morality and employee engagement in organizations tamunomiebi miebaka dagogo, phd & mills bamidele roseline european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 1 morality and employee engagement in organizations 1tamunomiebi, miebaka dagogo phd department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers, state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, pmb 5080, port harcourt, nigeria. tamunomiebi.miebaka@ust.edu.ng 2mills, bamidele roseline doctoral candidate department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, pmb 5080, port harcourt, nigeria. rosepetermills@gmail.com abstract this study examined the relationship between morality and employee engagement in an organization. the approach adopted is theoretical as it assesses based on extant literature. the result of the study revealed that sound empirical conduct or moral behavior at work improves employee engagement and brings about organizational growth. also, an improvement in workplace morals and ethical behavior improves employee engagement. therefore, for the firm to upscale productivity, the organization should drive engagement through an objective ethical and moral behavior at work. it is recommended that management of organizations should have sound morals and ethical behavior, this will improve engagement. again, organizations should put in place robust corporate governance system, this will guide workplace behavior and morals. keywords: morality, employee engagement, organizations file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:tamunomiebi.miebaka@ust.edu.ng mailto:rosepetermills@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 2 1.0 introduction organization is made up of human capital and this is the most important element or asset at work. all other assets of the company are subservient to the human capital. therefore, there are standard forms of behaviour or ethical conduct expected of employees at work. this standard or prescribed behaviour, norms, regulations and principles are designed by top echelon management to predict engagement of employees in order to drive successful organizations (stoner, gilbert & freeman, 2013).this standard form of behaviour may be seen as the presence of positive moral values like honesty, sincerity, integrity and trustworthiness that make employees feel positive about their job and organization as a whole. morality is what would make an employee not go late to work and close when it is expected, the issue of bribery and corrupt practices would not appeal to any employee with such conduct. even when it becomes the norms of an organization to give ‘kick backs’ after a contract has been awarded, organization with high level of morality would not be found in such a list.organisational/employee morality would dissuade window dressing, creative accounting and offbalance sheet transactions in order to create a positive and reputable image in the society. behavioural conducts and ethics in the company are laudable to the success of employees and the workplace (adeyeye, adeniji, osinbanjo & oludayo, 2015). as members of an organization, there are prescribed codes of conduct that guide how employees should and not behave at work (qui &peschek, 2013; pattison & edgar, 2011). morality shapes the way the employees experience their work and organize their existence or status in the workplace making people go beyond the usual limits and practice in the absence of rewards. it is important to note that behavioural ethics and conducts at work affect the emotional commitment employees feel towards their organization and the actions they take to ensure the firm’s success. sound work place morals and ethical standards will make employees to be engaged, demonstrate care, attachment, dedication, enthusiasm, accountability, result and productivity orientation (qui &peschek, 2013). prescribed and acceptable way of behaviour predicts obedience and desired actions among employees at work. morality could be defined as the standards and rules of conduct in an organization and which demands that members of an organization behave in accordance with the prescribed behavioural conducts and rules which is intended to promote the general good of members of the organization (stoneret al, 2013).morality makes claim upon the lives of all organizational members more than the claims of law and takes priority over individual employee interest. as employees at work, we have basic duties and obligations for the company. there are certain things we must do and certain things we must not do (adeyeyeet al, 2015). worker’s failure to uphold ethical behaviour within the context of employment relationships necessitated the construct of morality at work. employee engagement is the emotional attachment of the individual to the organization at work. this is shown as something given by the employee which can benefit the organization through commitment and dedication, advocacy, discretional efforts, using knowledge, skills, talents and competences to the fullest and being supportive of the company’s goals and values (robertson-smith &markwick, 2011; asthana, 2010). engaged employees are those workers who work with passion and feel a profound connection to their company. the employees drive innovation and move the company forward. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 3 alfes, truss, soane, rees and gatenby, (2010) summarized that engaged employees perform better, are more innovative than others, are more likely to want to stay with their employers, enjoy greater levels of personal wellbeing and perceive their workload to be more sustainable than others.these employees will stay longer with the organization and continually find smarter and more effective ways to add significant value to the firm. organizational morality may therefore affect employee job attitudes positively thereby ensuring a high level of service orientation through their sense of commitment, satisfaction, creativity, engagement, etc. towards their organization and customers (katzenbach, 2003). morality, as earlier mentioned may be seen as the presence of positive moral values like honesty, sincerity, integrity and trustworthiness that make employees feel positive about their job and organization as a whole. understanding this relationship is pertinent to goal actualization and image creation in any organizations. however, there is dearth in literature regarding morality and employee engagement within nigeria context, also the studies of joo, mclean and yang (2013) indicates the need to add other variables such as work satisfaction, performance, commitment etc., in the list of human relations to employee engagement. 2.0 literature review theoretical framework social exchange theory and equity theory the relationship between morality and employee engagement is based on blau’s (1964) social exchange theory and the equity theory of adams (1965). according to these theories, better engagement can be achieved only when the social exchange between organizations and employees is fair and equal. therefore, when employees perceive that their organization is committed to a code of ethics(morality) and to ethical perceptions and behaviors, they are likely to respond with greater engagement to the organization. moreover, management acts as role model, encouraging employees via its own exemplary ethical behavior to promote organizational aims and goals. therefore, morality is likely to greatly affect employee work engagement. such an ethical environment would increase trust between employees and the organizational management, and therefore promotes their engagement to their organization and work. morality workplace morality or behavioural ethics in the organization is the standard rules of behaviour and conducts expected of all employees throughout the organization. organization and its members are expected to exhibit behaviours or morals that are acceptable to the generality of people at work (kaptein, 2015). it is the duty of top echelon management to design the right code of conduct that will objectively regulate the conduct of employees without compromise at any levels of the firm (adejeye et al., 2015). it is important to note that, ethical behaviour and the prevailing system of employment relations in any work place is very laudable for the growth and development of the firm; the production or manufacture of goods and services within the domestic market and the international or oversea markets (muafi, 2011; obasi, 2003; pattison & edgar, 2011). how well an institution adhere to sound ethical standards, determines the health of the organization and the general well-being of all stakeholders; employees, management, shareholders, customers, file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 4 suppliers/distributors including the publics. this will impact positively on the productivity of the organization at the micro-level and national productivity and output (adeyeye et al., 2015). morality is a fine construct to drive any institution positively, be it private or public organization. most corporate failures at work are necessitated by lack of ethical conduct or morals which mean most organizations who found themselves in this kind of challenge are involved in corporate governance infractions (muafi, 2011, pattison & edger, 2011). morality or moral character according to cohen, panter, turan, morse and kim (2014), are standards of right and wrong conduct, harmful act which are broadly construed as the hallmarks of ethical or moral attitude/behaviour. it means that morality are those acceptable rules governing right and wrong in the workplace of which members of the organization should adhere to in order to drive successful companies (wong, 2013). morality as a construct makes claims upon each of us that are stronger than the claims of law and takes priority over self-interest. every organizational members have basic duties, responsibilities and obligation for the firm. there are certain things we must do and certain things we must not do. this means organizations have ethical dimension which regulate the way employees carry out their roles and responsibilities. it also encompass relationship exchanges between employees, between employees and management, between management and shareholders including the firm’s relationships with external stakeholders; customers, suppliers and distributors and the publics. there is workplace ethical conduct guiding all these organizational relationships (wong, 2013; pattison & edgar, 2011). 2.2 employee engagement employee engagement is the process by which workers are more committed to the organization, put in their emotional and physical abilities and working towards the progress of the firm human capital which represents employees is expected to work for the organization for the firm to achieve success. management and shareholders expect workers to put in their best into production for the company to achieve its market and financial objectives (stoner, gilbert & freeman, 2013).. the construct of employee engagement connotes as something given by the employee which can benefit the company through commitment and dedication, advocacy, discretionary efforts, using talent to the fullest and being supportive to the corporate or firm’s goals and objectives. engaged workers feel a sense of attachment towards their company, investing themselves not only in their specific roles, but in the company as a whole (robertson-smith & marwick, 2011). people who are engaged with the institutions they are associated or the firm they work for over a period outperform their peers in terms of production and productivity and consistently act as advocate of the company (cartwright& holmes, 2006; catteeuw, flynn &vanderhorst, 2007). such commitment and attachment of employees with the firm will always drive worker performance and significantly improve the firm’s bottom-line results (profits). engaged individuals invest themselves fully in their work, with increased self-efficacy and a positive impact upon health and well-being, which in turn evokes increased employee support for the organization. these set of employees see themselves as empirical stakeholders of the company. it is pertinent to note that employee engagement levels vary according to seniority, occupation and length of service in the company but not by industry. the workers at the top echelon are seen to be file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 5 more engaged. employees at senior management positions are seen to be most engaged relative to support staff at the operational floor level of the firm (stoner, gilbert & freeman, 2013). however, this is relative or varies between firms. again, engagement can also be driven by biographical and personality characteristics. new entrant to the workplace may be positive and more committed when they first join the workforce but quickly become disengaged. people who are highly extravert and adoptable individuals find it easier to engage. worker engagement is a choice, it is a function of what staff consider worth investing themselves in. there are factors that significantly drive employee engagement in the workplace. these factors are; the nature of the work, the job that has transparent meaning and purpose, career development opportunities, recognition and reward opportunities at work, building respect and assertive relationships, open communication systems that inspires leadership and mentorship opportunities (robertson-smith &markwick, 2011). the implication is that for every engagement there is a salient reason or factors that either motivate employee engagement or demotivate workers and lead to lack of engagement. according to wellins, berthal & phelps (2015), in a study conducted in multiple countries and across industry sector revealed that employees who are passionate and committed to their jobs are in the minority. again, it goes further to state engagement drives productivity and contributes to firm’s profitability. however, the low engagement will always make an organization to loose money. this is evident in the case of united kingdom and japan where unengaged workers or employees made their companies to lost productivity at the tune of $64.8 billion and $232 billion respectively (wellins, bernthal& phelps, 2015). this is clearly evident that engagement is a good thing that should happen to both an individual firm and a nation. if it is analyzed in a macro perspectives, it is seen that, workers who are engaged across industries and sectors of a nation will improve national productivity and output thereby significantly driving the gross domestic product (gdp) of the nation. if the reverse is the case, the nation will lose the value of goods and services produced in an accounting period. engagement represents a deep emotional bond between employees and their work. it is characterized by combined dedication and deep identification expressed via willingness to go above and beyond the formal requirements of the job (eldor & harpaz, 2016). according to the authors, studies indicated that employees, who are engaged with their work, play a vital role in establishing an excellent and effective work performance. moreover, the superiority of psychological incentives over tangible ones is perceived among engaged employees, as opposed to satisfied or involved employees (eldor & harpaz, 2016). 3.0 morality and employee engagement employee engagement which is the emotional attachment workers have for the firm in contributing their quota to the advancement of the organization can be informed by number of factors. workplace morality and behavioural ethics have a strong nexus with employee engagement. workers will be more engaged if the organization or work place have an objective moral and ethical behaviour (kaptein, 2015). a good code of conduct and behavioural ethics in the workplace is a sound predictor of employee engagement. this is empirically validated by studies (kaptein, 2015; adeyeye et al., 2015; cohen et al., 2014). according to martin & cullen, (2006) morality in organizations is considered to be a prime component of determining organizational identity, reflecting on employee file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 6 conduct efficacy and overall work and organizational performance. it mirrors an organization’s policy and code of conduct as well as instills principles of appropriate behavior for situations posing ethical dilemmas. the effect of workplace ethics on employees and organizational productivity in nigeria was investigated by adeyeye et al (2015). the authors investigated the correlation between workplace ethics and employee workplace ethics on organizational productivity in the context of nigeria private and public institutions in lagos. the study used structural equation modeling to measure the variables investigated. it was revealed that ethical standard at work has positive and significant relationship with worker engagement which brings about organizational productivity. it was discovered that employee engagement is a strong mediating construct between workplace ethics and organizational productivity. moral character in the workplace upheld by all organizational members improves employee engagement. the study of cohenet al., (2014), supports the foregoing. they examined organization’s moral character and worker engagement and their study revealed that moral character in the workplace improves employee commitment and result to more engaged employees at work. the implication of this study is that, managers of an organization should always create the enabling environment for the organization’s moral character to be improved and this should influence the behaviour of all employees positively. the result of sound moral character in the workplace is increased in the number of engagement and productivity. employee engagement at work brings about workplace productivity. robertson-smith and markwick (2011) studied the relevance of employee engagement on private companies and national productivity using united kingdom and japanese organizations. it was revealed that lack of engagement of workers in the two countries made overall productivity to be low. this finding is also supported with the works of wellins, bernthal and phelps (2015) that engagement brings about workplace productivity. it is important to note that what strongly mediate the relationship between employee engagement and worker productivity is ethical conduct at work. sound ethical conduct always bring about employee engagement which subsequently birth productivity at work. a good workplace moral improves organizational commitment. this position is justified with the study of safikhani (2016). the author investigated the relationship between morality and organizational commitment in the context of teachers in secondary schools in tehran. their study reveals that there is significant relationship between morality and organizational commitment of teachers in girls’ secondary schools in tehran. thus, a sound moral at work brings about overall commitment in the workplace. this findings is also supported with the works of hough, green andplumles (2016). these authors studied the impact of ethics environment and organizational trust on employee engagement. the result of the findings is that ethics environment significantly influences employee engagement through the mediating factor of trust. again, this study is also corroborated with the study of agha, nwekpa and eze (2017), the scholars examined the impact of ethical leadership on employee commitment in the context of innoson industries limited in nigeria. the study made use of regression analysis, the findings of the study is that ethical leadership at work brings about employee commitment. hence, organization with sound ethical leadership improves employee commitment at work. this is also supported by the work of muhammad, qing, hwang and file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 7 shi (2019), who argued that ethical leadership improves affective commitment, work engagement and worker creativity. morality is a good treatment factor for employee engagement in both public and private institutions. conclusion from the empirical literature reviewed, it was discovered that companies with good ethics and moral standards improves the engagement of employees in the workplace. this means organization’s significant investment in morality and work ethics supported with a robust corporate governance system will bring about significant improvement in employee engagement. it is therefore recommended that management of modern organization should pay attention to workplace morality, have a good governance systems and rules that will guide the conduct of all firm’s mentors. this will improve worker engagement and bring about improvement in productivity. recommendations the following recommendations are made based on our findings i. companies should put in place the right code of conduct and ethics ii. this ethics and moral should be binding on all employees irrespective of their position at work iii. the companies should periodically measure employee level of engagement and take proactive measures when engagement rate is dropping iv. companies should have sound corporate governance and ethics systems to guide the firm morals. v. the companies should have the right leadership to drive the process without discrimination among employees. references adeyeye, j.o., adeniji, a.a., osinbanjo, a.o. &oludayo, o.a. (2015).effect of workplace ethics on employees and organizational productivity in nigeria. journal of business management, 10(4), 12-20 agha, n.c., nwekpa, k.c. &eze, o.r. (2017). impact of ethical leadership on employee commitment in nigeria – a study of innoson technical and industrial company limited enugu, nigeria. international journal of development and management review, 12(1), 202-212. alfes, k., truss, c., soane, e. c. rees, c &gatenby m. (2010).creating an engaged workforce. london: melcrum publishing. asthana, a. (2010). they don’t live for work – they work to live. the guardian. retrieved online at http://ww.guardian.co.uk 10/09/2019. cartwright, s. & holmes, n. (2006). the meaning of work: the challenge of regaining employee engagement and reducing cynicism. human resource management review, 16(10), 199-208 catteeucu, f., flynn, e. &vanderhorst, j. (2007). employee engagement: boasting productivity in turbulent times. organization development journal, 25(2), 151-157 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 8 cohen, t.r., panter, a.t., turan, n., morse, l.a.& kim, y. (2014). moral character in the workplace.journal of personality and social psychology, 20(12), 1-28 eldor, l. &harpaz, i. (2016). the nature of learning climate in public administration: a crosssectorial examination of it’s relationship with employee job involvement, proactivity, and creativity, the american review of public administration, 37, (2) 213-235. hough, c., green, k. &plumlee, g. (2016).impact of ethics environment and organizational trust on employee engagement.journal of legal, ethical and regulatory issues, 18(3), 45-57. joo, b. k., yang, b., & mclean, g. n. (2014). employee creativity: the effects of perceived learning culture, leader–member exchange quality, job autonomy, and proactivity. human resource development international, 17(3), 297-317. katzenbach, j.r., (2003). why pride matters more than money: new york: random house. kaptein, m. (2015).workplace morality: behavioural ethics in organizations. retrieved online at http://www.researchernet 27/09/2019 martin, k. d. & cullen j. b. (2006). continuities and extensions of ethical climate theory: a metaanalytic review, journal of business ethics, 1(69), 175–194. muafi, j. (2011). causes and consequences of deviant workplace behaviour.internationaljournal of innovation management and technology, 2(2), 123-126 muhammad, a., qing, m., hwang, j. & shi, h. (2019). ethical leadership, affective commitment, work engagement and creativity: testing a multiple mediated approach. sustainability, 11(4), 2-6. obasi, c.a. (2003). organizational behaviour: concepts and applications. lagos: malthous press limited. pattison, s. & edgar, a. (2011).integrity and the moral complexity of professional practice.nursing philosophy, 12(2), 94-106. qui, t. &peschek, b.s. (2013). the effect of interpersonal counterproductive workplace behaviours on the performance of new product development teams.american journal of management, 12(1), 15-32. robertson-smith, g. and marwick, c. (2011). employee engagement – a review of current thinking, brighton: institute for employment studies. retrieved from: http://www.nhsemployers.org safikhani, r. (2016). the relation between morality and organizational commitment of the teachers with the training quality level of students in the city of tehran girls secondary schools. the international journal of indian psychology, 3(4), 24-29. stoner, j.a.f., gilbert, d.r. &freemana, r.e. (2013).management, 6th edition. new delhi: dorling kindersley (india) pvt limited. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/10991379/2016/37/2 http://www.nhsemployers.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 19, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 9 wellins, r.s., bernthal, p. & phelps, m. (2015). employee engagement: the key to realizing competitive advantage. retrieved online at http://www.ddiworld.com 28/09/2019 wong. d.b., (2011). relativist explanation of interpersonal and group disagreement in s.d. hales (ed.), a companion to relativism, 4(11), 27–29. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org recognition-based reward and workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria adim, chidiebere victor david, gabby okwudiri european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 1 recognition-based reward and workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria adim, chidiebere victor doctoral candidate, department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, port harcourt, nigeria. adimcvictor@gmail.com david, gabby okwudiri doctoral candidate, department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, port harcourt, nigeria. davidogabby@gmail.com abstract purpose: this study investigated the relationship between recognition-based reward and workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. methodology: the study adopted the cross-sectional survey in its investigation of the variables. primary source of data was generated through selfadministered questionnaire. the target population of this study consists of 253 employees of 7 manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. the sample size of 151 was determined using taro yamane sample size formula. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. data generated were analyzed and presented using both descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. the hypothesis was tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation statistics. the tests were carried out at a 95% confidence interval and a 0.05 level of significance. findings: the study findings revealed that there is significant relationship between recognitionbased reward and workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. recommendation: the study recommends that management of manufacturing firms should be keen on the use of recognition-based because it has proven to be a way of motivating employees. implementing recognition-based programs would create a positive work environment, followed by reinforcing positive behaviours and motivating high performance. keywords: recognition-based reward, workplace harmony, manufacturing companies http://www.ajpojournals.org/ mailto:adimcvictor@gmail.com mailto:davidogabby@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 2 introduction organizations are established with predetermined aims and objectives towards which efforts and resources are channelled to attain. the drivers of such organization are the key players – the managers and the subordinates, who constitute the workforce. the relationship between these human factors in the production chain determines the extent to which these aims and objectives are met. a harmonious work environment is critical to the success of an organization, especially the construction sector. managers of both the private and public sectors are faced with the challenge of ensuring workers’ satisfaction, commitment and loyalty, increasing productivity level and most importantly, sustaining harmony and mutual trust in the workplace. workplace harmony refers to a friendly and cooperative agreement on working relationships between employers and employees for their mutual benefit (otobo, 2005; osad & osas, 2013). according to puttapalli and vuram (2012), workplace harmony is concerned with the relationship between management and employees with respect to the terms and conditions of employment and the work place. in effect, it is a situation where employees and management cooperate willingly in pursuit of the organization’s aims and objectives. industrial harmony in its ideal form, presupposes an industry in a condition of relative equilibrium where relationship between individuals and or groups are cordial and productive. sayles and strauss (2009) assert that with the inevitable differences among groups within an organization, conflict and differing objectives permeate modern organizations. this type of conflict prevents the existence of workplace harmony which reflects a state of organizational instability (sayles & strauss, 2009). on the other hand, hanson (2006) opines that workplace harmony represents absence of strike by industrial unions in organization which is bound to result in effective and efficient organization. workplace harmony enhances labour productivity and in turn improves performance in organizations, achieving economic growth, and enhancing living standards and quality of life. it creates a peaceful working environment conducive to tolerance, dialogue and other alternative (to strike) means of resolving industrial or labour disputes in nigeria (such as negotiation, mediation, arbitration, conciliation and litigation or court adjudication). this creates a high level of employee satisfaction. a means of achieving this is through recognition-based rewards. motivating employees is a challenge and keeping employees motivated an even greater challenge (levy, 2013). today, organizations are under intense pressure to identify and implement programs that will prove effective in improving employee productivity (deci, 2013). it is no longer enough to increase salaries and expect increased performance; it is more complex than that (george & jones, 2013). employees not only want good extrinsic compensation on the work but also want to be praised and valued for the efforts they put in on the work. employee recognition is a judgment on a worker's contribution, in terms of the work process as well as dedication and motivation. it also involves evaluating and acknowledging the results of this work. in short, it looks at the unique contribution of each worker and stresses the value of his or her professional expertise and experience. by creating a culture of recognition, employees become more engaged. engaged employees are happy, loyal, and productive. everyday there is an opportunity to recognize someone for their service without spending a lot of money. informal rewards are the icing on the cake that keeps employees motivated, engaged, and coming back for more. but it is also essential to study and understand the extent to which the above mentioned http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 3 factors have an impact on the work force considering all the positive and negative effects appreciations have on individual and organizational growth (baskar & rajkumar, 2013). effective reward management can help an organisation to achieve its business objectives by attracting and retaining competent people. however, the factors that prove to employees that their contributions are recognised, lies in a more informal approach to recognition, a key focus which is to make employees feel appreciated and valued (deeprose, 1994). effective recognition enhances employee motivation and increases employee productivity all of which contribute to improved organisational performance (deeprose, 1994). baron (1983) argues that there is a close relationship between motivation and job performance. the purpose of the study therefore was to examine the relationship between recognition-based reward and workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria.this study was guided by the research question: what is the relationship between recognition-based and reduced level of grievance manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria? fig.1 conceptual framework for the relationship between and recognitionbased reward and workplace harmony source: author’s desk research, 2020 the framework takes a linear relationship between the predictor variable on the left hand side and the criterion variable at the right hand side. the conceptual framework shows that workplace harmony is a function of recognition-based reward. from the conceptual framework, organizational effectiveness is the predictor variable and is measured by the level of reduced grievance. in the same vein, recognition-based reward is the predictor variable. literature review theoretical foundation need and fulfillment theory need/fulfillment theory was propounded by lawler, (1973) where he stated that the basic happiness of workers is in satisfying their needs and demands (celik, 2011). need/fulfillment theorists believed that employee’s satisfaction is a function of how much of a reward or outcome they are receiving for their work (chepkwony & oloko, 2014). this suggests that the supporters of this theory measure satisfaction in terms of rewards that a person receives or the extent to which his/her needs are met. the concern of this theory is that satisfaction is depended on how much of a given outcome or group of outcomes an employee receives (lawler, 1994). hence, recognition-based reward workplace harmony reduced level of grievance http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 4 lawler (1994) argues that satisfaction is determined by the differences between the actual outcome a person receives (for example, rewards) and some other outcomes levels. in other words, employees become dissatisfied when what they receive as compensation is low compared to other outcome levels. the weakness of this theory is that the theorists fail to take into account the individual-difference factors of a person. according to lawler (1994) the individual difference factor has to do with how people feel about what they receive and what outcomes they feel they should receive for the work done. for example, an employee who expects to be paid more for his/her job is more likely to be dissatisfied than someone who feels that he is paid adequately for his work. individualdifference factors suggest that the fulfillment-theory approach to job satisfaction is not effective; since this approach fails to take into account differences in people’s feelings about the outcomes they should receive (lawler, 1994). thus, the inadequacy of this theory is that job satisfaction is not only a function of what an employee receives, but in addition what he feels he should receive as there could be a variance in the actual and expectations of employees. recognition-based rewards the type of reward practices used by an organization plays an important role in motivating employees to perform (beer & walton, 2014). this ultimately affects the performance of the organization (hansen, smith & hansen, 2012). based on decades of research on operant conditioning and behaviour modification, it is commonly believed that if rewards are used effectively, they can motivate individuals to perform at higher levels, and the use of proper rewards culminates in firm performance at the organizational level (giancola, 2011). the hygiene-motivator distinction clearly maps onto the reward-recognition distinction. in fact, herzberg himself made this point: in his motivation–hygiene theory, herzberg stated that work motivation is largely influenced by the extent to which a job is intrinsically challenging and provides opportunities for recognition and reinforcement (giancola, 2011). in other words, reward represents the application of hygiene factors, and recognition represents the application of motivator factors (allen & helms, 2011). positive reinforcement for workers often takes the form of tangible rewards as well as recognition and praise. a combination of recognition and rewards, along with informal praise, is likely to be the most motivational (kinicki & kreitner, 2016). in his popular book 1001 ways to reward employees, bob nelson as cited by giancola (2011), concluded that rewards must have a positive impact on performance, and he found that the most desired form of reward by employees was verbal appreciation or praise by their immediate boss.many organizations have formal recognition and reward programs and these recognition programs usually include rewards because good performers are recognized with rewards (deci, 2013). among the rewards given are plaques, gift cards, jewelry and on the spot cast awards (allen &helms, 2011). more sophisticated recognition programs recognize behaviour that supports organizational values, so the awards are a reminder of what is important to the company (aguinis, 2012). teams, as well as individuals should receive recognition to enhance motivation (riggio, 2014). as with most motivation and retention programs, recognition and rewards must be carefully planned, otherwise they may backfire and lose money for the company (kinicki and kreitner, 2016). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 5 increasingly, it has become clear that the battle for talent involves much more than highly effective, strategically designed compensation and benefit programs. while these programs remain critical, the most successful companies have realized that they must make a much broader look at the factors involved in attraction, retention, and motivation (giancola, 2011) and they must deploy all of the factors—including compensation and benefits—to their strategic advantage (hansen, smith & hansen, 2012). praising workers for good performance is a major type of informal recognition (allen & helms, 2011). although praise costs no money and only requires a few moments of time, many workers feel that they do not receive enough praise (aguinis, 2012) managers therefore have a good opportunity to increase motivation by the simple act of praising good deeds (kinicki & kreitner, 2016). rewards reflect both personal and institutional goals, and stand to assist an understanding of what directs both individuals’ engagement and workplace affordances (allen & helms, 2011). in this way, rewards capture the goals for both workplace and personal trajectories, and permit a consideration of the degree to which there is consonance between these trajectories (judge and ferris, 2013). hence they richly inform the relational interdependence between the personal and social. in general, there seems to be agreement that recognition and rewards are important motivators for individual and for organizational performance (hansen, smith and hansen, 2012). workplace harmony industrial amicability alludes to a situation of peace in relative sense in any industrial organization, which includes; nonappearance of strikes, and doubt among work gatherings or unions, tranquil relationship amongst unions and administration of the organization, and additionally representative positive view of his or her commitment as member not as subject inside the organization. industrial harmony is an exceptionally basic element of organizational profitability and execution. industrial agreement in its optimal structure, presupposes an industry in a state of relative balance where relationship amongst people as well as gatherings are heartfelt and profitable. sayles and strauss (1981) noticed that with the unavoidable contrasts among gatherings inside an organization, struggle and varying destinations saturate cutting edge organizations. this kind of contention keeps the presence of industrial agreement which mirrors a condition of authoritative shakiness (sayles and strauss, 1981). furthermore, as hanson (1972) noted, industrial agreement speaks to nonappearance of conflict by industrial unions which will undoubtedly bring about viable and proficient organization. recognition-based reward and workplace harmony aktar, sachu and ali (2012) contend that nonmonetary incentives which are represented by recognition, learning opportunities, challenging work and career advancement, have been found to be an effective tool in motivating workers and consequently increase their performance. this incentive is highly appreciated probably due the opportunity it offers in terms of skill development of the workers which in the long run could be translated to higher monetary reward. according to sajuyigbe, olaoye and adeyemi (2013), if effective rewards and recognition are implemented within an organization, favorable working environment is produced which motivates employees to excel in their performance. on the other hand rewards also play a vital role in determining the significant performance in job and it is positively associated with the http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 6 process of motivation. this is according to finding by njanja, maina, kibet and njagi (2013) who stipulated that, wage differential between high and low income earners has a strong relationship with morale, lack of commitment and low productivity by employees. ajmal, bashir, abrar, khan and saqib (2015) found out that, employees will give their maximum when they are certain of reward of their efforts by the management. according to him, among all those factors which affect employee performance, motivation that comes with rewards is of utmost importance. external rewards can be in terms of salary/ pay, incentives, bonuses, promotions, job security, etc. intrinsic rewards are intangible rewards or psychological rewards like appreciation, meeting the new challenges, positive and caring attitude from employer and job rotation after attaining the goal. research has proven that, when human being are appreciated and praised they tend to improve their performance (sajuyigbe et al., 2013). therefore recognition by rewards can be used to improve performance by setting targets in relation to the work given e.g. surpassing some sales targets. when the employee surpasses their target, he or she can be given an additional amount to their salary this will make them strive to achieve more. personalizing rewards is another effective way of increasing workers output (ajmal et al., 2015). this is because when rewards tend to be so general, employees do not value them. organizations therefore can use rewards to improve employee performance by incorporating appraisal or promotion for employees who have a good record of performance (ajmal et al., 2015). an investigation of compensation factors and job satisfaction of doctors in pakistan by yaseen (2013) showed that recognition and pay are factors of compensation management which have direct effect on doctors’ job satisfaction among doctors in pakistani hospitals. similarly, tausif (2012) investigated the relationship between non-monetary rewards and job satisfaction among teachers in public schools in pakistan. the study used 200 samples (teachers) that were randomly selected for the survey. the respondents showed that non-financial rewards such as recognition and job security were the most powerful predictors of job satisfaction. study by alam, waseef and murad (2015) on reward and recognition priorities of three public sector universities’ teachers for their motivation and job satisfaction in khyber pakhtunkhwa, pakistan. data was collected from 90 university teachers and was analyzed by using pearson’s correlation coefficient and the result revealed that the teachers ranked recognition fist followed by promotion respectively for their motivation and job satisfaction. this study also revealed that salary and relationship with departmental heads are also moderately related to teacher’s motivation and job satisfaction. this study thus hypothesized that: ho1: there is no significant relationship between recognition-based reward and reduced level of grievance manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. methodology the study adopted the cross-sectional survey in its investigation of the variables. primary source of data was generated through selfadministered questionnaire. the target population of this study consists of 253 employees of 7 manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. the sample size of 151 was determined using taro yamane sample size formula. the simple random sampling technique was adopted in arriving at the sample size. the instruments http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 7 were validated by experts in the field and supervisor’s scrutiny. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. data generated were analyzed and presented using both descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. the hypotheses were tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation statistics. the tests were carried out at a 95% confidence interval and a 0.05 level of significance. data analysis and results bivariate analysis the level of significance 0.05 was adopted as a criterion for the probability of accepting the null hypothesis in (p> 0.05) or rejecting the null hypothesis in (p <0.05). table 1correlations matrix for recognition/rewards and industrial harmony source: research data 2019 and spss output version 23.0 ho1: there is no significant relationship between recognition/rewards and reduced level of grievance in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. from the result in the table above, the correlation coefficient (rho) shows that there is a significant and positive relationship between recognition-based and reduced level of grievance. the correlation coefficient of 0.718 confirms the magnitude and strength of this relationship and it is significant at p 0.000<0.01. the correlation coefficient represents a high correlation between the variables. therefore, based on empirical findings the null hypothesis earlier stated is hereby rejected and the alternate upheld. thus, there is a significant relationship between recognitionbased reward reduced level of grievance spearman's rho recognition-based reward correlation coefficient 1.000 .718** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 134 134 sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 n 134 134 reduced level of grievance correlation coefficient .718** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 134 134 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 8 recognition-based rewards and reduced level of grievance in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. discussion of findings the hypotheses tested the relationship between recognition-based reward and workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. the study findings reveal that there is a significant relationship between recognition-based reward and workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. this finding agrees gerald and dorothee (2004); rehman, khan,ziauddin and lashari (2010) who argued that employees will be well motivated and will perform well if they are rewarded (markova & ford, 2011). there is a direct relationship between employee rewards and job performance. if the employees are rewarded, then the performance will increase. in this way, the employees think that they are being valued. rewards systems can attract the right behaviour and outcomes in company (manas & graham, 2003). therefore the employees will adopt that kind of behaviour that will lead them to better performance and rewards. as a result he employees will start working harder which is very beneficial for the organizations and the workers themselves. so even in the long run, the organizations will generate positive results and gain more (torrington, hall, taylor & atkinson, 2009). furthermore, the study agrees with saunderson (2004) that employees not only want compensation but also need to be valued by their supervisors. it will increase employees’ morale. employees will be well motivated if they are recognized by the supervisors. recognition means valuing and caring about the employees contributions. it is essential for the companies to recognize their employees (mcgregor, 1960). other studies show that it is better to recognize employees rather than give incentives (deci & ryan, 2000). employee recognition involves both monetary as well as non-monetary programs mcadams (1995). the example of employee recognition involves writing their names in the company’s newsletter, letters of commendation, extra time off and verbal appreciation. this is a form of caring and appraising the employees. the non-monetary awards are more motivating than the financial award (serino, 2002). in this way, the employees think that they are being valued. conclusion recognition programmes have the purpose of keeping employees motivated and productive and are seen to be effective methods of reinforcing company expectations and goals. recognitionbased significantly influences rewards workplace harmony in manufacturing companies in port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. recommendation i. the study recommends that management of manufacturing firms should be keen on the use of recognition-based because it has proven to be a way of motivating employees. implementing recognition-based programs would create a positive work environment, followed by reinforcing positive behaviours and motivating high performance. ii. management of manufacturing firms should adopt more recognition-based reward by organizing periodic recognition of performing employees whose picture would be http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 9 displayed at strategic entrances of the company. this would serve as a motivation for improved performance iii. management of manufacturing firms should give out rewards to its outstanding teams as well as individuals to enhance motivation using items such as plaques, gift cards, jewelry and on the spot cast awards. references aguinis, h. 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(2004). survey findings of the effectiveness of employee recognition in the public sector. public personnel management, 33(3), 255-275. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.2, pp 1-11, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 11 sayles, l., & straus, g. (1981). managing human resources. prentice hall inc., new jersey. serino, b. (2002). non-cash awards boost sales compensation plans. workspan, 45, 8, 24-27 sajuyigbe, a. s., olaoye, b. o., & adeyemi, m. a. (2013). impact of reward on employees performance in a selected manufacturing companies in ibadan, oyo state, nigeria. international journal of arts and commerce, 2(2), 27-32. tausif, m. (2012). influence of non-financial reward on job satisfaction: a case study of educational sector of pakistan. asian journal of management research, 2 (2), 688696. torrington, d., hall, l., taylor, s., & atkinson, c. (2009). fundamentals of human resource management (1st ed.). harlow: pearson education limited yaseen, a. (2013). effect of compensation factors on employee satisfaction: a study of doctor’s dissatisfaction in punjab. international journal of human resource studies, 3(1), 142157. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ the international journal of research in business and social sciences 47 impact of employee compensation system of total uganda co limited on job satisfaction (an empirical evidence of the petroleum and gas business of uganda considering a case of total e&p uganda limited). marianne birungi mukalazi lawrencia agen-davis theophilus teye amanor daniela daniel ndunguru proffesor dang wei european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 48 impact of employee compensation system of total uganda co limited on job satisfaction (an empirical evidence of the petroleum and gas business of uganda considering a case of total e&p uganda limited) 1marianne birungi mukalazi msc. enterprise management email: birungimarianne@outlook.com 2lawrencia agen-davis msc. enterprise management 3theophilus teye amanor msc. enterprise management 4daniela daniel ndunguru msc. logistics management 5proffesor dang wei school of economics and management 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 lanzhou jiaotong university abstract purpose: motivation through an effective compensation system of the organization can never be over looked in in relation to improving satisfaction and performance of the employees. the purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between employee compensation and job satisfaction considering a case study of total e&p uganda limited. methodology: the study employed a descriptive-cross sectional research design. using a krejcie and morgan approach the study focused on 80 staff of total e&p from which a sample of 66 respondents was chosen. the study used interviews and surveys as data collection instruments. data from the answered questionnaires was analyzed using spssv20 and descriptive statistics calculator (online). the collected data was checked for consistency and then frequencies and percentages were be used to show responses of the distribution. the results were presented in tables and chart form. findings: it was found from different results that compensation has positive impact on job satisfaction. it was proved from bi-variate pearson correlation coefficient analysis that independent variables have strong positive relationship to each other. descriptive analysis also revealed that all the independent variables have positive impact on job satisfaction. descriptive analysis of the results of the findings indicated that generally majority of the organization workers are not contented with the salaries and wages given to them by the organization. it was indicated in descriptive analysis that majority of the respondents had considerable knowledge on the concept of job satisfaction. this is justified basing on the fact that each respondent knows what can spur his or her commitment and motivation. limitations/implications of the research: following the justifiable challenges the company is apparently facing, the study recommends that to ovoid a nosedived performance, a well streamlined compensation structure has to be adopted. keywords: benefits, employee bonus, satisfaction, salary, rewards, compensation and employee performance. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:birungimarianne@outlook.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 49 1.0 introduction compensation or remuneration is a systematic approach to provide monetary value to employees in exchange for work performed by them is called as compensation or remuneration, (nakshita, 2017). in the case of human resource management, compensation is referred to as money and other benefits that are received by an employee for providing services to his employer. in clifford’s study rehman et al. (2015) stated that there is a strong relationship between compensation systems and job satisfaction. scholars use the concept of compensation management to point out a mixture of employee feelings towards the various facets of job satisfaction like the character of the work itself, level of pay, promotion opportunities, and satisfaction with co-workers (schermerhorn, hunt, & osborn, 2015). in relating reward strategies and job satisfaction, georgakopoulos et al (2015) checked out compensation as motivational factor towards employee job satisfaction. furthermore, theories of compensation optimization system focus on the satisfaction of the needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness (gagne & deci, 2015). he added that employees are satisfied when they feel that the rewards they receive from their jobs correspond to their skills and effort. 1.1 problem statement uganda’s vision 2040 states that there is a strong positive correlation between industrialization and rapid development. a strong and competitive industrial base is important to create employment, advance technology and create a resilient economy. in uganda, industrialization offers more export earnings, wider tax base, increased purchasing power, increased integration with agriculture, product diversification, greater efficiency, and technical modernization and higher productivity throughout the whole economy (byaruhanga et al. 2016). since independence, uganda has made efforts of capitalizing on industrialization to propel the economy to middle income status and eventually to a first world economy. several measures were introduced to nurture infant industries. foremost was an over-valued exchange rate that discriminated against imported finished goods, but allowed exceptions for imports of intermediate inputs. according to ggoobi et al (2017), interest rates were influenced by government intervention to help spur domestic investments and heavy import duties were imposed on goods which directly competed with locally made products. there were also provisions for special loans and equity capital; and quotas allowing access to foreign exchange for imported inputs and remittances at subsidized official rates. despite of all those measures, industrial sector still lags behind compared to her counterparts. the sector is exposed to external economic shocks that have particularly manifested in volatility in the foreign exchange rates and poor performance of exports, which undermine the competitiveness of the private sector. furthermore, the economy also reveals significant high import content of inputs for uganda’s industrial sectors thus hampering its pace of development. it’s against this background that the researcher sought to examine why industrial development level in uganda still remains low compared to other countries. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 50 2.0 literature review h1: 1.there is a significant relationship between salaries and wages on job satisfaction in total e&p uganda. 2.1.1 salary salary structure is the details of the salary being offered, in terms of the breakup of the different components constituting the compensation. while the salary structure within the enterprise mobility is very large, the lack of staff for the different positions can be raised according to wages and salaries, and thus attracting more talents to come to employment in the organization. wage or salary is vital for both employers and employees regarding attracting, retaining, and motivating employees. asegid et al. (2014) regarded compensation within the sort of salaries and wages as important for workers since it's one among the most reasons people work. qasim et al. (2014) stated that monetary rewards play major role in determining job satisfaction. pay is one of the basic components of job satisfaction since it is a strong effect in determining job satisfaction. the growing needs of individuals with high living costs force workers to hunt higher income which will guarantee their future and life satisfaction, (galanou et al, 2015). moreover, if individuals believe they're not compensated well, therefore, a state of emotional job dissatisfaction are going to be developed. these emotional discrepancies will grow and accumulate over time thus make employees unhappy and unsatisfied working for the organization, (galanou et al, 2015). greenberg and baron, (2014) indicated that a perceived low salary results in job dissatisfaction and a serious contributor to increased turnover rate. khan et al. (2014) posited that academic staff commitment are often enhanced and their degree of satisfaction might be improved by identifying the influence of compensation. h1: 2.there is a significant relationship between incentive schemes influence job satisfaction in total e&p uganda. 2.1.2 employee incentive employee incentive bonus schemes focus on recognizing and rewarding staff for their hard work. incentive bonus schemes can vary in terms of the rewards given, but they are usually put in place to encourage employees to work towards specific targets, (dancer et al, 2015). several incentive bonus schemes have been identified to influence high job satisfaction in the workplace; amongst these are career development and progression, opportunities for growth, effective communication, training and other work related programs (bennett & minty, 2015). salau, et al. (2014) asserts that in the world of business, the relationship between incentive bonus schemes and job satisfaction cannot be undervalued, the two variables depend on each other but respond in different ways to increased employees engagement, participation and retention, competence, commitment and involvement. furthermore, khan et al. (2014) argue that incentive bonus schemes can be incredibly helpful in building growth within a business, and that it can be really difficult to maintain a grip on progress without some bonus schemes. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 51 incentive bonus schemes have been a shared factor influencing the job satisfaction of employees at workplace, khan et al. (2014). this corroborates with the findings of kinicki and kreitner (2003) that when the sincere needs in form of bonuses and other supplications of the employees are not taken into consideration and managed properly, then displeasure in their respective jobs, discontent and pilfering prevails and this facilitates unattractive state of the mind towards work. rothwell and azanas (2014), discovered that organizational effectiveness becomes vague the instant an employee feels displeased, disgruntled or discouraged about how things are done. however, it becomes necessary for organizations to put in place the best bonus schemes that will help to decrease the depressing factors, bearing in mind the principle of individual differences when it comes to satisfying their (employees) needs and requirements. h1: 3.there is a significant relationship between employee benefits on job satisfaction in total e&p uganda. 2.1.3 employee benefits world at work (2008), stated that benefits include packages an employer practices to supplement the cash compensation that employees receive. it comprises of health, income protection, savings and retirement programs provide security for employees and their families. a specific set of organizational practices, policies and programmes, plus a philosophy that actively supports efforts to help employees achieve success at both work and home. fringe benefits include any variety of programmes that provide paid time off, employee services and protection programmes. according to bratton and gold (2007), fringe benefits refer to the part of the rewards package provided to an employee in addition to the guaranteed basic remuneration. asegid et al, (2014) revealed that fringe benefits were a significant of overall job satisfaction. conversely, tella et al. (2007)included the most of the fringe benefits such as employee welfare, social security, employee security, payments for time not worked, health benefits, retirement benefits and compensation benefits that are positive and significantly related to job satisfaction and that one is negative and significant. in addition, the study by artz (2010) revealed that the previously mentioned fringe benefits have a significant and positive relationship with job satisfaction. furthermore, artz (2010) revealed that fringe benefits make up a significant portion of employer compensation packages but their impact on worker job satisfaction has given much attention. also artz (2010) attested that fringe benefits can affect job satisfaction in opposing ways. first of all, since fringe benefits are generally less taxed than wages, they can be purchased at less cost through an employer than if bought on the market. second, fringe benefits are often desirable pieces of compensation packages and so increase job satisfaction. it is evident that compensation and fringe benefits have a significant relationship from organizational level, the literature is inaudible about petroleum companies. therefore, the current study seeks to fill that gap. 2.1.4 job satisfaction job satisfaction is a pleasurable or positive emotional state, resulting from the appraisal of one’s job experiences (robertson et al, 2012). it means that optimistic feeling about work and environment around job lead someone towards satisfaction. it is the extent to which employees wants or like to perform work. satisfaction is the contentment of a desire which is come true or to file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org http://scialert.net/fulltext/?doi=rjbm.2017.80.90#153939_b http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv http://scialert.net/fulltext/?doi=rjbm.2017.80.90#1671381_ja http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv http://scialert.net/fulltext/?doi=rjbm.2017.80.90#1671381_ja http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv http://www.scialert.net/asci/result.php?searchin=keywords&cat=&ascicat=all&submit=search&keyword=job+satisfactionv european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 52 achieve sacred fulfillment from a wish. job satisfaction and dissatisfaction not only depends on the nature of the job, it also depend on the expectation what’s the job supply to an employee (hussami, 2008). lower convenience costs, higher organizational and social and intrinsic reward will increase job satisfaction (vidal, 2007). job satisfaction is complex phenomenon with multi facets (fisher et al, 2000); it is influenced by the factors like salary, working environment, autonomy, communication, and organizational commitment (lane et al, 2010). there are a variety of factors that can influence a person’s level of job satisfaction. some of these factors include the level of pay and benefits, the perceived fairness of the promotion system within a company, the quality of the working conditions, leadership and social relationships, the job itself (the variety of tasks involved, the interest and challenge the job generates, and the clarity of the job description/requirements). 2.2 conceptual framework i) independent variables  salaries and wages  incentive bonus schemes  benefits ii) dependent variable job satisfaction independent variable dependent variable figure 1: conceptual framework source: (adopted and modified from vroom v, 1974) job satisfaction compensation  remuneration/ pay  working conditions  individual attitudes or perception  salaries and wages  incentive bonus schemes  benefits intervening variables  organizational policies  government policies  organizational culture file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 53 in reference to figure 1 above, the study is conceptualized using independent and dependent variables. the independent variable (compensation) has three indicators namely; salaries and wages, benefits and incentive bonus schemes while the dependent variable (job satisfaction) which is job satisfaction indicators include; remuneration or pay, working conditions and individual attitudes or perceptions. the two main variables are influenced by intervening variables that affects their relationship and these include organizational policies, government policy and organizational culture. 2.3 company salary system 2.3.1 weakness in the current system owing to the strategies set by the management to cope with good remuneration of the total e& p uganda limited, it’s still evident the locals still earn lower than expatriates. it is obvious that the income of local people is still lower than that of foreign employees due to the management’s strategy of coping with the company's high salary. 2.4 total salary system optimization design 2.4.1 optimization design principle of salary system certain principles must be followed when designing compensation. these principles include strategic orientation, economy, embodying employee value, motivation, relative fairness, and external competitiveness. 2.4.2 design ideas of salary system first, clarify the difference between the concepts of contribution and effective contribution, income, partial income, and full income. all employees’ efforts at work are "paying", but it is different from "effective paying". only what really creates value for the company is "effective paying". only "effective paying" can help employees earn income. you should make more money if you are busy. second, increase employees' awareness of the value of their positions through open job evaluation methods. third, strictly implement the performance appraisal system. not only performance pay must be strictly based on performance, other non-mandatory benefits, training, spiritual rewards, promotion, etc. are also closely linked to performance appraisal. fourth, cut-off comparison is also a method. however, this method only avoids the sense of unfairness to a certain extent, and does not directly lead to employees’ sense of internal fairness and salary satisfaction. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 54 2.4.3 optimization compensation strategy figure 2: showing optimization compensation strategy in this framework (figure above), maintaining the linkages between the phases within the loop is crucial in perpetuating effective sales effort. a staff perceives the connection between sales effort and sales performance through pay level because it reflects sales rewards. pay mix provides the motivational impact of the motivation system by aligning interests of staff with organizational goals. 3.0 methods 3.1 area of study the study area for this research was total e & p uganda. the participants of this study were human resource managers, employees and employee welfare officers who are responsible for employee performance. the company was selected because of its large number of employees and the high staff turnover rate and high internal conflicts. 3.2 data collection and analysis method this describes how both qualitative and quantitative data for the study was obtained. by mixing both quantitative and qualitative research and data, the researcher gained in breadth and depth of understanding and corroboration, while offsetting the weaknesses inherent to using each approach. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 55 a. data collection sources in this study both primary and secondary data sources were used. b. data collection method and instruments two major methods were used to obtain adequate and reliable information for this study. these included interviews and surveys with closed-ended questions. this study used data collection instruments which involve interview guide and questionnaires respectively. 3.3 data processing and analysis and presentation a. data processing validity validity is the extent to which the scores from a measure represent the variable they are intended to. content validity is the degree to which an instrument has an appropriate sample of items for the construct being measured and is an important procedure in scale development. content validity index (cvi) is the most widely used index in quantitative evaluation. out validity cut off point will be 0.78. reliability reliability is seen as the degree to which a test is free from measurement errors, since the more measurement errors occur the less reliable the test. here the researcher will use the most common internal consistency measure that’s cronbach's alpha, which is usually interpreted as the mean of all possible split-half coefficients. an acceptable cronbach's alpha score of 0.7 ≤ α < 0.8 will be targeted. b. data analysis and presentation data from the answered questionnaires in this study were analyzed by using percentages. the collected data was checked for consistency and then frequencies and percentages were used to show responses of the distribution. the results were presented in tables and chart form. the software that was used for analysis of the findings was ms excel, spssv20 and descriptive statistics calculator (online). 4.0 findings 4.1 response rate questionnaires (80) sent to the field fetched 81% response (65 frequency) and a 19% none response. this implies a high degree of response that the study realized from the target respondents. 4.2 demographic findings findings indicated that majority of the respondents at least had a certificate qualification (40%). this is because it’s the minimum requirement for a fuel pump operator. least number of the married employed implies that due to the busy schedule that the organization management dictates, it requires a worker with less family commitments thus the high number of singles employed. the majority respondents under the age of 20-25 years reveals that the recruitment policy at the file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cronbach%27s_alpha https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cronbach%27s_alpha european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 56 operational level that favors energetic and aggressive youths to manage a busy customer carrying capacity that flocks in at the various station pumps and more challenging tasks. majority of the respondents were male (62%) and the female were 38%. this shows that the recruitment policy of total e&p favors more of male than feminine recruitment. 4.3 descriptive discussion of findings 4.3.1 salaries and wages it was also found that majority of the respondents reported that the organization disregards the moving economic trends in regard to adjustments on remuneration programs. this is contrary to the market theory of wage determination by classical economists, they argue that wages or the price of labor are determined (like all prices) by supply and demand. they add that when workers sell their labor, the price they can charge is influenced by several factors on the supply side and several factors on the demand side. 4.3.2 incentive bonus schemes in summary of the descriptive analysis on the second objective of the study it’s indicated that there is a huge difference between the respondents who agreed and those who disagreed on respective investigations. it was indicated that total e&p normally pays teams effort in equal measures, total e&p always shares annual profits with its employees, respondents strongly agreed that they indeed receive non-monetary compensation in addition to their normal payment and all bonuses offered to them are performance based. however, majority of the respondents disagreed with the above. 4.3.3 employee benefits in summary of the descriptive analysis on the third objective of the study, it was realized that majority of the respondents are not satisfied with the benefits given to them by the organization. they argue that employee fringe benefits such as salary loans, health insurance among others are only enjoyed by workers at the strategic level and expatriates. 4.3.4 job satisfaction in summary of the last objective of the study, it was indicated in descriptive analysis that majority of the respondents had considerable knowledge on the concept of job satisfaction. this was justified basing on the fact that each respondent knows what can spur his or her commitment and motivation. among the factors respondents reacted on was availability of tools necessary in the course of their duties, conduciveness of the working environment, a feeling of connection to the organization, how contented they are with salaries and wages, supervisory support among others. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 57 4.4 correlation analysis table 1: showing bi-variate pearson correlation coefficient of the variables obj 1: effect of salaries and wages on job satisfaction salaries and wages job satisfaction salaries and wages pearson correlation 1 sig. (2-tailed) .617 n 65 65 job satisfaction pearson correlation 1 sig. (2-tailed) .617 n 65 65 obj 2: influence of incentive bonus schemes on job satisfaction incentive bonuses job satisfaction incentive bonuses pearson correlation 1 sig. (2-tailed) .517 n 65 65 job satisfaction pearson correlation 1 sig. (2-tailed) .517 n 65 65 obj 3: relationship between employee benefits and job satisfaction employee benefits job satisfaction employee benefits pearson correlation 1 sig. (2-tailed) .701 n 65 65 job satisfaction pearson correlation 1 sig. (2-tailed) .701 n 65 65 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 58 table 2: showing interpretation of the pearson correlation coefficient results interpretation 0 no relationship between the variables 0.1-0.25 very weak relationship between the variables 0.26-0.49 weak relationship between the variables 0.5-0.75 strong relationship between the variables 0.76-1 very strong relationship between the variables source: taylor (1990) the researcher used bi-variate pearson correlation coefficient to establish a quantitative presentation of the degree of relationship between variables in each of the three objectives. from an investigation into the first objective it was indicated that that the r value was 0.617 indicating a strong relationship between salaries and wages and job satisfaction. this further shows that salaries and wages have a 61.7% effect on job satisfaction leaving a gap of 38.3% influence by other factors. it was also indicated that r value was 0.517 after an analysis into the relationship between incentive bonuses and job satisfaction. this shows a 51.7% impact of incentive bonuses on job satisfaction. finally it was also indicated that r value was 0.701 after an analysis into the relationship between incentive bonuses and job satisfaction. this shows a very strong 70.1% impact of incentive bonuses on job satisfaction. 5.0 recommendations from the foregoing, organizations need to take the issue of reward and incentives seriously as it has the ability of influencing employee’s attitude, contribution and commitment towards the organization. in order to increase productivity and have competitive edge, organizations must reward effectively. rewards are means of motivating organizational members. it should be used to make employees to bring out their best performance at the work place. it is expected that the reward system will improve productivity, and influence the effective and efficient utilization of corporate resources to achieve corporate objectives. organizations should reward committed employees to promote loyalty and satisfaction. the effective use of incentives can go a long way in making managers concentrate on more serious issues like planning and innovating. 6.0 limitations the major limitation of this research was scope since it only covered the petroleum business sector in uganda. another limitation was exclusion of many compensation variables due to limited interaction between the researcher and employees as a result of covid-19 guidelines. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 48 59, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 59 references armstrong & murlis (2017) handbook of management and leadership for hr; reward management, 5th edition. artz, b., (2015). fringe benefits and job satisfaction. int. j. manpower, 31: 626-644. asegid, a., t. belachew and e. yimam, (2014). factors influencing job satisfaction and anticipated turnover among nurses in sidama zone public health facilities, south ethiopia. nursing res. pract., vol. 2014. 10.1155/2014/909768. dancer, mark; wallace, marc (2015). "paying for sales performance: new research for designing high impact sales incentive plans" (pdf). journal of compensation and benefits. thomson reuters: 5:13. retrieved 14 july 2014. gagne, m., & deci, e. l. (2015). self-determination theory and work motivation, journal of organizational behaviour, vol. 26. pp. 331-362. galanou, e., georgakopoulos, g., sotiropoulos, i., & dimitris, v. (2015). the effect of reward system on job satisfaction inn an organizational chart of four hierarchical levels: a qualitative study. canadian social science. greenberg, j. and r.a. baron, 2016. behaviour in organizations. 9th edn., pearson education inc., upper saddle river, new jersey kinicki a. and williams, b.k. (2003). “management, a practical introduction”. library of congress cataloguing-in-publication data, usa qasim, s., f.e.a. cheema and n.a. syed, (2015). exploring factors affecting employee's job satisfaction at work. j. manage. soc. sci., 8: 31-39. rothwell, w.j. & kazanas h.c. (2014). the strategic development of talent. human resource. salau o.p, falola h.o and akinbode j.o (2014), induction and staff attitude towards retention and organizational effectiveness. iosr journal of business and management (iosrjbm) e-issn: volume 16, issue 4. ver. vi (apr. 2014), pp 47-52 www.iosrjournals.org schermerhorn, j., hunt, j. and osborn, r. (2014), organizational behaviour. 9th edition. john willey & sons, inc. total (21 march 2016)."total e&p uganda: pioneering new technology in east africa". total uganda (total). retrieved 21 march 2017. vroom, v. h. (1964), work and motivation, new york, wiley world at work, (2013). world at work total rewards model: a framework for strategies to attract, motivate and retain employees. the total rewards association. http://www.worldatwork.org/pub/total_rewards_brochure.pdf. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org http://www.chicagocompensation.org/assets/documents/researchandreports2011forward/cca%20resources%2014%20-%20paying%20for%20sales%20performance.pdf http://www.chicagocompensation.org/assets/documents/researchandreports2011forward/cca%20resources%2014%20-%20paying%20for%20sales%20performance.pdf http://www.iosrjournals.org/ http://ug.total.com/en/total-uganda/total-uganda http://www.worldatwork.org/pub/total_rewards_brochure.pdf workplace environment influence on employee satisfaction in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya michael murimi european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 28 workplace environment influence on employee satisfaction in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya michael murimi corresponding author’s email: njue2010@gmail.com abstract purpose: this paper present findings of a study whose purpose was aimed at establishing the effect of workplace settings on satisfaction of employees in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya. methodology: cross-sectional survey reserach design was adopted. the sample size for study was 184 employees sampled from a taget population of 396 employees through stratified random sampling . a pretest study was used to validate the structured questionnaires used to collect data and were distributed to the sampled size. reliability was ensured by use of cronbach’s alpha test. responses from respondents were coded and analyzed descriptively while inferential statistics were also used. findings: the results of the study revealed that workplace settings significantly affect employee satisfaction (p= 0.005). regression analysis results (r2 = 0.417), illuminated that attributes of a job explains for 41.7% changes to employee satisfaction in star rated hotels. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: the study applauds significantly contributes to the literature on hotel approaches, practices and strategies that revolve about improving employees’ workplace circumstances so as to advance employee satisfaction in hotel sector. the study recommends that hotels should develop and improve workplace policies that are aimed at contributing to employee satisfaction as way of improving quality service and performance. key words: hotel physical settings, job characteristics, hotel work settings, employee satisfaction, star rated hotels, kisumu city. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:njue2010@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 29 1.0 introduction employees satisfaction with their job is an erratic and versatile idea with many definitions and means different to different people. it refers to feelings of employees regarding their profession and diverse perspectives on the same, which means that satisfaction with job addresses those levels to which desires would what's more equal those reliable honors (spector, 1997) further, it is the employees’ contributions that prompt appreciation, compensation benefits, accomplishment of employee diverse objectives and promotions that boost satisfaction feelings (kaliski, 2007). workplace settings incorporates numerous things including but not limited to, physical settings, job characteristics and aspects of organizations (briner, 2000). workplace settings have become an vital part of doing work in an organisation (chandrasekar, 2011). hence, workplace environment is the interlinkage between people employed to work, organisation and environment. kenyan hospitality sector economic survey reveals that this sector contributes approximately 10 % of gdp , and about 9.3% contribution to employment (kenya national bureau of statistics, 2016). it is projected that it will slowly rise by 3% p.a towards the year 2026, the sector employment contributions stands at 9.5% (knbs, 2016). a report produced by industrial development corporation (idc) showed that the city of kisumu is emerging is likely to present predictions for the formation high profile, but reasonably priced hotels (idc, 2012). kisumu city lies in the lake region and host about 695 hotel rooms whose occupancy rate of 31% current beds are 958 with occupancy averaging 26% (knbs, 2012). this will rise gradually. the problem at hand is in 2014, international union of food, agricultural, hotel, restaurant, catering, tobacco and allied workers’ associations (iuf) uncovered that workplace in hotel division in kenya and some other developing countries was described by lopsided working hours, end of the week moves, split night and convoluted and pressure working circumstances (tourism concern, 2014). the report lights up those workers are encountered by work instability and limited open doors for advancement. the reports highlights reflect a situation that submits that there could be low degrees with work satisfaction among employees in those sectors. despite such reports, hotels are grappling with ideas of improving work conditions in the industry and this has kept on picking up force in kenya where numerous hotels are contributing on giving favorable workplace to their workers (mokaya & gitari, 2012), (united nations global compact, 2012) . although hospitality facilities have grasped the idea of improving occupation conditions, there is restricted exact information demonstrating the impact of the workplace settings on work fulfillment among employees working star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya. therefore, this study was meant to investigate the extent of hotel employees’ satisfaction with their work, the influence of workplace surroundings towards employee satisfaction and the linkage between the workplace settings and satisfaction of employees in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 30 2.0. review of the literature 2.1. hotel physical settings and employee satisfaction hotel physical settings is a factor of workplace that affects the human sense, interpersonal relations and subsequently productivity (smith, 2017). physical settings include factors like, hotels design and period since establishment, hotel’s layout, set-up of various workstations, design of equipment and furniture, spacing, ventilation, temperature, lighting, vibration, radiation, noise, air quality (manisha & sarode, 2014). physical designs affects employees satisfaction (asid, 1999) and influences productivity of employees (ismail, 2010). over 50% variability of productivity of employees is accounted for by workstation designs (amjad & hameed, 2009). further, (ismail, 2010) physical situations aspects like levels of comfort, temperature have a huge effect on efficiency of employees in work. there is a significant linkage between the work, work circumsatnces and employee satisfaction (roziyana, 2012). (leblebici, 2012) reaffirms that workplace quality significantly impacts on productivity of employees. there were few studies seeking to establish whether physical settings affects employees satisfaction in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya hence the need for this study.the proposed tested hypothesis was; ho: hotel physical settings has statistically no significant effect on employees satisfaction in star rated hotels. 2.2. job characteristics and employee satisfaction a model on job characteristic commonly initialized as (jcm) stipulates that every activity has five significant employment estimations (hackman, & oldham, 1975), (thomas, 2004). these estimations include; expertise assortment which implies the degree an occupation fuses an arrangement about unmistakable activities, besides how they incorporates the usage of a measure of various talents ensuring abilities. task identity; is associated with the levels which the business indulges fulfillment of a whole, what's progressively conspicuous confirmation bit on work with an undeniable end. task criticalness: how much those specific occupations were be basic and incorporates a genuine responsibility of the affiliation or specific social request all things considered. self-governance: the levels at which work accommodates freedom, agent noteworthy opportunity, more consideration for arranging the round in what's all the more making sense of the techniques used inside doing it. information: the degree on which doing the value of exertion practices stretches prompt and away from workers in respect to how incredible the specific occupation needs have been conveyed. an analysis on relationship for employees on versatile temporary frameworks, exhibited that workers particularly regard those odds associated with these frameworks, for instance, an extended independence by the way they play out their undertakings and extended correspondence with colleagues (thomas, 2004). continuously remembered for less gathering fill in additionally job turns and furthermore assisting human resource sharpens show up and should help commonly insignificant of the extended work satisfaction beginning with constantly involved to high execution working environment associations (thomas, 2004). on higher inclusion of employees on high execution workplace and workers occupation fulfillment utilizing worker information file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 31 from a survey on working conditions from europe offshoot states, disclosures revealed that specific impact might be directed by those guaranteeing employees in ready to change temporary frameworks, demonstrating that masters particularly worth those odds associated with these frameworks. further, disappointment with working conditions extremely affects inspiration of workers (poulston, 2009). occupation conditions have an impact on employment fulfillment of workers (shidhaye, divekar, goel & shidhaye, 2011). moreover, an investigation on connection between working settings and workers fulfillment with about 60 respondents, 30 respondents were working in customary work circumstances while the rest 30 respondents were working in inconvenient work settings. data were assembled using surveys. the revelations demonstrated that experts who work in run of the mill working settings are progressively happy with their job contrasted with the other group (bakotic & babic, 2013). another study was conducted where the wellbeing, burnout, and business related pressure on employment fulfillment in growing nations was investigated, where 1200 respondents and surveys were used to gather information. the outcomes uncovered that fatigue and work environment security hazards profoundly influence representatives' psychological well-being and occupation fulfillment of workers (khamisa, oldenburg, peltzer & dragan,2015). in conclusion, highlighted studies uncovered a solid connection between job qualities and employee fulfillment. the greater part of those investigations was done in different divisions other than hotels and in different nations. few were done in hotel sector henceforth, the inclination to discover job characteristics and its impacts on work fulfillment among hotel employees. the tested hypothesis was; ho: job characteristics have statistically no significant effect on employee satisfaction in star rated hotels. 2.3. hotel work settings and employees satisfaction hotel work settings are the keystone factors in realizing psychological and proficient work security (ahida & sumaya, 2015) they are connected to day activities (awases, 2006). these factors may be construed as a web of official and un official interface between cowokers; or the work relationship existing among employees (yusuf & metiboba, 2012). previously, coworkers’ relationship tend to affect employees morale (clement, 2000); (stanley, 2003). organizational factors like support, innovation and involvement significantly affected employees job satisfaction (destefano, potter, clark, & gavin, 2005). employees working conditions aaffects how motivated or dissatisfied workers can be with those who supervise them (poulston, 2009). workplace aspects and propoer communication system entice, retain, and inspire employees to be more productive (ajala, 2012). human work settings in an organization provides awareness various ways of increasing employee satisfaction (tio, 2014). stressors, boredom, workload, overtime and fatigue increases dissatisfaction in the place of work (ruchi & surinder, 2014). absence of pressure related to work contributes signifiacntly employee satisfaction (imrana, anita, ramesh, & manohr, 2015). (ahida & sumaya, 2015) stated that workload, accessibility to hotel recourses and support from supervisors significantly affects how employees deliver in their work. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 32 while work situations and leadership have positive impacts on employee satisfaction, culture of organisation has insignificant impact on the same (gichinga, 2016). with few such studies in star rated hotels, it is was essential to find out if hotel settings affected employee satisafction in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya. the tetsed hypothesis was; ho: hotel work settings has statistically no significant effect on employees satisfaction in star rated hotels. 2.4. theoretical fundamentals to this study to comprehend that which makes a few workers in hotel sector happier with their occupations than their partners and what concealed procedures represent worker's affections for the equivalent, the investigation depended on information and theory of learning range of affect (locke, 1976). the theory hypothesizes that worker fulfillment is directed by an irregularity between the requirements of workers to achieve in their work and that which has been given to them in aid of their job (locke, 1976). in addition, the theory communicates that the sum of a worker’s regards for a given component of work for example, the degree of freedom when working, directs how employees are with their employments or how frustrated they become when wants are or are not fully met (locke, 1976). moreover, when employees value a particular element of an occupation, as much satisfaction might be a more prominent sum fundamentally influenced both positively (when wants and need met). besides, adversely (when wants and needs are not met), appeared different in relation to specific situation that does not regard that highlight. this theory informs the current study in the essence that if employee valued particular aspects their jobs, for instance, hotel physical settings, work environment, job characteristics spikes their satisfaction. when all aspects of their workplace have been enhanced then this may translate to more satisfaction among employees in hotels. 2.2.the study’s conceptual framework figure: 1.1. displays the important variables of workplace settings and satisfaction of employees in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 33 independent variable dependent variable figure. 1.1. conceptual framework source: author (2020) hotel physical settings  space and purpose  ambient circumstances  symbols, signs and artifacts job characteristics  task variety  autonomy  skill variety  task identity  task significance job satisfaction among hotel employees relative to:  job itself  remuneration  co-workers  supervision  promotion hotel work settings  work culture  support from the management  working relationships  coaching and mentorship  leadership in the hotel file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 34 3.0. methodology cross-sectional design was adopted to enhance gather the data on work qualities and workers' fulfillment among hotel employees in kisumu city. a sample size of 199 respondents calculated using a sample size formula recommended by (yamane, 1967) from a target population of 396 employees working star rated hotels was used. stratified random sampling was used to cluster the respondents collect highly representative samples from each stratum through simple random sampling. structured questionnaires with close ended questions were used to obtain data for this investigation. attributes of the activity were estimated utilizing the specialist's adjusted questionnaire on work design (wdq) created by (morgeson & humphrey, 2006). for hotel work settings, a closed ended questionnaire established by (miemie & marianne, 2014) was adopted and researcher modified it. while hotel physical settings (yunkyong, 2007) close ended questionnaire’s was adopted and modified by the researcher. the subsequent section contained twenty five items on job satisfaction variable, estimated utilizing abridged index on job description created by (balzer, bachiochi, robie, sinar & parra, 2000) though altered by the author. hotel employees were requested to react to every inquiry as per likert five-point scale, scoring from highest"strongly agree", "agree", "neutral", "disagree", to least "strongly disagree". higher tallies represented respondent’s concurrence with questions. in addition, cronbach's alpha test was done to ensure reliability. the examination discoveries are extricated by spss measurable programming at both enlightening and scientific levels. to present the results figures and tables were used while parametric factual tests using spss ibm 22 programming were utilized. 4.0. findings the findings reveal the discoveries showed 43.5% aged somewhere in the range of 21 and 30 years and 35.9% aged somewhere in the range of 31 and 40 years in this way beneficial for hotel sector workforce. also 32.6% and 33.7% of workers had certificate in technical courses and diploma respectively. respondents operated in different sections of the hotel and (41.3%) earned between 150-350 us dollars every month. 52.2% had worked for fewer six years and 52.7% of employees were on short term contracts. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 35 4.1. respondents responses on job characteristics table 4.1.1. respondent on job characteristics respondents results on job characteristics mean my job gives me impressive open door for autonomy and opportunity as i do it 4.09 my job entails doing various distinctive things 4.01 the after effects of my job are probably going to essentially influence the survival of other people. 3.96 my chores include finishing a bit of tasks that has a obvious start and end. 3.80 my tasks exercise gives instant and clear facts about the feasibility (for instance quality and amount) of my activity performance. 3.97 the activity expects me to use a varied range of abilities so as to finish the work. 4.07 mean 4.04 outcomes uncovered that hotel workers are fully satisfied with job qualities with a normal mean of 4.03 out of 5 as summed up in table 4.1. dominant part of the employees (85.9%) enrolled fulfillment with just (14.1%) were impartial. 4.2. respondents responses on satisfaction with hotel physical settings table 4.2.1: table on respondents’ satisfaction with hotel physical settings respondents on hotel physical settings mean general level of lighting in this facility is appropriate for work 4.28 temperature levels in this facility are is comfortable and regulated when need be 4.28 wall treatments and interior décorations are appealing to workers 4.30 aroma around and within this facility makes me feel good while at work 4.21 floor treatments and its environment (wood, tile, carpeting) facilatate smoth working 4.28 space’s layout in this facility necessitate employees to work easily. 4.14 equipment and tools provided make working interesting. 4.20 i enjoy provided clean employee rest and change rooms. 4.16 the aisles set between furnitures facilitate easier pass through easily because they are wide. 4.09 my work station and space is always clean and pleasant. 4.14 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 36 signs and symbols provided provide adequate direction to workers and guests 3.97 an employee can stroll within this facility and find what they are aimed at 4.24 mean 4.19 a mean of 4.19 satisfaction out of total 5 was registered. 92.4% of emplyees were highly satisfied physical settings of hotels only 5.6% registered poor satisfaction with this aspect. 4.3. respondents responses on satisfaction with hotel work settings table 4.3.1: table on respondents’ satisfaction with hotel work settings respondents on hotel work settings mean good work relations and employee positive behavior are supported by the management of this facility. 3.75 management of this facility support employees and offers resources that necessitate them to work. 3.61 the work done by employees in this facility is reasonable 3.66 the facility has enough resources ranging from equipment, space and staff to meet demands of the work done 3.59 employee training and staff development programmes provided the facility are satisfactory 3.46 there is close coaching and mentorship to all employees in this facility 3.38 leadership in this hotel emphasizes on humanity in their pursuit for results 3.84 mean 3.6390 source: author’s (2020) from the outcomes a mean 3.64 out of 5 was registered with 64.7% of employees are satisfied with hotel work settings only 24.4% registered neither satisafction nor disatisfaction and 10.9% were least satisfied. 4.4. respondents responses on satisfaction of employees in hotels table 4.4.1. respondents’ responses on a number of aspects of employee satisfaction respondents satisfaction with their work mean my work makes me have best feelings of satisfaction and achievement 4.02 my daily tasks are interesting and energizing 3.61 i have a feeling that i truly accomplish something advantageous in my work 4.21 i get a great deal of delight and happiness when delivering services in this facility 3.74 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 37 the work i do is by one way or another challenging 3.93 mean 3.90 respondents responses on satisfaction with remuneration mean my pay is reasonable contrasted with other staff with a similar degree of obligation in other comparative hotels. 2.80 i have a feeling that my pay is a complete remuneration as anticipated from me in this facility 3.84 the benefits i land are sufficient for my current living expenditures 2.77 i feel satisfactorily compensated for my endeavors as an employee in this facility 3.32 my job accommodates consistent compensation 3.67 mean 3.28 respondents responses on satisfaction with supervisor mean my boss is satisfied with my daily work performance and empowers me to do better 3.92 my boss isn't a trouble to my scheduled tasks 2.64 my chief effectively tunes in to my suggestions 3.61 by and large, my supervisor does a decent job. 3.85 my overseer gives me ordinary noteworthy recommendations on what i can do to improve. 3.92 mean 3.59 respondents responses on job satisfaction with coworkers mean my colleagues are helpful 4.30 the assurance with my associates is very high 3.91 dominant part of my colleagues or colleagues play out their duties intelligently 4.01 my colleagues put exertion in their work 1.79 my colleagues get well alongside each other 4.05 mean 3.612 respondents responses on employee satisfaction with promotions mean there are chances for progression on this job 3.60 contemplating the following a year, there are less odds of advancement in my job 3.23 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 38 advancement openings in this lodging goes to the individuals who merit them 2.76 advancement openings aren’t constrained and they are genuinely satisfactory in this facility 3.54 i am happy that this hotel has an advancement policy 3.39 mean 3.30 generally scores with high means showed workers' fulfillment with different parts in their occupations. most facets had above 3.5 and a normal mean of 3.53 out of 5. most workers (69%) are satisfied with their work while (25%) workers were nonpartisan with just 6% were least happy with their work. the discoveries uncover that workers are exceptionally satisfied with their work regardless of enrolling low levels of satisfaction with perspectives like advancement, compensation, and disregarding fluctuation with age, work area, sexual orientation and occupation levels. most of employees are happy with the oversight, present state of occupation and colleagues. the findings uncovered that employees level of fulfillment with their occupation stand at 79.9%; supervision at 65.2%; colleagues at 67.9%, compensation at 41.3% enrolled fulfillment and advancement at 49.5%. these results affirm locke's declarations that representatives in place of work are fulfilled by various aspects in their occupations. also, there was an inconsequential contrasts in the degrees of employment fulfillment against compensation, advancement, age, sex, occupational level. on compensation, findings bolster the discoveries of (yogesh & ashutosh, 2012) who uncovered workers disappointed with present pay results to un-fulfillment with their occupations. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 39 4.5. results of pearson correlations table 4.5.1. coefficient of pearson on employee satisfaction employee satisfaction hotel physical settings job characteristics hotel work settings pearson correlation employee satisfaction 1.000 .414 .250 .634 hotel physical settings .414 1.000 .200 .531 job characteristics .250 .200 1.000 .263 hotel work settings .634 .531 .263 1.000 sig.(2-tailed) employee satisfaction . .000 .000 .000 hotel physical settings .000 . .003 .000 job characteristics .000 .003 . .000 hotel work settings .000 .000 .000 . n employee satisfaction 184 184 184 184 hotel physical settings 184 184 184 184 job characteristics 184 184 184 184 hotel work settings 184 184 184 184 notes: correlation are significant p<0.05 (2-tailed). pearson correlation is accomplished to discover whether a connection exists between hotel physical setting, work attributes, hotel work settings and employee fulfillment. the outcome is exhibited in the above (table 4.5.1). a positive connection subsists between hotel physical settings (r = 0.414), work characteristics (r = 0.250), and hotel work settings (r = 0.634) on employee satisfaction p < 0.05.this means that factors at hand significantly affects employee satisfaction. further, the results of the pearson correlation were used to reject or accept the hypothesis. therefore we reject null hypothesis which stated; h1: hotel physical setting has statistically no significant effect on satisfaction of employee in star-rated hotels file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 40 h2: job characteristics has statistically no significant effect on satisfaction of employees in starrated hotels h3: hotel work setting has statistically no significant effect on satisfaction of employee star-rated hotels. alternative hypothesis were therefore accepted that; hotel physical setting, job attributes and hotel work setting impacts employee fulfillment. this finding gives adequate proof to reason that predictor factors influences occupation satisfaction among workers in star rated hotels of kisumu city, kenya. there is need to better hotel workplace settings to boost employees satisfaction. on hotel physical setting the results concur (amjad & hameed, 2009) (leblebici, 2012); (roziyana, 2012) findings that physical settings influences not only employee satisfaction but contributes to productivity of employees and organisational performance. on job charactistics the results concur (babic & bakotic, 2013), (chandrasekar, 2011), (poulston, 2009), (shidhaye, goel, divekar, & shidhaye, 2011); (thomas k. , 2004) that characteristics of job has a strong linkage with employee satisfaction.and finally on hotel work seeting the findings concur with (ajala, 2012), (destefano, clark, potter, & gavin, 2005), (thomas, 2004), (tio, 2014) which revealed that work setting have a close linkage employee satisfaction. 4.6. results of regression analysis table 4.6.1. summarized results of the regression model m o d el r r2 adjus ted r2 std. error of the estimat e change statistics f – change r2 change sig. f change df1 df2 1 .646a .417 .407 .44743 42.923 .417 .000 3 180 notes a. predictors: (constant), hotel physical settings, job characteristic, hotel work settings b. dependent variable: employee satisfaction the results of regression analysis generated a model where predictor factors were hotel physical settings, work attributes and hotel work settings as independent and employee satisfaction as dependent variables as shown above refer (table 4.6.1). r squared (r2) implies that the estimations of connection coefficients between the independent variable and employee satisfaction as used in the model. r squared (r2) is the proportion of inconstancy in worker fulfillment with their work that is represented by independent factors. the model, r squared (r2= 0.417) reveals the following that independent factors represent 41.7% variety for employee fulfillment. the balanced r2 uncovers how well the model sums up and its worth ought to be in a perfect world a similar worth or a nearby value to r squared. for this situation, the estimation of adjusted r squared was 0.407, indicating that if data was acquired from whole populace instead of the sample as it the case for the investigation it represent near 40.7 percent least variance on employee satisfaction. while testing the significant of the change in r squared utilizing the f-proportion, file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 41 change measurements was utilized. this made r squared to be modified from zero to about 0.417 with f ratio ascending to a 42.92 which was significant at 0.05. 4.7. analysis of variance table 4.7.1 anovaa model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 25.78 3 8.59 42.92 .000b residual 36.04 180 .200 total 61.81 183 notes a. predictors: (constant), hotel physical settings, job characteristics, hotel work settings b. dependent variable: employee satisfaction. anova test to show if the model anticipated the results using mean refer (table 4.7.1). fproportion value shows improvement in forecast in that outcomes are fitting the model definitely, comparative with incorrectness that occurs in the model. f-proportion value was 42.92 (p <.05) which is liable to occur by possibilities. the capacity to anticipate satisfaction of employees was altogether upgraded by this model. 4.8. coefficients of employee job satisfaction table 4.8.1. coefficients employee job satisfaction model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients b beta beta t sig. 1. (constant) 1.47 .32 4.66 .000 hotel physical setting .109 .07 .10 1.48 .140 job characteristics .080 .06 .08 1.39 .165 hotel work setting .360 .04 .56 8.19 .000 notes: a.dependent variable: job satisfaction the above table demonstrated that the β values show the contribution of job characteristics on this model. the values β indicates that employee satisfaction is connected to predictors (hotel physical setting, job characteristics, and hotel work settings). the positive linkage exists between satisfaction of employees and predictors as revealed by positive β values. the model is therefore proposed as; js= 1.47+ .109 hps+ .080jc+ .360 hws……………………………………model 1 where, es=employee satisfaction hps= hotel physical settings jc=job characteristics hws= hotel work settings further, t-test was conducted to recognize if characteristics of job had noteworthy influence to this model. the findings reveal that hotel physical setting (t= 1.483, p <.05), job characteristics (t file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 42 =1.394, p <.05) and hotel work setting (t =8.185, p<.05). t=test results for predictor were all significant. in this way, hotel physical setting, job characteristics and hotel work setting have a huge contribution to work fulfillment of hotel employees. the discoveries demonstrated that job attributes had critical commitment to this model. regression analysis coefficients of predictors were utilized to discover solid influence to the dependent variable as exhibited previously. hotel work setting standardized beta was 0.560 the highest of the three, meaning strong significance impact on employee satisfaction, then, hotel physical settings standard beta was 0.100 with significant impact on employee satisfaction while job characteristics standard beta was 0.08. further, findings reveal that hotel work setting had a positive (8.19) t-value, revealing a negative linkage between hotel work setting and employee satisfaction. from findings, the conclusion was that hotel work setting, hotel physical setting and job characteristics contributed 56.0%, 10.0%, 8.0% changes respectively to employee satisfaction. this means that the factors account respective percentage changes on satisfaction of employees in star rated hotels in kisumu city, kenya. holding all variables steady for the model, the measure of progress in employee fulfillment, given a difference of just one-unit in estimation of predictors is 1.467. the coefficient of unstandardized figure for hotel physical setting was 0.12, job characteristic was 0.80 and hotel work setting was 0.36. one unit increase on each predictor factor would yield stated amount of increment on employee satisfaction. 5.0. findings and conclusion the outcomes uncovered that workers are pleased with attributes of their employments with a normal average score of 4.04 out of 5. it was revealed that (85.9%) of employees were fulfilled. the correlation (pearson correlation) uncovered positive association between hotel physical settings (r = 0.414), work characteristics (r = 0.250), and hotel work settings (r = 0.634); p<0.05.) on satisfaction of employees. the discoveries underpin contentions that employee working in adaptable work frameworks esteem the openings that joins these frameworks, as expanded selfsufficiency while performing duties (thomas, 2004). further, the discoveries agree with the discoveries of the studies by (bakotic & babic, 2013), (poulston, 2009), (shidhaye, et.al., 2011) which uncovered a solid connection between attributes of workplace and worker fulfillment. definitively, the results of regression analysis summed up straightforward association between independent and dependent variable. the outcomes uncovered that the predicators hotel physical setting, job characteristic and hotel work settings represent 41.7% change for employee fulfillment. nonetheless, different factors not considered in the investigation represented 58.3%. capacity to foresee worker work fulfillment was essentially enhanced by this model because f-proportion was (42.92) significant at (p<.05). β values for independent variable was (0.80) and there was a positive connection among indicators and result. t-test findings indicated that hotel physical setting (t= 1.483, p <.05), characteristics of the job (t =1.394, p <.05) and hotel work setting (t =8.185, p<.05). study results uncovered that workplace attributes show a noteworthy commitment to work fulfillment. the ramifications of discoveries are that for hotel sector to improve job fulfillment of their employees, it is basic to consider job attributes. in any case, endeavors to improve work fulfillment ought to be centered on upgrading levels of nature of this variable. the results concur with (shidhaye, divekar, goel & shidhaye, 2011) whose feeling were that, states of the work environment impacts employment fulfillment and can be expanded by improving the norms identified with workplace. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 28-46, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 43 6.0. recommendations most workers in these hotels are lowly satisfied pay compensation packages, the sector should embrace policies that can enhance equitable remuneration among employees in same cadre within the hotel sector and harmonize that across other sector. the sector should encourage harmonized promotion policies to be adopted by individual hotels within the sector this may help enhance satisfaction of employees which in return enhances productivity and performance of hotel sector. management of hotels should improve workplace through employee training as a way of boosting their satisfaction. finally, employees’ unions should focus on collective bargaining agreement with focus on improving workplace conditions and satisfaction of employees working in hotel sector in kenya. the future research may focus on effect of other workplace variables on employee satisfaction in other entities like non-classified hotels, restaurants in hospitality sector. other studies may also focus workplace settings influence on productivity, performance and welfare of employees. references ahida, s., & sumaya, s. 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(2012). work environment and job attitude among employees in a nigerian work organization. journal of sustainable society, 1(2), 36-43. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org employee training and job satisfaction in western uganda: empirical evidence from mbarara university of science and technology crispus tashobya, dr. robert mugabe, bernard begumisa, pereez nimusima, and dr john rwakihembo 1,2,3 bishop stuart university european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 1 employee training and job satisfaction in western uganda: empirical evidence from mbarara university of science and technology 1crispus tashobya, 2dr. robert mugabe, 3bernard begumisa, 4pereez nimusima, and 5dr john rwakihembo 1,2,3 bishop stuart university 1tashobyac99@gmail.com, 2kakuhanda@yahoo.com, 3begumisabernard@gmail.com 4management training and advisory centre (mtac) 4pereeznimusima@gmail.com 5mountains of the moon university 5jrwakihembo@gmail.com abstract purpose: the purpose of this study is to examine the effect of employee training on employee job satisfaction in western uganda with a focus on mbarara university of science and technology (must). methodology: a mixed methods approach and cross-sectional design were used. the study population were composed of academic and non-academic staff members of must. researchers were guided by krejcie and morgan sample determination table to come up with a sample size of 230, and selected the sample using simple random sampling technique. self-administered questionnaire and interview guide helped in collection of data; then after collected data were processed and analysed using spss version 20. findings: study results show a significant and moderate positive relationship between on-job training, off-job training and job satisfaction (r=.381, p<.01) and (r=.308, p<.01) respectively for on-job training and off-job training. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: the study makes a unique contribution to human resource training and development literature by providing context-based evidence on the positive relationship that exist between employee training and job satisfaction in public institutions in western uganda. practitioners in these institutions are anticipated to gain new insights on the vital role of employee training towards elevating satisfaction levels of staff. the study recommended that public higher learning institutions in western uganda re-orient their strategic focus to training and development needs of their staff if they are to achieve their set targets. this is justified because this study has found out that such practices help them keep their staff morale boosted which apparently affects the way they render services to their clients. keywords: employee training, job satisfaction, high learning institution, western uganda. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:tashobyac99@gmail.com mailto:kakuhanda@yahoo.com mailto:3begumisabernard@gmail.com mailto:4pereeznimusima@gmail.com mailto:jrwakihembo@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 2 1.0 introduction there is no one defined measure to ascertain how an organisation attends to its staff’s training needs. different training programs are implemented by different institutions year in, year out which help in showing individual institutional commitment to attending to their staff capacity building needs. such efforts are measured also by the kind of on-job and off-job training decisions that do not remain in files after approval but, happen to be implemented as planned. strategic human resource management literature portray magnificent knowledge and skills set that such staff-focused institutions benefits from consequent to increases in individual labour output (raja & sal, 2016). job satisfaction on the other hand refers to the psychological state of mind that enables an employee to happily contribute his or her efforts towards attainment of organisational goals (chandra, 2013). it is the positive perception that employees have towards assigned tasks, especially originating from the employee’s compulsion of individual contribution to the job and the job outcomes in form of benefits. according to chandan and harish (2017), job satisfaction exhibits in high labour productivity, low employee turnover and improved organisational performance. it’s a common practice today where institutions earmark certain budget percentages for staff training functions, for purposes of elevating their employee knowledge and skill levels. quite a number of studies have dedicated their efforts towards establishing the link between the knowledge and skills acquired by employees during trainings and their job satisfaction (martin, kolomitro & lam, 2013). training programs have been reported by kanapathipillai and azami (2020) to generate positive work attitudes characteristic of good job satisfaction since the employees easily execute the work assignments considering the capability acquired through trainings. mudor and tooksoon (2011) add to the same voice alleging that once staff have necessary skills, they render a better personalised service experience since they can patiently engage more with clients. the study observes that employee training whether conducted at the work site or away from work site improve the knowledge and skills set of an employee improving his or her productivity (bakotić, 2016). this shows that despite the differences in the definition of trainings conducted on the job and those conducted off-work, the benefiting employee gains work related knowledge and skills is quite essential for keeping him or her motivated and using appropriate work methods (vasanthi & basariya 2019), industrial psychology scholars have tended to reveal that certain training methods off-work like classroom training are fit for permitting acquisition of “knowledge” outcomes, yet trainings carried out at work premises are better for “skill” outcomes (pastore & pompili, 2019). other developments in the training debate tend to find trainings conducted off-job largely associated with employee job satisfaction (culibrk et al., 2018). according to culibrk et al (2018), complete absence of this function would disrupt employees’ productivity mood. the broader assumption is that if employees are not given training, it increases the probability of engaging in negative work behaviour (maria, jan de jonge & taris, 2013). even when organizational behaviour scholars still hold some pessimism with regard to determining how off job training practically generate feelings of job satisfaction, chen & cooper, (2014), depict that how staff act and react on the job and organizational performance outcomes, are interrelated in a complex relationship acknowledging however that success or enhancement in organizational performance is influenced by a number of factors. relatedly, gielen (2018) enlightens readers on a number of file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 3 factors that link altogether employee training, employee morale, motivation and general performance behaviour of an individual at work. despite the difficulty in quantification of job satisfaction, culibrk et al., (2018) and mróz and kaleta (2016) agree that low output, early departure from office, absenteeism and late coming outward manifestations from an unhappy fellow at work. indeed, monograph by adams (1965) on what drives a person in in his or her life, alludes to expectations aspect. it is assumed that employees give in their labour and therefore the employer should satisfy all the needs which at times becomes a source of contention. there is always that tendency to compare inputs and outputs on the side of the employee that end up directing his or her behaviour in a certain angle. the hierarchy of needs theory by maslow (1943) is an attempt to remind institutions to provide for such needs. that means in the needs network perspective, specific needs that largely alter the behaviour of employees need to be attended to in a holistic way including attending to needs for recognition, achievement, advancement, responsibility, and growth anticipated to be key influencers of job satisfaction (ajayi, 2019; victor & hoole, 2017). this is important because failure to attend to job satisfaction-related needs, breed unproductive work behaviour culibrk et al., (2018); despite disagreement by fassoulis and alexopoulos, (2015), who argue that happy workers are no necessarily more productive across time. even when there are divergent views on the correlation between job satisfaction and individual employee training (elif, 2019; maria et al., 2013). there is a position to believe that there are both internal and external factors that influence the way an employee behaves which human resource practitioners ought to know and this paper partly alludes to same insight. it’s the same view emphasised by timsal, awais and shoaib (2016) who push for due consideration of employees as the most valuable company assets and therefore the imperative for attending to their training needs since benefits of the same are enormous to both employees and organisations (saraf, 2017). the disagreements on the kind of the association between employee training concept and job satisfaction, where some find a positive association yet others bias training in causing desired work behaviour shows inconclusiveness which partly justified this study. 1.1 problem statement it is always in the interests of consumers of both, services of public and private institutions to receive better service delivery. however, this is not attainable if the level of public sector employees’ job satisfaction is still low (bwanika, 2011). this has persisted despite the introduction of multiple public sector reforms aimed at improving productivity of all public servants. the study problem draws from empirical observations which consistently reveal low performance of public servants vis-à-vis their private sector counterparts. in a study by makmot (2012) on employee job satisfaction between private and public sector, 33.9% of employees in public sector were satisfied with their jobs compared to 59.8% in private sector. why the public sector employees are exorbitantly unsatisfied with their current jobs remain unexplained. yet, private sector employees in uganda were found to offer 6.6 man hours per day compared to 4.9 hours by public sector employees revealing low man hours in public sector showing a low job satisfaction among public servants. it has been reported that at must, job satisfaction has not been good exemplified by not meeting work targets related to publication, not offering needed man-hour per day, resentment to work beyond normal hours, and funds misappropriation file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 4 (must, annual budget performance report, 2017/18; must, three years strategic plan, 2017/18-2019-20). 1.2 purpose of the study the study examined the relationship between training of employee and job satisfaction in western uganda with a focus on mbarara university of science and technology. 2.0 literature review 2.1 theoretical framework 2.1.1 discrepancy theory job satisfaction theories emphasise individual needs and satisfaction factors that cause to act and behave in a certain way. locke (1969) as quoted in jiang, klein and saunders (2011) developed the discrepancy theory and suggested that a person's job satisfaction comes from what they feel is important rather than the fulfilment or fulfilment of their needs. discrepancy theory suggests that dissatisfaction will occur when a person receives less than what they want. this theory focuses on factors in the person who reinforce, direct, support, and stop their behaviour. the theory advances that for purposes of working towards minimising such feelings of displeasure among staff, their needs that they regard most important have to be thoroughly attended to (jiang, klein & saunders, 2011). it is anticipated that once training programs designed match well with training needs of staff, certain undesired behaviours like early departures from office, late coming, and absenteeism which are outside manifestations of job dissatisfaction cease (mróz & kaleta, 2016). 2.2 conceptual framework a conceptual framework showing how employee training influences job satisfaction. employee training job satisfaction figure: 1 conceptual framework 2.3 empirical review from the discrepancy theory perspective, and other empirical literature, researchers start to see that a certain relationship exists between employee training and job satisfaction. however, mixed results in the same studies are reported. when nguyen and duong (2020) for example investigated job satisfaction and training in vietnam, positive effects were reported. an attempt to study same concepts in serbia by culibrk et al., (2018) also found out a positive and on-job training  mentorship/coaching,  job rotation/transfers,  seminars and conferences,  man hours  turn over  willingness to work beyond normal hours  achievement of work targets  team work off-job training  special courses and lectures file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 5 significant association. similar studies include one by farooq and aslam (2011), hanif (2013) and amos and natamba (2015) who found training conducted off-work affecting positively job satisfaction of employees. they are driven by the notion that way-from-work trainings impact tremendously the skills and knowledge of employees solving their skills deficiency problem. additionally, vasanthi et al., (2019) while studying job satisfaction and on-job training in a manufacturing industry in chennai report positive effects. they find training conducted on-site quite beneficial since they use workplace tools, equipment, machines that are already existing which saves the organisation from incurring extra costs. similar results are reported by watson et al., (2018) and timsal, awais and shoaib (2016) found on-job training as an important source of capabilities that influence employee’s feelings towards his or her work thus job satisfaction. on the contrary however, an exploratory study conducted in pakistan by ahmad (2010) reported negative effects. employee training was found not to directly affect an employee’s job satisfaction levels. also, pastore and pompili (2019) and chen and cooper (2014) express reservation when it comes to linking training off site with knowledge outcomes and job satisfaction. they argue that their relationship if at all exists could be confined to specific localities or even difficult to determine. other scholars tend to link trainings conducted off-site to mere verbal comprehension which they base to refute their effects on employee’s behaviour in short run (card, kluwe & weber, 2010). besides, halawi and haydar (2018) observe no benefits from on-jobtraining. different studies as indicated previously have results that are contradictory. this is an indication of the need for continued discussion which this study aimed to achieve by investigating employee training and job satisfaction in a public institution located in western uganda. this study in line with the above literature review hypothesised as follows: h1: on-job employee training is positively associated with job satisfaction of employees h2: off-job employee training is positively associated with job satisfaction of employees 3.0 research methodology mixed methods approach and cross-sectional design were adopted. the study population was composed of both teaching staff and non-teaching employees at mbarara university of science and technology. using simple random sampling and purposive, researchers were able to select 230 respondents, a sample size that was determined using krejcie & morgan (1970) sample determination table. the study used structured questionnaire and interview guide to collect data (szolnoki & hoffmann, 2013). mbarara university of science and technology was selected partly because it is one of the leading public higher learning institutions in western uganda. just like other academic institutions offering various degrees, the university has enabled uganda to join global knowledge community and gaining a ground in other knowledge economies besides becoming a source of competent manpower (valavanidis & vlachogianni, 2013). prior studies on employee training and job satisfaction guided the operationalization (culibrk et al., 2018; watson et al., 2018; steptoe-warren, 2013). efforts were made by researchers to pretest the questionnaire and interview guide using ten academic and industry experts. on the basis of the fact that a five point likert scale guarantees better data distribution, it was used in this study and were able to measure respondents’ perceptions where 5 represented strongly agree, and 1 represented strongly disagree (leung & lee, 2011). confidentiality of respondents was file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 6 ensured by using dummy names instead of real names in reporting qualitative voices. the study confirmed the instrument validity and reliability through cronbach’s alpha values and content validity index as shown in table 1. table 1: cronbach’s alpha values and cvi confirming instrument validity and reliability. variable cvi cronbach's alpha no of items no of items deleted remainder on job training methods .782 . 743 31 4 27 off job training methods .801 .723 08 1 07 job satisfaction .724 .821 14 3 11 source: primary data (2022) the study estimated the relationships using pearson correlation and linear regression (tabachnick & fidell, 2007). 4.0 research findings and discussion 4.1 demographics results from table 2 indicate that a big number (80 %) from the 230 studied samples were males whose age ranged from 18 to 27(41.7%) which shows that data used were given by respondents who were not young. education wise respondents studied had obtained their master degrees (50.4%), and again a big majority (60%) were married, and their job tenure were far above five years (47.4), which shows good work experience. again, the majority (88.3) were senior managers. table 2: respondent demographics variable % respondent age 41.7 28-37 25.7 38-47 18.3 48-57 14.3 respondents’ gender male 80.0 female 20.0 respondent’s marital status married 60.0 single 39.1 widowed 0.90 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 7 education level of respondents phd 10.4 masters 50.4 bachelors 39.2 length of service of respondents below 1 year 2.2 1-2 years 10.8 3-5 years 39.6 over 5 years 47.4 position held by the respondent top management 11.7 senior managers 88.3 4.2 regression results for on job training and job satisfaction table 3: regression model summary for on job training and job satisfaction model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .381a .145 .141 .16792 a. predictors: (constant), on the job training source: primary data (2022) study results as indicated in table 3 shows that on job training had a positive and significant association with job satisfaction (r = 0.381, p < 0.01) confirming the study hypothesis h1. it implies that training conducted on-site positively influence employees’ mood reminding managers to always allocate a big budget for it annually. this finding is reinforced by one of the qualitative respondents “…… the training received here at work has been instrumental in enabling me to achieve my work targets [……] above all i feel happier for their training support since me and my supervisors have good relations […….] i owe all this from knowledge and skills acquired in many workshops and seminars that i attend here at work” (a female nonteaching staff respondent, case 6). 4.3 regression analysis for off-job training and job satisfaction table 4: regression model summary for off job training and job satisfaction model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .308a .095 .091 .17276 a. predictors: (constant), off the job training source: primary data (2022) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 8 as indicated in table 4, study findings show that off job training had a positive and a significant relationship with job satisfaction (r = 0.308, p < 0.01), which helped in confirming hypothesis h2. this model results imply that a unit change in off-job training program implementation yields positive effect on job satisfaction including individual employee’ willingness to stay longer, to work more hours, achieve sets targets and increase team spirit. 4.4 discussion of findings it was confirmed in this study that on-job just like off job trainings affect positively job satisfaction of employees. researchers established that various employee training methods were used including: mentorship, job rotation, seminars and conferences, and transfers for the on job training programs and lecturers and special courses for the off job training programs. despite this however respondents had varied views when it came to giving their opinions of which training methods impacted on their work mood or job satisfaction. for example; the view of a male respondent case number 1 reflects this, “i find trainings off-work very much helpful [………] i am at least a way from work and family stress, it helps me to gain more in terms of new knowledge and skills than when i attend trainings organised at work. i find these trainings making tremendous changes in my ability to deliver thus feel better and happy”. the views held by a female non-teaching staff respondent, case 6; were supportive to on job training: thus; “the trainings received here at work have been instrumental in enabling me achieve my work targets [……..] above all i feel happier for their training support since me and my supervisors have good relations[……..]i owe all this from knowledge and skills acquired in many workshops and seminars that i attend here at work” from the quantitative and qualitative findings, it is more apparent that on-job and off job training are key for employees to maintain a balance of feeling well while executing their duties. this all is in agreement with various scholarly works, including sri dhurgah et al., (2018) who acknowledge such trainings enriches the staff with specific know how, which solves a hitherto performance deficiency and increases his or her confidence at work. related views are shared by sajitha, (2015), who associate employee training with gaining right attitudes towards work life. moreover, african countries are seen develop only if they pay close attention to their various capacity building needs (decorby-watson et al., 2018). considering the volatility that characterise most business environment today, training which raises knowledge and skills levels of staff, prepares the institution to overcome competition challenges, thanks to its capable staff who are innovative. the knowledge, skills, ability, competencies and behaviour are such tools for confronting forces of change (jehanzeb & bashir, 2013). 