Influence of strategic management, knowledge sharing, and organizational culture on public university performance in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The performance of the higher education sector has been explored by many researchers and is deemed saturated. However, strategic techniques to maximize the level of performance of the higher education sector continue to attract the attention of educationalists and researchers. Therefore, this study aims to examine the influence of strategic management, knowledge sharing, and organizational culture on the performance of the higher education sector in Saudi Arabia. This study applies a resource-based view, knowledge-based view, and organisational culture theories to achieve the research objectives. The mediating effect of knowledge sharing and organizational culture are also tested in understanding the phenomena under investigation. This study used a cross-sectional method guided by a quantitative research approach. Data was collected from 261 senior, middle, and lower-level employees working in the different public higher education sectors in Saudi Arabia. The data was analyzed using Smart PLS to test the model and proposed hypotheses. Findings indicate that strategic management significantly impacts organizational culture and knowledge-sharing practices. Accordingly, the research found a negative impact of strategic management on the performance of the higher education sector. Additionally, organizational culture and knowledge sharing are positively associated with the performance of the higher education sector. Besides, strategic management directly impacts the performance of the higher education sector by mediating the effect of organizational culture and knowledge-sharing practices. The findings from the current study are envisaged to support The Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia in understanding the influence of strategic management, and knowledge sharing, on the performance of the public higher education sector in Saudi Arabia.