Transactive memory system and TQM: exploring knowledge capacities

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study how transactive memory systems (TMS) facilitate the transfer and absorption of knowledge in the presence of quality management (QM) within a university research and development (R&D) environment. Design/methodology/approach – The data come from a simple random sampling of 257 Spanish university R&D groups in nine different areas of knowledge. To verify the hypotheses, the authors used multiple linear regression analysis with a moderating effect. Findings – The conclusions show that the relationship between knowledge transfer (KT) and TMS is significant when QM practices are included as a moderating variable but that this is not the case for knowledge absorption (KA), which does not show any effect. Research limitations/implications – The effects described were found in a sample composed of various R&D sectors taken from a single country and not distributed equally. Further, the perception analyzed represents the judgment of a single manager. Practical implications – It is interesting to study this interaction in university R&D because of the important role R&D plays in the development of regions. Improving the internal processes of this research helps to make its results more competitive. This study contributes information on non‐business management and introduces university R&D to the use of QM practices. Originality/value – The authors found no studies that test empirically the moderating effect of QM practices on the relationships studied in university R&D. The paper's results contribute information to help fill this gap and demonstrate once again that QM practices can be applied to any environment.