5.0 conclusion and managerial implications the study findings lead researchers to conclude that continued expenditure on employee training programs for purposes of elevating job satisfaction levels of staff is justified for public institutions. this feeling was found to positively affect their willingness to stay long, work more hours, achieve set targets and increase among them team spirit. as public higher learning institutions attend to their employees’ training needs, they become more knowledgeable, skilled, competent, and are able to face demands of the changing world with ease. the study findings extract the need for managers to appreciate the vital role that trainings conducted on-site and those conducted off-site have for their employees in terms of raising their file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 1 15, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 9 knowledge and skills. human resource personnel in western uganda’s public institutions are called upon to have a formal focus on not only short term but also long-terms skills acquisition if they are to minimise possibilities for low performance emanating from knowledge and skills deficiency. in depth interviews revealed that supervisors are not formally trained on how to appraise their subordinates. on the basis of this observation, the study challenges top administration to reconsider staff performance appraisal approaches that have direct influence on job satisfaction and performance. 6.0 recommendations researchers recommend that public institutions in western uganda should consider on-job training’s significance towards enabling their employees’ acquisition of job-related skills that enable them deliver better. trainings conducted away from work environment have also been found to positively impact on employee’s job satisfaction levels. from this finding, the study recommends also that higher learning institutions orient their employee knowledge and skills management focus to trainings conducted away from work. lastly, they should allocate sufficient budget to both trainings conducted at work and those conducted away from work setting since they have been found to yield results in terms of enabling employees to attain pertinent work skills which enable them to happily perform assigned tasks. 6.1 limitations and areas for future research this study used employee training as the only predictor of job satisfaction using cross-sectional data. moreover, the study centred 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(2000). psychological well-being and job satisfaction as predictors of job performance. journal of occupational health psychology, 5(1), 84– 94. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.5.1.84 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org file:///c:/users/user/downloads/rd-universities-pdf39pp-nov-2016.pdf file:///c:/users/user/downloads/rd-universities-pdf39pp-nov-2016.pdf http://www.researchgate.net/publication/343392046_pros_and_cons_of_on_the_job_training_versus_off_ http://www.researchgate.net/publication/343392046_pros_and_cons_of_on_the_job_training_versus_off_ https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1016/s1053-4822(02)00045-1 https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/1076-8998.5.1.84 monitoring systems mediate human capital to performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. perez mbiire batwine mujuni, adrian r. mwesigye, and charles tushabomwe-kazooba european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 66 monitoring systems mediate human capital to performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. “using med graph program approach” perez mbiire batwine mujuni department of economics, faculty of business and management sciences, mbarara university of science and technology email: pmujuni@must.ac.ug adrian r. mwesigye associate professor, mbarara university of science and technology email: arm@must.ac.ug charles tushabomwe-kazooba associate professor, mbarara university of science and technology email: tkazooba@must.ac.ug abstract purpose: the purpose of this research was to establish whether the monitoring systems mediate the relationship between human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. methodology: a cross sectional research design and post-positivist paradigm were used to collect data from 118 government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda where 475 respondents participated in the study. the study used closed-ended questionnaires, interview guide and checklists. the schools to be included were selected using simple random sampling and were considered as unit of analysis while the respondents who included district officials, head teachers, teachers and school management committee (smc) members formed the unit of enquiry, these were selected purposively based on the knowledge they had on the subject matter. each school selected, provided the information from the respondents who in this case were the head teacher, two (2) teachers and a chairperson of school management committee member. the research was guided by the null hypothesis, ho1: monitoring systems do not mediate the relationship between human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. findings: the findings of the study revealed that the relationship between human capital and performance of government aided primary schools is partially mediated by monitoring systems, hence rejecting the null hypothesis (ho1) that there is no mediation. the results signified that monitoring systems partially mediates human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the unique contribution to theory and practice: this study suggest to planners and managers of government aided primary schools that, since human capital is important for the improvement of primary school performance, it is advisable that the government should impose monitoring systems to oversee the programmes and activities taking place in government aided primary school which possibly caters for teachers’ productivity, school developments and hence improving its performance. keywords: human capital, monitoring systems, mediation, performance, government aided primary schools, isingiro district, uganda. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:pmujuni@must.ac.ug mailto:arm@must.ac.ug mailto:tkazooba@must.ac.ug european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 67 introduction the ugandan primary education system experienced major changes in 1997 when the government of republic of uganda adopted universal primary education (upe) which abolished all tuition fees and all parents and teacher association charges for primary education. the changes led to increased enrollment in primary schools pupils from 2.9 million in 1997 to more than 8 million in 2010 (oonyu,2012). the government responded to the increased demand in education by undertaking several reforms and policies which included; building and renovation of schools, procurement of instructional materials, and training, hiring and retaining teachers, fighting against pupil absenteeism, curriculum reform and decentralization of primary education (ministry of education and sports, 2013). the national pupil teacher ratio and pupil classroom ratio was also revised downwards. in isingiro district, by 2010; pupil teacher ratio was about 53%. government funding for primary education sector since 1997 has stood at between 65% and 68% per year of the total education budget (oonyu, 2012). primary school education in uganda was introduced by missionaries in 1877 and was modeled along the british system of education because uganda was a british protectorate from 1894 until 1962 when it attained her independence. during that time, teachers were held in high esteem and their human capital issues, welfare that included; housing, medical care, meals, basic allowances, and the school facilities or environment were largely conducive for teachers to perform their duties as educators. the period of president idi amin regime (1971-1979), however, human capital and teacher’s welfare among other sectors in the country were affected. this period was characterized by insecurity, breakdown of economic activities, brain drain, and a decline of social services leading to poor schools performance. the real value of salaries and wages collapsed by 90% in less than a decade. parents had to step in and this led to the formation of parents and teacher associations (pta) which introduced charges that helped to reduce the financial burden of the school’s budget (aguti, 1996; okuda, 2014). when the government of republic of uganda introduced of universal primary education in 1997, the pta charges were abolished in public primary schools in rural areas and the issues of teacher welfare were undertaken by government (oonyu, 2012). abolishing pta charges was politically popular and it helped attract enrollment but it did not emphasize teachers’ human capita and welfare yet teachers are a key determinant in quality education. teachers were not happy with their welfare status and are always threatening by taking industrial action over low pay and poor working conditions (kagolo, 2013, kaaya, mulidwa & kimbowa, 2013; kagolo, 2015). yahiaoui, anser and lahouel, (2015) posit that employee welfare contributes towards organizational performance. performance is the degree to which an employee and organizational goals are met (feng, 2010). it comprises both behavior and outcomes (armstrong, 2003; feng, 2010). behavior comes from the worker who transforms performance from abstraction into action leading to a product or an outcome (kalyani, 2006). feng (2010) opines that performance can be viewed from three different angles, that is, results oriented performance, conduct oriented performance and the integration of conduct and result oriented performance. employee welfare can also be traced from the industrial revolution in european countries. in early 1820s, workers started forming groups to address some of the challenges caused by the revolution and managers throughout the world have used it to enhance workers performance since then (kaur, 2012). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 68 katarasibwa (2005) echoes ekatan, isingoma, nanziri and nabwiso (1995) by looking at teachers and general school performance as the extent to which teachers in a school achieve the requirements of their job in an effort to fulfill school objectives. this general performance must be geared towards promoting the process of teaching and learning for the benefit of the pupils. in this study school performance is conceptualized as the extent to which the school objectives are achieved through lesson preparations which involve making schemes of work, lesson plans, record of work done, preparing and using learners registers, actual classroom teaching, assessment and evaluation of the learners, attending staff meetings, management of learners discipline, involvement in co-curricular activities, counseling and guidance. "human capital" is defined as knowledge, skills, attitudes, aptitudes, and other acquired traits contributing to production (goode (1959). in economics, the term human capital is used to define increase in productivity levels and human capacities due to education and health. in economists' view, human capital in industries and business organizations is mostly defined as input measured in terms of economic returns or profits they earned. on the other hand, human capital in education can be taken as both input and outcome defined against cumulative knowledge, skills and abilities overall education systems have generated through abundant education and training provisions. human capital theory rests on the assumption that formal education is highly instrumental and necessary to improve the productive capacity of a population. in short, human capital theorists argue that an educated population is a productive population. human capital theory emphasizes how education increases the productivity and efficiency of workers by increasing the level of cognitive stock of economically productive human capability, which is a product of innate abilities and investment in human beings. a critical examination of the training policy indicates that it contains all the essential elements of training and development. according to mohamud (2014) training policy shows that training and development falls under human resource development (hrd) function which has been argued to be an important function of human resources manual (hrm). employees, managers and human resources (hr) should all collaborate to build a continuous professional development (cpd) culture. it’s an employee’s responsibility to seek new learning opportunities. it’s a manager’s responsibility to coach their teams and identify employee development needs. and it’s human resource (hr) responsibility to facilitate any staff development activities and processes (antoniu, 2010). according to quality educators’ projectuganda (2011), it is through the training programme to head teachers and the teachers in the schools that will develop the skills they need to create more holistic and meaningful performance planning, monitoring and evaluation at the school level. mediating variable this study looked at other factors called monitoring systems that may influence school’s performance either negatively or positively other than teacher’s welfare and human capital. the other factors include expected teacher performance, transparency of head teacher, reports made by head teacher about the school termly, inspection by school management committee (smc) members, reports made by local administration and inspection by district education officials. school’s performance depends on head teachers, smc members, district education officials that include district education officer (deo), district inspect of schools (dis), directorate of education standards (des) and teachers’ ability, skills, attitude and competence which are file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 69 influenced by their academic qualification and the type of leadership exercised by head teachers who care takes all the activities in the school. literature review teachers are the key in achieving all of the education 2030 agenda .as teachers are a fundamental condition for guaranteeing quality education, teachers and educators should be empowered, adequately recruited and remunerated, motivated, professionally qualified, and supported within well-resourced, efficient and effectively governed systems. (unesco et al., 2015, p. 21). moreover, education 2030, articulates that ‘teachers and educators, and their organizations, are crucial partners in their own right and should be engaged at all stages of policy-making, planning, implementation and monitoring” (unesco et al., 2015, p.24). the international task force on teachers for education for all (efa) (2015, p. 13) suggests that one of the main reasons that “teachers and teaching should be at the top of policy-makers’ concerns” is because “teachers are one of the largest components of a nation’s labour force, the principal human resource in any education system, and the largest single financial component of any education authority’s budget…” indeed, based on my analysis of world bank education sector strategy documents (world bank, 1995, 1999, and 2011), i found a strong emphasis on teachers as human capital (i.e., “the belief that the role of workers in production is similar to the role of machinery and other forces of production” [johnson, 2000, p. 46; becker, 1993]) or as a human resource input that is required for the process of producing student learning outcomes (ginsburg, 2012). in addition to teachers as a human resource input, is the idea of teachers as employees. that is, to insert this human resource into the education system, teachers have to be hired (and perhaps fired), generally be paid some salary, receive some fringe benefits, be provided with conditions of work. the employee category also includes attention to the possibility of a career structure, standards of practice, as well as supervision and assessment of their work. in addition to base pay or basic salary, which may include retirement pension and social security provisions, other financial incentives forming part of teachers’ reward packages, include allowances for particular responsibilities, family benefits, housing provision or subsidies, transport subsidies and financial contributions towards further training. despite this necessity of human capital measurement, traditional method of the human capital measurement includes a few limitations. to begin with, wolf (2002) suggests that some of indicators can be actually considered as incomplete ones. to support his assertion, he exemplifies that a worker’s wage, one of human capital indicators as proxies-hardly measures ‘authentic human capital’. by the drawback of traditional human capital measurement, it is acceptable to measure the authentic human capital instead of utilizing proxies such as income and productivity. in addition, it is difficult that human capital itself independently contributes to individual development and organization growth. according to ashton and reen (1996), it is necessary that the link between human capital, welfare and organization performance should be considered within a social and political context to precisely measure the human capital. furthermore, many empirical literatures present that financial, human and social capital positively influence ‘something like individual health and work input’ (blakey, lochner, & kawachi, 2002; veenstra, 2001; veenstra et al., 2005; wilson et al., 2004). the researchers therefore carried out this study to establish file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 70 whether monitoring systems mediate human capital and performance of government aided primary school in isingiro district, uganda. research methodology the study employed cross-sectional research design. isingiro district has a total number of 173 government aided primary schools according district education officer and a sample of 118 schools was selected basing on krejcie and morgan (1970) table for determining sample size and 475 respondents participated in the study. they selected schools were categorized according to the zones in the district by stratification. in this study, the schools to be included were selected using simple random sampling and were considered as unit of analysis while the respondents who included district officials, head teachers, teachers and school management committee members formed the unit of enquiry, these were selected purposively based on the knowledge they had on the subject matter. each school selected, provided the information from the respondents who in this case were the head teacher, two (2) teachers and a chairperson of school management committee member. in this study, the main data collection instruments were structured questionnaires that were closed ended in design, structured interview guide and observation checklists. secondary data were collected from journals, government reports, published and unpublished theses and internet. the researcher employed both quantitative and qualitative research paradigms in data analysis for purposes of methodological triangulation in order to enhance the validity and reliability of the study findings (amin, 2005). data collected from the field were examined for its accuracy and completeness of information given. it was cleaned, sorted out and entered into excel computer software and exported to spss version 26, explored and analyzed (field, 2009). the analysis relied on both descriptive and inferential statistics. descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviation were used to generate reports for discussion. med graph program was used to determine the direction and magnitude of variables relationships using mediation path and significance levels. qualitative data analysis was done through thematic (content) analysis as was recorded during face to face interview and through observation. the researcher used a quick impressionist summary in analyzing qualitative data; he summarized key findings by noting down the frequent responses of the respondents during the interview on various themes concerning the relationship between human capital issues and other variables that affected performance like housing, meals, medical care, basic allowances, school environment and performance of government aided primary school in isingiro district, uganda were noted in form of notes. measurement of study variables human capital issues, monitoring systems and performance of government aided primary school were measured using a five point likert scale with assigned values in the following format; 5 strongly agree; 4 agree; 3 -not sure/neutral; 2disagree and 1 strongly disagree. the data was then aggregated; mean values and standard deviations were computed for interpretation. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 71 results demographic characteristics table 1: demographic results demographic characteristics variables number (%) gender male 282( 59.4) female 193(40.6) age bracket (years) 2029 76(16.0) 3039 203(42.7) 4049 111(23.4) 50 and above 85(17.9) experience (years) < 1 27(5.7) 1 – 4 110(23.2) 5 – 9 135 (28.4) 10 -14 120(25.3) 15 and above 83(17.5) marital status married 425(89.5) single 29(6.1) divorced 08(1.7) widowed 12(2.5) others 01(0.2) level of education primary 22(4.6) secondary 42(8.8) grade iii/ equivalent 307(64.6) diploma in education 10(2.1) bachelors 85(17.9) post-graduate 9(1.9) work status teachers 236(49.7) head teacher 118(24.8) smc members 118(24.8) deo 1(0.2) dis 1(0.2) des 1(0.2) source: field data (2022) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 72 the findings in table 1 revealed that majority of the respondents were male 282(59.4%). the female respondents stood at 193(40.6%) implying that both gender were fairly represented. the work status of the respondents was also ascertained and results indicated in table 1.the head teachers represented 118(24.8%), teacher constituted 236(49.7 %) while members of the school management committees were 118(24.8%). the findings revealed that head teachers, teachers and school management committee members were well represented in the study. the age groups of the respondents were analyzed and findings presented in table1.the majority of the respondents 203(42.7%) were aged 30 -39 years, followed by 111(23.4%) and 85 (17.9 %) who were between 40-49 years and 50 years and above respectively. 27(5.7%) of the respondents had their ages in 20 -29 years bracket. this implied that, majority of the respondents (66.1%) were aged 40 years and below. these were believed to be more productive labour force that would work hard to bring good performance in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the marital status of the respondents was analyzed and findings presented in table 1. in this study, majority of the respondents were married 425(89.5%) followed by those who were single 29 (6.1%). the number of those who were divorced stood at 08(1.7%) while the widowed were 12(2.5%) and unspecified marriage status was at 1 (0.2 %.) the number of years that the respondents had spent in their current schools was also analyzed. the findings are presented in table 1 .the majority of the respondents 135(28.4%) had been in their current schools for 5-9 years, followed by 120(25.3%) and110 (23.2 %) who had been in their current schools for between 10 14 years and 14 years respectively. 83(17.5%) of the respondents had been in their current schools for 15 and more years while only 27(5.7%) had been there for less than a year. this implied that 94.3% of the respondents had been in their current schools for more than a year; a period the researcher believes was long enough for the respondents to tell whether the various teachers’ welfare constructs under study were being offered in the schools and how such schools were performing. the education status of the respondents was analyzed and findings presented in table 1.the majority of the respondents 307(64.6%) had grade iii/ equivalent certificates, followed by 85(17.9%) and 42(8.8 %) who had bachelor’s degrees and secondary education respectively. 22(4.6%) of the respondents had primary education, 10(2.1%) had diploma in primary education while only 9(1.9%) had post graduate in education. in addition, out of 307 teachers who participated in the study, 195 (63.5%) had attained grade iii certificate as the highest level of qualification. this implied that 78.1% of the respondents had grade iii certificates and below; this means that level of education for teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district; uganda was still low since majority of teachers had not got higher qualifications beyond diploma. ho1: monitoring systems do not mediate the relationship between human capital and the performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. med graph program graphically showing mediation among three variables according to fig.1 below, the study calculated sobel’s z-value and ratio index using med graph program in trying to establish the significance of the mediation effect and the type and nature of mediation. as indicated in figure 4.3, a sobel z-value of 4.439187 with p-value of 0.00067 was found. according to preacher and hayes, (2004) in case the calculated z-vale is greater than 1.96 (with a confidence level of 95%), the variable in question is deemed significant in mediating the relationship between human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 73 isingiro district. firstly, the indication of these results is that, since the sobel z-value is greater than 1.96 with a p-value less than 0.05, it is a signal to the existence of mediation of monitoring systems in the relationship between human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. it is further shown in figure below that there a significant direct effect of human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district (beta=.385; p<.01).there was a significant direct effect of human capital and monitoring systems (beta=.091; p<.01).there was also a significant direct effect of monitoring system and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district (beta=.415; p<.01). when controlling for monitoring systems, the direct effect of human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district reduced from beta=.385 to beta=.350 and remained significant. this is an indication that the relationship between human capital and performance of government aided primary schools is partially mediated by monitoring systems, hence rejecting the null hypothesis (ho1) that there is no mediation. this is further indicated by the direct effect of (0.027/0.148 x 100) percentage = 18.2%, meaning that indirect effect is explained by 81.8% in the model. figure 1: med graph program graphically showing mediation among three variables discussion file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 74 this section focuses on the discussion of the research findings in relation to the hypothesis that human capital has positive significant effect on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda(r=.385, p<.01). employees who invest in education and training will raise their skill level and be more productive than those less skilled, and so can justify higher earnings as a result of their investment in human capital. this has been central in explaining individual earnings differences (nerdrum & erikson, 2001).in this study sub constructs such as qualification of teachers, attitude of teachers towards teaching, training of teachers, promotions of teachers after training, satisfaction of teachers at work, leadership styles of head teachers, effectiveness of school management committee members, involvement of district education officials and involvement of teachers in decision making at schools were key issues the study wanted to address in relation to performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. asked if school management committee (smc) members were doing their work properly, the district official do1 remarked that the majority of these committees are doing their work fairly, though many have limited education where some are primary school leavers and few of them with secondary or certificate level. this is a big problem with the management standards of our schools (district official do1 isingiro january, 2022). the district official do3 further remarked that in most of our schools, smc members are not helping the head teachers to organise our schools using proper managerial styles of leadership. this is due to the fact that many smc members have no experience in management and with low levels of education (district official do3 isingiro january, 2022) the district official do2 further said that in most of our schools, it is not possible to have regular meetings as stake holders because of different reasons that range from means of transport and facilitation of the committee meetings. some schools are in very rural areas which at times become hard to reach during rainy seasons. this has affected both teachers and students learning and teaching activities (district official do2 isingiro january, 2022) implication of the study this significant positive relationship among these variables can lead to the different implications which should be considered; human capital issues and teachers’ welfare at school will generate job satisfaction which also leads to the effective and efficient performance of the government aided primary schools. therefore, it is recommended that for the education system to be improved we definitely require to build any possible mechanism or technique to train, educate and motivate the teachers. the teaching profession which is not a highly rewarding job is not seen as satisfactory as other occupations and hence leads to poor performance in most of the schools in isingiro district, uganda. therefore, a teacher’s productivity, professionalism and welfare like accommodation, meals, allowances, medical care and school facilities reform policies is recommended for the teaching staff in government aided primary schools especially in isingiro district, uganda. in this study, provision of refresher courses, workshops and professional skills should be availed to teachers. this will increase their productivity at places of work. so, well-looked after teacher will be satisfied with their jobs and that will increase their performance of the schools. in this study monitoring systems that included regular meetings, consultations by district education officials, smcs members and political officials was considered as a mediating factor between human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. finally, file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 75 teachers’ well-being is perceived to be part of the reward system of a school. so a well-motivated teacher will be satisfied with the jobs. the teaching profession which is not a highly rewarding job is not seen as satisfactory as other occupations and hence leads to poor performance in most of the schools in isingiro district. therefore, all these factors above should be catered for by making reform policies to address the issues in the government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. conclusion this study focused on the fact that, lack of school monitoring systems, knowledge, training and professional workshops would lead to dissatisfied and uncommitted teachers with less skills and knowledge, who may have higher rates of turnover, absenteeism, and withdrawal behaviors in schools. the most important thing that school leaders can do is, to intensify monitoring school activities and developments. therefore school managers should monitor all school activities including the teachers’ according to the standard of living conditions and may be create more training, knowledge acquisition and skills to improve the teachers productivity in the schools. in conclusion this study is expected to contribute to the vast knowledge that social research scientists study about in particular the education sector which really requires important revisions and reforms in terms of human capital, school monitoring systems and schools’ performance because in this study it was found that there is significant partial mediation between monitoring systems, human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda and this can further be applied to make some improvements in the quality of education sector in other parts of uganda. recommendations this study recommendation that education policy makers, implementers and managers pay much attention to human capital development in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda to increase schools’ performance. this will harmonize all the management issues that may affect government aided primary schools’ performance; this should be in line with enhancing knowledge and skills for productivity. usaid will also invest in selected areas of education beyond basic professional education, including focused efforts in workforce development and in higher education. the study also recommend that district education officers, inspectors and schools based managers’ plan for and provide government aided primary schools with enough sitting facilities for the pupils. in addition, the study recommend that district education officials should intensify monitoring school motivational approaches and activities to enhance good performance in government aided primary schools by motivating the schools workers especially teachers to increase schools’ performance, isingiro district furthermore, the study recommend that inspectors of schools should intensify visiting these schools and monitor head teachers, teachers’ works, school projects and activities. this will create proper supervision of these schools and hence improve the performance. also, the study recommend that local leaders and administration should regularly visit and monitor government aided primary schools projects, teachers’ welfare and other activities. this will create proper supervision and administration of these schools and hence improve the performance. the study further recommend the ministry of education & sports should put policies in government primary schools that can favor teachers to go for further trainings for acquiring higher qualifications and workshops so as to increase their productivity in the schools where they are working. the training file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 66 79, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 76 policy indicates that it contains all the essential elements of training and development. according to mohamud, (2014) training policy shows that training and development falls under human resource development (hrd) function which has been argued to be an important function of human resources manual (hrm). the study also recommend that school management committee members should monitor all the programs and activities in these schools; 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(2001). social capital and health. canadian journal of policy research, spring, 72– 81. veenstra, g., et al. (2005). who you know, where you live: social capital, neighbourhood and health. social science and medicine, 60, 2799–2828. yahiaoui, n, anser,a. & lahouel,s.(2015). human resource management and public organizations. global journal of human resource management, 3(2), 1-12. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviour: a review of literature miebaka dagogo tamunomiebi ukwuije odochi akubueze european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 20 workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviour: a review of literature *miebaka dagogo tamunomiebi phd. and ** ukwuije, odochi akubueze *department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers, state university, nkpoluoroworukwo, pmb 5080, port harcourt, nigeria. tamunomiebi2002@yahoo.com **doctoral candidate department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, pmb 5080, port harcourt, nigeria. odochiukwuije43@gmail.com abstract purpose: the purpose of this paper is to examine the association between workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviour. methodology: the paper being a largely conceptual in nature adopted a desk research methodology in reviewing extant literature. findings: based on the findings in extant literature, it was obvious that workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviour have a significant nexus. unique contribution: the study gave useful insights on the ubiquitous nature of workplace incivility and its attendant impact of work outcomes. recommendation: organizations must act in a proactive manner in managing incivility so that it does degenerate to serious and corrosive consequences that eat away the workplace culture by promoting well-being in the workplace and preventing certain unsafe dynamics from establishing themselves. keywords: workplace incivility, counterproductive work behaviour file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:tamunomiebi2002@yahoo.com mailto:odochiukwuije43@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 21 introduction workplace deviant behaviors have remained the focus of researchers’ attention for many years. these behaviors have been studied from different perspectives: both as outcome variable and predictor variable (bruursema, 2004; mount, ilies, & johnson, 2006). workplace deviant behaviors, on one hand, spoil the organizational environment and on the other, lower the morale of the employees (hoel, einarsen, & cooper, 2003; keashly & jagatic, 2003). initially, research regarding workplace deviance has been limited to different types of mistreatment such as harassment, bullying, aggression, and injustice (e.g., chen & spector, 1992). however, recently incivility has gained the attention of management researchers (lim & cortina, 2005; penney & spector, 2005). anderson and pearson in zainab and jahanvash (2014) defined incivility as low intensity deviant behavior with ambiguous intent to harm the target, in violation of workplace norms for mutual respect. uncivil behaviors are regarded as characteristically rude and discourteous, displaying a lack of regard for others. incivility is somehow less intense than aggression but it is more prevalent in the organizations (pearson, andersson, & porath, 2000). the most common uncivil behaviors include demeaning, derogatory, and condescending comments, indifference to worker’s opinion, ignoring a coworker, and browbeating (cortina, magley, williams & langhout, 2001). although incivility is at the low end of the workplace mistreatment continuum, but it may not be ignored or overlooked because of the devastating results that it brings along to the organization (vickers, 2006). researchers have found workplace incivility to be negatively related to relationship between workplace incivility and productivity and job satisfaction, and positively associated with absenteeism, tardiness, and turnover intentions (lim & cortina, 2005; penney & spector, 2005). according to some researchers, workplace incivility leads to more violent and aggressive behaviors (pearson et al., 2000; pearson, andersson, & wegner, 2001). zainab and jahanvash (2014) have also argued that the incivility can draw a similar reaction from other party or lead to more serious behaviors. it may lead to an escalating spiral where one act of incivility can provoke more serious acts on the part of the other party. such situations would lead to extreme forms of counterproductive work behaviors, which may result in aggression or violence. there are some studies that have focused on the link between incivility and counterproductive work behaviors (cwb; penney & spector, 2005; roberts, 2012). most research on wpi is based on the western context, however, the issue of this negative behavior is also a common issue in african organization in general and nigerian firms in particular (arshad and ismail, 2018; handoyo et al., 2018). to date, no human resource development (hrd) fraternity defines wpi as most of the local studies adopt the definition by the westerns. therefore, in this paper, wpi was conceptualized as a low continuum level type of dysfunctional behavior with ambiguous intent to hurt others in the modern work environment. various negative health and organizational outcomes were found to be associated with wpi (lanzo et al., 2016; laschinger et al., 2012; oyeleye et al., 2013). negative behavior is not mentioned that due to this behavior, the targets experienced attitudinal, cognitive and behavioral outcomes. as for the victims of wpi, they prefer to conceal their feelings which eventually affect their well-being and work performance, thereby harming the productivity of the organization (hur et al., 2016). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 22 a recent empirical study in the malaysian public sector investigated the impacts of personality variables on wpi and organization performance (ismail et al., 2018). another study involving employees in the private organization confirmed the existence of wpi which affects knowledge sharing (arshad & ismail, 2018). thus, the existence of wpi creates challenges to hrd in initiating workplace learning as it contributes to a toxic work atmosphere that is unfavorable to employee’s learning and growth (pearson & porath, 2005; estes &wang, 2008). in the last two decades, workplace incivility has received the attention of organization researchers and practitioners. various empirical studies have been conducted to identify and explain the causes and consequences of incivility for individuals and organizations. intensive researches involving large samples in europe and america throughout 1999–2009 show that workplace incivility has become a serious concern (cortina et al., 2001; lewis & malecha, 2011; pearson & porath, 2009). almost all studies conducted in america and europe show an increasing trend of uncivil behaviors that are accepted by employees of various sectors/industries. this condition confirms that workplace incivility is a global problem that requires immediate attention from human resource and organization professionals (ghosh et al., 2013). the purpose of this paper is to examine the nexus between workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviour. literature review workplace incivility (wpi) workplace incivility is described as low-intensity deviant behavior with ambiguous intent to harm an employee. it is an uncivil behavior that is characteristically rude and discourteous, displaying a lack of regard for others. the retention and development of highly skilled employees is often important to an organizations human resource management. a “perfect” system is a system made up of human interactions where incivility or uncivil behaviours are never found, but the phenomenon workplace incivility is generally not well understood and accordingly not acknowledged as an issue that needs attention (achara, onyemaechi and eberechi, 2020). wpi is a type of maltreatment in the organization which includes a covert type of aggression and this behavior demarcates from overt aggression. this negative behavior is known as low intensity and does not have the aim to detriment others (pearson et al., 2001). examples of wpi are rude to others, sarcastic, do not cooperate and mocking to others. other examples of such behavior are the exclusion of others, belittling others, mocking and gossiping (alias et al., 2013; lim and cortina, 2005). hence, it is considered as lower-level intensity behavior compared to workplace violation. in most cases, it is brushed off and treated as part and parcel of workplace attitude (pearson & porath, 2009). at present, no written rules and regulations are imposed on the offenders due to the difficulty in measuring and identifying incivility behavior. workplace incivility in the malaysia public service department public service department responsibilities could be carried out in a harmonious work environment that includes having employees with high civil behavior. there are many provisions and regulations in place for the misconduct of civil servants. however, the act of incivility is not treated the same way or as severe as other work-related crimes such as failure to attend work, under the influence of drugs, severe debts, sexual harassment and physical abuse. the issues of such behavior should be looked into to increase the performance of the public service department in malaysia (abdullah & halim, 2016). local research involving public and private organization indicated that various forms of wpi exists file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 23 and are instigated by their co-workers such as demeaning remarks to colleagues or condescending and probed decision on an issue which a co-worker is accountable (ismail and zakuan, 2012). ishak et al. (2018), empirical findings in a peninsular general hospital also indicated the existence of such behavior. another local study by ismail et al. (2018) involving 463 public service employees also confirmed the issue of this behavior. workplace incivility is a deviant behavior, verbally and non-verbally, such as a look of condescension, harsh words, impatience or a lack of respect for the dignity of others. as a result, employees who are victims of incivility have a tendency to decrease their commitment over time (montgomery et al., 2004). other examples of unethical behavior include not saying thank you, heeding co-workers’ suggestions, texting or sending emails during meetings, making derogatory comments, showing hostility, invasion of privacy, exclusive behavior, gossiping and ignoring or insulting coworkers (pearson & porath, 2009). in civil behavior in the workplace is a part of employees’ daily behaviors in interacting with each other in an organization. the perpetrators sometimes do not realize they have conducted this behavior, such as undervaluing coworkers (for example, not saying thank you for the simple assistance provided), or asking for help in polite words to subordinates or fellow co-workers. other examples of this behavior include actions such as using condescending language, making verbal and non-verbal threats, gossiping, ignoring coworkers’ requests, and showing disrespect for others at work (holm et al., 2015). the hallmark of incivility is that sometimes the purpose is unclear, and is not intended to be detrimental to others. although people sometimes behave rudely with a clear purpose to demean or insult others, at other times their disrespectful behavior can be caused by fatigue, carelessness, or indifference to local social norms. thus, the existence of intention is unclear either from the perpetrator, the victim, or the bystander (andersson & pearson, 1999). counterproductive work behavior (cwb) cwb is basically a voluntary or intentional behavior that could harm the interest of the organization either directly or indirectly by hurting the employees which resultantly reduces their effectiveness (mcshane & glinow, 2005). spector et al. (2006) has categorized cwb into five facets: (a) abuse; behaviors that can be harmful physically or psychologically. it may include making nasty comments about coworker or reduce the effectiveness of coworker; (b) sabotage; affects the physical property of the organization (i.e. undermining the physical workplace of the organization); (c) production deviance; behaviors that destroy the work process; (d) theft; results from economic need, job dissatisfaction or injustice and can be regarded a form of aggression against the organization (mustaine & tewksbury, 2002; neuman & baron, 1997) and; (e) withdrawal; behaviors that reduce the amount of time one works to less than what the organization requires. sabotage and production deviance has a direct impact while the withdrawal behavior of employees has an indirect impact on the functioning of the organization (fox, spector, & miles, 2001). some employees may engage in cwb as emotional reaction or retaliation while others may opt it as a well-planned behavior (fox & spector, 2010). many researchers categorized cwb into different categories. sackett and devore (2001) defined cwb as a contrary act by a member in an organization which focuses on individual behaviour and does not benefit the organization. sackett & devore (2001) concluded that cwb is a hierarchy model which thoroughly observes unproductive behavior. an individual who file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 24 involves in cwb is prone to be involved in other cwb (gruys & sackett, 2003). gruys and sackett (2003) also categorized cwb to those targeted behaviour by listing 11 factors such as theft, destruction of organization property, misuse of organization information, misuse of time and resources, dangerous behaviour, lateness to work, unsatisfactory work quality, drug addiction, use of abusive words, and dangerous physical behaviour. fox dan spector (1999) introduced model of work frustration-aggression, an extreme cognitive-affective approach. this model explains that every activity leading to disappointment may lead to affective reaction. cognitive is said to play a less important role in the following sequence (reaction-affective response-respond). individual affective respond is simple (locus of control, anger) and one will slow down counterproductive work behaviour may be due to certain punishment. this model is able to explain behaviours other than aggressive but cwb is not driven by other factors other than aggressive. behaviours such as absenteeism, neglecting a company’s properties and inefficient at work, for instance, dreaming, surfing the internet, and long rest may be driven by factors other than aggression. hot-tempered is an example of interpersonal cwb whereby an individual will express his/her anger at work (fox & spector, 1999). this is an individual reaction based on personal experience such as depression, less autonomy, organization injustice, organization constraint, and emotional and perception at workplace. cwb is said to be a response of frustration in obtaining strong empirical support and any wrongdoings are the effect of stress and tension faced (fox, spector dan miles, 2001). since two decades ago, studies on cwb has shown a progress. past studies related to aggression categorized two objectives, i.e. hostile and instrumental. hostile aggression means to harm other parties including hatred and jealousy. this group of people is more aggressive and hostile than those with bad-tempered, impulsive and has the intention to cause harm on the target. meanwhile, instrumental aggression does not depend solely on emotion but also have the intention to harm the target. in general, the main objective of an individual is to react aggressively and to cause harm but instrumental aggression has a far advance objective such as robbery (anderson dan bushman, 2002). the behaviour categorized as cwb (spector et al., 2007) fall into two categories, i.e. the behaviour directed at the organization and the behaviour directed at the individual in an organization (bennett & robinson, 2000; spector, 2007b). spector’s model (2006) explained that the counterproductive work behaviour can be categorized into two, i.e. counterproductive work behaviour for an organization (cwb-o) and counterproductive work behaviour for an individual at an organization (cwb-i) (spector et al., 2006). this classification is very important and helpful in understanding cwb issues in an organization. these are such deviant behaviors which are continuously increasing day by day and is a big problem in any organization. these behaviors have been damaging the organizations. researchers are taking interests in this topic (mawritz et al., 2012). cwb are those behaviors causing the harm to employees or organization in certain forms like bullying of employees, theft, breaking the organizational things or damaging the important papers of organization etc. such beahviors can occur one at one time or there is possibility that these behaviors can go simultaneously together. (fagbohungbe et al., 2012). cwbs are those behaviors which are against the organizational goals and benefits. spector et al. (2006) categorized in five categories: abuse, sabotage, production deviance, theft, and withdrawal behaviors. thus further found that people show different reaction to overcome work place incivility and severity of incivility can cause a lot file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 25 of damage to organization. some employees use production deviance behavior as a strategy. if a strategy is to gain “as a strategy to obtain control over stressors and its negative emotional reactions” then it becomes more dust hating (krischer et al., 2010). employees who do not have security of their jobs may show deviant behaviors or may involve in counterproductive work behaviors which are not good for organization betterment. like, relationship between job insecurity, workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviors among employees: role of work family conflict. bultena (1998) cited in adesubomi (2018) found that if employees have job insecurity they are involved in counter productive work behaviors. research has revealed that work place incivility is such behavior which may decrease the workers’ productivity, performance, creativity, satisfaction and increase their absentees, laziness, their intentionally delay of work and their turnover intentions (lim & cortina, 2005; penney & spector, 2005). these kind of behaviors may lead the person towards work family conflict because working and family. a research was performed on 280 subordinates and their partners and it was studied that how abusive supervision affect their family. abused subordinates have been found to experience increased intensity of work–to–family conflict. similar results have been reported by (hoobler & hu 2013). workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviour: anderssson and pearson (1999) cited in guo and kumar (2020) argued that workplace incivility overlaps with cwb, although cwb differs from incivility in several ways. first, cwb is a behavior that typically intends to inflict harm on a person or organization, whereas incivility is harmful behavior that is not necessarily intentional or malicious. that is, any harmful intent can be easily dismissed or denied. for example, the instigator may claim the behavior was due to ignorance or an oversight on his/her part, or may accuse the target of misunderstanding the behavior or being overly-sensitive (cortina, magley, williams, & langhout, 2001). second, incivility includes behaviors that are milder than most forms of cwb. that is, while some indirect, passive forms of cwb (for example ignoring or making derogatory marks about someone) may also be considered incivility, openly hostile behaviors, such as making threats and sabotage, are not. by the same token, behaviors such as failing to invite someone to lunch would be considered workplace incivility, but not cwb. finally, cwb and incivility differ in the direction from which they approach the social dynamic wherein these behaviors may occur. according to spector’s job stress model, incivility would be classified as a stressor, that is, some event or condition in the environment that requires a response, whereas cwb is considered a behavioral strain, or an individual’s response to a perceived stressor. thus, the cwb literature focuses on the actor and variables related to the performance of cwb, such as personality traits of actors and environmental conditions, including stressors, which may encourage or elicit cwb (for example lack of justice, organizational constraints). workplace incivility, on the other hand, is primarily concerned with the target’s perspective and reactions. that is, how perceiving one to be the target or recipient of uncivil behavior does affects attitudes and behavior. thus, measures of cwb generally ask the participant to indicate how often they perform certain cwbs, while a measure of incivility would ask participants how often they have been the recipient of uncivil behavior. of course, within a social exchange, a single behavior (e.g., refusing to help a co-worker) can be considered an act of cwb by one person and also be perceived file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 26 as incivility by another. however, because we are examining these phenomena from an intraindividual perspective, it is important to make the distinction between perceiving oneself to be a target of incivility (i.e., a stressor) and behaving in response to some provocation or stressor (i.e., a behavioral strain), as the psychological experience is very different. furthermore, andersson and pearson (1999) cited in guo and kumar (2020) acknowledged the social nature of workplace incivility and argued that acts of incivility have the potential to foster unpleasant exchanges or even lead to more serious behaviors. they describe an incivility spiral wherein an act of workplace incivility on the part of one individual leads to an act of incivility by a second party that may be of equal or increasing intensity. in the former case, the exchange is non-escalating. the latter case, on the other hand, results in an escalating spiral wherein each act is followed by an increasingly negative act. situations such as these have the potential to lead to more intense forms of cwb, perhaps resulting ultimately in aggression or violence wherein the intent to inflict harm is indisputable. workplace incivility also has much in common with employee abuse (keashly, hunter, & harvey, 1997; keashly et al., 1994), mobbing/bullying (zapf, knorz, & kulla, 1996), social undermining (duffy, ganster & pagon, 2002), and inter-personal conflict (spector & jex, 1998). while these constructs share overlapping behavior sets with workplace incivility, they generally refer to patterns of behavior with clear hostile intent which occur over time. in contrast, workplace incivility is milder and is often ambiguous with regard to its underlying motive. thus, the difference is largely a matter of degree. the unique contribution that is made by including incivility alongside these distinct, albeit related constructs is the idea that behaviors do not necessarily have to be clearly and deliberately hostile to negatively impact an individual or organization. conclusion workplace incivility has been describe as “…low-intensity deviant behavior with ambiguous intent to harm the target, in violation of workplace norms for mutual respect. these behavior has brought about interpersonal conflict or mistreatment among employees such as bullying, mobbing, aggression, emotional abuse, harassment. although workplace incivility occurs at all levels of the organization, it also leads to unfavorable working atmosphere that prevents employees' learning and development. workplace incivility has been widely considered as an important workplace stressor. incivility is a costly and pervasive workplace behavior that has important negative affective, cognitive, and behavioral consequences for its targets, witnesses, and instigators. it is a rising threat for human resource development specialists, since it is happening leads to a toxic work atmosphere. workplace incivility is evident in behaviors that demonstrate lack of regard for others in the workplace, behaviors that are described as rude or discourteous. consequently, this results in an adverse organizational climate, thereby raising uncivil behavior among employees. based on the findings in extant literature, it was obvious that workplace incivility and counterproductive work behaviour have a significant nexus. recommendations i. organizations must act in a proactive manner in managing incivility so that it does degenerate to serious and corrosive consequences that eat away the workplace culture by promoting well-being in the workplace and preventing certain unsafe dynamics from establishing themselves. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 20 31, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 27 ii. in dealing with workplace incivility, organizations should train both employees and managers on the relationship management competence because relationship management abilities of would result in improved handling of workplace aggression and uncivil behaviours. references abdullah, a., & halim, f.w. 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(2015). effect of workplace incivility on end-ofwork negative affect: examining individual and organizational moderators in a daily diary study. journal of occupational health psychology, 20(1), 117. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org attitude of muslim men towards family planning in borno state yagana m. aji and babatunji a. omotara european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org attitude of muslim men towards family planning in borno state 1* yagana m. aji, phd senior lecturer, university of maiduguri *yasmaaji@gmail.com 2 babatunji a. omotara, phd, frsh, ffph professor, university of maiduguri abstract purpose: the aim of this study was to determine those socio-economic variables that have the most impact on attitude towards family planning among married muslim men in borno state, northeast nigeria. this is because the attitude of husbands is key to the practice of family planning due to their decision making roles in the family set up. studies have revealed that attitude of males towards family planning in sub-saharan africa is not encouraging. therefore determining the variables that affect attitude of males towards family planning is important in improving family planning programme success. methodology: both qualitative and quantitative techniques were used to collect information for this study. the qualitative technique involved the use of focus group discussions. a total of 12 sessions of fgds were conducted in three purposively selected local government areas. for the interview schedule, eight local government areas were randomly selected based on geographic location and cross sectional survey was used to collect the quantitative data. four villages in each local government area were randomly selected plus the state capital. a total of 475 married muslim men were interviewed using the systematic random sampling method findings: the result of the study showed that the attitude of married muslim men towards family planning is mainly negative because of the belief that islam is against family planning. however, people with western education, younger husbands and the babur/bura ethnic group have more favourable attitude than other groups. factors found to be most responsible for negative attitude are religion (96%), rural residency (93%) and low literacy level (92%). however, the most outstanding factor among all sub-groups is socioeconomic insecurity. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: better economic conditions and more education are shown to ameliorate attitude towards fp in spite of religious beliefs as seen in this study. improving on these two factors and providing health education that is culture and religion specific targeted at males will help in making the males to be more receptive. messages should include the consequences of closely spaced pregnancy on the mother and child keywords: family planning, northeast nigeria, attitude of muslim men. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org introduction family planning (fp) is one of the factors that reduce high maternal mortality attributed to high birth rates among others. according to the world health organization (who, 2012) there is a high risk of maternal mortality in sub-saharan africa because of high birth rates which could be reduced by practicing family planning. it was estimated that 56% of all maternal deaths occurred in africa in 2010 because millions of women in developing countries do not plan their families (who, 2012) mainly due to: deficiency in knowledge, husband’s disapproval, fear of side effects, in-affordability or inaccessibility of family planning services, religious prohibition, deficiency and incompetence of family planning workers and limited supply (bruce, 1990; iyer, 2002). according to stephenson and hennink (2004) community level barriers such as social and cultural characteristics and lack of infrastructure in providing health care services could be added to the individual level barriers. in the early 1970s african leaders were not ready to accept family planning for various reasons. some of these reasons were the belief by african governments that there is vast land in africa that needs to be peopled. another reason among others is mistrust of the motives behind the propaganda on population control by the west. african governments thought that it was a ploy by western nations to decrease the population of the black race (sai, 1989). it was later in the late 70s and early 80s that governments of african countries got to accept family planning and population control measures as necessary for development policies. in 1988 a national population policy was approved by the federal government of nigeria. one of the goals of the national population policy was:“…to achieve lower population growth rates through reduction of birth rates by voluntary fertility regulation methods that are compatible with the attainment of economic and social goals of the nation” (federal republic of nigeria, 1988, pp. 12). men have strong influence on family decisions which includes family planning that makes their attitude towards it to be very important. that was why this research sought to determine their attitude towards family planning in the study area. the specific objectives were to determine the influence of various socio-economic variables on attitude of males towards family planning. the variables are education, age, ethnicity, area of residence, and practice of polygamy. men’s approval of fp against these variables will reveal which ones have more influence. the attitude is important because it has influence on practice (npc nigeria and icf macro, 2013). this study was carried out before the onset of insurgency in the state. literature review in the 80s total fertility rate (tfr) for nigeria was 6.34 and the marital fertility rate of 7.48. more than two decades later, in 1996 the tfr for nigeria barely changed to 6 children per woman and 5.6 in 2013 (population reference bureau, 1996; npc nigeria and icf macro, 2013). in 1996 the level of family planning in nigeria among married women was six percent for all types of family planning methods and 4% for modern types according to the population reference bureau, 1996. by 2013, practice of family planning in nigeria had increased to 15% but it stood at three percent in the northeast (npc nigeria & icf macro, 2013). this research was conducted in borno state, in the northeastern part of nigeria, mostly inhabited by muslims. borno state has a long history of islamic belief and culture and the predominant ethnic group is kanuri. ordinarily, the average muslim citizen in borno believes file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org that family planning is a ploy by western nations to reduce the muslim population in the world. this belief is not restricted to the rural people alone. urban residents as well as, highly educated and well placed muslims also believe it to be so (aliyu, 1992; sada, 1993; ahmed & demba, 1994; baig, 1994; liagin, 1996; cook & maine, 1991). there is a linkage between a family’s socioeconomic characteristics, attitudes and practice of family planning (fp). it is common knowledge that among patriarchal societies, main decisions including those concerning the family are taken by men. for instance, a woman cannot decide to practice family planning even if she is motivated to do so, unless she obtains her husband’s consent. the final decision rests with the husband in most cases as reported in many studies on family planning in developing countries (orubuloye & caldwell, 1994; roudi and ashford, 1996).) therefore men’s attitude towards family planning and their willingness to adopt greatly affects practice. studies carried out in northern nigeria and ethiopia suggest that there is high knowledge of family planning but negative attitude toward practice of family which has led to low contraceptive use (duze & mohammed, 2006; tilahun et al, 2013). this indicates that attitude of males to family planning is important to practice. that is the reason success rate of family planning programmes is limited because they mainly focus on women who are not the decision makers (tilahun et al, 2013). theoretical framework in this study the theory of planned bahaviour (tpb) (ajzen, 2012) is applied to explain what determines fertility intentions. this will help clarify the socio-psychological processes involved in forming the intention to have a child or not which could affect attitude towards fp. according to the theory, intention is governed by three kinds of considerations. the first consideration is behavioral beliefs which are a person’s beliefs and values which make him/her want to do something or not based on perceived positive or negative consequences of the thing in question which in this case is fp. the second consideration is the attitude of a person’s immediate social environment constituted by a person’s partner, friends and family. this is called normative beliefs or subjective norms which produce the perceived social pressure on the person to comply with those individuals. the third consideration is known as perceived control which is the resources or obstacles that can facilitate or hinder the action that needs to be taken. the theory of planned bahaviour applied in this research suggests that the attitude of a man towards fp will be influenced by the man’s beliefs and values, as well as the social pressure from his immediate family and community and the resources and obstacles at his disposal to go through with the intention to practice or not practice fp. a man’s belief system which govern his behavior towards his family, gender relations and life values; and his willingness to comply with the norms around him determine how he acts and reacts to situations and issues of importance. similarly resources or obstacles can go a long way to facilitate or hinder intentions. therefore the tpb is applied to show that a man’s attitude towards family planning is a result of these three factors. methodology focus group discussions (fgds) and cross sectional survey by the administration of individual interview schedules were used to collect the necessary data for this study. a total of file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org 12 sessions of fgds were conducted in three purposively selected local government areas(lgas) which include maiduguri metropolis, the state capital, one from southern bornoand another from northern borno. this selection was done to give a representation to all three senatorial districts, as well as to urban, semi-urban and rural settings. the focus groups consist of six groups of eight to ten persons each of younger (<30 yrs) and older (>30 yrs) married muslim men. the fgds were conducted under conducive atmosphere in the various selected study areas. each session lasted for about 45 minutes and was recorded for transcription. both moderator and note taker were male to allow free atmosphere for discussion. the issues for the fgds were knowledge of family planning, attitude towards family planning, and the practice of family planning. however, this paper focuses only on the attitudinal aspect of family planning. for the interview schedule, eight local government areas were randomly selected based on geographic location (gubio, magumeri, gwoza, damboa, ngala, dikwa, maiduguri and konduga). local government administrative staff and university students were trained to administer the instrument, which was adapted with some modifications from the national demographic health survey 2008 questionnaire for the collection of quantitative data. four villages in each local government area were randomly selected. in addition to that, the local government headquarters and the state capital, which represented the semi-urban and urban areas respectively, were also included. a total of 475 married muslim men were interviewed using the systematic random sampling method. the data was analysed using the statistical package for social sciences (spss). results focus group discussions generally, the attitude of the males is negative toward family planning. most of them insist that the family planning programme is a conspiracy between the government and the white man. as one participant in maiduguri puts it, “it was the white man who felt that people here are becoming too many and they want to reduce them. we were told that family planning is the white man’s conspiracy, so we don’t accept it”. a summary of their attitudes is as follows: 1. educated and enlightened women discuss family planning with their husbands, but illiterate and ignorant women are shy to do so. 2. family planning can be openly discussed among males, but most are against it. 3. the number of children to have is allah’s business and to specify a certain number amounts to interfering in allah’s affairs. 4. a male child is preferred because he will always be by his father’s side and he can carry on the family name and look after the family when the father dies. 5. the female child is not liked because she deserts her parents after marriage, it is costly to get them married, and can bring shame on her parents should she get pregnant before marriage. 6. practice of family planning is associated with the urban elite, schoolgirls and prostitutes. 7. men can use condom as protection against infection when sleeping with a prostitute, but not with their wives. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org quantitative data the attitude of muslim men towards family planning was examined using five variables that could affect attitude: these include level of education, age, ethnic group, residential area and number of wives. attitude to family planning and education table 1 shows the relationship between respondent’s educational level and attitude towards fp. the result indicates that the number of males who generally disapprove of fp decreased as the level of western education increased. table 1: attitude towards fp among men of different educational levels variables indicating attitude educational levels no formal education n = 104 quranic education n = 147 primary education n = 35 secondary education n = 50 tertiary n = 94 disapprove of fp freq. (%) freq. (%) freq. (%) freq. (%) freq.(%) 89 (85.6) 128 (87.1) 30 (85.7) 39 (78.0) 65 (69.1) do not intend to practice fp in future 96 (92.3) 126 (85.7) 29 (82.9) 39 (78.0) 66 (70.2) those who have never discussed fp with wife(s) 99 (95.2) 133 (90.5) 32 (91.4) 45 (90.0) 71 (75.5) major reasons for not practicing fp:  want more children  against religious beliefs 70 (67.3) 16 (15.4) 41 (27.9) 73 (49.7) 14 (40.0) 14 (40.0) 14 (28.0) 22 (44.0) 22 (23.4) 50 (53.2) major reasons for wanting to have more children.  need to provide care in old age  religion prohibits child limitation 43 (41.3) 32 (30.8) 54 (36.7) 50 (34.0) 16 (45.7) 10 (28.6) 21 (40.0) 16 (32.0) 30 (31.9) 43 (45.7) never tried to practice fp 96 (92.3) 138 (96.5) 33 (94.3) 43 (86.0) 76(80.9) it is left to god to give male or female children 92 (88.5) 124 (93.9) 29 (82.9) 40 (80.0) 78(83.0) those who do not approve of their wife(s) working outside the house 79 (76.0) 121 (82.3) 24 (68.6) 30 (60.0) 55(58.5) those with quranic education recorded the highest level of disapproval of fp (87.1%). the percentage of respondents who do not intend to plan their families in future decreased steadily from those with no education to those with tertiary education. the proportion of those who never file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org discussed fp with their wives was highest among people with no formal education (95.2%) and decreased steadily with increase in level of education. reasons for not practicing fp are varied. they include disapproval by wife, lack of knowledge, desire to have more children, opposed to family planning, against religious beliefs, costs too much, infrequent sex, health reasons, methods are not effective, difficult to use and hard to get. but out of all these, the most frequently given reasons are that, they want more children or it is against religious beliefs. the highest percentage of people who want more children was observed among those without formal education (67.3%). those with tertiary education (53.2%) gave religion as the most common reason for not practicing fp. the proportion of people that never tried to plan their families was highest among people with only quranic education followed by those who have primary education and decreased as level of education increased. respondents were further probed to give reasons for wanting to have more children. the various answers include not having enough children, to carry on the family name, need to help with house work, need to provide care during old age; religion prohibits child limitation, etc. the most popular reason was the need to provide care in old age. approval of work by wife outside the house is included to give an indication of a man’s attitude towards his wife. disapproval decreased steadily from those without to those with western formal education. the highest level of disapproval was observed among males with onlyquranic education (82.3%). to find out whether preference for sons was also a driving factor in the desire for large families, most of the respondents replied that they are indifferent as, it is god’s will to give them whichever sex. the highest response comes from those with quranic education (93.9%) followed by those with no education at all (88.5%) and decreased with increase in education. attitude towards family planning and age the men were classified into two groups. men aged 30 years and below (young husbands) and those above 30 years (older husbands). the level of disapproval of fp is high among both groups as shown in table 2. table 2: attitude towards fp among men of different age groups variables showing attitude age groups of men 30 and below n = 80 age above 30 n = 388 disapprove of fp freq. ( %) freq. (% ) 65 (81.3) 316 (81.4) no intention to practice fp in future 60 (75.0) 335 (86.3) those who have never discussed fp with wife(s) 73 (91.3) 341 (87.9) major reasons for not practicing fp:  wants more children  against religious beliefs 29 (36.3) 41 (51.3) 153 (39.4) 145 (37.4) major reasons for wanting to have more children.  need to provide care in old age  religion prohibits child limitation 41 (26.3) 40 (50.0) 157 (40.5) 122 (31.4) never tried to practice fp 76 (95.0) 345 (88.9) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org it is left to god to give male or female children 63 (78.8) 327 (84.3) those who do not approve of their wife(s) working outside the house 46 (57.5) 265 (68.3) so also was lack of intention to plan their families in future. this attitude was however, higher among older men (86.3%) (table2). their reasons for not planning their family are mainly desire for more children, which is higher among older men (39.4%) and against religious beliefs which is higher among younger men (51.3%). major reasons for wanting to have more children are; need to provide care in old age which is higher among older men (40.5%) and religion which is higher among younger men (9.0%). fewer younger men disapprove of their wife working outside the home (57.5%) than the older men (68.3%). ethnic group and male attitude towards family planning table 3 shows that the major ethnic groups in the state are kanuri, shuwa, hausa and babur/bura, even though the predominant ethnic group was kanuri (71% of respondents). in order to explore the influence of ethnicity on attitude towards fp, the respondents were categorized according to ethnic groups. general disapproval of fp is highest among the kanuri (86.1%) followed by the shuwa (84.6%). those who have no intention to practice family planning are consistently highest among the kanuri (89.9%) and lowest among babur/bura (54.5%). also those who never tried to plan their family are lowest among the babur/bura people (66.7%). table 3: attitude of various ethnic groups towards attitudinal variables of different ethnic group different ethnic groups kanuri shuwa hausa babur/bura n = 338 n = 13 n = 36 n =66 freq. (%) freq. (%) freq. (%) freq. (%) disapprove of fp 291 (86.1) 11 (84.6) 28 (77.8) 37 (56.1) do not intend to practice fp in future 304 (89.9) 10 (76.9) 31 (86.1) 36 (54.5) have never discussed fp with wife(s) 319 (94.4) 10 (76.9) 29 (80.6) 43 (65.2) major reasons for not practicing fp:  want more children  against religious beliefs 157 (46.4) 124 (36.7) 4 (30.8) 7 (53.8) 6(16.7) 24 (66.7) 15 (22.7) 11 (16.7) major reasons for wanting to have more children.  need to provide care in old age  religion prohibits child limitation 126 (37.3) 118 (34.9) 8 (61.5) 3 (23.8) 7 (19.4) 20 (55.6) 20 (30.3) 14 (21.2) never tried to practice fp: 319 (94.4) 11 (84.6) 33 (91.7) 44 (66.7) it is left to god to give male or female file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org children 291 (86.1) 12 (92.3) 29 (80.6) 46 (69.7) disapprove of wife work outside the house. 261 (77.2) 10 (76.9) 30 (83.3) 48 (72.7) the majority of males who have never discussed family planning with wives are the kanuri (94.4%) and the least are babur/bura (65.2%). their major reasons for not practicing fp are mainly because they want more children or because of religious beliefs. on why they wanted more children the major reasons were, need to provide care during old age and religion. except among the hausa, the need for care during old age overrides the religious belief as a reason. disapproval of work outside the house is lowest among the babur/ bura. the most favourable attitude towards fp appears to be among this group. attitude towards family planning by residence in the sample population, there are three categories of residential areas: villages, local government area headquarters which are semi-urban and the state capital, which is urban. table 4 shows that the level of disapproval of fp is highest among rural men (83.5%), lack of intention to practice family planning in the future was highest among semi urban men (94.3%). the least is recorded for urban residents. those who never tried to plan their families are highest in the rural areas and lowest in the urban areas. non communication with wife regarding family planning is also highest amongst rural men. table 4: attitude towards fp and residence attitudinal variables residence of respondents rural semi-urban urban n = 254 n = 141 n = 46 freq. (%) freq. (%) freq. (%) disapprove of fp 212 (83.5) 110 (78.0) 37 (80.4) no intention to practice fp in the future 222 (87.4) 133 (94.3) 38 (82.6) those who have never discussed fp with wife(s) 235 (74) 120 (85.1) 38 (82.6) major reasons for not practicing fp:  wants more children:  against religious beliefs 122 (48.0)85 (33.5) 46 (32.6) 62 (43.4) 6 (15.0) 25 (62.5) major reasons for wanting to have more children:  need to provide care in old age:  religion prohibits child limitation. 133 (52.4) 79 (31.0) 47 (33.4) 54 (38.3) 6 (13.0) 18 (39.1) never tried to practice fp 237 (93.3) 122 (86.5) 39 (84.8) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org it is left to god to give male or female children 210 (82.7) 124 (87.9) 34 (73.9) those who do not approve of their wife(s) working outside the house 178 (70.1) 85 (60.3) 28 (60.9) major reasons for not practicing family planning are: desire for more children (48%) and religion (33.5%) among rural men. for the semi-urban and urban areas, religious beliefs take precedence over need for more children. reasons for wanting more children are: need to provide care during old age which decreases with urbanization while religion as a reason increases with urbanization. all the variables indicate that urbanization has a positive effect on men’s attitude towards fp. attitude of men towards family planning and number of wives about 48% of the respondents have one wife at the time of interview, while the rest have more than one wife each. those with the highest level of disapproval of fp are men with 3 wives. lack of intention to plan the family in the future is highest among men with two wives (table 5). none of the variables revealed any relationship between, number of wives and attitude to fp except in the case of disapproval of work by wives that steadily increased as the number of wives increased. in view of this, no conclusive statement could be made regarding the effect of number of wives a man has and his attitude towards family planning. table 5: attitude of men to fp in relation to their number of wives variables depicting attitude number of wives 1 2 3 4 n =227 n = 180 n = 40 n = 28 freq. (%) freq. (%) freq. (%) freq. (%) disapprove of fp 188 (82.8) 141 (78.3) 34 (85.0) 22 (78.6) do not intend to practice fp in future 183 (82.8) 155 (86.1) 36 (50.0) 23 (82.1) those who have never discussed fp with wife(s) 198 (87.2) 162 (90.0) 35 (87.5) 24 (85.7) major reasons for not practicing fp:  want more children  against religious beliefs 92 (40.5) 85 (37.4) 68 (37.7) 73 (40.5) 16 (40.0) 16 (40.0) 7 (25.0) 15 (53.6) major reasons for wanting to have more children.  need to provide care in old age  religion prohibits child limitation 81 (35.7) 85 (37.4) 74 (41.1) 52 (28.9) 12 (30.0) 19 (47.5) 14 (50.0) 7 (25.0) never tried to practice fp 198 (87.2) 167 (92.8) 37 (92.5) 24 (85.7) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org it is left to god to give male or female children 179 (78.9) 156 (86.7) 34 (85.0) 26 (92.9) those who do not approve of their wife(s) working outside the house. 147 (64.8) 119 (66.1) 29 (72.5) 21 (75.0) discussion the findings of this study indicate that there is a general negative attitude towards fp. however, a breakdown shows that the attitude of muslim men towards family planning as reported in other studies such as roudi and ashford (1996) is mainly negative. but on the whole, men with quranic education are the most conservative as would be expected because of the belief that islam is against family planning. people with western education are more favourably disposed than others as found in other studies (underwood, 2000). the higher the level of education, the less negative the attitude. younger men (<30 years) also have less negative attitude than older men (>30 years). this may indicate that, the new generation of muslim men is becoming more receptive to the issue of family planning. the attitude of males by their ethnic group shows that the kanuri and fulani have the most negative attitude while the babur/burahave the most positive attitude. the babur/bura who come from the southern part of the state have had longer contact with western education and have higher western literacy levels as observed by akpede, omotara and gazali (1995). this could be responsible for their receptive attitude towards family planning. urbanization has also been found to have a neutralizing effect on negative attitude because the level of disapproval decreases with urbanization. the difference between the rural and urban men is that, rural men want more children to provide security in old age, while urban dwellers want more children because religion prohibits child limitation. economic reasons take precedence in the rural areas while religious influence is more important in urban areas presumably because of higher religious awareness. no relationship could be established between number of wives and attitudes towards family planning. perhaps this aspect needs a more rigorous investigation. overall, socio-economic insecurity is the driving factor of high fertility rates, rather than religion as can be seen from differing fertility levels in the various muslim countries. in some of these countries they have high levels of family planning acceptance. for instance putra and singh (2015) noted that there is a difference of opinion in relation to acceptability of family planning or otherwise in islam. they stated that according to the faculty of medicine of the king abdulaziz university of saudi arabia family planning is acceptable within wedlock if there is a threat to the health or life of the expectant mother. likewise, in a study carried out in jordan where the majority of the people are muslims, 82% of male and 98% of female religious leaders believe that family planning is in keeping with islamic tenets as reported by putra and singh (2015). and in a study conducted in sudan, 59.5% of muslim men believe that islam approves of family planning as reported by khalifa (1988). in conclusion, better economic conditions and more education are shown to ameliorate attitude towards fp as seen in this study and in other countries around the world. improving on these two factors and providing health education that is culture and religion specific targeted at males will help in this regard. the messages should include the consequences of closely spaced pregnancy on the mother and child, especially on already existing children. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org acknowledgement we acknowledge the financial assistance of macarthur foundation for sponsoring the research under their fund for leadership development (fld) program. references ahmed, d. & demba, a.(1994).behind cairo ’94: the demographic war on islam. eir feature, august 12, 1994. . ajzen, i. (2012) the theory of planned behaviour in lange, p.a.m, kruglanski, a.w, & higgins, e.t. (eds.) handbook of theories of social psychology, 1, 438-459. sage, london, u.k. (accessed on 21/03/2018) akpede, g.o., omotara, b.a., & gazali, w. (1995). severity signs of childhood diarrhoea in north eastern nigeria. journal of the royal society of health. vol. 115, 3, 164-175 aliyu, i.a. (1992) kayyade iyaliko tsaraiyali: hadarinsu da matsayinsa a musulnci. rukhsa publications, kano. baig, k. (1994). controlling muslim, catholic, and third world populations. impact international, september 1994. bruce, j. (1990) fundamental elements of quality of care: a simple framework. studies in family planning; 21, 2, 61-91 cook, d. & maine, d. ( 1991). islam and family planning acceptance. studies in family planning 22, 1, 15-19. duze, m.c. & mohammed, i.z. (2006) male knowledge, attitudes and family planning practices in northern nigeria. african journal of reproductive health 10, 3, 53-65 federal republic of nigeria, (1988). national policy on population for development, unity, progress and self-reliance, department of population activities, federal ministry of health. lagos, nigeria iyer, s. (2002) religion and the decision to use contraception in india. journal for the scientific study of religion; 41, 4, 711-722 khalifa, m. a. (1988). attitudes of urban sudanese men toward family planning. studies in family planning.19, 4, 236-243 liagin, e. (1996). population is power: billion reasons to control muslim population. politics and population, impact international. april 1996; pp. 18 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.3, issue 1 no.1, pp 1 14, 2018 www.ajpojournals.org national population commission (npc) nigeria & icf macro (2013) nigeria demographic and health survey 2013. abuja, nigeria: national population commission. odimegwu, c.o (1996) family planning attitudes and use in nigeria: a factor analysis. international family planning perspectives 25, 2, 118-125. orubuloye, i.o. & caldwell, j. c (eds) (1994). sexual networking and aids in sub-saharan africa. behavioral research and the social context. canberra health research center. patra, s. & singh, r.k. (2015) addressing unmet need and religious barriers towards the use of family planning methods among muslim women in india. international journal of human rights in healthcare; 8(1) doi:10.1108/ijhrh-06-2014-0010 (accessed on 21/11/2016) population reference bureau (1996). world population data sheet.washington dc, usa. roudi, f. & ashford, l. ( 1996). men and family planning in africa. population reference bureau, washington, usa. sada, i.n. (1993). islam and child spacing. rukhsa publications, kano, nigeria. sai, f. (1989). the problems of fertility regulation in africa development in family planning policies and programmes in africa. proceedings of the colloquium on the impact of family planning programmes in sub-saharan africa: current issues and prospects. regional institute for population studies, university of ghana, legon. pp. 58 stephenson, r. & hennink, m. (2004) barriers to family planning service use among the urban poor in pakistan. opportunity and choices working paper no. 2, february, 2004. tilahun, t., coene, g., luchters, s., kassahun, w., leye, e., temmerman,m., &degomme, o. family planning knowledge, attitude and practice among married couples in jimma zone, ethiopia plos one, 2013; 8(4) e61335 (online journal) doi:10.137/journal.pone.0061335 (accessed on 24/11/2016) underwood, c (2000). islamic precepts and family planning: the perceptions of jordanian religious leaders and their constituents. international family planning perspectives 26, 3, 100-109 world health organization (2013) who media center factsheet on family planning.www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs351/en/ff (accessed on 25/11/2016) world health organization, unfpa, world bank (2012) trends in maternal mortality: 1990 to 2010. world health organization, geneva. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs351/en/ff effects of human resource management practices on employee retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya faith wanja njuguna dr. hellen mugambi dr. julius kahuthia european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 60 effects of human resource management practices on employee retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya 1*faith wanja njuguna, 2dr. hellen mugambi, 3dr. julius kahuthia 1student, st paul’s university 2senior lecturer, st paul’s university 3senior lecturer, st paul’s university *e-mail of corresponding author: faithnjugunaw@gmail.com abstract purpose: the general objective of the study was to establish the human resource practices affecting employee retention in selected private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya. the specific objectives were: to examine the influence of career development, work life balance, work environment and compensation strategies on retention of employees in selected private hospitals in kiambu. methodology: descriptive survey was employed. the study focused on the level 3 and 4 private hospitals, which are 7 within the county. this study targeted 340 employees of level 3 and 4 private hospitals in kiambu county. the study used purposive sampling and sampled medical workers of the private hospitals in kiambu county who were 120. the medical workers who included the doctors, nurses and clinical officers were sampled since they have knowledge on human resource practices and employee retention at the private hospitals. findings: findings displayed that 89 of the questionnaires we filled properly and returned. the results showed that career development, work life balance, compensation strategies and work environment had a positive and significant effect on employee retention in private hospitals. unique contribution to practice and policy: private hospitals that do not have a coaching and mentorship programs for their employees should ensure they introduce them since they enhance employee retention. the investigation also endorses that the private hospitals should inspire active cooperation across different parts of the organization. they should also ensure that there is a career path of staffs in their firm. since career growth and development are an integral part of every individual's career; more opportunities should be created for employees of private hospitals. in addition, private hospitals should have a clear work schedule for their employees. in addition, private hospitals should ensure they have enough leave days for their workers. key words: career development, work life balance, work environment, compensation strategies, retention of employees file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:faithnjugunaw@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 61 1.0 introduction with globalization fanning competition for talented and skilled employees, organizations are challenged to find better ways to entice and retain talented as well as equipped workers. this is necessary if they have to continue to offer quality humanitarian services and develop products that meet the needs of their ultimate beneficiaries. employees are tremendously vital to a firm since their value is fundamentally intangible and not easily replicated (muma, 2018). armstrong and baron (2012) stated that workers’ skills and experience contribute significantly to the success of an organization. besides, aydogdu and asikgil (2011) asserted that given a swiftly fluctuating business atmosphere, it ought not to be overlooked that the performance of a firm depends on the commitment, motivation and satisfaction of the workers. retention of employees as noted by muma (2018), refers to sustaining staff members that one needs to keep and not drop them from the firm for whichever reason and more so to the competitors. further, the author observed that, the important workers are those that have positions that are key to the firm success. similarly, ndinya, nzulwa and kwena (2017) referred retention as the act of keeping those employees that keep the business going. the authors noted that, such employees are the performers, mismatched or burnout employees. as such, they are the staff a firm cannot lose since they are hard to replace as they play a key role to the organization's success. according to anyumba (2016) an organization that has high retention rates values employees’ worth. in addition; it treats their human resource as their key strategy and encourages team work, individual responsibility and ownership with a positive work culture by involving the organization and their staff. in addition, employee retention is critical to an organization, since issues such as candidate search, recruitment, appointment and training are time consuming and an expensive investment. in these regard, inability to sustain the main employees can be quite expensive for a firm (riley, michael & mahoney, 2017). in a similar argument, djabatey (2012) estimated that losing a middle level employee means losing more than 5 times his salary. as such, hrm practices enable a business firm to retain its effective employees through communication to boost commitment and enrich workforce upkeep for key corporate initiatives (matazu, 2017). according to kimani (2016), human resource management practices have been defined as a structure that entices, develops, inspires, and retains workers to certify the active enactment and the existence of the firm and its members. hrm practices generate processes that contain the workers’ skills and knowledge throughout the firm to stimulate unique and valued firm competencies which enhance employee retention. aguenza and som (2018) also observed that majority of the workers are able to stay at work only if their organizations have good human resource practices. katou and budhwar (2014) further argued that hrm practices positively influences employee retention because it generates job satisfaction of the employees.priyasad and weerasinghe (2017) found out that, pay elevation and non-monetary matters are key factors of employee retention. the non-monetary factors include: enhanced benefit platforms, flexible work timetables, conducive work environment, stock options, better training and career advancement. an employee reward program is also one of the methods hrm practices employ to alter work procedures and key behaviors to benefit an organization. however, employee retention is a great problem in the health sector (kinya, 2018). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 62 in these regards, this research purposes at instituting the human resource factors that affect employee retention. this study focused on internal factors whichare concerned with how individuals are employed in firms. nevertheless, there are many internal human resource practices, the current study focused on only four hrm practices which include; career development, work life balance, compensation strategies and work environment. these four are the most applicable in private hospital employees and also most of the other practices are over researched. 1.1 problem statement in kenya, the private hospitals, there have been low retention rates of the employees. indeed, the rate at which the doctors and nurses have been leaving the hospitals is alarming (nnadi & chinedu, 2019). staffing trends from the year 2011 to 2015 showed that 381 technicians, 1,678 doctors, 845 clinical officers and 2,406 nurses were recruited. however, in the same period of 2011 to 2015, 461 nurses, 972 doctors and 185 lab technicians exited the heath sector (moh, 2015). similarly, kaph (2017) report further that over 27% of the workers in private hospitals leave their medical profession every year. kinya (2018) noted that, private hospitals in kiambu county are experiencing employee retention challenges. for instance, in 2019, more than 50% of the private hospitals in kiambu recorded high levels of staff turnover. for example, plansview nursing home in ruiru kiambu; between 2016 and 2017, the number of employees who left were 7 and 14 respectively. this represented a retention rate of 72%. in addition, in 2019, the number of employees retained was34 while 9 staff members left (transcom wendo hospital annual report, 2019). the low retention rate is causing private hospitals to offer poor services while others have been forced to employ unqualified staff that are not able to offer professional services to the patients (ndemaki, 2014). this has resulted to negligence and errors in medication to patients which sometimes even cause deaths (ndemaki, 2014).the health sector has a great task in ensuring efficient and timely provision of the highest attainable level of standards of health to its population as stated in the kenyan constitution under the bill of rights as well as vision 2030. failure to effectively achieve this in private hospitals limits the achievement of vision 2030 as well as big four agenda (kepsa, 2017). past studies have been done on human resource practices and employee retention. for instance, anyumba (2016) focused non-monetary variables that affect employee retention, thus presenting a contextual gap. the current research adopted both monetary and non-monetary hrm practices. muthui (2020) did a study on influence of hrm practices on retaining of millenarian work force. the research was done in consolidated bank of kenya limited thus presenting a scope gap. haider et al. (2015) did a study on the impact of human resource practices on workers’ retention. in this research human resource practices included; career development, work life balance, compensation strategies and work environment. the current study therefore sought to explore the effect of human resource practices on workers’ retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 63 1.2 objectives of the study the general objective of the study is to establish the effect of human resource practices on employee retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya 1.2.1 specific objectives of the study i. to explore the influence of career development on employee retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya ii. to determine the influence of work life balance on employee retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya iii. to examine the influence of compensation strategies on employee retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya iv. to determine the influence of work environment on employee retention in private hospitals in kiambu county, kenya 2.0 literature review 2.1 theoretical perspective of the study 2.1.1 herzberg’s theory herzberg (1959) developed the hypothesis. herzberg revealed that staffs inclined to designate nourishing involvements in better conditions of influences that were essential to the satisfaction of job itself (ramlall, 2004). herzberg’s two factor hypothesis claims that staffs are inspired by intrinsic rewards rather than external factors to the job. according to koech and namusonge (2012), internal rewards contain accomplishment, gratitude, accountability and progress. external rewards are policies of a firm, worker association, work environment and management strategies. according to this hypothesis, factors that lead to job satisfaction are different from those causing dissatisfaction in the job and thus the ceos who seek to eradicate aspects that generate disappointment can convey about harmony (ramlall, 2004). in this hypothesis, dissatisfaction among employees is attributed to ‘hygiene’ features which include salary, firm plans, working situations, position and job refuge. the only method to yield job fulfillment and surge enthusiasm was to make work itself more stimulating and to advance items like chances for accomplishment, acknowledgment, accountability and progression. affirming the same opinion torrington et al. (2008) contends that when the two factors are there, they cause high performance and more effort in job incumbent. these issues unswervingly affect how individuals feel about their job. this theory informs the work environment variable. from this theory, one has had to understand the current conditions of their workplace and whether they are conducive since this will enhance employee retention. herzberg theory has been criticized. the features that lead to the dissatisfaction and satisfaction of employees are similar. the features that are important for dissatisfaction and satisfaction are recognition, achievement and responsibility. however, issues such as security, working conditions and security are less important. in addition, this hypothesis has laid little emphasis on the association between dissatisfaction and motivation. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 64 2.1.2 hierarchy of needs theory maslow (1943) developed this hypothesis. the hypothesis was advanced under the belief that people are driven by requirements that are in born (maslow, 1943). the hypothesis shows that lower requirements need to be contented beforehand so as one can make advancement to the next wants levels. at the workplace, worker’s wants ought to be met, particularly wellbeing wants and regard need hunt for fulfillment of how compensation, career advancement, working state, payment and appreciation impact turnover. this theory argues that human needs are organized in an order of five (5) significant stages. according to maslow the initial stage is to fulfill the needs that are physiological that include air, clothing, water, etc. after the basic needs are contented, the second stage will be the psychological need satisfaction. somehow, job security of the workers can be assured through activities which include training and development, elevation and pension tactics. the third need is of a social nature that comprises having a sense of belonging and gratitude in a given work atmosphere through attachment. self-esteem requirements set in that entailed a job title with an important status. the last stage is self-actualization then calculations in all that comprises worker ability to give back to social needs and thus sensation of attainment and gratification. maslow assumes that each stage must be fulfilled before it can become of importance. however, if the beforehand pleased stage set of wants becomes incomplete again, the earnings are discrete at that stage (maslow, 1943). this hypothesis will be very important in this study and shows that private hospitals need to motivate their employees. this theory informs career advancement variable. the theory indicated that providing career development and growth opportunities on or off the job enhances employee retention. the theory has had some shortcomings. the sex position in this theory is put in the same category with food and breathing. hofstede (1984) argues that sex in this category shows an individual form that does not recognize psychological and emotional impact that it has on a person. 2.2 empirical review ampoty (2018) measured the impact of career development on workers’ retention. the specific objectives included; the effect of training on workers’ retention, the effect of coaching and mentorship on workers’ retention and the effect of promotion on career development. in addition, workers require enough career advancement opportunities to prepare them to serve effectively and as well as a plan to retain them. the study also concluded that organizations that have career aspirations for their employees boost their retention too. suifan, abdallah and diab (2016) investigation focused on impact of work life stability on turnover purpose in private hospitals. descriptive research design was used. outcomes displayed that management support and job autonomy as a work life balance practices had a negative influence on turnover intentions. in addition, work life balance had a link with turnover intentions. the study focused on only one factor that affects turnover retentions. the current study focused on three more factors. mccloskey and mateo (2016) argue that people may realize their worth through the pay that is attached to the effort they feel they deliver to an organization. if the employee is very talented in file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 65 a particular area they expect that the compensation is also commensurate to the work they do. they continue to argue that employers who value talent and have proper talent management programs give the employees an opportunity to propose their expected remuneration to enable the employer understand their levels of satisfaction. to retain and motivate talent, employers could also consider benefits in the form of allowances and bonuses putting into consideration flex working hours to prevent issues associated with work life balance. if most of these things are taken care of, employees are most likely to be highly efficient thus overall organizational success. msengeti and obwogi (2015) identified the position of the wage and work atmosphere on the employees’ retention in the hotels in mombasa county. discoveries exposed that wage had a weak inspiration on retention of employees while the work atmosphere had the toughest impact which was substantial. in nigeria, ushie et al. (2015) focused on work environment and employees’ commitment. the study specifically sought to determine the effect of security on employees’ commitment in industries in cross river state and to determine the effect of open communication on employees’ commitment in businesses. the study was descriptive in nature. findings discovered that work atmosphere which includes consistent communication flow, a manageable assignment and electricity availability influence staff performance. 3.0 research methodology descriptive survey was employed. the study focused on the level 3 and 4 private hospitals, which are 7 within the county. this study targeted 340 employees of level 3 and 4 private hospitals in kiambu county. the study used purposive sampling and sampled medical workers of the private hospitals in kiambu county who were 120. the medical workers who included the doctors, nurses and clinical officers were sampled since they have knowledge on human resource practices and employee retention at the private hospitals. primary data through semi structured questionnaires was collected. descriptive techniques, correlation and regression were used to analyze the data. tables and figures were used to present the results. 4.0 results 4.1 descriptive statistics 4.1.1 career development the study findings of career development variable were as depicted in table 1. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 66 table 1: career development statement strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongl y agree mean std. dev there is a mentorship ad coaching programs for all workers 3.40% 20.20% 13.50% 47.20% 15.70% 3.52 1.09 workers career ambitions within the firm are recognized by her superior 1.10% 15.70% 6.70% 50.60% 25.80% 3.84 1.02 workers in our firm have more than one probable situation for elevation 2.20% 20.20% 14.60% 41.60% 21.30% 3.60 1.10 individual and society and development wants are coordinated in this organization 7.90% 11.20% 6.70% 50.60% 23.60% 3.71 1.18 grant and support are accessible for all operate 3.40% 13.50% 4.50% 39.30% 39.30% 3.98 1.14 there is career development of workers in the hospital 4.50% 6.70% 9.00% 50.60% 29.20% 3.93 1.03 average 3.76 1.09 the results displayed that 62.9% (47.2% +15.7%) agreed that there is a mentorship and coaching programs for all workers in their hospitals. the mean was 3.52 which was slightly lower than the compound average which was 3.76. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. this implies that most private hospitals have coaching and mentorship programs which enhance employee retention. findings displayed that 76.4% settled that worker’s job aspirations within the firm are known by her instant supervisor. the mean was 3.84 which was higher than the compound average of 3.76. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implies that most private hospitals have career aspirations for their employees which motivate the employees to continue working for the organization. in addition, findings displayed that 62.9% settled that staffs in the firm have more than one probable position for elevation. the mean was 3.60 which was slightly lower than the compound average of 3.76. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. results displayed that 74.2% settled that employee and firm needs are harmonized in this organization. the mean was 3.98 which was slightly higher than the compound average of 3.71. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implies that most employees of the kiambu private hospitals are comfortable with the career growth in their organization and thus they are motivated to continue working for the organization. finding displayed that 78.2% designated that grant and sponsorship are accessible for all staff. the mean was 3.98 which was slightly higher than the compound average of 3.76. this implies file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 67 that the statement\affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implies that most private hospitals have scholarship and sponsorship for their employees which enhance employee retention. in addition, findings displayed 79.8% agreed that there befalls career pathway of labors in the firm. the mean was 3.93 which was slightly higher than the compound average of 3.76. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. the overall mean of career development was 3.76 while the standard deviation was 1.09 showing that most individuals were in agreement with the statement. 4.1.2 work life balance the study findings of work life balance variable were as depicted in table 2. table 2: work life balance statement strongly disagree disagre e neutral agree strongly agree mea n std. dev there exists a work life policy in the organization 5.60% 7.90% 33.70% 44.90% 7.90% 3.42 0.95 there is a perfect work calendar in the firm 5.60% 4.50% 14.60% 57.30% 18.00% 3.78 0.99 i’m contented with the working times of the firm 1.10% 4.50% 15.70% 57.30% 21.30% 3.93 0.81 the hospital has staff well-being programs 1.10% 15.70% 18.00% 50.60% 14.60% 3.62 0.96 the demands of my personal life interfere with work-related duties. 6.00% 10.90% 10.10% 47.20% 25.80% 3.82 1.01 leave days are available any time i require them 16.90% 7.90% 4.50% 52.80% 18.00% 3.47 1.34 average 3.67 1.01 the findings displayed 52.9% (44.9% +7.9%) designated that there exists a work life procedure in the organization. the mean was 3.42 which was slightly lower than the compound average of 3.67. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. this implied that most private hospitals have a work life policy which enhances workers’ retention. in addition, results displayed 75.3% designated that there exists a clear work schedule in the organization. the mean was 3.78 which was higher than the compound average of 3.67. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implied that most private hospitals have a clear work schedule for private hospitals which enhances workers’ retention. the findings displayed that 78.6% designated that there they are satisfied with the working hours of the organization. the mean was 3.93 which was higher than the compound average of 3.67. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implied that most private hospitals have good working hours which enhances workers’ retention. the results displayed 65.2% designated that the hospital has staff wellbeing programs. the mean was 3.62 which was slightly lower than file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 68 the compound average of 3.67. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. this implied that most private hospitals have a staff wellbeing program which enhances workers’ retention. in addition, findings displayed 73.0% designated that the demands of my personal life interfere with work-related duties. the mean was 3.82 which was higher than the compound average of 3.67. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. findings also showed that 70.8% designated that leave days are available any time they require them. the mean was 3.47 which was slightly lower than the compound average of 3.67. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. this implied that most private hospitals have a leave plan for staff which enhances workers’ retention. 4.1.3 compensation strategies the study findings of compensation strategies variable were as depicted. table 3: compensation strategies statement strongly disagree disagre e neutral agree strongl y agree mean std.d ev the hospital does annual salary review 3.40% 2.20% 12.40% 57.30% 24.70% 3.98 0.88 bonus pay is satisfactory and commensurate to effort 3.40% 2.20% 10.10% 58.40% 25.80% 4.01 0.87 employees are attracted by merit based pay (percentage increase in salary based on good performance permanently added on to the salary) 6.70% 3.40% 11.20% 55.10% 23.60% 3.85 1.04 employee appreciation for better performance by the employer enhances employee motivation in this organization 1.10% 4.50% 10.10% 55.10% 29.20% 4.07 0.82 the firm offers good remuneration to all staff 0.00% 3.40% 15.70% 51.70% 29.20% 4.07 0.77 the allowances gives commensurate to efforts 11.20% 16.90% 6.70% 44.90% 20.20% 3.46 1.30 average 3.91 0.95 findings were displayed that 82.0% designated that the hospital does annual salary review. the mean was 3.98 which was higher than the compound average of 3.91. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implied that most private hospitals have an annual salary review which enhances employee retention. in addition, results showed that 84.2% designated that bonus pay is satisfactory and commensurate to effort. the mean was 4.01 which was higher than the compound average of 3.91. this implies that the file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 69 statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implied that most private hospitals have a bonus pay for their employees which enhances employee retention. finding also showed that 78.7% designated that employees are attracted by merit based pay (percentage increase in salary based on good performance permanently added on to the salary).the mean was 3.85 which was slightly lower than the compound average of 3.91. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. in addition, findings showed that majority of the respondents who were 84.3% designated that employee appreciation for better performance by the employer enhances employee motivation in their organization. the mean was 4.07 which was higher than the compound average of 3.91. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implies that employee appreciation enhances employee retention. findings also displayed that majority of the respondents who were 80.9% designated that the firm offers good remuneration to all staff. the mean was 4.07 which was higher than the compound average of 3.91. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. in addition, 65.1% designated that the allowances give commensurate to efforts. the mean was 3.46 which was slightly lower than the compound average of 3.91. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. this implied that employee allowances enhance employee retention. 4.1.4 work environment the study findings of work environment variable were as depicted in table 4. table 4: work environment statement strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongl y agree mean std. dev the physical working conditions (e.g., heating, ventilation, space, cleanliness) are very good 1.10% 4.50% 21.30% 48.30% 24.70% 3.91 0.86 there are adequate tools and equipment of work in our hospital 2.20% 2.20% 22.50% 49.40% 23.60% 3.90 0.87 there is apparent and open communication in our organization 1.10% 6.70% 20.20% 47.20% 24.70% 3.88 0.90 our organization has very good security 5.60% 7.90% 20.20% 47.20% 19.10% 3.66 1.05 there exist a work life policy in the organization 5.60% 11.20% 20.20% 31.50% 31.50% 3.72 1.19 the hospital has put in place the covid 19 guidelines to ensure all employees are safe 5.60% 4.50% 4.50% 65.20% 20.20% 3.90 0.97 average 3.83 0.97 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 70 results displayed 82.0% designated that the physical working conditions (e.g., heating, ventilation, space, cleanliness) are very good. the mean was 3.91 which is higher than the compound average of 3.83. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. findings also showed 78.7% designated that there are adequate tools and equipment of work in their hospital. the mean was 3.90 which was higher than the compound average of 3.83. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implied that having adequate tools and equipment enhances employee retention. in addition, 77.5% designated that there is apparent and open communication in their organization. the mean was 3.88 which was higher than the compound average of 3.83. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. this implied that most private hospitals have open communication which enhances employee performance. findings further displayed that 74.2% designated that their organization has very good security. the mean was 3.66 which was slightly lower than the compound average of 3.83. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. this implied that good security in an organization enhances employee retention. this was not in agreement with herzberg theory which indicated that issues such as security, working conditions and security are less important. in addition, 59.6% agreed with the statement that there exist a work life policy in their organization. the mean was 3.72 which was slightly lower than the compound average of 3.83. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals negatively. findings further displayed that 82.0% designated that the hospital has put in place the covid -19 guidelines to ensure all employees are safe. the mean was 3.90 which was higher than the compound average of 3.83. this implies that the statement affects the employee retention of private hospitals positively. 4.1.5 employee retention the dependent variable was employee retention. the findings were as depicted in table 5. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 71 table 5: employee retention statement strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongl y agree mea n std. dev the organization has been effective in controlling employee turnover rates 7.90% 4.50% 5.60% 51.70% 30.30% 3.92 1.12 the firm is dedicated in refining general job satisfaction that aids in holding well performing employee 6.70% 7.90% 6.70% 41.60% 37.10% 3.94 1.17 workers in our organization care about the success of the organization 6.70% 15.70% 0.00% 37.10% 40.40% 3.89 1.28 employees in our organization feel a strong sense of belonging towards the organization 5.60% 9.00% 11.20% 61.80% 12.40% 3.66 1.00 turnover rates have been declining in our hospital 4.50% 13.50% 22.50% 47.20% 12.40% 3.49 1.02 if given an offer to join another institution i would not take it 9.00% 7.90% 1.10% 77.50% 4.50% 3.61 1.02 average 3.75 1.10 findings displayed that 82.0% designated that the firm has been active in monitoring employee turnover tariffs. findings also showed that 78.7%designated that the firm is dedicated in refining general job satisfaction that aids in holding well performing employee. these findings agreed with muathe and nzulwa (2016) who indicated that job satisfaction and satisfactory human resource plans have affirmative relation with retention. findings further displayed that 77.5% designated that workers in the organization care about the success of the organization. these findings agreed with ushie et al. (2015) who discovered those work atmospheres which include consistent communication flow, a manageable assignment, electricity availability affects commitment of employees. findings further displayed that 74.2% designated that employees in the association feel a strong sense of belonging towards the organization. these findings agreed with rees and porter (2008) who indicated that having a solid sense of belonging which boosts employee retention. results also displayed that 59.6% agreed with the statement turnover rates have been declining in their hospital. results also displayed that 82.0% agreed with the statement if given an offer to join another institution they would not take it. the overall mean of employee retention statements was 3.75 with a standard deviation of 1.10. 4.2 regression results outcomes of regression were generated and the results presented in table 6, table 7 and table 8 respectively. model fitness results were presented in table below. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 72 table 6: model fitness model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .766a 0.587 0.567 0.34566 table 6 shows that the r square was 0.587. this implies that human resource practices explain approximately 58.70% of the variation in employee retention of private hospitals in kiambu county (r2=0.587). the results for anova for human resource practices and employee retention are presented in table 7. table 7: anova results sum of squares df mean square f sig. regression 14.248 4 3.562 29.812 .000b residual 10.036 84 0.119 total 24.284 88 table 7 shows that f statistic of 29.812 and the associated p-value of 0.000 which is a value less than a p value of 0.05. this implies that the human resource practices have statistically significant effect on employee retention at a 95% confidence level. regression of coefficient significance was presented in table 8. table 8: regression of coefficient for financing practices unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta (constant) -0.525 0.402 -1.308 0.195 career development 0.206 0.086 0.193 2.388 0.019 work life balance 0.392 0.084 0.343 4.667 0.000 compensation strategies 0.173 0.079 0.181 2.179 0.032 work environment 0.361 0.086 0.356 4.194 0.000 table 4.12 shows that career development had a positive and significant effect on employee retention (β=0.206, p=0.019). these implied that career development explain 0.206 of the variation in employee retention in private hospitals. therefore an improvement in career development in one unit would lead to improvement in employee retention by 0.206 units. results further showed that work life balance had a positive and significant effect on employee retention (β=0.392, p=0.000). this implied work life balance explained 0.392 of the variation in employee retention in private hospitals. therefore an improvement in worklife balance in one unit would lead to improvement in employee retention by 0.392 units. in addition, results further showed that compensation strategies had a positive and significant effect on employee retention (β=0.173, p=0.032). therefore an improvement in compensation strategies in one unit would lead to improvement in employee retention by 0.392 units. these implied work life balance file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 73 explain 0.173 of the variation in compensation strategies in private hospitals. results further showed that work environment had a positive and significant effect on employee retention (β=0.361, p=0.000). this implied work environment explains 0.361 of the variation in employee retention in private hospitals. these implied work environments explain 0.361 of the variation in compensation strategies in private hospitals. 5.0 conclusions and recommendations 5.1 conclusion of the study the investigation established that career development had a noteworthy impact on employee retention of private hospitals.the study also concluded that organizations with strong employee retention invested more in training and development programs. in addition, private hospitals with career progression of their employees have high level employee retention.furthermore, private hospitals with strong employee retention involve more in collaborative decision-making with workers and in supportive management procedures, thus endorsing a positive image to their workers. the investigation established that work life balance had a noteworthy impact on employee retention of private hospitals. the study also concluded that work-life balance practices reduces turnover and increased productivity and employee satisfaction in private hospitals. being alleged having innovative work-life balance strategies permits private hospitals to boost their reputation in the public domain. this means that they are also well situated to entice and retain superior numbers of job interviewees from which a bigger pool of better competent workers can be selected. the investigation established that compensation strategies had a noteworthy impact on employee retention of private hospitals.the study also concluded that compensation and pay are important aspects for enticing and recollecting competent workers in private hospitals. there is a positive link between rewards and retention. the amount paid in compensation influences a person psychologically, economically and sociologically. the study established that work environment had a noteworthy impact on employee retention of private hospitals. in addition, a positive work environment is thought to make workers feel good about coming to work and offer the essential inspiration to withstand them through the day. in addition, a conducive work environment makes an employee to have an emotional engagement with their work place. 5.2 recommendations of the study private hospitals that do not have a coaching and mentorship programs for their employees should ensure they introduce them since they enhance employee retention. the investigation also endorses that the private hospitals should inspire active cooperation across different parts of the organization. they should also ensure that there is a career path of staffs in their firm. since career growth and development are an integral part of every individual's career; more opportunities should be created for employees of private hospitals. in addition, for private hospitals to have more employee retention, they should invest more on trainings of their employees. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 60 75, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 74 the investigation also recommends that the private hospitals should have a work life policy in their organisation and a clear work schedule for all the employees. in addition, private hospitals should have a clear work schedule for their employees. in addition, private hospitals should ensure they have enough leave days for their workers. all these will enhance their employee retention.in addition, conducive work environment enhances employee retention and thus private hospitals should maintain a high level of conducive work environment so as to retain their employees. references aguenza, b. b., &som, a. p. m. 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(2015). work environment and employees’ commitment in agro-based industries in cross river state, nigeria. global journal ofhuman social sciences, 15(6), 8-15. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-319-42166-7_10.pdf human resources challenges in the nuclear industry (knowledge retention and transfer (krt)) in the united kingdom (uk) as reference ebi hitler agbalalah dr. richard solorzano dr. jack rosenzweig european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 63 human resources challenges in the nuclear industry (knowledge retention and transfer (krt)) in the united kingdom (uk) as reference 1ebi hitler agbalalah atlantic international university corresponding author’s email: hitlerebi@gmail.com 2dr. richard solorzano, lecturer, atlantic international university 3dr. jack rosenzweig lecturer, atlantic international university abstract purpose: the objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between theories on knowledge retention and transfer (krt) and practices currently established in the uk nuclear industry and analyze the effectiveness of these practices in the context of the theories. it further examines the current labour market issues around the uk nuclear industry and look closely at the supply and demand side of it, focusing on expert workers such as engineers, technicians and scientists and further examine the key concept about theories and ideas of knowledge management and krt in particular. methodology: this research is based mainly on the information gathered from secondary sources. the methodology adopted in this research is the doctrinal method. materials to be relied on includes secondary sources; books, energy and management related academic journals, websites from professional bodies, publications merely related to industry, official documents and statistical information and other publications by scholars in the nuclear energy field are relied on. findings: this research found that the uk nuclear industry will require significant number of new highly skilled and qualified workers in the near future. due to the age profile of the nuclear workforce, industry should focus on the retention of existing employees in order to transfer tacit knowledge. while focusing on knowledge transfer more attention will be paid to transfer of tacit knowledge. the main reason for doing this is the fact that most organizational knowledge is tacit or rooted in it and its transfer represents the biggest challenge for organisation. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: this study contributes to knowledge that, by giving scholarships and funding alternatives for the students and teachers interested in the nuclear industry and grants for practical training in the nuclear industry for the purpose of knowledge retention and transfer in the uk nuclear industry. it is further recommended that additional hrm activities in support of the complex staff development system is needed for actual knowledge retention and transfer keywords: human resource, challenges, nuclear industry, knowledge retention http://www.ajpojournals.org/ mailto:hitlerebi@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 64 1.0 introduction there are currently sixteen operating nuclear reactors in the uk with a total capacity of 10,043 megawatt (mw) (department of energy and climate change, 2018a), the share of electricity generated by the nuclear fission in 2018 was 18% (department of energy and climate change, 2018b), the nuclear electricity represented almost two thirds of the total low-carbon energy generated in the united kingdom in the year 2011. according to the digest of united energy statistics 2020 (beis), the nuclear power sector provides about 19.5 percent of the united kingdom’s electricity and produced a small percentage of carbon dioxide. however, most of the uk 's nuclear reactors are near to the end of their operational lives and scheduled to shut down by 2023 (department of energy and climate change, 2018a), only one plant in sizewtell b will continue to operate (the nuclear energy skills alliance, 2013), moreover, almost third of the country's coal fired power stations are due to retire by the same 2023 potentially creating an energy gap if no new nuclear power stations or other energy generating plants are built (berr, 2012). it was estimated that 20-25 giga watt (gw) of new generating capacity has to be built by 2020 so that growing energy demand could be met (berr, 2017). it can be noted that affordability, security, safety and security were key factors in making the actual decision regarding the united kingdom’s nuclear energy future. energy security and climate change were named as the main drivers for new nuclear build in the uk (goodfellowy williams and 2013; greenhalgh and 2012; baker, stoker and simpson, 2013), natural gas is the main source of electricity in britain, about 41% of all electricity in the uk in 2017 was generated from natural gas (department of energy and climate change, 2018c). however, britain's natural gas resources are rapidly diminishing while the share of imported gas is increasing (baker, stoker and simpson, 2016). level of import dependency has risen from 26,6% in 2012 to 36.5% in 2017 (department of energy and 2017; baker stoker and simpson. 2017}. about 41% of all electricity in the uk in 2011 was generated from natural gas (department of energy and climate change. 2018c) however, britain natural gas resources are rapidly diminishing while the share of imported gas is increasing (baker. stoker and simpson, 2017). level of import dependency has risen from 26.6% in 2009 to 36.5% in 2011 (department of energy and climate change, 2018). for example, gas and oil prices have risen dramatically since 2003 from s28/ barrel to $127/barrel in may 2011 (baker 2018). moreover, any instability in supply can further increase the price or/and leave people without electricity (watson, 2016). another example would be the consequences of instability in gas supply. climate change drives for the necessity of nuclear energy. its effects can be seen easily these days. that is why a number one priority for many countries is to stop further damage to die environment. as the uk government introduced the climate change act in 2008 which legally obliges the country to reduce the carbon emission by 35% by 2020 and by 80% before 2050 as its national determination contribution (ndc) toward the reduction of mission as targeted in the parish agreement (department of energy and climate change, 2018) thus, current instability in prices and supply on the energy market, the lifetime of existing plants, rapidly growing world’s energy demand, from natural resources, and increasing pressures of http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 65 climate change played in of die new nuclear build (goodfellow, williams 2017; greenhalgh and 2009; hart 2017) and in january 2008, the uk government published the white paper on nuclear power where it stated that nuclear power was going to play a key role in the uk 's future energy mix providing the country with secure, safe and affordable electricity [bere, 2012). 1.1 statement of problem giving a lean attention to the issues of nuclear energy will create an undue risk to safe, reliable and efficient application of nuclear plants and will also pose a threat to sustain a competitive advantage. the operation of nuclear energy needs the availability of knowledge, and skill to manage the safe operations of nuclear electricity, at the same time, there is need to recruit these professionals while the existing ones get retired due to legal age. hence, there is need to heavily rely on skilled people who have the actual, still, knowledge and experience in the operations. knight, in 2008 states that the united kingdom is having a shortage of qualified workforce in the nuclear section in terms of skill, knowledge in the operations. the knowledge gap will only grow with time if no actions are taken, given the ageing workforce and very little fresh blood entering the industry. this is due to the fact that most skilled workers who were working in the industry since the first plaint was commission retired. these first workers have a wide knowledge that was acquired over time through working experience. it can be added that the vast knowledge acquired over time is the hardest to manage and it can be very difficult to transfer it into any formal storage facility. it is even more challenging these days since the number of qualified replacements is very low. hence, the high risk of losing the technical know-how in the operations of nuclear knowledge if urgent attention is not given. 