Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation as determinants of the employees' knowledge transfer in the context of a Spanish non-profit organization (named Asprona). Design/methodology/approach – A case study method was used to analyze a Spanish non-profit organization (Asprona). In this context, a qualitative and quantitative analysis with a sample of 76 people was performed using the partial least squares approach (PLS), in order to test the research hypotheses. Findings – The research findings show that, in Asprona, knowledge transfer improves through intrinsic motivation, however extrinsic motivation is not significant on knowledge transfer. This result is interesting bearing in mind that people are involved with a non-profit organization due to intrinsic reasons rather than for financial rewards. Research limitations/implications – This research is focused on one organization – Asprona's assistance area – and recommendations to other non-profit organizations must, therefore, be very cautious. Practical implications – Besides the importance to promote knowledge transfer through intrinsic motivation in non-profit organizations, the authors recommend managers to design the mechanisms to convert tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge, to guarantee that knowledge remains in the organization. Also, the authors consider that managers in profit organizations can find these suggestions useful in their context, due to the organization's commitment that is created by means of intrinsic motivation. Originality/value – Few empirical studies have been developed in the non-profit sector, even though it has an important economical and social role in society.

To verify the existence and relevance of control mechanisms that impede the expropriation of resources by the managers of nonprofits and that improve efficiency, we use a representative sample of Spanish nongovernmental development organizations (NGDOs). The authors study how the donors’ structure and board of trustees relates to organizational efficiency. Results show that the presence of an active institutional donor provides a control mechanism for these NGDOs, thus favoring the efficient allocation of resources, and that the structure of the board of trustees is irrelevant in this respect. Results are robust to alternative measures of technical and allocative efficiency.

Purpose – This paper attempts to shed light on the effect of educational programmes aimed at entrepreneurs on innovation and business success. Design/methodology/approach – We use as theoretical framework the theory of planned behaviour. We use a sample of 354 entrepreneurs from Castile and Leon, Spain. To estimate the model we use a path analysis (AMOS 7). Findings – Individuals who are concerned about further management education and entrepreneurship education show themselves to be more innovative. Moreover, indirectly, by means of the relationship between innovation and success, specific entrepreneurship education contributes to obtaining better business results. However, to have reached high levels of formal education makes entrepreneurs less conformist regarding the activity of innovation. The existence of a direct effect of innovative behaviour on business success is confirmed. Research limitations – The limitations which our study presents are principally related to the measurement of the variables. Some of the characteristics of education should be studied more deeply. Practical implications – The results obtained lead us to recommend that the educational centres and institutions which organise the programmes should give preference to specialised education and less to entrepreneurship education when seeking to reinforce the innovative spirit of the entrepreneurs. Originality/value – The debate concerning the effectiveness of entrepreneurship educational programmes is still undecided, so much so that both supporters and detractors of entrepreneurship education exist. For that reason, this paper aims to shed some light on the effects of the educational programmes aimed at the entrepreneur.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how organizational design – particularly, delegation, and extrinsic and intrinsic reward systems – impacts employees' knowledge transfer in the context of Spanish small nonprofit organizations.Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative analysis using data from a sample of 105 Spanish small nonprofit organizations obtained by means of a postal survey was performed using the partial least squares (PLS) approach, in order to test the research hypotheses.Findings: The research findings show that delegation involves a greater use of rewards and these, in turn, improve knowledge transfer. Considering the results obtained it is possible to conclude that, due to lack of technical knowledge, managers of these nonprofit organizations must delegate decision rights to qualified employees and that they should use a higher degree of rewards, both intrinsic and extrinsic, especially the intrinsic ones, to motivate employees to mutually transfer knowledge efficiently.Research limitations/implications: This research is focused on Spanish small nonprofit organizations, and recommendations to other nonprofit organizations must, therefore, be very cautious. However, this study provides empirical insights, linking organizational design and knowledge transfer in the nonprofit context.Practical implications: Besides the importance of promoting knowledge transfer through an efficient and effective organizational design in nonprofit organizations, the authors recommend managers design mechanisms to convert tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge, to guarantee that knowledge remains in the organization. Also, the authors consider that managers should make an effort to create an appropriate environment – by means of reward systems, especially intrinsic rewards – so that employees are committed to the mission and objectives of the organization.Originality/value: Few empirical studies have analyzed the influence of organizational design on knowledge transfer in the context of nonprofit organizations, even though the nonprofit sector has reached a great importance for their economical and social role in society.