research on the agro-allied industry.

Keywords: Knowledge, Knowledge creation, Knowledge transfer, Innovation, Product  innovation, Agro allied food industries.