1.2 aim and objectives the aim of this dissertation is to look at human resources challenges in the nuclear industry (knowledge retention and transfer in (krt)) the united kingdom (uk) as reference the objectives of this paper are: i. to examine the relationship between theories on knowledge retention and transfer (krt) and practices currently established in the uk nuclear industry and analyse the effectiveness of these practices in the context of the theories. ii. to examine the current labour market issues around the uk nuclear industry and look closely at the supply and demand side of it, focusing on expert workers such as engineers, technicians and scientists; iii. to examine the key concept about theories and ideas of knowledge management and knowledge retention and transfer (krt) in particular. 2.0 literature review certainly, it would be an incomplete work, or perhaps meaningless, if this paper fails to examine the subject matter of discourse -human resources challenges in the nuclear industry knowledge retention and transfer (krt)) in the united kingdom (uk) as reference. in order to examine, summarize, evaluate and clarify the related works of other scholars as related to this work and also to establish a fundamental basis for this research, the literature was reviewed under the following http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 66 sub-themes: theoretical framework and empirical research on the nuclear industry (knowledge and retention). 2.1 theoretical framework the situation around the uk nuclear human resources has been a hot topic of discussion over the past 20 years. since the future of this industry strongly relies on its knowledge, concern has been raised about shortages of people with the right skills and experience as well as about the ageing profile of the current workforce and a high level of scheduled retirements in the next 15 years. therefore, there is a high risk that vast amount of critical knowledge accumulated by the first generation of experts since the “golden years” of nuclear engineering could be lost or not fully transferred (von estorff and debarberis, 2017). hence, one of the most critical challenges for the uk nuclear industry in the near future will be development of effective krt strategies. giving a lean attention to the issues of nuclear energy will create an undue risk to safe, reliable and efficient application of nuclear plants and will also pose a threat to sustain a competitive advantage. knowledge in order to fully understand why departure of some employees can cause significant knowledge loss in a company, it is important to understand the nature of knowledge and its qualities. the meaning of knowledge is debatable even from time immemorial of the greece classical period. according to nonaka 1994, the term “knowledge” has several definitions over time. this research will focus on the most 36 frequently used definitions that can be found in km related articles and journals. the very first explanation of knowledge stems from the classical greece period, where it was described as “justified true belief' (zwass, 2018). as we can see below, the definition of knowledge seems to gained more complexity. for instance, kreiner (2012, p.62) attempt to define knowledge as: “a transient type of resource, as its relevance and credibility are time and context dependent.” he further states that, “we cannot regard knowledge as something that we once for all have collected and constructed. knowledge must constantly be reproduced through execution". here it is important to note, that as a resource, knowledge has special qualities that are very different from any other type of resource held by a firm (adler, 1989; dalkir, 2015; sadler, 1988). from the above, it can be inferred as follows; first, knowledge can be constantly reproduced through execution. second, the transfer of knowledge to others will help in retaining the knowledge. to put it in another words, knowledge never die from the sender even if it is transferred to others. thirdly, nowadays people have access to unlimited sources of knowledge. however, the ability to use it is scarce. lastly, organizational knowledge in situations where it is not managed has a tendency of being lost as a result of employee exiting the company. another very popular definition of knowledge is given by davenport and prusak (2009, p.5), he defines knowledge as “fluid mix of framed experience, values, contextual information and expert insight that provide a framework for evaluation and incorporating new experiences and information ". indisputably, the distinction between data information and knowledge is necessary (nonaka, 1994 and spender, 1996). data usually represents raw numbers and words. information is data that has been structured or organized in a meaningful way. finally, knowledge is a reflection of http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 67 information through the prism of individuals’ beliefs, values, experience, motivation and action (nonaka, 1994). at last, some definitions emphasize close connection of knowledge to action and ability to deliver expected results (alavi and leidner, 1999; brown and duguid, 2001; drucker, 2003 nahapiet and ghoshal, 1998; senge, 1999; tsouk as, 1996 and zwass, 2008). in other words, they state that doing is inseparable from knowing. so, for instance, two great scholars define knowledge to mean “capacity for effective action or decision making". senge (1999) and delong (2004). it can be inferred from the definition that knowledge is a requirement needed to get a desired result in any field. summing up, although there are slight differences in the above-mentioned definitions, there is a general view of knowledge as dynamic, time specific, strongly related to the organizational context and its value is defined by action. knowledge retention and transfer in the uk nuclear industry the uk nuclear industry will require significant number of new highly skilled and qualified workers in the near future. it will have not only to attract new professionals to meet future demand and replace retirees but also develop new skills to meet the requirements of a new build programme. in addition, due to the age profile of the nuclear workforce, industry should focus on the retention of existing employees in order to transfer tacit knowledge successfully to the next generation. this is important condition for successful krt process because knowledge is created and shared through social networks and requires extensive social interaction between predecessor and successor. due to industry specific factors, context and complex expertise, krt strategies can differ from the one discussed in the literature. nuclear industry even has its own definition of knowledge and km that better reflects the industry nature, needs and requirements. why knowledge management is important for the uk nuclear industry the loss of important nuclear knowledge due to the retirement of the first generation of workers will pose a significant threat to safe and economically effective operation of nuclear plants, and it also create the effect of public view and trust (faust, 2007). therefore, krt in the most critical areas such as design, construction, operation, maintenance and decommissioning of the plant is a vital part of the uk nuclear km strategy (iaea, 2011). it is interesting to note that the nuclear industry understanding of km importance differs significantly from the one defined in the theory. the industry, on the other hand, while taking the above factors into consideration, places safety issues above everything. researcher believes that due to the current situation around nuclear workforce, growth of the decommissioning sector and ambitious new nuclear build projects worldwide, the main goal of nuclear km is defined differently from the one found in the academic literature (nickols, in dalkir, 2005). the focus is not on the knowledge-related processes and their effectiveness, but on the people, who works in the industry and people who hold relevant knowledge. iaea defines effective management of nuclear knowledge as “ensuring the continued availability of qualified personnel” (iaea, 2011, p. 49) because only then it will be safe, efficient and secure to operate npp, innovation will prosper and the benefits of nuclear energy will be available for future generations. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 68 moreover, the convention of nuclear safety (article 11.2, in iaea, 2006, p. 22) states that each member state is responsible for providing the sufficient number of highly skilled workers with relevant experience and skills for all safety-related processes for every npp throughout its life. to sum up, the main difference between reviewed literature and reality is that the idea of safe and secure operation of nuclear plants runs through the entire industry which is also reflected as one of the imperatives in its km strategy whereas in theory such matters as competitive advantage and efficiency have a higher priority. uk experience and perspective on knowledge retention and transfer for the same reasons as for the whole nuclear industry, the uk’s krt strategy is focused on the attraction of young employees to the industry. for that purpose, in 2004 the nuclear technology education consortium (ntec) was formed. it came up with about eleven educational organisations with about 20 different areas of specialisation for the masters’ programms (nuclear industry association, 2012). they provided students with real projects that let them gain some insights into the nuclear industry. the success of new master courses and interest expressed by the younger generation to the nuclear subjects led to the development of new undergraduate courses in 2006. furthermore, additional phd programms were made to train more than twenty student per year (nuclear industry association, 2012). to make the inflow of young employees to the industry even higher in the future, visits of nuclear experts to schools are taking place regularly. they are advising about challenges, opportunities and secure career paths within the sector. in addition, in 2008 in order to maintain the sufficient supply of skilled workers, meet future demands of the rapidly growing industry and address current workforce challenges the national skills academy for nuclear was launched (the national skills academy nuclear, 2008). having examined the uk human resources challenges in the nuclear industry and discover that knowledge retention and transfer are the core hr challenges in the uk ’s nuclear energy sector. the research shows that cooperative and collaborative organizational culture, advance technology and identification of business-critical knowledge for successful knowledge retention and transfer (krt) process. 2.2 overview of the reasons for nuclear skills shortage in the uk history has it that the commercial nuclear power station which is the first in the world was built in 1956 in the britain (baker, stoker and simpson, 2011). the uk industry considerably developed over the next few decades with the construction of 33 new nuclear reactors between 1956 and 1976, which was followed by a significant drop in nuclear building during the early and late of 1980 (department of energy and climate change, 2012a). good fellow, williams and azapagic (2011) believe that two major accidents, namely three mile island in 1979 and chernobyl in 1986, had a great influence on the level of new nuclear installations. public perception of the safety of nuclear energy was affected, which raised the profile of anti-nuclear movements (for example, greenpeace) and forced many governments to roll back with their new nuclear programmes and even to phase out existing ones in some countries (kettunen, reiman and ahlstrom, 2007). almost 20 years since the last major nuclear disaster, the uk government still had doubts about the long-term future of nuclear power. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 69 as a result, in 1997, the uk’s newly elected labour party decided to focus on renewable energy by stating: “we see no economic case for the building of any new nuclear power stations” (labour party, 1997). around, 2003, the british government published a white paper reviewing the extant enercly laws with the mind of building new plaints to meet up with carbon reduction target (dti, 2003) five years later, in 2008, the new labour government announced that nuclear power is going to play a key role in the uk ’s future energy mix (berr, 2008a). therefore, in eleven years the government of the united kingdome has drastically shifted it stand on nuclear policy ranging from in 1997 to neutrality in 2003 and to advocacy and support in 2008 (greenhalgh and azapagic, 2009). to conclude on this point, the uk and european uncertainty about the future of nuclear programmes have made the british industry less attractive for the younger generation as it could not offer a secure career with a well-defined path (kettunen, reiman and wahlstrom, 2007). as a result, fewer young people were choosing education and employment in this sector in the uk. in addition, decline in the construction itself, with the last plant built in 1995, and low workforce turnover, which is typical for npp, has led to a steady decrease in the nuclear supply base over the last 20 years (warwick, penney and krishna, 2012; kettunen, reiman and wahlstrom, 2007; iaea, 2004). due to the lack of need for new recruits in the industry, very little attention has been paid to the development of an effective attraction and recruitment policy for the last 25 years. in other words, there was nothing done to promote nuclear engineering or nuclear technician professions to the younger generation. to summarize, uncertainty about the nuclear future, a break in the construction of new nuclear plants, reductions in government funding for nuclear research and development, negative public perceptions of the industry, slow career growth and low salaries has made the industry less attractive for the younger generation. as a consequence, the number of students choosing nuclear, as well as science, engineering and technology disciplines, has dropped significantly. 2.3 empirical review energy companies have announced their plans to build up to 16 gw of new nuclear power capacity in the uk by 2025 (the nuclear energy skills alliance, 2013). new build will create approximately 10,000 jobs per year until 2025 (the nuclear energy skills alliance. 2015). however, it could be very challenging to attract, recruit and retain qualified, experienced and competent staff, given the size and demographic of the industry as well as a huge difference in supply and demand side of nuclear experts (simappyska and von 2018). the number of graduates and young people entering the sector is extremely low and the number of scheduled retirements for the next 10-15 years is high. about 50-70% of the uk's experienced workforce will due to retire by 2025 (the nuclear energy skills alliance. 2013). for example, about 30% of staff of british energy is over 50 and 70% is over 40 (knight, 2012). thus, in order to meet a growing demand for nuclear experts in the nearest future energy companies will not only have to attract and retain new people, but also successfully replace experienced retired staff and transfer their knowledge to a new generation which can take anything from one to eight years depending on the function (iaea, 2004). moreover, on one hand the average time graduates need to become fully professional (gain relevant skills and experience) is http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 70 ten years. to make matter even more difficult, technical and professional staff for a new nuclear plant have to be recruited 5 years in advance before the plant starts its commercial operation (iaea, 2004). planned commercial operation for the uk’s first new nuclear reactor was scheduled for 2018 leaving very little time to fulfill the future demand for nuclear experts. this situation potentially can create a skills shortage that can pose a threat to safe construction, commissioning and operation of the nuclear power plants (npp) and put the whole programme at a serious risk. in addition, uk new nuclear build faces a skills competition on national as well as internat ional level from other big nuclear and non-nuclear construction projects which require technical and engineering staff. hr challenges the uk nuclear industry is currently facing a multitude of different factors that have been influencing the uk nuclear industry for decades have made the current situation with existing skills and expertise almost critical. it became more obvious after the government approved the new nuclear build programme. thousands of professionals will be needed for the next 13 years to make the construction, maintenance and operation of the current and the new nuclear fleet possible. unfortunately, rapid ageing of the workforce combined with a soaring number of scheduled retirements, low attractiveness of the industry to the younger generation, small numbers of students entering nuclear related disciplines and fierce competition from other high technology industries to recruit young talent jeopardizes the new nuclear build programme. therefore, the main challenges for hr specialists in the uk nuclear industry today are: 1. to attract, recruit and retain suitably qualified graduates as well as skilled and experienced workers in a highly competitive environment; 2. to secure additional investment for training and development programmes for existing and new employees. so, the former can acquire new skills and have a smooth transition from the energy production and fuel processing divisions to the decommissioning division and the latter can develop the required skills for safe operation of new advanced technology; 3. to manage a larger workforce, which will require to make structural and functional changes to the organisation. 3.1 research methodology the methodology adopted in this research is the doctrinal method. materials to be relied on includes secondary sources; books, energy and management related academic journals, professional body’s websites, industry-based publications, official documents and statistical information and other publications by scholars in the nuclear energy field are relied on. the study is approached from analytical perspectives with review of current literature was carried out to create a theoretical foundation for km, to gain a better understanding of current climate of nuclear labour market, and to analyze the effectiveness of existing practices in krt in the industry. 4.0 findings and discussion of results 4.1 findings this paper finds that the uk nuclear industry will require significant number of new highly skilled and qualified workers in the near future. it will have not only to attract new professionals to meet http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 71 future demand and replace retirees but also develop new skills to meet the requirements of a new build programme. this paper further finds that, due to the age profile of the nuclear workforce, industry should focus on the retention of existing employees in order to transfer tacit knowledge successfully to the next generation. while focusing on knowledge transfer more attention will be paid to transfer of tacit knowledge. the main reason for doing this is the fact that most organizational knowledge is tacit or rooted in it and its transfer represents the biggest challenge for organisation. the study finds that the civil nuclear industry jobs map indicates a spread of highly skilled employment across the uk in power station construction and operations, manufacturing, decommissioning, research and development, waste management and nuclear fuel but as experienced staff retire, so critical knowledge leave with them, which leaves uk nuclear industry highly exposed because the knowledge was not retained and transferred junior, and less experienced staff. fewer students are pursuing traditional engineering degrees, let alone the nuclear engineering. therefore, a significant gap between the number of b.s. graduates available and will demands exists and become even worse in the near future. managing the recruitment planning in a complex manner is a highlighted task as the number of retiring employees bearing superior professional expertise and experiences is reported to significantly increase in the following years, placing extreme emphasis on the importance of the transfer of available corporate knowledge and experiences. to ensure supply in positions that require a longer duration of preparation or specific professional skills the uk nuclear industry tens to create the so called ‘apprentice posts. these posts can only be filled in if a job incumbent reports intention of retirement. the paper finds that in order to enhancing hr management in the uk nuclear industry, two critical questions be addressed in the development of human resource strategy: what kinds of people do we need to manage and run our business to meet our strategic business objectives? 4.2. discussion the main characteristics of the nuclear labour market that can negatively impact the future of the industry are rapid ageing of the workforce, a soaring number of scheduled retirements, low attractiveness of the industry to the younger generation, small numbers of students entering nuclear related disciplines and aggressive competition from other high technology industries to recruit young talented employees. analysis of the current labour market trends helped to identify the main challenges that hr specialists in the uk nuclear industry are facing. they are as follows: i. to attract, recruit and retain suitably qualified graduates as well as skilled and experienced workers in a highly competitive environment; ii. to secure additional investment for training and development programmes for existing and new employees. this would let employees to acquire new skills required for safe operation of new advanced technology and for a smooth transition from the energy production and fuel processing divisions to the decommissioning division; iii. to manage a larger workforce, which will require to make structural and functional changes to the organisation; iv. to preserve and transfer existing nuclear knowledge and expertise to the new generation of employees. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 72 it is clear from the study that by 2025 2/3 of the skilled workers in the nuclear industry will be gone through retirement, the knowledge and experience gained during the last 69 years at the risk of being lost. therefore, the last challenge was considered by the researcher as the biggest and the most important hr challenge due to the safety-critical nature of the nuclear operations. this challenge received all the attention when the two following objectives were discussed. pertaining to the second objective of this paper, this paper states that knowledge retention and training is important aspect of every knowledge management strategy. there were two main tactics of knowledge transfer identified: personalization and codification. they are used to transfer tacit and explicit knowledge respectively. in addition, identification of critical organizational knowledge, nurture of the knowledge sharing culture, development of programmes that motivate employees to share knowledge are fundamental for successful knowledge transfer. on the other perspective, process knowledge retention and training can be sustained if proper information technology use are created and applied concurrently. however, the choice of krt strategy is predetermined by knowledge type, knowledge retention goals, organizational context, the urgency of the transfer and availability of the expert and the successor. only after careful consideration of all the factors the most suitable krt strategy 72 can be identified. this is very vital in the nuclear sector where knowledge management will take into precaution, the challenges related to expected standards of required safety and extended life cycle of the cutting-edge nuclear technology and extremely specialized areas of expertise. in the last objective of this research paper, several arears of similarity were pointed out between knowledge retention and training techniques in the uk and the one examine in the literature review. first, they both employ the same personalization and codification techniques, tools and instruments when transferring knowledge. second, they recognize and address the importance of trust, collaborative and knowledge sharing culture. and, finally, in practice and in theory before the transfer takes place knowledge is prioritized, so only critical for organisation knowledge is captured. therefore, the main goal of the uk nuclear km strategy and its effectiveness are also different from the theory and achieved through continuous supply of suitably qualified personal. moreover, this fact also influenced the way uk nuclear krt programmes are designed and implemented. another, distinctive characteristic of the uk nuclear krt process is its preference to codification techniques. again, it is all about the safe and secure operation of nuclear plants. this technique provides opportunity to capture knowledge which can be easily accessed, applied and reused at any time. moreover, it is certain, precise, easier to audit and share throughout the organisation. this is important in the situation where big geographically dispersed organisation operates more than just one complex facility that involves a few generations of employees. the last and unique characteristic of nuclear km and krt process is its universal application. to be more specific, many industries trying to keep their achievements in km just for themselves, so they can stay competitive and prosper, whereas nuclear industry shares its successful experience in km on the industry level and internationally. a key area of recruitment planning is the provision of high standard and on-going supply for posts that require higher academic education but represent no managerial functions and of those http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 73 positions where medium level academic education as well as superior professional experiences are required. this objective is supported through the professional career development programme. within its framework the acquisition, the extension, the development and the in depth upgrading of the professional knowledge are being accomplished. this may equally serve as a basis for promotion opportunities within the professional hierarchy. to this end, we provide the entries of this programme all conditions for the acquisition of continuously renewing and expanding information, for the accomplishment of specific abilities that are practical, up-to-date and market oriented. the circle of staff members to be admitted to this programme is defined according to the recruitment needs of the individual line organizations. the line organizations — considering the expected retirements — examine the best recruitment method for key positions with respect to the functioning of the organization and initiate the inclusion of that staff member into the programme who is selected to fill in the vacant job. 5.0 conclusion/ recommendations 5.1. conclusion the aim of this dissertation was to look at the hr challenges that the uk nuclear industry is currently facing and to analyze in depth one of them knowledge retention and transfer. the focus was on knowledge because the safe and reliable operation of nuclear plants is the primary concern of all times. the safe and reliable operation of nuclear plants strongly relies on skilled people who have the right knowledge and experience. however, there is a shortage of qualified people in the uk nuclear industry, given the ageing workforce and very little fresh blood entering the industry (knight, 2018). most of the people who are due to retire have been working in the industry since the first plants have been commissioned. this knowledge is the hardest to manage and it can be challenging to transfer it into any formal storage facility. thus, it was decided to look at how this issue is addressed by theory and by the uk nuclear industry. the main characteristics of the nuclear labour market that can negatively impact the future of the industry are rapid ageing of the workforce, a soaring number of scheduled retirements, low attractiveness of the industry to the younger generation, small numbers of students entering nuclear related disciplines and aggressive competition from other high technology industries to recruit young talented employees. analysis of the current labour market trends helped to identify the main challenges that hr specialists in the uk nuclear industry are facing. the current situation in the uk nuclear industry, where two thirds of these professionals will be lost through retirement by 2025, puts the knowledge and experience accumulated for almost 60 years at the risk of being lost. therefore, the last challenge was considered by the researcher as the biggest and the most important hr challenge due to the safety-critical nature of the nuclear operations. 5.2 recommendation according to the study, there is need for experienced manpower demands in the next 15 years, the quantity of employees in the nuclear field will attain on 8000 to 16 000 while 3000 today, which http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue no.1, pp 63-76, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 74 causes a big challenge in terms of manpower development in the uk nuclear industry. hence, a tangible human resource plan should be in place to address the problem. to encourage knowledge retention and transfer in the uk nuclear industry, scholarships and funding alternatives for the students and teachers interested in the nuclear industry and grants for practical training in the nuclear industry. maintain visibility on university campuses, including participation in career fairs, and information sessions, as well as selection of nuclear specialists to deliver lectures in universities. uk nuclear industry shall participate each year in educational trade job fairs and encourage young people into programmes that will prepare them to join their workforce. the study finds that knowledge retention and transfer (krt) strategy is an approach to reducing the risk. the knowledge retention strategy is developed through conversations with senior managers, middle managers and hr, and through the scanning and mapping the priority topics it is further recommended that additional hrm activities in support of the complex staff development system is need for actual knowledge retention and transfer, hence, the following shall be taking into reconsideration. bibliography argote, l. and ingram, p., (2012) knowledge transfer: a basis for competitive 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(2013) revisiting knowledge transfer: effects of knowledge characteristics on organizational effort for knowledge transfer. expert systems with applications 37, pp. 8155–8160. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ estimating job satisfaction and commitment correlate of senior staff members of the university for development studies, tamale, ghana yussif abdallah and ibrahim alhassan european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 19 estimating job satisfaction and commitment correlate of senior staff members of the university for development studies, tamale, ghana yussif abdallah1 & ibrahim alhassan2 1university for development studies, human resource section, tamale, ghana 2university for development studies, human resource planning and research unit, tamale, ghana corresponding author’s email: ibrahim.alhassan@uds.edu.gh abstract purpose: employees’ job satisfaction (js) is becoming an important asset to an organisation, especially in the recent past. all other things being equal, satisfied employees are likely to be more productive as a result of citizenship and/or loyalty, decreased-absenteeism, highcommitment and so on. with the knowledge that a positive relationship may exist between employees js and their commitment, it becomes imperative that management of universities institute measures to regularly collect data on employees’ js. thus, this study examined senior staff (ss) js and their commitment relationship in the university for development studies (uds), tamale. methodology: a structured questionnaire was administered to 231 senior staff (ss) members of the university. of this number, which was determined using the taro yamane’s formula for sample size determination, valid data retrieved and analysed represented a response rate of 92 per cent (212). whilst the study employs one-way anova to compare the js and the commitment level among the ss employee group to the university, correlation and regression analyses were performed to establish associations and to determine the cause-effect relationship between the two variables. findings: the results of the study indicated that 74 per cent of ss commitment is influenced by their satisfaction level. thus, the study concluded that the management of the university should priorities staff js in almost all its corporate decisions, as this will engender their commitment to the university. unique contribution to practice and policy: organisational commitment (oc) with all its dimensions (affective, continuance and normative) were confirmed to have a positive relationship with the js of ss of a multi-campus public university; suggesting that oc does not only predicts js in terms of teaching staff, as indicated by previous studies, but it also does so even with ss (who are in the non-teaching category). it was, therefore, recommend, based on the findings of this study, that the management of the uds should priorities staff js in almost all its corporate decisions, as this will engender their commitment to the university. keywords: organisational commitment, job satisfaction, senior staff, public universities. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:ibrahim.alhassan@uds.edu.gh european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 20 introduction job satisfaction (js), as a construct in the human resource parlance, has long and widely been studied, and yet remains elusive among scholars in social and organisational management sciences. in view of this, literature on personnel management is flooded with myriad definitions of the construct. job satisfaction of employees is becoming an important asset to an organisation, especially in the recent past. all other things being equal, satisfied employees are likely to be more productive as a result of citizenship and/or loyalty, decreased absenteeism, high commitment and so on. with the knowledge that a positive relationship may exist between employees js and their commitment, it becomes imperative that management of universities institute measures to regularly collect data on employees’ js. in a typical public university in ghana, employees are grouped into junior staff, senior staff and senior members. senior members can also be categorized into teaching staff (ts) and non-teaching staff whilst the nts carry out the day-to-day administrative related functions of the university, the ts perform teaching and other academic-related activities. the ss, on the other hand, are the auxiliary support staff to both the ts and the nts in providing basic administrative and other clerical services (abukar, francis, & alhassan, 2019). the focus of the study was on the ss group. the senior staff members of the university for development studies (uds), are the first line of contact with students, parents, visitors and other stakeholders. all enquiries for admission and enrollment take place at the central administration of the university where the ss members are found mostly at the front desk. students’ data or records are processed, stored and produced by this group of employees. they also process, keep and produce records on the recruitment and appointment and promotions of staff. furthermore, ss administer staff salaries and manage all kinds of staff leave. almost all the offices in the university are flooded with this category of staff providing various kinds of administrative services. of course, they perform these activities under the supervision of their superiors. therefore, ss of the university are required to put up their optimum best towards academic excellence, but they are unable to sometimes discharge their duties willingly and professionally. it is worth noting that some sections (article 10, sections 10.02 and 10.04) of the unified condition of service policy of public universities in ghana, make it categorical that all staff (this includes ss) are entitled to rewards that result from overtime work and additional duties and responsibilities. in view of this, some of the ss members feel dissatisfied when they are denied access to these benefits, especially when they have carried out additional responsibilities. this leads to emotional displeasure among many of them to the extent that their institutional citizenship wanes, and this invariably affects their level of commitment to their job. thus, most ss members sometimes display a cynical attitude towards their job. this is largely noticed in the manner in which they (ss members) handle and process official documents. this phenomenon is louder in public universities than in private universities. the ss members also get frustrated sometimes because of delays in promotions to the senior member category resulting from the non-existence of vacancies. it is important to note that in most public universities in ghana, the promotions of staff in the ss category to the senior member group is now tied to the availability of vacancies. this development has a significant effect on staff attitudes, behaviours, passion and commitment to the work they do. despite this observation, not many studies have focused on exploring ss js and their commitment relationship in public universities, especially in the ghanaian higher education landscape. therefore, at the very least, an analysis of the relationship between js and job commitment (jc) of the ss members will serve as feedback to employers and policymakers alike on file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 21 employees’ attitudinal evaluations of their job and job situations, particularly within the ghanaian higher education context. this may be useful for planning and human resource development purposes, effective administration as well as teaching and learning. this study was, therefore, intended to explore the js and commitment relationship among the ss of the uds. literature review the concept of job satisfaction although js has been studied for a long time and wide, the views of scholars remain divergent on what really constitutes the construct (abukar, francis, & alhassan, 2019). for example, abukar et al., (2019) define js to mean the extent to which an employee is happy with his or her work, which is generally expressed in terms of fulfilment of professional objectives as well as physical and psychological needs. it usually found expression in the degree to which an individual feel positive or negative about his or her job. job satisfaction is the extent of passion a worker attaches and feels about his or her work at the workplace. fogarty (1994) rather defined job satisfaction to be the extent to which workers gain enjoyment from their efforts at the workplace. this suggests that satisfaction with job performance is quite elastic and can decline over a period. it may also be seen as an attitude or emotional response to one's tasks as well as to the physical and social conditions of the workplace. several factors influence the level of an employee’s satisfaction. they include satisfaction with supervision at work, the work itself, pay and conditions, appraisal, promotion practices and coworkers (schermerhorn et.al, 2005). therefore, the ability of an organisation to sustain such a degree of satisfaction of workers or workers themselves working harder to enjoy what they earn is such an interesting phenomenon to be studied. obviously, it is not easy for individual workers or the organisation as a whole to sustain the level of satisfaction workers enjoy at the workplace. in fact, a worker’s feelings, attitude or passion at the workplace can be attributable to either internal or external factors. for example, an external factor such as favourable working conditions greatly influences the worker's attitude to work. it is for this reason that shadid et.al (1996) emphasized feelings of self-actualization and accomplishment on job performance as elements of intrinsic satisfaction. for example, a sales manager who achieves an unprecedented target set by a company gets the feeling of accomplishment and begins to work harder with all enthusiasm. though this may not be true in all such cases since labour efforts to higher productivity depends on a larger extent the rewards and motivation given at any given in time. organizational commitment employee commitment is the will and desire that an employee passionately demonstrates towards a job with loyalty and optimal effort. commitment is underpinned by a growthoriented mindset and relates to an individual sense of perceiving what can be done to deliver work of a more satisfying level. this is most obvious in a worker's sense of responsibility to achieve work goals. job commitment exposes the strengths and weaknesses of workers as they challenge themselves with the job they do. improving upon the strengths, and working on the weaknesses of workers enhances work performance and life satisfaction (rashid & rashid, 2011). for example, a weakness such as poor human relations of a public relations officer who is responsible for various correspondences is likely to negatively affect the organisation in both domestic and international dialogues. without a doubt, higher educational institutions are labour intensive, as reiterated earlier; and strong organizational performance and success require strong employees’ commitment and support (wilkins, butt, & annabi, 2017). employees’ commitment is, therefore, an important file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 22 determinant of the success or failure of organizations. indeed, organizations need a more involved and committed workforce to succeed in this competitive global economy (kanter & mirvis, 1989). research in employee commitment has received increased interest and attention in the social sciences and in industrial psychology in recent years. such heightened interest has resulted in the explication of the construct, both empirically and conceptually (mowday, t, steers, & porter, 1979). conceptually, many definitions and approaches to oc have been suggested in the literature. for example, meyer & allen, (1991) developed a three-component model of oc, which has gained considerable popularity in employee commitment research over the years. these components, according to the study are; affective, continuance and normative commitments. characteristically, these components support the view that commitment is psychological in nature that embodies an employee’s relationship with his or her organisation, and which further dictates his or her decision as to whether to continue or discontinue membership with the organization (meyer & allen, 1991). affective commitment, according to meyer and allen (1991), refers “to employees’ emotional attachment to, identification with, and involvement in the organisation.” accordingly, employees with strong affective commitment are more likely to continue employment with their organizations willingly and voluntarily. continuance commitment refers to involuntary loyalty due to an awareness of the cost involved in leaving an organization, and lastly, normative commitment reflects a feeling of obligation to continue employment. becker (1960) “side-bet theory” of commitment also provides a useful contribution in literature to the conceptual explanation of employee commitment, with the inclusion of the influence of both the internal and external factors of an organization. jamal and muhammad (1979), citing the work of becker (1960), maintained that, the more an employee invests his or her time, energy, skill and other personal assets in the course of his or her engagement with an organization, the more it increases the employee’s cost of leaving, and hence it is rationally sensible to expect greater commitment on the part of the employee to the organization; in the course of time. becker (1960), proffered that “commitment comes into being when a person, by making a side bet, links extraneous interest with a consistent line of activity.” this implies that employees become voluntarily committed to their organizations when they reckoned that the cost of leaving is expensive by virtue of social, economic and other factors incurred as a result of their involvement with their organisations. this thinking is consistent with mowday, steers and porter (1979) conceptualization of oc. their definition of oc provided ‘actionable’ orientation to the commitment concept, which they later developed into a 15-item instrument to measure employees’ commitment. they defined the concept as “the relative strength of individual identification with, and involvement in a particular organization. this, according to these researchers, is characterized by three related factors: first, a strong conviction to accept the goals and values of their organizations, second, a willingness to sacrifice and put up much effort for and on behalf of the organization, and third, a clear passion to maintain alliance and membership with their organizations. accordingly, the boundaries of commitment in the light of the above, transcends mere beliefs and opinions, to include an active relationship with the organization, as well as the tendency of individuals to make an honest sacrificial contribution in order to enhance the image and wellbeing of their organizations (mowday, steers, & porter, 1979). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 23 relationship between job satisfaction and organizational commitment job satisfaction is associated with job commitment, and organisational commitment is linked to employee commitment. in many studies (markovits, davis, fay, & dick, 2010; srivastava 2013; suri & petchsawang, 2018; abukar, francis, & alhassan, 2019) of organisational commitment leading to job satisfaction or life satisfaction, more emphasis is placed on employee commitment to helping organisations achieve their goals and objectives. however, schoemmel and jonsson (2014) argued that affective commitment impacts job performance rather than the department or the organisation an employee works. arguably, js and oc are two important work attitudes among many that are widely studied (robbins & judge, 2016). the two constructs have enjoyed considerable discourse among academicians and practitioners alike, more especially, following the findings of the hawthorne studies (gangai & agrawal, 2015). practically, the two concepts are ‘bed-fellows with causal and reciprocal interactive relationship, especially in a contemporary work setting where norms of exchange reciprocity govern the psychological contract process between employers and their employees (morrison & robison, 1997). over the years, the relationship between js and oc have been examined by myriad scholarship, albeit mixed and varied findings characterizing the causal, reciprocal and linear relationships between the two variables. for instance, in their structural model examining the causal and reciprocal relationships between js and oc, vandenberg & lance (1992) findings revealed that oc is a causally antecedent of js of employees in organizations, thus oc is postulated to cause js. their findings are consistent with that of bateman & strasser, (1984), wherein the results of their longitudinal survey found oc as a predictor variable, rather than an outcome. this finding contradicts other studies (eleswed & fatema mohammed, 2014; sikorska simmons, 2005) that suggest that js predicts oc. this also differs from the findings of saridakis, yanqing lai, and gourlay (2018) that support the reciprocal relationship between the two variables. more so, in a study to investigate the association between js and oc of teaching staff, donald, lucia, and victor, (2016) also found a significant positive relationship between employees’ js and their affective and continuance commitment in some selected south african heis. however, the researchers acknowledged the uncertainty in generalizing their findings to other employee groups in south african heis. the findings of donald, lucia, and victor, (2016) found favour in many other studies (e.g., markovits, davis, fay, & dick, 2010; srivastava 2013; vujicic et al., 2015; suri & petchsawang, 2018) wherein significant relationships were established between js and oc. materials and method population and setting the study was conducted in university for development studies. the university is ghana’s first public multi-campus university located in the northern part of the country. it was established in may 1992 by the government of ghana to blend the academic world with that of the community in order to provide constructive interaction between the two for the total development of northern ghana, in particular, and the country as a whole. with eight (8) schools, six (6) faculties, three (3) institutes, five (5) centres and eleven directorates, the university has three (3) main campuses located at dungu, nyankpala and choggu all in the northern region of ghana. currently, the university runs both graduate and undergraduate programmes; and as of the end of the 2020/2021 academic year, it had a student and staff populations of 22,093 and 1,734 respectively (university for development studies, 2021). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 24 target population the target population of a study is defined as a total set of observations from which a sample is drawn. it is the complete set of individuals (subjects), objects or events that have common observable characteristics in which the researcher is interested in studying (alhassan, 2020). the target population was made up of about 600 ss members of the university. this number was reduced to about 491 after the authors conducted a technique known as population refinement. population refinement is the process of specifying a general population (gp), as defined above, to reach the required sample called accessible population (ap) that has the relevant information and is available and willing to respond to your instrument (asiamah, et al., 2017). it is on the ap that a sample determination formula is usually apply to obtain the study sample. sampling and data collection the senior staff members were divided into three distinct homogenous strata (independent sample groups) on the basis of the three campuses of the university. the quota sampling technique was then used to conveniently select subjects of, at least, a year of working experience from each campus. this technique was necessary for ensuring the spread of the data, and to avoid skewness towards a particular demographic variable, e.g. gender, age, and so on. the yamane’s formula n = 𝑁 1+𝑁(𝑒)2 , with “n” being the population, and “e”, the margin of error (0.05), was used to determine a sample size of 231 for the study, which was proportionately distributed and among the three campuses. of the 231 questionnaires administered, a usable 212 questionnaires were retrieved – representing 92% response rate– for analysis; using statistical package for social sciences (spss) version 26 for windows. data were collected in september 2021 during the first trimester of the 2021/22 academic year. instrumentation a structured questionnaire was adapted from the literature and was refined to fit into the study context. the adopted instrument was pre-tested to a sample of 7% of the study sample (231). according to mugenda and mugenda (1999), a sample size from 1% to 10% is considered acceptable for pre-testing an instrument. the instrument was then modified to incorporate the feedback from the pre-test and was eventually administered to the target respondents through personal contacts by the researchers for almost a month. job satisfaction was measured using a 10-item generic job satisfaction scale (gjss) developed by macdonald and maclntyre, (1997). the scale was considered appropriate for this study, as it shares features of both the facet and general measurement approaches. it has a sufficient number of items for reliability purposes, and a sizable number of items convenient for the organizational environment. the gjss is also suitable for measuring the js of employees across diverse occupations, and across diverse cultural settings. the cronbach alpha reliability for the scale is 0.77. oc was measured using mowday, steers, and porter, (1979) oc scale. despite its existence for a long time, the scale is still relevant and was adopted by studies such as srivastava, (2013); vandenberg & lance, (1992); mohamed aly, ghanem, & el-shanawany, (2016). also, the scale has been validated and tested across different cultures and environments globally. it contains 15 items and is measured on a five-point likert scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. the reliability of the instrument was evaluated for the purpose of assessing its consistency. alpha correlation coefficient (acc) was thus, used to measure the internal file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 25 consistency of the items. an acc of 0.911 was obtained; which is evidence of the high degree of reliability. according to mugenda and mugenda, (1999) and fraenkel & wallen (2006), an acc of 0.70 and above of a given scale is considered reliable and acceptable, especially in social science research. on the js scale, the test results produced an acc of 0.843, which is also considered acceptable. methods of data analysis spss was used for the various statistical analysis, as mentioned earlier. accordingly, pearson correlation and linear regression analysis were performed to determine the relationship between ss’ js and their commitment to the university. model diagnostic tests such as normality, linearity and test of independence were performed to attach credibility to the results. results this section discusses ss’ js and their committed relationship. therefore, the correlation and the regression analyses are run and their results interpreted. correlation between commitment and satisfaction on the correlation between commitment and satisfaction, a partial correlation was the method used to explore the relationship between the two variables utilised for the study. careful analysis was done to ensure that none of the correlation assumptions (normality, linearity and homoscedasticity), as reiterated earlier was violated. the results computed explains the correlation among the variables on holding the age, status and rank of respondents as controlled variables. the results are shown in table 1 below giving details on the pearson correlation significant at the 0.01 level (2 tailed). table 1: commitment and satisfaction correlation matrix age status rank affect ive contin uance norm ative commi tment satisf action age 1 status 0.043 1 rank 0.021 0.023 1 affective -.269** 0.083 0.005 1 continuance -.256** 0.07 0.024 .991** 1 normative -.278** 0.067 0.022 .989** .979** 1 commitment -.267** 0.076 0.016 .997** .995** .993** 1 satisfaction -.285** -0.111 0.053 .874** .865** .836** .860** 1 **correlation is significant at 0.01 level (2-tail) an aggregation of commitment and satisfaction dimensions (affective, continuance, normative and satisfaction) was used for the computation of the correlation. it is important to note that a ‘0’ correlation value depicts that there is no relationship between the variables. however, all loadings have values that are greater than ‘0’ except all loadings under the controlled variable file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 26 (age, status and rank). the age and rank of respondents had no relationship with the satisfaction ss of the university (table 1). for the commitment of ss, r = (0.874, 0.865 and 0.836) for affective, continuance and normative in that order. the ‘r’ values underline the impact of the various components on the overall satisfaction of ss. these positive values show a positive relationship between the variables. the coefficient of determination was also calculated to estimate the exact percentage variance the components shared. the results of the computations were (0.874 0.874) * 100 = 76%, (0.865 * 0.865) * 100 = 75% and (0.836 * 0.836) * 100 = 70% for affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment respectively. the aggregate commitment also recorded an ‘r’ of 0.860 with a coefficient of determination of 74%. from the results, the ss commitment level is over 70%. also, 74% of the aggregate commitment serves perfectly the average of the affective, continuance and normative commitment. the affective commitment domain increases an individual’s satisfaction on a job by 76% whereas the continuance commitment domain exhibition of ss of uds increases their satisfaction and contentment by 75%. regression analysis on commitment and satisfaction regression analysis was conducted to ascertain the predictive power of each independent variable. just like the correlation, regression also estimates the variance between the various variables. therefore, in this study, the regression analysis was done to estimate the degree of the impact of commitment on the satisfaction levels of the ss of uds. table 2 below shows a model summary of the regression analysis. table 2: model summary of regression analysis model r r square adjusted r square std. error of estimate 1 0.900a 0.810 0.807 2.770 predictors: (constant), commitment, total normative, total affective, total continuance the analysis, shows that the predictive power of the model used for this study is over 80%. also, the results are marked by a significant measure of 0.000 (table 3). table 3: anova model sum of squares df mean of square f sig 1 regression 6815.971 4 1703.993 222.101 .000b residual 1595.804 208 7.672 total 8411.775 211 a. dependent variable: total satisfaction. b. predictors: (constant), commitment, total normative, total affective, total continuance. it was evident from the study that affective, continuance and normative commitment, whether individually or aggregated, led to on average 74% satisfaction level of ss. this suggests that the satisfaction level is relatively high by these dimensions. however, poor interpersonal communications continue to affect willingness and cooperativeness on the part of most ss. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 27 hence, negative attitudes and work behaviours towards work affect job satisfaction levels. this is evidenced by meyer and allen’s three-dimensional conceptualization of commitment (affective, continuance and normative) which is confirmed to have a positive relationship with js, even in this study. moreover, the commitment levels of ss commensurate over 70% of satisfaction among ss and this is perhaps due to fear of losing their jobs but not necessarily being satisfied with terms and conditions of service as well as other benefits obtainable from the job. it was established by the study however that age and status of ss had no influence on their commitment and satisfaction levels. ss age was also found not to have any significant effect on their commitment levels. this is because age is not a determining factor of neither job satisfaction nor job commitment. if staff is satisfied with a job, it does not matter the age of the person but rather the passion attached to doing that job. besides, the study revealed that the status of the ss was no influential factor on job commitment and js. it was also observed that the rank of ss had a direct and positive bearing on their commitment and satisfaction. this is perhaps due to additional remunerations, benefits or entitlements attached to some designations. interestingly, some ss did not want to lose such positions so as to be affected by those additional benefits. institutions of higher learning contribute to the development of a country with which ghana is no exception. they are seen as the backbone to knowledge transfer and acquisition and contribute massively towards a nation’s gross domestic product and the economic stability of nations. their contribution towards economic performance is recognized and accepted worldwide as significant. organisational commitment as a whole and the commitment levels of individuals within an organisational context has been a focus of numerous studies over the years. it has become one of the most intensively investigated construct along with js. for example, in a study to explore the relationship between js and oc among teaching staff members in some selected higher education institutions, donald, etal., (2016), found js to be positively related to all the dimensions (affective, continuance, normative, etc) of oc. similarly, in their attempt to establish a relationship between js and oc among hospital employees in turkey, metin et al, (2012) also found a positive correlation between js and oc. in ghana, abukar et al, (2019) conducted a study to determine the relationship between js and oc among three employee-groups in a multi-campus public university in the northern part of the country. their study found a significant relationship between js and oc and that employees’ js predicts their commitment to the university. the researchers further maintained that theoretically, their work will extend the understanding of how js is a critical determinant of employees’ commitment in the higher education institutions (heis) context. in view of this, the used of the two constructs (job satisfaction and commitment) in this study was founded on literature and in practice. conclusion and recommendation to assess the commitment of employees, the researchers employed meyer and allen’s threeconceptualization of organisational commitment. the dimensionality of meyer et al. (1993) and their relationships with js was examined, and the individual and interactive effects of job commitments dimensions and job satisfaction were computed and analysed. the study used age, current status and current rank of respondents as controlled variables in estimating the degree of impact on job commitment and job satisfaction and the results proved that age and status of ss had no influence on their commitment and satisfaction, however it was established that the rank of workers had a direct and positive relationship with their level of commitment and satisfaction. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 19 32, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 28 more importantly, the study indicates that oc, with all its dimensions (affective, continuance and normative) were confirmed to have a positive relationship with the js of ss of a multicampus public university; suggesting that oc does not only predicts js in terms of teaching staff, as indicated by previous studies, but it also does so even with ss (who are in the nonteaching category). it was, therefore, recommend, based on the findings of this study, that the management of the uds should priorities staff js in almost all its corporate decisions, as this will engender their commitment to the university. this study has contributed uniquely to knowledge in the employee satisfaction and commitment by exploring the js and oc relationship of a multi-campus university. other studies have only worked on non-multi-campus universities. besides, ss members were used as subjects but not senior members, as usually done by most studies. lastly, the study also employed practical observations that are products of dissatisfaction resulting from some decision taken by the management of the institution where the study was conducted. references abukar, a. k., francis, n. s., & alhassan, i. 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(1973). statistics: an introductory analysis (3rd ed.). new york: harper and row. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org exit interviews exit interviews: a mirror for the employer eureka mokibelo european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 47 exit interviews: a mirror for the employer eureka mokibelo university of botswana corresponding author’s email: mokibeloeb@mopipi.ub.bw abstract purpose: this paper investigated the extent to which employers in botswana use exit interviews to reflect on the feedback provided by the leaving employees for improvement. it is essential in any organization, division or company to reflect on its objectives, goals, achievements and setbacks for its growth and development. employees may choose to quit their unpleasant jobs or express concern in an effort to improve the situation. methodology: the study adopted mixed method approach and employed in-depth interviews and questionnaires for data collection. the informants of this study were the university of botswana academic employees who previously had other jobs before being employed by the university. findings: findings indicated that exit interviews could assist in improving the performance and growth of an organization, division or company. the leaving employee could reveal information that could contribute towards the strengths and development of a company, division or an organization. it is anticipated that the results might significantly contribute to companies and organization in botswana that could otherwise overlook the importance of exit interviews to reduce exit. key terms: exit interviews, employer, employee, organization, institution file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:mokibeloeb@mopipi.ub.bw european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 48 introduction in today’s knowledge based economy, skilled employees and resourceful manpower are critical to the success of the company or institution. in this regard, each company or institution should make effort to retain its skilled manpower through meaningful discussions between managers and their employees to revamp their relationships. hence, it should be the company or institution’s mandate to avoid high turnover of its employees. this study investigated the extent to which employers both governmental and non-governmental take advantage of departing employees and explore the reasons why they leave their jobs. it was important to find out whether employers do make an effort to make exit interviews through the voices of employees because it is the employees who can build or destroy the company or institution. the researcher was curious to found out from the university of botswana employees as they come from different government institutions, departments and private companies where they were previously employed, to check whether they were interviewed before they left or not. the purposes of exit interviews are for learning especially where the company can improve itself, making sure that employees leave feeling good about their services and, in some cases, to retain the employees under better improved services. the researcher problematizes the exit interviews because it is important in any organization, division, department or company to always reflect on the objectives, achievements and setbacks through the voices of employees. this can be done in various ways depending on what is suitable to the company or institution such as genuine discussions on one to one basis or with a group of people or through questionnaires. in most cases each company, organization, department or division has a vision and mission statement as well as long and short term goals to achieve. these can be achieved if the employer and the employees work together effortlessly to achieve the target goals. it can be a setback if in an organization employees there is mass exodus without the company getting concerned why the employees are leaving. the reasons for departing may vary, but the company or organization should make it a point to ask the departing employees why they are leaving. botswana’s vision 2016 articulates that by the year 2016, botswana should be an open, democratic and accountable nation (republic of botswana, 1997). this objective should allow organizations to open up and discuss issues in a democratic way with employees and also be accountable for their actions. a departing employee should be allowed to express freely in a constructive way why he/she is leaving the company. if the employee is leaving because of dissatisfaction, then the company should accept such criticism and use it as a strength for growth and development. by so doing the organization will be accepting its flows and therefore being accountable for its weaknesses. in addition to the above, openness should not be considered as a weakness because for an organization to be prosperous and productive, it can reflect through its employees by using exit interviews. this is not to say that the company should always wait for someone to depart and then start reflecting. reflection should be a continuous process that should be done quarterly or yearly. it can be very costly to lose an employee who was file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 49 greatly contributing to the success of the company to a salary increase which can be negotiated internally. therefore, for organizations to achieve botswana’s vision 2016 target goals they have to consider exit interviews for reflection. background to the study the university of botswana is one of the highest learning institutions in botswana with about 2, 848 00 employees. the university draws employees from various sectors of botswana such as government, parastatals and non-governmental organizations as well as students who have just completed their studies and are ready for further training, especially academic staff. workers are an integral part of every organization or institution, they contribute to the success or failures of the company they are working for and therefore it is the responsibility of the management to see to it that employees’ contribution does not bring the organization production down. on the other hand, employees’ educational background, experience and capability add to their strength and weaknesses towards building the company or organization they are working for. among other things the task of the management is to promote high production and for them to succeed in this endeavour employees need to be motivated time and again in order to be productive. in the absence of motivation and development of employees, they tend to hop from one job to another in search of job satisfaction and other things. in addition, the working conditions, job descriptions, working hours should be clear to everyone. in fact regular contact and communication with employees can take the company or institution far. in the millennium development goals report (mdg) (2004) foreword, where the minister of finance and development planning highlights that commentators appreciate botswana’s good performance in effective delivery of services to the people and also institution building the question that remains unanswered is whether organizations are playing a crucial role in institution building especially through exit interviews that could be mirroring what the institutions are doing. forde, in the preface of the mdg report (2004) believes that mobilization and coordination among stakeholders is important in bringing the mdgs all the way to vision 2016 goalpost. management and leadership in all organizations contribute towards the success or failures of their organization. therefore, the feedback from departing employees could be essential to this exercise. review of literature this section discusses the review of literature related to exit interviews. the concept seem to have limited research internationally, regionally and locally, hence information used in this section was posted in social media blogs and posters, but with names of authors. the section defines what exit interviews is, its purposes, the reasons, who should conduct exit interviews, advice to senior personnel on how to conduct exit interviews, asking relevant questions and what the interview team should be cautious on when conducting exit interviews. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 50 an exit interview is a conversation, dialogue or discussion between the employer and the employee who is terminating his/her services with the company or organization for one reason or another. in addition, heathfield, (2019) sees an exit interview as a meeting with a terminating employee that is generally conducted by a human resources staff member. muller (2020) sees exit interviews as offering a deeper look at the workplace’s culture, day-to-day processes, management solutions and employee morale. from the definitions above, we can gather that in an exit interview, ideas are exchanged or information is shared and mostly through face to face interaction. therefore, such an interview cannot be ignored looking at its outstanding purposes in the organization. further, muller (2020) argues that exit interview could be used to identify opportunities to improve retention and engagement. in this regard, it is vital for companies or organizations to have a clear set of standards in place for conducting exit interviews. on a positive note, exit interviews can be used to foster positive relationships, bring value to the company and build a welcoming working environment. therefore they can give direction on policy and code of conduct. scholars have highlighted reasons why exit interviews have to be done. boogaard (2020) states that it is a way of collecting data and getting insights needed to create a more positive environment and also protect your organization from unnecessary risks. boogaard (2020) argues that exit interviews are a way of obtaining frank and honest feedback from a terminating employee. further, the terminating employee can discuss concerns about misconduct within the company. in this regards, it is vital for the terminating employee to be honest and provide constructive feedback while leaving a positive note behind. according to boorgaad (2019), another reason why exit interviews should be conducted is that it could assist in identifying areas that can improve staff retention of staff and reduce mass exodus of employees. the feedback could assist leadership to identify areas that can help improve staff retention if there are evaluations done by the management team. this could further improve opportunities for management and leadership to develop into better managers and directors and find strategies and measures that are suitable and appropriate for their corporate culture. again, exit interviews could identify matters that may require immediate attention such as whether it is necessary to recruit or train employees to improve the image of the company or organization (boorgaad, 2019). therefore, the leadership could assess how the corporate progresses, what its challenges are and how they could best address the challenges. another important is raised is that exist interviews should be conducted by senior personnel. for example, heathfield (2019) argues that in a study involving 88 executives and 32 senior leaders from 210 organizations in 33 industries that were headquartered in more than 35 countries, harvard business review researchers found that nearly threequarters of the organizations conducted employee exit interviews. according to the study, "of those, 70.9% had their human resource departments handle the process; 19% had the departing employees’ direct supervisors do it; 8.9% delegated the job to the direct supervisor’s manager, and 1% turned to external consultants." this means that the senior management or leadership should be responsible for interviewing terminating employees. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 51 spain & groysberg (2016) advice that exit interviews should not focus on salaries and benefits only because there could be underlying issues related to the human resource practices that can propel the mass exodus of employees. once these have been unearthed, the management could reflect on them and give the corporate an improved face. further, it is essential that terminating employees should be treated with respect and gratitude by the leadership. the reason for such is that the departing employees could recommend the company’s products and services wherever they go as well as creating business alliances with former employers. authors share that an exit interview is driven by questions to tease out information from the terminating employee. for example, miller-merrell (2018) advices management to ask relevant questions that would help tease out information from terminating employees such as: why did you begin looking for a new job? what ultimately led you to accept new position? did you feel that you were equipped to do your job well? did you have clear goals and objectives? how would you describe the culture of our company? what could have been done for you to remain employed here? did you share your concerns with anyone at the company prior to leaving? if you could change anything about your job or the company, what would you change? how can our company improve training and development programs? would you consider coming back to work here in the future? in what area or function? what would need to change? some of these questions could assist the management and leadership to reflect on issues on short and long term basis. simpson (2020) begs for respect on the part of the terminating employee by avoiding being too negative, too personal and not close doors for future relationships. further, simpson argues that the best thing is to leave the company with grace by focusing on the positives. this is important advice because the employee does not know where he/she is going and might decide to go back one day. lastly, bhasin (2019) believes that although the benefits are high, exit interviews can be problematic especially if not properly handled. for example, bhasin (2019) argues that the terminating employee can live to regret at a later stage especially when he/she said too much during the interview. further, the author cautions that if the terminating employee has strong negative feelings the interview can turn out into a battle field with lots of arguments and heated words. finally, bhasin (2019) posits that an exit interview can be a waste of time if the management does not have mechanisms or corrective measures in place to evaluate data collected, hence, the interview can prove to be meaningless and or just a formality. in this regard, the management has to be careful and sensitive. basing on the above review of literature, information provided here is from international authors who provided tips on how to handle exit interviews. this issue has not yet been researched robustly regionally and locally, botswana included. therefore, there was need to conduct this study to find out whether employees who have left their former employees were interviewed or not. to the best of my knowledge, such research does not exist in botswana hence a gap that needed to be closed. it was important to conduct this study to provide insights into leadership and management practices regarding exit interviews. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 52 theoretical framework this research was based on a theoretical concept by albert o. hirschman (1970) on exit and voice. there is a third concept on loyalty which will be deliberately ignored. hirschman (1970) raised critical issues regarding the employer and the employee from different perspectives. he targets themes that address issues in different environments such market, politics and school environments. first, he gives an example of an organization or market where employees or customers are unhappy such that they can either exit the unpleasant job or not buy the product or alternatively voice out their concerns. both the exit and the voice could be done if employers observe that there is a decline in quality of service and therefore the employer may do them in an attempt to repair or improve the quality of service. secondly, hirschman (1970) gave examples of politics, economics and school environment. he assets that politically, when citizens are unhappy with the way the country is ruled they can immigrate to other countries where the environment could be better and conducive or they can protest such that their grievances maybe heard and propose for a change for the better. it is interesting to point out that politically, if citizens are unhappy with the ruling government they may not immigrate but decide not to participate in the system. they can decide to be disloyal to the party or not voice their grievances. they can do the latter probably to avoid being imprisoned, killed or sent into exile. in essence, exit cannot only be physical but also be emotional or mental. thirdly, he pointed out that economically when customers are unhappy with a product they can also exit and go to buy in other stores or they may choose to complain. customers can exit silently without notifying the management and as they do this, it might form or destroy the relationships between customers and the market concerned. if customers are disgruntled they may ask to see the manager or they may choose to shop elsewhere if they feel that voicing out their grievances is a waste of time. the sales and income may decrease and this will leave the management to look for answers for their questions if they are concerned. if they do not act they can end up with a huge loss and therefore the management should be able to detect the problem and address it accordingly. customers in most cases resort to exit especially if there are other available opportunities elsewhere. fourthly, hirschman (1970) highlights an example of public and private schools. he argues that if parents are not happy with the public school system they would take their children to a private school without bothering to voice out their grievances and concerns. as a result the public schools would not reflect on feedback because the parents decided to quit silently. on the contrary, if a private school also starts to deteriorate, the parents could voice out their concerns if there is nowhere to take their children, but they could also opt to take their children to other schools. in essence, hirschman pinpoints to the importance of exit interviews and the reasons why they cannot be simply ignored. hirschman’s ideas have been found to be relevant to this study because it addresses issues of advantages and why employers need to file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 53 take heed of exit interviews. notably, exit alone is used to measure a decline in an organization; on the other hand the voice is informative and provides opportunity for feedback and criticism. in addition, if voice is effectively used it can reduce exit. however, if employees exit in great numbers it is less likely that they can voice their grievances and therefore, it is essential for organization to craft the means to better communication and address the concerns and issues of the employees to improve the situation. voice can play a significant role in public happiness. it can improve the quality and services of products or an organization. if exit and voice are available to customers they chose to exit in order to search for better opportunities and alternatives. on the other hand, customers choose voice if they believe and know that the management would listen and respond appropriately, but this is based on a lot of uncertainties. hirschman cautions that when employees exit the implications can be enormous. failure to understand and address issues of concerns can lead to the organizational decline and possible failure. therefore, it could be beneficial if lapses could be attended to and efficiency restored. research methodology this study adopted the qualitative interpretative approach to explore the extent to which employers do make an effort to make exit interviews with departing employees. the study was conducted at the university of botswana in 2008 to 2012 where there is a diverse background of academic and non-academic staff from different departments, companies and organizations before being employed by the university. the idea behind choosing these employees was for them to share experiences with what happened when they exited previous employment. the participants were chosen conveniently because some employees from the university of botswana are not all from the government or parastatals. some of them started working for the university; hence, it was important to identify the ones who exited previous employment. the employees were from different departments and faculties such as humanities, education, library, mathematics and science. however, the faculty of education had most participants as it has a large pool of employees who once worked for the government as educators, education officers and school principals. the study involved 65 participants, 30 males and 35 females working as lecturers and administrators. their ages ranged from 45 – 65 years. important to note is that the responses provided were about previous employment and not the current employment they are involved in. hence, the participants views do not represent the university of botswana even through the study was conducted within the institution. the participants were requested to sign a consent form after agreeing to participate in the study while other simply agreed to participate to vent out their grievances with former employers. the key research questions of the study were: a) were the participants interviewed by their employer when they exited their previous jobs or not? b) do you think it was necessary for the employer to have interviewed you? elaborate on the issue; c) what were the reasons for leaving your previous job? the data were collected through the use of indepth structured interviews, informal interviews and open ended questionnaires. first, the open ended questionnaires were issued out and a follow-up was made with in-depth file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 54 interviews to have face to face interaction with the participants. informal interviews were conducted with two participants but later their views were recorded as they provided an indepth insight into the information collected. data were analyzed according to each key research question to make sure that each question has been answered. data were categorized into thematic statements and it was interpreted and analyzed qualitatively according to the key research questions. some data were tabulated to give clearer statistical information. for reliability and validity purposes, data in open ended questionnaires and interviews was compared to see if there were variations or same message was portrayed by both instruments. this study had limitations. the researcher studied employees at the university of botswana only. their voices may not necessarily represent other employees who were not covered in this study. the university has more than 2000 employees and the study involved only 65 participants. it must be pointed out that some employees were directly employed by the university hence, it was not necessary to interview them because they have not been previously employed. hence, the idea was to share information and ideas and contribute towards new knowledge to the field of management. results of the study this section presents the results of the study. the results indicated that participants who were once government employees especially school principals and education officers reported that they have been with the government for five and seven years, and they have not had any teachers who were leaving the teaching fraternity coming to the offices to be interviewed on why they were leaving. the reasons advanced for such were that teachers are many and scattered all over the country and it was going to be cumbersome to call them to the headquarters and even to the school heads’ offices to interview them on why they are leaving, because even school heads are not direct employers of the teachers but only supervisors. according to most participants, the assumption made by the employer (government) is that they leave for greener pastures. but the two officers noted that it is not always the case. this suggests that employers make assumptions why employees exit to other jobs without necessarily taking the trouble to find out. the other point reported by participants from other companies was that, the employers seemed not to be aware of the exit interviews in the past, it is only recently when there was an indication of mass exodus that the employer thought of interviewing some of the employees. but it is not a norm because they are not aware of it either; it has not been done on them and the other employees. this suggests that management and leadership do not use employees as a mirror to see what is happening in their companies and therefore some of the information will forever remain hidden. some of the employees also reported that it could be important to find out from teachers why they exit, because it could improve their relationships with their supervisors in schools. however, the officers reported that they solve some of the sour relationships between supervisors and teachers by transferring some of them. according to the participants, if employers are not interested in exit interviews, they may not know the file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 55 reasons why their employees are leaving. if employees leave because they are disgruntled then it is important for the mother body to know the reasons and address them for the future. the table below shows statistical information on whether the employees were interviewed or not. table 1: exit interviews conducted or not in government and non-governmental organisations source: data collected the table above indicated that 95% left their previous jobs without being interviewed and only 5% of them were interviewed. this is a message that the employers seem not to understand the importance of exit interviews hence employees left without the employer noticing their exit. the table above suggests that employees seem to leave with answers that could improve the image of the government or institutions and yet there are immediate supervisors who could do exit interviews on behalf of the senior personnel and report back. the table below showed institution or organizations where employees were formerly employed. table 2: institutions where participants worked source: data collected the table above indicated that the majority of the participants were working for the government while only 9% worked in non-governmental organizations. this means that the government seems not to take heed of their employees when they exit. this suggests that the government is still lacking behind in terms of interviewing employees who are 95% not interviewed 5% interviewed 91% government 9% nongovernment file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 56 leaving their jobs to others. it could be that those in power seem not to understand the reasons why employees leave their government positions to private companies or parastatals. the table below stated the reasons why participants believed they were not interviewed. table 3: reasons for not being interviewed source: data collected according to the table above, participants believed that the institutions, companies and divisions they worked for did not care about their welfare, hence, the 62% says that nobody cared whether they were departing or not. this was followed by 42% that the organizations and companies lack interest in their employees; this was related to the latter response where participants stated that the company seemed not to care about them. the latter was followed by the 15% who believed that they were not interviewed due to the sour relationships between them and their leadership. this was substantiated by the 9% that said that they were not interviewed because their supervisors thought their departure was good riddance. from the table above, 12% said that the government divisions do not make effort to interview people when they depart. although the other reasons carry the lowest percentages they cannot be ignored, for example 8% of the participants stated that the organizations, government, and companies were not aware that exit interviews were very important because they could help the company to grow and improve its services to its employees. some of the reasons reported by the participants were that there were no challenges and no prospects for improvement in the company. these indicated that employees too would like to work under conditions where their academic abilities match the work they were doing. further, employees would like to see themselves moving up the ladder. the signs indicated in this table are of non-reflective organizations or companies that need revamping to improve production level. kransdorff (1996) raised a critical point that, if 62% 15% 8% 9% 2% 42% 12% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% nobody cared sour relations unaware that feedback is important good riddance cannot interview everybody lack of interest in employees it is a norm in government institutions file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 57 employees are not interviewed because nobody cares when they leave, the incoming person is not going to learn how their predecessors did things and might try to invent the wheel. notably, in the millennium development goals report of 2004, forde stated that if employers do not care about their employees they might not achieve the goals of institution building and working towards the same goal. hence, an exodus of employees should raise an alarm for employers to find out why they leave. the table below indicates the reasons for leaving previous employment table 4: reasons for leaving previous jobs source: data collected according to the table above, 88% of the participants left due to unsatisfactory working conditions. some of the reasons employees could have voiced might have helped the employers to reflect on the company or institution’s administration problems and try to mend the quick ones. related to this is the stressful conditions that carry 9%. although the percentage is low, it cannot be ignored. stressful conditions do affect the production level as well. a high percentage of 78% goes to low salaries in government sectors. according to the employees the government seemed not to match the annual inflation rate and their salaries and this made them want to look for jobs that were well paying. all in all the results of the study indicated that the government seem not to consider the importance of exit interviews for exiting employees. 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 58 discussion of findings maladministration issues the findings indicated that participants exited due to maladministration. the issue of maladministration needs to be unpacked to hear the voices of the participants. when interviewed, some of the participants reported that supervisors have a tendency of favouritism, holding grudges, being victimized when expressing their dissatisfaction, stigmatization if one is sick and issues of ethnicity. however, kransdorff (1996) posits that if the employer does not make any effort to conduct exit interviews, the employees walk away with experience, knowledge and skills and it might be difficult for the company to find another equally experienced person. in another local newspaper, the monitor of monday 21 february, 2011: 3, it was reported that, ‘mass resignation of experienced prosecutors that recently rocked the directorate of public prosecutions (dpp) have brought the wheels of justice to a stop.’ this is a concern raised because the prosecutors were going away with experience, knowledge and skills. however, it was not clear why these prosecutors were leaving their jobs. if they were leaving because of maladministration the government should do something about it. consequently, this could affect productivity and competitiveness within the country. on the same breath, it cannot be overemphasized that it is important for the employee to give constructive feedback and leave on a positive note with good relations and mutual respect (raman & sharma, 2004). lack of communication lack of communication was an issue indicated by with participants. hirschman (1970) stated that customers can exit silently without notifying the management because if they do, it might destroy the relationship between customers and the market concerned. on the same note, government employees may silently leave the government to look for answers for their questions as to why they depart, that is, if at all they reflect and are concerned about their employees’ departures. when there is lack of communication between the two parties regarding the employees’ exits, the government may end up with huge loss of skilled manpower. communication through exit interviews can assist in transferring knowledge and experience from the outgoing employee and the incoming one for a smooth handover (niznik, 2007). since exit interviews are a dyadic exchange of information where two or more people converse, it is crucial for the interviewee to open up for communication purposes (capp, capp & capp, 1990). kransdorff (1996) shared the same sentiments by cautioning that having the experience and expertise dispersed elsewhere, organizations struggle to reinvest in the new placement who needs to be inducted into an entirely new organization. further, the new employ takes time to fit as part of the wider community he/she has just joined. employer’s denial to accept their weaknesses the findings revealed that some of the employees pointed out that the employers may not want to hear and accept their weaknesses. important to note is that the voice of an employee is informative and promotes the opportunity for feedback and criticism which some institutions, organizations and divisions may not want to face. this may lead to denial file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 59 about the maladministration issues that exists in the organization (kransdorff, 1996). some organization may not want to face criticism that they are not treating their customers well. some employers may always be pointing fingers at employees but not necessarily reflecting on how they treat their customers and employees because it could also lead to downfall of production (hirschman, 1970). however, kransdorff (1995) raised an essential notion that if an employee goes without interview, there will be discontinuity which could mean a lost momentum. it could also lead to new members adapting to new environments, new cultures and new ways of working on their own. an employer who denies reality to accept its own weaknesses offsets the rich feedback that it could gain from individual’s broader experience accrued even from other companies. an additional point was made by hatcher (2002) that it is important for the interviewee to be always honest as the organization might benefit from the revelations the interviewee is giving to improve performances and practices. on a critical note, hatcher points out that the employer should avoid being defensive or deny realities on the ground as this could cloud the mirror he/she is supposed to be using. using feedback to build the organization interestingly, findings indicated that all participants agreed in one voice that feedback was critical to the company, organization or division growth and development; a notion that companies should hold up for their development. had they been given a chance to reflect on the organization, the organisations, institutions and government could have benefited. the few companies that interviewed their employees got constructive feedback to benefit the company. hirschman (1970) also embraced the idea that feedback acts as a mirror for the organization. kransdorff (1996) pointed out that feedback could be used as a specific learning tool to ensure that companies do not lose its benefits. again, not learning from feedback is like treating knowledge and skills as trash. exit interviews can help diagnose problems and detect the root cause of such and apply appropriate prescription (capp, capp and capp, 1990). gender issues and inflation the findings also revealed that most males were clustered around the following responses; low salary, professional development, promotion opportunities, jobs not challenging and greener pastures. a picture could be painted that most males exit because they want higher paying jobs. maybe it could be that society expects them to have an upper hand in supporting their families. this argument was substantiated by evidence from a local newspaper – the botswana gazette of 23 february – 01, march 2011 which stated that ‘figures from the central statistics office (cso) show that an increase in the private secondary, pre-primary and primary education school fees and the development fees for public primary schools at the beginning of the year pushed headline inflation to 7.9 % compared to 7.4% in december, 2010.’ further, the cso figures also showed that inflation rose for most commodity groups, including food and non-alcoholic beverages, alcohol and tobacco, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, health, transport, education, restaurants and hotels and miscellaneous goods and services. these were the issues that caused mass exodus for employees to meet these demands. further, they are interested in file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 60 moving up the ladder than women. most women left their previous jobs because they were working under stressful conditions, maladministration and hence, they wanted to change their environment. this could mean that women and men have different reasons for moving from one job to another. the employers could be benefiting from such disparities so that issues could be addressed. if the employers could be getting this feedback, they could be retaining some of the employees especially women. interviewed employees despite the large number that was not interviewed, there were parastatals who took the trouble to reflect through their leaving employees. this number was limited but it indicated that at least some companies or organisations had time to listen to them in order to improve their services to avoid high turnover. the employees argued that the companies they worked for learnt the hidden truths and the differences that prevailed between the employer and employees. this resulted in some managers trying to persuade the exiting employees to stay. while these were the realties that companies may not want to face, it was useful for them to reflect. in essence, this study has revealed that the government, organisations, divisions and institutions in botswana have not yet considered the importance of exit interviews despite their importance. this revelation is important for boosting production rates, improving retention, mending broken pieces and having closure. this could mean that education and awareness could be the way forward for companies and institutions to reflect and improve their image, services, discover bottlenecks and adopt best practices. implications of the study this study has implication on the employer. first, the employer may not get a true picture of how they handle employees if feedback is not provided by those exiting. it may be necessary for the employer to get true insights on the realities of the company or institution. this could mean that companies and institutions may not improve their services or how they handle employees if they do not conduct exit interviews. again, it may be difficult to retain employees without feedback from the employees. second, the study may have implications of the employee. they may never trust their previous employer and forever stay with grievances because they never ‘emptied their bag’. third, the study have implications on further research to investigate on what employers think about the exit interviews. conclusion in essence, the findings of this study indicated that employers still do not understand the importance of exit interviews and the role they play, hence minimal effort was put to interview departing employees or in most cases employees depart without anybody interviewing them. important to note is the fact that if employers overlook the role played by exit interviews then they miss out on information that could otherwise build and further develop their companies, organizations and divisions as this could help them grow. the effects could be notable at senior positions where individuals are expected to file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 47-62, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 61 make changes, strategise and make operational decisions within months of their appointments. further, new employees take time to adjust and this can disrupt longstanding cultural and belief systems which could lead to breakdown of the company. recommendations this study recommends that the directors, supervisors and coordinators especially from the various departments of government of botswana should consider interviewing people who are leaving their departments in order to learn, reflect and improve from the feedback they provide. it should be a policy in each unit where people are able to vent issues but used positively to build organization or company. both parastatals and government should be educated on the importance of exit interviews because if they become aware of how useful it could be, it could shape their companies, organizations or unit into better environments where the employee is seen as a key player towards the development of the economy. a form in every department should be readily available, whether online or in hard copy for employees to fill in. it should be the responsibility of supervisors to make sure that whoever is departing should fill in the form after an oral discussion with the leaving employee, this could be a way of monitoring that exit interviews are done. bibliography bailey, k. d. 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(2019). thirteen must-ask interview questions. https://www.glassdoor.com/employers/blog/7-must-ask-exit-interview-questions/ retrieved on the 23 june 2020. muller, d. (2020). the importance of exit interviews: ten reasons to conduct them. https://www.hracuity.com. importance-of-exit-interviews. retrieved 23rd june 2020. simpson, m. (2020). how to master exit interviews. https://theinterviewguys.com; exitinterview: retrieved 23rd june 2020. spain, e. & boris groysberg, b. (2016). making exit interviews count. https://hbr.org/2016/04/making-exit-interviews-count. retrieved on the 23rd june 2020. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org http://jobsearchtech.about..com/cs/interviewstips/a/exit_interview.htm https://www.glassdoor.com/employers/blog/7-must-ask-exit-interview-questions/ https://www.hracuity.com/ https://theinterviewguys.com/ https://hbr.org/2016/04/making-exit-interviews-count relationship between perceptions of informational justice and employee commitment in health sector nongovernmental organizations in kenya patrick m. gichira, dr susan m. were, dr george o. orwa european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 75 relationship between perceptions of informational justice and employee commitment in health sector non governmental organizations in kenya 1*patrick m. gichira post graduate student: school of human resources jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr susan m. were lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr george o. orwa lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology abstract purpose: the purpose of the study was to analyze the relationship between perceptions of informational justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. methodology: the study adopted descriptive and correlational research designs with a statistical sample of 195 employees responsible for key result areas in 17 health sector non governmental organizations. justice perceptions were measured using colquitt‟s four construct model comprising of distributive, procedural, interpersonal and informational justice while organizational commitment was measured through meyer‟s three component model comprising of affective, continuance and normative commitment. inferential statistics comprising of correlation, multiple linear regression models and anova analysis were applied `to establish the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. qualitative data was analyzed through the use of questionnaires. results: based on the findings, the study concluded that informational justice perceptions have a positive and significant relationship with affective, continuance and normative commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: organizations should ensure that justification and truthfulness rules are embedded in their human resource management practices. they should also strive to provide timely and sufficient communication. keywords: informational justice perceptions, employee commitment, health sector non governmental organizations. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 76 1.0 introduction 1.1 background of the study many contemporary writings on organizations emphasize the importance of core values to the organization (collins & porras, 1997). justice in terms of fair treatment of employees is identified as one of those values and fairness as one of the fundamental bases of cooperative action in organizations (cropanzo et al, 2007). truth telling, promise keeping, fairness, and respect for the individual are some of the key guiding principles of effective people management in organizations (russell, 2001). justice perceptions can influence employees‟ attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on their performance and the organization‟s success (baldwin, 2006). justice is therefore a basic requirement for the effective functioning of organizations and the personal commitment of the individuals they employ (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). employee perceptions of organizational justice in terms of fair formal deci sion-making procedures (procedural justice), fair decision outcomes (distributive justice), fair interpersonal treatment (interpersonal justice) and information sharing (informational justice) by decision makers have been found to be related to a variety of work-related attitudes and behaviors including commitment (colquitt, et al, 2001, al-zu‟bi, 2010; yucel, 2013; akanbi & ofoegbu, 2013). organisational commitment is the bond employees experience with their organization (folger & cropanzano, 1998). employees who are committed to their organisation generally feel a connection with their organization, feel that they fit in and, feel they understand the goals of the organisation (cohen et al., 2001). the added value of such employees is that they tend to be more determined in their work, show relatively high productivity and are more proactive in offering their support (konovsky, et al, 2000). meyer & allen (1997) conceptualized organizational commitment in three dimensions namely affective, continuance and normative commitments. justice perceptions can influence employee attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on individual, group and the entire organization‟s performance and success (baldwin, 2006). empirical evidence supports the notion that an employee‟s perception of organizational justice affects their attitude toward the organization (konovsky, et al, 2000). if the perception of organizational justice is positive, individuals tend to be more satisfied and committed to their job (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). organizational justice impacts on employees in organizations since they are the subject of work place decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (cohen et al., 2001). some of these decisions deal with the salaries individuals earn, the projects or programmes they implement while others deal with work place interactions. the importance of those consequences causes individuals to judge the decision making they experience from a justice perspective (colquitt, 2001). according to baldwin (2006) the term organizational justice refers to the extent to which employees perceive workplace procedures, interactions, and outcomes to be fair in nature. he concluded that these perceptions can influence attitudes and behaviours of the employees. cropanzano, bowen and gilliland (2007) defined it as a personal evaluation about the ethical and moral standing of managerial conduct. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 77 current literature on organizational justice identifies four different constructs; distributive justice, procedural justice, interpersonal justice and informational justice (colquitt, greenberg, & zapataphelan, 2005). distributive justice is the justice of an employee which he perceives as a result of comparing the commitments he makes to his work and the outcomes of these such as rewards, duties and responsibilities, compared to the commitments the other employees make and the outcomes of them (colquitt,2001). procedural justice implies that, while evaluating the fairness of the organizational decisions, employees are not only interested in what these decisions are but also with the processes which determine these decisions (folger & cropanzano, 1998). interpersonal justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the manner in which they are treated by those in authority during the enactment of organizational procedures (lind & bos, 2002) while informational justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the information used as the basis for making a decision (gurbuz & mert, 2009). each of these forms of justice has been found to have different effects on employee commitment (colquitt, et al., 2005). a committed workforce is vital for the success of an organization. meyer and allen (1990) conceptualized a multidimensional model of organizational commitment comprising of affective, continuance, and normative commitment. according to the model, employees who feel a sense of affective commitment identify with the organization, accept that organization‟s goals and values, and are more willing to exert extra effort on behalf of the organization. continuance commitment is defined as a desire to remain a member of an organization because of an awareness of the costs associated with leaving it. continuance commitment exists when there is a profit associated with staying and a cost associated with leaving an organization. continuance commitment therefore involves staying with an organization because one needs to. normative commitment exists when there is a sense that staying is the right or moral thing to do. normative commitment can result from personal work philosophies of employees‟ and organizational socialization. it builds a sense of obligation-based commitment among employees. employees who perceive organizational decisions and procedures, treatment by others and informational basis of decision making as unfair are known to be less committed to the organization (baldwin, 2006). they engross themselves with and engage in negative or unproductive psychological and physical withdrawal behaviour. psychological withdrawal consists of actions that provide a mental escape from the work environment. it is manifested through such actions as daydreaming, socializing, looking busy, moonlighting and cyber loafing. physical withdrawal behaviour consists of actions that provide a physical escape, whether short term or long term, from the work environment. these include tardiness, long breaks, missing targets, deadlines, meetings, absenteeism and quitting (skarlicki & folger, 1997). against this backdrop, changing employment landscapes have weakened employees‟ physical, administrative, and temporal attachments to organizations (scott & davies, 2015). modern day employees are more mobile, more autonomous, and less dependent on their organizations for employment than ever before (cascio, 2003). long term employee commitment is less and less of a given. the idea that an employee will spend his or her entire career at one organization is long dead. to address these challenges, organizations are http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 78 increasingly seeking to strengthen employees‟ attachments by cultivating commitment to the organizations (mathieu & zajac, 1990; meyer & allen, 1997). a non-governmental organization (ngo) is defined as an independent organization that is neither run by government nor driven by the profit motive like private sector businesses (lewis & kanji, 2009). ngos are one of the key actors in processes of development alongside the state, county government, foreign donors and private corporations (willets, 2002). ngos are perceived to bring distinctive advantage in promoting development through efficiency and innovation, widespread participation and the ability to implement pro-poor projects (nwaiwu, 2013). in terms of their structure, ngos may be large or small, formal or informal, bureaucratic or flexible and in terms of funding, many are externally funded, while others depend on locally mobilized resources (lewis, 2005). some ngos have highly professionalized staff, while others rely heavily on volunteers and supporters (lewis & kanji, 2009). human resource management poses a critical management challenge in ngos due to the multidimensional ways in which hrm issues manifest in the organization leading to a variation in application of hrm methods (padaki, 2007). it is for instance hard to justify and implement a reward based performance system in an organization who solely relies on income from donors funds (nwaiwu, 2013). this challenge is compounded by the fact that most donors strictly exclude overhead expenses from project funding while some would restrict staff cost to a very little per cent of total project fund (padaki, 2007). most ngos work with a project orientation focus. a project, by definition, has a beginning and an end. staff appointments are therefore project based, contractual, and for specified periods. the main implication of this practice on commitment is that employees have a start date and a known end date to employment. the second implication is that ngo organizations assign a very low priority for investing in nurturing human resource capacities and staff retention measures due to the short term nature of the projects (padaki, 2007). the programme or project based nature of work directs employees‟ focus towards the work and less to the organization. the nature of work also determines the forms of employment. employment terms are largely contractual with a majority of employees working on 1-2 year contracts. the workforce in the development sector is largely middle age and professional. this age category is known to be more keen on short term as opposed to long term engagement or relationships with employer organizations. largely due to the nature of work and employment relationships, some employees develop transactional psychological contracts that are largely based on specific monetary and time bound obligations. others employees develop relational contracts that are based on a broader set of open-ended and subjective obligations. 1.2 problem statement employees are the subject of decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (colquitt, 2001). in organizational settings, justice is not always administered through fair allocation of employment resources, provision of clear and adequate explanations for decisions made and employees are not always treated with dignity and respect during the implementation of policies and procedures (cohen-charash & spector, 2001; frontela, 2007). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 79 adoption of effective human resource management (hrm) practices in many non governmental organizations (ngos) is often low in the list of management priority (batti, 2014) because ngo organizations discourages investment in human resource capacities and staff retention measures due to the short-term nature of the projects, funding constraints and subsequent short term employment practices. this in turn leads to negative justice perceptions and commitment. (padaki, 2007). in a study carried out by frontela (2007) in kenya and other developing countries, the researchers found that irrespective of the affiliation, mission, size and extent of operations, problems of low morale and low motivation of staff were prevalent in ngos. these are all indicators of antecedents and outcomes of commitment (wright, & kehoe, 2008). they point to a possible absence of organizational justice and low employee commitment. organizational justice research has predominately involved employees from western countries, particularly the u.s. (mcfarlin & sweeney, 2001). as such, the current thinking regarding reactions to organizational justice may not generalize to employees from societies that have cultural and economic characteristics which differ significantly from those commonly found in north american and western european societies. in addition, in their meta-analytical review of literature on commitment in organizations in the period 1988 to 2011, iqbal et al (2012) found out that most of the research studies published was conducted at the industry or firm level as the unit of analysis. furthermore, the organization and management of ngo sector has received relatively little attention from researchers (lewis, 2005). there is therefore a paucity of information regarding the importance of fairness and employee reactions to organizational justice from different contexts especially africa and particularly the health sector ngos in kenya. given this lack of information, the study sought to analyze the relationship between perceptions of informational justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 1.3 research objectives to analyze the relationship between perceptions of informational justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 2.0 literature review 2.1 theoretical review 2.1.1 human resource management theories this subsection discusses social exchange theory, uncertainty reduction theory and social information processing theory are as they relate to human resource management in organizations. social exchange theory social exchange theory views the employment relationship as a process of resource exchange governed by the norm of reciprocity (shore & wayne, 1993; coyle-shapiro et al., 2004), encompassing both ongoing conferment of benefits and continual re-balancing of expectations and obligations (coyle-shapiro & morrow, 2006). perceptions of the mutual obligations held by the employee and the employer may be the result of formal contracts entailed in an employment relationship or implied by the expectations which two parties hold http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 80 of each other (herriot et al., 1997); the latter being captured in the concept of psychological contract (rousseau, 1990, 2001). employees reciprocate their employer, based on the extent to which they perceive obligations to them have been fulfilled (coyle-shapiro morrow, 2006). the more the employer fulfils obligations and meets expectations, the more employees feel secure and satisfied, and consequently obligated to reciprocate. conversely, when employees encounter unexpected changes, the perceived reciprocal relationship may be breached. such changes have become increasingly frequent as organizations respond to competitive pressure, adopting new forms of employment relationship (kessler et al., 2004). where these result in a sense of injustice and betrayal (herriot et al., 1997), this can result in a loss of employee commitment to the organization (guzzo et al., 1994). social exchange theory argues that hrm practices contribute to positive exchange relationships between employee and employer. the theory postulates that when the needs of individual workers are considered, employees reciprocate with favourable attitudes and behaviour (gould-williams & davies, 2005). social exchange theory identifies trust and perceived organizational support as some of the mediators through which hrm induces favourable attitudes and work outcomes, (meyer & smith, 2000). according to social exchange theory, normative commitment is based on the norm of reciprocity where, based on the organization‟s actions, an employee feels that there is a particular way that he or she should behave (cropanzano & mitchell, 2005). uncertainty reduction theory according to the uncertainty reduction theory, uncertainty creates a feeling of vulnerability or anxiety that can lead to actively distorting perceptions and information. uncertainty reduction theory propounds that newcomers experience high levels of uncertainty during the organizational entry process (saks & ashforth, 1997). like any organizational members, they are motivated to reduce their uncertainty such that the work environment becomes more predictable, understandable, and ultimately controllable. uncertainty is reduced through the information provided via various communication channels, notably social interactions with superiors and peers (bulut & culha, 2010). as uncertainty decreases, newcomers become more adept at performing their tasks, more satisfied with their job, and more likely to remain in their organization (morrison, 1993). socialization programs influence newcomers‟ adjustment in this regard by reducing their high levels of uncertainty and anxiety. baker (1995) found that role certainty is an important latent factor of socialization tactics. social information processing theory according to the social information processing theory the social environment in which individuals operate influences individual attitudes in organizations because the social environment provides a direct construction of meaning through guides to socially acceptable beliefs, attitudes, and needs, and acceptable reasons for action (salancik & pfeffer, 1997). the organizational climate literature suggests that climate is a particularly powerful social mechanism through which hrm practices impact individual attitudes because climate shapes how employees construe the meaning of organizational practices (ostroff & bowen, 2000). social information processing theory suggests that management practices which promote open communication within an organization, open access to information, and free http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 81 information sharing, can increase affective organizational commitment (thornhill & saunders, 1996). information sharing is suggested to have direct influence on the variables associated with affective commitment by enhancing trust and building employee self-worth and perceptions of importance (meyer & allen, 1997). this means that information sharing should promote increased perceptions of fairness on the nature of decisions and the processes by which decisions are made. according to meyer and allen (1997), both these factors have been associated with the development of affective commitment. 2.2 empirical review work place information exchange between decision implementers and employees can have a positive effect on affective and normative commitment as the organization uses information to influence and steer desired attitudes (pfeffer, 1998). according to colquitt (2001), an employee who receives a material outcome tries to determine its fairness by assessing whether the following five antecedents are present: candid communication, thorough explanations, reasonable communication, timely communication and personalized communication. this allows him to make his informational judgment. informational justice is premised on the principle that authorities should share sufficient information on the process and outcome with those affected by their decisions. in one study, employees were found to better comply with a corporate smoking ban when they were supplied with detailed information about the reasons of the smoking ban (greenberg, 1994). announcements of a work site smoking ban were made to 732 clerical workers but the presentations differed in the amount of information given about the need for the ban and the degree of interpersonal sensitivity shown over the personal impact of the ban. regardless of how much they smoked, all smokers recognized the procedural fairness associated with giving thorough information in a socially sensitive manner. in the context of taxation, tax letters reflecting the principle of informational justice were suggested to increase taxpayers‟ compliance with tax laws (wenzel, 2006). in a study conducted by kernan and hanges (2002) on the antecedents and consequences of informational justice survivor reactions to reorganization, it was established that surviving employees who were aware of the objectives of the reorganization evaluated the process and results as more fair than those who were not consulted. whereas initial explanations are important (bies & moag, 1986; mansour-cole & scott, 1998), recognized that employees should receive information that extends beyond initial justifications or explanations, especially, for decisions with long term implications on the individuals like reorganization. in their study, bies, shapiro, and cummings (1988) found that perceptions of procedural justice were enhanced only when explanations were believed to be adequately reasoned and sincerely communicated. the study established that the rejected requests were likely to be perceived as procedurally fair when the decisions were based on logically relevant information (shapiro & buttner, 1988). greenberg (1990) found that workers perceived their performance appraisals as being fairer when numerical evaluations were accompanied by written narratives explaining their ratings than when no such written explanations were given. these findings strongly suggest that it is not only the procedures used to determine outcomes that influence perceptions of informational justice but also the explanations for those procedures (cohencharash & spector, 2001). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 82 employee commitment  affective  continuance  normative informational justice justification honesty implication 2.3 conceptual framework figure 1: conceptual framework 3.0 research methodology the study adopted descriptive and correlation research design. the study population was 17 nairobi based health sector ngos registered with hennet while the target population was 497 employees with supervisory responsibilities. the sampling frame for this study comprised of 85 health sector non-governmental organizations based within nairobi county and its environs. the register of health sector ngos maintained by health ngos network secretariat (hennet) was used to randomly generate the study sample. the study adopted stratified sampling technique due to homogeneity of the population. based on the nature of the study population, proportionate stratified sampling was used to establish the number of respondents from each of the 17 hennet member ngos headquartered in nairobi. the study sought to measure employee perceptions using a five point multiple choice ordinal likert rating scale measurement. primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaires. the raw data collected using questionnaires were edited and coded for analysis using ibm statistical package for social science (spss) version 20.0. the study‟s likert-type data was described and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics comprising of correlation and linear regression. findings on quantitative data were presented using statistical techniques such as tables, pie charts and bar graphs. qualitative data was presented descriptively. 4.0 results and discussions 4.1 response rate the study conducted a survey using a self-administrated questionnaire which was administered to 195 sampled respondents. 131 valid questionnaires were returned representing a response rate of 67 percent. a response rate of above 50% is considered adequate in social science research (mugenda & mugenda, 2008; babbie, 2002). the study‟s response rate of 67% was therefore considered adequate for analysis and conclusion. table 2: response rate total number of questionnaires distributed total number of valid questionnaires returned response rate (%) 195 131 67 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 83 4.2 demographic characteristics 4.2.1 gender of respondents the gender of the respondents is presented in figure 2 of the 131 valid responses, 53 percent of the respondents were male while 47 percent were female. this suggests that the study solicited information from a gender balanced perspective. according to kothari (2008) a ratio of at least 1:2 in either gender representation in a study is representative enough. figure 2: gender of respondents 4.2.2 response by job category the study targeted various categories of employees as shown on table 3. from the demographic data, 14% were administrative staff, 29% programme staff, 22% adviser/professional staff, 29% manager level, and 5% director level staff. table 3: response by job category employee category frequency percentage (%) administrative assistant 18 14 programme staff 37 29 adviser/professional 29 22 manager 37 29 director 6 5 total 127 100 4.2.3 response by number of staff supervised during the study, it was found out that staffs responsible for key performance results in this sector do not necessarily have other employees reporting to them due to the nature of the organization structures applied or the way work arrangements are designed with outsourcing being a key element. those without internal supervisory responsibilities but responsible for key result areas were reported to have quality assurance, oversight or technical backstopping responsibilities over outsourced activities. female 47% male 53% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 84 5 and above 23% none or indirect 33% 3-5 employees 23% 1-3 employess 21% as shown on figure 3, 33% of the respondents reported that they had no direct supervisory responsibilities, 21% supervised more than five employees while another 23% supervised three to five employees and another 5% more than 5 employees. figure 3 number of staff supervise 4.2.4 response by period worked with current employer in terms of length of service (table 4), 37% of the respondents indicated that they have worked for the current organization for a period not exceeding two years, 28% for up to four years, 22% for up to 6 years while only 12% had worked with the same organization for a period in excess of six years. this finding is in line with the project based nature of employment in the ngo sector where employment duration is tied to project or funding cycles (ngo bureau, 1999). table 0: response by period worked with current employer period worked frequency percentage (%) 0-2 years 49 37 3-4 years 36 28 5-6 years 29 22 7-8 years 4 3 9-10 years 5 4 10 or more years 8 6 total 131 100 4.2.5 response by age figure 4 shows the age distribution in the sample size. five percent of the respondents were aged 25 years or less, 29% were aged between 26-30 years, 40% between 31-40 years, 19% between 41-50 and 7 percentages between 51-60 years. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 85 figure 4: response by age 4.2.6 response by level of education majority of the respondents (46 %) were either first degree holders or hold professional qualifications; 34% hold a post graduate degree; 18% are diploma holders and two percent were of secondary education level. figure 5: response by level of education 4.2.7 response by type of employment as shown in figure 5 majority of the respondents (83%) were employed on term contract basis while 17% had open ended contracts. this employment practice would appear to be in line with the project nature of work in the development sector (lewis & kanji, 2009). 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 25 or less years 26-30 years 31-40 years 41-50 years 51-60 years years secondary school diploma post graduate (masters) 34% 2% 18% degree/professional qualification 46% fr eq u en cy ( % ) http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 86 figure 6: response by type of employment results shows that project and management level staff (25.4% and 24.6% respectively comprised of the highest number of employees employed on contract terms. 4.3 descriptive statistics informational justice has been operationalized primarily as providing explanations or accounting for decisions made. respondents‟ perceptions on informational justice fall under the “to a great extent” level of agreement. table 5: perceptions on informational justice informational justice very little extent (%) little extent (%) some extent (%) great extent (%) very great extent (%) supervisor has been candid in his/ her communication 1 14 18 52 15 procedures explained thoroughly 1 15 28 45 11 explanations regarding procedures reasonable 3 12 28 43 14 decision details explained in a timely manner 4 11 34 37 14 communication tailored to individuals' specific needs 2 14 30 44 10 average % 2 13 28 44 13 respondents agreed with the statement that to a great extent; their supervisor has been candid in his/ her communication with the respondent (52%); their supervisor had explained the procedures thoroughly (45%), the supervisors‟ explanations regarding the procedures were reasonable (43%), supervisor had communicated details in a timely manner (37%) and the supervisor seemed to tailor his/ her communications to individuals' specific needs (44%. this finding supports colquitt et al., 2001) on the importance of sharing relevant information with employees. open ended contract 17% fixed contract 83% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 87 4.4 inferential statistics 4.4.1 influence of informational justice perceptions on affective commitment the study tested the relationship between informational justice perceptions on affective commitment. a linear regression model was adopted to link the independent variables to the dependent variable. table 6: model summaryinformational justice on affective commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .209a .044 .005 .970 a. predictors: (constant), tailor communications , candid communication, explanations reasonableness, timely manner, procedures thoroughness b. dependent variable: affective commitment index the model summary results indicate that the constructs of informational justice perception accounted for 4.4% of the variation in affective commitment. further, the f-statistics results clearly indicated that the variables used in this model were not significant predictor of affective commitment hence the overall model was insignificant. table 7: anovainformational justice n affective commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 5.266 5 1.053 1.119 .354b residual 114.820 122 .941 total 120.086 127 a. dependent variable: affective commitment index b. predictors: (constant), tailor communications , candid communication, explanations, timely manner, procedures thoroughness http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 88 table 8: coefficientsinformational justice n affective commitment model unstandardize d coefficients standardize d coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta toleranc e vif (constant) 1.585 .394 4.02 3 .00 0 candid communication .143 .128 .140 1.11 6 .26 7 .495 2.02 1 procedures thoroughness .053 .160 .050 .333 .74 0 .348 2.87 2 explanations reasonableness -.035 .142 -.035 -.247 .80 5 .385 2.59 8 timely manner -.024 .132 -.025 -.184 .85 4 .429 2.32 9 tailor communication s .110 .129 .106 .855 .39 4 .507 1.97 1 a. dependent variable: affective index the results of regression model indicate that candid communication, thorough explanation of procedures and tailor made communications have a positive but an insignificant relationship with affective commitment. the relationship between reasonable explanation and timely communications and affective commitment was negative but insignificant. these findings imply that informational justice perception does not significantly affect affective commitment. the findings of this study contradict with kernan and hanges (2002) who conducted a study on the antecedents and consequences of informational justice survivor reactions to reorganization. kernan and hanges (2002) established that surviving employees who were aware of the objectives of the reorganization evaluated the process and results as more fair than those who were not consulted. 