Knowledge Integration and Organizational Performance in Selected Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria: The Intervening Role of Employee Absorptive Capacity
Keywords:
Knowledge integration,, Absorptive capacity, Organizational performance, Deposit Money Banks, Mediation analysisAbstract
Objectives: Knowledge integration is linked to firm performance, but evidence from Nigeria is largely confined to FMCG firms and models only direct effects. This study examines whether employee absorptive capacity mediates the relationship between knowledge integration and organizational performance in Nigerian Deposit Money Banks (DMBs). Approach: Drawing on the Knowledge-Based View, Resource-Based View and Dynamic Capability Theory, a cross-sectional survey of 317 supervisory and management staff in five systemically important DMBs in Lagos State was analysed using hierarchical regression, the Baron and Kenny procedure, the Sobel test and bootstrapped confidence intervals. Results: Knowledge integration significantly predicted organizational performance (β = 0.58) and absorptive capacity (β = 0.62), while absorptive capacity was the strongest predictor of performance (R² = 0.436). Absorptive capacity partially mediated the relationship, accounting for about 41.7% of the total effect. Implications: Investments in knowledge systems yield limited returns unless paired with the development of employees’ capacity to recognise, assimilate, transform, and exploit knowledge through cross-functional exposure, applied training, and rewards for knowledge use. Value: The study extends the knowledge integration–performance link from FMCG to knowledge-intensive banking and identifies employee absorptive capacity as a central mechanism explaining why integrated knowledge does not automatically translate into performance.
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