Abstract

Based on survey data from teachers in Chinese vocational colleges, this study examined the relationship between organizational learning and organizational innovation performance, and tested the serial mediating roles of knowledge sharing and employee innovation capability. Using validated scales of organizational learning, knowledge sharing, employee innovation capability, and organizational innovation performance, an anonymous questionnaire survey was administered to 605 teachers from 37 vocational colleges across 9 cities (prefectures) of Guizhou Province, China. The data were analyzed using Pearson correlation analysis, multiple linear regression and bias-corrected bootstrapping. The results showed that: (1) organizational learning was significantly and positively correlated with organizational innovation performance (r = 0.82, p < 0.001); (2) organizational learning significantly and positively predicted organizational innovation performance (β = 0.61, p < 0.001); (3) knowledge sharing (β = 0.12, SE = 0.03, 95% CI [0.06, 0.18]) and employee innovation capability (β = 0.07, SE = 0.03, 95% CI [0.02, 0.12]) each served as a significant independent mediator in the relationship between organizational learning and organizational innovation performance, and together they formed a significant, though modest, serial mediating pathway (β = 0.02, SE = 0.01, 95% CI [0.01, 0.04]). These findings suggest a mechanism through which organizational learning may be associated with organizational innovation performance in Chinese vocational colleges: systematic organizational learning and knowledge-sharing practices are linked to stronger teacher innovation capability, which in turn is associated with higher organizational innovation performance.

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