The impact of employee development practices on human capital and social capital : the mediating contribution of knowledge management

There is a shortage of research investigating the link between employee development practices and intellectual capital as mediated by knowledge management. The aim of the current research was to consider the influence of employee development practices on intellectual capital through knowledge management. Data were collected through an instrument distributed to a sample of 464 employees working at information and communications technology companies. The results indicate that employee development practices had significant effects on human capital, knowledge management, and social capital. The results reveal that knowledge management had a significant effect on human capital but not on social capital. Finally, the results show that knowledge management significantly mediated the impact of employee development practices on human capital. Additionally, implications for intellectual capital development, organizational strategy, and academic research are discussed.