Harnessing network-based intellectual capital in online academic networks. From the organizational policies and practices towards competitiveness

Purpose - The paper aims to investigate the standpoints and practices of university members from European developing countries regarding the harnessing of the intellectual capital (IC) within online academic social networks. Design/methodology/approach - A questionnaire-based survey with 210 university members was conducted, with the indicators adopting prior measurement scales which were further adapted to a network framework. Findings - The organizational policies and practices relate positively and highly significantly with the valuation of the network-based IC components. Moreover, 63 per cent of the professional and organizational competitiveness of higher education institutions is determined by the exploitation of the IC embedded in online academic networks. Research limitations/implications - All survey respondents were from the European developing countries, which may limit the general applicability of the findings. Also, the emphasis is laid solely on online academic networks. Practical implications - This paper brings to the fore both the potential and the state-of-the-art in leveraging the IC of online specialized networks which are indicative of the academic field. When acknowledged as such, the network-based IC is liable to generate substantial competitive advantages at the professional and organizational levels at the same time. Originality/value - This research adds to the extant literature in two main ways. First, it advances a new construct - network-based IC - in the context of the online academic social networks. Second, it proposes a research model for addressing the network-based IC from a competitive advantage perspective.