Knowledge sharing is crucial to the success of any organization as it is needed for knowledge creation, organizational learning and performance. This is especially the case with book publishing firms where their outputs are repositories of knowledge. However, a lack of technical expertise in the publishing industry has been reported in literature which might not be unconnected with knowledgeable workers in the sector leaving, retiring or passing on with their knowledge. Moreover, little is known about knowledge sharing among employees in this industry. Hence, in order to explore and understand this behaviour, descriptive survey design was adopted to investigate knowledge sharing among employees of publicly owned book publishing firms in Nigeria. Purposive sampling was used in selecting three publicly owned book publishing firms namely, Heinemann Publishers Plc, University Press Plc and Learn Africa Plc. Using both purposive and snowballing sampling techniques, 15 employees were selected from each firm. Data was collected through face-to-face interview, digitally recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically. Employees viewed knowledge sharing as a norm in the publishing industry since the process of book production requires team work; and knowledge sharing with subordinates reduces the burden of work on managers. Majority of the respondents would not share knowledge with colleagues from other publishing firms due to loss of competitive advantage and employee loyalty. Reciprocal benefit was the major motivating factor for knowledge sharing while others included enjoyment in helping others as well as personal and organizational reputation enhancement. Fear of loss of power, perceived pride, and competition were reported as challenges to knowledge sharing. Limiting inter-organizational knowledge sharing can restrict organizational learning and innovation which could have a negative impact on the industry’s performance overtime. Leadership styles that support and encourage knowledge sharing should be promoted in this industry.