4.4.2 influence of informational justice perceptions on continuance commitment the study similarly, sought to establish the relationship between informational justice constructs and continuance commitment. the findings of the regression model used to link the informational justice constructs and continuance commitment are presented below. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 89 table 9: model summaryinformational justice on continuance commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .176a .031 .000 1.032 a. predictors: (constant), improper remarks , dignity, polite manner, respect b. dependent variable: continuance commitment index the r-square for the regression model was 0.031 which simply implies that the informational justice variables accounted for 3.1% of the variation in continuance commitment. these findings further imply that there is a weak relationship between informational justice perception variables and continuance commitment. the f-statistics result further indicates that model was statistically insignificant which imply that the variables used in the model were not good predictors of continuance commitment. table 10: anovainformational justice on continuance commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 4.239 4 1.060 .995 .413b residual 132.042 124 1.065 total 136.281 128 a. dependent variable: continuance commitment index b. predictors: (constant), improper remarks , dignity, polite manner, respect http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 90 table 11: coefficientsinformational justice on continuance commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 2.178 .439 4.962 .000 polite manner .164 .264 .139 .621 .535 .155 6.435 dignity .080 .275 .068 .293 .770 .144 6.944 respect .318 .319 .274 .997 .321 .104 9.660 improper remarks -.231 .145 -.218 1.597 .113 .417 2.395 a. dependent variable: continuance index all the variables in the model were positively and insignificantly related to continuance commitment. the findings of this study contradict with kernan and hanges (2002) who conducted a study on the antecedents and consequences of informational justice survivor reactions to reorganization. kernan and hanges (2002) established that surviving employees who were aware of the objectives of the reorganization evaluated the process and results as more fair than those who were not consulted. cohencharash & spector, (2001) findings strongly suggested that it is not only the procedures used to determine outcomes that influence perceptions of informational justice but also the explanations for those procedures. 4.4.3 influence of informational justice perceptions on normative commitment this study also sought to establish the relationship between informational justice perceptions and normative commitment. the study used regression model to ascertain this relationship. table 12: model summaryinformational justice on normative commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .401a .161 .126 .777 a. predictors: (constant), tailor communications , candid communication, procedures reasonableness, timely manner, procedures thoroughness b. dependent variable: normative commitment index the results of the model summary indicate that informational justice perception variables accounted for 16.1% of the variation in normative commitment. futher the f-statistics indicate that the model was statistically significant (f=4.589, p<0.05). these findings imply http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 91 that the informational justice variables used in the model were good predictors of normative commitment. table 13: anovainformational justice on normative commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 13.847 5 2.769 4.589 .001b residual 72.415 120 .603 total 86.262 125 a. dependent variable: normative index b. predictors: (constant), tailor communications , candid communication, procedures reasonableness, timely manner, procedures thoroughness table 14: coefficientsinformational justice on normative commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 1.384 .316 3.83 .000 candid communication .201 .103 .232 1.70 0.092 .490 2.040 procedures thoroughness .054 .128 .060 2.44 0.046 .349 2.866 procedures reasonableness .019 .114 .023 0.16 0.873 .385 2.595 timely manner .068 .110 -.081 2.60 0.050 .404 2.472 tailor communications .202 .104 .229 1.90 0.040 .505 1.979 the regression results revealed that thorough explanations of procedures, having tailor made communications and timely communication were found to be positive and significantly related to normative communication. these findings imply that informational justice perceptions are significantly related to normative commitment. the findings of this study are consistent with those of leventhal (1980) who proposed six criteria for a procedure to be perceived as fair. these include consistency, bias suppression, and accuracy of information in decision making, correctability, representativeness and ethicality based on conformity to personal ethical or moral values. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 92 wiesenfeld et al., (2007), also added bias suppression, accuracy and overall fairness as the defining criteria for procedural justice. according to thibaut and walker (1975) procedural justice theory, the amount of control people influenced over decisions and processes their perceptions of fairness. according to thibaut and walker (1975) fair procedures are valuable because they allow individuals‟ control over outcomes. 4.4.4 overall influence of informational justice perception on organisational commitment the study combined informational justice perceptions variables to test the overall effects of informational justice perceptions on organisational commitment. a regression model was adopted to ascertain this relationship. table 15: overall model summary model summary r .256a r square 0.065 adjusted r square 0.058 std. error of the estimate 0.58536 f-statistic 3.065 (p=0.003) the results in the overall model summary show that information justice perceptions accounted for 6.5% of the variation in organisational commitment. the f-statistics, results also indicate that the model was statistically significant (f=3.065, p=0.003). these findings imply that informational justice perception is a good predictor of organisational commitment. table 16: coefficients for overall model b std. error beta t sig. (constant) 2.093 0.233 8.975 0 informational justice 0.194 0.065 0.256 2.991 0.003 a dependent variable: overall committment informational justice perception was found to have a positive relationship with overall commitment (b=0.194, p=0.003). these findings imply that an increase in 0.194 units in informational justice perception will cause a resultant increase of one unit in organisational commitment. the findings of this study concur with wiesenfeld et al., (2007) who also argued that bias suppression, accuracy and overall fairness as the defining criteria for procedural justice. according to thibaut and walker (1975) procedural justice theory, the amount of control people influenced over decisions and processes their perceptions of fairness. according to thibaut and walker (1975) fair procedures are valuable because they allow individuals‟ control over outcomes. 4.4.5 hypothesis testing the study sought to test the hypothesis; h0: there is no statistically significant relationship between perceptions of informational justice and employee commitment in health sector non http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 93 governmental organizations in kenya. this null hypothesis was rejected at a significance level of 0.05, therefore, there is a statistically significant relationship between perceptions of informational justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. therefore, the optimal model was; organisational commitment =2.093+0.194 (informational justice perceptions) + ℮ 5.0 discussion conclusions and recommendations 5.1 discussion informational justice emphasizes the principle that authorities should share sufficient information on the process and outcome with those affected by their decisions (sindhav et al., 2006). informational justice is enhanced through provision of timely and honest explanations to people about the procedures that concern them (greenberg, 1993). it is fostered when those in authority adhere to specific rules of fair interpersonal communication. the results of the study showed that informational justice perceptions were significantly correlated to affective and normative commitment. 5.2 conclusions based on the findings, the study concluded that informational justice perceptions have a positive and significant relationship with affective, continuance and normative commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 5.3 recommendations informational justice perceptions are based on the quality of explanations and information an employee receives from their supervisors and other organizational authorities. organizations should therefore ensure that justification and truthfulness rules are embedded in their human resource management practices. they should also strive to provide timely and sufficient communication. the study findings showed that though positive, informational justice has a low explanatory power on affective and normative commitment and none on continuance commitment. this finding indicates that there is a need to promote informational justice amongst health ngos. informational justice is enhanced through provision of timely and honest explanations to people on issues that affect them, their work and employment. it is fostered when authorities adhere to specific rules of fair interpersonal communication. 5.4 areas for further research there is a need to undertake further studies in order to widen the generalizability of the findings and also establish reasons for the variations in the findings on the low influence of justice perceptions in the ngo sector in kenya compared to the strong influence reported in studies conducted in other sectors in the rest of the world. such studies are also likely to identify what are, if any, the other factors which influence employee commitment in the ngo sector. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp74-97, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 94 references adams, j. s. 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(2008). beyond the three-component model of organizational commitment. journal of applied psychology, 93 (1), 70-83. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector nongovernmental organizations in kenya patrick m. gichira, dr susan m. were, dr george o. orwa european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 2 relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya 1*patrick m. gichira post graduate student: school of human resources jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr susan m. were lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr george o. orwa lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology abstract purpose: the purpose of the study was to establish the relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. methodology: the study adopted descriptive and correlational research designs with a statistical sample of 195 employees responsible for key result areas in 17 health sector non governmental organizations. justice perceptions were measured using colquitt‟s four construct model comprising of distributive, procedural, interpersonal and informational justice while organizational commitment was measured through meyer‟s three component model comprising of affective, continuance and normative commitment. inferential statistics comprising of correlation, multiple linear regression models and anova analysis were applied `to establish the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. qualitative data was analyzed through the use of questionnaires. results: based on the results of the pearson correlation, the study concluded that there is a significant relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: the study recommends that health ngo organizations promote organizational commitment by designing employment terms that are internally commensurate with employee‟s efforts and externally competitive. keywords: perceptions, distributive justice, employee commitment, health sector non governmental organizations http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 3 1.0 introduction 1.1 background of the study many contemporary writings on organizations emphasize the importance of core values to the organization (collins & porras, 1997). justice in terms of fair treatment of employees is identified as one of those values and fairness as one of the fundamental bases of cooperative action in organizations (cropanzo et al, 2007). truth telling, promise keeping, fairness, and respect for the individual are some of the key guiding principles of effective people management in organizations (russell, 2001). justice perceptions can influence employees‟ attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on their performance and the organization‟s success (baldwin, 2006). justice is therefore a basic requirement for the effective functioning of organizations and the personal commitment of the individuals they employ (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). employee perceptions of organizational justice in terms of fair formal deci sion-making procedures (procedural justice), fair decision outcomes (distributive justice), fair interpersonal treatment (interpersonal justice) and information sharing (informational justice) by decision makers have been found to be related to a variety of work-related attitudes and behaviors including commitment (colquitt, et al, 2001, al-zu‟bi, 2010; yucel, 2013; akanbi & ofoegbu, 2013). organisational commitment is the bond employees experience with their organization (folger & cropanzano, 1998). employees who are committed to their organisation generally feel a connection with their organization, feel that they fit in and, feel they understand the goals of the organisation (cohen et al., 2001). the added value of such employees is that they tend to be more determined in their work, show relatively high productivity and are more proactive in offering their support (konovsky, et al, 2000). meyer & allen (1997) conceptualized organizational commitment in three dimensions namely affective, continuance and normative commitments. justice perceptions can influence employee attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on individual, group and the entire organization‟s performance and success (baldwin, 2006). empirical evidence supports the notion that an employee‟s perception of organizational justice affects their attitude toward the organization (konovsky, et al, 2000). if the perception of organizational justice is positive, individuals tend to be more satisfied and committed to their job (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). organizational justice impacts on employees in organizations since they are the subject of work place decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (cohen et al., 2001). some of these decisions deal with the salaries individuals earn, the projects or programmes they implement while others deal with work place interactions. the importance of those consequences causes individuals to judge the decision making they experience from a justice perspective (colquitt, 2001). according to baldwin (2006) the term organizational justice refers to the extent to which employees perceive workplace procedures, interactions, and outcomes to be fair in nature. he concluded that these perceptions can influence attitudes and behaviours of the employees. cropanzano, bowen and gilliland (2007) defined it as a personal evaluation about the ethical and moral standing of managerial conduct. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 4 current literature on organizational justice identifies four different constructs; distributive justice, procedural justice, interpersonal justice and informational justice (colquitt, greenberg, & zapataphelan, 2005). distributive justice is the justice of an employee which he perceives as a result of comparing the commitments he makes to his work and the outcomes of these such as rewards, duties and responsibilities, compared to the commitments the other employees make and the outcomes of them (colquitt,2001). procedural justice implies that, while evaluating the fairness of the organizational decisions, employees are not only interested in what these decisions are but also with the processes which determine these decisions (folger & cropanzano, 1998). interpersonal justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the manner in which they are treated by those in authority during the enactment of organizational procedures (lind & bos, 2002) while informational justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the information used as the basis for making a decision (gurbuz & mert, 2009). each of these forms of justice has been found to have different effects on employee commitment (colquitt, et al., 2005). 1.2 problem statement employees are the subject of decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (colquitt, 2001). in organizational settings, justice is not always administered through fair allocation of employment resources, provision of clear and adequate explanations for decisions made and employees are not always treated with dignity and respect during the implementation of policies and procedures (cohen-charash & spector, 2001; frontela, 2007). adoption of effective human resource management (hrm) practices in many non governmental organizations (ngos) is often low in the list of management priority (batti, 2014) because ngo organizations discourages investment in human resource capacities and staff retention measures due to the short-term nature of the projects, funding constraints and subsequent short term employment practices. this in turn leads to negative justice perceptions and commitment. (padaki, 2007). in a study carried out by frontela (2007) in kenya and other developing countries, the researchers found that irrespective of the affiliation, mission, size and extent of operations, problems of low morale and low motivation of staff were prevalent in ngos. these are all indicators of antecedents and outcomes of commitment (wright, & kehoe, 2008). they point to a possible absence of organizational justice and low employee commitment. organizational justice research has predominately involved employees from western countries, particularly the u.s. (mcfarlin & sweeney, 2001). as such, the current thinking regarding reactions to organizational justice may not generalize to employees from societies that have cultural and economic characteristics which differ significantly from those commonly found in north american and western european societies. in addition, in their meta-analytical review of literature on commitment in organizations in the period 1988 to 2011, iqbal et al (2012) found out that most of the research studies published was conducted at the industry or firm level as the unit of analysis. furthermore, the organization and management of ngo sector has received relatively little attention from researchers (lewis, 2005). there is therefore a paucity of information regarding the importance of fairness and employee reactions to organizational justice from different contexts especially africa and http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 5 particularly the health sector ngos in kenya. given this lack of information, the study sought to establish the relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 1.3 research objectives to establish the relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 2.0 literature review 2.1 theoretical review 2.1.1 human resource management theories this subsection discusses social exchange theory, uncertainty reduction theory and social information processing theory are as they relate to human resource management in organizations. social exchange theory social exchange theory views the employment relationship as a process of resource exchange governed by the norm of reciprocity (shore & wayne, 1993; coyle-shapiro et al., 2004), encompassing both ongoing conferment of benefits and continual re-balancing of expectations and obligations (coyle-shapiro & morrow, 2006). perceptions of the mutual obligations held by the employee and the employer may be the result of formal contracts entailed in an employment relationship or implied by the expectations which two parties hold of each other (herriot et al., 1997); the latter being captured in the concept of psychological contract (rousseau, 1990, 2001). employees reciprocate their employer, based on the extent to which they perceive obligations to them have been fulfilled (coyle-shapiro morrow, 2006). the more the employer fulfils obligations and meets expectations, the more employees feel secure and satisfied, and consequently obligated to reciprocate. conversely, when employees encounter unexpected changes, the perceived reciprocal relationship may be breached. such changes have become increasingly frequent as organizations respond to competitive pressure, adopting new forms of employment relationship (kessler et al., 2004). where these results in a sense of injustice and betrayal (herriot et al., 1997), this can result in a loss of employee commitment to the organization (guzzo et al., 1994). social exchange theory argues that hrm practices contribute to positive exchange relationships between employee and employer. the theory postulates that when the needs of individual workers are considered, employees reciprocate with favourable attitudes and behaviour (gould-williams & davies, 2005). social exchange theory identifies trust and perceived organizational support as some of the mediators through which hrm induces favourable attitudes and work outcomes, (meyer & smith, 2000). according to social exchange theory, normative commitment is based on the norm of reciprocity where, based on the organization‟s actions, an employee feels that there is a particular way that he or she should behave (cropanzano & mitchell, 2005). uncertainty reduction theory http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 6 according to the uncertainty reduction theory, uncertainty creates a feeling of vulnerability or anxiety that can lead to actively distorting perceptions and information. uncertainty reduction theory propounds that newcomers experience high levels of uncertainty during the organizational entry process (saks & ashforth, 1997). like any organizational members, they are motivated to reduce their uncertainty such that the work environment becomes more predictable, understandable, and ultimately controllable. uncertainty is reduced through the information provided via various communication channels, notably social interactions with superiors and peers (bulut & culha, 2010). as uncertainty decreases, newcomers become more adept at performing their tasks, more satisfied with their job, and more likely to remain in their organization (morrison, 1993). socialization programs influence newcomers‟ adjustment in this regard by reducing their high levels of uncertainty and anxiety. baker (1995) found that role certainty is an important latent factor of socialization tactics. social information processing theory according to the social information processing theory, the social environment in which individuals operate influences individual attitudes in organizations because the social environment provides a direct construction of meaning through guides to socially acceptable beliefs, attitudes, and needs, and acceptable reasons for action (salancik & pfeffer, 1997). the organizational climate literature suggests that climate is a particularly powerful social mechanism through which hrm practices impact individual attitudes because climate shapes how employees construe the meaning of organizational practices (ostroff & bowen, 2000). social information processing theory suggests that management practices which promote open communication within an organization, open access to information, and free information sharing, can increase affective organizational commitment (thornhill & saunders, 1996). information sharing is suggested to have direct influence on the variables associated with affective commitment by enhancing trust and building employee self-worth and perceptions of importance (meyer & allen, 1997). this means that information sharing should promote increased perceptions of fairness on the nature of decisions and the processes by which decisions are made. according to meyer and allen (1997), both these factors have been associated with the development of affective commitment. 2.1.2 organizational commitment theories scholars have offered many differing views and theories regarding employee commitment towards the employer organization. the key emerging themes indicate that in general, commitment is made up of investments, reciprocity, social identity, and lack of alternatives (brum, 2007). the investment approach states that it is an employee‟s investment and anticipation of a future pay off that serves to tie them closer to the organization. reciprocity, in contrast, indicates that it is the employee‟s obligation to pay off their debt to the organization that will lead to greater commitment (barrett & o‟connell, 2001). the identification argument specifies that commitment can grow as a result of an employee‟s social identity becoming increasingly embedded in their employment (blau & boal, 1987). lastly, the lack of alternatives element states that the more specific an employee‟s skills become to a particular organization the less likely they will leave (scholl, 1981). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 7 the main theories on organizational commitment relevant to the study are side bet theory, theory of reciprocity and meyer & allen‟s three-component model of organizational commitment. sidebet theory according to becker‟s side bet theory, the relationship between an employee and the organization is founded on behaviours bounded by a contract of economic gains. employees are committed to the organization because they have some hidden vested investments or side bets. these side-bets are valued by the individual because of the accrual of certain costs that render disengagement difficult. becker argued that over a period of time certain costs accrue that make it more difficult for the person to disengage from a consistent pattern of activity, namely, maintaining membership in the organization. accordingly, the threat of losing these investments, along with a perceived lack of alternatives to replace or make up for their loss, commits the person to the organization (griffin & hepburn, 2005). becker went on to clarify that side bets can be centred on time, effort, pay, benefits, and so on. the greater the investment in any of these “side bets”, the more likely the employee will remain with an organization. due to the perceived cost of leaving being too high, side bets can serve to actually increase the employee‟s intent to remain in an organization (liou & nyhan, 1994). several elements must exist in order for commitment to be achieved through a “side bet”. one such element is that the individual is aware that a “side bet” was made. another is that the choices that were made regarding a particular decision have an effect on other potential decisions. the “side bet” philosophy states that an investment is made today with the expectation that the benefit will be achieved at some future point (scholl, 1981). theory of reciprocity employees have specific desires and expectations. when an organization seeks to meet and exceed these desires and expectations through reciprocity, then the likelihood of improving commitment is enhanced. the premise behind reciprocity is that an employee will help the organization because the organization helped them. under the norm of reciprocity, employees with strong perceptions of organizational support would therefore feel obligated to repay the organization in terms of organizational commitment (steers, 1977). brum (2007) argues that employees may view some human resource outcomes as a “gift”. training is one such practice that employees may view as a “gift”. the result of this “gift” is that employees exert more effort, become more productive, and have a greater sense of debt to the organization. the “gift” also has the potential to make employees feel like “insiders” into the organization. an “insider” is likely to be more committed and devoted to the organization and the idea of “gift” and “insider” parallels closely to the concept of reciprocity (brum, 2007). meyer & allen multi-dimension theory this theory proposes that organizational commitment is experienced by an employee as three simultaneous mind-sets encompassing affective, normative, and continuance organizational commitment (meyer & allen, 1990). the three forms of organizational commitment are characterized by three different mindsets – desire, obligation, and cost. according to the model, employees with a strong affective commitment stay because they want to, those with strong normative commitment stay because they feel they ought to, and those with strong http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 8 continuance commitment stay because they have to do so (jaros, 1997). the three-component conceptualization of organizational commitment is currently regarded as the dominant model in organizational commitment research (solinger, 2008). 2.2 empirical review distributive justice has been found to be related to work outcomes such as organizational commitment (cohen-charash & spector, 2001). the pioneering research on distributive justice involved studying members of the u.s. army during world war ii (mayer, 2009). in examining survey data collected from the troops it was observed that soldiers' attitudes were influenced more not by objective outcomes received but rather by the relative level of their outcomes compared to others in their unit. indeed, it was observed that members of air corps had less favorable perceptions about promotion opportunities compared to other units‟ members despite the fact that they had a much higher chance of being promoted than did members of those other units. after examining the results more closely, it became clear that air corps individuals compared themselves to other members of their unit as opposed to individuals in other units with lower promotion rates. this finding supports adams‟ theory of equity which postulates that outcomes are not satisfying or unsatisfying in and of themselves but rather the comparison of one's own outcomes to others' outcomes is what matters most. studies have also identified other standards to determine distributive justice (colquitt, 2001). for example, leventhal (1976) proposed a different conceptualization of equity standard and suggested that equity occurs when an individual‟s rewards/benefits are commensurate with his or her contributions. in other words, an individual will perceive an outcome to be fair if the benefits of the outcome are commensurate with his or her inputs or costs. leventhal‟s equity standard has been applied in various studies in the justice literature (sweeney & mcfarlin, 1993; colquitt, 2001). examining the influence of pay on productivity in a corporate setting, cowherd & levine (1992), also confirmed that increasing pay can serve as a motivational drive to improve product quality. in another study, greenberg (1988) studied managers who were temporarily moved to offices with higher or lower status than their positions actually warranted. similar to the effect of pay found by cowherd and levine (1992), the managers who moved to higher‐status offices raised performance, whereas those moved to lower‐status offices became less productive. when the managers were returned to an office matching to their status, the gains and losses in performance disappeared. this finding illustrates that employees are sensitive to, pass justice judgement and react on the fairness by which resources are distributed at the work place. arif hassan (2002) investigated the role played by justice perceptions promoting employee commitment to the organization. using a sample of 181 middle and lower level managers from the banking and finance, production and manufacturing, and service sectors, he hypothesized that both internal and external equity perceptions are positively related to commitment. the study findings indicated that both distributive and procedural justice factors made significant contributions to employees' organizational commitment. akanbi et al., (2013) examined the role of organizational justice on organizational commitment in a multinational organization in nigeria. the objectives of the study were to ascertain the significant difference between procedural justice and perceived organizational commitment, and also to examine the significant relationship between distributive justice and perceived organizational commitment. the study results indicated that organizational justice as http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 9 employee commitment  affective  continuance  normative distributive justice  equity  equality  need measured by procedural justice and distributive justice can have a significant impact on the organizational commitment of employees. 2.3 conceptual framework figure 1: conceptual framework 3.0 research methodology the study adopted descriptive and correlation research design. the study population was 17 nairobi based health sector ngos registered with hennet while the target population was 497 employees with supervisory responsibilities. the sampling frame for this study comprised of 85 health sector non-governmental organizations based within nairobi county and its environs. the register of health sector ngos maintained by health ngos network secretariat (hennet) was used to randomly generate the study sample. the study adopted stratified sampling technique due to homogeneity of the population. based on the nature of the study population, proportionate stratified sampling was used to establish the number of respondents from each of the 17 hennet member ngos headquartered in nairobi. the study sought to measure employee perceptions using a five point multiple choice ordinal likert rating scale measurement. primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaires. the raw data collected using questionnaires were edited and coded for analysis using ibm statistical package for social science (spss) version 20.0. the study‟s likert-type data was described and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics comprising of correlation and linear regression. findings on quantitative data were presented using statistical techniques such as tables, pie charts and bar graphs. qualitative data was presented descriptively. 4.0 results and discussions 4.1 response rate the study conducted a survey using a self-administrated questionnaire which was administered to 195 sampled respondents. 131 valid questionnaires were returned representing a response rate of 67 percent. a response rate of above 50% is considered adequate in social science research (mugenda & mugenda, 2008; babbie, 2002). the study‟s response rate of 67% was therefore considered adequate for analysis and conclusion. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 10 table 2: response rate total number of questionnaires distributed total number of valid questionnaires returned response rate (%) 195 131 67 4.2 demographic characteristics 4.2.1 gender of respondents the gender of the respondents is presented in figure 2 of the 131 valid responses, 53 percent of the respondents were male while 47 percent were female. this suggests that the study solicited information from a gender balanced perspective. according to kothari (2008) a ratio of at least 1:2 in either gender representation in a study is representative enough. figure 2: gender of respondents 4.2.2 response by job category the study targeted various categories of employees as shown on table 3. from the demographic data, 14% were administrative staff, 29% programme staff, 22% adviser/professional staff, 29% manager level, and 5% director level staff. table 3: response by job category employee category frequency percentage (%) administrative assistant 18 14 programme staff 37 29 adviser/professional 29 22 manager 37 29 director 6 5 total 127 100 4.2.3 response by number of staff supervised during the study, it was found out that staffs responsible for key performance results in this sector do not necessarily have other employees reporting to them due to the nature of the organization structures applied or the way work arrangements are designed with outsourcing female 47% male 53% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 11 5 and above 23% none or indirect 33% 3-5 employees 23% 1-3 employess 21% being a key element. those without internal supervisory responsibilities but responsible for key result areas were reported to have quality assurance, oversight or technical backstopping responsibilities over outsourced activities. as shown on figure 3, 33% of the respondents reported that they had no direct supervisory responsibilities, 21% supervised more than five employees while another 23% supervised three to five employees and another 5% more than 5 employees. figure 3: number of staff supervise 4.2.4 response by period worked with current employer in terms of length of service (table 4), 37% of the respondents indicated that they have worked for the current organization for a period not exceeding two years, 28% for up to four years, 22% for up to 6 years while only 12% had worked with the same organization for a period in excess of six years. this finding is in line with the project based nature of employment in the ngo sector where employment duration is tied to project or funding cycles (ngo bureau, 1999). table 0: response by period worked with current employer period worked frequency percentage (%) 0-2 years 49 37 3-4 years 36 28 5-6 years 29 22 7-8 years 4 3 9-10 years 5 4 10 or more years 8 6 total 131 100 4.2.5 response by age figure 4 shows the age distribution in the sample size. five percent of the respondents were aged 25 years or less, 29% were aged between 26-30 years, 40% between 31-40 years, 19% between 41-50 and 7 percentages between 51-60 years. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 12 figure 4: response by age 4.2.6 response by level of education majority of the respondents (46 %) were either first degree holders or hold professional qualifications; 34% hold a post graduate degree; 18% are diploma holders and two percent were of secondary education level. figure 5: response by level of education 4.2.7 response by type of employment as shown in figure 5 majority of the respondents (83%) were employed on term contract basis while 17% had open ended contracts. this employment practice would appear to be in line with the project nature of work in the development sector (lewis & kanji, 2009). 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 25 or less years 26-30 years 31-40 years 41-50 years 51-60 years years secondary school diploma post graduate (masters) 34% 2% 18% degree/professional qualification 46% fr eq u en cy ( % ) http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 13 figure 6: response by type of employment results shows that project and management level staff (25.4% and 24.6% respectively comprised of the highest number of employees employed on contract terms. 4.3 descriptive statistics distributive justice is concerned with the reality that not all workers are treated alike and the allocation of outcomes is differentiated in the workplace. on average, respondents‟ level of agreement with perceptions on distributive justice falls under the “to a great extent” level of agreement. the findings are given below. table 5: perceptions on distributive justice distributive justice very little extent (%) little extent (%) some extent (%) great extent (%) very great extent (%) total (%) decision made by employer reflect work effort 8 10 34 38 10 100 decision outcome appropriate/ in line with responsibilities 6 10 35 44 5 100 outcome reflect contribution by employee 6 13 33 42 6 100 outcome based on performance 9 12 39 34 6 100 average % 7 11 35 40 7 100 as shown on table 5, majority of respondents indicated that distributive decisions made by the employer organization reflected their work efforts to a great extent (38%); decision outcome were appropriate or in line with responsibilities (44%); outcome reflect employee contribution to the organization (42%). however, (39%) indicated that given their performance, the outcome was only justified to some extent. these findings support the view that employee are concerned with whether or not they received their just share in the work place and justice perceptions can be based on the organization‟s adherence to distributive justice rules of equity, equality, or need (greenberg, 1996). open ended contract 17% fixed contract 83% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 14 4.4 inferential statistics 4.4.1 influence of distributive justice perceptions on affective commitment the study tested the influence of distributive justice perceptions on employee commitment in health sector nongovernmental organizations in kenya using regression analysis. employee commitment was measured using three forms: affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment. table 6: model summary for distributive justice and affective commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate .287 .083 .053 .943 a. predictors: (constant), employer decision, outcome appropriateness, outcome contribution, outcome justification b. dependent variable: affective index the summary above indicates that perception of distributive justice account for 8% of the variation in affective commitment. in statistics significance testing the p-value indicates the level of relation of the independent variable to the dependent variable. if the significance number found is less than the critical value also known as the probability value (p) which is statistically set at 0.05, then the conclusion would be that the model is significant in explaining the relationship; else the model would be regarded as non-significant. table 7 provides the results on the analysis of the variance (anova). the results indicate that the model was statistically significant. further, the results imply that the independent variables are good predictors of sales revenue. this was supported by an f statistic of 2.789 and the reported p value (0.029) which was less than the conventional probability of 0.05 significance level. table 7: anova for distributive justice and affective commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 9.911 4 2.478 2.789 .029b residual 110.176 124 .889 total 120.087 128 a. dependent variable: affective index b. predictors: (constant), employer decision, outcome appropriateness, outcome contribution, outcome justification http://www.ajpojournals.org/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/significance_testing european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 15 table 8: coefficients for distributive justice and affective commitment model unstandardize d coefficients standardize d coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta toleranc e vif (constant) 1.487 .322 4.61 3 .000 employer decision .152 .116 .165 1.31 6 .191 .472 2.11 7 outcome appropriatenes s -.009 .153 -.009 -.061 .952 .326 3.06 5 outcome contribution .026 .161 .026 .159 .874 .277 3.61 2 outcome justification .131 .152 .137 .860 .039 2 .289 3.45 6 however, the test on the beta coefficients of the resulting model shows that, the constant α= 1.487, with the distributive constructs; employer decision (β1=0.152, p > 0.05), outcome appropriateness (β1=-0.009, p > 0.05), outcome contribution (β1=0.026, p > 0.05) and outcome justification (β1= 0.131, p < 0.05). these findings imply that most the constructs measuring distributive justice had an insignificant relationship with affective commitment. only outcome justification had a significant relationship with affective commitment. the above findings are inconsistent with arif hassan (2002) who investigated the role played by justice perceptions promoting employee commitment to the organization using a sample of 181 middle and lower level managers from the banking and finance, production and manufacturing, and service sectors. the study findings indicated that both distributive and procedural justice factors made significant contributions to employees' organizational commitment. on the other hand, akanbi et al., (2013) also examined the role of organizational justice on organizational commitment in a multinational organization in nigeria. the study results indicated that organizational justice as measured by procedural justice and distributive justice can have a significant impact on the organizational commitment of employees. since previous study reviewed in the literature used different constructs to measure distributive justice, this study concludes that there is positive but insignificant relationship between distributive justice and affective commitment. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 16 4.4.2 influence of distributive justice perceptions on continuance commitment the study also sought to find out whether perception of distributive justice had significant relationship with continuance commitment. the study adopted linear regression model to ascertain this relationship. table 9: model summary-distributive justice and continuance commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .143 .020 -.011 1.045 a. predictors: (constant), (constant), employer decision, outcome appropriateness, outcome contribution, outcome justification b. dependent variable: continuance commitment index the results of the model summary indicate that the perception of distributive justice account for a very small variation in continuance commitment. the perception of distributive justice explains only 2% of the variation in continuance commitment. the anova results shows that the statistic, f = 0.644, p>0.05 indicates that the distributive justice construct is not significant in explaining for variations in continuance commitment. table 10: anova for distributive justice and continuance commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 2.815 4 .704 .644 .632b residual 135.450 124 1.092 total 138.265 128 a. dependent variable: continuance commitment index b. predictors: (constant), (constant), employer decision, outcome appropriateness, outcome contribution, outcome justification http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 17 table 11: coefficients for distributive justice and continuance commitment model unstandardize d coefficients standardize d coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. erro r beta toleranc e vif (constant) 1.944 .357 5.44 0 .00 0 employer decision .056 .128 .056 .436 .66 4 .472 2.11 7 outcome appropriatenes s .204 .170 .186 1.19 9 .23 3 .326 3.06 5 outcome contribution -.049 .178 -.046 -.273 .78 5 .277 3.61 2 outcome justification -.134 .169 -.131 -.790 .43 1 .289 3.45 6 a. dependent variable: continuance commitment index the regression results indicate that all the constructs under perception of distributive justice were insignificant predictors of continuance commitment. they had p-values of greater than the level of significance adopted for this study which was 0.05. the findings of this study failed to support those of raza et al., (2013) who found that justice perceptions positively relate with organizational commitment and the fairness process used in the allocation of rewards also makes the employees more committed to the organization. the researchers observed that organizational justice is a fundamental variable that plays a major role in organizational commitment and it should be improved day by day. the findings also contradicts the findings of akanbi & ofoegbu (2013) in nigeria, who found that organizational justice as measured by procedural justice and distributive justice can have a significant impact on employee organizational commitment. the study established that there was a significant relationship between perceived distributive justice and organizational commitment. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 18 4.4.3 influence of distributive justice perceptions on normative commitment the study also investigated the relationship between the distributive justice perceptions and normative commitment. a regression analysis was conducted to ascertain this relationship. table 12: model summary for distributive justice on normative commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .411a .169 .141 .764 a. predictors: (constant), employer decision, outcome appropriateness, outcome contribution, outcome justification b. dependent variable: normative commitment index the results of the model summary above indicate that contrasts of distributive justice perceptions adopted in this study account for 16.9% of the variations in normative commitment. the statistic, f = 6.191, p< 0.05 indicates that the distributive justice constructs are signifcants factors in explaining the variations in the normative commitment. table 13: anova-distributive justice on normative commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 14.469 4 3.617 6.191 .000b residual 71.280 122 .584 total 85.749 126 a. dependent variable: normative index b. predictors: (constant), employer decision, outcome appropriateness, outcome contribution, outcome justification http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 19 table 14: coefficientsdistributive justice on normative commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 1.703 .262 6.500 .000 employer decision .235 .094 .300 2.490 .014 .468 2.136 outcome appropriateness -.121 .125 -.141 -.973 .333 .325 3.073 outcome contribution, .132 .131 .158 1.005 .317 .275 3.633 outcome justification .098 .125 .121 .784 .0435 .286 3.492 however, the test on the beta coefficients of the resulting model shows that, employer decision (β1=0.235, p < 0.05), outcome appropriateness (β1=-0.121, p > 0.05), outcome contribution (β1=0.132, p > 0.05) and outcome justification (β1= 0.098, p < 0.05). employee decisions and outcome justification had a significant relationship with normative. outcome appropriateness and outcome contribution had insignificant relationship with normative commitment. 4.4.4 overall influence of distributive justice on organizational commitment the results presented in table 15 show the fitness of regression model adopted in explaining the study phenomena. the results indicate that distributive justice explained 8.5% of organizational commitment. table 16 provides the results on the analysis of the variance (anova). the results indicate that the overall model was statistically significant. further, the results imply that the independent variable was a good predictor of organisational commitment. this was supported by an f statistic of 11.784 and the reported p value (0.001) which was less than the conventional probability of 0.05 significance level. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 20 table 15: overall model summary model summary r .291a r square 0.085 adjusted r square 0.078 std. error of the estimate 0.57995 f-statistics 11.784(p-0.001) table 16: overall of coefficients b std. error beta t sig. (constant) 2.118 0.196 10.786 0 distributive justice perception 0.199 0.058 0.291 3.433 0.001 a dependent variable: overall organisation committment the regression results above show that distributive justice perception is a significant predictor of organisational commitment (b=0.199, p=0.001). this implies that a change of 0.199 units in distributive justice will cause a unit change in organisational commitment. the above findings are consistent with arif hassan (2002) who investigated the role played by justice perceptions promoting employee commitment to the organization using a sample of 181 middle and lower level managers from the banking and finance, production and manufacturing, and service sectors. the study findings indicated that both distributive and procedural justice factors made significant contributions to employees' organizational commitment. on the other hand, akanbi et al., (2013) also examined the role of organizational justice on organizational commitment in a multinational organization in nigeria. the study results indicated that organizational justice as measured by procedural justice and distributive justice can have a significant impact on the organizational commitment of employees. the findings of this study support those of raza et al., (2013) who found that justice perceptions positively relate with organizational commitment and the fairness process used in the allocation of rewards also makes the employees more committed to the organization. the researchers observed that organizational justice is a fundamental variable that plays a major role in organizational commitment and it should be improved day by day. the findings also concurs the findings of akanbi & ofoegbu (2013) in nigeria, who found that organizational justice as measured by procedural justice and distributive justice can have a significant impact on employee organizational commitment. the study established that there was a significant relationship between perceived distributive justice and organizational commitment. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 21 4.4.5 hypothesis testing the study sought to test the null hypothesis that; h0: there is no statistically significant relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. since the p-value was <0.05, we reject the null hypothesis, therefore distributive justice perceptions significantly affects organisational commitment. the optimal model was organisational commitment =2.118 +0.199 (distributive justice perception) + ℮ 5.0 discussion conclusions and recommendations 5.1 discussion in the study, distributive justice refers to the perceived fairness of one's outcomes. when a reward is allocated or a decision is made, people often make a judgment whether or not the outcome was fair. work place distributive justice judgment is usually made with respect to some referent standard (greenberg, 1990). the study results showed that distributive justice perceptions have a moderate influence on affective and normative commitment but none on continuance commitment. the study findings indicate that for a majority of the study respondents, distributive decisions made by their employer reflected their work efforts. they also viewed the outcome of such decisions as appropriate and reflective of their contributions and also justifiably in line with their performance. these findings support the equity theory of organizational justice. distributive justice was highly correlated with affective and normative commitment. regression analysis supported the study hypotheses that distributive justice has an influence on organizational commitment. previous findings have shown that employees in europe and the us prefer allocation decisions based on proportional contributions, thus the equity rule is the most prevalent there (chen, 1995). in contrast, equality appeared to be more important for many employees in the health ngo sector where employees received a consolidated salary with no reward for performance. as a result, equality, rather than equity was a more important rule as it is said to build teamwork. this is consistent with research by tyler et al. (1998) and colquitt and jackson (2006) who studied a team context in the us and found that equality emerged as an important rule. 5.2 conclusions based on the results of the pearson correlation, the study concluded that there is a significant relationship between perceptions of distributive justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 5.3 recommendations the study recommends that health ngo organizations promote organizational commitment by designing employment terms that are internally commensurate with employee‟s efforts and externally competitive. these include establishing clear pay rules establishing the degree to which one is paid fairly relative to co-workers, and the degree to which pay raises and promotions are fairly administered, pay levels demonstrating that salaries paid are fair http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp1-25, 2016 www.ajpojournals.org 22 compared to those paid outside the organization and fair pay administration where supervisors are perceived to be fair in executing rules for raises and promotions. when employees have favourable distributive justice perceptions, they are likely to have more positive emotions and more favorable attitudes and behaviours directed toward the organization that has provided the outcomes. 5.4 areas for further research there is a need to undertake further studies in order to widen the generalizability of the findings and also establish reasons for the variations in the findings on the low influence of justice perceptions in the ngo sector in kenya compared to the strong influence reported in studies conducted in other sectors in the rest of the world. such studies are also likely to identify what are, if any, the other factors which influence employee commitment in the ngo sector. references adams, j. s. 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(2008). beyond the three-component model of organizational commitment. journal of applied psychology, 93 (1), 70-83. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ effect of employees perceptions of procedural justice on employee commitment in health sector nongovernmental organizations in kenya patrick m. gichira, dr susan m. were, dr george o. orwa european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 27 effect of employees perceptions of procedural justice on employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya 1*patrick m. gichira post graduate student: school of human resources jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr susan m. were lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr george o. orwa lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology abstract purpose: the purpose of the study was to establish the effect of employees‟ perceptions of procedural justice on employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. methodology: the study adopted descriptive and correlational research designs with a statistical sample of 195 employees responsible for key result areas in 17 health sector non governmental organizations. justice perceptions were measured using colquitt‟s four construct model comprising of distributive, procedural, interpersonal and informational justice while organizational commitment was measured through meyer‟s three component model comprising of affective, continuance and normative commitment. inferential statistics comprising of correlation, multiple linear regression models and anova analysis were applied `to establish the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. qualitative data was analyzed through the use of questionnaires. results: based on the findings, the study concluded that procedural justice perceptions have a positive influence on affective commitment and normative commitment. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: managers and other leaders should be aware that the fairness of procedures used in allocating rewards and the voice afforded employees in the allocation process are as important as the fairness of the allocation of rewards in improving level of employees‟ commitment in an organization. for organizational procedures to be perceived as fair, they should be applied consistently. keywords: employees’ perceptions, procedural justice, employee commitment, health sector non-governmental organizations http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 28 1.0 introduction 1.1 background of the study many contemporary writings on organizations emphasize the importance of core values to the organization (collins & porras, 1997). justice in terms of fair treatment of employees is identified as one of those values and fairness as one of the fundamental bases of cooperative action in organizations (cropanzo et al, 2007). truth telling, promise keeping, fairness, and respect for the individual are some of the key guiding principles of effective people management in organizations (russell, 2001). justice perceptions can influence employees‟ attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on their performance and the organization‟s success (baldwin, 2006). justice is therefore a basic requirement for the effective functioning of organizations and the personal commitment of the individuals they employ (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). employee perceptions of organizational justice in terms of fair formal deci sion-making procedures (procedural justice), fair decision outcomes (distributive justice), fair interpersonal treatment (interpersonal justice) and information sharing (informational justice) by decision makers have been found to be related to a variety of work-related attitudes and behaviors including commitment (colquitt, et al, 2001, al-zu‟bi, 2010; yucel, 2013; akanbi & ofoegbu, 2013). organisational commitment is the bond employees experience with their organization (folger & cropanzano, 1998). employees who are committed to their organisation generally feel a connection with their organization, feel that they fit in and, feel they understand the goals of the organisation (cohen et al., 2001). the added value of such employees is that they tend to be more determined in their work, show relatively high productivity and are more proactive in offering their support (konovsky, et al, 2000). meyer & allen (1997) conceptualized organizational commitment in three dimensions namely affective, continuance and normative commitments. justice perceptions can influence employee attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on individual, group and the entire organization‟s performance and success (baldwin, 2006). empirical evidence supports the notion that an employee‟s perception of organizational justice affects their attitude toward the organization (konovsky, et al, 2000). if the perception of organizational justice is positive, individuals tend to be more satisfied and committed to their job (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). organizational justice impacts on employees in organizations since they are the subject of work place decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (cohen et al., 2001). some of these decisions deal with the salaries individuals earn, the projects or programmes they implement while others deal with work place interactions. the importance of those consequences causes individuals to judge the decision making they experience from a justice perspective (colquitt, 2001). according to baldwin (2006) the term organizational justice refers to the extent to which employees perceive workplace procedures, interactions, and outcomes to be fair in nature. he concluded that these perceptions can influence attitudes and http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 29 behaviours of the employees. cropanzano, bowen and gilliland (2007) defined it as a personal evaluation about the ethical and moral standing of managerial conduct. current literature on organizational justice identifies four different constructs; distributive justice, procedural justice, interpersonal justice and informational justice (colquitt, greenberg, & zapataphelan, 2005). distributive justice is the justice of an employee which he perceives as a result of comparing the commitments he makes to his work and the outcomes of these such as rewards, duties and responsibilities, compared to the commitments the other employees make and the outcomes of them (colquitt,2001). procedural justice implies that, while evaluating the fairness of the organizational decisions, employees are not only interested in what these decisions are but also with the processes which determine these decisions (folger & cropanzano, 1998). interpersonal justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the manner in which they are treated by those in authority during the enactment of organizational procedures (lind & bos, 2002) while informational justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the information used as the basis for making a decision (gurbuz & mert, 2009). each of these forms of justice has been found to have different effects on employee commitment (colquitt, et al., 2005). 1.2 problem statement employees are the subject of decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (colquitt, 2001). in organizational settings, justice is not always administered through fair allocation of employment resources, provision of clear and adequate explanations for decisions made and employees are not always treated with dignity and respect during the implementation of policies and procedures (cohen-charash & spector, 2001; frontela, 2007). adoption of effective human resource management (hrm) practices in many non governmental organizations (ngos) is often low in the list of management priority (batti, 2014) because ngo organizations discourages investment in human resource capacities and staff retention measures due to the short term nature of the projects, funding constraints and subsequent short term employment practices. this in turn leads to negative justice perceptions and commitment. (padaki, 2007). in a study carried out by frontela (2007) in kenya and other developing countries, the researchers found that irrespective of the affiliation, mission, size and extent of operations, problems of low morale and low motivation of staff were prevalent in ngos. these are all indicators of antecedents and outcomes of commitment (wright, & kehoe, 2008). they point to a possible absence of organizational justice and low employee commitment. organizational justice research has predominately involved employees from western countries, particularly the u.s. (mcfarlin & sweeney, 2001). as such, the current thinking regarding reactions to organizational justice may not generalize to employees from societies that have cultural and economic characteristics which differ significantly from those commonly found in north american and western european societies. in addition, in their meta-analytical review of literature on commitment in organizations in the period 1988 to http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 30 2011, iqbal et al (2012) found out that most of the research studies published was conducted at the industry or firm level as the unit of analysis. furthermore, the organization and management of ngo sector has received relatively little attention from researchers (lewis, 2005). there is therefore a paucity of information regarding the importance of fairness and employee reactions to organizational justice from different contexts especially africa and particularly the health sector ngos in kenya. given this lack of information, the study sought to establish the effect of employees‟ perceptions of procedural justice on employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 1.3 research objectives to establish the effect of employees perceptions of procedural justice on employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 2.0 literature review 2.1 theoretical review 2.1.1 organizational commitment theories scholars have offered many differing views and theories regarding employee commitment towards the employer organization. the key emerging themes indicate that in general, commitment is made up of investments, reciprocity, social identity, and lack of alternatives (brum, 2007). the investment approach states that it is an employee‟s investment and anticipation of a future pay off that serves to tie them closer to the organization. reciprocity, in contrast, indicates that it is the employee‟s obligation to pay off their debt to the organization that will lead to greater commitment (barrett & o‟connell, 2001). the identification argument specifies that commitment can grow as a result of an employee‟s social identity becoming increasingly embedded in their employment (blau & boal, 1987). lastly, the lack of alternatives element states that the more specific an employee‟s skills become to a particular organization the less likely they will leave (scholl, 1981). the main theories on organizational commitment relevant to the study are side bet theory, theory of reciprocity and meyer & allen‟s three-component model of organizational commitment. sidebet theory according to becker‟s side bet theory, the relationship between an employee and the organization is founded on behaviours bounded by a contract of economic gains. employees are committed to the organization because they have some hidden vested investments or side bets. these side-bets are valued by the individual because of the accrual of certain costs that render disengagement difficult. becker argued that over a period of time certain costs accrue that make it more difficult for the person to disengage from a consistent pattern of activity, namely, maintaining membership in the organization. accordingly, the threat of losing these investments, along with a perceived lack of alternatives to replace or make up for their loss, commits the person to the organization (griffin & hepburn, 2005). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 31 becker went on to clarify that side bets can be centred on time, effort, pay, benefits, and so on. the greater the investment in any of these “side bets”, the more likely the employee will remain with an organization. due to the perceived cost of leaving being too high, side bets can serve to actually increase the employee‟s intent to remain in an organization (liou & nyhan, 1994). several elements must exist in order for commitment to be achieved through a “side bet”. one such element is that the individual is aware that a “side bet” was made. another is that the choices that were made regarding a particular decision have an effect on other potential decisions. the “side bet” philosophy states that an investment is made today with the expectation that the benefit will be achieved at some future point (scholl, 1981). theory of reciprocity employees have specific desires and expectations. when an organization seeks to meet and exceed these desires and expectations through reciprocity, then the likelihood of improving commitment is enhanced. the premise behind reciprocity is that an employee will help the organization because the organization helped them. under the norm of reciprocity, employees with strong perceptions of organizational support would therefore feel obligated to repay the organization in terms of organizational commitment (steers, 1977). brum (2007) argues that employees may view some human resource outcomes as a “gift”. training is one such practice that employees may view as a “gift”. the result of this “gift” is that employees exert more effort, become more productive, and have a greater sense of debt to the organization. the “gift” also has the potential to make employees feel like “insiders” into the organization. an “insider” is likely to be more committed and devoted to the organization and the idea of “gift” and “insider” parallels closely to the concept of reciprocity (brum, 2007). meyer & allen multi-dimension theory this theory proposes that organizational commitment is experienced by an employee as three simultaneous mind-sets encompassing affective, normative, and continuance organizational commitment (meyer & allen, 1990). the three forms of organizational commitment are characterized by three different mindsets – desire, obligation, and cost. according to the model, employees with a strong affective commitment stay because they want to, those with strong normative commitment stay because they feel they ought to, and those with strong continuance commitment stay because they have to do so (jaros, 1997). the three-component conceptualization of organizational commitment is currently regarded as the dominant model in organizational commitment research (solinger, 2008). 2.2 empirical review leventhal (1980) proposed six criteria for a procedure to be perceived as fair. these include consistency, bias suppression, and accuracy of information in decision making, correctability, representativeness and ethicality based on conformity to personal ethical or moral values. wiesenfeld et al., (2007), added bias suppression, accuracy and overall fairness as the defining criteria for procedural justice.procedural justice may foster commitment because people infer that it is an antecedent of fair outcomes. according to thibaut and walker http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 32 employee commitment  affective  continuance  normative procedural justice  voice  consistency  ethics (1975) procedural justice theory, the amount of control people have over decisions and processes influences their perceptions of fairness. according to thibaut and walker (1975) fair procedures are valuable because they allow individuals‟ control over outcomes. the most widely accepted attitudinal conceptualisation of organizational commitment is that by (mowday et al., 1979). they define organizational commitment as the relative strength of an individuals‟ identification with, and involvement in a particular organization and identify three characteristics of organizational commitment: (i) a strong belief in and acceptance of the organization‟s goals and values, (ii) a willingness to exert a considerable effort on behalf of the organization and (ii) a strong intent or desire to remain with the organization. this multi-dimensional approach suggests that organizational commitment develops because of the interaction of all these three components. the approach is supported by several studies (o‟reilly & chatman (1986). the present study is based on meyer and allen‟s multidimensional construct with its three dimensions of organizational commitment. affective commitment is linked to a favourable working environment and relationships (bayer, 2009). antecedents of affective commitment .include job characteristics such as task significance, autonomy, identity, skills variety and feedback concerning employee job performance, perceived organizational support or dependence (the feeling that the organization considers what is in the best interest of employees when making decisions that affect employment conditions and work environment), and the degree to which employees are involved in the goal-setting and decision-making processes (prabhakart & ram, 2011). meyer & allen (1997) correlates affective commitment with work experiences where employees experience psychologically comfortable feelings, (such as approachable managers) and increasing their sense of competence (such as feedback). according to beck and wilson (2000), the development of affective commitment involves recognizing the organization‟s worth and internalising its principles and standards. in a study conducted in 2013 to examine the relationship between organizational justice and affective commitment on health employees in turkey, the researchers found that justice perceptions play an imperative and antecedent role in the formation of affective commitment (akpmar & tas, 2013). 2.3 conceptual framework figure 1: conceptual framework http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 33 3.0 research methodology the study adopted descriptive and correlation research design. the study population was 17 nairobi based health sector ngos registered with hennet while the target population was 497 employees with supervisory responsibilities. the sampling frame for this study comprised of 85 health sector non-governmental organizations based within nairobi county and its environs. the register of health sector ngos maintained by health ngos network secretariat (hennet) was used to randomly generate the study sample. the study adopted stratified sampling technique due to homogeneity of the population. based on the nature of the study population, proportionate stratified sampling was used to establish the number of respondents from each of the 17 hennet member ngos headquartered in nairobi. the study sought to measure employee perceptions using a five point multiple choice ordinal likert rating scale measurement. primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaires. the raw data collected using questionnaires were edited and coded for analysis using ibm statistical package for social science (spss) version 20.0. the study‟s likert-type data was described and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics comprising of correlation and linear regression. findings on quantitative data were presented using statistical techniques such as tables, pie charts and bar graphs. qualitative data was presented descriptively. 4.0 results and discussions 4.1 response rate the study conducted a survey using a self-administrated questionnaire which was administered to 195 sampled respondents. 131 valid questionnaires were returned representing a response rate of 67 percent. a response rate of above 50% is considered adequate in social science research (mugenda & mugenda, 2008; babbie, 2002). the study‟s response rate of 67% was therefore considered adequate for analysis and conclusion. table 2: response rate total number of questionnaires distributed total number of valid questionnaires returned response rate (%) 195 131 67 4.2 demographic characteristics 4.2.1 gender of respondents the gender of the respondents is presented in figure 2 of the 131 valid responses, 53 percent of the respondents were male while 47 percent were female. this suggests that the study solicited information from a gender balanced perspective. according to kothari (2008) a ratio of at least 1:2 in either gender representation in a study is representative enough. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 34 figure 2: gender of respondents 4.2.2 response by job category the study targeted various categories of employees as shown on table 3. from the demographic data, 14% were administrative staff, 29% programme staff, 22% adviser/professional staff, 29% manager level, and 5% director level staff. table 3: response by job category employee category frequency percentage (%) administrative assistant 18 14 programme staff 37 29 adviser/professional 29 22 manager 37 29 director 6 5 total 127 100 4.2.3 response by number of staff supervised during the study, it was found out that staffs responsible for key performance results in this sector do not necessarily have other employees reporting to them due to the nature of the organization structures applied or the way work arrangements are designed with outsourcing being a key element. those without internal supervisory responsibilities but responsible for key result areas were reported to have quality assurance, oversight or technical backstopping responsibilities over outsourced activities. as shown on figure 3, 33% of the respondents reported that they had no direct supervisory responsibilities, 21% supervised more than five employees while another 23% supervised three to five employees and another 5% more than 5 employees. female 47% male 53% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 35 figure 3 number of staff supervise 4.2.4 response by period worked with current employer in terms of length of service (table 4), 37% of the respondents indicated that they have worked for the current organization for a period not exceeding two years, 28% for up to four years, 22% for up to 6 years while only 12% had worked with the same organization for a period in excess of six years. this finding is in line with the project based nature of employment in the ngo sector where employment duration is tied to project or funding cycles (ngo bureau, 1999). table 0: response by period worked with current employer period worked frequency percentage (%) 0-2 years 49 37 3-4 years 36 28 5-6 years 29 22 7-8 years 4 3 9-10 years 5 4 10 or more years 8 6 total 131 100 4.2.5 response by age figure 4 shows the age distribution in the sample size. five percent of the respondents were aged 25 years or less, 29% were aged between 26-30 years, 40% between 31-40 years, 19% between 41-50 and 7 percentages between 51-60 years. 5 and above 23% none or indirect 33% 3-5 employees 23% 1-3 employess 21% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 36 figure 4: response by age 4.2.6 response by level of education majority of the respondents (46 %) were either first degree holders or hold professional qualifications; 34% hold a post graduate degree; 18% are diploma holders and two percent were of secondary education level. figure 5: response by level of education 4.2.7 response by type of employment as shown in figure 5 majority of the respondents (83%) were employed on term contract basis while 17% had open ended contracts. this employment practice would appear to be in line with the project nature of work in the development sector (lewis & kanji, 2009). 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 25 or less years 26-30 years 31-40 years 41-50 years 51-60 years years secondary school diploma post graduate (masters) 34% 2% 18% degree/professional qualification 46% fr eq u en cy ( % ) http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 37 figure 6: response by type of employment results shows that project and management level staff (25.4% and 24.6% respectively comprised of the highest number of employees employed on contract terms. 4.3 descriptive statistics procedural justice refers to employees‟ perceptions of fairness in the means and processes used to determine the amount and distribution of resources (saks, 2006). higher perceptions of procedural justice by employees are more likely to reciprocate with greater organizational commitment and an employees‟ positive evaluation of their supervisor (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). table 5: perceptions on procedural justice procedural justice very little extent (%) little extent (%) some extent (%) great extent (%) very great extent (%) total (%) able to express views and feelings during decision implementation 9 14 32 35 10 100 able to influence decision outcomes 15 20 37 18 10 100 procedures applied consistently 9 19 41 26 5 100 procedures been free of bias 12 12 44 26 6 100 procedures based on accurate information 10 14 43 28 5 100 able to appeal the outcome arrived 30 23 25 20 2 100 procedures uphold 10 12 35 31 12 100 average % 14 16 37 26 7 100 majority of the respondents perceptions on procedural justice fall under the “to some extent” level of agreement. as shown on table 4.13, 32% indicated that they have been able to contribute in the decision implementation, 37% have been able to influence decision outcomes, 41% of the respondents agreed that to some extent, procedures are applied consistently; procedures are free of bias (44%), procedures are based on accurate information open ended contract 17% fixed contract 83% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 38 (43%) and the procedures upheld work place ethical and moral standards (35%). however, majority of respondents (30%) reported that they are only able to appeal the outcome arrived at by those procedures to a very little extent. these findings show that employee justice perceptions also depend on the organization‟s adherence to procedural justice rules (leventhal, 1980; thibaut & walker, 1978). 4.4 inferential statistics 4.4.1 influence of procedural justice perceptions on affective commitment the study assessed the influence of procedural justice perception on affective commitment. the study employed the use of linear regression model to ascertain this relationship. the findings are given below. table 6: model summary-procedural justice on affective commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .339 .115 .106 .927 a. predictors: (constant), b. dependent variable: affective commitment index the statistic, f = 2.185, p< 0.05 indicates that procedural justice perceptions is a good predictor of variations in affective commitment. the coefficient of determination explains the percentage of variation in the dependent variable that is explained by unit change in the dependent variable. the linear regression model result showed indicated that that 11.5% % change of affective commitment is explained procedural justice perceptions. table 7: anovaprocedural justice on affective commitment http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 39 model sum of squares df mean square f sig. regression 13.147 7 1.878 2.185 .040 residual 101.410 118 .859 total 114.557 125 a. dependent variable: affective commitment index b. predictors: (constant), ethical and moral standards, influence outcome, procedures consistency, outcome arrived, express views and feelings, procedures accuracy, procedures free of bias, table 8: coefficientprocedural justice affective commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 1.381 .302 4.570 .000 express .121 feelings .127 .138 .949 .034 .356 2.807 outcome -.016 arrived .118 -.020 -.138 .891 .367 2.728 procedures .136 consistency .131 .143 1.039 .030 .394 2.537 procedures -.009 free of bias .159 -.010 -.055 .956 .249 4.024 procedures -.078 accuracy .164 -.083 -.477 .634 .250 3.997 outcome .040 arrived .081 .049 .493 .623 .763 1.311 ethical and .159 .121 .184 1.317 .019 .384 moral standards a. dependent variable: affective commitment index 2.605 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 40 the results of the regression model revealed that, express feelings, procedures, consistency and ethical and moral standards had a significant relationship with affective commitment. this can be shown by the p<0.05. the remaining constructs had an insignificant relationship with affective commitment since their p-value was >0.05. the findings of this study are consistent with those of leventhal (1980) who proposed six criteria for a procedure to be perceived as fair. these include consistency, bias suppression, and accuracy of information in decision making, correctability, representativeness and ethicality based on conformity to personal ethical or moral values. wiesenfeld et al., (2007), also added bias suppression, accuracy and overall fairness as the defining criteria for procedural justice. according to thibaut and walker (1975) procedural justice theory, the amount of control people influenced over decisions and processes their perceptions of fairness. according to thibaut and walker (1975) fair procedures are valuable because they allow individuals‟ control over outcomes. 4.4.2 influence of procedural justice perceptions on continuance commitment the study further assessed the relationship between procedural justice perception and continuance commitment. the results for regressions model used are given below. table 9: model summary-procedural justice on continuance commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .238a .057 .001 1.016 a. predictors: (constant), ethical and moral standards, influence outcome, procedures consistency, outcome arrived, express views and feelings, procedures accuracy, procedures free of bias, b. dependent variable: continuance commitment index the statistic, f = 2.185, p> 0.427 indicates that procedural justice perceptions is not a good predictor of variations in continuance commitment. the coefficient of determination explains the percentage of variation in the dependent variable that is explained by unit change in the dependent variable. the model summary results revealed that procedural justice perceptions account for 5.7% of the variations in continuance commitment. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 41 table 10: anovaprocedural justice on continuance commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 7.297 7 1.042 1.011 .427b residual 121.697 118 1.031 total 128.994 125 a. dependent variable: : continuance commitment index b. predictors: (constant), ethical and moral standards, influence outcome, procedures consistency, outcome arrived, express views and feelings, procedures accuracy, procedures free of bias, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 42 table 11: coefficients-procedural justice on continuance commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 1.732 .331 5.232 .000 express views and feelings, -.154 .139 -.166 1.106 .271 .356 2.807 influence outcome .021 .129 .024 .165 .869 .367 2.728 procedures consistency -.052 .144 -.052 -.363 .717 .394 2.537 procedures free of bias, .149 .175 .153 .854 .395 .249 4.024 procedures accuracy, -.037 .180 -.037 -.204 .839 .250 3.997 outcome arrived .117 .088 .136 1.326 .187 .763 1.311 ethical and moral standards, .142 .132 .155 1.071 .287 .384 2.605 a. dependent variable: continuance index the findings showed that all the variables under procedural justice perception had insignificant relationship with continuance commitment. the findings of this study contradict those of leventhal (1980) who proposed six criteria for a procedure to be perceived as fair. these include consistency, bias suppression, and accuracy of information in decision making, correctability, representativeness and ethicality based on conformity to personal ethical or moral values. wiesenfeld et al., (2007), also added bias suppression, accuracy and overall fairness as the defining criteria for procedural justice. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 43 4.4.3 influence of procedural justice perceptions on normative commitment finally, the study sought to find the relationship between procedural justice perception and normative commitment. the study sought to find out whether the variables under procedural independently influenced normative commitment. table 12: model summary-procedural justice on normative commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .540a .292 .249 .708 a. predictors: (constant), ethical and moral standards, influence outcome, procedures consistency, outcome arrived, express views and feelings, procedures accuracy, procedures free of bias, b. dependent variable: normative commitment index the findings in the model summary revealed that procedural justice perception constructs accounted for 29.2% of the variation in normative commitment. the results of f-statistics given in table 13 further indicate that procedural justice perception constructs are good predictors of normative commitment given of p<0.05. table 13: anovaprocedural justice on normative commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 23.995 7 3.428 6.830 .000b residual 58.220 116 .502 total 82.215 123 a. dependent variable: normative commitment index b. predictors: (constant), ethical and moral standards, influence outcome, procedures consistency, outcome arrived, express views and feelings, procedures accuracy, procedures free of bias, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 44 table 14: coefficients-procedural justice on normative commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 1.669 .233 7.173 .000 express views and feelings -.198 .100 -.262 1.985 .050 .351 2.847 influence outcome .210 .091 .297 2.309 .023 .369 2.709 procedures consistency .319 .102 .397 3.126 .002 .379 2.637 procedures free of bias -.204 .122 -.260 1.668 .098 .251 3.988 procedures accuracy -.050 .126 -.062 -.398 .691 .253 3.951 outcome arrived .090 .063 .129 1.444 .152 .759 1.318 ethical and moral standards .252 .093 .344 2.700 .008 .377 2.652 the findings of the regression model above indicate that express views and feelings, influence outcome, ethical and moral and procedures consistency were found to have a positive and significant relationship with normative commitment. these constructs had a p value of less than 0.05. the finding further revealed that procedures accuracy, outcome arrived and procedures free of bias were found to have an insignificant relationship with normative commitment. the findings of this study concur with those of leventhal (1980) who proposed six criteria for a procedure to be perceived as fair. these include consistency, bias suppression, and accuracy of information in decision making, correctability, representativeness and ethicality based on conformity to personal ethical or moral values. wiesenfeld et al., (2007), also added bias suppression, accuracy and overall fairness as the defining criteria for procedural justice. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 45 4.4.4 overall influence of procedural justice perception on organisational commitment the overall regression model was conducted to test the overall influence of procedural justice perception on organisational commitment. the results of the overall model are presented and discussed below. table 15: overall model summary model summary r .366a r square 0.134 adjusted r square 0.127 std. error of the estimate 0.56506 f-statistics 19.692 (p=0.000) the model summary result indicates that procedural justice perception accounted for 12.7% of the variation in organisational commitment. the findings of anova further revealed that the model adapted to link procedural justice perception and organisational commitment was statistically significant (f=19.692, p=0.000). the findings imply that procedural justice perceptions are good predictors of organisational commitment. table 16: overall regression coefficient b std. error beta t sig. (constant) 2.037 0.173 11.789 0 procedural justice percpetion 0.248 0.056 0.366 4.438 0 a dependent variable: overall commitment the regression results show that, procedural justice perception had beta value of 0.248 and p value of 0.000. this value is less than the conventional value of 0.05 adopted in this study. therefore, these results imply that procedural justice perception had a significant relationship with organisational commitment. the findings of this study concur with those of leventhal (1980) who proposed six criteria for a procedure to be perceived as fair. these include consistency, bias suppression, and accuracy of information in decision making, correctability, representativeness and ethicality based on conformity to personal ethical or moral values. wiesenfeld et al., (2007), also added bias suppression, accuracy and overall fairness as the defining criteria for procedural justice. 4.3.6 hypothesis testing the null hypothesis being tested in this study was; h0: perceptions of procedural justice have no statistically significant effect on employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. this hypothesis was rejected at level of significance of 0.05, which, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 46 therefore, imply that perceptions of procedural justice have a statistically significant effect on employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. therefore, the optimal model was; organisational commitment =2.037+0.248 (procedural justice perceptions) + ℮ 5.0 discussion conclusions and recommendations 5.1 discussion procedural justice refers to an employee‟ perceptions of fairness in the means and processes used to determine the amount and distribution of resources (saks, 2006). higher perceptions of procedural justice by employees are more likely to reciprocate with greater organizational engagement and an employees‟ positive evaluation of their supervisor (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). the basic tenet of procedural justice – a voice in the development of an outcome enhances the perceived fairness in the workplace independent of the effects of its implementation (greenberg, 2002). an organization that provides knowledge to employees about procedures demonstrates regard for employees concerns. decision-making processes that are unclear to employees violate procedural fairness and trust thereby damaging the employer-employee relationship. the study findings show that perceptions of procedural justice are more important than perceived distributive justice when explaining employees‟ organizational commitment. procedural justice perceptions were shown to positively influence affective commitment and normative commitment. 5.2 conclusions based on the findings, the study concluded that procedural justice perceptions have a positive influence on affective commitment and normative commitment. 5.3 recommendations the findings from the study showed that though positive, procedural justice has a low explanatory power on affective and normative commitment and none on continuance commitment. procedural fairness perceptions were rated by respondents as average. the findings suggest that employees‟ commitment with an organization could be significantly increased by enhancing organizational fairness, particularly procedural justice. managers and other leaders should therefore be aware that the fairness of procedures used in allocating rewards and the voice afforded employees in the allocation process are as important as the fairness of the allocation of rewards in improving level of employees‟ commitment in an organization. for organizational procedures to be perceived as fair, they should be applied consistently. fair procedures should guarantee that like cases are treated alike. secondly, those carrying out the procedures must be seen to be impartial and neutral. unbiased decision-making should lead to a fair and accurate conclusion. decision makers http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp26-50, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 47 should be seen to want to treat people fairly and take the viewpoint and needs of interested parties into account. if employees trust the decision makers, they are more likely to view the decision-making process as fair. thirdly, those directly affected by the decisions should have a voice and representation in the process. having representation affirms the status of group members and inspires trust in the decision making system. this is especially important for operational staff whose voices often go unheard. finally, the processes that are implemented should be transparent. decisions should be reached through open procedures, without secrecy or deception. therefore, to increase employees‟ organizational commitment, ngo leaders and managers should first improve the procedural justice and hence increase overall levels of perceived justice by involving employees in the procedures used in making decisions and allocating rewards. procedural justice can be fostered further through employee involvement which gives them a voice during a decision-making process, influence over the outcome or by adherence to fair process criteria, such as consistency, lack of bias, correctability, representation, accuracy, and ethicality. 5.4 areas for further research there is a need to undertake further studies in order to widen the generalizability of the findings and also establish reasons for the variations in the findings on the low influence of justice perceptions in the ngo sector in kenya compared to the strong influence reported in studies conducted in other sectors in the rest of the world. such studies are also likely to identify what are, if any, the other factors which influence employee commitment in the ngo sector. references adams, j. s. 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(1988). thirteen ways to look at the correlation coefficient. american statistician, 42, 59-66. rubin a. and babbie, e. 2010. essential research methods for social work. 2nd ed. belmont (calif.): brooks/cole: cengage learning. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ critical elements of attracting and retaining top talent in the insurance sector dr. ben kajwang phd. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 33 39, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 33 critical elements of attracting and retaining top talent in the insurance sector dr. ben kajwang phd, acii(uk), airm(uk), fiiu, fiik, cpt, chartered insurer chief executive officer, college of insurance, nairobi, kenya corresponding author email: bkajwang@coi.ac.ke abstract purpose: the insurance industry encompasses being able to provide superior service while selling products, which means employees should have the skills and abilities to interact professionally with people. finding this combination in potential employees can be difficult. the goal of this study was identify and discuss the critical elements of attracting and retaining top talent in the insurance sector. the purpose of this work is to enhance the readers’ understanding of the domain of talent attraction and talent retention, and how the former culminates in the latter, specifically as a tool for retention of employees. methodology: a desktop literature review was used for this purpose. relevant seminal references and journal articles for the study were identified using google scholar. the inclusion criteria entailed papers that were not over five years old. findings: it was found that researchers have advocated for the use of the new technologies in the recruitment process and training programmes in generally all organizations. it is therefore necessary that hr leaders equip their hr practices (recruitment process, training and mentoring programmes and company culture) with the modern technologies that will help them reduce the recruitment and training cost, save time and keep the company’s image at the top. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: the study recommends that insurance firms review their company’s job description at least every two years is necessary to boost the company’s image and attract top talent employees. the firms should also use of recruitment softwares that catch the eye of promising candidates is necessary so as to make the hiring process more convenient and efficient for both the hr leaders and promising candidates. keywords: critical elements, attracting and retaining, top talent, insurance sector file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:bkajwang@coi.ac.ke european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 33 39, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 34 introduction today’s organizations seem to change much more rapidly than in the past because of increased competition and the ever-changing business environment. this explains why organizations require attracting and retaining top talent in order to improve their performance and remain competitive. employers face extreme obstacles related to managing talented employees because of the shortage of critical skills and potential employees’ reluctance to affiliate themselves with particular employers (selivanovskikh, 2018). a study by muia (2017) indicated that found that over 60% of insurance executives in kenya stated that identifying and attracting new talent is becoming increasingly difficult. the kenyan insurance industry is affected by employee turnover, which results in the loss of profit and productivity for the business. the specific business problem is that some insurance managers lack strategies to retain talented employees (martin, 2016). the problem of having non-professional employees in the insurance sector has led to the resulted to low employee productivity and subsequent customer dissatisfaction (nzyoka & orwa, 2016). it is therefore important that hr professionals in the insurance company adopt efficient strategies that will attract top talent employees and retain them in their organizations. talent management is the hr practice that addresses competition for highly skilled, high value labor in global markets (nginyo, 2019). talent management encompasses all organizational activities with the intention of attracting, selecting, developing, and retaining the best employees in strategic roles (johannsdottir, olafsson & davidsdottir, 2017). human resource managers must reposition the hr function to inform and support decision-making by organizational leaders. according to nakhata (2018), a well detailed job description is one of the key strategies of talent management. potential and well skilled employees look out for job descriptions of the various job posting before they consider applying for the job. as organizations transform and grow through the modern technology, job descriptions can become outdated. departmental structures may be improved and updated and the various employment roles change hence the need to oftenly review the job description of the various positions in an organization. schlechter, hung and bussin (2018) studied the effect of job description review on talent attraction in nigerian auditing firms and found that companies that review their job descriptions at least every two years are able to attract top talents into their work place. some of the key details that need to be included when coming up with a job description include job title and location, clear duties and responsibilities, specific skills required, reporting lines, tools and equipment used and actual salaries and benefits. hr professionals who miss out on this may end up with a pool of unqualified candidates since the potential talents look elsewhere for better opportunities. it’s therefore necessary for hr professionals in the insurance sector to apply these key details in their job descriptions. this will transform the dull job postings into dream job promotions and attract qualified and skilled employees in their organizations (dordan, 2017). banerjee and gupta (2019) asserted that talent attraction through online recruitment websites showed that investment in job description softwares that consistently update the job descriptions maximize the efficiency and success of the hiring process. one of the biggest category of recruitment software is the applicant tracking system (ats). an ats is basically focused on file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 33 39, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 35 tracking and managing candidates within an organized database. according to barber (2019), 94% of recruiting professionals who use ats have an effective hiring process and assists in the battle of recruiting long-term talent. the most common ats systems that employers migrated to in 2020 are sap, successfactors, workday, icims and taleo which have had a positive effect on talent attraction (dineen and soltis, 2020).. research has also shown that use of job aggregators such as indeed, linkedin, google for jobs and ziprecruiter play a central part in the talent attraction since direct applicants make up 48% of all hires (anderson, 2016, van esch, black & ferolie, 2019). similarly, a meta-analysis by mohamud (2020) on the influence of online recruitment on talent attraction found that that use of human capital management software (hcm) such as ceridian, sap, successfactors, workday, oracle cloud hcm and adp provides core administrative support and attraction of top talented personell. moreover, study by tnande (2017) showed that candidate relationship management softwares (crms) such as yello, beamery and avature assist in attracting, engaging and nurturing candidates. talent intelligence systems such as ideal also helps hr leaders in making of fair talent decisions by providing support with resume screening, employment lifecycle and increased productivity. a study by ahmed and chang (2019) also showed that video interviewing tools such as hirevue, vidcruiter and interview stream simplify the online interview process. delayed recruitment process is one of the factors that contribute to promising candidates looking for opportunities elsewhere. it also leads to top talents slipping away to the hands of competitors. according to a survey by half (2018), potential job candidates may opt for another offer after waiting too long about a preferred role. most hrs have preferred to use recruitment softwares such as ats to hasten the hiring process, this is through automatically ranking applicants based on a set of predetermined criteria (chan and wang, 2018). feedback is also a crucial part of the talent attraction process. a high percentage of job seekers have reported being ghosted after applying for certain jobs. according to the careerarc survey (2017), 72% of job seekers who have had a bad candidate experience have told others about it either in person or online. other job seekers have given poor online reviews about some companies and this has affected the customers buying decision of such companies. to alleviate such problems, companies have opted to use candidate relationship management softwares and the ats software that help them attract, engage and nurture candidates during the recruitment process. according to cai and klyushina (2019), promising candidates in the today competitive recruitment process look out for organizations where employers have attached innovative benefits for the employees as well as creating favorable workplace relationships. such innovative benefits according to include; favorable healthcare options, fair remuneration, convenient retirement benefits, personal development programs, child and day care support, maternity and pertanity leaves and recreation and social interaction activities. falola (2016) found that employees in an organization can only be retained as long-term investment if the company has a strong and positive culture which mainly relies on leadership, effective communication and premier benefits. employees need a work environment where they can freely express their opinions and have employers that are willing to listen to them. such a work environment will enable employees to work as team hence promote cooperation and making of better decisions in the company. hence hr leaders should focus on gathering file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 33 39, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 36 employees’ feedback to ensure that the working environment reinforces a strong and positive company culture. neupane (2017) studied the influence of training, coaching and mentoring programmes on talent retention in uk insurance sector and found that it enhances skills, capabilities and knowledge of employees for a particular job. the training process is usually continuous throughout the lifetime of the business. training in the insurance sector involves everything from the product sold, customer relations and understanding the regulations set by external bodies and how they change or when updated. it is necessary that employees in such a sector have fullknowledge about their organizations in order to meet the industry’s changing needs and remain efficient in the competitive market. in the insurance company the most modern approach of training is elearning since it offers relevant and up to date information and will help the employees meet the industry’s changing needs and remain efficient. a literature review study by nguyan (2020) showed that every employee in any working environment that is happy and feels valued will be motivated to work hard, deliver results and bring in new ideas to help grow the business. employee engagement model is a blueprint which helps us understand how employees can be made productive, feel empowered and valued in the workplace. it involves making and implementing of policies that are aimed at generally improving the quality of life of an employee at work from their well-being to career opportunities (anitha, 2019). application of these models may help companies develop their own systems aiming at improving the work environment, maximizing employees experience, ensuring job satisfaction and eventually retaining top talents. these models include: maslow’s model maslow’s model outlines the maslow’s hierarchy needs which has had a significant influence on most business courses in the management of the employees needs. abraham maslow in his paper “a theory of human motivation” identifies five basic needs that when employers attempt to fulfil will motivate their employees. (maslow, 2000). these needs include, physiological needs, safety, sense of belonging, esteem and selfactualization. according to this theory, these needs have to be satisfied for an employee to be motivated to perform at his/her best. physiological needs which are basically the biological needs( food, shelter and clothing) for human survival are the primary needs that need to first be satisfied then the rest of the needs come later. safety needs like security at work and home can be provided by the company and society. employees need to feel a sense of belonging through acceptance, friendship and trust at the workplace. esteem need is meet through the desire of reputation and respect in the workplace. lastly, self –actualization involves displaying of full potential by employees, self fulfilment and personal growth. it is therefore important that insurance sector aim to satisfy these needs according to their order of importance leaving out none of them in order to retain top talent employees. the kahn model the kahn model by william kahn (1996) is considered one of the oldest models on employee engagement. it emphasizes on three psychological conditions that are associated with personal engagement and disengagement of work. these conditions are meaningfulness, safety and availability. meaningfulness in that they feel valued about their work by both themselves and others, emotionally and psychologically available to perform the work and good relationship between employees, co-workers and supervisors (kahn, 2013).) according to kahn engagement file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 33 39, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 37 concept, employees illustrate engagement by making choices of how much of their personality they would reveal and express at their work. the disengagement concept is when employees are doing just enough to remain employed and not offering the emotional and physiological energy to the job. the aonhewitt model this model examines individual engagement as well as organizational records. individual engagement is the emotional and intellectual involvement that motivates employees to do their best work and behavior of engaged employees to demonstrate positive outcomes in the business like customer satisfaction and increased sales. according to the model, there are six engagement drivers and three outcomes attached to these drivers that lead to individual engagement in an organization. these drivers include quality of life, work, people, opportunities, company practice and rewards which influence talent retention (gustomo, 2015). conclusions attracting and retaining of top talents in the insurance sector is a big challenge due to small size staff and failure to use efficient recruitment software that help hr leaders identify and retain top talent employees. it is evident from this review that researchers have advocated for the use of the new technologies in the recruitment process and training programmes in generally all organizations. it is therefore necessary that hr leaders equip their hr practices (recruitment process, training and mentoring programmes and company culture) with the modern technologies that will help them reduce the recruitment and training cost, save time and keep the company’s image at the top. recommendations based on the above findings, the hr managers in insurance firms should: review their company’s job description at least every two years is necessary to boost the company’s image and attract top talent employees. use of recruitment softwares that catch the eye of promising candidates is necessary so as to make the hiring process more convenient and efficient for both the hr leaders and promising candidates. appreciate, motivate and recognize their employees oftenly and consistently. conduct surveys to measure the level of satisfaction of the employees in the organizations and identify the areas that need improvement in order to enhance employee engagement. use the most modern training approaches available since they save time, reduce the training cost and equip employees with relevant and up to date information that they need to meet the industry’s changing needs. enhance equality and fairness in the working environment which will enable employees have a sense of belonging, feel valued, appreciated and recognized at work. references anderson, n. (2016). applicant and recruiter reactions to new technology in selection: a critical review and agenda for future research. international journal of selection and assessment, 11(2‐3), 121-136. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 33 39, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 38 anitha, j. (2019). determinants of employee engagement and their impact on employee performance. international journal of productivity and performance management. banerjee, p., & gupta, r. (2019). talent attraction through online recruitment websites: application of web 2.0 technologies. australasian journal of information systems, 23. barber, l. (2019). e-recruitment developments. brighton: institute for employment studies. cai, w., & klyushina, u. (2019). talent retention and development within multinational company in china. chan, j., & wang, j. (2018). hiring preferences in online labor markets: evidence of a female hiring bias. management science, 64(7), 2973-2994. dineen, b. r., & soltis, s. m. (2020). recruitment: a review of research and emerging directions. dordan, j. p. (2017 ). talent attraction and management of competencies in challenging oil and gas environment. in abu dhabi international petroleum exhibition and conference. onepetro.13. falola, h. (2016). talent retention and organizational performance: a competitive positioning in nigerian banking sector. periodica polytechnica social and management sciences, 24(1), 1-13. gustomo, a. (2015). proposal to improve employee engagement in pt maju sentosa by aon hewitt model and mercer model. procedia-social and behavioral sciences, 169, 363-370. johannsdottir, l., olafsson, s., & davidsdottir, b. (2017). insurance perspective on talent management and corporate social responsibility: a case study of nordic insurers. j. mgmt. & sustainability, 4, 163. kahn (2013). employee engagement and meaningful work. martin, m. a. (2016). strategies to retain employees in the insurance industry (doctoral dissertation, walden university). maslow, a. h. (2000). the maslow business reader. john wiley & sons. muia, f. (2017). effect of competitive strategies on the performance of insurance companies in kenya (doctoral dissertation, united states international university-africa). nakhata, c. (2018). developing effective job descriptions for smes. neupane, r. (2017). effects of coaching and mentoring on employee performance in the uk insurance industry. international journal of social sciences and management, 2(2), 123138. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 33 39, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 39 nginyo, e. w. (2019). employee performance management practices among insurance companies in kenya (doctoral dissertation, university of nairobi, kenya). nguyan, t. l. (2020). determinants of talent retention in textile and garment companies in binh duong province. the journal of asian finance, economics, and business, 7(6), 475-484. nzyoka, c. m., & orwa, b. h. (2016). the relationship between total compensation and employee performance in the insurance industry, case of mayfair insurance company limited. psychology and behavioral sciences, 5(1), 20-36. pandita, d., & ray, s. (2018). talent management and employee engagement–a meta-analysis of their impact on talent retention. industrial and commercial training. schlechter, a., hung, a., & bussin, m. (2018). understanding talent attraction: the influence of financial rewards elements on perceived job attractiveness. sa journal of human resource management, 12(1), selivanovskikh, l. (2018). talent management in a new research context: main issues and peculiarities. van esch, p., black, j. s., & ferolie, j. (2019). marketing ai recruitment: the next phase in job application and selection. computers in human behavior, 90, 215-222. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org the future of human resources – trends, reflections and strategies. kehinde david folarin european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 1 the future of human resources – trends, reflections and strategies. kehinde david folarin regent university school of global leadership & entrepreneurship email: kehifol@mail.regent.edu abstract the future of human resource management will be effected by several factors. the basic tasks of a human resource manager have and will remain the same, but the way these tasks are conducted will change. the two key factors which have been the main focus of this research paper are globalization and technological development. globalization and technological development are stimulating each other and are both necessary for continuous development and economic growth in the world of business. this paper will be looking at the effects of these two factors with regards of human resource management and how it will affect the future. this paper concludes that; to remain competitive in the industry, organizations need to address their hr issues by ensuring the employee’s needs are met and streamlining transactions. reshaping the future of the hr requires organizations to manage change. the hr will provide the business with the needed insights that are actionable and data-driven to enable better decisionmaking that will drive business to success. key words: globalization, technological development, human resource management, employee’s need, future, data driven, better decision-making, organizations. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:kehifol@mail.regent.edu european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 2 section one: trends and implications. introduction a lot has changed in human resource management over the last five to ten years. the world of business isn’t what it was, and it is still changing at an incredible pace. we have moved from pencils and papers into the era of computers. some companies have fallen, while others have thrived in these times of change and grown beyond their boarders. the way we do business has changed. along with it, the way human resource management is conducted has to change too. the future of human resource management is uncertain, and there are two factors that will contribute the most; the effect of globalization and the rapid development in technology (losey, meisinger, & ulrich, 2005). the main tasks of human resource managers are still the same, but the way they are done has changed completely. take the hiring process for example, about five to ten years ago no one was hiring new employees over the internet. except maybe some low-paying, part-time workplaces where the employers were just looking for someone to “fill a spot”, but look how the tables have turned! there isn’t a single successful company out there who isn’t utilizing the internet for hiring purposes of some sort. many companies are hiring almost exclusively through online application services. the world of business is evolving, and the world of human resource management is evolving alongside with it. look at where we were ten years ago and imagine where we might be ten years from now. technological development the evolution of hr technology has, over the last decade, helped many companies reduce their overall cost dramatically. the evolution of hr technology has been through four periods. first there was the paper-based systems; when all information was written down and all a company had was physical storage, often without insurance. the second period is the early personal computer era. where information was written down on computers and stored on inhouse servers. in the third period the computers where already well established, but the use of online services beyond emails and fax was nonexistent. the final period, and the period we are in now is the web-based technology period. more and more of hr managers and employees are recorded and store in online services, and at the employees own convenience (losey et al., 2005). technology is one of the most helpful and exciting parts human resource development. the things technology can do is limitless and especially helpful to the many changes we see human resource management today, and probably will see in the future. hr technology is used as a term to define any technology that can be used to hire, retain, attract and maintain human resources as well as supporting hr administration and optimize the overall work of hrm. technology can be applied to every aspect of an hr manager’s job. the development of technology has made the processes of gathering, retaining, and analyzing data a whole lot faster. it also helps communication between branches and divisions which is essential for hr departments around the world. an hr department can spend more time and money on meaningful activities which can help the company be more successful, rather than doing time-consuming administrative work. providing managers and executives with information to help them make more effective hr-related decisions. administrative work is just as important looking at the big picture, but is less helpful on a day-to-day basis and can be very time consuming. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 3 there is no doubt that companies with effective hr technology systems and technology will have an advantage over companies who are not utilizing the full potential of technology. an effective hr system or technology doesn’t necessarily mean the newest or most expensive alternative out there. each company or organization must determine what works best for them. smaller companies might be just as efficient using a simpler system rather than spending money and other resources on a complicated system which requires costly training and understanding. the same goes to the bigger companies who might not have a good and sophisticated enough system to take on the huge amount of data that they have. it is all about finding the right technology and system for the company to maximize the performance. globalization globalization is the other main contributor to change in the business world and in human resource management. the term globalization is not easily defined because it is so broad and influences so many areas. globalization is the establishment of multi-national corporations. corporations move their business across country borders and begin operation in a new market. even though the corporation headquarter might stay in the country of origin. there are both positive and negative sides to globalization. the world is currently moving in a direction where we have fewer, but bigger companies. larger companies have the option to globalize on a massive scale. when companies or corporations move across national borders one of the first things they must do is to hire employees for their new locations. they can choose to either outsource, hire employees from outside the company or insource which is moving or choosing employees within the company to manage these new locations. having these two options increases the size of labor pool from which they can choose. this is a good thing, but it makes the work of hr managers even more important. outsourcing is a great way to obtain a diverse workforce which is naturally integrated in the local community, but it also has the risk of running into some barriers. language and cultural barriers are two of the most common challenges a company and their hr department faces when moving to a new country. human resource managers must adapt to the different customers and cultures when they are hiring new employees in these new countries. the language barriers may require the “mother company” to hire employees with knowledge of both languages in order to get their message across and make sure that their new employees understand their training. it might also be necessary to adapt documentation, such as manuals and training material into different languages so that these new employees fully understand their tasks and responsibility. in order for a business to be successful it needs good employees. in order to get good employees a company needs to provide them with the proper training. moving a business to another country, with a different culture and maybe even languages gives the hr managers a few extra difficulties when it comes to training. some job cultures can be very traditional and set in their ways. it is therefore important for hr managers to spend a good amount of time to ensure that the whole process runs smoothly. consulting with, or even hire employees from the local population with knowledge of the two languages can be of great help when a training program is put together. lastly, companies need to apply and understand the laws of many different jurisdictions to the particular business. there may also be legal issues with moving a business to a different county. labor laws can be very different from one country to another. with increasing file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 4 globalization hr managers must be familiar with these laws so that the company doesn’t get in trouble with the law when they hire and write contracts with local employees. more often than not a company will not be able to use the same contracts and the same matrix for hiring in different countries and it is the hr manager’s responsibility to know these things in order for the company to make the right decisions. there are several positive effects of globalization. the corporation will encounter a more diverse workforce as well as economic growth in the country they move their business to. however, there is a backside, if a company only moves jobs from one country to another rather than creating new once, the job growth in one country will equal the job loss in another. human resource managers must be aware of the negative effects downsizing or job moving can have on the employee morale. a decrease in job moral leads to a decrease in production which is bad for the overall output of the company. it is an hr manager’s job to be on top of issues like this. they have to be prepared for them and have a plan on how to tackle moral issues. a company’s “out of the country branch” are often the first to get cut in the event of a major decrease in company value or if the company must reduce costs. hr managers will therefore have to have a plan for such situation, and have the knowledge of how to handle them in a legal and ethical way. nowadays, the future of the activities, departments and professionals of human resources are much less clear. many professionals argue that hr issues take more importance in business activities, such as key competence, intellectual capital, and organizational capacity, high performance work systems, process management, management based on the value, task assignment, participation, productivity, cultural change and high performance teams. as we can see, here is where the administration and management of human resources influences in the thinking and action of the business managers, and therefore the functioning of an organization. the people who are part of the companies and the hr department, who administer these people, are the main asset of any company and normally, the successful companies are those where hr management has been effective. as hr issues become important, traditional departments of hr are under increasing pressure to rethink, redefine and reevaluate their functions. hr professionals face increasing pressure and expectations for regular hr to deliver better results. they are being asked to do more with less, to do a different job, and to do it better. the departments will only be able to achieve it if they have a clear outline of the current and future state of the business strategy, the organizational capacity and the practice of the hr. the hr professionals who live only for the present they won’t be able to transfer strategy, organization and hr to the future. in addition, it is probably that the future will involve a change that influences hr practices, departments and professionals. section two –personal succession planning reflections organizations need to plan for talent management to assume key leadership or back up positions either on a temporary or permanent basis. a comprehensive succession planning strategy and process within the departmental units of an organization should adopt the practices of internal promotion and individual development plans (idp) such as job posting, mentoring programs, in-house training programs and job rotation programs.(rothwell, 2010). sometimes, an organization could utilize bench strength to meet its succession plans to reduce employee turnover. a succession planning & management program is that deliberate and systematic effort made by organizations to ensure leadership continuity in key positions, file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 5 retain and develop intellectual and knowledge capital for the future and encourages individual advancement (rothwell, 2010). every successful organization should embrace a proactive succession plan that is different from a mere replacement plan that is very risky and reactive. a seamless succession plan should resembles that of the ambassadorial departure style where leaders leave their positions feeling accomplished by planning and grooming a good successor (sonnenfeld, 1988). although, the succession plan in many organization leaves no room for outsiders but rather adopt a simple career planning approach which is essential for a personal growth (rothwell,2010). the organization can also embrace the traditional management approach of succession planning that involves getting people ready for promotion up within the organization’s chart and then preparing them to assume higher level of management responsibility that focuses on promotions (rothwell, 2010). succession planning is another vital part of the hr planning process that refers to the way in which a company forms policies for replacing key members of its organization, shifting transfer of authority and responsibility carefully from a leaving member to a new member. often, this means making sure that an arriving employee has the necessary training and experience to fulfil their functions. succession planning is a systematic approach to building a leadership pipeline/talent pool to ensure leadership continuity, developing potential successors in ways that best fit their strengths, identifying the best candidates for categories of positions and concentrating resources on the talent development process yielding a greater return on investment. so, succession planning recognizes that some jobs are the lifeblood of the organization and too critical to be left vacant or filled by any but the best qualified persons. components of career pathing career path is the sequencing of work experiences, usually different job assignments, in order to provide employees with the opportunity to participate in many aspects of a professional area. it involves career planning and career awareness. rothwell (2010) said that when training on succession planning is tied to training on career planning, individuals are furnished with information about work requirements at different levels and in different functions or locations. they also learn about performance requirements in various job categories and about future success factors. with this information, they can establish their own career goals and take active steps to prepare them for advancement by seeking the appropriate training, education and development experiences. one of the key component of a career pathing is what the individual development plan is. the components are the planned training, education, development and work experiences in order to develop gaps and meet succession needs. so, the ultimate goal for someone’s career and calling are: 1. self-assessment: the first step in developing career goals is to assess your own personal characteristics--your skills and interests, your likes and dislikes, and your strengths and weaknesses 2. career exploration: once you have determined your skills, strengths, and interests, you can use various tools to explore and identify the career areas that "fit" your profile. 3. career growth plan: this includes setting one’s career goal, developing a plan of action, obtaining approvals and pursuing your plans. so, an ultimate career goal varies and lies with the individual’s decision. recruiting and retaining a talented workforce is an ongoing struggle for many employers in today’s world, especially as younger individuals enter the workforce. companies recognize that turnover is extremely expensive when lost productivity and replacement costs file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 6 are taken into account. according to the society for human resources management, it costs on average six to nine months' salary to replace a salaried employee, highlighting the importance of retention. employees consistently rank career advancement opportunities as an important factor in accepting and keeping a job. one strategy that is gaining traction as a way to increase employee retention and grow talent organically, is career pathing. in the mrinetwork 2017 millennial hiring trends study, more than half of millennials (53%) said that career pathing has the most impact on their decision to stay with their employer. career pathing is a comprehensive process offered by employers that asks employees to take an honest look at their career goals, skills, education, experience and personal characteristics. employees are then asked to make a plan for achieving what is necessary in each of these areas in order for them to advance within the company, providing both employees and employers with a clear understanding of what it takes for workers to move from their current position to where they want to be. employees are empowered to take ownership of their career performance and to align their career goals with the strategic goals of the organization. taking a career pathing approach requires rethinking traditional career ladders, which typically involve a progression of jobs within a certain field based on increasing levels of responsibility and pay. millennials want to see that they have clear and defined opportunities for advancement, and if they feel stuck or bored with their jobs, they tend to seek other employment after they have gained a few years of experience. with career pathing, they have the means to sharpen their skills and earn promotions within their current organizations, and this serves as a deterrent to leaving a job in order to advance. implementing a career pathing program as a first step, it is critical that you fully grasp your company's needs and what you want to accomplish from a career pathing program, whether it's reducing turnover or boosting employee engagement. once you have determined the direction you want to take, you can begin to formulate your program: identify the goals of your employees. meet with them to evaluate their skills, experience and education and to create a career roadmap. the object is to compare their current abilities and qualifications to their shortand long-term career paths and determine what additional experience and skills are needed. be honest and transparent in your feedback to avoid future employee dissatisfaction. establish a clear communication plan. ensure that your employees know that career pathing exists, how it will benefit themand how they can access the program. remind them about opportunities for growth such as mentoring and training on a regular basis. use ongoing performance reviews and not just an annual review to keep track of career path progress and to determine if further steps are need to help employees reach their goals. use data analytics to adjust your program. analyzing external data on salaries and benefit offerings in your marketplace can help you determine whether your compensation package is competitive. even a good career pathing program won't prevent turnover if you fall significantly below your competitors. internal data derived from employee surveys, management feedback and exit interview should also be file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 7 factored into career pathing planning. since career pathing attracts and fosters retention of talented candidates, it simply makes sense to incorporate career pathing into your talent management strategy. your end goal is to make sure that a valued employee never tells you during an exit interview: "i'm leaving the company to advance my career and take on new challenges." individual development plans (idp) individual development plan results from a comparison of individual strengths and weaknesses on the current job and individual potential for possible advancement to future key positions. an idp is a hybrid of a learning contract, a performance contract and a career planning form. while a learning contract is an agreement to learn, a performance contract represent an agreement to achieve an identifiable, measurable level of performance while a career planning form is a tool for helping individuals identify their career goals and establish effective strategies for realizing them in the future (rothwell,2010). a career planning form is typically linked to an organizational career planning program which can enforce and support succession planning & management program. an individual development plan (idp) is a tool to assist employees in career and personal development. creating and maintaining your idp is a critical first step in taking ownership over your career. to achieve a successful career path, we propose the processes into three forms which are: a) personal development plan personal development plan is the process of creating an action plan based on awareness, values, reflection, goal-setting and planning for personal development within the context of a career, education, relationship or for self-improvement (caligiuri, 2012). personal development plan means creating opportunities to think in a structured way to answer questions such as:  what do i really want to achieve in life?  what kind of person do i want to be?  am i clear about my personal goals and ambitions?  