Purpose - This study aims to explore ways to enhance innovative behaviours and improve the well-being of academic staff in the higher education sector. Specifically, it examines whether personal knowledge management can foster innovative behaviours among academic staff. Additionally, the study investigates the impact of both innovation and personal knowledge management on staff well-being. 
Design/methodology/approach - Applying to private universities, 154 questionnaires were collected. The collected data was analysed using Smart-PLS to check the constructs' validity and reliability, and to test the relationships between constructs under investigation. 
Findings - The results showed that personal knowledge management can support individual innovation and raise human well-being. Unlike previous studies, this study found that individual innovation does not affect well-being in the higher education sector.
Originality/value - This study advances knowledge in two ways. First, it investigates knowledge management from the individual level, while most of the previous studies focused on the organisational level of knowledge management. Second, it is believed that well-being can support innovation, but the impact of innovation on well-being has not sufficiently been studied yet.