Employees’ Entrepreneurial Orientation in Manufacturing Firms: An Empirical Study

This study aims to examine the relationship between organizational characteristics, knowledge management enablers, learning orientation, and employee entrepreneurial orientation (EO) among manufacturing industry employees in Klang Valley, Malaysia. The theoretical model based on the Resource-Based Theory approach to employee EO was developed. To answer the research questions, seven hypotheses were formulated. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to the manufacturing industry employees. A total of 386 manufacturing employees of all levels were involved in this study, making an overall 25.73% response rate. This study utilized the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling to establish the validity and reliability of the measurement model and test the relationships. The findings of the study showed that both organizational characteristics and knowledge management enablers have significant influences on employee EO. The results indicated that learning orientation has a mediating role in the relationship between organizational characteristics toward employee EO, and knowledge management enablers toward employee EO. The findings offered several theoretical and practical implications to employees and policymakers. The limitations of the study are addressed and recommendations for future research work are also offered.