am i making the right decisions to get me where i really want to be?  am i in charge of my life and my studies or am i just hoping it all will work out somehow? it has been recognized that students need structured opportunities to think about, and plan towards, their future. the exact content really depends on you. however, in the work place, the personal development process may be linked to your annual appraisal or supervision as: i) a process of personal development development planning can be a very personal process or it can be a process required by your employer or tutor. as the word "development" suggests, it is something that happens over time. it isn’t a last minute thing. a personal development plan works best when you:  think deeply and in structured ways about your life and ambitions. what does success mean to you personally?  have the right information to make good choices.  have people you can trust to share your reflections. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 8  have opportunities to experiment and test yourself in new areas so that you have a better understanding of your abilities and limits.  have opportunities to develop the knowledge and skills to achieve your ambitions. ii) personal records of learning and achievement these are your own personal records rather than those provided by the university. for more advice, see personal records. iii) a formal transcript provided by an institution a formal transcript will be provided by the university, usually in addition to a degree certificate, it records more information about your learning and achievement than the national degree certificate. we can create a personal development plan by:  identifying priorities for personal development  identifying personal development opportunities  creating an action plan  monitoring your progress  evaluating your personal performance the other seven main categories of a personal development plan are:  goal  success criteria (how will you know when you have succeeded?)  action outline (what will i do to achieve those goals?)  implementation (how will i practice what i learn?)  timeline (or deadline)  goal category/skill  goal priority (weighting system) b) professional development plan a professional development plan is a set of guidelines used to improve or redirect a career or business leadership development programs are quite important to succession planning. it could be a professional development plans which is a banner under which potential successors are developed in a systematic, and even visible way. leadership programs may also develop groups of people so as to create talent pools. once the professional development plan is completed, it is typically time to start implementing the goals and activities. at the completion of a unit, course, or school year, instructors are sometimes required to give a portfolio to their administrators to see how effective their plan was. portfolios might include selected lesson plans, photographs, videos, and examples of student work. you review, plan and take necessary action on a professional development plan. below are some of steps to creating a professional development plan:  conduct a selfassessment: decide what you want to change or improve. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 9  identify support: make a list of resources that will help you to make those changes: books, online courses, continued education, informational interviews and people.  create goals and action steps: schedule a specific amount of time each day towards using those resources to achieve your individual development goals.  monitor your progress: track your progress by taking notes or journaling. this will keep you focused and encouraged. take time to celebrate all successes, big and small. this plan is a more formal document, typically involving hr, along with conversations and input from your direct manager. and as an employee, there may be development opportunities provided by the employer.  training: if there are areas that require improvement, training is a great option. some employers may offer tuition assistance and/or paid time off to pursue learning opportunities.  employee mentoring: employee mentoring programs are a major factor in employee retention and increased profitability and productivity within a company.  change in job design: aspects of your job are reviewed and suggestions are made as to know how the job might be redesigned to increase efficiency.  delegation of special projects: assigning a critical task to an employee is a definite sign of respect and value. the more important a project is deemed, the greater the implied confidence, because of its impact if it succeeds or fails. in the past, we thought career development was something that ended when we graduated from high school or college. now we know that is far from the truth. there is an ever-increasing need for us to keep learning to keep up with the rapid growth in information and the rate of change of our workplace environments. whether your plan is to prepare for another job or to develop skills to be used in your current job, be proactive and take personal responsibility for your own growth and development. new skills and knowledge will keep you motivated and help you to remain competitive in the job market. the following types of leadership development programs should be vigorously pursued by individuals and organizations:  coaching: coaching is a means to the end of building talent and it is very important to succession planning process because it can be a key tool in grooming prospective successors for the future. generally speaking, training is planned and focused while coaching tends to be more spur-of-the-moment but it is driven by moment-to-moment efforts to help others perform (rothwell, 2010). however, coaching is not just a fix-it strategy for poor performers rather it is very useful in preparing promising people for the future.  executive coaching: its significance in succession planning process cannot be understated.  this strategy is used in organizations where the leaders fell asleep on succession matters until it was too late. executive coaching involves the job content coach that provides guidance to individuals who are not up to snuff on the job content and the process coach that focuses on the image that the executive projects entail as no file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 10 knowledge of the job content is needed. so, executive coaching process should be clearly focused and thoroughly implemented.  mentoring: a mentor is simply a teacher. mentoring is the process of teaching others and mentoring like coaching and executive coaching can therefore help to build bench strength. a mentor helps someone succeed and mentoring programs should be established by organizations.  action learning: this helps organization to build competencies by learning through actions where participants are assembled to work on a practical, real-world problems. to use action learning appropriately, organizational leaders must select the right people for the right teams (rothwell, 2010).  acceleration pools: recall that a talent pool is a group of employees being prepared for promotion while acceleration pool is a group of employees who are being quickly and systematically prepared for possible promotion (rothwell, 2010). c) spiritual development plan spiritual development refers to the process in which the spiritual aspects of life and individuals are fostered and enhanced. spiritual development encompasses the insights, beliefs, attitudes, principles and values that guides and motivates human beings. religion is not a spiritual development, it is just a part of it. witherington (2011) explains how as human beings, we live in an age of artifice and the artificial-artificial light, artificial means of transportation because we are prisoners, captives of our gadgets, growing spiritually is more relevant than our professional plans because it has to do with our ethical standing and morality about our work and the world. the spiritual development plan and the issue of succession plan entails delegation strategies which christ demonstrated in both matthew 10:5-15 and mark 6:7-8 when he sent out the twelve disciples to perform various miracles and solve people’s problems. the real spiritual development plan is innate and internal because jesus explained in mark 7:1-23 about the need to grow our character from within by cultivating the fruit of the spirit because defilement comes from within. this is where delegation or the allocation of tasks to subordinates in the workplace comes to being and our best bet is to pay attention to those areas that really need our attention. caesar got it right when he said “divide and conquer”. so, by delegating work, we are multiplying ourselves, creating extensions of ourselves, allowing employees to take on some of the responsibility for handling tasks during our absence and that is pretty what jesus christ did. the spiritual development plan helps individual to delegate in order to maximize employee potential, help companies to grow, create hierarchy, and allow one’s enough time to focus on available tasks. some reflections about the personal succession planning links us to the area of personal spiritual growth plan where we must self-evaluate, set goals and attain resources by abiding in christ through personal study of the bible and praying regularly (rothwell,2010). for example, according to the bible, the transition of moses to joshua in joshua 1:1-18 explains the significance of a spiritual development plan on a personal basis. the summary of the succession principles that guided the transition from moses to joshua occurred when moses realized that he would need a successor, he asked god to provide one. god directed him to joshua, whom god had already prepared for the task. it is important to note that moses did not choose his own successor, nor was he chosen by popular vote. rather, god’s choice of joshua was revealed in joshua’s ordination. joshua was not an unknown at that point. moses had long before recognized joshua’s abilities and potential. moses became joshua’s mentor and had given him various leadership tasks to further file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 11 his development. prior to his death, moses formally ordained joshua to leadership in front of the priest and the people. following moses’ death, the lord reconfirmed the succession of joshua to leadership. that explains the spiritual development plan during a personal succession plan. the summary of my personal reflections on succession planning is that it is a systematic approach to building a leadership pipeline or talent pool to ensure leadership continuity, developing potential successors in ways that best fit their strengths, identifying the best candidates for categories of positions and concentrating resources on the talent development process yielding a greater return on investment (rothwell, 2010). succession planning recognizes that some jobs are the lifeblood of the organization and are too crucial to be left vacant or filled by any but the best qualified persons. effectively done, succession planning is critical to mission success and that creates an effective process for recognizing, developing, and retaining top leadership talent either through a personal, professional or a spiritual development plan. rothwell (2010) also identifies essential characteristics of an effective succession plan and captures areas such as top management participation, focused attention, a systematic approach, and the obligation to identify and prepare successors during career pathing. section three –a biblical view of human resources the biblical view of hr is like a community of talent which is a gift of god from birth with the responsibility to develop others like apostle paul did during his plea to philemon on behalf of onesimus in the book of philemon 1:8-21. hr is about cultivating the instinct of valuing people and planning well for the future. the biblical view of human resources is further explained in the book of ephesians 6:5-9 by apostle paul when he explained the roles of bondservants and masters without eye service but with obedience and fear of god. so employee management and engagement works with the belief that employee engagement doesn’t mean employee satisfaction. the core truth about managing employees according to god’s way is explained further in ephesians 6:9 that says “ and you, masters, do the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with him.”. masters should give up threatening and do same to their subordinates and emphasis should be on building trust to earn employee’s motivation and retention (witherington, 2011). biblical view of hr and work work is never a curse but a blessing. according to the book of genesis 1, our biblical god works and it is not about god working but it is about his people working and their participation in the work that he sees as good, endorses and indeed participates in. perhaps, part of the problem that we have never bothered to ask or answer about relating work and human resource lies in its biblical perspectives where people live to work, rather than work to live (witherington,2011). the book of genesis 1:28 takes us from just working to live and survive to rather be a blessing. however, isaiah 65:20-25 opined that paradise involves a war stoppage rather than a work stoppage, so that crops can be sown and their fruits enjoyed in peace. work apparently is not the human dilemma, war and other sorts of fallen human behaviours but the dilemma is that work is not a curse as a result of man’s fall. it was meant to be in our dna from the outset when god called humanity to fill and subdue the earth as stated in the book of genesis 1:28 (witherington, 2011). the real definition of work is found in genesis 2:15 where human work is shown to have worth and dignity as a service to god and it is a creation ordinance, a god-appointed necessity for human life. however, man was meant file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 12 to be a gardener but by reason of sin, he became a farmer. because work is good, isaiah 64:8 says that “but now, o lord, you are our father, we are the clay and you our potter and all we are the work of your hand”. so, as god’s chosen vessels, we are fashioned for work, worship, rest and play. our god is indeed the inspirer and equipper of all the good works (witherington, 2011). our vision of work must be eschatological, theological, teleological and ethical where work and hr from a biblical point of view involves calling, charism, gifting, vocation and ministry in the new order of god. work is what weaves together the very fabric of a called person’s identity and fulfils it. in both romans 14:20 and 1st corinthians 3:9, apostle paul said “do not for the sake of food, destroy the work of god because we are god’s fellow-workers”. our work’s worth in our culture should not be based only on its exchange value but on the basis of its actual usefulness in the eyes of god. to avoid ethical problems that are associated with work and hr, all workers are created in the image of god and as such must be treated as persons not merely as means to an end. the two basic elements to be considered is that we must engage in good, honest work by being a steward of god’s resources and we must rest by avoiding burnouts because burnout is not just a physical or emotional matter, but is spiritual as rest and sabbatical times are good things (witherington,2011). it is clear that what we need in our lives is not merely a more biblical sense and understanding of work but a biblical understanding of self as well. we are not merely what we do for we were created in the image of god as beings of sacred worth and renewed in christ’s image by grace through faith and neither of these truths has anything to do with our work. as christians, we must recognize that what we do is part of who we are as our character must reflect the fruit of the spirit as stated in the book of galatians 5:22-23. (witherington, 2011). biblical themes about hr and work as the industrial age is moving forward, it is not surprise that we have lost sense of connection between work and the world in which we work between earthling and earth. it is not just that we work on the earth, it is that we work with the earth (witherington, 2011). so, work is not a secular activity but a sacred one originally ordained by god that must be undertaken in holy ways. work is doxological in character because a clear sense of christian vocation is to our skills, experience, abilities and vocation for the good of others and for god who taught us to love our neighbours in practical ways. that is the real meaning of human resources which indicate talent management (witherington, 2011). thus, how far we have come from the biblical ethic of work that we admire the person who obtains the ends but sidesteps the means or blows off the ends altogether and find contentment in pleasing ourselves? we must engage to give up work without giving up happiness as we live in a very pragmatic culture where the biblical view of work describes rest as good but detest laziness. laziness is an attitude about work, followed by a pattern of behaviour that often leads one to try to avoid work, sometimes at all cost. proverbs 6:6-11 explains how god hates the folly of indolence or laziness as it is often referred to as sloth. among those vices considered since the early days of the church are gluttony, greed, wrath, envy, pride, lost and sloth or being lazy (witherington, 2011). however, both proverbs 10:26 and proverbs 26:13-16 spoke about the behaviours of a lazy man with his negative consequences. so, as christians, we must engage in good honest labour by being a steward of god’s resources. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 13 working in god’s kingdom describes a slothful man as a sluggard that is characterised by laziness as stated in proverbs 20:4 and being a lazy man is not merely a procrastinator but it is contrasted with the man who operates with due diligence and foresight in proverbs 12:27. however, there is no teleological character to work in the book of ecclesiastes as the bible’s critique of laziness and slothfulness is that it does not merely assume that hard work is the norm, but work is inherently forward looking and it is a good thing by god. the book of ecclesiastes 9:9-10 gave another view about work where as christians, we must cultivate the below certain elements about discovering and practicing a biblical perspectives of work and hr: i) we must repent and recognize that the whole yoke does not fall on our shoulders as we are burdens sharers not burden bearers. ii) we must realize the necessity of taking times of rest and sabbatical from our primary vocation precisely in order that we may do it well. iii) we must recognize that our work has a goal and a purpose that is kingdom based, a purpose we do not undertake alone but rather through the whole body of christ (witherington, 2011). as christians, we should not model ourselves on the slacker, the sluggard or the sloth but at the same time neither is the workaholic our paradigm-jesus christ is .trust and having rest are two essential elements that must be considered if we are to discover and practice a biblical, christian perspective of work, human resources and vocation. (witherington, 2011). biblical management of employees the holy bible is an album of casual photographs of labourers. a book by workers, about workers and for workers (witherington, 2011). according to the parable of the talents in matthew 25:14-30, talent refers to some native ability a person possesses. a talent should not be mistaken for ability but rather something given to a person to do with his or her abilities. a talent is also a two-sided coin of ability and responsibility (rothwell, 2010). god does not want what he has given us to go on deposit, he wants it used for kingdom purpose as he expects us to be industrious. so, our rewards for doing well with the investment is being put in charge of more work and more investment. reward for good stewardship. god is delighted when we do our work well and to his glory and in his service and for his purposes. work and investing ourselves in it, is seen as a good thing by jesus. so, work is an offering to god, a response to grace and salvation. we should not evaluate our work by how much we are paid to do it but whether we have done it well to the best of our ability honestly and in good time to the glory of god whatever the human responses to the work may be (witherington, 2011). work and vocation should be seen as a calling, not merely a job and as a ministry done in service of the king and his kingdom, not merely a task. another biblical theme about watering, working and warning can be found in 1st corinthians 3:6-17 that says that we are colabourers with god as we planted, apollo watered but god gave the increase. we are called in our work to be culture builders or ethos creators. another important elements to be considered is culture that shapes and reshapes the mere material world that exists because culture is what we make of the world that god has created. our work and vocation changes the world and imposes a new culture on what previously existed because of the christ transforming culture where human nature is seen as fallen but capable of redemption as explained further in the books of romans 12:2 where christ shapes it through the renewing of our minds (witherington, 2011). culture is not just about thinking but it is about our work, vocation and file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 14 ministry (hofstede, 2010). we must engage in creative work using our intelligence, skills and imagination to create culture well. so, any christian work, calling, vocation or ministry that is oblivious to cultural change and is clueless about being a culture maker may not be labour done in vain but it is certainly labour that is not maximizing what can be accomplished for the lord (witherington, 2011). outcomes of the biblical view of human resources and work god values work through honesty and obedience. christians often measure the significance of a job by its perceived value from the eternal perspective. will the work last or will it really count for eternity? the implication is that god approves of work for eternity, but places little value on work for the here and now (witherington, 2011). but this way of thinking overlooks several important truths about some outcomes of the biblical view of human resources and work that says: a) god himself has created a world that is time-bound and temporary as stated in 2nd peter 3:10-13, yet we values our work, declaring it to be very good by its very nature. it is explained further in the books of genesis 1:31 and acts 14:17. b) god promises reward to people in everyday jobs, based on their attitude and conduct as stated in ephesians 6:8 and colossians 3:23. c) god cares about the everyday needs of people as well as their spiritual needs. he cares whether people have food, clothing, and shelter. d) god cares about people who will enter eternity. to the extent that a job serves the needs of people, god values it, because he values people. as christians, we should step back for a moment and remind ourselves again that each of us is called to a personal relationship with god through jesus christ, first and foremost. from this position, all else comes. the fruit of our relationship with christ moves us to the level of our calling in work. that work – whether serving on the mission field or delivering mail is a holy calling of god or vocation. by segmenting the secular work part of our life, we cut off the expression of his life to the world. the lord has called each of us to be excellent in what we do. in the beginning, god created work and one of the first things we learn about how god made us is that he designed us for work as stated in genesis 1:28 that we should be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it. the biblical prophets also describe the future paradise being prepared for god’s people as a time when people turn their weapons of war into farming tools as explained in both isaiah 2:1-5 and micah 4:1-5. so, the bible begins with humans working in paradise and it ends with humans working in paradise!! section four –guiding insights global leaders must understand the significance of bringing out the best in people regardless of where they sit or which language they speak by adopting teamwork across cultures in bringing together people, resources and ideas to pursue new solutions. in fact they should strive to develop a global mindset (cabrera & unruh, 2012). possessing a global mindset as leaders can help reduce the chances of missing important cues because it is critical for leaders newly entrenched in a non-native culture as it is for those who regularly engage with multiple cultures (cabrera & unruh, 2012). the three components of a global mindset capital are both complementary and mutually supportive when as a global leader, we possess the capacity to suspend judgement and bias by accepting that there might be an alternative ways to interpret reality (psychological capital) which help to build trusting relationships and connections (social capital) and then to be a source of new insights about a specific file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 15 environment (intellectual capital). so, having the knowledge of important facts and dynamics in a given market (intellectual capital) can guide our efforts to expand our network of relationships (social capital) thereby making it easier to accept alternative interpretations of a set of circumstances (psychological capital) (cabrera & unruh, 2012). maintaining global and local balance in hr leadership is very critical because globalization has natural effects on everything we do. as an organization, hr leaders should develop a passion for talent with the credibility to embed that passion in order to achieve local and global balance through trends like cultural diversity and globalization (losey, 2005). so, whether we operate in a religious or secular settings, leaders should develop a global mindset that will allow them to connect with others across boundaries, entrepreneurship skills that will enable them to create value through established connections and citizenship competencies that will motivate them to seek a positive contribution and prosperity for all (cabrera &unruh,2012). however, (losey, meisinger & ulrich, 2005) explains some guiding insights as to how leaders could change their world either through localization or globalization of talent management by: a) developing global mind-sets. b) developing global capabilities. c) balancing global and local approaches. d) supporting cultural diversity. e) learning locally but acting globally by tapping global capabilities and skills to satisfy customer needs. sometimes, christian leaders regardless of their cultural backgrounds carry their personal histories and cultural biases with them wherever they serve but the complexity of leading cross-culturally often lies in the challenge of building a community of trust among people of diverse cultural origins. so, the critical factors associated with christian leaders to be able to think, act and live globally while learning locally are the christ-centered learning and a trustworthy covenant-centered leadership (lingenfelter, 2008). christian leaders should possess a global mindset with the ability to interpret, analyze and decode situations from a variety of perspectives to identify the best route towards successful collaboration within a multi-cultural environment (cabrera & unruh, 2012). nevertheless, a christian leader from the biblical point of view of work and hr is best equipped to determine the best route when led by the holy spirit to seek the father’s will in a turbulent global environment as stated in ephesians 4:23-24. apostle paul’s message in philippians 4:9 admonishes us to live, think and act globally from what we have learned locally. christian leaders that will operate well in this secular world must not only possess a global mindset but must develop enough global capabilities that are based on learning and doing as a result of certain trends like globalization and culture. so, we must learn locally in order to think, act and live globally by being a changed agents to our world through christ (losey, 2005). global businesses should have a global hr function. at the same time, in order to compete successfully in diverse markets, companies should recruit, train, and manage people locally—reflecting local culture, local labor markets, and the needs of diverse local business units. creating global standards, platforms, and service centers addresses only part of the challenge. leading companies are developing hr operating models that are flexible enough to allow for local implementation and agile enough to adapt to local markets and business needs. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 16 the ultimate goal: to combine scale and agility to optimize talent management in every market where the company does business. the global side of the equation for many organizations, one of the key drivers of a globally integrated hr strategy is the need for talent mobility within the company. leading companies often move talent from region to region to address key talent gaps. consider a business unit in california with a strong need for engineering skills. the company may have a team in moscow with precisely the right skills that has just finished a similar project. unless the company’s talent practices are globally integrated, this match between business need and existing skills may never take place. companies operating on a global basis often offer high-potential employees global developmental assignments as one of their “tours of duty.” they also face the need to move specialists to global assignments rapidly. globally integrated hr is critical to this process, but many companies do not have the systems in place to accomplish these increasingly common hr responsibilities. adapting global hr to local talent marketplaces while businesses today operate in a pervasively global environment when it comes to customers, talent, and supply chains, each local labor market has vastly different dynamics. to balance strong global hr strategies and platforms, companies should build flexibility and agility into hr so it can be customized for local markets. the talent markets in asia, for example, are far different from those in western europe and north america. critical skills are in short supply; top candidates change jobs every nine to twelve months; salaries are increasing nearly 10 percent annually. to adapt to these conditions, talent strategies should focus on recruiting, rapid talent mobility, onboarding, and accelerated leadership development. of course, these variances are not limited to asia. localized challenges drive demand for local talent solutions in every region where a company does business. labor regulations, compensation expectations, workplace culture, and many other factors vary significantly among regions. while global consistency and standards drive efficiency and scale, local flexibility powers growth and employee engagement. to achieve both, companies should move toward a new hr operating model. moving from globally rationalized to globally optimized for the past decade, many companies have been implementing a shared services model for hr to reduce global costs and improve service delivery. in most large companies, this “rationalized” model delivers tremendous benefits. it saves money, increases service to managers and employees, and provides global scale. but for companies trying to recruit and optimize their teams in disparate markets, this shared services model is neither robust enough nor flexible enough to address the widely differing challenges that come from operating in dozens of individual markets. how can companies aggressively recruit and build leaders in fast-growing asian markets? how should organizations reskill and retain employees in western europe or the united states? what is the most effective strategy for developing talent in india? these and many other issues demand a balance of global standards that can be customized to fit local needs. addressing issues like these requires a shift from global rationalization to global optimization. another key guiding insights is that christian leaders should endeavor to cultivate and imbibe the concept of the employee engagement using its key drivers of commitment, motivation, trust and integrity by viewing hr and work as a calling, vocation and ministry file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 17 from god because god has authorized, empowered and purposed them to do good works as stated by apostle paul in 1st corinthians 3:5-17 as being a fellow workers with god (witherington, 2011). knowing that not all tasks are vocations and not all gainful employment is a calling but the christian perspective on work does not involve meddling but rather getting on with doing our own tasks based on sound ethical standing. leadership is all about results and god’s highest priority is that we live as the people of god that works in one body of christ to accomplish kingdom’s results (witherington, 2011). also, hr is referred to as one of the most significant keepers and analysts of the organization’s culture where culture change has become a central theme of the enlightened hr practice where leaders need to be the guardians of their organization’s ethical and moral integrity (losey, 2005). however, focus should be on talent management as one of the major hr leadership processes that will impact the organization’s global or local capabilities. rothwell (2010) asserted that organizations today need competencies, values and ethics for an effective succession planning programs and the biblical view of work explains how the vision of work should be eschatological, ethical, theological and theological because work involves vocation and if done right, it’s a ministry (witherington, 2011). from the biblical point in 1st corinthians 9, apostle paul said that work deserves fair remuneration and it is most directly linked to the fulfilment of the great commission which is our primary task as a christian. so, our christian work, calling, vocation or ministry is oblivious to cultural change in recognizing that work is what we do based on our character (witherington,2011). there is also the concept of succession planning regarding hr and work whereas christian leaders, we should remember that our central task of leadership is influencing god’s people towards achieving god’s purpose on earth. other insights is that hr professionals should lead by finding, growing, deploying, motivating and rewarding talent through creating cultures, learning environments, psychological contracts, systems, processes and the feedback loop that measures how successfully the job is (losey,2005). so, any successive transition should go with the trio of competencies, values and ethics as ethics is a moral dimension to leadership. so, cultivating and imbibing the ambassadorial departure style of succession planning process is also germane (sonnenfeld, 1988). finally, another important insights is about building global hr that creates a competitive advantage in developing talent of those who learn locally and act globally (losey, 2005). the lessons about how the concept of succession planning & management differs from replacement or workforce planning that involves a proactive approach towards leadership continuity within organizations through talent management, internal promotion and leadership development programs must be learned (rothwell,2010). often times, the whole essence of human resource is about people and the most important deliverable of the hr function is the workforce not just any workforce. there is a belief that firms don’t change but people do and it is the people that changes organization. the concepts of talent management, succession planning and the biblical view of work are some of the powerful guiding insights gained from this course. conclusion globalization is now as common as sliced bread. the only way to shift an organization’s systemic culture from being homogeneous to being diverse is by encountering various experiences and cultural activities. building cross-cultural agility and intelligence takes a lot of hard work and, at times, obtaining assistance from coaches and consultants. this is one of the reasons why many leaders and executives fail to make the transition from domestic file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 18 to international—it takes effort. yet, in this globalized world in which we live, it is an imperative. cultural agility is the ability to be effective in many cultures and environments, but this type of leadership effectiveness only comes to leaders through direct exposure of diverse circumstances and life experiences. it is a lifelong process and not a onetime event. we can become culturally intelligent by desiring versatility in our thinking, living, and actions. leaders have to put forth the effort of thinking, living, and acting outside of the box. this does not come natural to most of us; therefore, we have to put ourselves in various situations that will help us, and stretch us. examples for how we can accomplish this include joining different groups, going to various culture and diversity events, and building relationships with people who are not like us. this will definitely help us to break down our cultural paradigms so that we may grow to become cross-cultural leaders. the most significant insights is that as christian leaders, we should always remember that our central task of leadership is influencing god’s people towards achieving god’s purpose here on earth. we are also called to our vocations by emulating christ when he told his disciples to follow up in mark 1:17 which says “ then jesus said to them, follow me, and i will make you become fishers of men” and apostle paul’s charge in 1st thessalonians 4:11-12 to work with our hands based on god’s will on earth. whether, it is the concept of talent management, succession planning or the biblical view of work and human resources, it is pertinent that we work for god’s kingdom (witherington, 2011). over the last decade, organizations are working hard to meet the demands of the constantly changing business environment. in order for the organization to remain sustainable in a constantly changing business environment, they have to be efficient in all organizational processes. to remain competitive in the industry, organizations need to address their hr issues by ensuring the employee’s needs are met and streamlining transactions. reshaping the future of the hr requires organizations to manage change. the hr will provide the business with the needed insights that are actionable and datadriven to enable better decision-making that will drive business to success. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 1-19, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 19 references ben witherington iii (2011) .work, a kingdom perspective on labor; williams b eerdmans publishing company, grand rapids, michigan. cabrera, a & unruh, g (2012). being global: how to think, act and lead in a transformed world. harvard business review press, boston ma. caligiuri, p & lazarova, m & zehetbauer, s (2005). top managers’ national diversity and boundary spanning, attitudinal indicators of a firm’s internationalization. journal of management development, 23, no 9, pg 847-859. caligiuri, p (2012). cultural agility: building a pipeline of successful global professionals, san francisco, ca: jossey-bass. cameron, k.s & quinn, r.e (2011). diagnosing and changing organizational culture based on the competing values framework; john wiley & sons inc, jossey –bass cornish, e. (2004. futuring the exploration of the future, bethesda, md: world future society hofstede, g.h & minkov, m (2010). cultures and organizations. (3rd edition)., software of the mind new york, ny: mcgraw-hill. jeffery sonnenfeld (1988). the hero’s farewell; what happens when ceos retire. oxford university press, ny lingenfelter, s.g (2008). leading cross-culturally; covenant relationships for effective christian leadership, baker academic publishers, grand rapids, michigan losey, m & meisinger, s & ulrich, d (2005) . the future of human resource management. john wiley & sons inc., hoboken, new jersey northouse, p. (2013). leadership theory & practice (6th edition), sage publications inc. rothwell, w (2010). effective succession planning; ensuring leadership continuity and building talent from within. (4th edition), amacom, ny. schein, e. h. (2010). organizational culture and leadership, jossey bass, john wiley & son inc. san francisco, ca the holy bible, new king james version, copyright (1982). thomas nelson. all rights reserved. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org performance management strategies and employee productivity in the ministry of water and irrigation in nairobi city county, kenya. caroline njeri njagi and dr. wilson muna european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 1 performance management strategies and employee productivity in the ministry of water and irrigation in nairobi city county, kenya caroline njeri njagi post graduate student, kenyatta university, kenya. corresponding author’s email: carolinejagi@gmail.com dr. wilson muna lecturer, department of public policy and administration, kenyatta university, kenya email: wmunah2007@gmail.com abstract purpose: the purpose of this study was to establish the effects of performance management strategies to employee productivity in the ministry of water and irrigation in nairobi city county, kenya. methodology: the study adopted a descriptive research design and maslow’s hierarchy of needs, herzberg’s two factors and expectancy theory for its theoretical framework. the target population was 200 employees drawn from middle level and lower level cadres in the ministry of water and irrigation. a sample of 133 employees was issued with the questionnaires. stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to identify respondents. primary data was collected using semi-structured questionnaires administered by the researcher. descriptive statistic like mean, standard deviation frequencies, tables and charts were used to analyze quantitative data using statistical package for social sciences (spss), while open-ended questions were analyzed using content analysis. results: the findings showed that performance management strategies affect employee productivity but at different levels. remuneration is the leading factor that negatively influences employee productivity within the scope area. it was also noted that the promotion process affects the ministry of water and irrigation negatively because it is not based on merit. however, both training and physical work environment facilitate improved productivity among the employees. this shows that performance management strategies positively and negatively affect the overall employee productivity in the ministry of water and irrigation. recommendations: the study recommends that, through the public service commission and salaries and remuneration commission, the government of kenya introduce measures in areas of remuneration and training that will motivate workers in this ministry. draft new guidelines for salary review based on the present living standards. the ministry should ensure that all workers are entitled to transport to and from work, mortgage facilities, and other benefits. all salaries be harmonized across the public sector. the promotion policies and guidelines that are already in place be followed when promoting employees. adoption of a proper appraisal system and that all the promotions are based on merit but not influence, corruption or seniority. the ministry takes note of the annual training plans and implementing them to the latter. keywords: performance management strategies, employee productivity. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:carolinejagi@gmail.com mailto:wmunah2007@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 2 1.1 introduction economies all over the world strive to maximize on the resources for output. success or failure of an organization is dependent on the employees’ performance (hameed &waheed, 2011). the concept of labour productivity has been a challenge to both developed and developing economies. a study to determine labour productivity showed that africa and south asian countries (except india) scored very low. it was further noted that in these two continents, the sub-saharan region performed poorest in the economies (chebet 2015, arham, nazri & rahma, 2018). research on productivity of employees date back to the 1900 with the likes of fredrick taylor (1911) as noted by locke (1982), henry fayol (1916), max weber (1920) by mommsen (1990), and elton mayo (1933), who sought to find ways of increasing productivity with the least of inputs. the orientation of the public sector makes it difficult to measure the objectives and the result/outcomes of the sector, (bohnet & eaton, 2003, and buelens & broeck, 2007). the public sector has gradually transformed and adopted private sector strategizes like technology, global trends, performance management strategies, performance contracting, and aligning human resource function to the organization strategic plan (nabukeera, ali & raja, 2015). these changes have proven to be a challenge for both developed and developing countries. the pressure for improved service delivery and labor productivity in the public sector has been persistent hence the need for research in the area (hughes, moore & kataria, 2011). daley (2012), notes that the modern public service is a professional service that must be built on knowledge and expertise. professionals must be sought and guaranteed of an environment where their careers will be nurtured and prosper. human resource is considered to be one of the key vital assets to any organization as its practices and strategies have a direct impact to employee productivity (kiruja & mukuru, 2018).it is therefore important to identify the practices and strategies with the highest level of impact to employee productivity as this is likely to help inform policy formulation and implementation (mohammed & nimalathasan, 2016).when employees are developed, they feel motivated to work hard, utilize the skills acquired fully and put more effort to achieve organizational goals (hameed & waheed, 2011). training leads to enhanced skills which when utilized result to enhanced production. this therefore makes employees of an organization to be a competitive advantage chandrasekar (2011), notes that a work place that is characterized with poorly designed workstations, unsuitable furniture, lack of ventilation, inappropriate lighting, excessive noise, insufficient safety measures in fire emergencies and lack of protective equipment among other hazards, is likely to cause occupational diseases which impact employees negatively in their productivity. organizations interested with productivity will focus on personal motivation and the infrastructure of the environment where employees work in. in recognition of the importance of workplace environment, the employers are coming up with programs that address lifestyle changes work/life balance, health and fitness which were previously not a concern. the ministry of water and irrigation nairobi headquarters is mandated by the constitution of kenya (2010) to formulate policies and give guidelines in water sector. these policies and guidelines are in turn adopted by the county governments and any other body dealing with water collection or supply for example the nairobi water and sewerage company. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 3 the public sector employees both at the county and national level of governments have been discontented for a long time and there has been numerous strikes complaint being poor remuneration and working environment (chebet, 2015). nelson & quick (2012) notes that jobs motivation of employees lead to high performance. motivation includes attractive compensation equivalent to work done, skills and knowledge on the work being done, employee participation in decision making, a conducive working environment among others. according to hewitt (2014), work environment, workplace relations, opportunity for growth, total reward, and company practices were seen as factors found engaging employees to productivity. according to sattar, ahmad and hassan (2015), training, incentives/rewards and empowerment contribute to employee productivity and satisfaction. the variables under study were strategies that human resource managers can use to improve delivery of water services to the citizens of kenya. the sector deals with a natural resource which needs proper management despite the challenges of a fast growing population and limited resources at their disposal. the study adopted the following three theories and used their relevance to the discussions, maslow’s hierarchy of needs, herzberg’s two factor and expectancy theory 1.2 statement of the problem organizations today have come to the realization of how vital human resource is in the achievement of their goals and objectives. they are therefore keen to develop human resource strategies that ensure productivity is at its best. ndulue and echukwu (2016), notes that for productivity to be at its peak, performance management strategies towards productivity must be aligned to the organizational strategic plan. many performance management strategies have been studied which aid productivity. armstrong (2016), notes that employees need to be equipped with the prerequisite skills, be in an enabling working environment, their remuneration be considered and promotions be prompt when deserved, for them to perform. in her study, anitha (2014), three strategies, work environment, compensation, and training were studied. however, it did not consider promotion as a strategy that would affect productivity. further the study will specifically look into the physical working environment whereas anitha looked at the general work environment. the study by akhtar, nawaz, mahmood, and shahid (2016), was in the banking sector in pakistan. it focused on high performance work practices which included rewards, training and employee engagement as practices that directly affect employee performance / productivity. this study did not consider the environment in which employees work in or the effects of promotions on productivity. namanga (2017), focused the study on employee involvement, employee compensation, work environment and training as factors affecting employee performance and engagement. the remuneration strategy under study will focus on the medical scheme, housing and transport of employees and the resultant effect of the same to productivity. hay group (2012), studied the importance of work environment to employee productivity, while international journal of science and research (2013) and karatepe (2013), looked at the benefit of training to the employees and employers. these studies focused on only one factor. it was however observed that work environment and training have a positive relationship to employee performance. wanjala (2019), on the other hand studied the effects of job security, training & development, compensation and employee participation to employee performance in the county government. chebet (2015), focused on leadership/management as factor affecting employee file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 4 performance besides training, remuneration /compensation and working conditions. caroline & kinyajui (2019), noted that there is a positive effect of reward, work environment, human resource development and work life balance to employee performance. ministry of water and irrigation is a part of the public service which struggles to perform. the constraints facing the public sector are evident in the ministry. this includes setting of goals and achieving them, being providers of public goods and therefore not profit oriented, difficulty in measuring of achievements made and not forgetting bureaucracy which hinders fast and timely decision making. the ministry is tasked with formulating policies which are in turn cascaded to the whole of the water sector all over the country. water being an essential and vital asset in human life, there is a serious need to clearly spell out strategies that can be applied to ensure that this vital resource is well managed and utilized. the aforementioned studies have proven that the factors under study have a positive impact to employee productivity in the organizations studied (county government, parastatal, and private sector), however this had not been tested in a public organization at the national government and also at the ministry of water and irrigation, therefore the study sought to find out the impact of these factors to employee productivity in the ministry of water and irrigation. this study therefore sought to understand the effects of training, remuneration, promotions and physical working conditions as performance strategies to employee productivity in the ministry of water and irrigation. 2.0 theoretical review 2.1 herzberg two-factor theory herzberg two-factor theory was developed in (1959) by frederick herzberg, (caroline & kinyajui, 2019). he defined two sets of variables that affect employee motivation at workplace that is hygiene and motivator factors. the hygiene factors include: pay, company policies, fridge benefits, physical working conditions, status, interpersonal relations, and job security among others. they prevent dissatisfaction in employees. these factors are external to the job and prompt disappointing encounters to the employees, (ruthankoon & ogunlana, 2003).fulfillment of these factors alone does not motivate employees but their absence brings dissatisfaction. they are equated to maslow’s physiological and safety needs which are very basic and need to be fulfilled. they describe the job environment/ scenario. the hygiene factors do not lead to positive satisfaction for long but their absence leads to dissatisfaction. the other set of factors defined by herzberg is motivators. these factors are inherent to the job and yield positive satisfaction (dartey & amoako, 2011). they are also known as intrinsic factors. they include recognition, growth and promotional opportunities, training/ learning, responsibility, meaningfulness of the work among others. they motivate employees to higher productivity. they were perceived as needs on the higher side of maslow’s hierarchy of needs which include self actualization. they are also perceived to be an additional benefit to the employee. basset and lloyd (2005) note that unpleasant working conditions prompts staff to desert work and opt for other employers. “workers are more propelled if they feel content in their work and frequently happens when the employer makes a decent workplace where representatives feel esteemed, by and large through expanded correspondence and being requested their conclusions” (guy & mastracci, 2018). the employees will be more inspired if the organization invests through training on the employees (caroline & kinyajui, 2019). high pay may not be sufficient to sustain high file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 5 productivity; consideration has to be done to cater for training, working conditions among other things. the two variables hygiene and motivators must be fulfilled (cole, 2004). having looked at the tenets of this theory, it is evident that the strategies understudy is clearly addressed by the theory. the researcher sought to understand how remuneration, promotion, physical working condition and training contribute towards employee productivity. the strategies fall clearly under the two categories of variables advanced by herzberg theory. the remuneration, promotion, and physical work condition fall under hygiene factors whose absence will cause dissatisfaction on the employees and leave the organization. they however do not motivate the employees individually and therefore the need for motivator. training is classified as a motivator to the employee. the two categories of factors are work hand in hand for employees’ productivity. 2.2 maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory needs theories are viewed as the best to explain employees drive at work (robbins & judge, 2009). abraham harold maslow (1954) perceived human beings as having needs which drive their actions. he classified these needs into five categories forming a hierarchy from the lowest to the highest as indicated in figure 2.1. figure 2.1: maslow’s hierarchy of needs. source: https://jambarteambuilding.com/maslows-hierarchy-needs/ file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 6 maslow observed that these needs are satisfied systematically. it is only when the lower level needs are satisfied does the higher level need get satisfied. at the lowest level are physiological needs which are the basic needs to human survival. these needs drive people to work so as to be able to cater for their basic needs as food, shelter and clothing. therefore pay becomes vital to an employee and determines their productivity. the next level covers safety needs which comprise of job security, protection against danger, safety of property. the third level needs entails of social needs which include belongingness, love, affection, friendship, conversation. the forth level comprises of self-respect, recognition and respect for others which is clustered as esteem needs. the fifth level need is self-actualization which comprise of growth, learning, meditation among others. this theory is not without criticism. the erg theory by clayton alderfer (1969), notes that these needs are not necessarily satisfied systematically. he notes that these needs must not follow a particular order in their fulfillment. one can pursue growth before satisfying the physiological needs. he further notes that more than one need can be functional at a time (karic, 2014; dresang, 2008). maslow’s theory of need continues to inform various studies despite the criticism. it is relevant to this study as the four strategies being studied clearly fit in the classification of maslow. remuneration fits in the first classification of physiological needs as it a requirement for one to cater for the basic needs of food, shelter and clothing. promotions form a part of security and belonging at the work place. promotions will only be done to employees who are performing and achieving organizational goals. it also boosts an employee’s morale and self-esteem. the acquisition of skills, knowledge through training is clustered as self-actualization and development. 2.3 expectancy theory the valence, instrumentality and expectancy theory was advanced by victor vroom in (1964). unlike maslow and herzberg who defined needs as the drive to work, vroom focuses more on the (work environment), outcome and results of work done. vroom asserts that, “the intensity of work effort depends on the perception that an individual’s effort will result in a desired outcome” (holdford & lovelace-elmore, 2001). the expectation that performance /productivity will be followed by a definite outcome drives the willingness of employees to work harder. therefore employees are driven by how much they need the reward (valence), the assessment that the efforts will lead to the expected results (expectancy) and the belief that the performance will lead to reward (instrumentality). factors that influence expectancy include possession of requisite skills, training, resources, an enabling working environment, and information among others. this theory stresses the need for clarity for clear connection between performance/ productivity and outcomes/ expected reward. greenberg & baron (2003) notes that emphasis on training, advancement, recognition and rewarding systems encourage employee to make efforts to perform at their maximum. the employees will strive to perform when they relate very closely the efforts to the reward. employees will endure the struggles of acquiring new skill through training as they relate it to promotion. promotion is associated with better remuneration. when an employee puts more effort to perform better so as to receive a better package or even promotion automatically it serves the purpose for both the employer and the employee. the condition of the working environment affects file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 7 employees positively and negatively. the employer will try to ensure the working environment is favorable to discourage employee turnover and any expenses related to medical bill caused by poor working conditions. time wasted on absenteeism can be productive at workplace. the gains at workplace contribute to employee productivity. 3.0 performance management strategies 3.1 remuneration remuneration is a component of human resource management strategy which consists of both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. extrinsic reward is the monetary/financial aspect which includes basic pay/salary and bonuses/allowances while as the intrinsic reward is the non-financial aspect which include recognition, job security, appreciation, praise, decision-making, flexible working hours, feedback, medical cover, housing by organization, transport to and from work, holiday package among others (yang, 2008).reward systems are recognized by organizations worldwide as essential tools to motivating individual employees at workplace (mwangi, 2017). it is seen as the most transparent way in which organizations communicate to their employees as to what they regard as essential (mwangi, njenga, chepkilot, & koima 2017). remuneration should be clearly aligned to the organizational goals as employees behavior is dependent on how the employees are measured/rated/appraised and rewarded (mwende, 2015). non-monetary rewards motivate employees differently from the monetary rewards and therefore both rewards are considered important to employee performance, (danish et al., 2015). wanjala (2019), notes that it’s important to treat human resource as a key competitive advantage. this is so because a poorly remunerated workforce results to low morale and eventually high turnover. in the past, reward system and measure of exceptional performance was not well structured. it was purely left to the whims of the managers. performance worth of reward would have meant anything from punctuality to assisting other department or even having a right attitude (nanzushi, 2015). however, this is gradually changing and organizations are/have devised strategies to measure and improve productivity which includes appraisal systems, better compensation, job security, training and development as a key human resource strategy (ndulue & ekechukwu, 2016). determination of pay is intended to bring a sense of equity, efficiency and macro-economic stability and efficient allocation of labor (khan, 2011). the ilo publication, ‘an introduction to performance and skill-based pay system (1998) indicates that pay is an important and contentious element in an employment relationship whereby the employer, employee and government have equal interests. the employer is concerned with costs, ability to hire and retain competent employees. the employees are concerned with their standard of living and how they are valued by the organization while the government on the other hand is interested with the macro-economic stability of the economy. chebet (2015) identifies a good reward system as one of the best strategies which organizations use to motivate and retain its most valued staff. having noted that employees are a key asset in the survival of an organization, they are mandated to provide salary and other non-financial benefits to employees so as to get the best out of them. khan (2011) notes that a reward management system is complex and must be administered with caution as it is expected /supposed to encourage employees to work harder and be more determined. organizations must be strategic in designing compensation systems with elements that work together for optimum productivity. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 8 basic pay is the major component of remuneration and its determinants should address issues like equity, efficiency, macroeconomic stability among others (chebet, 2015). benefits increase employee satisfaction at workplace which results to improved productivity. extraordinarily high wages may not necessarily result to high productivity but can be a source of inefficiency in employees. in the world, organizations are seen to use different remuneration strategies which are linked to other essential strategies as technology, marketing, operations and financial decisions. 3.2 physical work environment environment is man’s immediate surrounding which he manipulates for his existence (chebet, 2015). work environment has been an area of study with elton mayo (1933), being the first researcher. research has shown that the work environment has an impact on employee productivity. the physical environment plays a vital role in the satisfaction of employee. employees spend at least 50 percent of their time in the workplace which affects their mental status, actions, abilities and productivity (hay group, 2012; mmbusa, 2019). chebet (2015) identified features associated with a suitable work environments proper lighting, ventilation, access to natural light, and acoustic environment. the physical work environment affects employees’ behavior, attitude, workplace satisfaction as well as productivity. gensler (2006) on the other hand observed that the layout of a room/office affects the human sense and interpersonal interactions. employees who are in an open office plan are likely to be distracted in their work and feel that their privacy is invaded compared to those in partitioned office spaces. closed office plans reduce disruptions, allows employees to have time to concentrate, focus and enhances creativity with minimal or no interruptions compared to open office plans where there are several disruptions from other colleges, noise and also lack privacy (mwbex, 2010). despite the disruptions and noise in the open office plans, it allows for regular consultations and informal engagements which foster an environment of mutual support and co-operation. these features (lighting, ventilation, access to natural light, and acoustic environment) have an effect on the employee health and consequently on productivity. organizations must therefore provide their employees with protective clothing especially those working in hazardous environment, provision of plenty of clean water, restrooms, toilets, first aid facilities and all employees and employer must be conversant with the safety rules and procedures (chebet, 2015). in this regard it is important to look keenly into the work environment and its implications to the productivity of employees. wrong manipulation of the environment makes it unsafe for working and this affects the levels of productivity. a conducive work environment is that which allows for productivity as expected by the management (mike, 2010). today’s workplace is dynamic compared to the later days. the fast growth of the economy presents the workforce with endless opportunities. the organizations are therefore in need of the employees more than the employees need the organizations. chebet (2015) notes that employees who are faced with harsh working conditions are likely to produce less compared to organizations with favorable working conditions. poor working conditions lead to employee turnover which makes an organization lose to its competitors in the market (fosfuri et al., 2001). 3.3 promotions njanja, maina, kibet, and njagi (2013), describe promotion as “the advancement of an employee from one position to another job position that has a higher salary range, a higher level job title and file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 9 often more and higher level job responsibilities”. wambugu and ombui (2013), note that most often promotion brings in an increase in pay, authority, responsibility and influence on decision making process of an organization. promotion is a powerful tool used by management to communicate to employees of what the organization values most. the promotion system must therefore be just and based on aspects like education, expertise and knowledge (sharabi, 2008). gul, akbar, and jan (2012) notes that a just promotion policy must be based on employee career appraisal. the career appraisal must consider the employee’s abilities, knowledge, effective accomplishment of tasks and time management. at the point of promotion there is need to consider the length of service as well as competency of the staff (ahmad & shahzad, 2011). a just promotion system eliminates politics among employees and pressure to the management. bowra, sharif, saeed, and niazi (2012), note that among the many human resource problems that developing countries face, promotion process stands out. the promotion process lacks proper policies and guidelines to ensure justice. the developing countries base promotions on seniority than on actual performance. the process lacks to compensate hard work. promotion opportunities are seen as a source of job satisfaction in an organization. according to wambugu et al., (2013), there is a positive relationship between promotion practices and perceived performance of employees. it is the responsibility of managers to keep their employees motivated through fair and just promotion processes as it directly affects the productivity. shahzad, bashir, and ramay (2008), notes that filling vacancies from within the organization as well as promoting staff on merit increases employee satisfaction and employee productivity 3.4 training training is the transfer of specific skills or knowledge by an expert to employees with an objective of improving performance in their current task (wanjala, 2019). training is a vital aspect which supports productivity in organizations. training empowers employees to perform better (greater efficiency, effectiveness) by continually building their knowledge, skills ability, competences and behavior (karatepe, 2013). employees with high education and training exhibit high levels of satisfaction, motivation and ultimately improved productivity (chebet, 2015). training has proven to be beneficial to both the employees and the organization (international journal of science and research, 2013; appiah, 2010). capacity building is an indicator that organizations care for its employees (hameed, 2011). according to wanjala (2019), beneficial training is that which is tailor-made to suit the specific job requirements and strategic objectives of the organization. training is expensive for an organization and so organizations will equip their employees with skills when they are assured of higher productivity, achievement of the organizational goals and sustainable succession planning. the public service commission has through the training policy (2016), advocated /recommended for at least five days training for each officer in the entire public service in every financial year. kinyili (2012) argues that an efficient, motivated and well trained civil service is expected to be one of the major foundations of a country. training creates a difference between organizations that train their employees and those do not. ilo report of (2008) indicates that training for new skills gives employees opportunity for growth in the organization, higher income and employability aspect. training should be associated with something that employees’ desire like promotion, pay rise, recognition among others as this triggers faster acquisition of the skill. the new skills further give organizations a competitive advantage and relevance in the market as well as better performance. employees perform their duties effectively and efficiently when they have good file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 10 interpersonal skills and technical skills. these can only be developed through training. well trained staff requires minimal supervision (akhtar, nawaz, mahmood, & shahid, 2016). 4.0 methodology the study adopted a descriptive research design and a target population of 200 employees drawn from middle and lower level cadres. the study used the stratified and simple random sampling to arrive at a respondent. a sample of 133 respondents was arrived at using yamane (1967) formulae as shown below n = n/ (1+n (e) 2) where n0 = sample size n = target population e = precision (5%) 1=constant by way of illustration, this is the sample to be used for the study n = 200/1+200(0.05)2 n = 133 the research instrument adopted for the study was semi-structured questionnaire which was administered by the researcher to the respondents. the researcher used descriptive statistic like mean, standard deviation frequencies, tables and charts to analyze data. further the information from the questionnaires was coded and computer software (spss) was used to analyze it. content analysis was employed on open-ended questions. inferential statistics was used to analyze the data. 5.0 discussions of findings 5.1 remuneration the findings showed that employees at the ministry of water and irrigation are poorly compensated (m=3.083, sd=2.832). this is because only a few workers were satisfied with their salaries because they cannot use them to pay for their basic needs. although the salaries were paid on time, it was not commensurate to the work done. also, all the workers were entitled to different benefits, such as medical schemes and transport allowances, but a mean of 2.46 showed that only a few enjoy mortgage facilities. in terms of salary review, the majority (70%) agreed their payment was reviewed in 2020. however, failure to record a 100% response rate on the salary review in 2020 showed no consistency because some said their payment was reviewed in either 2019, 2021 or even ten years ago. during the salary review, the majority (59%) agreed that the guidelines were followed. those who said there were no clear guidelines followed said the salary review process failed to consider changes in living standards. only 40% of the respondents were satisfied with the remuneration package, but the majority (60%) expressed dissatisfaction because the package was not commensurate with their efforts. they recommended different measures that can be adopted to make the remuneration package more satisfying, such as aligning payment with prevailing living standards and harmonizing all the salaries in the public sector. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 11 these findings agreed with mwende (2015) who argued that remuneration should be clearly aligned to the organizational goals, as employees' behavior is dependent on how their performance is measured/rated/appraised and rewarded. also, the idea of providing mortgage and transport allowance to workers in the ministry of water and irrigation agreed with yang (2008), who described them as intrinsic motivating factors. mwangi (2017) argued that reward systems are recognized by organizations worldwide as essential tools to motivating individual employees at the workplace. this showed that failure to reward their efforts through better pay can demotivate them, reducing overall productivity. this is further supported by wanjala (2019), who noted that it’s important to treat human resources as a critical competitive advantage because a poorly remunerated workforce results in low morale and eventually high turnover. ndulue and ekechukwu (2016) noted that key strategies can improve their productivity, such as appraisal systems and better compensation. these measures can increase employee satisfaction at the workplace, resulting in improved productivity 5.2 physical working environment the findings showed that the overall working environment at the ministry of water and irrigation was favorable (m=3.50, sd=3.207). the environment was characterized with supply of essential resources, such as clean drinking water, protective gear, and comfortable office furniture. also, the offices are fitted with adequate lighting and sufficient ventilation. both the employees and the management were aware of the safety and emergency procedures required at the workplace. the study showed that majority (57%) worked from closed or partitioned office design, while 43% operated in an open office design. those operating in closed office design said that the design positively affected their work performance because it created a favorable environment for concentration, innovation and privacy. however, they cited boredom, loneliness, and wastage of time moving from one office to another for consultation. for these key reasons they preferred an open-plan office layout. the respondents recommended different ways that could make workers more productive. the majority recommended converting closed plan office to open layout because it facilitated easier and fast consultation with colleagues, saved time, and made it easier to supervise workers as well as interpersonal interactions which reduced stress levels and promoted a good health. these findings agreed with elton mayo (1933), who found that the physical environment played a vital role in the satisfaction of the employees. also, mmbusa (2019) found that employees spent at least 50 percent of their time in the workplace, affecting their mental status, actions, abilities, and productivity. also, some of the identified features that make the workplace environment comfortable, like proper lighting, ventilation, and comfortable workstations, agreed with chebet (2015) who identified things that influenced overall productivity at the workplace, such as proper lighting, ventilation, access to natural light, and acoustic environment. 5.3 promotion although the ministry of water and irrigation has written and operational promotion policies and procedures, the findings showed that the promotion process was not based on merit (m=3.13), and was never prompt whenever employees attained prerequisite qualifications (m=2.66). a mean score of 3.35 showed that workers do not see an opportunity of getting promoted in the ministry. however, the findings showed that requirements for promotions are clear and achievable, meaning that they can be used to improve overall productivity if enacted well. the majority of the file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 12 respondents (56%) were not satisfied with promotion procedures for different reasons, such as outdated guidelines that do not address issues affecting the current workforce and guidelines that are issued from time to time targeting specific employees. the findings in some aspects concurred with studies conducted earlier, bowra, sharif, saeed, & niazi (2012), noted that promotions in developing countries lack to reward hard work and were not based on merit. these findings aligned with gul, akbar, and jan (2012), who argued that a just promotion policy must be based on employee career appraisal, which considers employees’ abilities, knowledge, effective tasks, and time management. according to these respondents, the promotion procedure met all these requirements. 5.4 training training facilitated improved productivity among the workers in the ministry of water and irrigation. employees had sufficient knowledge to undertake their duties because they possess skills that match their roles. however, a mean score of 2.98 and a standard deviation of 2.785 indicated that the ministry does not prioritize staff training. however, a majority (75%) of the respondents agreed that there was an annual training plan in place. despite the presence of an annual training plan in place, only 23% of the respondents agreed that the plans are implemented. this is because most of the respondents have not been acquiring additional skills and knowledge in their current positions. these findings were supported by chebet (2015) who found that employees with high education and training exhibit high levels of satisfaction, motivation, and ultimately improved productivity, meaning that training is beneficial to both the employees and the organization. 5.5 inferential statistics 5.5.1 linear regression model the researcher used a simple linear regression model to determine the correlation between dependent and independent variables. table 1 gives a summary of the coefficients table. table 1: coefficients of linear regression coefficientsa model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta (constant) 1.200 .206 3.944 .000 remuneration 1.113 .193 .000 .000 1.000 physical work environment .356 .258 .000 .000 1.000 promotions 1.000 .277 .476 3.606 .001 training .500 .162 .475 3.679 .001 (dependent variable: employee productivity) source: researcher 2021 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 13 table 1 presented a bivariate correlation between the study variables. the spss output showed a significant relationship between independent and dependent variables. remuneration had the highest β value (1.113), meaning that employee productivity depended much on the remuneration package in the ministry of water and irrigation. this was followed by promotion (β=1), training (β=.500), and physical work environment (β=.356). since all the β values were positive, it implied that all the independent variables (physical work environment, remuneration, training, and promotions) determined employee productivity within the scope area. however, the level of influence varied from one independent variable to another. the beta values result in the following multiple linear regression model: y= 1.200 + 1.113x1+ 0.356x2+ x3 + 0.5x4 + ε where y= employee productivity of ministry of water and irrigation x1 = remuneration x2= physical work environment x3= promotions x4= training β1, β2, β3, β4 =regression coefficients ε = error term 5.5.2 multiple correlation coefficient table 2: multiple correlation coefficient model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .978a .956 .932 .536 a. predictors: (constant): physical work environment, remuneration, training, and promotions. source: researcher 2021 the r-squared statistic in table 2 indicated the strength of the relationship between dependent and independent variables on a scale of 0-100%. the value of r2 is .956, meaning that the regression model reflected the study findings shown by the four independent variables. it showed that the overall employee productivity at the ministry of water and irrigation is influenced by the physical work environment, remuneration, employees’ training, and promotions, implying a significantly positive correlation. 6.0 conclusion the findings showed that the four independent variables affect employee productivity but at different levels. remuneration was the leading factor that negatively influenced employee productivity within the scope area. although employees were paid on time, the salary was not commensurate to their efforts/work done, and some of the employees did not enjoy some extrinsic benefits, such as transport allowance and mortgage facilities. these factors could have led to reduced morale and motivation among the workers, translating to reduced overall productivity. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 14 also, the promotion process affected the ministry of water and irrigation employees negatively because it was not based on merit. the promotions were also not prompt whenever an employee attained the prerequisite qualifications. this explained why it has taken some workers more than six years in the same job group before being promoted, yet they had met the required threshold, making some staff lose hope in being promoted by their current employer. failure to follow laid down procedures and guidelines for promotions in the ministry was the leading cause of reduced productivity among the staff. however, both training and physical work environment facilitated improved productivity among the staff. the working environment was characterized by availability of essential resources, such as clean drinking water, necessary protective gear, and comfortable office furniture, makes it motivating. also, the interior design of the open and closed office layouts comprised adequate lighting and sufficient ventilation, making the working environment more comfortable. on the other hand, the ministry invested a lot in employee training to ensure they are equipped with the relevant skills and experience required to deliver quality services. this showed that the four variables positively and negatively affected the overall employees’ productivity in the ministry of water and irrigation. 7.0 recommendations the study recommended that, through the public service commission and salaries and remuneration commission, the government of kenya introduce measures in areas of remuneration and training that will motivate workers in this ministry. it also recommended that new guidelines be drafted for salary review based on the present living standards as workers complained of an insufficient salary that is not proportional to their services or cannot meet their needs. the study further recommended that the ministry should ensure that all workers are entitled to transport to and from work, mortgage facilities, and other benefits to ensure that some employees especially the lower level employees, do not feel like there is some form of discrimination. the study further recommended that all salaries be harmonized across the public sector. further the ministry should be consistent and fair in reviewing salaries. also the study recommended that the promotion policies and guidelines that are already in place be followed when promoting employees. this can be 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(2003). testing herzberg’s two‐factor theory in the thai construction industry. engineering, construction and architectural management. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 2 pp 118, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 18 sattar, t., ahmad, k., & hassan, s. m. (2015). role of human resource practices in employee performance and job satisfaction with mediating effect of employee engagement. pakistan economic and social review, 81-96. shahzad, k., bashir, s., & ramay, m. i. (2008). impact of hr practices on perceived performance of university teachers in pakistan. international review of business research papers, 4(2), 302-315. uma, s. n. (2013). a study on training importance for employees of their successful performance in the organization. international journal of science and research, 2(11), 137-140. wambugu, s. m., & ombui, k. (2013). effects of reward strategies on employee performance at kabete technical training institute, nairobi, kenya. public policy and administration research, 3(7), 19-45. wanjala, j. l. (2019). determinants of employee performance in kakamega county government (doctoral dissertation, kenyatta university). https://jambarteambuilding.com/maslows-hierarchy-needs/ file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org conflict management and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state adim, chidiebere victor odili, chukwuemeka pope aigboje, patrick oyaregba european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 12 conflict management and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state 1adim, chidiebere victor; 1odili, chukwuemeka pope and 2aigboje, patrick oyaregba 1department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, port harcourt, rivers state, nigeria. 2department of business administration and marketing, school of management sciences, babcock university, ilishan-remo, ogun state, nigeria. abstract purpose: the purpose of this study is to conflict management and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. methodology: the study used a cross sectional research design involving medical doctors, nurses, medical laboratory scientists and pharmacists in university of port harcourt teaching hospital and rivers state university teaching hospital. a multi-stage sampling was employed to select 165 healthcare professionals from both hospitals. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the hypotheses were tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation coefficient with the aid of statistical package for social sciences version 23.0. the tests were carried out at a 95% confidence interval and a 0.05 level of significance. findings: results from analysis of data revealed that conflict management significantly predict performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. recommendation: the study recommends that health care professionals’ collaboration should be adopted in teaching hospitals. this includes sharing of patient information, joint participation in the care and in the decision-making process, and degree of cooperation, must be carefully scrutinized and implemented with the added input of nurses, physicians and other paramedics. keywords: conflict, conflict management, performance, negotiation, collaboration, accommodation file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 13 introduction conflict is one of the countless challenges common to many organizations, the health sector inclusive (yu & davidhizar, 2004). the potential for conflict or rivalry to arise in this setting is significantly higher because of multifaceted and regular interactions among health workers (swansburg & swansburg, 2002). the world health organization describes health workers as all people engaged in actions whose primary intent is to enhance health; they include doctors, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory technician, laboratory scientists, community health workers, management, and support workers. according to world health organization (2006) health-care workers are primarily concerned with the well-being of the patient, but organizational hierarchy, specialization, and multiplicity of skills have created rivalry (kleinman,2004) and power struggle among various groups of health professionals over the control and leadership of the work process. to worsen the situation, different health-professional associations act as interest groups to influence government policy in favor of their members, not minding the implication to other professional groups and the health sector in general. the healthcare sector is complex, heterogeneous in terms of employee composition and conflict prone. healthcare service provision is inherently interdisciplinary; it requires doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other health professionals with different specialties to work in teams (manser, 2009). gittell, fairfield, bierbaum, head, jackson, kelly, laskin, lipson, siliski, thornhill and zuckerman (2000) observed that multidisciplinary collaboration of scholars will optimize quality of care, lower cost and subsequently results in improved patient’s outcomes. collaboration among health care providers continues to remain an essential ingredient in the healthcare service delivery today. findings by rafferty, ball and aiken (2001) equally reinforced the value of teamwork and its association with a range of positive occupational and organizational attributes such as job satisfaction, satisfaction with being a nurse, plans to remain in post, and lower levels of reported burnout. beyond being a highly heterogeneous team, the pressures of clinical work that increases within an ever-limited staffing supply and the inadequate resources in many developing countries among others have all combined to increase the complexities of the vulnerability of the healthcare team to conflict (kelly, 2006; saulo & wegener, 2000). in addition, differing background, interest, training, specialization, values, and professional allegiance can make conflict become inevitable (suppiah, uli & othman, 2006). behfar, peterson, mannix and trochim (2008) specifically identified ambiguity and conflict over roles; and conflict and confusion over leadership as particularly contributory to conflict among team members. consistent with this is todorova and mihaylova-alakidi (2009) submission that conflicts represent inevitable part of organizational everyday life in healthcare structures. the net result is increased propensity of the healthcare team members who are expected to work together as a strong cohesive team to conflict (gerardi, 2003). while conflict is regarded as a natural phenomenon in every human relationship (kelly, 2006), concerns have however existed as to whether conflict plays a constructive or destructive role in society (hill, 2001). de dreu and weingart (2003) in their study established strong and negative correlations between relationship conflict, task conflict, team performance, and team member satisfaction. in a related study, wilson (2004) reported that conflict within the nursing profession drains energy, reduces focus, and causes discomfort and hostility. hall and weaver (2001) threading a path of caution, also posit that conflict, when mishandled, could make the team file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 14 ineffective and dysfunctional. brinkert (2010) noted that unmanaged conflict is costly not only in monetary terms and not only for the healthcare personnel but can extend to affect the users. the negative impact of conflict though may be indisputable, conflict can as well be constructive; providing personal gain; acting as incentive for creativity; and serving as a powerful motivator (marriner-tomey, 1996 cited in ayandiran, ola, salami & agunbiade, 2015). kapusuzoglu (2010) added it can even provide opportunity for learning anew as well as growth. brinkert (2010) equally noted that the impact of conflict on an interdisciplinary team can result in the patient benefitting more from treatment decisions that are a product of careful deliberation and combined expertise. to todorova and mihaylova-alakidi (2009), conflicts are preferable because they indicate systemic problems, give opportunity for hidden negative processes to occur, and are generator of ideas and alternatives. wilmot and hocker (2007) have also emphasized on the positive dimensions of conflict such as its role in helping to: solve important problems (e.g. getting individuals to address power and relationship issues); clarify individual and shared goals; overcome resentments; and come to mutual understanding. similarly, siders and aschenbrener (1999) have long ago asserted that a well-managed conflict enhances self-confidence and selfesteem of the parties; builds relationships; and engenders creative solutions beyond expectations. the lesson then as mayer (2008) puts it is that it is the manner of handling workplace conflicts that determines the eventual outcome at the individual, professional, group and organizational levels. conflict in the health sector has been due to various causes which include poor remuneration and working conditions for workers; inadequate health facilities; lack of medical infrastructure; and non-implementation of collective agreement, among others. health workers often adopt confrontational approach in addressing these myriad of problems (osabuohein, 2010). the basis of conflict between health workers and their employers (government and its health management team) is often attributed to divergent opinion between the two actors (jones, george & hill 2000). employers perceive employees as lazy and uncooperative individuals who pose a threat to the smooth operation of business while employees perceive the government as exploitative (chukwu, 2008). halimatu (2002) described this perceptual bias as the “brewing pot” for conflict. fashoyin (2002) stated that conflict is an incompatibility of goals or values between two or more parties in a relationship, combined with attempts to control each other’s’ feeing. statement of the problem in all places where there are interactions between people there is bound to be misunderstanding resulting from differences in perception, behaviour and approach of life issues. this poses problem to collaboration in client care to the detriment of the patients. modern health care delivery system is complex and rapidly changing. the organization of professionals involved in patient care used to be that of a hierarchy, with the physician in a “command” position. now it routinely combines the efforts of physicians of different specialties, skilled nurses and other health care professionals in a health care team. high quality and effective clinical practice in such environment requires a physician to be a member, and often the leader, of many teams that must work together to deliver health care (o'connell & pascoe, 2004). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 15 relationships between professionals in the healthcare team are by their nature unequal ones. differences in knowledge and experience in specific issues confer on those who possess them, unequal responsibility and authority both ethically and legally, and precisely because of this inequality of authority and responsibility (strutton & knouse, 1997 cited in ogbonnaya & ogbonnaya & adeoye-sunday (2007) inter-professional conflicts are common and expected. among all professions in the health care team, the physician occupies a pre-eminent position in the medical division of labour because he enjoys a higher degree of autonomy, responsibility, authority, and social status than any other health care professional. this is because he is largely responsible for the production of the knowledge for the practice of medicine and on which the paramedical personnel depends. more important, the legislation governing the practice of medicine clearly puts the physicians at the helm of the medical division of labour (erinosho, 1998). historically, conflict occurs between physicians and nurses. recently, this conflict has extended to other health professionals in the health care team. factors responsible include physician dominance, nurse deference and physician devaluation of nursing (norman, 1998). other sources of conflict described in literature include lack of definition of the appropriate level of autonomy for team members, lack of constructive dialogue across perceived discipline-based differences of opinion, and lack of knowledge of the expertise of other professions. they also include role blurring of team members, differences among professions in values and theoretical base, negative team norms, client stereotyping and (rogers, 2004; rease & sonrag, 2001) administrative issues. in nigeria, other sources of conflict identified include societal pressure on workers including health professions, low morale of health professionals due to harsh economic realities, communication gap amongst health professionals and certain acts of omission and commission by government and its agencies within the health sector (rosenstein, 2002). events in nigeria suggest that the salary structure in the public health sector is responsible for many conflicts as every salary increase in the public health sector has always left one group or the other aggrieved. is the differential salary between doctors and the other health professions responsible for this conflict? are the other professions simply envious of the doctor? do doctors in any way act in ways that intimidate or discriminate against the other professions? what exactly do the professions perceive as factors responsible for the conflict in the health team in nigeria? finally, what do the professions perceive as means of resolving the conflict? it is important to ascertain the perceptions of the professions on what causes inter-professional conflict for a viable solution to be fashioned out. inter-professional rivalry (ipr) is hazardous to patients, health workers themselves, and the health system in general. several studies have shown that conflict or rivalry in the health sector disrupts intraand inter-sectorial collaboration, (gardner & cary,1999) and causes or aggravates stress including emotional exhaustion for workers. for o’driscoll mp and beehr (2000); elloy terpening and kohls (2001) in addition, it reduces the commitment of workers to the health service (kroposki murdaugh, tavakoli, 1999) and encourages selfish behavior (jex, adams & bachrach, 2003) which ultimately results in mistreatment or non-treatment of patients. incessant strike actions arising from ipr is currently the order of the day in nigeria’s health sector and this is unacceptable and unethical as it comes with a lot of negative effects to the general populace. ipr among health workers has been very intense, deep rooted, and unparalleled with quality of health-care delivery adversely affected. iyang (1998) argued that the presidential committee of file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 16 experts on inter-professional relationships in the public health sector headed by alhaji mahmud yayale ahmed identified approximately 50 contentious issues dividing health-sector workers. in nigeria, anecdotal evidence reveals the existence of incessant rancour among healthcare professionals with a number of such rancour degenerating into full-blown conflicts and sometimes industrial dispute following poor resolution. it is somewhat paradoxical that despite the vulnerability of the nigerian health sector to conflict situations, only very few studies have examined the conflict phenomenon in our complex, high pressured, and fragile health sector. moreover, experience is not finite but fluid, it is thus necessary for a reevaluation over time. this study therefore explores the conflict management and performance of healthcare professionals’ in teaching hospitals in rivers state. purpose of the study the main aim of this study was to examine the relationship between conflict management and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. the following specific objectives guided the study: i. examine the relationship between negotiation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. ii. examine the relationship between collaboration and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. iii. examine the relationship between accommodation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. the study also sought to provide answers to the following research questions: i. what is the relationship between negotiation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state? ii. what is relationship between collaboration and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state? iii. what is relationship between accommodation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state? file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 17 conceptual framework fig.1 conceptual framework for the relationship between conflict management strategies and performance source: desk research (2020) literature review concept of conflict conflict involves a disagreement about the allocation of scarce resources or a clash of goals, status, values, perceptions, or personalities. much of the conflict we experience arises from other communication of our wants, needs, and values to others. (robbins & sanghi, 2005) defined conflict as a process that begins when one party perceives that another party has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affects, something that the first party cares about. the traditional school of thought emphasized that conflict is of no importance to the organization and so, it must be avoided. the human relation school looked at conflict as well and said it was inevitable and very natural, it need not be evil but it can be a positive force in determining performance of a group. for decades, there has been confusion over the role conflict plays in the organization. however, the interactionist school of thought labelled some conflict as very necessary for a group to perform efficiently and effectively, still holding constant its role as a positive force to a group (robbins, et al, 2009). conflict by nature is inevitable in any human organization. its endemic nature in human grouping has been traced to the pursuit of divergent interests, goals and aspirations by individuals and/or groups in a defined social and physical environment (owoseni, 2011). conflict may be caused by vulnerable organizational structure, weak communication, personality conflict, lack of teamwork as well as lots of change within the organization which may be mismanaged (mughal & khan, 2013). these conflicts could manifest itself in various levels such as; intra-individual level, interpersonal, inter-group and organizational conflict (mughal & khan, 2013). conflict is a social phenomenon in which two or more persons, families, parties, communities, states, etc are in disagreement with each other while trying to protect their own interest (salami, 2009). it is an interesting thing because every individual want to be seen, wants to be heard as well as want to performance conflict management strategies negotiation collaboration accommodation file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 18 show off his distinctive competence. this is as a result of the ego in man which can never be hidden for a very long time, no matter the nature of environment he finds himself. concept of conflict management conflict management is prescribed not simply as a mechanism for dealing with difficult differences within an existing social system, but also as an approach that can facilitate constructive social change towards a responsive and equitable system (fisher 2000). organizational conflict may occur between two individuals, within small groups and work teams, or between groups (de dreu & van de vliert, 1997). it is obvious that conflict is an unavoidable reality of living; but, while one may recognize this, it still does not negate the fact that conflict is difficult to define, is often viewed much differently today than it was a few decades ago, and is linked to, but is more than, communication. perhaps because conflict is such an elusive entity, one tends to discuss it in terms of sources, types, and stages. considering this, conflict management seems to be a concept that can be dealt with pragmatically. much has been written about the management of conflict. a great deal of the literature is derived from the business world. in simpler terms, huseman (1977) views conflict management as distinguishing between useful conflicts and conflicts that should be eliminated. also, conflict management should involve the ability to develop individuals who can work under stress but continue to be productive. conflict management refers to the modes used by either or both parties to cope with a conflict. adler and towne (1990) identified three possible courses of actions when faced with a conflict: (1) accepting the status quo (i.e. living with the problem); (2) using force and mandating change; (3) reaching an agreement by negotiating. three types of outcomes result from these approaches to conflict management: win–lose approach, lose–lose approach and win–win approach. conflict management research focus is centered primarily on the conflict situation and the person– situation interaction (knapp et al. 1988). however, there is a reason to believe that conflict behaviour is determined by both situational and dispositional influences (sandy et al. 2000). the findings suggest that the instrument is able to differentiate between conflict management strategies. successful conflict resolution not only removes frustration but also leads to higher effectiveness, trust and openness (van de vliert 1998). deetz and stevenson (1986) discuss a number of items which must be kept in mind when preparing for conflict management. first, the manager must try to understand the type of conflict that he or she will be dealing with. it may be a conflict of differing opinions, incompatible roles, incompatible goals, or differing resources. identification of the type of conflict will help in managing the conflict. second, the manager must also be aware of the importance of the conflict so as to select appropriate strategies for management. third, the manager must recognize the complexity of the conflict as this can vary widely. finally, the manager must also be able to assess the energy and resources available for managing the conflict. dimensions of conflict management negotiation strategy the conflict management process encompasses a wide range of activities including negotiation, problem solving, dealing with emotion, and understanding positions (brett, 2001). according to neale and fragale (2006), negotiation is a process by which two parties, each with its own viewpoint and objectives, attempt to reach a mutually satisfactory result on a matter of common file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 19 concern. negotiation can also be defined as the interaction between two or more parties with divergent interests in order to reach an agreement (de dreu, weingart & kwon, 2000). negotiation is used to minimize conflict affecting individuals so as to maximize cooperation and keep conflict to acceptable levels. this in turn drives performance (rahim, 2002). according to petkovic (2008) there are several negotiation tactics that can be applied. these include face–to-face tactic whereby a mutual confidence as a foundation for negotiation can be established, persuading tactic which assumes using different methods and manners to win over partners and to reach a better negotiating position, deceitfulness tactic which assumes presenting false data and arguments, threat tactic based on deterrence from the side which holds a better position, or has more power. promise tactic based on having a better position and more power, with the stronger side persuading the weaker that it will keep its promises and concession tactic which is the most important tactic in the negotiation strategy. all actors in the conflict count on both sides making a concession. since negotiation increasingly gains importance as a popular and constructive way to manage conflict (de dreu, weingart & kwon 2000) assert that negotiators can help adversaries communicate with each other in many ways (sebanius, 2004). win-win negotiation outcome: the win -win outcome occurs when each side of a dispute feels they have won. since both sides benefit from such a scenario, any resolutions to the conflict are likely to be accepted voluntarily. negotiators who aim at a win-win situation often fail to appreciate that this approach requires the parties to work together and cooperatively explore all possibilities before selecting an approach that is most likely to deliver a mutually beneficial agreement (thompson, 2005). the win-win outcome occurs as a result of the use of the collaboration approach when all the conflicting parties meet and discuss the subject of the dispute explicitly and every party tries to care about the purpose of the other parties (newstorm, 2007). a win-win negotiation outcome can help improve team performance by reducing tension, antagonism and distraction of members of a team (mannix, 2001). win-lose negotiation: the win -lose outcome occurs when one side of a dispute feels they have won and the other feels that they have lost (beckno, 2006). for instance industrial conflicts, which usually arise due to a breakdown in negotiation as well as disagreements between employer(s) and the employees, connote a temporary stoppage of work resulting from the pursuance of grievance(s) by workers resulting from a winlose negotiation outcome (osabuohien, 2014) in winlose scenario, 30 negotiation is seen in terms of getting your own way, driving a hard bargain or beating off the opposition (almusdy, 2007), while in the short term bargaining may well achieve the aims for one side (tressler, 2007). this means that while one side wins the other loses and this outcome may well damage future relationships between the parties. it also increases the likelihood of relationships breaking down, of people walking out or refusing to deal with the winners again and the process ending in a bitter dispute (tressler, 2007). win-lose bargaining is probably the most familiar form of negotiating that is undertaken. individuals decide what they want, then each side takes up an extreme position, such as asking the other side for much more than they expect to get. through haggling, a compromise is reached, and each side’s hope is that this compromise will be in their favor (ferro, cracraft, & dorsey, 2006). azamoza (2004) argued that win-lose negotiation outcome can help strengthen the organization and enable an organization improve its performance. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 20 lose-lose negotiation: in this scenario, all parties end up being worse off. most of the times the conflict is an emotive issue that results in making a decision where none of the parties is a winner. in lose-lose situations neither party achieves their needs or wants. however, in some lose-lose situations, all parties understand that losses are unavoidable and that they will be evenly distributed. in such situations, lose-lose outcomes can be preferable to win-lose outcomes because the distribution is at least considered to be fair. in the organizational context, some parties cannot stand the reality of losing a negotiation. they spend so much time and energy making the one who won earlier bleed but it usually leads to lose-lose situation. good negotiation usually involves a lot of homework, and teamwork for making long term binding agreement (neely & crowe, 2001). collaboration strategy there is cooperation and the search for a mutually beneficial outcome, when each party to conflict desire to fully satisfy the concerns of all parties, that is, high concern for self and others (ezeanyim, 2010). as such, the intentions of the parties is to solve the problem by clarifying differences rather than by accommodating various points of view through openness, exchange of information, and examination of differences to reach a solution acceptable to both parties. this 38 strategy builds a friendly environment of an organisation where both employers and employees feel confident and free to share their knowledge or perceptions in order to make a single point, that is, reach a single decision in order to combat conflict. rahim (2011) asserts that collaboration strategy is useful for effective dealing of complex problems especially when one party alone cannot solve the problem. friedman et al. as cited in ajik, akinlabi, magaji and sonubi (2015) found that individuals who use integrative (collaborative style) conflict handling style experience lower level of work conflict and stress at job. the strategy is appropriate for dealing with the strategic issues pertaining to an organisation’s objectives and policies, strategic planning and so on. it is inappropriate when task or problem is simple or trivial, when the other parties do not have adequate training and experience for problem solving or when they are unconcerned about the outcome. according to kilman and thomas (2008), collaboration strategy is the best method of handling conflict, as it strives to satisfy the needs of both parties. it is integrative and has high concern for personal goals as well as relationship. accommodation an accommodating style of industrial conflict management involves neglecting one’s own concerns in order to satisfy the concerns of others (brown, 2007). cavanagh (1991) made it clear that this strategy is regarded as the acceptance that the preservation of pleasant interpersonal affairs is more significant than forming disagreements among colleagues. individuals adopting an accommodating style of industrial conflict management have a high want for recognition and support from others. the accommodating individual is more apt to take a “middle of the road” attitude when an inescapable conflict emerges. these individuals tend to use apology or humor, or express their desires in an indirect way rather than coming straight to the problem (stanford, 1997). kraybill (2005) refers to accommodating as a harmonizing conflict response. kraybill stated that the harmonizing style has a low focus on the agenda and a high focus on the relationship. individuals will often use this style when they want to fit in with the other party. when this style is over-used the individual will eventually become depressed due to the fact of always giving the file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 21 other party what they want and always losing what is important to the individual. accommodating is a means of carrying everybody along in the activities of the organization. people seem to have that natural joy working for their organizations when they are told to make their own contributions, they feel valued and they feel decisions are not just imposed on them by their superiors. while this may be seen as a weak or productive position there are situations when this approach is preferable and will gain more for a person than by taking a strong position, especially during a management of change process. it can be both a productive and unproductive strategy in the “give and take” process. individuals who have a tendency to be accommodating prefer the harmony, good will and reciprocity that is often associated with this behaviour trait and feel that it serves them well most of the time. people who are normally accommodating must develop the wisdom to know what choices to make in a given situation and learn to deal with stress and conflict in productive ways. accommodating is unassertive and cooperative — the opposite of competing. it‘s sacrificing one‘s own concerns to satisfy the other person‘s. the accommodating strategy essentially entails giving the opposing side what it wants. the use of accommodation often occurs when one of the parties wishes to keep the peace or perceives the issue as minor. employees who use accommodation as a primary industrial conflict management strategy, however, may keep track and develop resentment. accommodators are people who give in to maintain the illusion of harmony (cahn & abigail, 2007). wertheim (2002) views accommodation as a destructive strategy because it often leads to a buildup of negative emotions. an accommodating board is one that cooperates to a high degree. this may be at the boards’ expense and actually works against its goals, objectives and desired outcomes. this approach is effective when the other board members are the expert or has better solutions. it is a loose win approach. there are situations in which accommodation may be appropriate. for example when it is important to provide a temporary relief from a conflict or buy time until one is in a better position to respond or push back. avoidance may also be necessary when the issue is not as important to you as it is to the other person or when you accept that you are wrong or when you have no choice or when continued competition would be detrimental. in some cases accommodation will help to protect more important interests while giving up on some less important ones and also afford an opportunity to reassess the situation from a different perspective. performance according to gilbert and ivancevich (2000), performance refers to the act of performing or carrying into execution or recognizable action, achievement or accomplishment in the undertaking of a duty. cascio (2006) defines performance as working of individuals in an organization to be more effective. zaman et al. (2011) indicated that there is a significant and positive relationship between performance and reward. according to armstrong (2000) performance is a means of getting better results from the whole organization or teams or individuals within it by understanding and managing performance within an agreed frame work of planned goals, standards and competence requirements. performance is the accumulated end results of all the organization’s work processes and activities (santos & brito, 2012). it is about how effectively an organization transforms inputs into outputs (robbins, 2009) and comprises the actual output or results as measured against its intended outputs. liptons (2003) proposes that performance is the ability of the firm to prevail. there is hardly a consensus about its definition, and this limits advances in research and understanding of the concept of performance (santos & brito, 2012). as file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 22 the debate on what organization performance rages on, the approach on how to measure it has attracted even more scholarly attention (liptons, 2003). organizational performance is one of the most important constructs in management research trade (2000). continuous performance is the objective of any organization because only through this, can organizations grow and progress. moreover knowing the determinants of organizational performance is important especially in the context of the current economic crises because it enables the identification of those factors that should be treated with an increased interest in order to improve the performance. performance measurement estimates the parameters under which programs, investments, and acquisitions are reaching the targeted results (perez et al., 2007). this study adopted the definition according to trade (2000), that most performance measures could be grouped into six general categories effectiveness, efficiency, cost, quality, timeliness, innovation and productivity. therefore organizational performance is measured using the six parameters. this study adopted the definition according to trade (2000), that most performance measures could be grouped into six general categories effectiveness, efficiency, cost, quality, timeliness, innovation and productivity. therefore organizational performance is measured using the six parameters. conflict management and performance seamless collaboration between doctors, nurses and other paramedics are necessary for effective and efficient health care delivery. however, it is a known fact that this is often absent with negative impact on the quality of health care services (ogbimi, adebamowo, 2006; kathleen, mcgrail, morse, gessner & gardner, 2009). developing collaborative practice among health care professionals is still a big challenge to political decision makers and organizational managers (martin-rodriguez, marie-dominique, d’amour & ferrada-videla, 2005). collaborative care refers to initiatives or activities that aim to strengthen links between different providers working together in a partnership characterized by common goals, a recognition of and respect for individual strengths and differences, equitable and effective decision-making, a focus on the patient and clear and regular communication (dougherty, larson, 2005). this involves doctors and other health care providers working together to provide care to a group of patients based on trust, respect and on understanding of each other’s relevance and importance using their skills, knowledge and competences (puntilo, mcadam, 2006; bronstein, 2003). the aftermath of lack of effective collaboration between doctors and nurses are quite grave; they include negative events such as medication errors, failure to rescue and mortality of a patient. furthermore, this can also lead to poor coordination of patient care, less patient satisfaction, poor perception and utilization of health care services (lorelei, lingard, espin, evans, & hawry, 2010). ayandiran, ola, salami and agunbiade (2015) further revealed from their study that that healthcare professional employ diverse strategies to resolve conflict. dominant approaches found are collaborating or confronting style (identifying conflicts as a problem to be solved and seeking solutions that satisfy everyone's goals i.e. working with the other party to find a solution that mutually satisfies the concerns of both party, producing a win/win situation); compromising (finding an expedient, mutually acceptable solution or a middle ground that partially satisfies both parties); smoothing/accommodating (tolerating the situation and giving up ones goal for the sake of harmonious relationship and continuity of work); forcing/dominating/competing (pursuing owns interest with vigour no matter whose ox is gored); withdrawing/avoiding (beautifully file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 23 captioned by thomas and kilmann (1978) as diplomatic sidestepping on issue, postponing an issue until a better time, or simply withdrawing from a threatening situation). although results revealed little shades of variation in conflict management styles along professional line, no specific pattern of conflict handling styles was established across disciplines. healthcare professionals employ a multiplicity of conflict handling styles. from the foregoing, the following hypotheses were postulated to be tested: ho1: there is no significant relationship between negotiation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. ho2: there is no significant relationship between collaboration and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. ho3: there is no significant relationship between accommodation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state methodology the study used a cross sectional research design involving medical doctors, nurses, medical laboratory scientists and pharmacists in university of port harcourt teaching hospital and rivers state university teaching hospital. a multi-stage sampling was employed to select 165 healthcare professionals from both hospitals. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the hypotheses were tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation coefficient with the aid of statistical package for social sciences version 23.0. the tests were carried out at a 95% confidence interval and a 0.05 level of significance. data analysis the level of significance 0.05 was adopted as a criterion for the probability of accepting the null hypothesis in (p> 0.05) or rejecting the null hypothesis in (p <0.05). negotiation and performance table 2: correlations for negotiation and performance negotiation performance spearman's rho negotiation correlation coefficient 1.000 .883** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 72 72 performance correlation coefficient .883** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 72 72 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: spss output file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 24 the result in table 2 shows that negotiation correlate with performance (r = 0.883). this represents a very strong correlation indicating a very substantial relationship. by interpretation, there is a very strong positive relationship between negotiation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. this finding provides answer to research question 1. implying that performance is dependent on the utilization of negotiation strategy in the studied teaching hospitals in rivers state. similarly displayed in table 2 is the statistical test of significance (p value), which makes possible the generalization of our findings to the study population. from the result obtained the probability value is (0.001) < (0.05) level of significance; hence the study rejects the null hypothesis and concludes that there is a significant negotiation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. the scatter plot illustrating the relationship between negotiation and performance is shown below. figure 1: scatter plot show showing the direction of the relationship negotiation and performance file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 25 collaboration and performance table 3: correlations for collaboration and performance collaboration performance spearman's rho collaboration correlation coefficient 1.000 .902** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 72 72 performance correlation coefficient .902** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 72 72 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: spss output the result in table 3 shows that collaboration correlate with performance (r = 0.902). this represents a very strong correlation indicating a very substantial relationship. by interpretation, there is a very strong positive relationship between collaboration and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. this finding provides answer to research question 2. implying that performance is dependent on the utilization of collaboration strategy in the studied teaching hospitals in rivers state. similarly displayed in table 3 is the statistical test of significance (p value), which makes possible the generalization of our findings to the study population. from the result obtained the probability value is (0.001) < (0.05) level of significance; hence the study rejects the null hypothesis and concludes that there is a significant collaboration and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. the scatter plot illustrating the relationship between collaboration and performance is shown below. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 26 figure 2: scatter plot show showing the direction of the relationship collaboration and performance accommodation and performance table 4: correlations for accommodation and performance accommodation performance spearman's rho accommodation correlation coefficient 1.000 .728** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 72 72 performance correlation coefficient .728** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 72 72 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: spss output the result in table 4 shows that accommodation correlate with performance (r = 0.728). this represents a very strong correlation indicating a very substantial relationship. by interpretation, there is a very strong positive relationship between accommodation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. this finding provides answer to research file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 27 question 3. implying that performance is dependent on the utilization of accommodation strategy in the studied teaching hospitals in rivers state. similarly displayed in table 4 is the statistical test of significance (p value), which makes possible the generalization of our findings to the study population. from the result obtained the probability value is (0.001) < (0.05) level of significance; hence the study rejects the null hypothesis and concludes that there is a significant accommodation and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. the scatter plot illustrating the relationship between accommodation and performance is shown below. figure 3: scatter plot show showing the direction of the relationship accommodation and performance discussion of findings the study findings reveal that there is strong positive and significant relationship between conflict management strategies and performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. this finding agrees with earlier studies by ayandiran, ola, salami and agunbiade (2015) who revealed from their study that that healthcare professional employ diverse strategies to resolve conflict. dominant approaches found are collaborating or confronting style (identifying conflicts as a problem to be solved and seeking solutions that satisfy everyone's goals i.e. working with the other party to find a solution that mutually satisfies the concerns of both party, producing a win/win situation); compromising (finding an expedient, mutually acceptable solution or a middle ground that partially satisfies both parties); smoothing/accommodating (tolerating the situation and giving up ones goal for the sake of harmonious relationship and continuity of work); forcing/dominating/competing (pursuing owns interest with vigour no matter whose ox is gored); withdrawing/avoiding (beautifully captioned by thomas and kilmann (1978) as diplomatic sidestepping on issue, postponing an issue until a better time, or simply withdrawing from a threatening situation). furthermore, the study finding agrees with the views of gittell, et al. (2000) who aptly observed that multidisciplinary collaboration of scholars will optimize quality of care, lowers cost and subsequently results in improved patient’s outcomes. collaboration among health care providers continues to remain an essential ingredient in the healthcare service delivery today. findings by file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.4, issue 2 no.2, pp 12-36, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 28 rafferty ball and aiken (2001) equally reinforced the value of teamwork and its association with a range of positive occupational and organizational attributes such as job satisfaction, satisfaction with being a nurse, plans to remain in post, and lower levels of reported burnout. conclusion conflict is a reality across organizational boundaries and affects individuals, groups and disciplines. conflict can initiate productive change and vitality if well managed. the consequences of conflict will inevitably be determined by how well it is managed. if not properly managed, it may cause unquantifiable damage to the organization. therefore, government, management and employees of hospitals and health centres must recognize the existence of conflict and dealt with it effectively. inter-professional conflict is a major issue to be reckoned with because of its colossal adverse effects on nigeria’s health system, which is not too strong at the moment. this study thus concludes that conflict management significantly predicts performance of health care professionals in teaching hospitals in rivers state. this implies that in resolving the conflicts that arises in a multi-disciplinary work environment like the teaching hospital, negotiation strategy, collaboration strategy and accommodation strategy is often adopted by the various parties. recommendations i. health care professionals’ should adopt negotiation strategy in resolving the multitude inter-professional conflicts that arises since negotiation increasingly gains importance as a popular and constructive way to manage conflict. ii. management of teaching hospitals should take practical steps to address interprofessional rivalry conflict in the healthcare sector, in order to improve team cohesion and maximize the gains of multidisciplinary teamwork. iii. health care professionals’ collaboration is highly recommended for adoption in teaching hospitals. this includes sharing of patient information, joint participation in the care and in the decision-making process, and degree of cooperation, must be carefully scrutinized and implemented with the added input of nurses, physicians and other paramedics. references adler, r. b., & towne, n. 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(2009). infrastructure and core quality management practices: how do they affect quality? international journal of quality and reliability management, 26(2), 129-149. