The ability to effectively transfer and leverage knowledge from various resources has emerged as a crucial source of competitive advantage, innovation, and sustained performance for firms. Previous research indicates that a firm's internal social networks play a significant role in knowledge transfer. However, the knowledge transfer process lacks a consistent definition and is closely linked to organizational learning and absorptive capacity theory. This dissertation integrates the literature on social capital, social networks, and knowledge transfer with absorptive capacity theory and organizational learning, focusing on the processes that underpin knowledge transfer by refining the general framework of absorptive capacity theory. The author proposes an integrated knowledge transfer process that examines how a firm's social network influences different phases of knowledge transfer. This approach also opens avenues for studying the micro-antecedents and micro-processes related to absorptive capacity. The author identifies significant research gaps in the upstream phase of knowledge acquisition, particularly concerning established network features such as tie strength, network cohesion, and network range. Through a field study, the concept of knowledge loss is developed and empirically investigated at the recipient level.
