A Study On The Impact Of Culture Differences To Supply Chain Knowledge Transfer

Knowledge sharing has become an effective channel to obtain advanced technology,market information, management experience. More and more enterprises and scholars realize the importance of technology alliance, cooperation and knowledge innovation. As a link of suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, consumers, supply chain reserves abundant knowledge. However, each enterprise belongs to an independent economy; a lot of coordinate problems exist in the process of knowledge transfer activities, especially the conflicts caused by cultural differences. Enterprises in the supply chain network distribute in different areas and industries, which have their own national culture and corporate culture. Different strategic objectives and different behaviors lead to conflict and contradiction, which seriously affect the performance of knowledge sharing. Therefore, it is important to analyze how cultural differences influence knowledge transfer performance based on the study of the influencing factors.Firstly, the paper puts forward that the process of knowledge transfer can be divided into three phases, namely, transfer occurs, knowledge transfer, knowledge absorption. Three influence factors can be included from the aspect of organizational culture differences,knowledge transfer subjects, knowledge transfer situation. The cultural differences can be divided into three dimensions: material, regime and spirit cultural differences; the transfer subject level can be divided into two dimensions: transfer motivation and ability; the transfer situation can be divided into two dimensions: partnership and transfer mechanism; the knowledge transfer performance can be divided into three dimensions: knowledge transfer strength, knowledge application and innovation, the intention to transfer knowledge again.Secondly, we refer to the widely agreed items and scales to the above variables commended by the scholars as a source of design, based on which to develop, modify, add, or delete to form the scales of cultural differences, transfer motivation, transfer ability,partnerships, and transfer mechanism. We set intuitive, readily understood, clearly questionnaires for data collection. With the help and diffusion of my tutor, relatives and friends, 226 valid questionnaires have been received.Then the structural equation model(SEM) is adopted to carry on the empirical research and to test the theoretical model of the relationship hypothesis among the influencing factors.We put the 226 samples data into the SPSS software to test the scale validity of the measurement model with the exploratory factor analysis(EFA); we use AMOS software to test the fit of the variables and items with the confirmatory factor analysis(CFA), the path coefficients of structural model and the hypothesis relation’s significant test can also be achieved. The test result of the hypothesis relation can be concluded through the data analysis:cultural difference and transfer motivation are positive correlation, culture difference and transfer ability are positive correlation, culture difference and partnership are negative correlation, culture difference and transfer mechanism are positive correlation; transfer motivation, transfer capacity,partnership, transfer mechanism are positively related to the transfer performance.Finally, this paper concludes that cultural difference can stimulate the knowledge transfer motivation; it can improve knowledge transfer ability and innovation ability, it can promote the construction of the knowledge transfer mechanism, but it may cause negative effect to the partnership. And then culture conflict coordination mechanism, culture communication mechanism, common culture incentive mechanism are commended to improve the performance of knowledge transfer.