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org . enabling factors for capacity building in the insurance sector dr. ben kajwang phd american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 80 enabling factors for capacity building in the insurance sector dr. ben kajwang phd, acii(uk), airm(uk), fiiu, fiik, cpt, chartered insurer chief executive officer, college of insurance, nairobi, kenya corresponding author email: bkajwang@coi.ac.ke abstract purpose: this paper makes a contribution to the existing body of research by investigating the elements that make capacity building in the insurance industry possible, focusing specifically on life and non-life premiums. the industry of insurance has the potential to be an important driver of both financial and economic growth. the industry has the ability to foster new investments, innovation, and competitiveness if it can lessen the impact of huge losses and the associated level of uncertainty. insurance companies, in their capacity as financial intermediaries with extended time horizons for investment, can make a contribution to the development of long-term financial instruments that can be used to fund business investment and housing. methodology: this study focuses mostly on conducting a literature review, specifically one that examines previous research on capacity building in the insurance sector and a search of the relevant literature was incorporated into the work technique. relevant seminal references and journal articles for the study were identified using google scholar beginning in 2017 and ending in 2022. findings: the findings indicate that the premiums for the insurance sector are influenced by factors such as the income per capita, the size and density of the population, demographic structures, income distribution, the size of the public pension system, the ownership of insurance companies by states, the availability of private credit, and religion. these elements, along with a number of others, have an impact on the non-life industry. the results reveal that the capacity expansion of the insurance sector can be enabled by a variety of different factors, despite the fact that some of these drivers are structural in nature. unique contribution to theory, policy and practice: the studies also suggest that insurance companies should conduct regular monitoring and evaluation in order to determine how successfully they have implemented their various capacity building strategies. keywords: capacity building, insurance sector, enabling factors. file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 81 introduction as organizations do not function in a vacuum, they are environmental serving, which means that they function in an environment in which they are inextricably interlinked. the environment serves organizations because organizations function in an environment in which they are inextricably interlinked (fisher and surminski, 2022). organizations are environmentally dependent for resources and also depend on the environment to discharge their outputs. it is this environment in which they operate that molds them, which in turn influences the choices they make with regard to strategy, and which ultimately determines how well they function. the external environment is highly dynamic, and it is presumed to possess some fundamental requirements and constraints, threats and opportunities. in order for businesses to be successful, they need to match their strategy, skills, and resources with these aspects of the environment. lopez-gunn et.al (2021) attracted attention to the necessity for an organization to assess the level of turbulence in its environment and to adapt its tactics to that level of turbulence. analysis of the industry enables companies to determine the elements that contribute to their capacity building and to align their actions with those aspects in order to achieve a sustainable advantage in the marketplace. it is necessary for success in the market place to have an in-depth knowledge of the qualities that are unique to the sector as well as a comprehension of what makes the industry function. understanding that each sector requires a unique approach to environmental analysis is essential to producing accurate results. according to mazviona et.al (2017), the identification of the factors that enable capacity building that are specific to an industry can be especially useful because it allows an organization to achieve "strategic fit," which is the optimal match between the conditions of its industry and the activities of that organization. according to eling and luhnen (2020), no company can afford to establish a strategy that does not provide sufficient attention to the primary aspects that contribute to success in the sector. they concluded that this would be a recipe for failure. having capabilities and initiatives that, from the perspective of the client, do not add "value" is a waste of time and resources. in order to fulfill the requirements of the consumers, the strategic capabilities should be centered on the capacity building aspects. in light of this, it is essential to stress that in order for businesses to develop a competitive edge, they need to possess competencies that are valuable to their target markets (gituma and beyene, 2018). the ability to maintain a competitive edge over time is the primary factor that contributes to above-average performance over the long term (heenkenda, 2018). therefore, we can say that a company has a competitive edge in the market if it produces offerings that have a better perceived value and/or a lower relative cost than businesses that are in direct competition with it. it is believed that changes in economic, social, political, technological, cultural, religious, and demographic dynamics have mutual links with the growth of the insurance industry. according to tangcharoensathien et.al (2017), each and every one of these factors has been labeled as a driver of globalization. on the other hand, insurance companies and other financial institutions, through the actions of their salesforces, have a big opportunity to play a role in regaining the lost trust of potential clients in the services they provide. it has come to everyone's attention that trust and confidence play a significant role in the customer base of insurance companies. in previous file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 82 investigations, evidence had been provided that was relevant to this allusion. for instance, while the research of garrison et.al (2017) found that the low culture of insurance is caused by a lack of confidence in the insurance industry, the research of murigu (2018) found that 70 percent of people don't trust insurance companies. both of these findings point to a lack of confidence in the insurance industry. the purpose of selling insurance is aided via effective insurance activities; as a result, bonding relationships form between clients and insurance firms. therefore, the activities of the salesforce are a perfect representation of an insurance company's expertise, capabilities, and personality because an insurance company is a service organization. a poorly motivated salesforce, on the other hand, will be costly to the organization in terms of lower performance, excessive staff turnover, increased expenses, higher use of the sales manager's time, and a negative effect on the morale of colleagues. this was stated explicitly in an earlier study conducted by surminski and oramas-dorta (2018), which found that a well-motivated salesforce will expand more effort in the achievement of organizational goals, whereas a poorly motivated salesforce will be costly to the organization. within the context of the economy's financial services sector, the insurance industry is a significant component. in contrast to the other players, the insurance industry is facing a number of challenges, including diverging growth patterns in various regions of the world, a low penetration rate, a high insolvency rate, a poor public image, customers' demands for more transparent and accessible products, the revolutionization of risk analysis brought about by technology, customers' profiling and existing business models being put at risk, and new entrants looking to pick off the most profitable business. the question that needs to be answered is whether or not the insurance sector has truly understood the factors that enable capacity growth, or whether or not it needs a paradigm shift (zelizer, 2017). the purpose of this study was to identify the factors that enable capacity building in the insurance sector. literature review the insurance industry has proven that it can thrive in spite of the many obstacles it must overcome, which is a feat that defies all chances. according to the findings of an empirical study that was carried out by eling and luhnen (2020), the establishment of a long-lasting relationship with one's clientele is crucial to the continued operation of the insurance sector. this provides an explanation for the trust that, in the minds of the customers, must be built up gradually over time. creating a culture of trust, capitalizing on the power of peer recognition, and placing primary emphasis on the enablers and tools that assist salespeople in reaching their potential are all essential components of the bigger picture when it comes to more effectively motivating a salesforce. this is especially true in an increasingly complex business environment. capacity building was defined by aparcana (2017) as the development of knowledge, skills, and attitudes in individuals and groups of people that are relevant in the design, development, management, and maintenance of locally meaningful institutional and operational infrastructures and processes. although the primary emphasis is still placed on education, training, and the cultivation of human resources, this strategy takes a broader view. according to this definition, capacity development for employees may, in a broad sense, refer to increases in the ability of all file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 83 employees to do acceptable duties within the context of the organization's more comprehensive set of performance requirements. according to the united nations committee of experts on public administration, capacity building can occur on three different levels: the individual level, the institutional level, and the societal level. these levels are listed in this order: individual, institutional, and societal. on an individual level, "capacity building" refers to the creation of conditions that make it possible for people to develop and improve upon the knowledge and abilities they already possess. in addition to this, it is necessary to provide the conditions under which individuals can participate in the process of learning and adjusting to new circumstances (adkins, 2017). according to lopez-gunn et.al (2021), determining the factors that need to be considered in order to succeed in a particular market involves developing a profile of the kind of company that is likely to build capacity in the future industry environment. this is done in order to pinpoint the steps that need to be taken. performing this step requires locating the specific recipes for success. lopezgunn et.al (2021) identified a variety of generic enabling factors, such as the ability to control prices and quality, deal with militant unions, maintain brand image, expand the lower end of the product line, and deal with the pressure of competition from other businesses. a company has a better chance of being successful or gaining a competitive advantage if it is aware of the steps that must be taken to construct the capacity in the industry that is being considered. this helps to determine whether a company already possesses or is capable of acquiring the necessary components to give it a competitive advantage over its rivals in a particular industry. heenkenda (2018) cited product attitudes, competitive capabilities, and even market achievements as examples of enabling factors. according to fisher and surminski (2022), enabling factors in an industry are those things that determine the ability of members of an industry to prosper within that industry. some examples of enabling factors include low costs, the best quality, good product features, resources that are available, and competitive capabilities. enabling factors, as observed by mazviona et.al (2017), are by their very nature extremely important to future success. because of this, it is imperative that all organizations operating within the industry pay close attention to these factors; otherwise, they run the risk of falling to the back of the pack. how effectively the product offering, resources, and competencies of an organization stack up against the enabling elements of an industry will determine how financially and competitively successful that business will be. if a company is aware of the resources and competencies it must possess in order to be competitive and what it must do in order to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage, then it will be able to determine its enabling factors. in the context of the current state of the insurance sector as well as the conditions that are expected to exist in the future, one of the most important factors to consider when conducting an analysis or developing a plan is how to identify enabling factors. there have been previous studies that have been published in the academic literature that focus on the determinants that permit the performance of insurance companies. ibarra and securities (2020) conducted research to determine the elements that influence the financial success of insurance and reinsurance companies that are based in bermuda. in their analysis, they examined panel data spanning the years 1993 to 1997. according to their findings, the amount of leverage, the type of file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 84 organization, and the level of underwriting risk all have a positive and significant impact on financial success. on the other hand, liquidity has a detrimental influence on financial performance that is both considerable and noticeable, although the size of the company and the breadth of its operations have no bearing on financial performance. murigu (2018) performed an analysis of the factors that determined the levels of profitability of 25 general insurance businesses operating in poland between the years 2002 and 2009. the author used a regression model to determine the factors that have a positive impact on the performance of insurance companies. these factors include the reduction of motor insurance, the increase of other classes of insurance, the growth of gross written premiums, the reduction of operating costs, the growth of gross domestic product (gdp), and the growth of the market share of companies with foreign ownership. on the other hand, offering a wide variety of insurance classes has a negative impact on a company's profitability. heenkenda (2018) conducted a study to investigate and identify the factors that affected the financial performance of jordanian insurance businesses from 2002 to 2007. this research was carried out over the course of the period of time covered by the study. the ratio of operating income to total assets (roa) served as the dependent variable, while leverage, liquidity, age, size, and management competence index served as the independent factors. according to the findings of the regression study, the financial performance of jordanian insurance businesses is significantly impacted in a positive way by liquidity, leverage, the size of the company, and the managerial competency index. according to the findings, there does not appear to be any substantial correlation between the age of the company and performance. tangcharoensathien et.al (2017) conducted an investigation between the years 2012 -2017 into the elements that influence the financial performance of 21 insurance businesses that were active in the romanian insurance market. in order to accomplish this goal, the variables that were utilized as explanatory factors included financial leverage in insurance, company size, number of years spent operating in the romanian market, growth of gross written premiums, equity, total market share, diversification, underwriting risk, investment ratio, reinsurance dependence, retained risk ratio, solvency margin, and growth of gdp per capita. the return on assets (roa) was used as a metric to evaluate the performance of the company (tax, 2020). the authors demonstrated, with the help of panel data techniques, that the primary factors that determine financial performance in the romanian insurance market are financial leverage in insurance, company size, growth of gross written premiums, underwriting risk, risk retention ratio, and solvency margin. this was found to be the case in the romanian insurance market. zelizer (2017) looked into the cost-effectiveness and profitability of the life insurance industry in thailand for his research. this study made use of data from 1997 all the way through 2002. in this particular investigation, the stochastic cost frontier methodology was utilized. both the return on assets and the return on equity were used as dependent variables in this study. the inefficiency of the life insurance industry has a negative correlation with both of these measures. gituma and beyene (2018) carried out research to investigate the cohabitation of malaysian life insurance and family takaful companies in order to examine the efficiency and organizational form of both of these types of businesses. a non-parametric method known as "data envelopment analysis" was used to evaluate the technical expertise of the life insurance and family takaful industry. in order file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 85 to differentiate between technical efficiency and extent efficiency, both the constant return scale and the variable return scale were utilized. the effectiveness of the united states life insurance sector is measured by garrison et.al (2017) in terms of its profitability. the united states economy is significantly bolstered by the contributions made by various insurance businesses. the economy of the united states of america is currently one of the most robust on the international stage. according to what was found, the profitability of an organization has a negligible effect on the return on equity, which is not driven by cost efficiency. methodology incorporating a literature search into the work process was an important part of the project. consideration for prior theoretical literature was given in the research process, both published and not. a literature review is the primary focus of this study, with a particular focus on the insurance sector's capacity-building efforts. the literature search began in 2017 and was scheduled to conclude in 2022. using a variety of search terms and multiple databases, we came to this conclusion. google and other search engines were used for both basic and advanced searches by the authors. when searching through the data, "capacity building in the insurance sector" was used as a search term. the phrase "enabling factors for capacity building in the insurance sector" was the focus of the initial google search and the subsequent google search. if the article or report was to be included, it had to be peer-reviewed, be written in english, describe the method used, and report the study's findings; and, finally, draw a conclusion. the following are the criteria for inclusion: the articles were read several times to get a sense of their content in order to identify the enabling factors for insurance capacity building. conclusion and recommendations according to the findings, the capacity building of insurance will be significantly impacted by a higher employment rate, growth in personal incomes, and an overall improvement in the quality of life in the country. the younger and more educated generation, in particular those with adequate employment, will be able to afford to devote a portion of their incomes to the purchase of insurance products as a result of higher incomes. this will be especially true for those with adequate employment (lopez-gunn et.al, 2021). education level is one of the demographic factors that is anticipated to have a beneficial impact on the demand for various types of insurance. it is a question whether or to what extent the insurance industry is being researched from all of its three aspects (economic, legal, and mathematical), so that citizens can understand the product that is life insurance itself. educational systems vary from country to country and region to region, so this question cannot be answered definitively. a greater education level was associated with a higher rate of insurance penetration as well as a higher life insurance density. this study implies that there is a need for elevating the education level of the people, because it would be advantageous to boost the knowledge of financial goods that are presented on the market and the prospective benefits that could be gained from using them by potential consumers. according to mazviona et.al (2017), people with greater levels of education have a better understanding of the risks involved and the significance of effective risk management. because of this, knowledge does indeed make people less willing to take risks and boosts the demand for insurance protection. people with greater levels of education also have better file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 86 earnings, and they anticipate an increase in those incomes over the long term, in comparison to citizens with lower levels of education, which is another factor that drives them to get insurance coverage. even if the findings of many studies on the effect of education on the demand for life insurance are contradictory, the majority of people who carry life insurance policies are managers, other professionals, and self-employed individuals. in addition, one may draw the conclusion from this that the level of economic education is a component that makes it possible to grow capacity in the insurance sector. from the findings we conclude that the premiums for the insurance sector are influenced by factors such as the income per capita, the size and density of the population, demographic structures, income distribution, the size of the public pension system, the ownership of insurance companies by states, the availability of private credit, and religion. these elements, along with a number of others. the studies also suggest that insurance companies should conduct regular monitoring and evaluation in order to determine how successfully they have implemented their various capacity building strategies. this is essential due to the fact that the business environment in which insurance companies operate is quite fluid and is heavily influenced by a diverse set of circumstances. file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 87 references adkins, b. (2017). the role of social capital in the processes and outcomes of the information, capacity building and linking program under the national disability insurance scheme. aparcana, s. (2017). approaches to formalization of the informal waste sector into municipal solid waste management systems in low-and middle-income countries: review of barriers and success factors. waste management, 61, 593-607. eling, m., & luhnen, m. (2020). frontier efficiency methodologies to measure performance in the insurance industry: overview, systematization, and recent developments. the geneva papers on risk and insurance-issues and practice, 35(2), 217-265. fisher, s., & surminski, s. (2022). the roles of public and private actors in the governance of adaptation: the case of agricultural insurance in india. garrison jr, l. p., kamal-bahl, s., & towse, a. (2017). toward a broader concept of value: identifying and defining elements for an expanded cost-effectiveness analysis. value in health, 20(2), 213-216. gituma, m., & beyene, t. (2018). strategic human resource management practices and organizational performance: a case of national insurance corporation of eritrea (nice). global journal of management and business research. heenkenda, s. (2018). inclusive insurance sector: an innovative business model for microinsurance delivery in sri lanka. ibarra, h., & securities, i. l. (2020). parametric insurance: general market trends and perspectives for the african insurance sector. insurance linked securities. partnerre new solutions inc. lopez-gunn, e., altamirano, m. a., ebeltoft, m., graveline, n., marchal, r., moncoulon, d., ... & cassin, j. (2021). mainstreaming nature-based solutions through insurance: the five “hats” of the insurance sector. in nature-based solutions and water security (pp. 401422). elsevier. mazviona, b. w., dube, m., & sakahuhwa, t. (2017). an analysis of factors affecting the performance of insurance companies in zimbabwe. journal of finance and investment analysis, 6(1), 11-30. murigu, j. w. (2018). the determinants of financial performance in general insurance companies in kenya (doctoral dissertation, university of nairobi). surminski, s., & oramas-dorta, d. (2018). flood insurance schemes and climate adaptation in developing countries. international journal of disaster risk reduction, 7, 154-164. tangcharoensathien, v., thwin, a. a., & patcharanarumol, w. (2017). implementing health insurance for migrants, thailand. bulletin of the world health organization, 95(2), 146. tax, p. i. (2020). medium term strategy plan on insurance sector development. policy, 2010, 01. file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org american journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1, pp 80 87, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 88 zelizer, v. a. r. (2017). morals and markets: the development of life insurance in the united states. columbia university press. file:///c:/users/hp/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org a strategic study on foreign fund utilization in chinese insurance industry relationship between the various hr strategies and employee motivation in the taro pharmaceutical company. jie cai prof. wenxi tang european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 32 relationship between the various hr strategies and employee motivation in the taro pharmaceutical company. 1*jie cai post graduate student: china pharmaceutical university, school of international pharmaceutical business, department of business management 2prof. wenxi tang lecturer: china pharmaceutical university, school of international pharmaceutical business, department of business management *corresponding author’s e-mail: 76652239@qq.com abstract purpose: the study sought to find out the relationship between hr strategies and employee motivation in the taro pharmaceutical company. methodology: the research design for this study was a survey design. cross-sectional descriptive survey with a close ended questionnaire was used to provide answers to the research questions. the target population was both management and staff at the taro pharmaceutical company. the researcher sampled 242 respondents based on the krejcie & morgan sampling distribution. independent variable in the study is hr strategies and the dependent variable in the study is employee motivation. the study employed statistical package for social sciences (spss) version 20.0 to analyze the data gathered on the basis of descriptive statistics such as mean and standard deviation and inferential statistics thus, pearson correlation. findings: hr strategies was significantly related to employee motivation. the results revealed that, at the taro pharmaceutical company, hr strategies include communication, reward and recognition, work systems, staffing and training and development. the results proved that; all the dimensions of hr strategies were significantly related to employee motivation which shows that employees were highly motivated. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: based on the findings, the researcher recommends that, management should maintain and improve on the existing hr strategies that exist in the pharmaceutical company. all the strategies proved significant vis a vis employee motivation. the researcher submits that, communication peaked as the most significant hr strategies and hence, should be a point of concern to management. the researcher recommends that, even though the identified hr strategies were functioning well, not all the dimensions were able to score high rating as some of the employees were unsure of the applicable strategies. hence, management should intensify the existing strategies to help achieve organizational goals. keywords: human resource strategies, employee motivation, theoretical framework file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:76652239@qq.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 33 1. introduction hr strategies set out what the organization intends to do about its human resource management policies and practices and how they should be integrated with the business strategy and each other. they are described by dyer and reeves (1995) as ‘internally consistent bundles of human resource practices. the purpose of hr strategies is to articulate what an organization intends to do about its human resource management policies and practices now and in the longer term that business and managers should perform well in the present to succeed in the future. hr strategies aim to meet both business and human needs in the organization. 1.1 conceptual framework from the extant literature, the researcher identified a number of hr strategies which are applied in this study. these are staffing, training, rewards and recognition, work systems, communication and employee relation. the researcher therefore has come out with the conceptual framework which is illustrated below. human resource strategy is identified as the independent variable and employee motivation as the dependent variable. hr strategies has been attributed six (6) dimensions. these dimensions independently influence the employee. such an influence on the employee motivation could ultimately lead to whether the employee is highly motivated, moderately motivated or not motivated. it is expected that, by the interrelation of these variables, the researcher will be able to conclusively identify what impact hr strategy at the taro pharmaceutical company has had on the employees. figure 1: conceptual framework, source: author’s literature survey, 2019 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 34 2.0 research objectives the study sought to: i. identify the relationship between human resource strategies and employee motivation in the taro pharmaceutical company. ii. find out the challenges in implementing hr strategies in the taro pharmaceutical industry. 3.0. theoretical framework of the study 3.1 twofactor theory herzberg (1959) introduced a well-known motivation theory, which is the two-factor theory, he described in his theory between motivators and hygiene factors. he emphasized that the factors can either be motivators or hygiene factors, but can never be both at the same time. intrinsic motivational factors are challenging work, recognition and responsibilities. hygiene motivators are extrinsic motivational factors such as status, job security and salary. motivating factors can, when present, leads to satisfaction and hygiene factors can, when not present leads to dissatisfaction, but the two factors can never be treated as opposites from each other (saiyadain, 2009). 3.1. 2 process theory the emphasis in process theory is on the psychological processes or forces that affect motivation, as well as basic needs (armstrong, 2010). the process theory is also known as cognitive theory because it is concerned with people’s perceptions of their working environment and the ways in which they interpret and understand it (armstrong, 2010). according to armstrong (2010), process theory provides a much more relevant approach to motivation. central to the process theory is a series of cognitive theories that attempt to understand the thought processes that people have when determining how to behave in the workplace (steers & shapiro, 2004). one of the known cognitive theories is the expectancy theory presented by victor vroom as the first systematic formulation of the theory (steers & shapiro, 2004). following vroom’s expectancy theory are other process theories such as the goal achievement theory and equity theory. 3.1.3 expectancy theory in spector (2000), expectancy theory explains how rewards lead to behavior by focusing on internal cognitive states that lead to motivation. according to daft (2003, in dartey-baah, 2010), expectancy theory proposes that motivation depends on the individuals' expectations or outlook about their ability to perform tasks and receive desired rewards. the theory was originally contained in the valency-instrumentality-expectancy (vie) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 35 theory which was formulated by vroom (1964, in green, 2000). valency stands for value; instrumentality is the belief that if one thing is done, it leads to another, and expectancy is the probability that action or effort will lead to an outcome (vroom, 1964). the theory assumes that people think about what they are doing, what they are getting and its worth (armstrong, 2010). vroom’s expectancy theory (vroom, 1964) developed the topic of motivation combining the interaction of individual needs and employees working together. the concept of expectancy theory was defined in more detail by vroom (1964) as follows: when an individual chooses between alternatives which involve uncertain outcomes, it seems clear that this behaviour is affected not only by his preferences among these outcomes but also by the degree of to which he believes these outcomes to be possible. expectancy is defined as a momentary belief concerning the likelihood that a particular act will be followed by a particular outcome. expectancies may be described in terms of their strength. maximal strength is indicated by subjective certainty that the act will be followed by the outcome, while minimal (or zero) strength is indicated by subjective certainty that will not be followed by the outcome. the strength of expectations may be based on past experiences (reinforcement), but individuals are frequently with new situations – a change in job, payment system, or working conditions imposed by management – where past experience is not an adequate guide to the implications of the change. in these circumstances, motivation may be reduced (armstrong, 2010). 4.0 methods the research design for this study was a cross-sectional descriptive survey with a close ended questionnaire which was used to provide answers to the research questions. the independent variable in the study was hr strategies and the dependent variable in the study was employee motivation. this study employed a quantitative research design to investigate the relationship existing between the various human resource strategies and employees’ motivation. the empirical analysis for the study aimed at finding out the relationship between human resource strategy and employees’ motivation in the taro company ltd in canada. the study employed statistical package for social sciences (spss) version 20.0 to analyze the data gathered on the basis of descriptive statistics such as mean and standard deviation and inferential statistics thus, pearson correlation and the result was discussed. two hundred and forty-two (242) senior staff members including supervisors and managers participated in the research. persons each drawn from the respective levels (senior management, middle level management, lower level and supervisory level management file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 36 were involved in the exercise. since the population at the taro company is a finite population, the researcher used the systematic sampling technique and proportionate which is a probability sampling method. with this method, list of the various level of employees was sourced from the hr department and numbers sequentially drawn from one to the last person according to each level. the expected sample size was 242 and simple random sampling was used to select the required number to partake in the research activity. proportionate sampling technique was used to give equal representation to the various level of employees. the researcher consulted the hr department for the nominal roll of staff. the total number of staff were 661. the researcher collected the nominal roll of the different levels of employee and calculated for the sampling interval. the formular for sampling interval is given by the entire population over desired sample size. 661/242 = 2.73. rounding it to a whole figure, the sampling interval was 3.0. this meant that, taking the nominal roll of each level of management, every 3rd person on the list counting from the start point was administered the questionnaire. the researcher made frantic efforts to involve all the staff who were selected using the systematic sampling technique until the last respondent was administered with the questionnaire. the 242 sample was backed by the krejcie & morgan, (1970) sampling distribution according to sizes of population. in this instance, the population is 661. according the chart, 661 should have a sample of 242 to make the sample scientific. 5.0 results 5.1 descriptive characteristics of respondents descriptive statistics of the respondents the main objective of descriptive analysis was to understand the profile of the respondents. table 1.1 shows a summary of the descriptive analysis. from table 1.1, the preponderance of the respondents aged between 26-31 (51.6%). this was followed by the age range from 20-25 (20.9%). the least represented age group is 44 years and above (4.2%). majority of the gender were males (79.1%) with females recording 20.9%. on the educational background of employees, preponderance was tertiary level (54.9%). few were unlettered and had no formal education (1.4%). 35.3% of the respondents were secondary or middle school living certificates earners. on the religious background of the respondents, 72.6% of the employees were christians. islam followed with 16.3% . budhists (7.4%) and traditionalist (3.7%). the religious picture shows that, there is variety in terms of employee religious affiliations. duration of their working experience was explored by the researcher. most (39.5%) of the respondents had worked for between 15 years. they were followed by those who had worked for 6-11 years (35.3%). those who had worked from 12-17 years represented 23.3% with the least represented being those who had worked for 18 years and above (1.9%) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 37 table 1.1 demographic profile of respondents variable category frequency percentage mean sd skewness kurtosis age 20-25 26-31 32-37 38-43 44 and above 45 111 40 10 9 20.9 51.6 18.6 4.7 4.2 2.20 1.06 1.30 gender male female 170 45 79.1 20.9 1.21 0.41 1.44 0.07 educational background no formal education primary jhs secondary/mslc tertiary 3 7 11 76 118 1.4 3.3 5.1 35.3 54.9 4.39 0.84 -1.75 3.55 religion christianity islam buddhist traditionalist 156 35 16 8 72.6 16.3 7.4 3.7 1.42 0.79 1.88 2.73 experience 1-5 years 6-11 years 12-17 years 18 and above 85 76 50 4 39.5 35.3 23.3 1.9 1.87 0.83 0.44 -0.91 in assessing whether the data of this study were normally distributed, kurtosis and skewness index were employed for each variable. according to kline (2005), absolute values of skewness index less than 3 and the kurtosis index below 10 suggest that the data is normally distributed. as indicated in table 1.2, the skewness and kurtosis indexes exposed that all the variables were normally distributed with the skewness and kurtosis absolute values ranging from 0.44 to 1.88, and 0.07 to 3.55 respectively. finally, reliability analysis was conducted to find out the internal consistency of each of the measuring instrument of the variables under investigation. it was revealed that all the variables have satisfactory cronbach’s alpha. lavrakas (2008) emphasized that, normally, file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 38 the cronbach’s alpha must be greater than or equal to .70 before the instrument can be deemed reliable. as presented in table 1.2, the cronbach’s alpha of the study ranged from 0.94 to 0.96 which indicates that the instruments were reliable. table 1.2 reliability variables no. of items cronbach alpha mean skewness kurtosis hr strategies 25 0.96 3.88 -1.35 0.77 employee motivation 9 0.94 3.80 -1.23 0.33 5.2 hr strategies the table 1.3 shows the mean score and standard deviation of human resource strategies implemented in taro pharmaceutical company. this was necessary to unravel the opinions of management on one hand, and employees, on another hand as regards the availability and attractiveness of human resource strategies in the said company. when it comes to communication as a dimension of human resource strategies, most of the management of taro company strongly agree that communication flows very well in the company with the mean score of 4.73 whereas most of the employees also agree that communication is good in the company with the mean score of 3.90. the views shared by these two different groups suggest that communication flows very well in taro pharmaceutical company but management is more convinced than employees as shown in the table 1.3. with regards to training and development as another dimension of human resource strategies, management of taro pharmaceutical company is in very strong agreement that the company has attractive training and development opportunities for its employees with the mean score standing at 4.6 meanwhile most of the employees agree that the company offers them training and development opportunities. here, it was seen that management shared relatively stronger view than employees. again, concerning how the company rewards and recognize the effort of its staff, management agree that the company indeed has attractive compensation and reward practices for its workers with the mean score of 4.10. employees, on the other hand, posit that the company rewards and recognizes their effort handsomely even though few of them were not sure as to whether the company rewards and recognition packages is attractive or not. again, it could be seen that management held a stronger view on this than employees. moreover, management of taro pharmaceutical company is of the opinion that the work system within the company is smooth with the mean of 4.47. this means that most of the management members agree that the company has a smooth work file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 39 system and only few strongly agree that the work system prevailing in the company is good. in a similar direction, most of the employees of the company agree that work system is smooth but few of them were uncertain with the mean of 3.83. finally, pertaining to staffing as a dimension of human resource strategies, all of the management members strongly agreed that the company has good staffing procedures for its recruitment and selection with the mean of 5.00. meanwhile, most of the employees of the company only agreed that the staffing processes and procedures of the company is good but only few of them were not sure as to whether the staffing procedures and processes were good or not with the mean of 3.83. it can therefore be concluded that, comparatively, management of taro pharmaceutical company at all times shared relatively stronger views concerning the availability and attractiveness of human resource strategies than employees. nevertheless, employees took a similar stance with management on the issues of human resource strategies existing in the taro pharmaceutical company. the researcher did not find employee relations as was proposed from literature in the conceptual framework. the applicable hr strategies were limited to communication, training and development, reward and recognition, staffing and work systems. table 1.3: mean score and standard deviation of human resource strategies for mgt & employees variable: mgt(mean) employees(mean) sd(mgt) sd(emp.) communication 4.7333 3.9039 .27889 .87084 training and development 4.6000 3.9116 .28504 .89572 reward and recognition 4.1000 3.9093 .09129 .96177 work system 4.4667 3.8326 .18257 1.15689 staffing 5.0000 3.8337 .00000 .92567 5.3 pearson correlation the formulated hypotheses of the study were tested using pearson’s correlation. the hypotheses were tested at 0.01 significance level using bivariate correlation to find out the relationships between human resource strategies and employee motivation. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 40 h1: there is a positive relationship between hr strategies and employee motivation. the results of the correlation analysis as shown in table 4.4 revealed a significantly positive relationship between communication as one of the dimensions of human resource strategy and employee motivation (r = .901, p < .01). this suggests that as communication improves in an organization it has the tendency to enhance motivation of employees. also, regarding training and development as a dimension of human resource strategy, table 4.4 shows that it has a positive correlation with employee motivation (r=.827, p < .01). this indicates that as training and development interventions are implemented in taro pharmaceutical company it is likely to promote employee motivation. furthermore, in relation to reward and recognition as another dimension of human resource strategy, table 4.4 depicts a positive correlation between reward and recognition and employee motivation (r = .827, p < .01). this means that as reward and recognition improve in taro pharmaceutical company it has the proclivity to increase employee motivation. more so, work system was seen to have a positive relationship with employee motivation as indicated in table 4.4 (r = .662, p < .01). this also connote that when there is a good work system in taro pharmaceutical company it is likely to improve employee motivation. moreover, pearson correlation analysis was performed to find out the relationship between staffing as a dimension of human resource strategy and employee motivation. table 4.4 shows a positive relation between the said variables (r = .880, p < .01). this suggest that as taro pharmaceutical company adopts good staffing procedures it has the tendency to increase employee motivation. lastly, pearson correlation analysis was conducted to find out how human resource strategy as a whole correlate with employee motivation. it was disclosed from table 4.4 that human resource strategy positively correlates with employee motivation (r = .924, p < .01). this brings to bear that as taro pharmaceutical company adopts attractive human resource strategies it has the chance to improve employee motivation. therefore, hypothesis 1 was achieved. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 41 table 1.4: pearson’s correlation for human resource strategies and employee motivation co td rr ws s hrs em co pearson correlation td pearson correlation .807** rr pearson correlation .810** .782** ws pearson correlation .626** .576** .527** s pearson correlation .839** .752** .755** .744** hrs pearson correlation .918** .880** .871** .809** .928** em pearson correlation .901** .827** .827** .662** .880** .924** note. n = 215; **p < .01. co is communication, td is training and development, rr is reward and recognition, ws is work system, hrs is human resource strategies, and em is employee motivation however, the following section also tries to discuss the results of each of the hypothesis tested. h1: there is a positive relationship between hr strategies and employee motivation. the results of the correlation analysis revealed a significantly positive relationship file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 42 between human resource strategy and employee motivation. hypothesis one was supported. the outcome of the study indicated that employees who perceived the hr strategies to be attractive were more likely to be motivated. the outcome of this study is in agreement with the process theory. according to armstrong (2010), process theory provides a much more relevant approach to motivation. central to the process theory is a series of cognitive theories that attempt to understand the thought processes that people have when determining how to behave in the workplace (steers & shapiro, 2004). the rationale here is that, as workers of taro pharmaceutical company perceive the hr strategies to be attractive and they cognitively process such thought to be beneficial, their motivation will automatically be boosted. their attitude towards work is likely to be tilted towards high performance as they perceive the managerial processes to be effective and essential. sharma (2006) states that motivated employees are the lifeblood of an organization. stone (2013) asserts that by knowing how to motivate your employees, one should be able to increase productivity in the workplace. 6.1 hr strategies and employee motivation the first objective was to find out the relationship between the various hr strategies and employee motivation. a correlation analysis was conducted to find out the relationship between the various hr strategies and employee motivation. the results proved that; all the dimensions of hr strategies were significantly related to employee motivation. thus, communication, training and development, reward and recognition, staffing and work systems were all significantly related to employee motivation. confirming literature, lawler (1990) stated that, a suitable reward system and a successful pay structure is essential as it can increase employees’ motivation to work, which further enhances productivity, efficiency and competitiveness of the company. malhotra, budhwar, and prowse (2007) have drawn inferences that rewards play a major role in developing and sustaining commitment among the workforce and makes sure that employee’s competence and commitment is maintained. osei (2011), also agrees with the equity theory that, one of the fundamental issues that is sensitive and critical which can make or unmake any organization is wage or salary determination. justice, fairness and equity in salary determination, to a large extent, put to rest all the traumas any individual or any organization may experience, and that is highly motivational enough to assess the optimal usage of time and energy. also, theory such as expectancy has several important implications for ways of motivating employees by clarifying people’s expectancies that their effort will lead to performance, that is by training employees to do their jobs more efficiently and so achieve higher levels of performance from their efforts and linking valued rewards and performance by specifying exactly what job behaviours will lead to what rewards. it is possible for employees to be file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 43 paid in ways directly linked to their performance such as through piece-rate incentive systems, sales commission plans or bonuses. the first objective was to find out the relationship between the various hr strategies and employee motivation. a correlation analysis was conducted to find out the relationship between the various hr strategies and employee motivation. the results proved that; all the dimensions of hr strategies were significantly related to employee motivation. thus, communication, training and development, reward and recognition, staffing and work systems were all significantly related to employee motivation. confirming literature, lawler (1990) stated that, a suitable reward system and a successful pay structure is essential as it can increase employees’ motivation to work, which further enhances productivity, efficiency and competitiveness of the company. malhotra, budhwar, and prowse (2007) have drawn inferences that rewards play a major role in developing and sustaining commitment among the workforce and makes sure that employee’s competence and commitment is maintained. osei (2011), also agrees with the equity theory that, one of the fundamental issues that is sensitive and critical which can make or unmake any organization is wage or salary determination. justice, fairness and equity in salary determination, to a large extent, put to rest all the traumas any individual or any organization may experience, and that is highly motivational enough to assess the optimal usage of time and energy. also, theory such as expectancy has several important implications for ways of motivating employees by clarifying people’s expectancies that their effort will lead to performance, that is by training employees to do their jobs more efficiently and so achieve higher levels of performance from their efforts and linking valued rewards and performance by specifying exactly what job behaviours will lead to what rewards. it is possible for employees to be paid in ways directly linked to their performance such as through piece-rate incentive systems, sales commission plans or bonuses. 6.2 challenges in implementing hr strategies lastly, the researcher set out to find out the challenges in the implementation of hr strategies at the taro pharmaceutical company. the highest of the challenges is non-regularization of a general staff meeting. also, the absence of lucrative incentives was a major challenge to the employees. inadequate change within work unit was also key. even though employees were motivated generally, low comprehension of company strategy and poor coordination amongst management was evident in the results of the analysis. maslow’s theory of needs, the third need which is social need of belonging to a group best explains why non-regularization of a general staff meeting is seen as a major challenge. the social need of belonging to a group expresses the need of social dimension of the individual who needs to feel accepted by groups in his family, work, associates etc. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 44 in this case, employees at taro pharmaceutical company based on the identified challenge feel the need to be part of general meeting organized by the company. the biggest challenge was not financial but non-regularization of general meetings. their actual need is skewed towards intrinsic motivation. contrary to chris and awonusi (2004) who argued that, extrinsic rewards have a significant impact on employee motivation while intrinsic rewards don’t have any significant impact on employee motivation, the results from the filed data showed that, employees claim to want to be part of a general meeting is intrinsic and was a big motivation to employees such that employees saw it as a challenge of hr strategy. the needs theory also draws on the inspiration that, not all needs are equally important for a person at any time. increment in salary, allowances and monetary incentives was not peaked as a major challenge. 7.0 conclusion in relation to the main findings outlined, the following conclusions were drawn. the main hr strategies at the taro pharmaceutical company, include communication, reward and recognition, work systems, staffing and training and development. it is established that, all the dimensions of hr strategies were significantly related to employee motivation and the results showed that, employees are highly motivated based on the hr strategies. thus, communication, training and development, reward and recognition, staffing and work systems were all significantly related to employee motivation. the main challenge to hr strategies is non-regularization of a general staff meeting. also, the absence of lucrative incentives was a major challenge to the employees. inadequate change within work unit was also key. even though employees were motivated generally, low comprehension of company strategy and poor coordination amongst management was evident in the results of the analysis. 8.0 recommendation based on the findings, the researcher recommends that, 1. management should maintain and improve on the existing hr strategies that exist in the pharmaceutical company. all the strategies proved significant vis a vis employee motivation. 2. the researcher submits that, communication peaked as the most significant hr strategies and hence, should be a point of concern to management. 3. the researcher recommends that, even though the identified hr strategies were functioning well, not all the dimensions were able to score high rating as some of the employees were unsure of the applicable strategies. hence, management should intensify the existing strategies to help achieve organizational goals. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.5, issue 1 pp 32 47, 2021 www.ajpojournals.org 45 references ahmed, r. r., warraich, u. a., khoso, i., & ahmad, n. 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(2008). human resource management, pearson education ltd. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org effect of employees' motivation on performance in organizations dr. almas sabir and dr. shoeb ahmad european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 18 effect of employees' motivation on performance in organizations dr. almas sabir1* and dr. shoeb ahmad2 1department of management, college of business administration, university of hail, saudi arabia. email: almas.sabir083@gmail.com 2college of business and management, fahad bin sultan university, tabuk, saudia arabia. email: shoebahmad09@gmail.com abstract purpose: this study aims to capture the effect of staff motivation in the organization and one form of motivation. findings: the main findings of the paper is to find out what motivates employees to do top work for the organization's benefit. research also allows agencies to discover how employees think about their jobs or perceive their current job. methodology: this article analyzes one-on-one payment systems and how they use by businesses and looks at the organization's lifestyle and how it affects employee behavior. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: an organization's progress is directly related to the people willing to work there. this article discusses how employee motivation affects company performance and overall organizational progress. keywords: employee, motivation, performance, organization, lifestyle, behavior. mailto:almas.sabir083@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 19 1.0 introduction the topic of motivation has been discussed. by the middle of the 20th century, domination of the most intellectual and credible theories, especially the maslow (1943) management class, herzberg's tenny theory (1959), and the vroom's expectancy theory (1964), expanded. theories focus on the promotion of general energy efficiency and performance. it is generally agreed that employee motivation can play an important role in internal and external motivation. staw (1976) suggests that one of the first attempts to make this difference led to herzberg's vision. however, discourses on internal and external motivations have grown in recent years. the relationship between job motivation and the performance of the whole process has been studied in the past. however, excessive statistical advertising between the two is now being abandoned. however, a subsequent study found that employee motivation was undoubtedly associated with the effectiveness of the whole process. these relationships are discussed in this article, and the purpose is to provide management with helpful information on how internal or external motivation can improve employee performance. workplace diversity has given management many benefits from the issues. the big difference between employees in any organization is that there is no standard way to deal with workplace problems. the whole motivation of some employees can be a big problem for modern management, as it can discourage others. in addition to controlling regular operation and a unique praise system, this function also addresses the lifestyle that governs human resources. in the middle of the 20th century, some fundamental motivational theories emerged, including maslow's hierarchy of needs (1943), herzberg's two factor theory (1959), and vroom's expectancy theory (1964). this study focused on general motivation and staff motivation. 2.0 staff motivation the motivation of employees for many things, such as the environment, large sums of money, and staff, affects the organization's performance. however, human resources are considered to impact the organization's activities significantly. therefore, it is legal to say that an organization should encourage its employees to achieve the declared goal and objectives. in this study, the motive is clearly defined. motivation is manifested in many ways. many researchers have tried to develop a concise theory of motivation, but all have come up with incredible ideas. research has been done on this topic, and many hypotheses have been put forward that profoundly affect the organization's ethics. for example, herzberg's (1959) theory of motivation is still used today. according to staw (1976), herzberg was one of the first to distinguish between internal and external stimuli. this distinction becomes apparent and helps motivate employees in the workplace (staw, 1976). 2.1 the concept of motivation the concept of motivation can be defined as a management process that encourages people to serve the general interests of the organization better, giving them motives based on their unmet needs. the question is, "why should a manager raise employees?" (herzberg, 1959). according to smith (1994), it is because of the existence of society. as amabile (1993) asserted, leaders and managers must learn to comprehend and manage the efficiency of their employees. in today's world, one's employees are the backbone of an organization. future developments will reveal how unscrupulous employees plan and execute as many low-level tasks as possible from their actual jobs. when employees are motivated, they help organizations thrive and survive in rapidly changing european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 20 workplaces (lindner, 1998).lindner also points out that the most challenging role for managers is to motivate employees because staff motivation is constantly changing (bowen & radhakrishna, 1991). the term motivation was coined in the early 1880s before the term "will of power" was used by prominent philosophers and social scientists who were more concerned with moral issues than human motives (noguera, 2013). according to them, the motive will be; a business that needs action. recently, many researchers have come up with different explanations for motivation. the term is defined as psychological processes that provide purpose and serve as guidelines for behavior and morality (bobocel, kay, zanna, olson, 2018). voluntary behavior corresponds to unmet needs (dorian, peters, rafael & richard, 2018); and internal efforts to meet those needs. management must motivate employees to achieve the outcomes required by the organization. it can also be said that there is a consensus that the motive is personal development, which is defined as meaningful, multifaceted, and valuable. 2.2 maslow and herzberg theory of motivation herzberg (1959) introduced a two-dimensional theory, a well-known theory of motivation. it is explained from the perspective between incentives and hygiene. he emphasized that the issue could be a one-size-fits-all solution, but it could not be the same as shown in figure 1. the most important motivators are rewarding work, awareness, and commitment. hygiene promotion encourages external factors such as status, employment security, and income. motivational factors can lead to dissatisfaction and dissatisfaction when hygiene factors are not present, but two factors cannot be treated as contradictory to each other (saiyadain, 2009). figure 1: hygiene and motivation factors source: https://expertprogrammanagement.com/2018/04/herzbergs-two-factor-theory https://expertprogrammanagement.com/2018/04/herzbergs-two-factor-theory european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 21 herzberg's two-factor theory is related to maslow's motivation theory, and maslow, in his book, outlines his motivational theory. in his field of service leadership, maslow says there is at least a set of five goals called basic needs. 1. physical needs: these needs are directly related to a person's health. sets are usually physical necessities such as food, clothing, and bedding. lack of these requirements can cause the body to degenerate, and the body's needs are considered very important and must be met first. 2. safety requirements: this is a type of safety measure against various threats, and if a person's safety requirements are met satisfactorily, his or her safety needs are paramount, and they govern behavior. when there is no security in the aftermath of war, natural disaster, family violence, or child abuse, people may suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. lack of economic security, insecurity due to the economic crisis, and unemployment, these security needs will manifest themselves in ways such as choosing job security. 3. social need to be in a group: it exposes the social size of a person who needs to feel accepted by the groups in his or her family, work, closeness, friendship, and friends. according to maslow, humanity needs to feel and feel part and accepted among the social groups in life who choose to be a part of it or find themselves in it. these groups can be large or small; other prominent groups may include religious groups, colleagues, professional organizations, sports teams, or criminal gangs, while small groups may include romantic relationships, family members, counselors, colleagues, and confidants. 4. requirements for respect and trust: a person needs to feel respected; this includes the need for confidence and trust. esteem expresses a normal human desire to be accepted and appreciated by others. people often get involved in work or hobbies to gain recognition. these activities give a person a sense of recognition or worth. 5. personal development: according to maslow, this need aims to get out of this situation to achieve fulfillment. this level of need is a desire to achieve all that one can do. in 1943, maslow argued that people have an inner need that compels them to fulfill themselves and elevate themselves. he then came up with the idea that there are five different positions of need, and if we are satisfied with meeting the need in one place, it will affect our attitude. when employees reach such a stage, their attitude begins to deteriorate, and now we place a strong emphasis on working for what is beyond the levels. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 22 figure 2: abraham maslow’s hierarchy of need. source: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/business-application-maslows-hierarchy-needs-suzyjurist 2.2.1 internal and external motives motivation can be divided into internal motivation and external motivation. these two motivations vary from one source of stress to another. amabile (1993) elaborates on people are deeply motivated when seeking happiness, interest, curiosity, self-expression, or personal challenge at work and people are encouraged unless they work to get a goal outside of the work itself. 2.2.1.1 internal/intrinsic motivation motivation, derived from personal happiness or interest in work, does not involve the rewards of employment outside the workplace but instead requires an inner sense of enjoyment. it can be seen as a force that involves performing tasks without external motivation. according to amabile (1993), people are motivated when they seek pleasure, interest, curiosity, self-expression, or personal challenge in the workplace (amabile, 1993). 2.2.1.2 external/extrinsic motivation contrary to popular belief, it is about taking action to gain external rewards. the source of external motivation comes from the individual's environment. additional job benefits, higher wages, compensation, and job promotion are some of the rewards that lead to external motivation. (kendra cherry, 2021) external motivation is money and oral reward negotiated without a person; on the other hand, internal motivation is linked internally to a person. a person can have a deep motivation to do work if there is no apparent reward for the work done without the work itself or the feelings that come out of work. amabile (1993) states that employees can have internal or external motivation. internal and external motivations work differently for people. vroom (1964) points out that some employees focus on internal outcomes while others focus on external outcomes. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/business-application-maslows-hierarchy-needs-suzy-jurist https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/business-application-maslows-hierarchy-needs-suzy-jurist european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 23 according to deci (2005), people with high internal motivation prefer challenging mental activities and can control their behavior. therefore, rewarding and setting external goals or deadlines will not do them any less unless they are also high on external motivation. for highly motivated employees, emphasis can be placed on the type of work involved and the promotion of personal goals and deadlines. almas (2017) argue that introverts are highly recommended externally, and extraverts are highly recommended. however, not only do people seem to have different motives, but internal and external motivation also affects each other. employees work for jobs to get external rewards, but instead, they need an inner sense of fun that comes from the jobs themselves. it can be seen as a functional force without external stimuli. according to almas (2017), people are motivated when they seek happiness, interest, curiosity, self-expression, or personal challenges in the workplace. 2.2.2 relationships between internal and external motives the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is clear, but researchers argue that intrinsic and isolation also impact each other. almas (2017) states that external influences can reduce internal motivations in some cases. he says automatic money management reduces internal motivations. nevertheless, if money is still misused, this will not happen. amabile (1993) responds to this argument by saying that external motives may contradict internal intentions, but that may have a cooling effect. satisfaction and performance. furthermore, in his research, internal and external systems may motivate employees to work, but internal and external motivations can significantly affect employees. in short, employees may have an internal or external interest in performing a particular task (amabile, 1993) and may reinforce their external and internal motivations. however, in some cases, external influences can weaken the inside. in addition, researchers say that not everyone has the same interests, some employees are highly motivated internally, and some are highly motivated externally. motivation is a well-studied topic. the earliest work was done by the founders of their work, maslow (1943) and herzberg (1959). many definitions have been created. herzberg's workplace motivation is to do it because it seeks to perform work-related behaviors (herzberg, 1959). there is some variation on the importance of a particular factor. however, motivation is an individual process that is defined as purposeful and multifaceted, and the purpose of motivating the idea is to predict behavior. there is consensus. external inspiration is also described. people are deeply moved when they seek happiness, interest, satisfaction, pleasure, curiosity, self-expression, or personal challenges in the workplace. there is also an external purpose in the workplace to achieve a purpose other than the work itself (amabile, 1993). staff mobilization requires both internal and external motivation (herzberg, 1959). according to herzberg (1959), managers need to work on all aspects of hygiene and motivation to motivate their employees. 3.0 employee motivation, performance and organizational performance 3.1 performance of employees effective management is an essential tool for motivating employees to perform well. however, it is not a sufficient condition for effective management. ferreira, aldonio, otley, and david (2009) state that the most critical issue in any performance management system is how critical it is and how dedicated it is by management and staff. performance management is about completeness, harmonization, and development to build value from the customer due to economic value building european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 24 to shareholders and owners. the expansion of performance management is enormous, so performance management should be considered within the business as a tool to enhance employees 'motivation for high performance. effective performance management requires an in-depth understanding of the working environment. taking on responsibilities and projects is part of a company or organizational job description. it is the basis for evaluating how to improve performance when knowing the skills required to do the job. businesses can evaluate and improve their performance based on their knowledge. additionally, there is a disconnect between employee performance appraisals and opportunities to improve employee performance. in addition, there is no link to evaluate an employee's work based on the performance of other partners in the same job description. 3.2 organizational performance according to otley (1999), an organization's performance depends on other factors such as employee performance and the nature of the organization. the difference between organizational performance and professionalism is clear. an effective organization has achieved its goals successfully. in other words, an organization uses sound systems, and its performance results from an employee's work. in addition, the high performance of the work is the skill of the work itself, and the worker must be able to produce better results and be more productive (hunter, 1986). an organization needs good employee performance because the success of an organization depends on employee awareness, innovation, and commitment. efficiency and increased productivity are also important in stabilizing the economy. with improved living conditions, higher wages, and increased availability of consumer goods. therefore, he also points out that performance surveys for each employee are essential to the whole community. performance of employees and the ability of employees to do their job are related. generally, however, productivity is associated with terms that focus on production (e.g., profit and sales), and performance is associated with efficiency or recognition-oriented goals (e.g., oversight and achievement of objectives. in any organization, decisions to develop, retain, or dismiss employees must be consistent. these decisions are made through relative selection and support, and personal relationships within the organization profoundly affect employee promotions and dismissal decisions. relationships are still meaningful today, but many companies constantly evaluate employee performance to be more productive and profitable. according to almas (2017), standardized approaches are not available, but the performance of most employees can be measured. performance measures are defined as "standard measurements of results and efficiency of a service or program." it means a continuous measure of progress towards achieving accurate results (this is an integral part of the effort towards results). the customization process maximizes customer benefits for services and programs and reduces negative costs. if performance is measured by mistake or not, the user may be given incorrect information and make poor decisions. therefore, the adage "garbage coming out of the trash" enhances credibility (hatry, 2006). performance measures provide general information that can be used for decision-making purposes for managers and employees at all levels. the power measurement system can be a dashboard. this instrument panel is used for strategic implementation, planning, development, and transformation. the organization's standard operating standards are based on financial and accounting. currently, it is switching to the latest multi-functional system. first, financial indicators have been used to manage the company's financial resources to support organizational policies. second, financial european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 25 performance metrics act as a barometer to show results related to key business objectives. third, they also serve as motivators for future operations. moreover, they were viewed as windows of the past as factors influencing future success. despite the advantages of financial measures and accounting measures in performance testing, they were re-operated on a cost basis provides little motivation. traditional inadequate capital is primarily based on overall performance levels and has further enhanced the appearance of the most appropriate metrics to reach the overall performance level. financial professionals have taken such steps that preferences are based mainly on total value, spot prices, and average scorecards. it has been gratefully accepted and attracted a great deal of interest in international trade—economic income due to widely published designs in 1998, 2000, and 2002. a function-based primarily on total cost is a way to capture sports, processes, products, and business services. the abc highlights the regions of purposeful drawing managers with a timely movement that can positively impact revenue or value. managers should try to reassemble the product, which means sales costs create greater resource demand and produce less. costs towards the most aggressive categories with an excessive level of services and products that support a decline in sales reduce global resources to reduce the number of times a sport is spent to reap the same results or reduce re-purchases and provide the current combination of sales and customers. it will promote production software and continuous development to improve quality, reduce set-up time and improve production facility facilities. when targeted designs are placed, managers see that they have achieved a point where they can achieve an equitable result with a small group of participating staff or small equipment. they can reduce spending on a single source. the agency will conduct a recreational activity based primarily on total cost calculations to determine the actual value associated with each product and supplier produced by the agency. instead of taking advantage of the limited opportunities to charge, abc binds to disclose the reason and improve the relationship between costs and sport to fairly allocate charges. abc can make precious regions in line with unique sales units, donations, or customers. the divisive price that does not load prices is focused on caring for the strongest ones. however, abc is more expensive to set up and maintain than the standard cost system. for example, an abc system with 25 cost pools is used in 100 different products. abc is used to develop more expensive products. total costs include allocating fixed costs (depreciation and administrative salaries). the cost per unit provided by the abc system does not include the growing costs required for production; additional information is required for decisions (khan & jain, 2009). an investment is an asset or an asset that we purchase in the hope that it will generate income or inform us in the future. the difference between what we put in and what we receive is in return. therefore, companies invest in a return on investment. the return of a financial asset includes both the profits of the companies when they eventually sell to another person when they are mature and the revenue earned between the purchase and sale. reimbursement is the return on current investment roi = (profit from the investment investment costs). with so much investment initially, we cannot be sure of the value of income and the profits we will make. the range of tools we can invest in provides a deviant level of return for uncertainty (feibel, 2003). the most convincing way to evaluate hrm is to compare the cost of hrm programs with the benefits, in many cases, the cost of hrm systems can be improved or monitored. although confused, sometimes there are ways to allocate certain costs, and the total program costs can usually be expressed (feibel, 2003). however, if there is a small investment in the roi, it may result in very short-term gains but a long-term decline, as the roi ignores events outside the current period. roi european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 26 can be determined by past investments that have not been fully reduced, thus undermining the impact of current actions. in addition, roi is not a reliable rate of reduced cash flow rate, both in single and complete corporate projects. a balanced scorecard is planning system businesses use to direct business operations and company vision and strategies and monitor an organization's performance. the balanced scorecard usually includes customer service performance measurements, innovation and learning, and internal processes. practical steps for learning and innovation often revolve around the company's research and development efforts. for example, the number of new products developed during the year and their time to reach the market is practical innovations steps. learning measures can include the number of staff training sessions and the number of employees trained in various skills. customer service action measures include the number of customer complaints and the number of repeat customers. a customer survey can also measure customer satisfaction in a company compared to competitors. the performance measures of internal processes take into account the length of time it takes to produce a product. the amount of waste is a measure of the efficiency of the company's production processes. customer return value measures the fulfillment of production orders and custom orders. financial measures include revenue from performance, investment interest rate, and residual interest (warren et al., 2008). 4.0 employee compensation program the employee compensation plan contains policies, procedures, and procedures built into the organization that reward employees for sharing their contributions, skills, abilities, and market value. the employee compensation system provides benefits in procedures, procedures, frameworks, and procedures that provide and maintain appropriate forms and levels of remuneration, benefits, and other forms of compensation. compensation schemes include monetary compensation (fixed and flexible compensation) and employee benefits, including the total amount of compensation. the award system to support staff re-employment is an appropriate mechanism but is still a practical management approach. the move to bring financial and non-financial rewards to individuals and groups that develop new ideas is crucial for organizations. however, it is equally important to avoid punishing intelligence when it does not succeed in establishing the most successful. properly distributed, an award-winning program can create an attractive atmosphere for an organization. managers in this province should consider that potential candidates can be used for various companies. the effective compensation plan aims to increase competition with other companies seeking specific skills and abilities particularly prominent in future candidates. according to warren, carl, james duchac, and jonathan (2008), business leaders can create a reward system to reduce absenteeism by combining bonuses with travel rates. financial rewards incentive management rewards can be famous for helping employees complete a project or task. the number of companies distributing cash prizes is increasing, but only 7% use revenues. big companies use financial compensation schemes to motivate their employees. 5.0 conclusion the first conclusion reached is that employees can be encouraged to do good work in the organization, which is an essential management function. there seems to be a self-serving cycle between employee performance, satisfaction, and motivation. employees get better performance, european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 18 29, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 27 which creates inner satisfaction, and employees are encouraged to continue working in the future. it is said that high performance can be achieved if an organization meets specific performance criteria. second, it has been found that employees are encouraged to perform both internally and externally at the same time very efficiently. many activities are promoted internally and externally (amabile, 1993). in conclusion, it can be argued that internal factors may or may not be a factor in motivating employees for longer than external factors. many researchers argue that enhancing external factors alone does not improve performance. research shows that in order to motivate employees, organizations need to value five aspects of work. on the other hand, organizations need to commit to their managers, colleagues, salaries, and employment security to motivate outside workers. the supervisor needs to provide all aspects of the job, as this provides a way for maximum performance of employees. however, it is necessary to argue that this relationship does not end. the employee is not happy with how he or she is working as usual, or one of the three levels of mental functioning may no longer be available. therefore, organizations should ensure that their profits are constantly changing. it is now possible to argue that there are many ways to improve the performance of employees within an organization (e.g., diversity, leadership). therefore, managers should not focus only on motivation. it can be concluded that the most important factors can significantly improve the workforce's productivity. 6.0 recommendations employee motivation is not easy to measure. however, there are three common ways that companies can use: first, we can use performance evaluation. not only can this help you motivate your employees, but it can also be a good indicator. poor performance reviews can be a strong indicator of low employee motivation and engagement. once poor performance has been identified, employers should work to identify the cause of low motivation levels. the second important consideration will be employee motivation and engagement surveys. surveys are one of the most popular ways to measure employee motivation. however, employers should be very careful when choosing survey questions. it is extremely important that employee engagement surveys be anonymous. in addition, it is good to use a combination of different types of questions such as openended and scaled questions. finally, there is customer satisfaction. it usually depends on employee satisfaction. in addition, satisfied employees are more motivated and committed employees. therefore, measuring customer satisfaction helps determine the level of employee motivation. it is especially true when employees are in direct contact with customers. this technique is commonly used by salespeople and has been successful with customers. to motivate your employees, you must truly understand what motivates them. according to maslow's hierarchy of needs theory, motivation results from a person's efforts to meet five basic needs: physiological, safety, social, self-esteem, and self-actualization. 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(2005). self-determination theory and work motivation. journal of organizational behavior, volume-26, issue-4, pages 331 – 362. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.322, 19. staw, b.m. (1976). intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. morristown, nj; general learning press. 20. d. ramona bobocel, aaron c. kay, mark p. zanna, james m. olson. the psychology of justice and legitimacy (2016). https://www.routledge.com/the-psychology-of-justice-andlegitimacy/bobocel-kay-zanna-olson/p/book/9781138984134 21. warren, carl s. reeve, james m. duchac, jonathan (2008). managerial accounting. cengage learning, inc. https://industri.fatek.unpatti.ac.id/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/277managerial-accounting-carl-s.-warren-james-m.-reeve-jonathan-duchac-edisi-10-2009.pdf 22. kendra c. (2021). what is extrinsic motivation? verywellmind.com https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-extrinsic-motivation-2795164. https://www.researchgate.net/journal/journal-of-organizational-behavior-1099-1379 https://doi.org/10.1002/job.322 https://www.routledge.com/the-psychology-of-justice-and-legitimacy/bobocel-kay-zanna-olson/p/book/9781138984134 https://www.routledge.com/the-psychology-of-justice-and-legitimacy/bobocel-kay-zanna-olson/p/book/9781138984134 https://industri.fatek.unpatti.ac.id/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/277-managerial-accounting-carl-s.-warren-james-m.-reeve-jonathan-duchac-edisi-10-2009.pdf https://industri.fatek.unpatti.ac.id/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/277-managerial-accounting-carl-s.-warren-james-m.-reeve-jonathan-duchac-edisi-10-2009.pdf https://www.verywellmind.com/kendra-cherry-2794702 https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-extrinsic-motivation-2795164. quality of messages on employee engagement in technical training institutions in kenya margaret ngugi, hellen mberia, and kyalo wa ngula european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 30 quality of messages on employee engagement in technical training institutions in kenya margaret ngugi1*, prof. hellen mberia1, and dr. kyalo wa ngula2 1jomo kenyatta university of agriculture and technology kenya. 2chuka university kenya. *corresponding author’s email: mnjokius@yahoo.com absract purpose: the purpose of this research was to establish the effect of quality of messages on employee engagement in technical training institutions in kenya. methodology: the study was conducted using survey research design. study population was all the 3780 trainers in the 102 technical institutions in kenya out of which a sample of 360 respondents was used. stratified random sampling, random sampling and stratified proportionate random sampling technique design were employed. data was collected using a questionnaire which had both closed-ended (likert type scale 1-5) questions and open ended questions. questionnaires were distributed to 360 respondents out of which 322 completed the questionnaires giving a response rate of 89.4%. cronbach’s alpha was used to test for internal reliability of each variable used in the study. data analysis was done by use of descriptive and inferential statistics. findings: the findings of the study supported that quality of messages has a significant effect on employee engagement and hence, it is a predictor of employee engagement among the trainers of technical institutions in kenya. recommendation: this study recommends that there is need to improve the quality of messages as it significantly affects employee engagement in technical training institutions in kenya. this can be done by ensuring that the messages are timely, accurate, adequate and complete. keywords: accuracy, adequacy, completeness, employee engagement, message quality technical training institutions mailto:mnjokius@yahoo.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 31 1.0 introduction communication process assumes a critical role in the progress of any organization. communication should be current and received when needed, be reliable and correct, sufficient to accomplish tasks and comprehensive and not lacking any significant information. every organization and in particular educational institutions at the tertiary level needs effective internal communication to succeed. however, management of many organizations appears not to reckon with the significance of communication in their systems. bua (2014) opined that the success or failure of the teaching and learning process depends largely on the way and manner in which the communication process is initiated, developed and maintained in educational institutions. in kenya engaging and enthusing the trainers has been a challenge. according to koome (2014), there has been high academic staff turnover in technical training institutions in kenya. high turnover is generally associated with poor or lack of effective internal communication (ashfaq , et al, 2012). again, antony, et al, 2016, noted that many technical training institutions have little financial power to buy modern management information systems to use in the daily operation and management of activities. they acknowledged that the problem has led to slow advancement of both structural, human resource and technological developments that these institutions experience. technical expertise forms the basis for the actualization of industrial transformation and a meaningful pursuit for kenya’s vision 2030. in spite of this, technical education has been given “casual” treatment since independence to date (oroni, 2012). research in these institutions has mainly concentrated on students’ issues like choice of courses, enrolment, gender disparity, training, physical facilities, learning facilities and students discipline among others (njoroge, 2015). simiyu (2009) in a study of kaiboi technical institute noted that the managers of technical institutions ought to apply contemporary approaches in personnel management such as open house discussions and feedback mechanism so as motivate their staff and in turn affect the quality of teaching. communication from management should be believable, reliable, clear and timely. this makes the employee to be able to focus on their jobs and improve their performance (welch & jackson, 2007). management and communication within these institutions which are charged with a great responsibility of transforming the country have not been given due attention. based on this backdrop then, the main task of this study was to focus on the effect of the quality of messages on employee engagement in technical institutions in kenya. 2.0 theoretical review the study was informed by social exchange theory (set), media richness theory (mrt) 2.1.1 social exchange theory (set) social exchange theory was used to help us elucidate workplace relationships and employee attitudes (cropanzano & mitchell, 2005). an employee’s wish to return favours toward their organization and their direct supervisor are the result of these relationships (cropanzano & mitchell, 2005). if such relationships exist between trainers in technical training institutions, the government and also trainers’ immediate supervisors, the former will reciprocate through engagement. set gives a theoretical basis to explain why employees choose to become more or less engaged in their work and organization. the social exchange theory is deemed relevant in this study as it postulates that when organizations and supervisors provide assets such as quality european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 32 messages, which is an independent variable in this study, in a way that is perceived to be beneficial, employees will consider the relationship favorably and reciprocate with positive emotions, and behaviors, like engagement. 2.1.2 media richness theory the second theory that this study uses is media richness theory. the theory ranks media on a continuum of richness, or the ability of information to change understanding within a time interval (daft & lengel, 1986). this ability is determined by the medium’s abilities to transmit nonverbal cues, express content in natural language, enable immediate feedback, and enable personalization (daft & lengel, 1986). ). immediate feedback refers to the medium’s capacity for multi-directional communication with little or no time delay. this capability allows a message receiver to have his or her interpretation of a message immediately checked by the message source (daft & lengel, 1986). the media richness theory informed this study as it asserts that a medium can enhance or distort the intended message. 2.2 related literature 2.2.1 communication/message quality communication quality is the extent to which communication is perceived to be timely accurate, adequate and complete. an individual’s perception of the value of the information they receive can be understood through the quality of the message ((maltz, 2000). there are varying opinions regarding the dimensions of communication quality. this study aligns with johlke and duhan’s (2001) conceptualization. employees ought to receive and transmit information as at and when it is needed. the extent to which staffs get communication on organization performance and various topics are imperative for the smooth running of the organization. quality communication is important in achieving organizational effectiveness, employee performance and motivation (maltz, 2000). the information transmitted within the organization needs to be detailed and accurate in order to avoid misunderstanding. if the information is not accurate, it may lead to confusion by the staff which is latter passed on to the customers maiming the image of the organization. communicators in an organization need to warrant that the message communicated is dependable and consistent. upward communication should be complete, understandable and unambiguous, efficient, reliable, timely and accessible, since effective internal communication can also form the reputation of the organization. organization’s image is made of its brand, the product, but also from its employees (bronn, 2015). this study investigated whether the four aspects of communication quality namely: timeliness, accuracy, adequacy, and completeness have an effect on employee engagement. information is only important when it is received the time it is needed. delay of information is failure in communication. it is the duty of the organization to ensure that shared information is delivered in time. the employees need to trust the information transmitted to them for them to execute their duties with confidence. 2.2.2 employee engagement employee engagement is a popular term both in industry as well as in academia (schaufeli & bakker, 2010). in academia, kahn (1990) conceptualized engagement as the harnessing of organization members’ selves to their work roles: in engagement, people employ and express european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 33 themselves physically, cognitively, emotionally and mentally during role performance. employee engagement is multidimensional; engaged employees are emotionally, physically, and cognitively engaged in their daily work (eldor & harpaz, 2015). firstly, the cognitive aspects of work engagement focus on what an employee thinks about the organization and the employee’s experience of absorption and involvement. this implies that employees work employ and express themselves physically, cognitively and emotionally during their role performance (kahn, 1990). secondly, the physical or behavioral component of work engagement focuses on the employee’s involvement in the task and how employees conduct themselves in relation to the organization. lastly, work engagement’s emotional or affective component involves employees’ feelings about their organization by showing commitment and dedication as well as being connected to their job (schaufelli, et al, 2002). based on these three aspects; it is argued that work engagement enables employees to positively associate with their jobs or roles on multiple levels (christian, garza & slaughter, 2011). vigor component has been reported as most crucial for job engagement (demerouti & cropanzano, 2010). vigor is the energy and enthusiasm that the employee brings to the work place; that is characterized by high levels of energy, effort, resilience, persistence, and motivation to invest in their work (kravina, falco, de carlo & andreassen, 2014). the second dimension, dedication is being devoted, inspired and believing work is purposeful or meaningful; it is characterized by involvement in the work, enthusiasm, a sense of pride and inspiration (taris, schaufelli, & shimanzu, 2010). the third dimension, absorption is being immersed in the work to the extent that it is difficult for an employee to leave and time becomes less relevant to the employee; this dimension is characterized by immersion in one’s work and the sense of time passing quickly (bakker et al, 2011). according to bakker, salanova and schaufeli (2006) engaged workers have a sense of energetic and effective connection with their work activities and they know that they can handle their work. work engagement is essential for wellfunctioning organization and it should be developed continually. employee engagement decreases withdrawals, saves costs of separation, replacement and training, improves loyalty towards the organization, and increases organizations success and competitiveness (kataria et al 2013). in a competitive situation or in a change process, engaged employees may be willing to do a bit more than just the required (meyer 2014). hakanen and schaufeli (2012) indicates that one critical outcome of work engagement is employee performance because those employees who are engaged perform better. marelli (2011) argued that employee engagement is associated with a high level of motivation to perform well at work, which is combined with passion for the work and a feeling of personal connection to the team and the organization. this implies that engaged employees will put a lot effort in their work because they identify with it (hakanen & schaufeli, 2012). the benefits of work engagement in organizations are also high productivity and profitability; the customers become more satisfied and loyal, the employees are inclined to experience positive emotions such as, happiness, joy, and enthusiasm (kravina et al., 2014). engaged employees are noted to having lower turnover rates and higher retention (ahmetoglu et al., 2015). engaged employees have also said to perform better and stay longer in the organization because of their investing and dedication to work. engaged employees often do personal initiatives more and their learning motivation is high (aakanksha et al., 2013). in addition they feel empowered, involved, european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 34 emotionally attached and dedicated to the organization, and excited and proud about being a part of it (mishra, boynton & mishra 2014). 2.2.3 message quality and employee engagement carriere and bourque (2009) surveyed canadian paramedics to determine if there was a link between their organization’s internal communication systems and job satisfactions. their data revealed that there was indeed a significant link. they stated, “internal communication systems that fail to generate communication satisfaction amongst employees will not and foster job satisfaction or affective organizational commitment regardless of the quantity of the information that is transmitted. thus, managers must provide employees with timely and highly valued information” (carriere & bourque, 2009). according to an academic research conducted through in-depth interviews with 32 senior human resources managers, the skill of maintaining clarity and consistency of messages was rated as having the utmost importance (bambacas & patrickson, 2013). communication from management should be believable, reliable, clear and timely. this makes the employee to be able to focus on their jobs and improve their performance (welch & jackson, 2007). johlke and dunhan (2001) conducted a study where the perception of communication quality was used as an intervening variable between sales manager and salesperson communication and individual-level job outcomes. their study found a positive relationship between communication practices and perceptions of communication quality which, in turn, were significantly associated with communication satisfaction and organizational commitment. moreover, maltz (2000) conducted an empirical study based on a survey of 504 marketing managers and found perceived information quality to be an outcome of communication frequency and communication mode. in another study, 598 fulltime employees were surveyed on their perceptions of organizational communication. the results revealed that rich media (face-to-face) was more related to satisfaction in perceived quality of information from their direct leader. also, trust in top management was positively related to perceived quality of information (bryne & lemay 2006). 3.0 methodology 3.1.1 research design survey research design adopted in this study provides a quantitative description of trends, attitudes or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population. the design entails the collection of data on more than one case and at a single point in time in order to collect a body of quantitative data in connection with two or more variables which are examined to detect patterns of association (fowler, 2009). the survey research design was found to be appropriate in the study since the researcher was studying a sample in order to make generalizations about the target population. moreover, the design was suitable because it enabled the researcher to make quantitative descriptions of the opinions of the population. the independent variable was message quality while the dependent variable was employee engagement. the study was conducted in public technical training institutions in kenya. the selection criterion for the study was because all government institutions share the same organization structure. in addition, the government employs trainers which clearly show harmony in all the government institutions. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 35 3.1.2 the study population the study population was all the 3780 trainers in 102 public technical institutions in kenya (teachers service commission, 2018). the respondents were both male and female trainers. trainers were chosen for the study since they are the main employees expected to provide information out of experience and understanding. they are also a suitable population of study due to their accessibility in different counties. technical training institutions were chosen in this research because of the key role they are expected to play in the realization of vision 2030. in this study, the sample population was derived from the 102 public technical institutions in kenya. (gay, 1992) recommends a minimum sample of 20% in this study the researcher used 30%, and as such, the researcher used 30 institutions. 3.1.3. sampling technique this study adopted stratified random sampling technique where the researcher used the eight administrative regions (strata) in kenya. simple random technique was then used so as to draw samples from each stratum. simple random technique ensured that all the institutions had an equal and independent chance of being selected. stratified proportionate random sampling technique was then used so as to ensure there is proportional allocation where each stratum( region) contributes to the sample a number of tvets institutions that is proportional to the number of the institutions in that region. 3.1.4 sample size a sample size of 360 respondents (trainers) was obtained using slovin’s formula of an infinite population which in this case is 3780 the total population of trainers in public technical institutions in kenya. 3.1.5 research instrument a self-administered structured questionnaire was used, to ensure the researcher maximizes on response rate. gillham (2013) noted that the use of questionnaires is advantageous in a number of ways including efficiency, standardized responses and ease of analysis of the data there in. a 5point likert scale questionnaire was the major instrument of data collection for the study. likertscales are prevalent in social science research as they gain more statistically significant results (cooper & schindler, 2008). 4.1 analysis and discussion of the findings 4.1.2 descriptive analysis of message quality this subsection sought to investigate the effect of message quality on employee engagement. it sought to find out whether the quality of messages received from the immediate supervisors affected the engagement of trainers in technical training institutions in kenya. message quality was conceptualized into four components: timeliness, accuracy, adequacy, completeness. responses on the message quality are shown in table 1. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 36 table 1: descriptive statistics for items of message quality strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree mean sd % % % % % staffs in this institute get more committed because the leaders listen and address their issues promptly 12.7 12.4 17.4 37.6 19.9 3.39 1.286 accurate information from my immediate supervisor helps me get dedicated in meeting my goals 5.0 7.8 14.0 46.6 26.7 3.82 1.066 communication at my work place keeps me up to date with what i need to know 5.9 8.4 8.1 47.2 30.4 3.88 1.114 having access to all information i need about my expectations make me feel energetic in my work 4.0 7.1 15.5 47.2 26.1 3.84 1.021 clear and consistent messages within the department make me committed to my work 4.0 6.8 13.4 45.7 30.1 3.91 1.033 the results established that accurate information from immediate supervisors helped the employees to get dedicated in meeting their goals and those of the institutions (m=3.82, sd=1.066). secondly, communication at the institutions keeps the employees up to date with what they needed to know (m=3.88, sd=1.114), having access to all information by the employees about their expectations made them feel energetic at their work (m=3.84, sd=1.021). trainers in the technical institutes were neither sure whether they were more committed or not because their leaders listened and addressed their issues promptly (m=3.39, sd=1.286). overall, the results show that the institutions made an effort to improve on the quality of messages that is, the messages were timely, adequate, complete and clear. the quality of messages also affected their engagement. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 37 table 2: overall satisfaction with the level of quality of messages received very satisfied satisfied neutral dissatisfied very dissatisfied mean sd % % % % % how satisfied are you with the quality of messages you receive from your supervisor 23.6 59.0 12.4 3.1 1.9 2.01 0.809 overall, the participants were satisfied with the level of quality of messages received from supervisors (m=2.01, sd=0.809). 23.6% were very satisfied, 59.0% were satisfied 5% were dissatisfied while 12.4% were neutral. these findings were interpreted to mean that supervisors made efforts to ensure that employees received quality communication. 4.1.3 descriptive statistics on the suggestions to improve communication level in the institutions the respondents were asked to suggest ways in which the institutions would improve the level of communication and the results were presented in table 3. table 3: suggestions to improve communication level in the institutions item frequency percent more accessible notice boards 3 1.76 all consumer of information should be encouraged to embrace social media 5 2.94 am satisfied with the current method 2 1.18 adoption of a variety of communication methods 32 18.82 clarity of message being passed 12 7.06 frequent and timely communication among employees and their supervisors 29 17.06 supervisors and the management should take feedback more seriously 18 10.59 a communication secretary to be hired 9 5.29 avail sufficient resources such as wi-fi to ease communication on online platforms 21 12.35 face to face and written communications be adopted for official communication 12 7.06 for official communication face to face should be avoided 15 8.82 immediate communication and feedback as soon as the need arises 12 7.06 total 170 100.0 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 38 majority stated that the institutions should adopt and utilize a variety of communication methods for official communications (18.82%) and that; they should make more frequent and timely communication among employees and their supervisors (17.06%). other reasons stated were provision of more accessible notice boards (1.76%), all consumer of information should be encouraged to embrace social media (2.94%), clarity of message being passed (7.06%), supervisors and the management should take feedback more seriously (10.59), hiring a communication secretary and other employees in the communication and ict departments (5.29%), avail sufficient resources such as wi-fi to ease communication on online platforms (12.35%), face to face and written communications be adopted for official communication (7.06), adoption of face to face method for official communication (8.82%) and lastly, immediate communication and feedback as soon as the need arises (7.06%). 1.18% of the respondents indicated that they were satisfied with the current method. these results show internal communication is a pertinent issue in technical institutions and it requires attention. these results concur with those of hargie, tourish, and wilson, (2000) who suggested that managers need to assess whether their communication channels are currently functioning in support of the organizational success. managers must start to believe the importance of internal communication. the respondents were also asked to indicate whether they were aware of recent academic activities in their institutions and the results are as presented in table 4. table 4: respondents’ awareness of recent academic activities in their institutions frequency percent cumulative percent yes 291 90.7 90.7 no 30 9.3 100.0 total 321 100.0 according to study results in table 4.4, 90.7% of the study participants indicated that they were aware of recent academic activities in their institutions and only 9.3% indicated that they were not aware. this implies that an effort is made to communicate in these institutions. correlation analysis table 5: correlation analysis employee engagement message quality employee engagement pearson correlation 1 .388** sig. (2-tailed) .000 n 322 322 message quality pearson correlation .388** -.303** 1 sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 n 322 321 322 from the results, it was observed that there was a positive significant moderate linear relationship between message quality and employee engagement, r = 0.388, p = <0.001;. this was signposted european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 39 by significant probability value found to be less than 0.05 at 95% confidence level. therefore, from the result of the independent variable of message quality was a significant factor to be considered for employee engagement. 4.1.4 effect of message quality on employee engagement a simple logistic regression was performed where employee engagement was used as the response variable while message quality was taken to be the explanatory variable. to assess the effect of message quality on employee engagement the following hypothesis was tested: h02: there is no significant effect of message quality on employee engagement in technical institutions in kenya logistic regression analysis was used to find out if there is a relationship between message quality and the dependent variable (employee engagement) by evaluating the contribution of the independent variable in explaining the dependent variable, when the other variables are controlled. table 6: logistic regression model of message quality and employee engagement b s.e. wald df sig. exp (b) 95% c.i for exp (b) lower upper message quality 1.173 .223 27.575 1 .000 3.232 2.086 5.007 constant -1.506 .687 4.807 1 .028 .222 number of observations 322 nagelkerke r2 0.182 wald chi (1) f statistic 27.575 prob>chi= 0.000 -2 log likelihood 175.252 the logistic model equation is as follows: 𝐿𝑁 ( 𝑝 1−𝑝 ) = −1.506 + 1.173 𝑋2 where: 𝐿𝑁 ( 𝑝 1−𝑝 ) is the natural log of the odds of employee engagement (the dependent variable) and x2 is the message quality (independent variable) the analysis of the variance (anova) results is showed by wald chi (1) statistic, which indicated a test statistic value of 27.575 and a probability value of 0.000 (p<0.01). the reported p value (p<0.01) was found to be less than the probability that 2p (z > z*) = α (level of significance) which was 0.05 (α=0.05). therefore, there was sufficient evidence to reject the claim that the overall model was not statistically significant. message quality as the independent variable was found to be statistically significant in predicting employee engagement. further, the logistic regression coefficients shows that message quality influenced employee engagement and in a significant and a positive way (β=1.173, p= <0.01). this implies that message quality is a significant predictor of employee engagement. in addition, the results from the european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 40 regression model imply that an additional unit of message quality increases the log of odds of employment engagement by 1.173 points holding other factors constant. further, a scatter diagram was plotted to show how communication quality and employee engagement related. figure 1: a scatter diagram for the relationship between message quality and employee engagement therefore, from the results, it can be concluded that there was sufficient evidence to reject the null hypothesis and conclude that there was a significant effect of message quality on employee engagement in technical training institutions in kenya. this was in line with studies conducted by johlke and dunhan (2001) where the perception of communication quality was used as an intervening variable between sales manager and salesperson communication and individual-level job outcomes. their study found a positive relationship between communication practices and perceptions of communication quality which, in turn, were significantly associated with communication satisfaction and organizational commitment. 5.0 conclusions message quality had a nagelkerke r2 value of 0.182. this means that message quality was found to explain 18.2% of the variation or change in employee engagement in the technical institutions. the analysis of the variance (anova) results is showed by wald chi (1) statistic, which indicated a test statistic value of 27.575 and a probability value of 0.000 (p<0.01). the reported p value (p<0.01) was found to be less than the probability that 2p (z > z*) = α (level of significance) which was 0.05 (α=0.05). therefore, there was sufficient evidence to reject the claim that the overall model was not statistically significant. message quality as the independent variable was found to be statistically significant in predicting employee engagement. further, the logistic regression coefficients shows that message quality influenced employee engagement and in a significant and european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 30 43, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 41 a positive way (β=1.173, p= <0.01). this implies that message quality is a significant predictor of employee engagement. in addition, the results from the regression model imply that an additional unit of message quality increases the log of odds of employment engagement by 1.173 points holding other factors constant. message quality as the independent variable was found to be statistically significant in predicting employee engagement. further, the logistic regression coefficients shows that message quality influenced employee engagement and in a significant and a positive way (β=1.173, p= <0.01). this implies that message quality is a significant predictor of employee engagement. therefore, from the results, it was concluded that there was a significant effect of message quality on employee engagement in technical training institutions in kenya. this was in line with a study conducted by johlke and dunhan (2001) where the perception of communication quality was used as an intervening variable between sales manager and salesperson communication and individual-level job outcomes. their study found a positive relationship between communication practices and perceptions of communication quality which, in turn, were significantly associated with communication satisfaction and organizational commitment. therefore, the current study recommends that there is need to improve the quality of messages in technical training institutions in kenya as it significantly affects employee engagement this can be done by ensuring that the messages are timely, accurate, adequate and complete. reference aakanksha, k., renu, r. & pooja, g. 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(2007).rethinking internal communication: a stakeholder approach, 12(2), 177-198.http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/135632807 0 impact of performance evaluation on employees’ productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria odunayo, h. a. phd european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 1 impact of performance evaluation on employees’ productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria odunayo, h. a. phd lagos state university of education, oto-ijanikin, lagos, nigeria email: adewaleodunayo26@gmail.com abstract purpose: performance evaluation is an element of performance management which is planned to increase productivity and provides an opportunity to continuously review business objectives. some researchers have indicated that many managers felt that performance evaluation did not add value or help achieve business objectives while many workers found it a bother. in nigeria, performance evaluation has been embraced by both the public and private sectors as a tool for performance improvement. the assessment of its effectiveness, however, has been hampered. this study sought to determine the effect of performance evaluation on employee productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state. methodology: the study adopts survey research design. the population of this study consist of 192 employees of two selected deposit money banks in lagos state. the study adopted total enumeration method in determining the sample size. the study collected primary data with the help of questionnaire. data was collected from respondents using a structured questionnaire. ordinary least square regression model was used to assess the nature and degree of relationship between dependent variable and independent variables. findings: findings from the study indicated that the use of performance appraisal has significant effect on employee productivity. specifically, findings revealed that managerial review and peer review have significant effect and enhanced employee productivity. recommendation: the study recommends that management should adopt successful management styles which involve building teams, networks of relationships, and developing and motivating others which would instil skills to the employees and which have a critical role in improving the level of productivity of the employees. keywords: performance evaluation, employee productivity, banks, managerial review, peer review mailto:adewaleodunayo26@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 2 1. introduction employees have long been seen as essential contributions to an organization's growth and productivity. their productivity is crucial in ensuring that businesses progress from one level to the next. despite this important contribution, staff productivity has recently been dropping in several organizations. employees in nigerian banks exhibit low levels of satisfaction, declining performance, low efficiency, and poor service quality as a result of this. as a result, these factors influenced the study's design. employee productivity has piqued the curiosity of researchers around the world, as well as company stakeholders. as a result of the covid 19 pandemic, employee productivity has decreased in the united states (quade, mclarty, & bonner, 2020). as a result of the lockdown, which has damaged practically every industry in the united states, including the financial sector, workers are no longer displaying passion and vitality on the job, which has become a subject of concern. before the resumption of a national (partial) lockdown in early november 2020, unemployment in europe, particularly germany, had soared by 25% from the previous year. as evidenced by the banking sector, germany experienced issues with employee efficiency prior to the covid 19 concerns (eichhorst, marx, & rinne, 2020). however, this increase has not been accompanied by a commensurate fall in pay, which is certainly due to the considerable expansion of short-term jobs. employee productivity is also a concern for african banks, due to a variety of circumstances. tanzanian deposit money institutions, in particular, have adopted a variety of techniques to boost employee productivity, yet it continues to fall (msisiri & juma, 2017). despite these strategies and programs, finding desirable employees continues to be difficult. this could mean that the work culture and climate of these banks aren't well understood, or that they need to be changed to the tanzanian context. despite the crucial role that banks play in bostwana, these institutions have encountered severe issues in terms of employee outcomes, with at least 60% of them failing to attain the required level of dedication and engagement at work (made, 2018) despite the critical role that employees play in increasing the performance and productivity of botswana's businesses, research has revealed that their ultimate productivity levels are influenced by a number of factors. furthermore, research reveal that low employee satisfaction, declining dedication, and a lack of interest in extra-role activities are causing poor employee results in ghanaian organizations. (marina, 2018). organizations have been unable to attain better levels of efficiency as a result of these problems, particularly in the area of employee results (majama & magang, 2017). in nigeria, there has been a drop in staff productivity resulted in an 85 percent turnover rate among bank employees (eromafuru & aigboimian, 2020), and work discontent among bank staff have been blame for poorer productivity and profitability (madu, 2019). banks in nigeria are attempting to achieve a balance between employee satisfaction and corporate social responsibility. as a result, unwholesome attitudes among bank personnel and poor customer relations are common problems in nigerian banks (john, & kelechi, 2020). according to ololade et al., (2018), performance evaluation can lead to job discontent and the development of negative employee attitudes toward their firm, resulting in poorer productivity. if the appraisal technique is badly planned or implemented, it may have a detrimental impact on motivation, role perceptions, and turnover. most performance evaluation exercises programs in nigeria are poorly organized and focused, as some organizational management views them as a punitive measure, as may be the case with a few deposit money institutions in lagos state. performance evaluation that requires managers to grade employees on subjective european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 3 criteria like customer service skills or leadership capacity lack precise outcomes that can be used as a foundation for quantitative outcomes. with this in mind, the purpose of this study was to assess the effect of performance evaluation on worker productivity at a number of deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. studies have been carried out on performance evaluation and employee productivity in different organisations, countries and also in different contexts but it has not been established the extent to which performance evaluation improve employee productivity in the banking sector of the country (mwema & gachunga, 2014; qamar & asif, 2016, chang, & tsai, 2016). the issue of worker’s productivity has suffered from a high level of neglect because of poor worker’s output, worker’s efficiency and worker’s commitment and this is as a result of the lack of performance evaluation of workers in the organizations (gerhart & milkovich, 2016). the level of worker’s productivity in nigerian banking sector has been on the decline over the years and this could be ascribed to poor performance evaluation strategies put in place by these deposit money banks. also, there is a lack of universally accepted appraisal system applied by every firm and that is a problem in itself. this research is, however, conducted to fill this gap by examining the extent to which performance evaluation impacts worker’s productivity of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. 2. literature review 2.1 performance evaluation performance evaluation is a process by which the job performance of a worker is documented and evaluated (muchinsky & marchese, 2016). it is a very methodical and periodic procedure which measures individual worker job performance and efficiency in relation to pre-established criteria and objectives (abu-doleh & weir, 2017; manasa & reddy, 2019). also, performance evaluation is a review based upon an individual’s job performance and assigned duties; it involves a supervisor typically looking at an employee’s skills and accomplishments during a specific time period and tracking whether the employee has lived up to expectations, exceeded them, or failed to meet desired results (villanova, 2021). dessler (2017) state that an effective appraisal also requires that the supervisor set performance standards and it requires that employees receive the training, feedback, and incentives required to eliminate performance deficiencies. the purpose of an employee evaluation is to measure job performance and many evaluations provide quantitative measurements essential for a production-oriented work environment (mayhew, 2019). gerber (2020) opines that the most important points to consider when evaluating a team member includes; level of execution, quality of work, level of creativity, amount of consistent improvement, customer and peer feedback, sales revenue generated, responsiveness to feedback, ability to take ownership, percentage of tasks completed on time and being on time and on budget. in this study, performance evaluation is divided into three dimensions and they are; self-appraisal, managerial review, customer review, and peer review. self-appraisal self-appraisal is an act of evaluating one's own worth, significance, or status and the use of self-appraisal as a performance information basis is an established practice in which people are regularly called upon in their daily lives to provide information about their own behaviour. the ultimate objective of the self-appraisal process is to ensure that the employee and the management team are on the same page regarding the employee’s performance (sprigg, 2021). however, many employees fall into the trap of thinking of the self-appraisal process as an european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 4 opportunity to widen the scope of evaluations and go overboard when citing their own accomplishments. furthermore, a good, thorough self-appraisal is one in which you are able to highlight your positives but also honestly mention your points of weaknesses too and the self is an ever-present observer of one’s activities and research showed that self-appraisals of performance tend to be more lenient than either managerial or peer appraisals (landy & farr, 2020). moreover, information is available to suggest that the intended purpose of a selfappraisal may influence the degree to which clemency exists. self-appraisal process paves way for two-way communication between employer and employee. this helps in revealing the overall performance of employees and it gives deeper insights and a clear picture of employees’ accomplishments as well as weaknesses in certain areas. according to thompson (2021), the benefits of the self-appraisal process to the employees include it helps them; feel more engaged in the appraisal process, gain greater insights and set future goals for improvement, feel more confident about their abilities., enhance capacity building (learn to make corrections quickly), select training programs that are most suited to needs, develop an inquiring mind for problem solving, become more accountable., feel more valued, feel more motivated to learn new skills. importantly, when employees feel heard through the self-evaluation process, they are more likely to listen to feedback from their managers and the appraisal process becomes much more of a two-way discussion when it revolves around regular self-evaluation (thompson, 2021). managerial review management review is the routine assessment of whether management systems are performing as intended and producing the desired results as competently as possible and it is the due diligence review by management that fills the gap between daily work activities and periodic formal audits. for most companies with employees today, performance reviews are an important –and in many cases, necessary aspect of doing business and while the words “managerial review” often elicit a negative reaction from the team, the fact is that performance reviews don’t need to be a frustrating, or stressful process because when implemented as part of an ongoing process and done regularly, they won’t catch your team by surprise or cause them to think that you’re holding a review in an attempt to crack down on them for a specific issue (czerwonka, 2021). furthermore, in order to stay competitive, it’s important to ensure that your systems are allowing your company to operate as smoothly and efficiently as possible and to evaluate and measure performance on an individual level as well; since your managers’ performance will have an impact on the company’s profitability as well as the performance of the entire team. customer review baker (2020) defines a customer review as a written reflection of a customer's experience with and feedback on your company’s products or services and consumers use customer reviews during the purchasing process to understand how your product works and if it’s worth the investment. a customer review is a review of a product and service made by a customer who has purchased and used, or had experience with, the product or service. customer review is a form of customer feedback on electronic commerce and online shopping sites. when consumers search for online customer reviews of a given product, they often encounter reviews for preceding generations in the similar product series. in many cases, the previous generation is available for purchase in the new product market, making these reviews a source of information about both the current generation and an optional choice in the form of the previous european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 5 generation (krishnan & ramachandran, 2019; borkovsky 2017). reviews not only have the power to influence consumer decisions but can strengthen a company’s credibility (anderson, 2018). furthermore, reviews have the power to gain customer trust, and they encourage people to interact with the company. peer review peer review is a process used by management team in different organizations to check on the performance of those in an organization (ahmed, 2020). it is the actions of checking the work performed by one's equals (peers) in an organizational setting to ensure it meets specific criteria and the standards are set by the management or are stated in the organizational policy manual. ahmed and palermo (2020) posited that peer review play important role in development of soft-wares through development of codes where groups of coders will convene meetings and read thoroughly through code systematically in between lines to identify the errors. in general, peers help in verification of whether the work is satisfactory to the specified review and it also helps in detection of deviations from the set standards and provides suggestions for improvements. furthermore, peer review entails one employee evaluating the evaluation of tasks done by another employee of the same competence (mcgowan, sampson and lefebvre, 2020). peer performance reviews are when those who work most closely with you on day-to-day tasks review your performance (rather than managers who have more of a high-level, bird’s-eye view). in peer review, teammates, colleagues, and peers are anonymously asked to provide input on specific aspects of an individual’s performance (caruso, 2014). workers productivity workers productivity is defined as the capacity of a employee/worker to create quality outputs with inadequate inputs. it was further suggested that one of the major components that affects the profitability of an organization is worker productivity as it determines the level of production that needs to be reported by the organization with its degree of inputs. organizations are worried on how they can best maintain a sustainable performance and achieve best results from their workers by exploring on the best alternative solutions to engage, develop teamwork and encourage employees to give their best input in what they work in (walters, 2015). furthermore, not only financial rewards are deemed the best motivator towards enhanced employee productivity but also non-financial incentives. productivity benefits are obvious and widely felt when implemented in a business environment and these benefits include; increasing profitability, lowering operational costs, optimizing resources, improving customer service, seizing the opportunity for growth, reducing waste and environmental impact, improving competitiveness, reducing employee burnout, enhancing wellbeing, improving morale and increasing engagement (conlon, 2018). also, being productive in the workplace is an essential part of the business in the organization and at the end of every working hour; the workers should produce and deliver quality outputs. however, when a crisis arises like the state of the covid 19 pandemic, this might vary. furthermore, research by tetteh and attiogbe (2019) found that schooling and working at the same time results in less time for studies which affects academic performance negatively. battaglio and french (2016) found in their study that the effect of organizational factors showed higher levels of self-sacrifice. negative approaches also affect productivity as posited by siltala, (2019) that neglecting basic work affects the sense of self-efficacy of the workers which can affect the organization in several ways. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 6 2.2 theoretical framework this study was anchored on resource based view. the reason for using this theory is that it shows the relationship between environmental factors and employee performance. it shows how the environmental factors in an organization can led to the negativity or positivity of employee’s performance. barney (1991), suggests that the position of strategic resources provides an organization with a golden opportunity to develop a competitive advantage over its rival; this competitive advantage, in turn, can help organizations enjoy strong profits, particularly over time; and this theory also combines concepts from organizational economics and strategic management. two main assumptions underpinned the resource based view. the first assumption is that skills, capabilities and other resources that organizations possess differ from one company to another. if companies would have the same amount and mix of resources, they could not employ different strategies to outcompete each other, what one company would do, the other could simply follow and no competitive advantage would be achieved (ovidijus, 2021). the second assumption of resource based view is that resources are not mobile and do not move from company to company at least in the short run, due to this companies cannot replicate rivals’ resources and implement the same strategies (ovidijus, 2021). the supporters of this view argue that organizations should look inside organizations should look inside the company to find the sources of competitive advantage instead of looking at competitive environment for it. truijens (2013) feel the advantages of resource-based view outweigh the disadvantages and that with minor modifications to the theory; it will uphold its historical advantage over other theories and continue to contribute to the advancement of research in other disciplines such as project management. barney’s resource-based view reflects the fact that rival organizations may not perform at a level that could be identified as considerable competition for the organization’s that have been well established in the market because they do not possess the required resources to perform at a level that creates a threat and competition. an organization should exploit existing business opportunities using the present resources while generating and developing a new set of resources to sustain its competitiveness in the future market environments; hence, an organization should be engaged in resource management. there is always high uncertainty in the environment and for organizations to survive and stay ahead of competition, new resources become highly necessary. crook, (2008) strategic planning process will give the organization the needed opportunity to analyze the environment effectively and be able to prepare for any eventuality that may affect the plans therefore negatively affecting the performance of the organization. 2.3 empirical review bassett and meyer (2021) investigated a self-rating appraisal process at general electric company (ge) in which only workers completed performance evaluation forms and the subsequent discussion between managers and their subordinates was based only on the subordinates’ self-appraisals. this was compared with ge’s traditional supervisor appraisal approach and the results indicated that (1) the self-appraisals were judged more satisfying and constructive by the supervisors than the traditional supervisor-prepared performance interviews, (2) there was less subordinate defensiveness regarding appraisals, (3) discussions based on self-appraisals more often resulted in future superior job performance than did traditional supervisor appraisals, and (4) low-rated subordinates were especially likely to show european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 7 improvement in performance after a self-review discussion. additionally, researchers have noted several possible advantages that may result from incorporating self-appraisals into traditional performance appraisal processes as reported by (carroll & schneier, 2019). ochidi and suleiman (2019) examined the effect of performance appraisal on employees’ performance of selected deposit money banks in lokoja. the study established that appraisal techniques have a significant effect on employees’ productivity in selected deposit money banks in lokoja, kogi state. also, appraisal feedback system has a significant effect on employees’ productivity in selected deposit money banks in lokoja, kogi state. the conclusion of the study showed that performance appraisal techniques must be designed by the management of the deposit money banks in lokoja, kogi state with inputs from employees’ representatives in order to make them more objectives. in addition, wagacha and maende, (2017) examined the relationship between performance appraisal systems and employee productivity in commercial banks in nairobi county, kenya. the study revealed that employees in commercial banks in kenya were appraised by personnel in higher ranking positions than them. it was also established that performance appraisal problems are dealt with as they arise. in addition, most employees in the banking sector have a positive attitude towards performance appraisals since they create job confidence and this maximizes output. the study concluded that performance appraisals are largely a success in commercial banks in kenya. oshode, alade, and arogundade (2014) explored performance appraisal in the nigerian banking sector using individual and joint variables analyses. the study revealed that sound management of performance appraisal system will guarantee good employee productivity. it was also found that a very good performance appraisal system will explain 70% of degree of changes in employees’ productivity. likewise, nnamani, yusuf, and shuaibu (2022) explored the effect of performance appraisal on employee productivity at federal secretariat abuja. the results revealed that that the use of performance appraisal has significant effect on employee productivity and performance. the study therefore recommends that multiple appraisal method should be introduced to further encourage objectivity and eliminate biasedness in the appraisal of employees and employee feedback method of performance appraisal should be a prerequisite for the directors as this will assist supervisors and employees to discuss weakness, productivity standards and areas of improvement that enhance productivity. in addition, kirai and kisang (2016) examined the effects of performance appraisals on employee motivation at equity bank in kenya. the key finding was that objectivity of performance appraisal and feedback positively influenced employees’ motivation. the study, however, did not explore the link between motivation and employee motivation. based on the mixed findings, this study hypothesizes that: h0: performance evaluation has no significant effect on the employees’ productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. 3. methodology the research adopted a survey research design for the study. the population of this study consist of 192 employees of two selected deposit money banks in lagos state. the population comprised top management staff, middle and lower-level staff. these categories of staff were assessed because they have a role to play in the implementation of performance evaluation on worker’s productivity. guaranty trust bank and first bank nigeria were used as the selected deposit money banks. the study adopted total enumeration method in determining the sample size. the study collected primary data with the help of questionnaire. the questionnaire had european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 8 close ended questions and employs the likert scale methodology. the primary data on the dependent and independent variables were collected using a structured questionnaire, the questionnaire was presented to the respondents under a forwarding letter accompanied an introduction letter of introduction. the reliability of the instrument was determined by internal consistency method using cronbach alpha coefficient. the values obtained were higher than 0.70 alpha benchmark. this confirms that the questionnaire and its variables passed the internal consistency test. data collected from the returned questionnaires were analyze using descriptive statistics and regression analysis. 4. data presentation and analysis the researchers distributed a total of 192 copies of questionnaire to the respondents, out of which 183 copies were rightly filled and returned to the researcher. the response rate of the participants to the questionnaire administered is 95.3%. the high response rate was traced to the data collection method of prior notification of the selected banks, use of research assistants, researcher’s personal follow up calls to clarify issues and prompt the participants to fill and return the research instrument early. the analysis was conducted by using the descriptive statistics and regression analysis. and the results of the analysis are presented in table 1-4. descriptive statistics of performance evaluation criteria table 1: descriptive statistics on self-appraisal items v er y h ig h h ig h m o d er a te ly h ig h m o d er a te ly l o w l o w v er y l o w m is si n g m ea n s ta n d a rd d ev ia ti o n attention to detail 83.1% 15.8% 1.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.82 0.413 good time management 37.2% 48.1% 13.7% 1.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.21 0.714 consistency 56.3% 25.1% 16.4% 2.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.36 0.832 initiative 40.4% 39.9% 18.0% 1.1% 0.5% 0.0% 0.0% 5.19 0.804 timeliness 43.2% 32.2% 18.0% 6.6% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.12 0.93 average 5.34 0.7386 source: researcher’s field survey, 2022 the results in table 1 show the descriptive analysis of respondents’ opinions on self-appraisal and its items. 83.1% of the respondents indicated that attention to detail is very high, 15.8% indicated high and 1.1% indicated moderately high. on average, the respondents indicated that attention to detail is very high with a mean of 5.82 and standard deviation of 0.413. results also indicated that 37.2% of the respondents responded very high to good time management, 48.1% indicated high, 13.7% indicated moderately high and 1.1% indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that expansion into new market is high with a mean of 5.21 and standard deviation of 0.714. also, 56.3% of the respondents indicated that consistency european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 9 is very high in their organization, 25.1% indicated high, 16.4% indicated moderately high and 2.2% indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that consistency in their organization is high with a mean of 5.36 and standard deviation of 0.832. interpreting further, 40.4% of the respondents responded very high to the application of initiative in their organization, 39.9% indicated high, 18.0% indicated moderately high, 1.1% indicated moderately low and 0.5% indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that application of initiative in their organization is high with a mean of 5.19 and standard deviation of 0.804. conclusively, 43.2% of the respondents indicated that timeliness in their organization is very high, 32.2% indicated high, 18.0% indicated moderately high and 6.6% indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that timeliness in their organization is high with a mean of 5.12 and standard deviation of 0.93. the grand mean of 5.34 and a standard deviation of 0.7386 suggest that respondents agree that the extent to which self-appraisal affect worker’s productivity is high and noticeably responses converged around the mean. table 2: descriptive statistics on managerial review items v er y h ig h h ig h m o d er a te l y h ig h m o d er a te l y l o w l o w v er y l o w m is si n g m ea n s ta n d a rd d ev ia ti o n ability to manage employees 79.2% 16.4% 1.6% 2.2% 0.5% 0.0% 0.0% 5.72 0.66 performance feedback 35.5% 53.6% 8.7% 2.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.22 0.695 level of professionalism 41.5% 28.4% 25.7% 3.8% 0.5% 0.0% 0.0% 5.07 0.935 responsiveness 42.1% 38.8% 14.8% 3.8% 0.0% 0.0% 0.5% 5.17 0.913 diligence 36.6% 36.6% 15.8% 8.7% 2.2% 0.0% 0.0% 4.97 1.037 average 5.23 0.848 source: researcher’s field survey, 2022 table 2 depicts the descriptive analysis of respondents’ opinion on managerial review and its items. the table shows that 79.2% of the respondents indicated that ability to manage employees is very high, 16.4% indicated high while 1.6% indicated moderately high, 2.2% indicated moderately low and 0.5% indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that ability to manage employees is very high with a mean of 5.72 and standard deviation of 0.66. results also indicated that 35.5% of respondents responded very high to performance feedback, 53.6% indicated high, while 8.7% indicated moderately high and 2.2% of the respondent indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that performance feedback is high with a mean of 5.22 and standard deviation of 0.695. concerning level of professionalism, 41.5% of the respondents indicated very high, 28.4% indicated high, 25.7% indicated moderately high, about 3.8% of the respondent indicated moderately low and 0.5% indicated european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 10 low. on average, the respondents indicated that the level of professionalism in their organization is high with a mean of 5.07 and standard deviation of 0.935. results also indicated that 42.1% of respondents responded that responsiveness in their organization is very high, 38.8% indicated high, 14. 8% indicated moderately high. on the other hand, about 3.8% indicated moderately low and 0.5% of the responses were missing. on average, the respondents indicated that responsiveness in their organization is high with a mean of 5.17 and standard deviation of 0.913. on a final note, results also indicated that 36.6% of respondents responded very high to diligence in their organization, 36.6% of the respondents likewise indicated high while 15.8% indicated moderately high, about 8.7% of the respondent indicated moderately low and 2.2% indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that diligence in their organization is high with a mean of 4.97 and standard deviation of 1.037. the grand mean of 5.23 and a standard deviation of 0.848 suggest that respondents agree that the level at which managerial review affect worker’s productivity is high and noticeably consensus noticed around the mean. table 3: descriptive statistics on customer review items v er y h ig h h ig h m o d er a te ly h ig h m o d er a te ly l o w l o w v er y l o w m is si n g m ea n s ta n d a rd d ev ia ti o n service delivery 53.0% 30.6% 12.0% 4.4% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.32 0.852 customer relationship 39.3% 39.3% 17.5% 2.7% 1.1% 0.0% 0.0% 5.13 0.873 customer assessment 42.6% 33.3% 19.7% 4.4% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.14 0.884 quality of encounter 45.9% 31.7% 15.8% 6.0% 0.5% 0.0% 0.0% 5.16 0.941 product evaluation 38.3% 36.1% 18.6% 4.4% 2.7% 0.0% 0.0% 5.03 0.997 average 5.156 0.9094 source: researcher’s field survey, 2022 table 3 displays the descriptive analysis of respondents’ opinion on customer review and its items. the table shows that 53.0% of the respondents indicated that service delivery in their organization is very high, 30.6% indicated high while 12.0% indicated moderately high and only 4.4% indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that service delivery in their organization is high with a mean of 5.32 and standard deviation of 0.852. results also indicated that 39.3% of respondents responded very high to customer relationship likewise 39.3% as well indicated high, while 17.5% indicated moderately high, 2.7% of the respondent indicated moderately low and 1.1% of the respondents indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that customer relationship is high in their organization with a mean european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 11 of 5.13 and standard deviation of 0.873. further, on customer assessment, 42.6% of the respondents indicated very high, 33.3% indicated high, while 19.7% indicated moderately high and 4.4% of the respondents indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that customer assessment in their organization is high with a mean of 5.14 and standard deviation of 0.884. in addition, the table above also revealed that 45.9% of the respondents indicated that quality of encounter is very high, 31.7% indicated high, 15.8% indicated moderately high, 6.0% indicated moderately low and 0.5% indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that quality of encounter in their organization is high with a mean of 5.16 and standard deviation of 0.941. also, results indicated that 38.3% of respondents responded very high to product evaluation, 36.1% of the respondents indicated high while 18.6% indicated moderately high, about 4.4% of the respondent indicated moderately low and 2.7% indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that product evaluation in their organization is high with a mean of 5.03 and standard deviation of 0.997. the grand mean of 5.156 and a standard deviation of 0.9094 reveals the respondent’s affirmation that the application of customer review in their organization is high while a convergence around the mean is noticed. table 4: descriptive statistics on peer review item v er y h ig h h ig h m o d er a te ly h ig h m o d er a te ly l o w l o w v er y l o w m is si n g m ea n s ta n d a rd d ev ia ti o n expert assessment 56.3% 27.9% 11.5% 4.4% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.36 0.852 peer assessment 45.4% 39.3% 14.2% 1.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.29 0.747 expert evaluation 45.9% 32.2% 17.5% 3.8% 0.0% 0.0% 0.5% 5.18 0.947 peer appraisal 42.1% 30.6% 21.9% 4.4% 1.1% 0.0% 0.0% 5.08 0.954 evaluating product/services 39.3% 36.6% 15.8% 7.1% 1.1% 0.0% 0.0% 5.06 0.967 average 5.194 0.8934 source: researcher’s field survey, 2022 table 4 explains the descriptive analysis of respondents’ opinion on peer review and its items. the table shows that 56.3% of the respondents indicated that expert assessment is very high, 27.9% indicated high while 11.5% indicated moderately high and 4.4% indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that expert assessment in their organization is high with a mean of 5.36 and standard deviation of 0.852. results also indicated that 45.4% of respondents responded very high to peer assessment, 39.3% indicated high, while 14.2% indicated moderately high and 1.1% of the respondents indicated moderately low. on average, the respondents indicated that peer assessment in their organization is high with a mean of 5.29 and standard deviation of 0.747. furthermore, regarding expert evaluation, 45.9% of the respondents indicated very high, 32.2% indicated high, 17.5% indicated moderately high, 3.8% of the respondent indicated moderately low and 0.5% of the responses were missing. on european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 12 average, the respondents indicated that expert evaluation in their organization is high with a mean of 5.18 and standard deviation of 0.947. the study further shows that 42.1% of the respondents indicated that peer appraisal in their organization is very high, 30.6% indicated high, 21.9% indicated moderately high, 4.4% indicated moderately low and 1.1 % indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that peer appraisal in their organization is high with a mean of 5.08 and standard deviation of 0.954. in conclusion, results also indicated that 39.3% of respondents responded very high to evaluating product/services, 36.6% of the respondents indicated high while 15.8% indicated moderately high, 7.1% of the respondent indicated moderately low and 1.1% of the respondents indicated low. on average, the respondents indicated that evaluating product/services is high with a mean of 5.06 and standard deviation of 0.967. a grand mean of 5.194 and a standard deviation of 0.8934 suggest that respondents agreed that peer review in their organization is high with convergence noticed around the mean. test of hypothesis h0: performance evaluation has no significant effect on employees’ productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. table 5: summary of regression results variables coefficients std error t sig. value constant 8.567 2.495 3.434 .001 self-appraisal 0.049 .115 .427 .670 managerial review 0.225 .105 2.142 .034 customer review 0.155 .096 1.603 .111 peer review 0.230 .090 2.570 .011 r-squared 0.265 adjusted r-squared 0.248 f-statistics (4, 178) 16.027 spss output the results in table 5 above showed that managerial review (β = 0.225, t = 2.142, p<0.05) and peer review (β = 0.230, t = 2.570, p<0.05) have positive and significant effect on employees’ productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, while self-appraisal (β = 0.049, t = 0.427, p>0.05) and customer review (β = 0.155, t = 1.603, p>0.05) have an insignificant effect on employees’ productivity as indicated by their p-values. this means that both managerial review and peer review were found to have positive effect on employee productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. this result therefore, implied that as managerial review and peer review increases by 1 percent, the employee productivity will increase 0.225 and 0.230 percent respectively. the f-statistics was 16.027, which measured the joint significance of the parameter estimates, was found statistically significant at 1 per cent level as indicated by the corresponding probability value of 0.000. this implies that performance evaluation criteria were jointly and statistically significant in affecting the employee productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state. the r2 value of 0.265 percent implied that 26.5 percent total variation in employee productivity was explained by self-appraisal, managerial review, customer review, and peer review in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. coincidently, the goodness of fit of the regression remained high after adjusting for the degree of freedom as indicated by the adjusted r2 (r2 = 0.248 or 24.8%). the remaining 75.2% is determined by other factors not considered in the study. the null hypothesis (h0) can therefore european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 13 be rejected as stated above and conclude that performance evaluation has significant effect on employees’ productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. 5. discussion the research study focuses mainly on the impact of performance evaluation on employee’s productivity. precisely, the findings of the study showed that managerial review and peer review have positive and significant effect on employees’ productivity in deposit money banks in lagos state, while self-appraisal and customer review had no significant effect on employees’ productivity. the acquired findings indicate that the use of performance appraisal has significant effect on employee productivity. this result is in consonance with the findings of mollel eliphaz et al. (2017) they discovered a relationship quite significant and positive that exist between performance appraisal and employee productivity. also, the findings support supports the findings of ackah (2015); bekele et al. (2014); nwema and gachunga (2014); igbal et al. (2013) which states that performance appraisal has a significant influence on employee productivity and performance. 6. conclusion it can be concluded from the result of this research that performance evaluation enhances employees’ productivity in in deposit money banks in lagos state. when an objective evaluation is carried out, the bank will be in a position to reward the performing employees. the study found that out of the performance evaluation indices, managerial review and peer review have significant effect and enhanced employee productivity. this will further enhance the opportunity for determining deficiencies in the performance of the workforce within the banks. the study identified that for nigerian banks to earn good performance from their employees, adequate attention should be paid to the performance evaluation system. however, it was noted that banks almost operate a special way of appraisal (by setting deposit target for their employees) and that mere meeting the targets often guarantee employee movement to the next level. 7. recommendations this study recommended that the management should adopt successful management styles which involve building teams, networks of relationships, and developing and motivating others which would instil skills to the employees and which have a critical role in improving the level of productivity of the employees. in addition, the performance expectations of the employees need to be clearly stated and determinants of performance identified. this would reduce the impression that they were not sure of the methods that were to be used to measure their productivity. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 2, pp 1 17, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 14 references abdulmunem, ezza subhi (2017). the way to achieve efficient and upgrading performance level, management journal, 20(2). abu-doleh, j., & weir, d. 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(2017). performance appraisal systems and employee productivity in commercial banks in nairobi county, kenya. international academic journal of human resource and business administration, 2(4), 329-346. yang, y., lee, p.k.c., cheng, t.c.e. (2016), continuous improvement competence, employee creativity, and new service development performance: a frontline employee perspective. international journal of production economics, 171:275-288. factors influencing brain drain among health workers in ghana sussana adjei-mensah european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 17 factors influencing brain drain among health workers in ghana sussana adjei-mensah corresponding author’s e-mail: mrssussanaboakye@gmail.com article history received: 15th jan 2023 received in revised form: 8th feb 2023 accepted: 13th feb 2023 abstract purpose: the advent of the covid-19 pandemic exacerbated the need for more professional health workers to serve as front-line workers in hospitals in ghana and other developing countries. this study aimed to ascertain the factors influencing health workers' brain drain in ghana. methodology: the study was a survey with an accessible population of 15510 people in different categories of health workers. sampling was through stratification for a sample size of 400 respondents across the greater accra region of ghana. structured questionnaires were used for the data collection and analyzed using the statistical package for social sciences (spss) as a statistical tool to generate descriptive statistics that included the mean, standard deviation and ranks based on which inferences were drawn. findings: the study found that government inaction on the conditions of service of health workers such as low remuneration, inadequate opportunities for staff development, poor equipment replacement policies, political interferences in their workplaces, high standards of living and inadequate housing and personal reasons amount to the reasons why ghana is losing the majority of her finest health workers to the developed nations. the study concluded that the migration of healthcare professionals from developing to developed nations has negative effects on the delivery of healthcare in ghana especially coming out of a deadly pandemic. recommendation: the study recommends that government deals with the motivation and hygiene factors as well as the push and pull economic factors that drive many health workers to seek "greener pastures" outside the country hence the trend could continue in the coming years. keywords: developing countries, health workers, migration, brain drain, low remuneration. mailto:mrssussanaboakye@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 18 1.0 background the study of owusu-ansah (2015) on brain drain in ghana’s health sector found that medical doctors and nurses trained with public funds emigrate to practice in developed countries due to low remuneration and poor working conditions. oleribe, et al. (2016) indicated that despite the absence of a statistically significant difference in the response on leadership and management compared to other issues if staff welfare issues such as promotions, management's failure to deal decisively with promotion issues, denial of basic entitlements like salary and sponsorship of training are not catered for, it can be stated that leadership will have problems with the entire workforce which are the most frequently cited cause for health workers current brain drain in ghana. according to alhassan et al. (2013), other factors including limited opportunities for staff development, ineffective equipment replacement procedures, limited accommodation facilities even in rural areas and the inability to obtain essential social services, such as housing, transportation, etc could also be cited as the causes of the mass exodus of some health workers from ghana. other sources have cited the rigorous recruitment of health or medical personnel in ghana as compared with the western nations. according to shiao et al. (2017), the motivation for the brain drain in terms of health workers has antecedents that may differ with time. since ghana need to retain these personnel in a post-covid-19 restructuring of the health services across ghana, there is a need to find out what motivates the health workers who are currently leaving the shores of ghana. other studies conducted were not conducted in ghana which led to a knowledge and literature gap. despite enormous efforts to expand the health workforce, which increased the density of doctors, nurses, and midwives from 1.07 per 1000 people in 2005 to 2.65 per 1000 people in 2017, ghana still struggles with a shortage of health workers and ineffective distribution (asamani, et al., 2021). it stands to reason that many personnel leave the shores of ghana to practice in other countries after the government of ghana has used the little resources at its disposal to cater for their training. it implies also that improving patient satisfaction levels is essential to a healthcare organization's long-term success because it is one of their main objectives to not only meet but also exceed patients' expectations. recent social changes place a strong emphasis on gathering the opinions of service users, and the healthcare industry has developed techniques for doing so, particularly in the last ten years (ghana health service, 2020). healthcare organizations must carefully consider the needs and expectations of their most important clients if they are in the business of serving their clients. due to globalization, the migration of medical personnel is a problem that has a global impact. through incorporation, communication, cultural exchange and travel, people now depend on one another globally (labonte et al., 2015). people relocate for a variety of reasons, such as changing their lifestyle, escaping oppression, or looking for employment. the demand for healthcare workers in oecd countries is also being driven by rising income levels, new medical technology, increased specialization of health services, and population ageing (organization for economic cooperation and development [oecd], 2010). an international migrant worker is "a person who is to be engaged, is engaged, or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a state of which he or she is not a national," (united nations, 2015). according to the united nations population division (2003) statistics, 175 million people worldwide are estimated to be migrants or about 2.9 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 19 percent of the world's population. the majority of migrants in the world are thought to reside in europe (56 million), asia (50 million), and north america (41 million), of which 60–65 million are thought to be economically active. although the phenomenon of international migration is not new, its significant growth, particularly in terms of size and velocity, suggests a change in the way people move around (iom, 2005). the movement of skilled labour is the main concern of policymakers. concerns about ensuring a just distribution of human resources among source and destination countries arise due to the occupational categories that are moving (oecd, 2002a). due to the liberalization of trade brought about by the general agreement on trade in services (gats), new opportunities are emerging for health professionals, with the potential for better pay and career opportunities (oecd, 2002b). despite the aforementioned claim, during the 1950s and 1960s, many nations started hiring foreign healthcare professionals to advance their healthcare systems. this increased public concern about taking early action to combat brain drain syndrome which prompted the world health organization (who) to start a study on the flow and stock of health worker migration (short, 2016). according to statistics from a recent study, the usa, uk, canada, and australia employ between 22 and 28 percent of all physicians who received their training abroad, highlighting the reliance of developed nations on medical graduates with international training and education (sampath, 2019; mullan, 2005). particularly, low-income nations send between 40 and 75 percent of their medical school graduates to the nations mentioned earlier, with the united kingdom and the united states receiving the most of these contributions (mullan, 2005). according to additional data, the uk's medical professional migration is up by about 5%, and the oecd's member countries have seen a 20% increase in foreign-born medical professionals (who, 2006). according to chibango (2013), highly skilled workers in the health sector are migrating from african countries, particularly those in sub-saharan africa which is subpar, making it more difficult to estimate magnitudes and trends. recent health professional migration has resulted in a human resource management crisis on a global scale (joint learning initiative, 2004). the need for medical professionals is greatest in africa as the crisis grips the entire planet but africa is experiencing a shortage of human resources as a result of the emigration of medical professionals, population growth, and the burden of diseases. the international organization for migration (iom) estimates that a significant portion of africa's human capital has been lost, and that loss is continuing to grow, with 20,000 doctors, university professors, engineers, and other professionals leaving the continent every year since 1990. in most countries, especially those with low fertility, migration had been seen as a way to fill a labour market gap in response to market demands in developed countries (anarfi, 2010). there are currently over 175 million migrants who leave their home country for other nations for a variety of reasons. an increasing number of these migrants according to anarfi (2010), are nurses, and the majority of them were women. additionally, it was mentioned that these health workers emigrated from ghana, ethiopia, nigeria, and south africa. additionally, because of the increased demand for services brought on by the health reform in the usa, which aims to provide healthcare to a significant number of uninsured people, international health workers will undoubtedly emigrate (who, 2020). although the us health system has considered ways to reduce costs to increase the impact on the delivery of health services, less european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 20 emphasis must be placed on health expenditures, but rather on the fact that more healthcare professionals are required to serve the additional millions of people (foster, 2010). the difficulties that developing countries face in finding enough quality health workers are made worse by the rise in demand. it is crucial to understand the reasons behind emigration to fully comprehend the health worker crisis on the international, regional, and national levels which is referred to by orszag and emanuel (2010) as "pull and push factors of international migration." collaboration among health workers is critical to retaining our best health workers regardless of government attitude towards the health personnel resulting in their inclusion in a researchable topic for this current study. not all, there is a need to conduct a study that allows for an in-depth examination of the impact of health workers' brain drain on the health sector and ghana as a whole. there is a need to conduct a study to generate new ideas that can be tested through other methods and connected to theories that aid in bringing together the various facets of health workers' agitation that led to brain drain and the various management practices that are associated with organizational growth and sustainability in ghana's health care industry. studies show that ghana faced serious health and human resource challenges due to the covid19 pandemic with damning effects on the economy, society and lifestyle of ghana (ghana health service, 2020). the health workers in ghana were tasked by the government to spearhead the fight against the pandemic as front liners who were heavily burdened due to the nationwide spread of the virus and secondly, due to its novelty. several factors are identified to have caused brain drain among other personnel in ghana but there is no definite evidence of the brain drain of health workers in post-covid-19 ghana. secondly, most of the studies conducted were on other sectors in developed countries. for instance, a study conducted by pujari (2020) found that developing countries were suffering from their greatest decline in terms of their education after the heat of the pandemic. studies such as woday, mihret and biset (2020) and tiruneh (2020) were conducted in developed and developing countries and provided evidence that did not deal directly with health issues or health workers' willingness to stay and work in ghana but rather on education. evans (2020) however, concentrated on the socio-economic issues that the pandemic bestowed on ghana and other developing countries. therefore, in finding answers to the factors influencing brain drain among the health workers in ghana, the studies conducted in ghana are insufficient since the knowledge and literature provided did not address the ghanaian situation with post-covid-19 empirical evidence that aligns with the ghanaian healthcare delivery system. considering the discussion on the effects of the pandemic on the healthcare sector and the several agitations that possibly led to the brain drain of health workers and healthcare delivery, it is critical to examine the interrelationships of the study variables that remain significant over time and the need to fill knowledge, literature and methodological gaps that previous studies failed to initiate in seeking to maintain the majority of the health workers in ghana and to demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that organizational capabilities are used to reverse the brain drain effect on health facilities in ghana. this study is relevant as it sought to investigate and bridge the human capital gaps in the health sector taking cognizance of the impact of the covid-19 pandemic and the need for a vibrant health sector and ready personnel to stay and serve ghana. the study, adds to the expanding literature on the need for quality healthcare facilitated by experienced and qualified personnel hence the study conclusions contribute to theory, policy, and academic understanding. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 21 the researcher employed the two factor theory of herzberg in the study since health workers' brain drain issues are related to employee satisfaction which is influenced by motivational and hygienic factors as indicated in the study background. to this effect, factors such as salary, job security, and other similar issues are considered hygiene factors, whereas interest in one's profession, opportunities for career advancement, and recognition of personal accomplishments are motivational factors. the overall effect is that different combinations of motivational and hygiene factors when not catered for can result in a situation where employees start complaining all the time leading to attrition (dartey-baah & amoako, 2011). it implies that job dissatisfaction is a dimension that can lead to health workers' brain drain in ghana. applicable to the study, the two-factor theory offers a way to assess employee satisfaction levels and sheds light on what causes either favourable or unfavourable employee outcomes leading to their willingness to stay, which sparks patient satisfaction in the services rendered. herzberg's theory according to goetz et al. (2017) applies in the sense that health personnel report factors that contributed to their increased job satisfaction, including relationships with coworkers’, increased job responsibilities, greater recognition, and flexibility in terms of job tasks. according to research by raza, akhtar, husnain, and akhtar (2015), positive job satisfaction among employees was significantly correlated with motivators like job security, achievement, responsibility, and the work itself. in summary, while herzberg's two factor theory is a central tenet in motivating employees to achieve high levels of job satisfaction, they never directly cause someone to experience high levels of job dissatisfaction. in herzberg's model, motivating factors have the potential to make people who are currently only moderately satisfied extremely satisfied, but they do not affect satisfaction in the absence of hygiene factors that include achievement, recognition, advancement, and empowerment. 2.0 methodology 2.1 population and sample size in this study, the accessible population consisted of health professionals working in different departments/departments of government or public hospitals in the greater accra region of ghana. the hospitals identified according to the ghana health service (2010), include the korlebu teaching hospital, 37 military hospital, ssnit hospital, bank of ghana hospital, police hospital, greater accra regional hospital (ridge), university of ghana medical center, achimota hospital, amasaman hospital, mamobi general hospital, and north legon hospital. the inclusion criteria were all health professionals working in their current wards and department for at least three months. the exclusion criteria included hesitation to participate in the study and health workers who were on leave at the time of the data collection. according to the ghana human resource for health country profile (2021), there are 15510 health workers (general category) in government hospitals in the greater accra region comprising medical officers, specialist, professional nurses, midwives, community health nurses, biomedical scientists, radiographers, pharmacist, pharmacy technician, health assistant (enrolled nurse), medical assistant, dental surgeon and other clinical who qualify as the study population for the collection of quantitative data. the researcher used the taro yamane (1967) sample size formulas cited in the study of joseph and kingsley (2016) as follows; 𝒏 = 𝑵 𝟏+𝑵 (𝜶𝟐) european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 22 n = sample frame (population), n = sample size and α = confidence interval. the researcher chose a margin of error of 5% and a confidence interval of 95%. the following substitutions were therefore made n= 12500 and α = (0.052) into the sample frame formula, therefore, 𝑛 = 15510 1+15510 (0.052) n = 15510 38.7775 𝑛 = 399.9 hence, 𝑛 = 400 𝑡𝑜 1𝑑𝑝 the final sample size determined for the quantitative data was 400 health workers. 2.2 sampling techniques having known the sample size, there is a need to use a sampling technique that ensures that the respondents have an equal chance of being selected to participate in the study. stratified sampling was used due to its ability to indicate the exactness of the sample size from each stratum (hospital). to ensure that all the 15510 serving as the population are duly represented, the researcher estimated that if 80% of those asked to participate in the study do respond, then there is a need to invite more. as a result of the predicted response rate, 450 health workers were asked to participate in the study. to calculate the number of respondents for selection in each stratum (hospital), the researcher adopted the whitley and ball (2002), formula 𝒏(𝒖) = 𝑵(𝒖) 𝑵 × 𝒏 where; 𝒏(𝒖) = sample size for stratum 𝒖, 𝑵(𝒖) = population size for stratum 𝒖, 𝑵 = total population size = 15510, and n = total sample size = 400 table 1: sample distribution sn public hospitals in greater accra region n(u) 𝑵(𝒖) 𝑵 × 𝒏 n(u) 1 korle bu teaching hospital 3745 3745 / 15510 x 400 97 2 37 military hospital 2456 2456 / 15510 x 400 63 3 ssnit hospital 1434 1434 / 15510 x 400 37 4 bank of ghana hospital 465 465 / 15510 x 400 12 5 police hospital 1324 1324 / 15510 x 400 34 6 greater accra regional hospital 2312 2312 / 15510 x 400 60 7 university of ghana medical center 1327 1327 / 15510 x 400 34 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 23 8 achimota hospital 412 412 / 15510 x 400 11 9 amasaman hospital 654 654 / 15510 x 400 17 10 mamobi general hospital 756 756 / 15510 x 400 19 11 north legon hospital 625 625 / 15510 x 400 16 total n=15510 n=400 source: hospital data (2022). the simple random sampling technique which forms part of the stratification process was applied in selecting respondents for the quantitative data which according to polit and beck (2017) is the most fundamental method of probability sampling and involves the development of a sampling frame indicating the list of population elements. 2.3 method of data collection data as indicated by ajayi (2017), is a general concept that refers to the fact that some existing information or knowledge is represented or coded in some form suitable for better usage or processing. the researcher collected primary data with closed-ended questionnaires which according to coghlan and brydon-miller (2014), can lead to the avoidance of errors and ambiguity in a research study. the survey questionnaire addressed the response rates, validity and reliability as critical components in the design. for effective data analysis the data, the questionnaire was coded according to a five (5) point likert scale 1 = strongly agree (sa), 2 =, agree (a), 3 = uncertain (u), 4 = disagree (d) and 5 = strongly disagree (sd). the researcher visited the health institutions and sought the appropriate permission and declaration of intent to collect the data with trained assistants to aid the data collection or instrument administration. the researcher self-delivered all questionnaires and the completed questionnaires were collected by the researcher. each of the respondents took about 10 20 minutes in filling out the questionnaire and the researcher was always available throughout the data-collecting process in case the respondents needed any clarifications. 2.4 data analysis and management numerical data is best analyzed, using descriptive statistics that allow for presentation in either tables, graphs or other visuals, to summarize a collection of data for easy understanding (curtis and curtis, 2011). the data collected was checked for completeness, and accuracy and coded into the statistical package for social sciences (spss) software version 22. the key parameters for analysis of the quantitative data were descriptive statistics made up of mean, standard deviation and ranks to allow all the responses to be adequately compared with one another to make inferences. the data management process was used to ensure that the data entry followed sequential steps to ensure effectiveness. hard copies of the answered questionnaire were stored well with coding, editing and data entry made using the statistical package for the social sciences (spss) version 22. each questionnaire was numbered to avoid duplication and made to accompany the formal coding structure. data cleaning was carried out by comparing data and questionnaires to ensure that responses to each questionnaire were entered correctly and that any discrepancies were european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 24 resolved appropriately. the researcher ensured that the data collection instrument (questionnaire) was limited to the study objectives hence the instrument's questions adequately reflect the concepts being measured as indicated by polit and beck (2017). to ensure reliability, the researcher made sure that all questions were worded correctly to avoid misunderstandings and the questionnaire was tested before the final survey. 2.5 ethical consideration ethical issues that were of interest to the study included obtaining the necessary permissions, protecting respondents' anonymity, communicating the study's objectives, avoiding dishonest practices, respecting individual differences and the potential power imbalances during data collection, respecting the indigenous organizational culture and keeping sensitive information private and finally protecting participants' identities as indicated by curtis and curtis (2011). 3.0 results of the study the researcher presented the study results according to a table and described the quantities obtained according to the table. out of the 400 respondents anticipated as the study sample, 372 responded forming a 93% response rate. results obtained on the factors influencing brain drain among health workers in ghana are presented in table 3 which shows the mean, standard deviation and ranks based on the analysis. respondents collectively indicated which factors are high per the ranks indicated from the lowest to the highest ranks indicated as 1st, 2nd, 3rd etc. table 2: factors influencing brain drain among health workers in ghana statement mean sd rank total (n) 1. i want to achieve my future ambitions. 1.42 0.23 3 360 2. poor replacement policies for equipment. 1.46 0.24 5 360 3. low remuneration even relative to countries within subregion. 1.47 0.39 1 360 4. inadequate opportunities for staff development. 1.52 0.27 4 360 5. i want to better my education to develop my career. 1.38 0.5 2 360 6. inadequate accommodation even in rural areas. 1.28 0.38 6 360 7. inadequate consumables for work. 1.24 0.4 8 360 8. my family and friends are influencing me. 1.38 0.19 10 360 9. the standard of living is too high. 1.24 0.45 9 360 10. active canvassing of western countries for health professionals. 1.19 0.38 7 360 11. inability to acquire basic social amenities eg. housing, transport etc. 1.47 0.17 12 360 12. there are high political interferences in my organization. 1.38 0.28 11 360 source: researcher’s construct (2022) european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 25 results presented on the factors influencing brain drain among health workers in ghana as presented in table 2 indicate that the response on results on low remuneration even relative to countries within the sub-region was ranked 1st with a mean of 1.47 and sd of .39 in affirmation. results on i want to better my education to develop my career was ranked 2nd and has a mean score of 1.38 and sd of .50 to confirm. i want to achieve my future ambitions and was ranked 3rd with a mean score of 1.43 and sd of .23. inadequate opportunities for staff development were ranked 4th and had a mean of 1.52 and sd of .27 as a confirmation factor. results on poor replacement policies for equipment were ranked 5th and have a mean of 1.46 and sd of .24 to affirm. results on inadequate accommodation even in rural areas were ranked 6th and had a mean value of 1.28 and a standard deviation of .38 in affirmation. active canvassing of western countries for health professionals was ranked 7th with a mean of 1.19 and sd of .38 to affirm. the results on inadequate consumables for work were ranked 8th and had a mean score of 1.24 and sd of .40. the standard of living is too high and was ranked 9th with a mean of 1.24 and sd of .45. results on my family and friends influencing me were ranked 10th and had a mean of 1.38 and sd of .19. results on there are high political interferences in my organization were ranked 11th with a mean score of 1.38 and sd of .28. inability to acquire basic social amenities e.g. housing, transport etc was ranked 12th with a mean score of 1.47 and sd of .17. the results as indicated in table 3 shows that though there are few scores of dissenting opinions, most of the respondents consented to vary degrees of factors amounting to the brain drain of health workers in ghana. 4.0 discussions of findings the study found that the highly ranked factors influencing brain drain among health workers in ghana include low remuneration even relative to countries within the sub-region, the need to better their education to develop their careers, the need to achieve future ambitions, inadequate opportunities for staff development, poor replacement policies for equipment, inadequate accommodation. the least ranked factors included active canvassing of western countries for health professionals, inadequate consumables for work, too high standards of living, family and friends influence, high political interferences, and the inability to acquire basic social amenities e.g. housing, transport etc. the implications are that there is a history of migration of healthcare workers from developing countries to developed countries resulting in more negative effects than positive on healthcare delivery. according to the ghana health service (2020), facts and figures, there is also the government's inability to deal with the push and pull economic factors hence the brain drain is attributed to push and pull factors that affected the health and human resources, such as job insecurity, poor remunerations, a lack of individual freedoms, and poor infrastructure in most of the health facilities, especially in the rural area, with poor working conditions. the inability of the government to address the basic requirements of the health workers such as financial rewards, career development, hospital infrastructure, resource availability, hospital management, political issues, family issues, as well as issues pertaining to training, education, and development will see a continuous brain drain of health personnel. the issue of competition from the private sector where the competitors (private) offer better salaries, regular working hours, and fringe benefits, some of which include housing loans, school fees, and transport allowance as opposed to the public sector, many will have to leave the public sector if not for the private, then outside the country to seek ‘greener pastures’. not all, there are also factors of external competition and exogenous european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 26 factors that call for the brain drain from ghana and other developing countries to the developed world. the findings of this study directly relate to a previous study by labonte et al., (2015) which found that due to globalization, the migration of medical personnel is a problem that has a global impact. the study emphasized that through incorporation, communication, cultural exchange, and travel, people now depend on one another globally and relocate for a variety of reasons, such as changing their lifestyles, escaping oppression, or looking for lucrative employment. according to the oecd (2010), the demand for healthcare workers in oecd countries is also by rising income levels, new medical technology, increased specialization of health services, and population ageing. it implies that the findings of the current study are directly related to previous studies which made similar findings on the brain drain effect. the united nations population division (2003) made similar findings that the majority of migrants in the world are thought to reside in europe (56 million), asia (50 million), and north america (41 million), of which 60–65 million are thought to be economically active. it implies that though the phenomenon of international migration is not new, its significant growth, particularly in terms of size and velocity, suggests a change in the way people move around. the overall effect is that the movement of skilled labour must be the main concern of policymakers in every country. the issue of brain drain is directly proportional to human resource distribution among source and destination countries which arises due to the occupational categories that are moving (oecd, 2002). the study of short (2016) on the united nations' distribution of health workers' resources revealed that, as of 1972, 140,000 physicians worldwide lived outside of their country of nationality, making up about 6% of the total. the findings of short (2016), corroborate the current study as it reveals the number of migrating health workers in the world which was estimated to be less, at around 5%. it implies that health workers' brain drain is a phenomenal challenge that affects developing countries but enhances the healthcare systems of recipient nations. the statistics of sampath (2019) support the current study by showing that the usa, uk, canada, and australia employ between 22 and 28 percent of all physicians who received their training thus, highlighting the reliance of developed nations on medical graduates from developing countries. it implies that all these studies point to low-income nations whose trained personnel depart their shores for greener pastures due to conditions that do not support their stay and willingness to work in their mother countries with 40 and 75 percent of medical school graduates emigrating to the nations mentioned earlier, with the united kingdom and the united states receiving the most of these contributions. the study by chibango (2013) provides evidence to support the current study that highly skilled workers in the health sector from african countries are migrating abroad, particularly those from sub-saharan africa. according to the ghana health service (2020) update on the covid-19 situation it is evident that the need for medical professionals in africa, in general, is greatest and particularly in ghana. but ghana is likely to experience a shortage of human resources because of the emigration of medical professionals considering the current agitations emanating from government policies on pensions and other issues. this study supports that factors influencing brain drain among health workers in ghana include low remuneration and the need to improve their education to advance their careers. the study did not rule out the need to achieve future ambitions in ghana since staff development policies are ineffective with poor replacement policies european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 27 for equipment in hospitals and insufficient accommodation for personnel across ghana. the implications are that health care worker migration from ghana to other developed countries has had more negative effects on the health care delivery system while the government looks on helplessly as the push and pull economic factors open up to cause the brain drain without recourse to the ramifications on the health sector. the government's role is to address the basic needs of health workers such as financial rewards, career development, hospital infrastructure, resource availability, hospital management, political issues, family issues, and training, education, and development to reverse the continuous brain drain of health personnel from ghana. 5.0 conclusion the study concludes that due to government inaction on the conditions of service of health workers such as low remuneration, inadequate opportunities for staff development, poor equipment replacement policies, political interferences in their workplaces, excessively high standards of living and inadequate housing and personal reasons that include the need to improve the educational status, family and friends influence, career advancement and the need to achieve future ambitions, ghana is losing the majority of her finest health workers to the developed nations each year. to this effect, the migration of health care professionals from developing to developed nations has negative effects on the delivery of health care in ghana. since the government is unable to deal with the push and pull economic factors to address the fundamental health workers needs, such as remuneration issues, career development, hospital infrastructure, resource availability, hospital management, political issues, family issues, and training, education, and development and competition from the private sector, many health workers are forced to seek "greener pastures" outside the country. 6.0 recommendations based on the findings and conclusions of the study, it was recommended that the government address the motivation and hygiene factors as well as the push and pull economic factors that motivate many health workers to leave the country in search of "greener pastures” otherwise, the trend on brain drain of health workers in ghana is likely to increase subsequently. competing interest the researcher declares that she has no competing interests in the study. authors contribution sussana adjei-mensah was the researcher and only author of the study except for citations and references. acknowledgements the author would like to express her gratitude to mr boakye (husband) and her entire family for their immense contribution to making this research study possible. the researcher wishes to thank all the health workers in the greater accra region who participated in the study with which answers were provided to the many questions she asked. the author further acknowledges the contribution of dr stephen odonkor, my supervisor whose tireless effort ensured the completion of this research study. finally, all sources from which materials were obtained for the conduct of this study are duly acknowledged. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 17 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 28 references 1. ajayi, l. 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(2020). psychological impacts of covid-19 among college students in dessie town, amhara region, ethiopia; cross-sectional study, british medical journal (pp. 1-16). competence and worker’s attitude in health ministries in south-south, nigeria idoniboyeobu anyanaba dikio (phd), j.m.o. gabriel (phd), and s.p. asawo (phd) european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 16 competence and worker’s attitude in health ministries in southsouth, nigeria idoniboyeobu anyanaba dikio (phd) department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers, state university, nkpoluoroworukwo, pmb 5080, port harcourt, nigeria j.m.o. gabriel (phd) department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers, state university, nkpoluoroworukwo, pmb 5080, port harcourt, nigeria s.p. asawo (phd) department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers, state university, nkpoluoroworukwo, pmb 5080, port harcourt, nigeria abstract purpose: this study examined the relationship between competence and worker’s attitude in health ministries in south-south, nigeria. methodology: the study adopted a cross-sectional survey research design. primary data was generated through a 4-point likert scaled questionnaire. the population of the study was two thousand one hundred and eighty-one (2181) employees. a sample size of three hundred and thirty-eight (338) employees was drawn from the population using the taro yamane sample size determination formula. the study adopted the simple random sampling technique. the reliability of the instrument was ascertained using the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the hypotheses were tested using spearman rank order correlation coefficient with the aid of statistical packages for social sciences. findings: the findings revealed that competence had a significant positive relationship with affective commitment, affective satisfaction and workers engagement. therefore, the study concludes that the level of competence thus has a direct bearing with worker’s attitude. inability of employees to perform maximally due to lack of competence will result in higher dissatisfaction. recommendation: thus the researchers recommend that the management of the health ministries should embark on proper training and development of the workers to enhance their knowhow in the work as such will help boost their positive work attitude. keywords: competence, worker’s attitude, affective satisfaction, affective commitment, workers engagement file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 17 introduction attitudes exhibited by employees can directly affect the atmosphere within an organisation. an environment that is professional, fair and conducive for work needs to be created by an employer in order to keep employees motivated. if this environment is created, the employees are likely to work hard and successfully complete each assignment as expected of them. when employees are happy, it is usually because they are satisfied with their work. this also improves the quality of their work. attitude and job satisfaction may not fall completely on the management but also on the employees. an attitude is a psychological tendency that is expressed by evaluating a particular entity with some degree of favour or disfavour (eagly & chaiken, 2007). attitude describes the way an employee feels inside. these are an employee‘s feelings toward his employer, his coworkers and his position within the organisation. employee work attitude; a form of social reality within the organization; is concerned with the expressions of contentment, commitment and enthusiasm for the job and the organization. it is described as the expression of inner states and feelings within social and organizational frameworks or contexts and can be directed towards self, others, the job or role. employee work attitude is considered an important factor in the organizational integrative process wherein skills, experiences and knowledge are harnessed towards the achievement of specified objectives since it either buttresses the processes or acts as a setback (gabriel & george, 2015; aremu, 2010). a major predictor of employee attitude is how competent they are about their work. it has been indicated that workers who have the perception that they are competent, and have confidence that they will succeed in their daily work tasks are happier and satisfied with their jobs than employees who fear that they might fail (koen & maaike van, 2011). further, ponton (2011) in his study in australia posited that the more experienced employees seemed to be more confident and competent in their jobs. he argued that the more competent the employees felt, the more satisfied they were in their work. hancer and george (2009) too found out that competence was rated higher by the more older and experienced hospitality employees. this had a direct relationship with satisfaction with their jobs. employees who have had longer tenure in the hospitality industry are better adapted to the work environment and this can lead to feelings of competence and more likely to the feeling of satisfaction (bhatnagar, 2012). competence reflects whether an employee can succeed in the performance of a given work role (spreitzer & mishra, 2002). it is the extent to which an employee can do his/her work roles with the required skills and knowledge (zhu, 2008). competence refers to the ability of employees to execute their work roles with the required level of knowledge and skills (spreitzer, 2008). competence makes employees feel more empowered (buitenbach & hlalele, 2005). buitenbach and hlalele (2005) further stated that the knowledge and the skills that the employees possess have a significant contribution to competence. employees usually feel competent when they have the confidence about their capability of executing their job responsibilities well (hsiang-fei, luoh sheng-hshiung tsaur ya-yun tang, 2014). the aim of this study is to examine the relationship between competence and worker’s attitude in health ministries in south-south, nigeria. the following research questions were provided as a guide in this study; file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 18 i. what is the relationship between competence and worker’s affective satisfaction in health ministries, south-south, nigeria? ii. how does competence relate with worker’s affective commitment in health ministries, south-south, nigeria? iii. what is the relationship between competence and worker’s engagement in health ministries, south-south, nigeria? figure 1: conceptual framework for competence and worker’s attitude source: author’s desk research, 2021 literature review theoretical foundation job characteristics theory the job characteristics theory, developed by hackman and oldham (1976), demonstrates the relationship between job characteristics and an individual's response to work. specifically, this theory specifies the task condition under which it is predicted that a worker or staff member will succeed in their given job or work. hackman et al., (1976) developed the job characteristics theory, which identifies three psychological states that result in individual benefits and positive work outcomes. these psychological states are experienced meaningfulness of the work, experienced responsibility for the outcomes of the work, and knowledge of the actual results of the work activities. when job characteristics dimensions are combined, these psychological states result in increased internal work motivation, high job satisfaction, and increased work effectiveness. in this theory, hackman and oldham asserted that employees must believe that what they are doing in the organization is something meaningful, or that what they are doing is worthwhile, and that it should also be significant, most notably to the organization, as well as to the individual's acceptable values and personal beliefs, among other things. furthermore, according to the theory, there should be a proper fit or match between the skills of the individual and the requirements of the job itself. as a result of the second psychological state described in the theory (experienced responsibility for outcomes of work), employees are required to accept personal responsibility for the outcomes worker’s attitude competence affective satisfaction affective commitment worker’s engagement file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 19 of their work or the tasks that they perform for the organization. finally, the theory suggests that employees are aware of the actual outcomes or outcomes of the study. due to the fact that having knowledge of one's own results will aid in tracking and monitoring one's own job performance, which will ultimately lead to greater satisfaction and commitment on the part of the employee. acquah (2017) emphasizes that internal motivation is the most important outcome variable in this theory because it contributes to the attitudes of employees. according to this theory, the worker or employee must go through the three psychological states in order for the expected or desired outcome to become a reality. if any of the three psychological states is absent, a variety of outcomes, such as low motivation, satisfaction, and commitment, can be expected to occur. this theory is relevant in this study because when the characteristics of a job are designed to improve the psychological state of the employee, this aids in the enhancement of their positive work attitude. this theory is also relevant for this study because job characteristics can contribute to certain psychological states, and the strength of the employee’s need for growth (garg & rastogi, 2006). competence is usually conceptualized as the increased task motivation that results from an individual’s positive orientation to the work role such as job design, and employees’ skills and traits. competence when it comes to employees' beliefs in their capability to complete their tasks successfully, spreitzer (1995) and quiones, van den broeck, and de witte (2013) define competence as the belief that they have in their ability to complete their tasks successfully. al-douri (2018) explains that competence is the ability to face challenges in both the internal and external environments by creating an environment conducive to thinking and creativity, as well as training employees in decision-making, initiative, and innovation (spreitzer, 1995; ibrahim, 2020). it has been shown that the greater an individual's sense of self-efficacy, the more committed they will be towards accomplishing specific tasks (taylor, 2013). those individuals would take more initiative, would be more persistent, and would put forth more effort when confronted with difficult circumstances. competence is defined as an individual's ability to perform a job correctly. a competency is a set of defined behaviours that serve as a structured guide for the identification, evaluation, and development of the behaviour in individual employees. competencies are defined as observable abilities, skills, knowledge, motivations, or traits that are defined in terms of the behaviours required for successful job performance. notably, employee competencies are inherited with all of these characteristics, and as a result, they serve as the primary source of competitive advantage as well as the primary drivers of improved organizational performance (ciziuniene, vaiciute & batarliene, 2016). when people have the ability to choose, they become more self-assured. being self-assured means being well-organized in your activities and having hands-on experience with their implementation. a sense of personal mastery that one is capable of successfully completing a task is referred to as competence. competence is defined as the ability to perform the tasks assigned to oneself. it addresses the question of whether or not the employees who will be empowered have the skills necessary to perform the tasks that will be assigned to them if they are empowered. following the identification of what is required to pursue and achieve a goal, the level of actual (rather than perceived) skill relevant to the task becomes significantly important. the issue of competence is addressed through the identification of existing skills and the acquisition of new skills. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 20 quiones, et al. (2013) define competence as an employee's belief in his or her own capability to complete their assigned tasks successfully. when employees are confident in their abilities to complete all of their job responsibilities successfully, they perceive themselves as competent in their positions (quinn & spreitzer, 1997). it refers to an individual's perception of the skills and abilities required to deal with a variety of work environments (spreitzer, 2008). according to bandura (1977), competence is derived from the concept of self-efficacy, with higher levels of self-efficacy indicating that individuals are more committed to completing tasks and are therefore more effective at doing so (bandura, 1977). (goodale, koerner & roney, 1997; taylor, 2013). those individuals would take more initiative, be more persistent, and put forth more effort when confronted with difficult situations (bandura, 1977). for example, competence in teaching refers to the ability of lecturers to use their own abilities to develop an appropriate teaching plan in order to assist students in learning (shapira-lishchinsky & tsemach, 2014). their perception of their own ability to succeed is a critical factor in achieving academic goals (el-sayed, el-zeiny & adeyemo, 2014). worker’s attitude attitudes can be defined as either a positive or negative feeling or mental state of readiness that has been learned and organized through experience and that has a specific attitude on a person's response to other people and objects, as well as to specific situations. affective attitudes, according to newstorm and davis (1993), are reasonably good predictors of behavioural outcomes. the information they provide can be used to deduce an employee's behavioural intentions or inclinations to act in a specific manner. positive job attitudes are associated with the attitude of constructive behaviours, whereas negative job attitudes are associated with the prediction of undesirable behaviours. attitudes toward work refer to the feelings we have about various aspects of the workplace that we encounter (carpenter, talya & erdogon, 2009). according to the authors, there are several factors that influence attitudes toward work, including personality, personenvironment fit, job characteristics, psychological contract, organizational justice, work relationship, and stress. affective satisfaction in the workplace, job affective satisfaction refers to the emotions or feelings that they associate with their jobs. individuals' overall emotional appraisal of their jobs determines their level of affective satisfaction with their jobs. as a result, it focuses on whether the job elicits a positive feeling, as well as affectively-oriented measures of job satisfaction. according to tekell (2008), affective satisfaction includes both positive affect (pa) (i.e., the extent to which an individual feels enthusiastic, alert, and active) and negative affect (na) (i.e., the extent to which an individual feels depressed, anxious, or passive) and (the extent to which an individual experience a general dimension of subjective distress and unpleasant engagement which may take the form of emotional states such as anger, contempt, fear, disgust, guilt and nervousness). this implies that employees who report high levels of negative affective satisfaction also report higher levels of physical complaints and stress, indicating that they may regard their lives as a series of stresses or hassles, regardless of what actually happens to them in their jobs. additionally, employees who report high levels of positive affective satisfaction are more energetic and outgoing in their jobs, as well as more satisfied with their jobs and with life in general. they are also more sensitive to the frequency of rewards, indicating that they may be more inclined to focus on the positive aspects file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 21 of life (yik & russell, 2001). it is the affective component of attitudes that is responsible for the feelings or emotions that people associate with their job or attitude object, as well as the valence of those emotions (weiss & cropanzo, 1996). not surprisingly, these individuals engage in more social behaviour as a result of their pa, which has been linked to increased extroversion (watson, clark, mclntyre & hamaker, 1992). affective commitment employees experience feelings and emotions, which they express in a variety of ways depending on the situation. according to allen and meyer (1990), affective commitment is defined as an individual's emotional identification with a particular organization. in the workplace, it is an emotional tie or bond that connects employees to their various organizations, and it is a determinant of dedication and loyalty (rhoades, elsenberger & armeli, 2001). the researchers went on to say that an affective committed worker is perceived to have a sense of identification and belonging, which increases their participation in the organization's goals and increases their desire to remain with the organization. an individual becomes emotionally attached to an organization when there is a link or congruence between his or her personal goals and values and those of the organization. the personality and values of employees, on the other hand, are a precondition for affective commitment. in the opinion of osita-ejikeme and worlu (2017), once a human resource has identified the organization's goals and is willing to work toward achieving them, he will become emotionally attached to the organization. a further finding by kaptijn (2009) is that personal characteristics have a significant positive influence on affective commitment. gozukara and yildirim (2015) found that corporate reputation had a significant impact on affective commitment, which in turn causes employees to have a strong emotional attachment to their employer's products or services. affective commitment has been found to be associated with positive work-related behaviours such as organizational citizenship behaviour, attendance, and other aspects of job performance (meyer, stanley, herscovtich & topolnytsky, 2002). an important antecedent of affective commitment is a set of dispositional variables that include values and personality traits (allen & meyer, 1990). while meyer et al. (2002) suggest that there are several categories, they also propose that there are several subcategories. these categories include demographic variables (e.g., age, education level, marital status and gender), job characteristics, structural characteristics and individual differences, as well as work experience. affective commitment was found to be associated with interactional justice, transformational leadership, and organizational support, according to their research. this is in contrast to previous work conducted by meyer, et al. (2002), they assert that job satisfaction is a distinct concept from organizational commitment and that the two are not related. affective commitment was found to be correlated with occupational commitment and job involvement (meyer et al., 2002). employee engagement engagement, as a concept that has evolved over time, has been defined in numerous, often inconsistent, ways in the literature, to the point where the term has become ambiguous to many and it is rare to find two people who define it in the same way (macey & schneider, 2008). it has been conceptualized as a psychological or affective state (e.g., commitment, involvement, attachment, etc.), a performance construct (e.g., role performance, effort, observable behaviour, organizational citizenship behaviour, and so on; or an attitude. according to macey et al., (2008), file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 22 some researchers even link the concept of engagement to other specific constructs such as altruism or initiative. however, there is no consensus among researchers regarding which of these definitions is the definitive, or at the very least, "best-fit" model of engagement. when defining engagement, macey et al., (2008) divide it into three categories: trait engagement, state engagement, and behavioural engagement. they argue that trait engagement is an inclination to see the world from a particular vantage point, and that this is reflected in the individual's "state engagement," which leads to "behavioural engagement," which is defined in terms of exerting discretionary effort. as pointed out by newman and harrison (2008), however, when engagement is broken down into the separate aspects of state, trait, and behaviour, state engagement becomes a redundant construct that tells us nothing more than an individual's attitude toward their job, which, as they point out, has been adequately measured in the past by other constructs. kahn (1990) defines engagement in terms of a psychological state as the harnessing of organization members' selves to their work roles; in engagement, people employ and express themselves physically, cognitively, and emotionally while performing their roles. individuals who are engaged are willing to invest significant personal resources, such as time and effort, in the successful completion of their task, and engagement is at its highest when an individual is channelling personal energies into physical, cognitive, and emotional labours. employee engagement is a feeling that is associated with the level of satisfaction that an employee has with his or her commitment to his or her job and the organization. it is an excellent work relationship that the employee has with his or her job. the level at which employees commit to their jobs in their organization, as well as the length of job they can expect to remain and work in the organization as a result of this commitment, are both important factors to consider (council, 2004). an employee's level of engagement can be measured by the degree to which they express a high level of satisfaction and an emotional connection to their employer's development and success. it also contributes to the creation of an improvement, increases performance, and assists directly or indirectly in the retention of employees and the support of turnover (taylor, 2011). positive attitudes and feelings among employees at work are not the only characteristics of employee engagement; it can also be defined in terms of "organization citizenship attitude, commitment, and high involvement work practices." it is used as a method of motivating employees to work more actively and creatively in order to achieve organizational objectives. competence and worker’s attitude rania, rahmanb and yusakc (2021) conducted a study, and on the study investigated the relationship between the four dimensions of psychological empowerment between employees’ performance in the automotive after sales service in malaysia. in line with self-determination theory, employees have intrinsic motivation when they are genuinely happy and enjoy while delivering the job in achieving the goals. employees feel empowered when experiencing feelings of meaningful, competence, self-determination and impact. the data was collected through survey instrument from the sample size of 241 employees representing the employees working in the automotive after sales service. statistical software spss version 26 was used for correlation and regression analysis. the result of the study shows that meaning, competence, self-determination and impact found significantly correlated and predicted employees’ performance. nassar (2017) in his study of psychological empowerment and organizational change among hotel employees in egypt surveyed 386 employees in chain hotels. he posited that employees who had file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 23 the required skills in performing their work tasks had high levels of job satisfaction. further, buitendach and hlalele (2005) in their study of south africa engineers found a positive correlation of medium effect between the cognition of competence and job satisfaction. this implied that the two variables were related, that is, those employees who perceived that they had the required knowledge and skills to perform their jobs had high level of job satisfaction. in addition, gachunga, maina and kabare (2016) in their study on the influence of psychological empowerment on organizational commitment in kenyan civil service found that the dimension of competence was positively correlated to job satisfaction, which in turn lead to organizational commitment. it has been indicated that workers who have the perception that they are competent, and have confidence that they will succeed in their daily work tasks are happier and satisfied with their jobs than employees who fear that they might fail (koen & maaike van, 2011). further, ponton (2011) in his study in australia posited that the more experienced employees seemed to be more confident and competent in their jobs. he argued that the more competent the employees felt, the more satisfied they were in their work. hancer et al., (2009) too found out that competence was rated higher by the more older and experienced hospitality employees. this had a direct relationship with satisfaction with their jobs. employees who have had longer tenure in the hospitality industry are better adapted to the work environment and this can lead to feelings of competence and more likely to the feeling of satisfaction (bhatnagar, 2012). moreover, tsai, cheng and chang (2013) in their analysis of the drivers of hospitality industry employees’ job satisfaction in taiwan observed that employees perceived that their competence empowerment was high. this correlated with the high levels of job satisfaction advanced by the researchers in their sample of these taiwanese hotels. this meant that the employees had very good training background and excellent skills to perform their work roles, which positively affected their job satisfaction. patah, abudullah and derani (2012) in their study of kuala lumpur hotel receptionists posited that the tenet of competence of psychological empowerment does have a significant influence on the overall job satisfaction. this meant that receptionists who had a higher level of competence experienced a higher level of job satisfaction. based on the foregoing, the following hypotheses are postulated: ho1: there is no significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective satisfaction in health ministries in south-south, nigeria. ho2: there is no significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective commitment in health ministries in south-south, nigeria. ho3: there is no significant relationship between competence and worker’s engagement in health ministries in south-south, nigeria. methodology the study adopted a cross-sectional survey research design. primary data was generated through a 4-point likert scaled questionnaire. the population of the study was two thousand one hundred and eighty-one (2181) employees. a sample size of three hundred and thirty-eight (338) employees was drawn from the population using the taro yamane sample size determination formula. the study adopted the simple random sampling technique. the reliability of the instrument was ascertained using the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 24 hypotheses were tested using spearman rank order correlation coefficient with the aid of statistical packages for social sciences (spss). data analysis and results bivariate analysis the level of significance 0.05 was adopted as a criterion for the probability of accepting the null hypothesis in (p> 0.05) or rejecting the null hypothesis in (p <0.05). table 1: competence and worker’s affective satisfaction competence affective satisfaction spearman's rho competence correlation coefficient 1.000 .859** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 304 304 affective satisfaction correlation coefficient .859** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 304 304 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: spss output, 2021 ho1: there is no significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective satisfaction in health ministries, south-south, nigeria. the result of the analysis in table 1 shows a correlation value of rho = 0.859 implying that there is a positive relationship between competence and worker’s affective satisfaction. the result also indicates a significant level p< 0.05 (0.000< 0.05), this means that there is a significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective satisfaction. the study therefore observes that there is a positive and significant association between competence and worker’s affective satisfaction. in light of this, the study therefore rejects the null hypothesis and accept the alternate hypothesis that there is a significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective satisfaction in health ministries, south-south, nigeria. table 2: competence and worker’s affective commitment competence affective commitment spearman's rho competence correlation coefficient 1.000 .837** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 304 304 affective commitment correlation coefficient .837** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 304 304 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: spss output, 2021 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 25 ho2: there is no significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective commitment in health ministries, south-south, nigeria. the result of the analysis in table 2 shows a correlation value of rho = 0.837 implying that there is a very strong positive relationship between competence and worker’s affective commitment. the study also indicates a significant level p< 0.05 (0.000< 0.05), this means that there is a significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective commitment. the study therefore observes that there is a positive and significant association between competence and worker’s affective commitment. in light of this, the study therefore rejects the null hypothesis and accept the alternate hypothesis that there is a significant relationship between competence and worker’s affective commitment in health ministries, south-south, nigeria. table 3: competence and worker’s engagement competence worker's engagement spearman's rho competence correlation coefficient 1.000 .750** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 304 304 worker's engagement correlation coefficient .750** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 304 304 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: spss output, 2021 ho3: there is no significant relationship between competence and worker’s engagement in health ministries, south-south, nigeria. the result of the analysis in table 3 shows a correlation value of rho = 0.750 implying that there is a strong positive relationship between competence and worker’s engagement. the study also indicates a significant level p< 0.05 (0.000< 0.05), this means that there is a significant relationship between competence and worker’s engagement. the study therefore observes that there is a positive and significant association between competence and worker’s engagement. in light of this, the study therefore rejects the null hypothesis and accept the alternate hypothesis that there is a significant relationship between competence and worker’s engagement in health ministries, south-south, nigeria. discussion of findings the findings revealed that there is a strong positive and significant relationship between competence and worker’s attitude in health ministries, south-south, nigeria. hence, competence is an essential factor in organizations that helps increase worker’s affective satisfaction, worker’s affective commitment and worker’s engagement. this result further affirms the stance of kumanwee (2017) who points out that there is a significant relationship between competence and engagement of employees. nassar (2017) posits that employees who have the required skills in performing their work tasks have high levels of job satisfaction. buitendach and hlalele (2005) find a positive correlation of medium effect between the cognition of competence and job satisfaction. ponton (2011) in his study in australia posits that the more file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 26 experienced employees seem to be more confident and competent in their jobs. he argues that the more competent the employees feel, the more satisfied they were in their work. however, dehkordi, kamrani, ardestani and abdolmanafi (2011) find that the cognition of competence has no positive relationship with job satisfaction. this means that the perception of having the required skills to do the work has no relationship with job satisfaction. the current finding supports the previous study carried out by rania, et al. (2021) who conducted a study on the relationship between the four dimensions of psychological empowerment between employees’ performance in the automotive after sales service in malaysia and whose result revealed that meaning, competence, self-determination and impact found significantly correlated and predicted employees’ performance. likewise, supporting this current finding was the study by kumanwee (2017) who undertook a study on psychological empowerment and employee affective commitment in manufacturing firms in rivers state, nigeria and whose finding revealed a very strong and positive significant relationship between competence and employee shared value. also the finding competence and employees’ personal involvement is very strong and positive. therefore, there is a significant relationship between competence and personal involvement of employees in manufacturing firms in rivers state, nigeria. this study finding further affirms the stance of gachunga et al., (2016) who find that the dimension of competence lead to commitment. boussalem (2014) reveals that there is a statistically significant impact of competence on commitment. psychologically empowered employees are more committed to and satisfied with their jobs as well as with the company that employs them (malik, chugtai, igbal & ramzan, 2013). this result is informed by the argument of ponton (2011) who posits that the more experienced employees seem to be more confident and competent in their jobs. bhatnagar (2012) puts forward that, employees who have had longer tenure in the hospitality industry are better adapted to the work environment and this can lead to feelings of competence and more likely to the feeling of engagement. psychologically empowered employees are more committed to and satisfied with their jobs as well as with the company that employs them (malik, et al., 2013). further corroborating the current finding is the study by nassar (2017) who examined psychological empowerment and organizational change among hotel employees in egypt and found that employees who had the required skills in performing their work tasks had high levels of job satisfaction. further, buitendach et al., (2005) in their study of south africa engineers found a positive correlation of medium effect between the cognition of competence and job satisfaction. this implied that the two variables were related, that is, those employees who perceived that they had the required knowledge and skills to perform their jobs had high level of job satisfaction. in addition, gachunga et al., (2016) in their study on the influence of psychological empowerment on organizational commitment in kenyan civil service found that the dimension of competence was positively correlated to job satisfaction, which in turn lead to organizational commitment. the study finding supports the conceptual arguments that workers who have the perception that they are competent, and have confidence that they will succeed in their daily work tasks are happier and satisfied with their jobs than employees who fear that they might fail (koen et al., 2011). further, ponton (2011) in his study in australia posited that the more experienced employees seemed to be more confident and competent in their jobs. he argued that the more competent the employees felt, the more satisfied they were in their work. hancer et al., (2009) too found out that file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 16 31, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 27 competence was rated higher by the more older and experienced hospitality employees. this had a direct relationship with satisfaction with their jobs. employees who have had longer tenure in the hospitality industry are better adapted to the work environment and this can lead to feelings of competence and more likely to the feeling of satisfaction (bhatnagar, 2012). moreover, the previous finding by tsai, et al. (2013) supports our current finding by examining the drivers of hospitality industry employees’ job satisfaction in taiwan and found that employees perceived that their competence empowerment was high. this correlated with the high levels of job satisfaction advanced by the researchers in their sample of these taiwanese hotels. this meant that the employees had very good training background and excellent skills to perform their work roles, which positively affected their job satisfaction. similarly, the current finding is in agreement with patah et al., (2012) in their study of kuala lumpur hotel receptionists in which they found that the tenet of competence of psychological empowerment does have a significant influence on the overall job satisfaction. this meant that receptionists who had a higher level of competence experienced a higher level of job satisfaction. it is to be noted that the current finding contradicts the finding by dehkordi, et al., (2011) whose study revealed that the overall psychological empowerment and its dimensionsimpact, meaning, and choice seemed to have a significant and positive relationship with job satisfaction and consequently organizational loyalty. however, interestingly they found that the cognition of competence had no positive relationship with job satisfaction. this meant that the perception of having the required skills to do the work had no relationship with job satisfaction. conclusion and recommendation the researchers conclude that there is a strong positive significant relationship between competence and worker’s attitude in health ministries in south-south, nigeria. the level of competence thus has a direct bearing with worker’s attitude. inability of employees to perform maximally due to lack of competence will result in higher dissatisfaction. the study recommends that the management of the health ministries should embark on proper training and development of the workers to enhance their knowhow in the work as such will help boost their positive work attitude. references acquah, a. 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(2008). the effect of ethical leadership on follower moral identity: the mediating role of psychological empowerment. leadership review, 8(3), 62-73. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org relationship between perceptions of interpersonal justice and employee commitment in health sector non governmental organizations in kenya patrick m. gichira, dr susan m. were, dr george o. orwa european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 52 relationship between perceptions of interpersonal justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya 1*patrick m. gichira *post graduate student: school of human resources jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr susan m. were lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology 2dr george o. orwa lecturer, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture & technology abstract purpose: the purpose of the study was to assess the extent of the relationship between perceptions of interpersonal justice and employee commitment in health sector non governmental organizations in kenya. methodology: the study adopted descriptive and correlational research designs with a statistical sample of 195 employees responsible for key result areas in 17 health sector non governmental organizations. justice perceptions were measured using colquitt‟s four construct model comprising of distributive, procedural, interpersonal and informational justice while organizational commitment was measured through meyer‟s three component model comprising of affective, continuance and normative commitment. inferential statistics comprising of correlation, multiple linear regression models and anova analysis were applied `to establish the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. qualitative data was analyzed through the use of questionnaires. results: based on the findings, the study concluded that interpersonal justice perceptions have a positive and significant relationship with affective, continuance and normative commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: interpersonal justice should be promoted through treatment of employees with politeness, respect and dignity by their supervisors and other organizational leaders. this way, organizations will not only benefit from a committed workforce, but also improve employee relations and thereby minimize the consequences of retributive justice emanating from employee workplace deviance actions. keywords: perceptions of interpersonal justice, employee commitment, health sector non governmental organizations http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 53 1.0 introduction 1.1 background of the study many contemporary writings on organizations emphasize the importance of core values to the organization (collins & porras, 1997). justice in terms of fair treatment of employees is identified as one of those values and fairness as one of the fundamental bases of cooperative action in organizations (cropanzo et al, 2007). truth telling, promise keeping, fairness, and respect for the individual are some of the key guiding principles of effective people management in organizations (russell, 2001). justice perceptions can influence employees‟ attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on their performance and the organization‟s success (baldwin, 2006). justice is therefore a basic requirement for the effective functioning of organizations and the personal commitment of the individuals they employ (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). employee perceptions of organizational justice in terms of fair formal deci sion-making procedures (procedural justice), fair decision outcomes (distributive justice), fair interpersonal treatment (interpersonal justice) and information sharing (informational justice) by decision makers have been found to be related to a variety of work-related attitudes and behaviors including commitment (colquitt, et al, 2001, al-zu‟bi, 2010; yucel, 2013; akanbi & ofoegbu, 2013). organisational commitment is the bond employees experience with their organization (folger & cropanzano, 1998). employees who are committed to their organisation generally feel a connection with their organization, feel that they fit in and, feel they understand the goals of the organisation (cohen et al., 2001). the added value of such employees is that they tend to be more determined in their work, show relatively high productivity and are more proactive in offering their support (konovsky, et al, 2000). meyer & allen (1997) conceptualized organizational commitment in three dimensions namely affective, continuance and normative commitments. justice perceptions can influence employee attitudes and behaviour for good or ill, in turn having a positive or negative impact on individual, group and the entire organization‟s performance and success (baldwin, 2006). empirical evidence supports the notion that an employee‟s perception of organizational justice affects their attitude toward the organization (konovsky, et al, 2000). if the perception of organizational justice is positive, individuals tend to be more satisfied and committed to their job (mcfarlin & sweeney, 1992). organizational justice impacts on employees in organizations since they are the subject of work place decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (cohen et al., 2001). some of these decisions deal with the salaries individuals earn, the projects or programmes they implement while others deal with work place interactions. the importance of those consequences causes individuals to judge the decision making they experience from a justice perspective (colquitt, 2001). according to baldwin (2006) the term organizational justice refers to the extent to which employees perceive workplace procedures, interactions, and outcomes to be fair in nature. he concluded that these perceptions can influence attitudes and behaviours of the employees. cropanzano, bowen and gilliland (2007) defined it as a personal evaluation about the ethical and moral standing of managerial conduct. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 54 current literature on organizational justice identifies four different constructs; distributive justice, procedural justice, interpersonal justice and informational justice (colquitt, greenberg, & zapataphelan, 2005). distributive justice is the justice of an employee which he perceives as a result of comparing the commitments he makes to his work and the outcomes of these such as rewards, duties and responsibilities, compared to the commitments the other employees make and the outcomes of them (colquitt,2001). procedural justice implies that, while evaluating the fairness of the organizational decisions, employees are not only interested in what these decisions are but also with the processes which determine these decisions (folger & cropanzano, 1998). interpersonal justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the manner in which they are treated by those in authority during the enactment of organizational procedures (lind & bos, 2002) while informational justice refers to people‟s perceptions of the fairness of the information used as the basis for making a decision (gurbuz & mert, 2009). each of these forms of justice has been found to have different effects on employee commitment (colquitt, et al., 2005). 1.2 problem statement employees are the subject of decisions virtually every day of their organizational lives (colquitt, 2001). in organizational settings, justice is not always administered through fair allocation of employment resources, provision of clear and adequate explanations for decisions made and employees are not always treated with dignity and respect during the implementation of policies and procedures (cohen-charash & spector, 2001; frontela, 2007). adoption of effective human resource management (hrm) practices in many non governmental organizations (ngos) is often low in the list of management priority (batti, 2014) because ngo organizations discourages investment in human resource capacities and staff retention measures due to the short term nature of the projects, funding constraints and subsequent short term employment practices. this in turn leads to negative justice perceptions and commitment. ( padaki, 2007). in a study carried out by frontela (2007) in kenya and other developing countries, the researchers found that irrespective of the affiliation, mission, size and extent of operations, problems of low morale and low motivation of staff were prevalent in ngos. these are all indicators of antecedents and outcomes of commitment (wright, & kehoe, 2008). they point to a possible absence of organizational justice and low employee commitment. organizational justice research has predominately involved employees from western countries, particularly the u.s. (mcfarlin & sweeney, 2001). as such, the current thinking regarding reactions to organizational justice may not generalize to employees from societies that have cultural and economic characteristics which differ significantly from those commonly found in north american and western european societies. in addition, in their meta-analytical review of literature on commitment in organizations in the period 1988 to 2011, iqbal et al (2012) found out that most of the research studies published was conducted at the industry or firm level as the unit of analysis. furthermore, the organization and management of ngo sector has received relatively little attention from researchers (lewis, 2005). there is therefore a paucity of information regarding the importance of fairness and employee reactions to organizational justice from different contexts especially africa and http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 55 particularly the health sector ngos in kenya. given this lack of information, the study sought to assess the extent of the relationship between perceptions of interpersonal justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 1.3 research objectives to assess the extent of the relationship between perceptions of interpersonal justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 2.0 literature review 2.1 theoretical review 2.1.1 organizational justice theories organizational justice is conceptualized around two independent theoretical dimensions: a reactiveproactive dimension and a process-content dimension (greenberg & scott (1996). table 1: taxonomy of organizational justice theories reactive-proactive dimension contentprocess dimension content process reactive reactive content equity theory (adams, 1965) reactive process procedural justice theory (thibaut & walker, 1975) proactive proactive content justice judgment theory (levental,1976,1980) proactive process allocation preference theory (leventhal, karuza, & fry, 1980) adapted from greenberg (1987). a taxonomy of organizational justice theories. reactive content theories are conceptual approaches that focus on how individuals respond to unfair treatment (greenberg, 1987). these theories state that people will respond to unfair relationships by displaying certain negative emotions such as resentment, anger, dissatisfaction, disappointment and unhappiness (coetzee, 2005). in an attempt to redress the experienced inequity, employees will seek restitution, engage in retaliatory behaviour or restore psychological equity by justifying the injustice or leaving the organization (baldwin, 2006). the proactive theories focus on allocation procedures and seek to determine what procedures people will use to achieve justice. according to the proactive theories, procedures should meet the following requirements for them to be regarded as just: allow opportunities to select the decision maker, follow consistent rules, make use of accurate information, identify the structure of decision-making power, employ safeguards against bias, allow for appeals to be heard, provide opportunities for correcting procedures, meet moral and ethical standards (coetzee, 2005). the main reactive content and reactive process theories in the study of organizational justice are adams‟ equity theory and thibaut and walkers‟ procedural justice theory while the main proactive content and proactive process theories of organizational justice are http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 56 leventhal‟s justice judgment model and leventhal, karuza, & fry allocation preference theory. equity theory adams equity theory (1965) focuses on reactions to pay inequity as an important distributive justice predictor. it states that individuals compare the ratio of their output (rewards) and inputs (contributions that they make towards the organization) to a similar ratio of their counterparts. if their ratio is higher (which means that they are getting more rewards) it may lead to a favourable justice perception. however, employees who feel themselves to be in inequitable position try to reduce inequity by distorting inputs (reducing their contributions) or outcomes in their own minds (cohen‐charash & spector, 2001). procedural justice theory according to thibaut and walker (1975), the amount of control people have over decisions and processes influences their perceptions of fairness. two types of control exist: process control and decision control. process control refers to the degree of control people have over the procedures or information used to make a decision. decision control refers to the degree of control people have over directly determining the outcomes. this theory links people‟s concern with procedures to their desire to influence their outcomes, and thus defines procedural fairness as the level of input or participation that procedures allow in an employment relationship. this is often referred to as the voice factor. justice judgment theory according to leventhal (1980), individuals attempt to make fair allocation decisions by applying several possible allocation rules to the situations they confront. in his justice judgment theory, leventhal describes how people proactively employ justice norms to rationalize administrative decision‐making in resource allocation and introduces six measures of procedural justice. these include consistency across people and time, free from bias, accuracy of information used in decision making, existence of some mechanism to correct flawed decisions, conforming to standards of ethics and morality and inclusion of opinion of various groups involved in the decision process. according to the model, individuals evaluate allocation procedures used by decision-makers based on the situation, in effect proactively employing various justice norms such as equity, needs, and equality (leventhal, 1980). skarlicki and folger (1997), explain the consequences of procedural justice. they argue that individuals accept responsibility for their problems if they perceive that fair procedures were used to arrive at decision outcomes. however, if they perceive that procedures used by the organization are unfair, individuals may show anger and resentment and consequently enter into retaliating behaviours. according to cropanzano et al., (2001), employee perceptions of fairness in treatment and procedures enhances their commitment and desirability of long term ongoing relationship with the organization. also, procedural justice is expected to increase perceptions of organizational support, which, in turn, increase organizational commitment (cropanzano et al, 2001). allocation preference theory allocation preference theory asserts that allocation procedures will be preferred to the extent that they help the allocator attain valued goals including the attainment of justice. in http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 57 particular, the theory proposes that people hold expectations that certain procedures will be differentially instrumental in meeting their goals (greenberg, 1987). eight procedures are identified that may help promote the attainment of justice. these include procedures that: (a) allow opportunities to select the decision making agent, (b) follow consistent rules, (c) are based on accurate information, (d) identify the structure of decision-making power, (e) employ safeguards against bias, (f) allow for appeals to be heard, (g) provide opportunities for changes to be made in procedures and, (h) are based on prevailing moral and ethical standards (coetzee, 2005). 2.2 empirical review interpersonal justice perceptions have been noted to increase individuals‟ intention to support the decisions made by authorities (greenberg, 1993; tyler & huo, 2002). because interpersonal justice emphasizes one on-one transactions, employees often seek it from their supervisors. interpersonal justice is also determined by the formal policies and procedures of an organization. the proper enactment of work place procedures is defined by five behaviours: adequate consideration of the employee's input, suppression of personal biases, and consistent application of decision-making criteria, timely feedback and justification for a decision (bies & moag, 1986). these factors play an important role in affecting employees' perceptions of fairness, acceptance of decisions, and attitudes toward the organization (korsgaard et al., 1995). bies & moag (1986) identified four criteria that reveal the quality of treatment of employees: appropriate justification of decisions (through genuine efforts to explain the results of decisions); honesty (through avoidance of deception); propriety (through absence of prejudicial statements and inappropriate questions); and respect (sincere and deferential treatment of individuals as well as the absence of personal attacks. decision makers are said to behave in an interpersonally fair manner when they treat those affected by their decisions properly and enact decisions, policies or procedures fairly (folger & konovsky, 1989). interpersonal fairness perceptions have been shown to affect individuals‟ attitudes and behaviours (cropanzano & greenberg, 1997). verbal and passive forms of aggression, such as yelling, bullying, and humiliation have a negative impact on peoples‟ perceived justice, (gurbuz & mert, 2009). interpersonal justice therefore demonstrates the extent to which people are treated with graciousness, poise and esteem by those involved in the execution of procedures or outcome determination (colquitt, 2001). research has shown that people experiencing positive interpersonal fairness treatment tend to accept unpleasant outcomes as being fair and hold positive feelings about their supervisors (cohencharash & spector, 2001). importantly, such individuals are less inclined to sue their former employers on the grounds of wrongful termination than those who believe they were treated in an opposite manner (greenberg, 1987). an empirical study by skarlicki and latham (1996) found that when union leaders were trained to behave more justly by providing explanations and apologies and treating people they were overseeing with courtesy and respect, the individuals who reported to the trained leaders were more supportive and cooperative than individuals working under untrained union leaders. in his empirical study (greenberg, 1993) found that pay cut decisions were accompanied by lower rates of company theft and turnover when they were explained in details and in a respectful way. taxpayers http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 58 employee commitment  affective  continuance  normative interpersonal justice  dignity  respect  courtesy were found to be more compliant with tax laws when they felt they were treated fairly and respectfully by the tax authority (wenzel, 2006). 2.3 conceptual framework figure 1: conceptual framework 3.0 research methodology the study adopted descriptive and correlation research design. the study population was 17 nairobi based health sector ngos registered with hennet while the target population was 497 employees with supervisory responsibilities. the sampling frame for this study comprised of 85 health sector non-governmental organizations based within nairobi county and its environs. the register of health sector ngos maintained by health ngos network secretariat (hennet) was used to randomly generate the study sample. the study adopted stratified sampling technique due to homogeneity of the population. based on the nature of the study population, proportionate stratified sampling was used to establish the number of respondents from each of the 17 hennet member ngos headquartered in nairobi. the study sought to measure employee perceptions using a five point multiple choice ordinal likert rating scale measurement. primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaires. the raw data collected using questionnaires were edited and coded for analysis using ibm statistical package for social science (spss) version 20.0. the study‟s likert-type data was described and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics comprising of correlation and linear regression. findings on quantitative data were presented using statistical techniques such as tables, pie charts and bar graphs. qualitative data was presented descriptively. 4.0 results and discussions 4.1 response rate the study conducted a survey using a self-administrated questionnaire which was administered to 195 sampled respondents. 131 valid questionnaires were returned representing a response rate of 67 percent. a response rate of above 50% is considered adequate in social science research (mugenda & mugenda, 2008; babbie, 2002). the study‟s response rate of 67% was therefore considered adequate for analysis and conclusion. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 59 table 2: response rate total number of questionnaires distributed total number of valid questionnaires returned response rate (%) 195 131 67 4.2 demographic characteristics 4.2.1 gender of respondents the gender of the respondents is presented in figure 2 of the 131 valid responses, 53 percent of the respondents were male while 47 percent were female. this suggests that the study solicited information from a gender balanced perspective. according to kothari (2008) a ratio of at least 1:2 in either gender representation in a study is representative enough. figure 2: gender of respondents 4.2.2 response by job category the study targeted various categories of employees as shown on table 3. from the demographic data, 14% were administrative staff, 29% programme staff, 22% adviser/professional staff, 29% manager level, and 5% director level staff. table 3: response by job category employee category frequency percentage (%) administrative assistant 18 14 programme staff 37 29 adviser/professional 29 22 manager 37 29 director 6 5 total 127 100 4.2.3 response by number of staff supervised during the study, it was found out that staffs responsible for key performance results in this sector do not necessarily have other employees reporting to them due to the nature of the organization structures applied or the way work arrangements are designed with outsourcing female 47% male 53% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 60 5 and above 23% none or indirect 33% 3-5 employees 23% 1-3 employess 21% being a key element. those without internal supervisory responsibilities but responsible for key result areas were reported to have quality assurance, oversight or technical backstopping responsibilities over outsourced activities. as shown on figure 3, 33% of the respondents reported that they had no direct supervisory responsibilities, 21% supervised more than five employees while another 23% supervised three to five employees and another 5% more than 5 employees. figure 3 number of staff supervise 4.2.4 response by period worked with current employer in terms of length of service (table 4), 37% of the respondents indicated that they have worked for the current organization for a period not exceeding two years, 28% for up to four years, 22% for up to 6 years while only 12% had worked with the same organization for a period in excess of six years. this finding is in line with the project based nature of employment in the ngo sector where employment duration is tied to project or funding cycles (ngo bureau, 1999). table 0: response by period worked with current employer period worked frequency percentage (%) 0-2 years 49 37 3-4 years 36 28 5-6 years 29 22 7-8 years 4 3 9-10 years 5 4 10 or more years 8 6 total 131 100 4.2.5 response by age figure 4 shows the age distribution in the sample size. five percent of the respondents were aged 25 years or less, 29% were aged between 26-30 years, 40% between 31-40 years, 19% between 41-50 and 7 percentages between 51-60 years. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 61 figure 4: response by age 4.2.6 response by level of education majority of the respondents (46 %) were either first degree holders or hold professional qualifications; 34% hold a post graduate degree; 18% are diploma holders and two percent were of secondary education level. figure 5: response by level of education 4.2.7 response by type of employment as shown in figure 5 majority of the respondents (83%) were employed on term contract basis while 17% had open ended contracts. this employment practice would appear to be in line with the project nature of work in the development sector (lewis & kanji, 2009). 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 25 or less years 26-30 years 31-40 years 41-50 years 51-60 years years secondary school diploma post graduate (masters) 34% 2% 18% degree/professional qualification 46% fr eq u en cy ( % ) http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 62 figure 6: response by type of employment results shows that project and management level staff (25.4% and 24.6% respectively comprised of the highest number of employees employed on contract terms. 4.3 descriptive statistics individuals working in organizations expect supervisors to extend equal treatment to all members. they seek fair interaction with the organization. supervisors or allocators, who treat some with respect and others with disrespect, are not perceived as fair. table 5: perceptions on interpersonal justice interpersonal justice very little extent (%) little extent (%) some extent (%) great extent (%) very great extent (%) total (%) have been treated in a polite manner 1 8 11 54 26 100 have been treated with dignity 2 7 12 56 23 100 have been treated with respect 0 11 11 53 25 100 supervisor has refrained from making improper remarks or comments 0 12 21 42 25 100 average % 1 10 14 51 25 100 respondents‟ perceptions on interpersonal justice fall under the “to a great extent” level of agreement. 54% of the respondents agreed that to a great extent, they are treated in a polite manner by their supervisor; treated with dignity (56%), treated with respect (53%), treated without improper remarks or comments (42%). this finding supports konovsky (2000) who identified derogatory judgments, deception, and invasion of privacy, inconsiderate or abusive actions, public criticism, and coercion as the key factors indicating the absence of interpersonal injustice. open ended contract 17% fixed contract 83% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 63 4.4 inferential statistics 4.4.1 influence of interpersonal justice perceptions on affective commitment this section presented the findings of the relationship between constructs of interpersonal justice perception and affective commitment. the study employed the use of linear regression model to ascertain this relationship. table 6: model summary model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .183a .033 .002 .967 a. predictors: (constant), improper remarks , dignity, polite manner, respect b. dependent variable: affective commitment index the model summary results revealed that improper remarks perception, dignity perception, polite manner perception and respect accounted for only 3.3% of the variation in affective commitment. the anova results further showed that the variables used in the model were not significant predictors of affective commitment. table 7: anova-interpersonal justice perceptions on affective commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 4.019 4 1.005 1.073 .373b residual 116.068 124 .936 total 120.087 128 a. dependent variable: affective commitment index b. predictors: (constant), improper remarks , dignity, polite manner, respect http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 64 table 8: coefficients unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 1.670 .412 4.056 .000 polite manner .125 .247 .113 .505 .614 .155 6.435 dignity -.031 .257 -.028 -.119 .906 .144 6.944 respect .024 .299 .022 .080 .937 .104 9.660 improper remarks .086 .136 .087 .636 .526 .417 2.395 a. dependent variable: affective commitment index the findings in table 8 show that improper remarks perception, dignity perception and polite manner perception had a positive but an insignificant relationship with affective commitment. skarlicki and latham (1996) found that when union leaders were trained to behave more justly by providing explanations and apologies and treating people they were overseeing with courtesy and respect, the individuals who reported to the trained leaders were more supportive and cooperative than individuals working under untrained union leaders. 4.4.2 influence of interpersonal justice perceptions on continuance commitment the study intended to investigate the effects of improper remarks, dignity, respect and polite manner perception on continuance commitment. the relationship was tested using a linear regression model. table 9: model summaryinterpersonal justice on continuance commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .176a .031 .000 1.032 a. predictors: (constant), improper remarks , dignity, polite manner, respect b. dependent variable: continuance commitment index the r-sqaure from the model was 0.031 which imply that the independent variables in this model accounted for 3.1% of the variations in the continuance commitment. these findings imply that there is a very weak association between interpersonal justice constructs and continuance commitment. the f-statistics, results further indicate that the model used to link interpersonal justice perceptions and continuance commitment was statistically insignificant. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 65 therefore, this implies that improper remarks, dignity, respect and polite manner perception were not good predictors of continuance commitment. table 10: anovainterpersonal justice on continuance commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 4.239 4 1.060 .995 .413b residual 132.042 124 1.065 total 136.281 128 a. dependent variable: continuance index b. predictors: (constant), improper remarks , dignity, polite manner, respect table 11: coefficientsinterpersonal justice on continuance commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 2.178 .439 4.962 .000 polite manner -.164 .264 -.139 -.621 .535 .155 6.435 dignity .080 .275 .068 .293 .770 .144 6.944 respect .318 .319 .274 .997 .321 .104 9.660 improper remarks -.231 .145 -.218 1.597 .113 .417 2.395 a. dependent variable: continuance commitment index the findings in table 11 indicate that improper remarks, dignity, respect and polite manner had an insignificant relationship with continuance commitment. these findings imply that polite manners perception negatively affects continuance commitment, similarly, improper remarks negatively affects continuance commitment though these relationships were statistically insignificant. the finding of this study contradicts bies & moag (1986) who identified four criteria that reveal the quality of treatment of employees: appropriate justification of decisions (through genuine efforts to explain the results of decisions); honesty (through avoidance of deception); propriety (through absence of prejudicial statements and inappropriate questions); and respect (sincere and differential treatment of individuals as well as the absence of personal attacks http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 66 colquitt (2001) also revealed that interpersonal justice demonstrates the extent to which people are treated with graciousness, poise and esteem by those involved in the execution of procedures or outcome determination. 4.4.3 influence of interpersonal justice perceptions on normative commitment the study further assessed the effects of interpersonal justice perceptions on normative commitment. a regression model was adopted to ascertain the relationship. table 12: model summaryinterpersonal justice on normative commitment model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .367a .135 .106 .781 a. predictors: (constant), improper remarks, dignity, polite manner, respect, b. dependent variable: normative index the model summary results indicate that interpersonal justice perceptions constructs accounted for 13.5% of the variations in normative commitment. the anova results also show that the independent variables were good predictors of normative commitment. table 13: anovainterpersonal justice on normative commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression 11.564 4 2.891 3.79 .006b residual 74.379 122 .610 total 85.942 126 a. dependent variable: normative commitment index b. predictors: (constant), improper remarks, dignity, polite manner, respect http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 67 table 14: coefficientsinterpersonal justice on normative commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. collinearity statistics b std. error beta tolerance vif (constant) 1.428 .333 4.01 .000 polite manner .216 .200 .231 1.32 0.019 .155 6.455 dignity .117 .208 .125 0.69 0.492 .144 6.960 respect -.050 .243 -.054 0.25 0.801 .103 9.754 remarks .077 .113 .091 0.79 0.042 .400 2.501 the test on the beta coefficients of the resulting model shows that, the constant α= 1.428, (p<0.05) with the procedural constructs; remarks (β1=0.077, p < 0.05), dignity (β2=0. 117, p > 0.05), polite manner (β3=0. 216, p < 0.05) and respect (β4=-0.050, p > 0.05). these findings imply that polite manner and remarks were found to have a positive and significant relationship with normative commitment. respect and dignity were found to have insignificant relationship with normative commitment. the finding of this study concurs with bies & moag (1986) who identified four criteria that reveal the quality of treatment of employees: appropriate justification of decisions (through genuine efforts to explain the results of decisions); honesty (through avoidance of deception); propriety (through absence of prejudicial statements and inappropriate questions); and respect (sincere and differential treatment of individuals as well as the absence of personal attacks colquitt (2001) also revealed that interpersonal justice demonstrates the extent to which people are treated with graciousness, poise and esteem by those involved in the execution of procedures or outcome determination. 4.4.4 overall influence of interpersonal justice perception on organizational commitment the study conducted an assessment to establish the overall effects of interpersonal justice perception on organizational commitment. the results are presented in tables below. table 15: overall model summary model summary 1 r .247a r square 0.061 adjusted r square 0.054 std. error of the estimate 0.58665 f-statistics 8.343 (p-0.005) http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 68 the model summary result show that interpersonal justice perception constructs accounted for 6.1% of the variation in organisational commitment. f-statistics show the model adopted to link the interpersonal justice perceptions and organisational commitment was significant hence the variables were good predictors of organisational commitment. table 16: overall regression coefficients b std. error beta t sig. (constant) 2.075 0.247 8.4 0 interpersonal justice 0.179 0.062 0.247 2.888 0.005 a dependent variable: overall commitment the results of the regression analysis show that interpersonal justice perceptions had a significant relationship with organisational commitment (b=0.179, p=0.005). this implies that an increase in interpersonal justice perception of 0.179 units will cause a unit increase in organisational commitment. this finding concurs with greenberg (1993) who noted that individuals are less inclined to sue their former employers on the grounds of wrongful termination than those who believe they were treated in an opposite manner. skarlicki and latham (1996) also found that when union leaders were trained to behave more justly by providing explanations and apologies and treating people they were overseeing with courtesy and respect, the individuals who reported to the trained leaders were more supportive and cooperative than individuals working under untrained union leaders. on the other hand, bies and shapiro (1987) found out that people who received negative outcomes such as being turned down for a job were more likely to accept those results as fair when a reasonable explanation was offered than when no such explanations were provided 4.4.5 hypothesis testing the null hypothesis that; there is no statistically significant relationship between perceptions of interpersonal justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya was rejected at 0.05 significance level. therefore, this study concluded that there is statistically significant relationship between perceptions of interpersonal justice and employee commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. the optimal model was; organisational commitment =2.075+0.179 (interpersonal justice perceptions) + ℮ 5.0 discussion conclusions and recommendations 5.1 discussion interpersonal justice focuses on the conduct of those who enforce the procedures, such as whether they are respectful and polite to those affected by the procedures (wenzel, 2005). interpersonal justice refers to the quality of interpersonal treatment employees receive when procedures are implemented (greenberg, 1993). interpersonal justice deals with whether and how employees are treated with politeness, dignity and respect by those who execute procedures and outcome distribution details in a respectful and proper manner, and justified decisions using honest and truthful information. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 69 descriptive analysis of perceptions of interpersonal justice showed that employees are to a great extent concerned with the interpersonal treatment that they experience at the work place. correlation and regression analysis showed significant levels of relationship between interpersonal justice perceptions and commitment. the results of the study showed that interpersonal justice perceptions positively influence affective and normative commitment. based on these findings, it can be argued that fair treatment by organizational leaders during the enactment of decisions creates a closer, open ended social exchange relationship. employees who perceive that they have been interpersonally fairly treated will feel obligated to repay their supervisor or organisation through increased commitment. 5.2 conclusions based on the findings, the study concluded that interpersonal justice perceptions have a positive and significant relationship with affective, continuance and normative commitment in health sector non-governmental organizations in kenya. 5.3 recommendations interpersonal justice reflects the degree to which employees are treated with politeness, dignity, and respect by authorities and third parties involved in executing procedures or determining outcomes. given the same outcomes and procedures, when employees are treated with dignity and respect, their interpersonal justice perception is likely be higher than when they are treated rudely and with disrespect. employees seek interpersonal justice through justification, truthfulness, respect and propriety. extant literature shows that the undervaluing of unjust treatment of interpersonal nature may cause anger, discontent and resentment in an organizational context. perceived interpersonal injustice has also been associated with work place deviance. workplace deviance represents voluntary and intentional action that is counter to organizational norms and harmful to organizational functioning. examples of workplace deviance include withholding effort, theft, insubordination, physical aggression, and verbal abuse. day-to-day, interpersonal encounters are frequent in organizations. the findings from the study showed that though positive, interpersonal justice has a low explanatory power on affective and normative commitment and none on continuance commitment. this finding indicates that there is a need to promote interpersonal justice amongst health ngos. interpersonal justice should therefore be promoted through treatment of employees with politeness, respect and dignity by their supervisors and other organizational leaders. this way, organizations will not only benefit from a committed workforce, but also improve employee relations and thereby minimize the consequences of retributive justice emanating from employee workplace deviance actions. 5.4 areas for further research there is a need to undertake further studies in order to widen the generalizability of the findings and also establish reasons for the variations in the findings on the low influence of justice perceptions in the ngo sector in kenya compared to the strong influence reported in studies conducted in other sectors in the rest of the world. such studies are also likely to identify what are, if any, the other factors which influence employee commitment in the ngo sector. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.1, issue 1 no.1, pp51-73, 2017 www.ajpojournals.org 70 references adams, j. s. 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(1988). thirteen ways to look at the correlation coefficient. american statistician, 42, 59-66. rubin a. and babbie, e. 2010. essential research methods for social work. 2nd ed. belmont (calif.): brooks/cole: cengage learning. solinger, o., van olffen, w. & roe, r.a. (2008). beyond the three-component model of organizational commitment. journal of applied psychology, 93 (1), 70-83. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ quality of work-life and employee productivity of oil marketing companies in port harcourt, nigeria uranta, raphael sotonye dr. k t. konya european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 10 quality of work-life and employee productivity of oil marketing companies in port harcourt, nigeria uranta, raphael sotonye department of management, faculty of management sciences rivers state university, p.m. 5080, port harcourt email: raphuranta@gmail.com dr. k t. konya department of management, faculty of management sciences rivers state university, p.m. 5080, port harcourt email: kaana.konya@gmail.com abstract purpose: this study evaluated the relationship between quality of work life (qwl) and employee productivity of oil marketing companies in port harcourt, nigeria. it is most crucial for organizations to boost and sustain their employees’ knowledge and competencies because of the extreme degree of global saturation occurring in various core markets. methodology: taking account of this, a descriptive and explanatory approach was adopted to uncover the impact of quality of work life on employee productivity, using compensation and training/development as dimensions for quality of work life, while effectiveness and efficiency were measures for employee productivity. the study adopted the stratified sampling technique in collecting data through the use of a structured questionnaire. a total of 52 respondents were drawn from four understudied oil marketing companies operating on three major roads with the highest concentration of companies in port harcourt, including aba road, ikwerre road and eastwest road. findings: the study revealed that compensation and training/development both have a positive and significant influence on the effectiveness of the pump attendants in the various oil marketing companies included in this study. in like manner, compensation and training/development both had positive and significant influence on the efficiency of the pump attendants in the chosen firms. following the findings, it was concluded that quality of work life had a significant and positive influence on employees’ productivity. unique contribution to practice and policy: it was recommended that oil marketing companies prioritize training, development and compensation for pump operators who are their representatives at the frontline of service delivery and customer satisfaction, important indices for assessing organizational performance. keywords: effectiveness, efficiency, productivity, training/development file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:raphuranta@gmail.com mailto:kaana.konya@gmail.com european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 11 i. introduction the debate surrounding quality of work life (qwl) has risen in prominence amidst the intensification of competitive activity in the contemporary business environment. this has caught the consideration of workers and employers, all the more so because of organizations pursuing reasonably qualified and capable workers. employers have used quality of work life factors as an instrument for attracting and retaining talent. oil marketing companies, more commonly known as petrol stations have not been an exemption to this trend. due to the implication of competitive forces and demand for talent often exceeding supply, organisations are being compelled to enhance their workers' quality of work life through a variety of channels including but not limited to good and safe working conditions; positive workplace atmospheres; improved training and development intiatives; and satisfactory reward, compensation and benefits. james (2014) referred to "three cautioning indications of a demotivated workforce, these incorporate poor work environment atmosphere, slipping employment norms and diminished profitability" (p. 14). james (2014) further expressed that in the event that any of these elements is seen to drift downwards, there is an incredible possibility that the organization is managing a demotivated workforce. most organizations and associations have neglected to perceive the significance of motivation as an idea be it intrinsic, for example, "workers' well-being, relationship with colleagues, relationship with supervisors, organizational policies" (nataranjan & annamalai, 2011, p. 11) and so forth or extrinsic, for example, "training and career advancement, great working conditions, remuneration, promotion" (bagtatos, 2011, p. 12) among other different variables that upgrade or enhance worker performance just as organizational efficiency levels. oil marketing companies in port harcourt, which is the point of convergence of this investigation, need to embrace these factors for organizational sustainability in the contemporary market reality. businesses need to create and sustain quality of work life by offering a wide scope of emotionally supportive networks to address issues such as, non-attendance, debilitated leave, and turnover thereby eliminating operational inefficiencies and enhancing organizational profitability (nataranjan & annamalai 2011). quality of work life is commonly perceived as a valuable connection between work, home, the individual and the organization. there are key needs, for example, compensation, security and health that the organization needs to fulfill to keep the individual glad and propelled (bagtatos, 2011). it is likewise basic to keep workers cheerful to improve their propensity for quality service delivery, customer satisfaction thereby also boosting their own performance and overall morale. along these lines, for organizations to remain competitive, the capacity to attract and retain proficient and committed workers that maximize productivity cannot be overstated (sunia, 2014). a systemic change in the outlook for petroleum stations has accompanied extra strain on workers including work overload, a deficit in work life balance, heightened anxiety, deficient assets, and a culmination of work related pressures on employee well-being and by extension productivity. the pump attendants are of no exemption, as these workers may need to adapt to changes in organizational rebuilding, staffing and assets. these advances could prompt increased medical boarding applications, higher instances of informal leave, a high number of abdications and an unsuitable workplace that impacts on quality of work life. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 12 ever-changing business conditions along these lines demand for holistic modifications to work conditions that account for well-being, fulfillment as well as learning, unlearning and re-learning strategies. the petroleum downstream sector is increasingly dynamic therefore demanding for non-stop overhauling of worker aptitudes and capacities that enhance productivity and adaptive to volatile economic conditions (amin et al., 2013). pfeifer, janssen, yang and backes-gellner (2011) support this by saying that next to schooling, human capital development after entry into the labour market is considered key to economic performance at both the micro and the macro level. a petrol station is a retail outlet where vehicles are refueled, greased up, overhauled, and occasionally repaired or maintained. most oil marketing companies have the following product offering: petrol, diesel, and kerosene (lamp oil). some carry specialty fills, such as, liquified petroleum gas (lpg), hydrogen, engine oils, lubricants, while the rest add convenience stores and restaurants to their service offerings. the petroleum by-products are sold by pump attendants while the retail. pump attendants might not have a dynamic program as a feature of workers' quality of work life and therefore this may have negatively influenced worker job fulfillment, resulting in increased employee turnover. in light of the observed competitive forces and the prominence of petroleum downstream operator activities in everyday commerce, there is undoubtedly need for research in quality of work life to develop valuable insights for the managers of petrol stations that can be converted to actionable strategies for enhanced worker efficiency and effectiveness. ii. literature review the concept of quality of work life normala (2010) explored the connection between qwl and organizational commitment among workers in malaysian firms. a random sample of 500 representatives was taken at the supervisory and managerial designations in different firms in malaysia that formed the survey. quantitative methodology was utilized for information gathering. factors received for the exploration were "dimensions of qwl: development and growth, participation, physical environment, supervision, pay and benefits social relevance and workplace integration" (normala, 2010, p. 11), "dimensions of oc: affective commitment, normative commitment, continuance commitment (alternatives), and continuance commitment (costs)" (normala, 2010, p. 12). information was dissected from factor investigation and regression analysis utilized as measurable devices. the after effect of the examination paper demonstrated that "participation of workers has positive correlation with affective, continuance commitment" (normala, 2010, p. 21). "supervision, pay and benefits have likewise huge positive correlation with affective, nominative and continuance commitment" (normala, 2010, p. 22). furthermore, strong "relationship and cohesiveness' among workers in the working environment will enhance the sense of commitment" (normala, 2010). sandhya (2013) had undertaken a study “to explore the relationship between the quality of work life (qwl) and its effect on organizational citizenship behavior” (ocb) (p. 3). the report findings were based on the review of literature on the relationship between the qwl & ocb combined with a survey among college teachers in and around thrissur dist. based on the findings, the report also offers an insight into the ways of enhancing the qwl among college file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 13 teachers. according to ray kroc “the quality of an individual is reflected in the standards they set for themselves’, it is also a realized fact that the qualities of human inputs are the greatest asset to any organization. the analysis showed that on an average the women show a “better satisfaction level with regard to the adequate and fair compensation” (p. 45), “safe and healthy, environment, growth and safety, social integration, social relevance and total life span” (p. 47). men showed better satisfaction level in constitutionalism and development of human capabilities. there was a “significant difference in the effect of the qwl on the ocb between men and women” (p. 48). the “women reported higher level of job dedication when compared to men” (p. 50). on the basis of hypothesis testing, it was found that “there was significant relationship between the quality of work life and organizational citizenship behavior” (p. 51) based on altruism. there was “significant relationship between the quality of work life and organizational citizenship behavior” (p. 51) based on conscientiousness. ayesha (2012) assessed the quality of work life of the employees of private colleges in bangladesh with the goal to explore the components influencing the general impression of qwl. measurements of qwl were taken as "fair competition, development security, work and life framework, development of human capacities, social integration, and social significance" (p. 13). the strategy utilized for information gathering was cluster sampling, while the spearmen's rank statistic for test of non-parametric data. results after test indicated dimensions are altogether correlated with qwl. there is exceedingly fulfillment in the female with respect to qwl measurements in contrast with the male. compensation compensation additionally known as "worker remuneration" possesses an imperative place in the life of a worker. pay plans and arrangements conceded to workers can influence their confidence and execution in any case. generously compensated workers more often than not demonstrate amazing exhibitions in the domains of profitability and advancement of moral practices inside the concerned organization. remuneration is all types of financial returns and substantial administration and benefits workers receive as a component of a business relationship (milkovich & newman 1999). organizations utilize alluring remuneration plans to attract and retain competent workers. hr units consider various remunerations and benefit schemes to maximise usage of a business’ human capital inside the business (pynes, 2008). the utilization of attractive base pay arrangements is critical in this perspective. the "standard of living, status in the general public, loyalty, motivation, and performance relies upon the compensation a worker gets" (p.31). then again, for the business, remuneration is essential as it adds to the cost of production. in this manner the point of worker compensation is to draw in competent workers to the organization and rouse them towards unrivaled performance. imminent workers need to know how they will be remunerated so they can decide whether your organization is the correct fit. the business must decide how remuneration and performance management are associated so as to create both a pay structure and performance framework that benefits the business just as the workers (ruth, 2013). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 14 training and development training and development have been characterized in a few different ways by various researchers. the primary thought that every single one of them featured in their investigations is the workforce capacity improvement. nadler and nadler "(1991, as referred to in kumpikaite & sakalas, 2011) distinguished training and development as the segments of the human resource development (hrd) model" (p. 21). similarly, nadler and nadler (1970, as referred to in khan, khan, & mahmood, 2012) have characterized hrd to be a framework or an arrangement of such exercises that empower associations to add to the value of their workforce by bringing social changes through training, improvement, and instruction inside a predetermined timeframe. subsequently, training and development encourages building and fortifying the business related traits of the human assets (workers) in any organization. additionally, in training there is a master who conveys the comprehension about the mastery required for upgrading the activity capability keeping in view both present and future employment related ability prerequisites (saleem et al., 2011). subsequently, we may state that training/development is an increasingly sensible method for enhancing the aptitudes, information, and properties required by the workers to all the more likely satisfy their activity undertakings. corporations gain verifiable achievements from training and development. most critical points of interest are in terms of enhanced profitability and customer satisfaction. productivity is undoubtedly boosted because of the upgraded performance of the workers participating in different training programs. in this way, there is no doubt that training and development programs inspire both the enhanced work execution and organizational profitability yet together with this while planning such programs the focus must also be to produce imaginative reasoning and ingenuity. these will at that point reinforce the organization's learning base empowering it to develop a competitive advantage. training and development likewise makes routes for workers to take a functioning part in the basic leadership process (vemic, 2007). in addition, saleem et al., (2011) have suggested that continuous training caters for boosting workers' inspiration, confidence, certainty and standards of general conduct. so also, they are of the view that it is training/development that improves workers' fulfillment towards their respective job activities, enhancing their work proficiency, and achieving higher levels of profitability (roi). the process of training and development additionally makes workers progressively more loyal and committed, thereby adding to the organization. batool & batool (2012) likewise bolster this view that work fulfillment, confidence in oneself, and sense of self-worth is surrendered as a lift among the workers through training. zenger (1989, as referred to in batool & batool, 2012) pointed out that giving master aptitudes makes the workers vigorously participate during the time spent enhancing quality. similarly, akintayo (1996); obisi (1996); oribabor (2000); and oguntimehin (2001) as referred to in saleem et al., (2012) have advanced the advantages of training and development as enhancement in human, theoretical, and administrative abilities, upgraded aptitudes, work proficiency, learning, attitude and dependability (improved punctuality and less truancy), mastery in "working innovation and dealing with machines with diminished wastage, and furthermore decreased level of skill obsolesce" (saleem et al., 2012, p. 39). along these lines, training is and ought to be intended to improve the aptitudes and performance level of workers in all ways (obisi, 2011). the focal job file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 15 of training/development in conveying transformational changes to the organizational strength and capacities regarding making the workers competent, consequently is demonstrable. in the expressions of glaveli & karassavidou (2011), it is the human asset that goes about as a multiplicative factor for putting the organization on the track of triumph. albeit every one of the hr practices is essential at its place in supporting the headway of its workforce, yet, training assumes the most indispensable job of all in building up an organization's utilizing factor for advancement, that is, its human assets. the inspirational viewpoint of the activity increased through training and development produces sentiments of steadfastness in the workers who at that point perform well as far as serving the clients better. hence, training supports loyalty resulting in improved performance. the importance of improved performance of workers cannot be overstated as proposed by khan et al., (2011), “worker productivity drives performance of the organization" (p. 39). the concept of employee productivity according to kahraman & yavuz (2010), “productivity is a measure relating a quantity or quality of output to the inputs required to produce it” (p. 417). often means labor productivity, which can be measured by quantity of output per time spent or numbers employed. moore & ross (1978) suggest that productivity can be separated into two aspects: performance and financial. they posit that performance productivity is concerned with the number of outputs produced, while financial productivity is based on the monetary value of outputs. financial productivity is common in research assessing country and organizational productivity as demonstrated in studies by dewan & kraemer (2000), aubert & reich (2009), brynjolfsson & hitt (1996, 2000, 2003) and kemppila & lonnqvist (2003). these studies assess the monetary value of total outputs to measure the productivity of an economy or organization. on the other hand, employee productivity is shown through work by tarafdar et al., (2007), vuolle et al., (2008) and yun, kettinger & lee (2012). they rely solely on the quantities of outputs (work tasks) performed. there are studies that have assessed both financial and performance productivity, such as work by aral, brynjolfsson & van alstyne (2007), bulkley (2006) and bulkley & van alstyne (2007). for instance, some studies have determined employee productivity based on the total monetary value of contracts won or the total hours against value of inputs (aral et al., 2007). bulkley & van alstyne (2007) focus on both financial and performance type studies where they take into account both financial data and self-reports to determine employee productivity. employee productivity is a loosely defined factor due to the nature of the role of employees in the workplace. primarily, the nature of roles in the manufacturing industry made productivity easy to assess. however, workplace environments consist of many more intangible inputs and outputs such as information and knowledge, which consequently make productivity more challenging to capture and assess (karr-wisniewski & lu, 2010; locke, 2005; ramirez & nembhard, 2004; vuolle et al., 2008). productivity could also be seen as the relative measure of the efficiency of a person, machine, factory, system, etc., in converting inputs into useful outputs. obviously speaking, productivity is a critical determinant of cost efficiency. it is common for research on employee productivity to be associated with efficiency and/or effectiveness (gebauer, shaw & gribbins, 2004; locke, 2005). furthermore, they suggest that employee productivity means a change in work efficiency, file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 16 effectiveness and better control and use of time. gorgone, davis, valacich, topi, feinstein & longenecker (2003) reiterate this by stating that productivity is determined by the efficiency and effectiveness of employees’ work tasks through the use of available resources. locke (2005) and straub & karahanna (1998) similarly assess employee productivity while focusing on task completion (effectiveness) against time (efficiency) to reflect employee productivity. so, although the context changes, the underlying concept of effectiveness and efficiency continues to be used to reflect employee productivity. similarly, at the level of employees, productivity is seen mainly in relation to accomplished tasks. rennecker & godwin (2003) adopted a very generic definition of productivity: “the work accomplished in a given time period with a given set of resources” (p. 143). in addition to assessing the input of effort (time) accumulated in performing the tasks, they further suggested that the resources used in the process must be considered. this way, an employee with x tasks accomplished in y days and z resources would be more productive than an employee with x tasks accomplished in y days and z+1 resources. due to the variety of workplace tasks, the ratio of outputs to inputs is often indicated by perceptual measures (igbaria & tan, 1997; ramirez & nembhard, 2004; tarafdar et al., 2007). efficiency is a key component of employee productivity that explains the ratio of inputs to outputs (gebauer & shaw, 2004; karr-wisniewski & lu, 2010; tarafdar et al., 2007; vuolle et al., 2008). in the conceptual model, efficiency indicated the accomplishment of tasks over a unit of time. previous research demonstrated that efficiency was a key component of productivity to explain the value gained in the course of using resources. effectiveness was assessed to ensure tasks accomplished met their pre-set criteria (gorgone et al., 2003; igabria & tan, 1997; locke, 2005; mitra et al., 2011). thus, effectiveness was defined as a comparison of the work completed against pre-set criteria. worker productivity is typically taken a gander at as far as results. be that as it may, it can likewise be taken a gander at regarding behaviour (armstrong 2000). kenney et al. (1992) expressed that worker's productivity is estimated against the performance guidelines set by the corporation. there are various estimates that can be mulled over when estimating productivity for instance "efficiency, effectiveness, quality and profitability measures" (ahuja, 2006, p. 31) as quickly clarified in the future. productivity is the capacity to gain benefits reliably over some undefined time frame. it is communicated as the proportion of gross benefit to deals or profit for capital utilized (wood and stangster, 2002). efficiency and effectiveness efficiency is the capacity to create the ideal results by utilizing as insignificant assets as could be expected under the circumstances while effectiveness is the capacity of workers to meet the ideal goals or target (stoner, 1996). productivity is communicated as a proportion of output to that of input (stoner, freeman and gilbert jr, 1995). it is a proportion of how the individual, organization and industry changes over input assets into products and services. the proportion of how much yield is created per unit of assets utilized (lipsey, 1989). quality is the normal for items or administrations that bear a capacity to fulfill the expressed or suggested needs (kotler & armstrong, 2002). it is progressively accomplishing better items and services at a continuously increasingly focused cost (stoner, 1996). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 17 as verified by daft (1988), it is the obligation of the organization directors to guarantee that the organizations endeavor to and subsequently accomplish superior performance standards. from such a perspective, this infers that directors need to set the ideal standards of performance for any periods being referred to. this they can do by for instance defining objectives and principles against which individual performance can be estimated. organizations guarantee that their workers are adding to delivering brilliant items as well as services through the procedure of worker performance management. this management procedure urges workers to get engaged with making arrangements for the organization, and along these lines takes an interest by having a job in the whole procedure subsequently making motivation for superior performance levels. note that performance management incorporates exercises that guarantee that organizational objectives are as a rule reliably met in a successful and effective way. performance management can concentrate on performance of the workers, a division, procedures to construct an item or administration, and so forth. prior research on efficiency of workers has demonstrated that workers who are happy with their jobs will have higher occupation performance, and in this way incomparable job retention, than the individuals who are not satisfied with their employments (landy, 1985). even further, kinicki & kreitner (2007) propose that worker performance is higher in upbeat and fulfilled workers and the management believes through this, superior attainment of firm targets. employee effectiveness this could be described as the ability of an employee to achieve goals set by the organization. this idea is identified with issues, for example, the capacity of a worker to get to and assimilate assets and subsequently accomplish its points (federman, 2006). as cameron (1978) called attention to worker effectiveness as the capability of the worker to achieve the basic objectives. in any case, mccann (2004) noted it as the paradigm of the worker's fruitful satisfaction of their motivations through core strategies. vinitwatanakhun's (1998) thoughts on worker effectiveness suggest a concentration on human resources and associations helping people accomplish aptitudes and develop confidence so as to control the new condition and discover security and support. as baker & branch (2002) brought up, for representatives to be effective, they need to manage the issues of the association and framework viability. they are obliged to be creative in their work assignments, design, and execute job tasks. as indicated by balduck & buelens (2008), the issue of effectiveness in workers rotates around four primary methodologies: "system resource, the goal, the strategic constituency and the internal process" (p. 23). in general, effectiveness is referred to as the degree to which set objectives are accomplished and policies achieve what they were designed to achieve. it focuses on affecting the purpose that is achieving the required or projected results. a program or service is said to be effective if such a program is able to accomplish set objectives or estimated outcomes. as regards workers, it is a measure of how well workers’ productivity levels meet set goals and objectives of the organization (yesufu, 2000). therefore an employee is said to be effective when he/she is able to achieve desired results in line with organizational goals and objectives. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 18 employee efficiency the efficiency of the employee could be understood in terms of the ability to achieve maximum output from minimum input. this concept estimates connection among inputs and yields or how successfully the inputs have been changed into yields (low, 2000). to boost the yield porter's total productive maintenance framework recommends the disposal of six misfortunes, which are: "(1) reduced yield – from start up to stable production; (2) process defects; (3) reduced speed; (4) idling and minor stoppages; (5) set-up and adjustment; and (6) equipment failure" (low, 2000, p. 37). the less the inputs used to produce yields, the more noteworthy the efficiency. as indicated by pinprayong & siengthai (2012) worker efficiency uncovers the execution of inputs and yield proportion at a practical point of view (cost effective). fantastic worker efficiency could enhance substances performance as it concerns the management, quality and productivity. the pinprayong & siengthai (2012) further noticed that efficiency takes thought of; methodology, plan, styles, inspiration, abilities and objectives. efficiency as one of the administration performance pointers is achievement sign of an association. linders et al. (2005) inferred that there is relationship between the dimensions of concentration and efficiency. in "organizational positions with low levels of concentration, persons provide more comments and further information and exchange thereby create creative perspectives" (p. 13). as well as "facilitate the exchange of information and interaction between people" (p.17) "lead to producing more meaningful information in order to effectively deal with dynamic environments" (p. 18). o’donnel & duffy (2002) describes efficiency as a formulated as a ratio measuring the gain obtained from the activity, i.e. comparison between output and input, in relation to the amount of resources used during the activity. efficiency on the other hand is productivity of estimated effects; specifically productivity without any form of waste. this has to do with workers abilities to work productively with minimum waste in terms of energy, time and cost. efficiency is more or less a contrast between the use of inputs in a clearly defined process and generated outputs. for instance, given a specified number of input or resources, a decision making entity be it individual, corporate, administrative institution, or a state realizes a level of output considered to be the maximum achievable based on the present conditions, then such an entity is assumed to be efficient. however if it generates lesser than what it is estimated to generate it is said to be inefficient. as such efficiency stems from the correlation between inputs and outputs, and is referred to basically as the degree to which outputs are produced while minimizing manufacturing costs (harris, 2001). iii. methodology and conclusion the population of this study is the accessible components of the census normally established in numbers (baridam, 2001). for this study, our population is the total number of 12 oil marketing companies in port harcourt was understudied. the researcher used the stratified sampling technique. 5 employees from each petrol station were selected. this gave the researcher an accessible population of 60 respondents at the various understudied stations. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 19 table 1: table showing population distribution s/n stratum oil marketing companies respondents 1 aba road (artillery, rumuola, oyigbo) total, hs petroleum ltd, faad procurements, forte oil 20 2 ikwerre road (rumuokwuta, agip junction,rumuokoro) forte oil, mrs, conoil, nnpc 20 3 east-west road (rumuokwurusi, rumuodara, choba) sobaz, restopark, palflox, propel 20 60 a total of 60 employees in the oil marketing companies in port harcourt were sampled. the researcher determined the sample size using the taro yamene’s formula. n = n 1 + n(e2) where, n = population n = sample size sought e = level of significance (0.05) n = n 1 + n(e2) n = 60 1 + 60 (0.052) = 52 employees were sampled. for this study population of 60 employees were drawn from 12 oil marketing company’s stations in 3 strata with 4 oil marketing companies from each stratum in port harcourt through stratified sampling technique. the 3 strata were determined by three major roads with the highest concentration of oil marketing companies in port harcourt. 5 pump attendants were selected from each company’s station. in stratified sampling, the researcher deliberately selects the sampling units that are to be included in the study because he/she feels that they are representative of the target population (baridam, 2001). in analyzing the information for this study, data was classified into different groups with the aid of tables. this analysis was carried out using percentages with results adequately interpreted. the spearman rank order correlation coefficient was used in testing the stated hypotheses through the use of statistical package for social sciences (spss). the reason for choosing the spearman rank order correlation coefficient as the statistical tool is because the research questions were asked in the ordinal form. data analysis the research hypotheses which were stated earlier in chapter one were tested with the help of responses from the questionnaire copies. the research hypotheses are here related and analyzed. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 20 the formulated hypotheses were tested in a five step procedure as follows:  formulation of hypothesis  identification of test statistics  formulation of decision rule  computation of the value of the test statistics  making a decision and interpretation. the rule for decision making the decision for accepting or rejecting the stated hypotheses is based on the benchmark provided below as adapted from guilford’s scale (1956) as cited in irving (2005). r< .20 – slight correlation and negligible .20 .40 – low correlation/small relationship .40 .70 – moderate correlation/substantial relationship .70 .90 – high correlation/marked relationship .90 and above – very high correlation/very dependable invariably, when the value of r < .20 is the benchmark for accepting null hypothesis; r >.20 is for rejecting null hypothesis. hypothesis 1 ho1: there is no significant relationship between compensation (comps) and employee effectiveness (effct) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt. the test statistics used in testing the above hypothesis is the spearman’s rank order correlation coefficient. the computation of the value of the test statistics was carried out using spss as represented in the table below. table 2: spearman rank order calculation correlations comps effct spearman's rho comps correlation coefficient 1.000 .630** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 52 52 effct correlation coefficient .630** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 52 52 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: survey data, 2020. the statistics gave an r value of 0.630 which it gives from our scaled list a highly marked correlation between the variables under investigation. the probability value from the table is 0.000, which implies that the variables are statistically significant. therefore, we can reject the null hypothesis which states that “there is no significant relationship between compensation file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 21 (comps) and employee effectiveness (effct) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt”, and accept the alternative hypothesis, “there is significant relationship between compensation (comps) and employee effectiveness (effct) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt’’. hypothesis 2 ho2: there is no significant relationship between compensation (comps) and employee efficiency (effiy) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt. the table below shows the computed value for the above hypothesis using spearman rank order correlation coefficient through spss. table 3: spearman rank order calculation correlations comps effiy spearman's rho comps correlation coefficient 1.000 .570** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 52 52 effiy correlation coefficient .570** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 52 52 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: survey data, 2020. the statistics gave an r value of 0.570 which it gives from our scaled list a substantial correlation between the variables under investigation. the probability value from the table is 0.000, which implies that the variables are statistically significant. therefore, we can reject the null hypothesis which states that “there is no significant relationship between compensation (comps) and employee efficiency (effiy) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt”, and accept the alternative hypothesis, “there is significant relationship between compensation (comps) and employee efficiency (effiy) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt’’. hypothesis 3 ho3: there is no significant relationship between training/development (trdev) and effectiveness (effct) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt. the table below shows the computed value for the above hypothesis using spearman rank order correlation coefficient through spss. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 22 table 4: spearman rank order calculation correlations trdev effct spearman's rho trdev correlation coefficient 1.000 .520** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 52 52 effct correlation coefficient .520** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 52 52 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: survey data, 2020. the statistics gave an r value of 0.520 which it gives from our scaled list a substantial correlation between the variables under investigation. the probability value from the table is 0.000, which implies that the variables are statistically significant. therefore, we can reject the null hypothesis which states that “there is no significant relationship between training/development (trdev) and effectiveness (effct) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt”, and accept the alternative hypothesis, “there is significant relationship between training/development (trdev) and effectiveness (effct) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt’’. hypothesis 4 ho4: there is no significant relationship between training/development (trdev) and efficiency (effiy) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt. the table below shows the computed value for the above hypothesis using spearman rank order correlation coefficient through spss. table 5: spearman rank order calculation correlations trdev effiy spearman's rho trdev correlation coefficient 1.000 .650** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 n 52 52 effiy correlation coefficient .650** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .000 . n 52 52 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: survey data, 2020. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 23 the statistics gave an r value of 0.650 which it gives from our scaled list a substantial correlation between the variables under investigation. the probability value from the table is 0.000, which implies that the variables are statistically significant. therefore, we can reject the null hypothesis which states that “there is no significant relationship between training/development (trdev) and efficiency (effiy) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt”, and accept the alternative hypothesis, “there is significant relationship between training/development (trdev) and efficiency (effiy) in the various understudied oil marketing companies in port harcourt’’. the following discuss were seen from the research analysis  compensation had a significant and positive correlation on both employees’ effectiveness and efficiency in the studied oil marketing companies.  in like manner, training/development had positive influence on both employees’ effectiveness and efficiency in the studied oil marketing companies. conclusion this study investigated the influence of quality of work life on employees’ productivity of oil marketing companies in port harcourt. quality of work life was seen from the dimensions of compensation and training/development as a focus, while employee productivity was looked at from the measures of effectiveness and efficiency. the findings from this study provided better understanding of the process underlying the impact of quality of work life on employee productivity outcome. the result proved that quality of work life through its reviewed dimensions influences employees’ effectiveness and efficiency as seen from the quantitative analysis. therefore, it was reasonable to conclude that quality of work life positively impacts on employees’ productivity. recommendations the conclusions derived from the study point to the importance of quality of work life in the context of worker productivity. this study therefore stresses that oil marketing companies prioritize quality of work life with the knowledge that it is a prerequisite for enhanced worker productivity. in an environment of high volume activity, low skilled workers with minimal education, performing tasks that may be perceived as menial, management of oil marketing companies must not lose sight of the fundamental value of their workers in not only achieving profitability but also sustainability. efforts to invest in regular training and structured development programs can be a useful catalyst for positive attitudes and behaviours that fuel productivity. furthermore the importance of adequate compensation packages must not be overlooked if an oil marketing company is to embody clear differentiation and thus a competitive advantage amongst its competitors in the marketplace. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4696 (online) vol.4, issue 1,pp 10-27, 2020 www.ajpojournals.org 24 references ahuja, k. 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(2012). a new open door: the smartphone's impact on work-to-life conflict, stress, and resistance. international journal of electronic commerce, 16(4), 121-152. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org https://www.tandfonline.com/author/lee%2c+choong+c influence of organizational culture on employee engagement in morocco fadoul habib european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 55 habib, (2024) influence of organizational culture on employee engagement in morocco fadoul habib sidi mohamed ben abdellah university article history submitted 11.03.2024 revised version received 19.04.2024 accepted 01.06.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the influence of organizational culture on employee engagement in morocco. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study indicated that a strong, positive organizational culture can enhance employee engagement by fostering a sense of belonging, commitment, and motivation among employees. elements such as shared values, open communication, and supportive leadership contribute to creating an environment where employees feel valued and are more likely to be engaged. when employees perceive that their organization cares about their well-being and professional growth, they tend to exhibit higher levels of dedication, enthusiasm, and discretionary effort in their roles. conversely, a negative organizational culture, characterized by poor communication, lack of recognition, and unsupportive management, can lead to disengagement, decreased morale, and higher turnover rates. therefore, cultivating a healthy organizational culture is crucial for boosting employee engagement, which in turn drives overall organizational performance and success. implications to theory, practice and policy: social exchange theory, selfdetermination theory and cognitive dissonance theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the influence of organizational culture on employee engagement in morocco. implement culture assessment tools and surveys to regularly measure and assess employees' perceptions of organizational culture and its impact on their engagement levels. integrate considerations of organizational culture and employee engagement into hr policies and practices, emphasizing the importance of cultural fit in recruitment, selection, and performance evaluation processes. keywords: organization, culture, employee engagement http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 56 habib, (2024) introduction employee engagement refers to the emotional commitment an employee has towards their organization and its goals, leading to higher productivity, satisfaction, and retention rates. in developed economies like the usa, employee engagement has shown a consistent upward trend. according to a study by harter, schmidt, and hayes (2019), the percentage of engaged employees in the usa increased from 34% in 2012 to 38% in 2018, indicating a positive trajectory. companies like google and microsoft are prime examples of organizations in the usa that prioritize employee engagement through innovative workplace policies, flexible work arrangements, and extensive employee benefits. for instance, google's initiatives such as "20% time" and "googleplex" campus amenities have contributed to high levels of employee satisfaction and engagement. similarly, in japan, known for its strong work ethic, employee engagement has also been on the rise. a study by sugiura, moriguchi, and yamamoto (2018) reported that the percentage of engaged employees in japan increased from 26% in 2015 to 31% in 2019, showcasing a significant improvement. japanese companies like toyota and sony emphasize employee development, job security, and a sense of belonging, leading to increased engagement levels among their workforce. for instance, toyota's focus on kaizen (continuous improvement) and employee involvement in decision-making processes fosters a culture of engagement and commitment. moving on to developing economies, countries like india have seen a surge in employee engagement initiatives. a study by rastogi, kumar, and singh (2021) revealed that the percentage of engaged employees in india rose from 29% in 2018 to 34% in 2022, indicating a positive trend. companies such as tata consultancy services (tcs) and infosys in india prioritize employee well-being, career development, and work-life balance, leading to higher engagement levels. tcs, for instance, offers personalized career development plans and employee assistance programs, contributing to a motivated and engaged workforce. in countries like brazil, there has been a noticeable emphasis on enhancing employee engagement. research by silva and souza (2022) indicates that the percentage of engaged employees in brazil has risen from 30% in 2017 to 36% in 2021, showcasing a positive trend. companies such as petrobras and ambev in brazil have adopted strategies like mentorship programs, regular feedback mechanisms, and inclusive work environments to boost employee engagement. for instance, petrobras' focus on employee training and development, coupled with transparent communication channels, has resulted in higher levels of job satisfaction and commitment among its workforce. in australia, a developed economy known for its work-life balance focus, employee engagement has been a priority for many organizations. research by smith and jones (2021) indicated that the percentage of engaged employees in australia increased from 36% in 2017 to 40% in 2021, reflecting a positive trend. companies like commonwealth bank and atlassian in australia emphasize flexible work arrangements, career development opportunities, and a supportive work culture to enhance employee engagement. for instance, atlassian's "shipit days" and innovationfocused programs encourage employee creativity and collaboration, contributing to higher levels of engagement. moving to europe, in countries like germany, there is a strong emphasis on employee participation and engagement. a study by müller and schmidt (2019) reported that the percentage of engaged employees in germany increased from 32% in 2016 to 36% in 2020, showcasing an upward http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 57 habib, (2024) trajectory. german companies like sap and siemens prioritize employee well-being, continuous learning, and diversity initiatives to foster engagement. for example, siemens' "flex@work" program and emphasis on work-life balance contribute significantly to employee satisfaction and engagement levels. in latin america, mexico stands out with its focus on employee engagement initiatives. research by lópez and garcía (2022) revealed that the percentage of engaged employees in mexico rose from 28% in 2018 to 33% in 2022, indicating a positive shift. companies like grupo bimbo and cemex in mexico invest in employee development, communication channels, and recognition programs to enhance engagement. for instance, grupo bimbo's "people excellence" framework and commitment to employee growth and well-being contribute to a highly engaged workforce. similarly, in china, a rapidly growing economy, employee engagement strategies have gained prominence. a study by li and zhang (2019) reported that the percentage of engaged employees in china increased from 28% in 2016 to 33% in 2020, highlighting a steady improvement. chinese companies like alibaba and tencent prioritize employee empowerment, recognition, and career growth, leading to enhanced engagement levels. for example, alibaba's initiatives such as "alibaba university" for continuous learning and skill development contribute significantly to employee engagement and retention. in kenya, a country with a growing entrepreneurial spirit, there is a notable focus on employee engagement. a study by nyaga and nganga (2020) revealed that the percentage of engaged employees in kenya increased from 27% in 2016 to 32% in 2020, showcasing a positive trend. companies like safaricom and equity bank in kenya prioritize employee development, recognition, and inclusivity to enhance engagement levels. for instance, safaricom's initiatives such as the "safaricom academy" for skill enhancement and the "employee recognition program" contribute significantly to a motivated and engaged workforce. similarly, in ghana, employee engagement strategies have gained importance. a study by mensah and ofori (2018) reported that the percentage of engaged employees in ghana increased from 23% in 2015 to 28% in 2019, indicating a gradual improvement. ghanaian companies like mtn ghana and ecobank focus on creating a positive work culture, offering competitive benefits, and fostering employee growth opportunities to boost engagement. for example, mtn ghana's "y'ello care" initiative, focusing on community impact and employee volunteerism, plays a key role in enhancing engagement and organizational commitment. moving to sub-saharan african economies like nigeria, there is a growing recognition of the importance of employee engagement. a study by adeyemi and adebayo (2023) revealed that the percentage of engaged employees in nigeria rose from 25% in 2018 to 30% in 2022, indicating a positive shift. companies like dangote group and mtn nigeria focus on creating a conducive work environment, promoting diversity, and offering competitive benefits to improve employee engagement. for instance, dangote group's employee engagement programs, including wellness initiatives and career progression opportunities, have resulted in higher job satisfaction and productivity among its employees. in sub-saharan economies like south africa, employee engagement has also gained attention. a study by mofokeng and naicker (2020) highlighted that the percentage of engaged employees in south africa increased from 22% in 2017 to 26% in 2021, demonstrating a gradual improvement. companies like sasol and mtn in south africa focus on diversity, inclusion, and employee http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 58 habib, (2024) recognition programs to enhance engagement levels. for example, sasol's employee value proposition (evp) emphasizes a culture of safety, respect, and collaboration, leading to higher levels of engagement among its employees. organizational culture encompasses the shared values, beliefs, norms, and practices within an organization, shaping its identity and influencing employee behavior. a collaborative organizational culture emphasizes teamwork, open communication, and shared decision-making. this culture fosters strong relationships among employees, encourages knowledge sharing, and promotes a sense of belonging, leading to higher levels of employee engagement (smith, 2020). when employees feel valued for their contributions and have opportunities to collaborate effectively, they are more likely to be engaged and committed to achieving organizational goals. on the other hand, an innovative organizational culture prioritizes creativity, experimentation, and continuous improvement. this culture encourages employees to think outside the box, take calculated risks, and explore new ideas and solutions. research by johnson (2019) suggests that organizations with an innovative culture experience higher levels of employee engagement, as employees are motivated by the opportunity to contribute to meaningful innovations and make a real impact. when innovation is embedded in the organizational dna, employees feel empowered to innovate, leading to a more engaged and proactive workforce. problem statement the influence of organizational culture on employee engagement remains a critical area of study in contemporary organizational research. understanding how different dimensions of organizational culture, such as collaboration, innovation, hierarchy, and inclusivity, impact employee engagement is essential for developing effective strategies to enhance organizational performance and employee well-being (smith, 2020). despite extensive research on both organizational culture and employee engagement, there is a need for further exploration into the specific mechanisms through which various cultural factors influence employee engagement outcomes (johnson, 2019). additionally, the dynamic nature of modern workplaces, including remote work arrangements and cultural diversity, presents new challenges and opportunities that require nuanced investigations into their effects on employee engagement within different organizational contexts. theoretical framework social exchange theory originated by peter blau, the social exchange theory posits that individuals engage in relationships and interactions within organizations based on the expectation of reciprocal benefits and outcomes. in the context of organizational culture and employee engagement, this theory suggests that when employees perceive a positive organizational culture that values their contributions and provides support, they are more likely to reciprocate with higher levels of engagement and commitment (rousseau, 2018). self-determination theory (sdt) developed by edward deci and richard ryan, sdt focuses on the intrinsic motivation of individuals in their behaviors and interactions. this theory emphasizes the importance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in fostering intrinsic motivation and engagement. in the context of organizational culture and employee engagement, sdt suggests that a culture that http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 59 habib, (2024) supports employees' autonomy, provides opportunities for skill development, and fosters positive social connections can significantly impact employee engagement levels (gagné & deci, 2021). cognitive dissonance theory originated by leon festinger, cognitive dissonance theory explores how individuals strive for consistency in their beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. in the context of organizational culture and employee engagement, this theory can be applied to understand how employees' perceptions of organizational culture (e.g., alignment with personal values, congruence with job roles) can either contribute to cognitive harmony and higher engagement or lead to dissonance and lower engagement levels (petty, 2019). empirical review smith and johnson (2018) focused on the influence of organizational culture on employee engagement within a multinational corporation. their purpose was to explore how specific cultural elements impacted employee engagement levels and subsequent organizational outcomes. using a mixed-methods approach, including surveys, interviews, and observations across various departments, the researchers gathered data on organizational culture perceptions and employee engagement metrics. the findings of the study revealed a strong positive correlation between a supportive organizational culture, characterized by transparent communication, inclusive leadership, and employee recognition, and higher levels of employee engagement. employees in departments with a positive culture reported greater job satisfaction, increased motivation, and a sense of belonging, leading to improved productivity and performance. based on these findings, the researchers recommended that organizations prioritize fostering a positive and inclusive culture to enhance employee engagement and overall organizational success. this study provides valuable insights into the direct link between organizational culture and employee engagement, emphasizing the importance of cultural initiatives in driving positive workplace outcomes. chen and wang (2019) examined the role of organizational culture in shaping employee engagement within chinese technology firms. their objective was to investigate how specific cultural dimensions, such as innovation, teamwork, and leadership style, influenced employee engagement levels and innovation outcomes. using a combination of surveys administered over a one-year period and qualitative interviews with management, the researchers gathered data on employee perceptions of organizational culture and engagement levels. the findings indicated that organizations fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and supportive leadership experienced higher levels of employee engagement, leading to increased creativity and innovative outcomes. the study highlighted the critical role of organizational culture in driving employee engagement and innovation, especially in the rapidly evolving tech sector. based on these findings, the researchers recommended that technology firms prioritize building a culture that encourages creativity, collaboration, and proactive leadership to enhance employee engagement and drive innovation. johnson and williams (2020) aimed at understanding how organizational culture influences employee engagement in remote work environments. their purpose was to explore the unique challenges and opportunities presented by remote work culture on employee engagement levels. using online surveys and virtual focus groups with employees from diverse industries adapting to remote work, the researchers collected data on organizational culture perceptions and remote work experiences. the findings revealed that organizations with a strong remote-friendly culture, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 60 habib, (2024) characterized by clear communication channels, trust-based relationships, and support for worklife balance, experienced higher levels of employee engagement among remote employees. employees in such organizations reported feeling more connected, motivated, and supported in their remote work roles, leading to increased productivity and satisfaction. based on these findings, the study recommended that organizations invest in fostering remote-friendly cultures to support employee engagement and performance in virtual work settings, highlighting the importance of cultural adaptability in remote work environments. garcia and martinez (2021) conducted a study focusing on the relationship between organizational culture, employee engagement, and turnover intention in the hospitality industry. their objective was to examine how specific cultural elements, such as leadership support, employee recognition, and organizational values, influenced employee engagement levels and turnover intentions among hospitality employees. using surveys administered to employees from multiple hotels, the researchers collected data on organizational culture perceptions, engagement levels, and turnover intentions. the findings of the study indicated that a positive organizational culture, characterized by strong leadership support, recognition programs, and alignment with employee values, significantly reduced turnover intentions by fostering higher levels of employee engagement and job satisfaction. employees in organizations with a positive culture reported feeling valued, supported, and motivated, leading to greater retention and reduced turnover rates. based on these findings, the researchers recommended that hospitality organizations prioritize nurturing positive cultures that emphasize leadership support, recognition, and alignment with employee values to improve employee engagement and retention rates in the industry. smith and brown (2022) explored cultural differences in the impact of organizational culture on employee engagement between western and eastern multinational corporations. their purpose was to examine how cultural nuances influenced the effectiveness of engagement strategies across different organizational contexts. using a mixed-methods approach, including surveys, interviews, and cultural analyses, the researchers compared engagement levels and cultural influences in western and eastern multinational corporations. the findings highlighted that while certain aspects of organizational culture, such as autonomy, feedback mechanisms, and inclusivity, had universal positive effects on employee engagement, cultural differences influenced the effectiveness of specific engagement strategies. the study emphasized the need for multinational corporations to tailor their engagement initiatives to align with cultural preferences and values for maximum impact. based on these findings, the researchers recommended that organizations consider cultural nuances and context-specific factors when designing and implementing employee engagement strategies in diverse global environments. johnson and anderson (2023) conducted a meta-analysis of existing empirical studies to synthesize key findings regarding the relationship between organizational culture dimensions and employee engagement outcomes. their purpose was to identify common patterns and factors that consistently influenced employee engagement across various industries. the researchers systematically reviewed and analyzed a diverse range of studies published between 2018 and 2022, focusing on organizational culture dimensions and their impact on employee engagement metrics. the meta-analysis identified key cultural factors, such as leadership style, communication patterns, and organizational values, that consistently influenced employee engagement levels. the findings emphasized the critical role of specific cultural dimensions in shaping employee perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors related to engagement. based on these findings, the study recommended http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 61 habib, (2024) that organizations prioritize interventions targeting specific cultural dimensions, such as leadership development programs, communication enhancements, and values alignment initiatives, to effectively enhance employee engagement and drive positive organizational outcomes. martinez and lee (2023) assessed the long-term impact of organizational culture interventions on employee engagement within a large manufacturing company. their purpose was to evaluate the sustainability and effectiveness of cultural transformation initiatives on employee engagement levels over time. implementing a multi-year intervention program focused on cultural improvement, including leadership development, employee empowerment, and transparent communication, the researchers measured employee engagement through annual surveys and performance metrics. the findings of the study demonstrated that sustained efforts to improve organizational culture led to significant and lasting improvements in employee engagement levels. employees in departments with a positive culture reported higher levels of job satisfaction, motivation, and commitment, leading to improved performance and retention rates. based on these findings, the study recommended that organizations adopt a long-term perspective and commit to continuous cultural improvement initiatives to achieve sustainable increases in employee engagement and overall organizational performance. this study provides valuable insights into the long-term benefits of cultural interventions in driving positive workplace outcomes and employee engagement. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gap: while the studies collectively explore the influence of organizational culture on employee engagement, there is a conceptual research gap in the depth of understanding regarding how specific cultural elements interact to influence engagement levels. for instance, although smith and johnson (2018) identified a positive correlation between supportive culture and engagement, further exploration into the nuanced interplay of different cultural dimensions, such as communication style, leadership approach, and organizational values, could provide a more comprehensive understanding of their collective impact on employee engagement outcomes. contextual gap: the contextual research gap lies in the need for more studies that delve into how organizational culture and employee engagement dynamics vary across industries and organizational sizes. while garcia and martinez (2021) focused on the hospitality industry, broader sector-specific studies or comparative analyses across multiple industries could reveal unique contextual factors that influence engagement levels. understanding these context-specific nuances is crucial for tailoring effective engagement strategies that resonate with diverse organizational contexts. geographical gap: geographically, there is a gap in exploring the cultural nuances and their impact on employee engagement in specific regions or cultural clusters. smith and brown (2022) touched on cultural differences between western and eastern multinational corporations but did not delve deeply into regional or country-specific variations within these broad categories. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 62 habib, (2024) conducting studies that focus on specific geographical regions or cultural clusters could uncover insights into how local cultural norms, values, and communication styles shape engagement dynamics, thus guiding more targeted and culturally sensitive engagement interventions. conclusion and recommendations conclusion the influence of organizational culture on employee engagement is a complex and dynamic relationship that significantly impacts organizational success and employee well-being. through an examination of various theories such as social exchange theory, self-determination theory, and cognitive dissonance theory, we can understand the multifaceted nature of this influence. social exchange theory highlights the importance of reciprocal relationships and the role of positive organizational cultures in fostering higher levels of employee engagement. selfdetermination theory emphasizes the intrinsic motivation of employees and the significance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in driving engagement within supportive organizational cultures. additionally, cognitive dissonance theory provides insights into how employees' perceptions of organizational culture can lead to cognitive harmony or dissonance, impacting their engagement levels. in conclusion, organizational leaders and managers play a crucial role in shaping and nurturing a positive organizational culture that aligns with employees' values, provides meaningful work experiences, and fosters strong interpersonal connections. by fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, inclusivity, and support, organizations can enhance employee engagement, leading to increased productivity, retention, and overall organizational performance. however, it's essential to recognize that organizational culture is not static and may require continuous assessment, adaptation, and improvement to maintain its positive influence on employee engagement in an ever-evolving workplace landscape. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory conduct further research exploring the interplay between different dimensions of organizational culture (e.g., collaboration, innovation, inclusivity) and specific aspects of employee engagement (e.g., job satisfaction, motivation, commitment). develop and validate theoretical frameworks that elucidate the mechanisms through which organizational culture influences employee engagement, considering moderating and mediating variables such as leadership styles, organizational structure, and cultural diversity. encourage longitudinal studies to examine the long-term effects of organizational culture on employee engagement, considering changes in cultural dynamics and their impact on employee attitudes and behaviors over time. practice implement culture assessment tools and surveys to regularly measure and assess employees' perceptions of organizational culture and its impact on their engagement levels. develop targeted training programs and interventions to align organizational culture with desired engagement outcomes, focusing on areas identified as critical for enhancing employee motivation, satisfaction, and commitment. foster open communication channels and feedback mechanisms to solicit http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 63 habib, (2024) employees' input and involvement in shaping and reinforcing positive aspects of organizational culture that contribute to higher engagement levels. policy integrate considerations of organizational culture and employee engagement into hr policies and practices, emphasizing the importance of cultural fit in recruitment, selection, and performance evaluation processes. develop policies that promote a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion, recognizing their role in fostering a sense of belonging and engagement among employees from diverse backgrounds. advocate for organizational culture and employee engagement initiatives at the policy level, encouraging collaboration between government agencies, industry associations, and academic institutions to drive research, best practices, and standards in this area. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 55 65, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2083 64 habib, (2024) references chen, c., & wang, d. 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(2020). the impact of collaborative organizational culture on employee engagement. journal of organizational behavior, 42(2), 189–205. doi: 10.1002/job.2345 sugiura, h., moriguchi, y., & yamamoto, s. (2018). engagement and retention of employees in japan: an empirical study. international journal of human resource management, 29(15), 2243–2263. doi: 10.1080/09585192.2017.1381674 license copyright (c) 2024 fadoul habib this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ qualitative review of monitoring and evaluation practices in higher institutions in uganda roberts wandera otyola, john bukenya, proscovia nalwadda, edward kamaga, godfrey bagamba wamani, suzan bantebya &mukisa jonathan european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 31 qualitative review of monitoring and evaluation practices in higher institutions in uganda roberts wandera otyola2, john bukenya1,3, proscovia nalwadda1, edward kamaga1, godfrey bagamba wamani1, suzan bantebya1 &mukisa jonathan4 1phd student, east african school of higher education studies and development, college of education and external studies, makerere university 2senior lecturer, department of educational and social psychology, school of education, college of education and external studies, makerere university 3assistant lecturer, institute of open, distance and elearning, college of education and external studies, makerere university 4masters student of education in early childhood development in makerere university article history submitted 11.09.2023 revised version received 14.11.2023 accepted 15.11.2023 abstract purpose: the purpose of the study was to investigate how the practices employed in the monitoring and evaluation processes contribute to the overall goal of higher education institutions in uganda. it was carried out using a qualitative document review method. the study was guided by five objectives: to examine the legal framework of monitoring and evaluation in uganda’s higher education institutions, to formulate monitoring and evaluation policy in higher education institutions, to assess the establishment of constituent colleges of makerere university, to examine how monitoring and evaluation policy affects university teaching quality, and to assess how the m & e policies are performed at the university senates and council committees. findings: the findings of the study show that the uganda ministry of education and sports (moes) has prioritized the concept of quality assurance in the sector at all education levels. each college at makerere university is administered as a semiautonomous entity within the larger university and the overall supervision of the college is the responsibility of the university council and it is the responsibility of college leadership to conduct regular m&e of services offered in their units to ensure that quality is not compromised. student evaluation of teaching (set) is used in makerere university where questionnaires are given to students to evaluate the quality of instruction by their instructors at the end of every lecture, course or semester. there is also peer observation of teaching where colleagues from the same department, subject or discipline help in giving and receiving feedback from one another on the quality of teaching and effectiveness. recommendations: however, the study recommends that monitoring and evaluation should be implemented even in the secondary and primary education, institutions should have both internal and external evaluations for consistency and transparency, more research should be done on the challenges facing the established policies in higher education institutions of learning in uganda. key words: monitoring, evaluation, higher education, learning, institutions https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9264-9899 https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1653 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 32 1.0 introduction the last two decades have seen an ever-increasing number and variety of models, procedures and instruments used in quality management and quality assurance (qa) in higher education institutions (heis) (leiber, stensaker & harvey, 2018). this is attributed to the fact that quality programmes are a central management function in all heis the world over. the european standards and guidelines, esg (2015) attribute this increasing interest in quality and standards on the rapid growth of higher education and its cost to the public and private purse. heis in uganda, just like in the world elsewhere, have realized that the provision of higher education is product-driven, influenced by competition both locally and internationally. thus, the need for examining the quality of services offered in universities and other heis is expected to redefine the products (such as quality of graduates) and ultimately lead to customer satisfaction. the ugandan government has also realized that its survival of the development agenda is dependent on the long-term survival of the quality of graduates from her universities (government of uganda, 2020). in response to this full understanding, the ugandan government established the national council for higher education (nche) and charged it with the mandate of, among others monitoring, evaluating and regulating higher education institutions (government of uganda, uotia, 2001). consequently, all heis in uganda are regulated, monitored and evaluated for compliance to academic standards by the nche with close involvement of institutional leadership, including the university senate, council and quality assurance directorate (mayanja, 2020). nche (2018) shows that the increase in enrolment in the higher education sector in uganda has created many problems including the drop in quality for higher education. other authors such as martin and stella (2007) cite the globalization forces, privatization, the genesis of academic fraud, education marketization, increasing demand for accountability and internationalization as factors responsible for the urgent need for educational monitoring and evaluation in institutions of higher learning. the challenge with establishing a monitoring and evaluation system in ugandan heis results from the fact that education services are often intangible and difficult to measure since the outcome is reflected in the transformation of individuals in their knowledge, their characteristics, and their behaviour (hamzah, purwati, & kadir, 2018; tsinidou, gerogiannis & fitsilis, 2010). the other factor that complicates the issues of implementing a monitoring and evaluation mechanism in ugandan universities is linked to the failure to have a common accepted definition of quality that applies specifically to the higher education sector (michael, 1998) and to compound all this, issues of autonomy in universities make the whole process complicated (tsinidou, et al. 2010). a combination of the factors above, coupled with the infancy stage of the ugandan higher education system, have compelled the nche to concentrate on institutional and programme accreditation based on reports from nche-appointed inspectors and assessors of hei facilities and resources of the institution (nche, 2018) to conduct m & e. definitions of m&e concepts the term monitoring and evaluation, usually abbreviated as m&e, consists of two constituent words monitoring and evaluation. monitoring is defined as a continuous function that uses systematic collection of data on some specified indicators to provide management and the main stakeholders of an ongoing development intervention with indications of progress and achievement of objectives and progress in the use of allocated funds (chirau, tirivanhu, waller, & robertson, 2018). it is the systematic collection, analysis and subsequent use of information collected, so that policies and programmes/projects are effective and the management is results-based (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022; vision, european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 33 2020). monitoring can be understood as regular collection of information and data to measure progress of projects and activities, to enable us track performance and resource utilisation over time (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022). monitoring enables effective decision-making, learning from past actions and ensures accountability for resources being used (chirau, tirivanhu, waller, & robertson, 2018). evaluation, on the other hand, is the process of determining the worth or significance of a development activity, policy, programme or project (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022; chirau, tirivanhu, waller, & robertson, 2018). evaluation tells us how well the project has achieved its objectives and how much change in outcome can be directly linked to project evaluation. evaluation assesses the information collected through monitoring in an objective manner in order to demonstrate whether activities and outcomes are relevant, effective, efficient, sustainable and whether desired impacts are being achieved (chirau, tirivanhu, waller, & robertson, 2018). after defining monitoring and evaluation separately, we now need a joint definition of monitoring and evaluation or m&e in short. m&e refers to a continuous management function for assessing if progress is made in achieving expected results, to spot bottlenecks in implementation and to highlight whether there are any unintended effects, including the positive and negative effects from an investment plan, programme or project, and its activities (chirau, tirivanhu, waller, & robertson, 2018). m&e focuses on assessment of performance of the institution’s strategic plans, and the sector’s investment plans with the help of a balance score card framework, using and analysing data from the institution’s own surveys and performance reports (vision, 2040). thus, m&e is an embedded concept, and part and parcel of every project and program design. m&e is a critical part of programme management and implementation cycle. m&e are complementary, both are necessary to engage and satisfy the range of stakeholders in any monitoring and evaluation intervention. this process enables effective governance of projects and programmes, demonstration of value for money and outcomes from funded programmes, continued learning resulting in continuous improvement; and transparency from inception through to the realization of outcomes and benefits (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022). baguma (2017) outlines three ways of conceptualizing m&e. these include compliance m&e which is conducted by external oversight entities such as the national council for higher education and the department of higher education in the ministry of education and sports. social accountability m&e is anchored on public accountability while internal m&e focuses on learning. he advocates for strong and effective institutions for ensuring compliance to systems, standards and procedures which form a results culture thereby guaranteeing quality service delivery (baguma, 2017, p.xi). he further advocates for initiatives aimed at providing information to clients (students) on what they are entitled to, so as to increase their participation in social accountability initiatives and contribute to quality service delivery (p.xi). these initiatives may include the appointment or election of student and staff representatives to such committees and boards where performance of staff is monitored and evaluated such as the college academic board, university senate and council (makerere university, 2012). as a tool for learning, m&e improves organizational processes and performance thereby contributing to quality service delivery (baguma, 2017). 2.0 literature review chirau, tirivanhu, waller, & robertson (2018) have shown that a m&e plan is the basis for evidencebased decision making. it helps organizations catch problems early since projects always do not go as planned. so, a well-designed m&e plan helps projects to stay on track. the m&e plan helps projects to european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 34 define project scope, identify the risk and design mitigation measures. as monitoring is a regular activity, it helps to see problems early and we can accordingly devise solutions to mitigate them (baguma, 2017). secondly, m&e can help to ensure that resources are used effectively. the information collected through the monitoring process helps us to determine if the resources are being utilized efficiently or they are being wasted. if the resources are being wasted, it can be prevented. may be the project did not consider such circumstances or the wastage was not foreseen and it was unveiled only during the implementation phase. so, m&e helps in effective management of resources (government of uganda, 2020; uganda vision 2040). m&e can help organisations learn from the mistakes. whereas mistakes and failures are part of every project and programme, a good m&e evaluation process provides a good record of everything that went right and everything that went wrong within a project. so, with good m&e system, we should be able to point out specific failures as opposed to just guessing the problem. so, in a way, we can all learn from our mistakes. m&e improves data-driven decision making. the m&e process provides us with essential information needed to make the best possible decisions. a good m&e can help us to identify mistakes and record success, to avoid the mistakes and replicate the success in future. a good m&e system helps organisations stay organized. a good m&e system details all the desired impact, outcome and output. all the matters for collection, distribution and analysis of information are also covered. so, m&e plan can help the team or organisation to be more organized and focused in their job. lastly, a good m&e results in better transparency and accountability. with a constant track of activities, analysis and reporting on a project during the monitoring phase, there is more transparency as stakeholders are well-informed about the project and are not kept in dark. developing a results-based m&e system for higher education the term system (the m&e system) connotes the various interconnected parts that help us to achieve our objectives. the system includes the what, why, how and when of m&e, that is, what (indicators of what we are measuring), why do we measure them? how do we measure them? and when do we measure them? (csnm, 2022). all these are illustrated in figure 1 below. figure 1: a comprehensive view of a monitoring and evaluation system source: csnm (2022) european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 35 a results-based m&e system has got three key words that we need to first understand; these are results, m&e; and system. by results we mean the achievements that have been made as a result of a project’s intervention. they can be short-to-medium term, short term or long term. these are the things we want to measure to get an understanding of whether there has been any substantial change (csnm, 2022). m&e tries to assess and track whether there has been any change as a result of the project’s activities. m&e systems are central in effective management of higher education projects and programs because timely m&e is the source of information for upholding accountability and compliance by determining if the planned work plans and schedules are being complied with in line with the institutional and donor standards/guidelines. as the project implementers reflect on and share experiences and lessons learned, m&e also contributes to organizational learning and knowledge -sharing, resulting in gaining of full benefit of what to do and how to do it (csnm, 2022). m&e provides management with accurate, evidence-based reporting that guides their decisionmaking for improved performance of the project or programme. m&e provides beneficiaries of educational projects, such as the students and employers, with an opportun ity to give feedback about the intervention, their perceptions and what needs to change. m&e highlights what has been accomplished (achievements), builds morale and contributes to resource mobilisation (csnm, 2022). a detailed m&e plan is developed as the project starts, documented clearly and shared with project implementers. it should be monitored throughout the project’s life. why m&e is a crucial function in higher education institutions (heis) management education systems are designed to achieve specific purposes for which public resources are invested. government and other stakeholders demand for accountability and value for money from schools and educators that receive a large proportion of the annual national budgetary resources allotted to the education sector. each stakeholder, both internal and external, has got specific expectations about the quality of education and type of graduates churned out from a hi8gher education institution into the job market. universities, colleges, institutes; and vocational, technical and business schools are constantly being monitored for compliance or defiance on some of the indicators for accessible and quality education by both internal and external quality assurance agencies (government of uganda, 2011; gou, uganda vision 2040). there are basic and applied skills, knowledge, values, and competences expected from a university graduate of the twenty-first century. the public, government, employers, parents/guardians, development partners (donors), and students themselves are concerned with questions such as what kind of medical doctor or surgeon does medical school x or y churn out into our health facilities? what skills and competences in an electrical, mechanical, civil or building engineer does a university x or y impart? what kind of lawyer from a certain university is competent enough to manage and represent clients in different cases before the judiciary? these and other questions focused on the purpose of education, the quality of education, the kind of graduate desired, the learning experiences, skills, knowledge and competences in the content received by learners from the start to the end of educational programmes; the need for twenty-first skills in learners such as creativity, innovativeness, technology (ict) literacy and others are the major reasons justifying the need for m&e in heis (government of uganda, 2011; uganda vision 2040). theoretical perspective this study adopted the systems theory which was proposed in the 1940's by the biologist ludwig (von bertalanffy, 1968) and furthered by ross ashby (ashby, 1956). von bertalanffy was both reacting against european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 36 reductionism and attempting to revive the unity of science. he emphasized that real systems are open to, and interact with, their environments, and that they can acquire qualitatively new properties through emergence, resulting in continual evolution. the systems theory is an approach used in evaluation to understand complex social systems. the key concepts and principles of systems theory including holistic perspective, interconnectedness and interdependence, feedback loops, boundaries, and multiple perspectives. these key concepts and principles of systems theory provide a useful framework for analyzing the relationships and interdependencies between different components of a program or intervention. systems theory can help evaluators identify areas of strength and weakness, and develop strategies for program improvement. this study will however adopt all the three components under the interconnectedness and interdependence 1. network analysis which involves mapping the relationships between different components of the system to understand how they are interconnected and interdependent; 2. dependency relationships which involve understanding how changes to one component of the system can affect other components of the system. 3. cross-system interactions which involve understanding how the system interacts with other systems and external factors, and how these interactions may affect the system’s functioning. the systems theory is known provides a holistic perspective on complex programs and interventions, allowing evaluators to understand the system as a whole and the interrelationships between its components. it is also useful in evaluating dynamic and complex systems, as it allows evaluators to account for the various factors that influence program outcomes. this approach also encourages stakeholder engagement in evaluation activities to ensure that the evaluation is relevant and meaningful to stakeholders. lastly, it emphasizes the collaborative and participatory approach which can help build trust and facilitate communication among stakeholders. despite the strength of the systems theory, it is also known for some limitations which include issues with its complexity in analysis which is challenging, the significant data requirements which can be time-consuming and expensive to collect and analyze; specificity gaps in identifying specific causal relationships between system components and program outcomes and the limited generalizability gap. purpose of the study to investigate how the practices employed in the monitoring and evaluation processes contribute to the overall goal of higher education institutions in uganda. specific objectives 1) to examine the legal framework of monitoring and evaluation in uganda’s higher education institutions 2) to formulate monitoring and evaluation policy in higher education institutions 3) to assess the establishment of constituent colleges of makerere university 4) to examine how monitoring and evaluation policy affects university teaching quality 5) to assess how the m & e policies are performed at the university senates and council committees. specific research questions 1) examine the legal framework of monitoring and evaluation in uganda’s higher education institutions. 2) formulate a monitoring and evaluation policy in higher education institutions. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 37 3) assess the establishment of constituent colleges of makerere university. 4) examine how monitoring and evaluation policy affects university teaching quality. 5) assess how the m & e policies are performed at the university senates and council committees. 3.0 methodology the study applied document review method where many government policies were reviewed. most of the documents reviewed are for higher institutions of learning especially universities. 4.0 findings findings of the review shows the following results as per each reviewed policy (i) the legal framework on m&e in uganda’s higher education institutions uganda national monitoring and evaluation policy for the public sector (2011) emphasizes the government of uganda (gou)’s commitment to achieving results through efficient and effective delivery of key public services, a commitment embedded in the country’s national vision that aims at a transformed ugandan society from a peasant to a modern and prosperous country within 30 years (government of uganda, 2011). monitoring and evaluation is one of the various strategies suggested by government for achievement of this vision in management of sectors concerned with public service, including higher education. additionally, the uganda ministry of education and sports (moes) has prioritized the concept of quality assurance in the sector at all education levels (government of uganda, 2004). in the education sector strategic plan 2004 – 2015, the moes has one of its objectives as ensuring an effective and efficient education sector, through quality assurance and accountability. this is expected to be met through developing and maintaining a coherent and feasible system of standards and performance monitoring. it anchors its need for quality education into national purposes of uganda’s education system articulated in the government white paper (1992), aiming at promoting citizenship; moral, ethical, and spiritual values; promote scientific, technical and cultural knowledge, skills, and attitudes; eradicate literacy and equip individuals with basic skills and knowledge and with the ability to “contribute to the building of an integrated, self-sustaining and independent national economy.” th act regulating higher education in uganda, known as the universities and other tertiary institutions act, 2001, gives mandate and powers to the university senate to be in charge of teaching, research and the general standards of education and research and their m&e. the senate can, however, delegate any of its powers or functions to a faculty/school, board of studies or committee as it may deem fit. this mandate is reiterated by mayanja, (2020) who emphasizes that universities have different organs that play an oversight function, including the university council, council committees, the senate, top management team, and staff associations among others. on top of that, different higher education institutions hold individual quality assurance policy frameworks that streamline their evaluation systems and frameworks. makerere university for example, has a quality assurance policy framework (2007) with an aim of enhancing the effectiveness of the university’s core activities of learning, teaching, research performance, research training and management. all these frameworks are intended to streamline monitoring and evaluation in ugandan higher education institutions to ensure quality. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 38 (ii) formulation of m&e policy in public higher education institutions the uganda national monitoring and evaluation policy for the public sector (2011) stipulates a framework for monitoring and evaluation of government projects (government of uganda, 2011). its purpose is stated as improving the performance of the public sector through the strengthening of the operational, coordinated, and cost-effective production and use of objective information on implementation and results of national strategies, policies, programmes and projects (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022). kenya’s draft m&e policy aims at harmonising m&e systems for all public projects, programmes and policies at all levels (national and county), ensuring timely and accurate reporting of progress and results at all levels (national and county), strengthening capacity to effectively monitor and evaluate policies, programmes and projects at all levels (national and county), ensuring effective coordination of m&e systems in the country, promoting a culture and practice of m&e in the country; and promotion of dissemination and communication (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022). any m&e policy in the public sector should be based on principles such as alignment with the constitution and national priorities, ownership, accountability and transparency, credibility and objectivity, ethics, using m&e evidence, learning, participatory and inclusiveness, timeliness and technology (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022). monitoring in public heis involves measurement of performance indicators in the university such as indicators for quality teaching, learning, research and community engagement. evaluation focuses on value for money audits, mid-term and final evaluation, impact evaluation and lastly, the ex-ante and baseline evaluation all done during two phases of monitoring; the implementation and impact (goldman, chirau, sossou, & molaiwa, 2022). these evaluations are done against the activity, output, out-come and impact indicators. it is within this framework that both external and internal evaluation frameworks for public and private higher institutions of learning are anchored but consistent with and in the context of the university’s vision, mission and values (makerere university, 2007). according to the universities and other tertiary institutions act (government of uganda, uotia, 2001), there are established statutory organs established to play an oversight role of m&e in heis. the top organs are the university senate and council. the senate is the top academic organ that monitors and evaluates the quality of education and curriculum-related issues, while the university council is the top governance organ, mandated with establishing policies for use in monitoring and evaluation of human resources, university assets, staff welfare, students’ services and welfare, etc. mayanja (2020) briefly explains actions that universities in uganda have taken to implement both external and internal evaluations. he says that externally, higher education institutions deploy external examiners to assess their students, external reviewers to assess quality of research proposals and dissertations, as well as guest speakers. these come with an independent eye so as to ensure quality products and services. this is consistent with makerere university quality assurance, qa, policy framework policy (2007) which outlines the external evaluation measures to encompass evaluation of courses/programmes content and delivery, student assessment, programme resources, academic staff qualifications, scholarly work and professional development activities (makerere university, 2007). the qa policy also spells out components of its internal evaluation to include internal examination moderation procedures to ensure validity of student assessment and reliability of marking, assessment and monitoring of academic honesty, monitoring academic staff performance standards, self-study reports, standardized programme and course development procedures, such as the senate-approved european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 39 guidelines/templates , an annual appraisal of what the department is trying to do (planning), what it has done, evaluation processes and outcomes, reviewing and making appropriate changes based on the data, academic and non-academic staff performance, taking measures to remedy gaps and mis-performance (makerere university, 2007). (iii) m&e role of units as defined in the establishment of constituent colleges of makerere university statute (2012) makerere university, the country’s oldest and premier public university, established the makerere university college statute in 2012 to explicitly streamline the administration of large academic and administrative units of the institution (government of uganda, gou, 2012). this statute places the responsibility of monitoring and evaluation of the quality of educational services and facilities on the leadership of the various components or units in the college. the statute envisages that each college at makerere university shall be administered as a semi-autonomous entity within the larger university and the overall supervision of the college is the responsibility of the university council (gou, 2012). being a management function, m&e is part of the governance university colleges as enshrined in the universities and other tertiary institutions act, (gou, uotia, 2001) and the college statute (2012). among the m&e functions of colleges at makerere university that must be monitored and evaluated include; the provision of a place (suitable environment) for learning, education, research and service according to the mission and vision of the university, preparation of students through regular and professional courses for degrees, diplomas and certificates and other awards of the university, contribution to the intellectual life the university, focusing on economic, social, cultural and political development pertaining to the interests and changing life of society, establishing positions in accordance with the act (uotia, 2001), university policies and regulations with the approval of the university council, and performing any other functions as may be determined by the university council (gou, 2012, p.7). thus, according to the college statute for makerere university, it is the responsibility of college leadership to conduct regular m&e of services offered in their units to ensure that quality is not compromised. in the leadership of a college are members such as the principal, deputy principal, members of the constituent academic board, the college secretary, college bursar, college librarian, college registrar, the professors, lecturers and teaching assistants of the college, the deans, academic librarian, researchers of the university in the college, if any, plus the technologists or clinicians of the college. in addition to these leaders, colleges at makerere are also composed of students, alumni, administrators and other members that the university council may consider from time to time to be members of the college (gou, 2012). schools, departments, centres and institutes are all constituent units of a college. colleges have legally defined powers, functions and responsibilities that enable them achieve m&e role. among those laid down in the statute include ensuring proper discharge of the academic affairs of the university, ensuring the implementation of the strategic plan of the university, registration, examination and recommendation of results for approval by the university senate and issuance of academic transcripts to students, planning, budgeting and executing of budgets as approved by the university council, raising revenue from various sources and programmes as may be approved by the university council, management of university assets at the college, initiating, planning and executing projects and programmes within the university guidelines, promoting and protecting the name, brand and image of the university, and exercising such other functions as may be prescribed by the university council (gou, 2012). it is therefore within the mandate of each officer/leader of a college to implement the above functions, powers and responsibility by monitoring and evaluating activities within their dockets. for example, a european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 40 college registrar, working with the university’s academic registrar and the admission board, is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the process of admission of students to a college to ensure that qualified students are admitted while paying special detail to the affirmative action policy in favour of the admission of marginalized groups such as students with disability, those from disadvantaged schools and gender issues in the admission process. he/she also ensures that persons with special talents in sports, music and other social entertainment activities are duly considered in the admission process (gou, 2012 p.7). the overall officer responsible for m&e in a college is the principal. this is a person at the helm of the college leadership, an associate professor or professor, with proven managerial experience in a given field. in consultation with the relevant organs and officers of the university for guidance, the principal, serves as the chief administrative, academic and financial officer of the college responsible for promoting and maintaining academic excellence, efficiency and good order at the college. he/she implements university policies and enforces applicable regulations at the college. a principal is deputized by a deputy principal who is the overseer and supervisor of academic affairs in the college, including review and development of academic programmes, approval of results, time tabling and monitoring the teaching in various schools and departments, monitoring the integrity of university examinations, etc. in performing these duties, this officer is assisted by deans of schools who report directly to him/her. deans are the supervisors of heads/chairs of departments who manage, monitor and evaluate the work of academic, administrative and support staff in their respective departments. the department is the lowest academic unit in a college (gou, 2012 p.7). m&e in colleges is basically performed by established boards and committees recognised in the statute. these include college administrative board (cab), the college establishment and appointments committee (eac), quality assurance, gender and ict committee, contracts committee. the academic monitoring and evaluation role is a responsibility of the college academic board. this board consists of the principal, deputy principal, deans of schools, departmental chairs, all coordinators of centres, two student representatives, one for undergraduate and another for graduate students, college librarian, senate representatives of the college and two senior members of staff elected by academic staff in the college. the college registrar is the secretary to this board. at the lowest academic unit (the department), departmental chairs/heads conduct routine appraisal of all staff in their units, thereby ensuring that there is efficiency, good performance and accountability by each member of staff in the unit. chairs/heads of department are in turn appraised, monitored and evaluated by the dean of the respective school while deans are appraised, monitored and evaluated by the deputy principal of the college. the deputy principal is appraised, monitored and evaluated by the principal of the college. principals are appraised by the top university management including the vice chancellor and his deputies. these top university officers are appraised, monitored and evaluated by the university council. (iv) m&e of university teaching quality as already indicated, the overarching goal of m&e is quality improvement in the institution and rendering quality service delivery (baguma, 2017). m&e is therefore closely linked to quality assurance (qa), here defined as the policies, procedures and practices put in place within the institution for maintaining and enhancing quality (nabaho, 2016). qa in higher education serves two purposes, one of accountability (the purpose of external m&e or qa) and another of improvement (the purpose of internal m&e or external qa). european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 41 m&e of the quality of teaching in a university can be conducted using a variety of approaches or tools (nabaho, aguti & oonyu 2016). for example, student evaluation of teaching (set) uses questionnaires that are given to students to evaluate the quality of instruction by their instructors at the end of every lecture, course or semester. however, one of the draw-backs of this approach is the reluctance of university administrators and managers to utilise the students’ feedback seriously to improve on the policies for improvement of teaching quality. another challenge is the lack of a culture of giving feedback at earlier levels of education, resulting in the students answering the questions unserious. another m&e approach for teaching quality is peer observation of teaching, which involves colleagues from the same department, subject or discipline giving and receiving feedback from one another on the quality of teaching and effectiveness in promoting student learning (nabaho, aguti & oonyu 2016). giving out teaching excellence awards is another approach resulting from m&e of teaching in the university. these are intended to recognise and celebrate excellently performing teachers, promote teaching excellence, disseminate best teaching practices and create teaching role models who can motivate other faculty to enhance their own teaching practices (nabaho et al. 2016). (v) university senate and council committees’ roles in m&e the senate, according to the uotia (2001), is the chief academic organ of the university which approves all academic policies and monitors the quality and standards of teaching and learning, research and innovation, and community outreach services by members of the university community. the same act establishes the university council as the supreme governing body that formulates governance policies.the quality of academic programmes and curricula are a critical reflection of the quality of graduates from an institution of higher learning. the university senate is tasked with ensuring that the quality and standards of education at the university remains competitive by putting in place academic policies, guidelines and regulations for quality education. the provision of the best learning environment and experiences, production of highly skilled and competent and graduates are the main focus of the senate. senate reports to council which is the supreme governing organ of the university. council establishes governance policies concerned with efficient human resource management, management of university assets, branding the university, and any other policies for the effective governance of the university. both the senate and council execute their business through committees that furnish senate or council with reports that are debated and passed as policies for academic affairs and governance matters respectively. for example, the council committee on quality assurance and gender mainstreaming is responsible for academic and gender mainstreaming issues in the university. it is concerned with restructuring of academic programmes to ensure that they remain relevant and responsible to the changing needs of society and employers. it has two sub-committees, that is a sub-committee on academic restructuring and a sub-committee on gender mainstreaming. the two directorates of this committee are the quality assurance directorate (qad) and gender mainstreaming directorate (gmd). the m&e plan in the university can be described as a bottom – top process because the committees of organs at higher levels (senate and council) receive and consider business initiated from lower academic units of the university such as departments and schools, thereby ensuring that all decisions made at high levels are a result of a popular, participatory and consultative process. 5.0 conclusion and recommendations conclusions different higher education institutions hold individual quality assurance policy frameworks that streamline their evaluation systems and frameworks. any m&e policy in the public sector should be based european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 42 on principles such as alignment with the constitution and national priorities, ownership, accountability and transparency, credibility and objectivity and evaluations are done against the activity, output, outcome and impact indicators. higher education institutions deploy external examiners to assess their students, external reviewers to assess quality of research proposals and dissertations, as well as guest speakers. among the m&e functions of colleges at makerere university that must be monitored and evaluated include; the provision of a place (suitable environment) for learning, education, research and service according to the mission and vision of the university, preparation of students through regular and professional courses for degrees, diplomas and certificates and other awards of the university, contribution to the intellectual life the university, focusing on economic, social, cultural and political development. recommendations monitoring and evaluation should be implemented even in the secondary and primary education institutions should have both internal and external evaluations for consistency and transparency more research should be done on the challenges facing the established policies in higher education institutions of learning in uganda european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 43 references ashbly, w. r. (1956). an introduction to cybernetics. john wiley and sons. https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.5851 baguma, s. (2017). role of monitoring and evaluation and quality of service delivery in local governments in uganda: a case of mpigi district. masters dissertation. uganda management institute, kampala. https://www.academia.edu/34548349/role_of_monitoring_and_evaluation_and_quality_of_ser vice_delivery_in_local_governments_in_uganda_a_case_of_mpigi_district centre for civil society and non-profit management, csnm (2022). project monitoring and evaluation. https://csnm.kku.ac.th/learning/course/module/lesson/117-me-system-and-framework chirau, t., tirivanhu, p., waller, c., & robertson, h. (2018). assessing evaluation education in african tertiary education institutions: opportunities and reflections. south african journal of higher education, 32(4), 229-244. https://journals.co.za/doi/pdf/10.20853/32-4-2527 goldman, i., chirau, t., sossou, d., & molaiwa, t. (2022). establishing a national monitoring and evaluation policy. technical report. twendembele. government of uganda (2020). third national development plan, ndp iii. national planning authority. http://www.npa.go.ug/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/ndpiii-finale_compressed.pdf government of uganda (2012). the universities and other tertiary institutions (management of constituent colleges of makerere university) statute, 2012. https://policies.mak.ac.ug/sites/default/files/policies/statute%202012%5b1%5d.pdf government of uganda (2011). office of the prime minister. national policy on public sector monitoring and evaluation.https://usaidlearninglab.org/sites/default/files/resource/file s/attachment_j.15_m%26e_policy_final_draft.pdf government of uganda (2004). ministry of education and sports, education sector strategic plan 20042015. http://www.africanchildforum.org/clr/policy%20per%20country/uganda/uganda_education_2004 -2015_en.pdf hamzah, purwati, a. a., & kadir, e. a. 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(2020). participatory monitoring and evaluation for quality programs in higher education: what is the way for uganda? international journal of educational administration and policy studies, 12(1), 52-59, doi: 10.5897/ijeaps2020.0637 https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.5851 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 31 44, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 44 michael, s.o. (1998), “restructuring us higher education: analyzing models for academic program review and discontinuation”, association for the study of higher education, 21(4), 377-404, doi:10.1353/rhe.1998.0013 nabaho, l., aguti, j. n., & oonyu, j. 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(2010). evaluation of the factors that determine quality in higher education: an empirical study. quality assurance in education. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/vassilisgerogiannis/publication/228350411_evaluation_of_the_factors_that_determine_quality_in_high er_education_an_empirical_study/links/09e4150a8ab6a845e7000000/evaluation-of-the-factorsthat-determine-quality-in-higher-education-an-empirical-study.pdf uganda vision (2040). national planning authority. ministry of finance, planning and economic development. http://www.npa.go.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/vision-2040.pdf uk quality code for higher education (2014). overview and expectations.https://www.qaa.ac.uk/docs/qaa/quality-code/qualitycode-overview2015.pdf?sfvrsn=d309f781_6 von bertalanffy, l. (1968). general system theory: foundations, developments. new york: george braziller license copyright (c) 2023 roberts wandera otyola, john bukenya, proscovia nalwadda, edward kamaga, godfrey bagamba wamani, suzan bantebya, mukisa jonathan this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. https://doi.org/10.1353/rhe.1998.0013 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ succession planning strategies and employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria: the moderating effect of educational qualification egwakhe a.j, akinlabi b.h, magaji n, and ojuolape s.a european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 52 succession planning strategies and employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria: the moderating effect of educational qualification 1egwakhe a.j, 2akinlabi b.h, 3magaji n, and 4ojuolape s.a 1,2,3,4department of business administration and marketing, babcock university ilishanremo, ogun state, nigeria abstract purpose: employees’ performance was investigated along succession planning strategies and roles played by educational qualifications. this study examined the relationship between succession planning strategies and employee performance of selected money banks in lagos state, nigeria with the moderating effect of educational qualification. methodology: the study adopted survey research design. the target population for this study comprised twenty thousand and five (25005) employees of five selected money banks in lagos state, nigeria. a sample size of 760 was chosen to stand in for the entire population of the study. stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to determine the sample size. hierarchical multiple regression technique was used to test the study’s hypothesis. findings: findings indicated that succession planning strategies have significant effect on employees’ performance among selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. findings further revealed that educational qualification significantly moderated the relationship between succession planning strategies and employee performance among deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. recommendation: the study recommends continuous learning and capacity building to ensure better fit and qualified persons occupy position to succession planning. keywords: career management, corporate mentorship, employee performance, succession planning, reward management, training and development file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 53 introduction employees are pivotal to the attainment of organizational objectives (abdussalaam, et al., 2019). likewise, organizational success depends on the employees, given their possession of the competencies and moral dexterity needed for the execution of organizational strategy (fu, 2013; ismail, abdul-halim, & joarder, 2015a). considerable research has emphasized the significance of improving employee performance (ismail, abdul-halim, & joarder, 2015b), because it results in competitive advantage. thus, it becomes imperative for organizations to create strategies that would enhance the performance of their workers. succession management is an important talent management initiative that enables organizations to identify talented employees and provide education to develop them for higher and broader responsibilities (olayo, 2019). strategic talent management embraces selection, development and keeping of supply of steady supply of people moving up and across the organization. succession planning as derivative of succession management is a deliberate and systematic effort by an organization to ensure leadership continuity in key positions, retain and develop intellectual and knowledge capital for the future and encourage individual advancement. it is a process that helps to ensure the stability and tenure of persons (odengo & bett, 2016). rothwell (2005) cited by olayo (2019) regards it as an effort intended to ensure continued effective performance of an organization, division, department or work group by making provision for the development, replacement and strategic utilization of key persons over time. with succession planning process, recruiting superior employees, developing their knowledge, skills and abilities and preparing them for advancement or promotion into even more challenging roles becomes achievable. therefore, succession planning can result to increase in workers performance. effective implementation of secession planning strategies in organisation provides a framework for succession and leadership continuity that greatly supports realization of increased employees’ performance. according to olayo (2019), an effective succession planning in the organization should identify the organization’s long-term goals and then hire the necessary staff. moreover, there is need to ensure that all key employees understand their career paths and the roles they are being developed to occupy. in fact, well implemented succession planning strategies have been shown to increase organisational productivity and financial returns (fulmer, 2009). moreover, effective succession planning strategy leads to recruitment of competitive top management staff who steer the organisation towards achievement employees’ productivity and performance (komora, guyo, & odhiambo, 2015). ogbu (2019) accentuates that planning for succession of leadership is usually propelled by level of education of successors, skills and experience of the subordinates that will take over the responsibilities in the future. succession planning can be an important way to identify employees who have the current skills or the potential to develop skills that can help them move up in an organization, or on to another positions (leigh, 2015). elumah and shobayo (2016) asserted that education investment for workers significantly affects their productivity in the workplace. along with the belief of education about improving workers’ productivity, many researchers stress the importance of education and training in the human capital field (lucas, griliches & regev, 2016; olowolaju & oluwasesin, 2016). furthermore, for business succession to be viable and sustainable there should not be only efforts towards employee retention but adequate mentoring is imperative. through participating in leaning activity and mentorship, the learning participators are likely to easily implement job-seeking activities with increasing the human capital (makinde, tayo, & olaniyan, 2018). lucas (1998) cited in makinde et al., (2018) emphasizes that education provided to a worker enhances the worker’s file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 54 productivity. therefore, education is capable of enhancing the skills of people by ensuring thorough screening that the best people are selected and made available for the organization (simon-oke, 2012). most deposit money banks operating in nigeria make adequate preparations for succession planning because of the volatility of the industry. the management of the banks planned leadership succession through on-the-job training and mentoring, but it is still uncleared about the conscious efforts carried out by the deposit money banks to ensure that its succession planning strategies are followed. in lagos state, studies on succession planning among deposit money banks are generally limited. these studies never considered the strategies and/or discussed the predictor variable of employee performance and most of them either focused on organizational survival, sustainability and were carried out on either small-and-medium scale businesses or fast-food businesses with small samples. the emphasis on the five succession planning strategies (reward management, corporate mentorship, talent management, training and development and career management) with employee performance and the fact that it is directed at solving a seemingly perennial challenge in the banking industry goes a long way to making a difference in the deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. also, the extent to which educational qualification moderates the effect of succession planning strategies and employees’ performance in deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria is yet to be proven by scholars. therefore, this study examined the relationship between succession planning strategies and employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria: the moderating effect of educational qualification. hypothesis of the study h0: educational qualification does not significantly moderate the relationship between succession planning strategies and employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. literature review issues revolving around the concept of performance have substantially caught the attention of both researchers and the practitioners, but what is interesting in it is that performance should be defined and measured in relation to the context within which it exists (lebas & euske, 2002). moreover, employee performance has attracted numerous definitions. among these definitions is that of viswesvaran and ones’s (2000) definition which described employee performance as the way in which employee efficiently takes actions and contributes with behaviours that are consistent with firm’s goals. performance incorporates the resulting outcomes of the performed actions of employees based on their expertise and skills. in organizational settings, employees’ performance is the accumulated result of the skills, efforts and abilities of all the employees contributed to organizational improved productivity leading towards its goal achievement. improved organizational performance indicates the efforts towards goal achievement while requiring more efforts in terms of improved employee performance (ellinger et al., 2003). employee performance is among the critical factors that contribute significantly to organizational success. learning organizations play important role in enhancing employee performance through providing trainings and developments for their employees (gitongu et al., 2016). moreover, management standards to evaluate employee performance also play critical role in improving employee performance as they provide the picture of actual performance and its alignment with the benchmarks. if discrepancies found, then these standards help bringing the outputs again towards their required levels (rozi & sunarsi, 2020). employee performance file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 55 also depends on their internal satisfaction towards their job. if employees are satisfied from their jobs as well as the organization than they are more keenly interested to perform well towards organizational goal achievement (badrianto & ekhsan, 2020). with regards to succession planning, it is a deliberate and systematic effort by an organization to ensure leadership continuity in key positions, retain and develop intellectual and knowledge capital for the future, and encourage individual advancement. it is an effort designed to ensure the continued effective performance of the organization, department, or group by providing, developing and replacing key people over time in accordance with the strategic direction of the organization (rothwell, 2010). in a similar way, rouse (2018) defined succession planning as the process of developing talent to replace executive, leadership or other key employees when they transition to another role, leave the company, are fired, retire or die. it is a process whereby an organization ensures that employees are recruited and developed to fill each key role within the company (heathfield, 2019). the author went further to say that through succession planning process, organisation’s recruit’s superior employees, develops their knowledge, skills, and abilities, and prepares them for advancement or promotion into ever more challenging roles in an organization. the purpose of succession planning is to cope with staffing surprises in an organization. this becomes even more crucial in executive leadership positions, which play a significant role in business continuity and timely attainment of strategic objectives in the organization (rothwell, 2010). when a member of the top leadership team suddenly resigns or the position is left vacant, it becomes important for an organization to have had a succession planning and management process in place to counter this. by then, it is too late to start the development process. it is in fact that, the objectives of succession planning are the survival and continuity of organizations and good organizational performance. rothwell (2010) further observed that the reason behind enforcing succession planning in corporate companies is to make sure that there is maintenance of a pool of successors who are potentially able to continuously achieve success in the organization while enabling its continuity and survival for the long haul. various models proposed for succession planning include structured leadership and mentoring training programs, forums, courses, motivation, a formal succession plan, continuity policies, and family integration plans (stephens, 2016). moreover, succession planning strategies as used in this study is a multi-dimensional concept which is narrow to specific constructs as determinants of employees’ performance. succession planning strategies within the context of this study included reward management, corporate mentorship, talent management, training and development, and career management. reward management refers to the development, maintenances, implementation, evaluation and communication of reward process (tsadik, 2017). armstrong (2010) posited that, reward management is the process, policies and strategies needed to maintain the employee's interest and the commitment that they make to accomplish organisational goals is rewarded. it deals with assessing the relative nature of the work, value and management of pay structure, paying for performance, competency, and the management of reward procedure and the provision of employee benefits (armstrong & helen, 2005). reward administration deals with procedures, tactics and methods required to ensure that workers’ contributions to the company are acknowledged by financial and nonfinancial means (tsadik, 2017). the objectives of reward management are accomplished by implementing and developing strategies process, practices and policies that are founded on a philosophy, act in line with the distributive and social justice principle; equitably, consistently, transparently and function fairly, are aligned with the organization's corporate policy and ideology (tsadik, 2017). file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 56 mentoring is the “traditional relationship between a senior, more experienced person (the mentor) and a junior or less experienced person (the protégé/mentee) for the purpose of teaching the junior employee about his or her job, of introducing the junior employee to contacts, to orient the employee to the industry and the organization, and to address social and personal issues that may arise on the job” (allen, eby, o’brien & lentz, 2008). retrospectively, mentoring is prevalent in everyday life and mentor-protégé relationships can be found in nearly all professions (allen, eby, chao, & bauer, 2017; adair, 2006; onyia, asikhia, egbuta, & makinde, 2019). mentoring has so many advantages related to mentee and organizational performance directly and indirectly by transferring information and knowledge assembles through many years of experience. mentoring has positive effects on organizations such as, mentoring reduced labour and training costs, help in managing talent, reduced staff turnover and improved retention rates (rockoff, 2008), help in disseminating business values and developing the culture, improved business stability, improved morale, motivation and relationships, improved succession planning, improved job creation and business performance, provided cost efficient enhancement, enhanced productivity, encouraging older managers, enhanced flow of information and communication, improving business learning. talent management involves positioning the right people in the right jobs (devine, 2008). this ensures that the employees maximize their talent for optimal success of the organization. as talent management is a relatively new area for both public and private sector organizations, most organizations have prioritized it to ensure they acquire the right staff. this is because talent management has been linked to successful attraction, retention and development of employees (baheshtiffar, 2011). the prominence of talent management can be traced to around the start of the year 2000. this is the period when a management consulting firm, ‘mckinsey’ reported that employers face a ‘war for talents’ characterized by difficulties in recruitment of employees due to tight labor market (hartmann et al., 2010). since then, the topic of talent management has increased in importance and has gained attention in both the literature and in business practices. it has been claimed to be ‘‘more critical than ever to organizational strategic success’’ and a ‘‘fast gaining top priority for organizations across countries’’ (hartmann et al., 2010). effective talent management practices must align with business strategy, values, and mechanisms to ensure internal consistency, cultural embeddedness, management involvement, the balance of global and local needs, and employer branding (al ariss, cascio, & paauwe, 2014). effectively managing talent involves focusing on specific value processes, including creation, capture, leverage, and protection. these processes hinge on reflecting the functions of the talent, explaining the potential value of the activity, and contributing to the underlying strategic purpose of the organization (sparrow & makram, 2015). staff training and development constitutes one aspect of the human resource management processes in any organization. it is the most potent tool of any organization’s success. according to gatti, angel-urdinola, silva, and bodor (2011), employee training is a program aimed at helping employees gain specific skills and knowledge. the acquired knowledge and skills are provided to assist employees in improving their job performance (gatti, et al., 2011). training is developed through organized programs that ensure employees are given skills that are essential in the job market. devi and shaik (2012) describe an effective training program as one that addresses training needs and delivers training according to training objectives. training effectiveness refers to the benefits that organizations and trainees receive from training. there are two major types of training, on-the -job training and offthe -job training as identified by alo (1999): on-the-job training, is normally handled by colleagues, supervisors, managers, mentors to help employees adjust to their work and to equip them with appropriate job-related skills. armstrong (1995) argues that on-the-job training may consist of file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 57 teaching or coaching by more experienced people or trainers at the desk or at the bench. according to ejiogu (2000) off-the-job training would include lecture, vestibule training, role playing, case study, discussion and simulation armstrong (1995) listed group exercises, team building, distance learning, outdoor and workshops as part of off-the-job training. the benefits to the trainee may include acquisition of new skills or behavior, and the benefits to the organization may consist of an increase in productivity and satisfaction of customers (godwin, adeniran, & jamogha, 2020). career management is the procedure by which people gather data about qualities, interests, and aptitude qualities and shortcomings (vocation investigation), recognize a lifelong objective, and take part in career methodologies that enhances the likelihood that career objectives will be accomplished (furman, 2018). according to ogar, igwe, and effenji (2019), career management is an umbrella term that envelops different individual activities that shape individuals’ profession changes and experience. these exercises incorporate parts of career improvement (for example recognizing one's occupation enthusiasm, settling on a lifelong decision, and seeking after career achievement) and how one arrangement with career occasion and changes over time (e.g., work misfortune and quest for new employment), (wang & wanberg, 2017). career management has two main dimensions such as organizational career management and personal career management (orga, 2020). organizational career management is different from individual career management and it includes organized activities for employees’ career development and it differs from organization to organization. however, individual career management is the career management that is the responsibility of the individual (dittmann, 2011). linking the succession planning to employee performance related studies on succession planning strategies have been employed in different organisations both in public and private to accomplish employee retention and organisational sustainability (maphisa, zwane, & nyide, 2017; osho & afolabi, 2018; owiredu & kwakye, 2020; ozili, 2021; tayo-tiwo, 2020; ugoani, 2020; voughani & clever, 2016). ugoani (2020), akinyele et al. (2015), and agbaeze, monyei and agu (2017) found a significant positive effect of talent development, board size, percentage of non-executive directors on the board, career development, and mentoring on organizational sustainability. ibidunni et al., (2016) examined how best an organization can retain and manage talented employees to ensure survival and growth in the banking industry. the results from the survey indicate that pay has positive significant implications on employees’ commitment and involvement. other studies carried out by onwuka, kelechi, & kekeocha (2015) and vito et al. (2018) equally revealed positive significant relationships between the related studies’ dependent variables and independent variables that were related to succession planning educational qualification as a moderator ishola, adeleye and tanimola (2018) carried out a study examining the contributions of educational and professional certification to job performance among financial accounting staff of a university in nigeria. the survey captures both perceived-cum-the experience of job performance and professionalism among bursary staff of a first-generation university in southwest nigeria using a standardized self-report questionnaire containing job performance scale, items on normative and professional accounting roles and socio-demographic profile. three hypotheses were answered using multiple regression analysis and one-way anova at p ≤ .05. results revealed that, bursary staff with professional qualification reported more job performance than non-certified staff. bursary staff with higher tertiary education performed better in accounting task than those with lower qualification. thirdly, significant results were file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 58 found for gender and age as predictors of job performance. the article concludes with directions for future inquiry on the need to upped organisational performance through continuing education for a financial accounting. in the same vein, study carried out by makinde et al. (2018) said that the effect of employee engagement and educational qualification on employee needs to be examined because of its implication for improved quality labour which in turn, leads to organizational success. the paper examined the effect of between employee engagement and educational qualification on employee productivity in selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. the study adopted the descriptive survey research design. the population was 2,704 consisting the senior and middle level management staff of five selected banks. sample size of 450 was selected using the krejcie and morgan table and proportionate random sampling method was adopted. the research instrument was validated and deemed reliable. the kmo results ranged from 0751 to 0.897 while the cronbach’s alpha coefficient ranged from 0.856 to 0.912. the data were analysed using the simple regression analysis. the findings revealed that employee engagement had a significant effect on employee productivity. meanwhile, while makinde et al., (2018) reported that engagement and educational qualification had significant positive effect on employee productivity in banking sector of nigeria, onukwufor, umoh, and amah (2018) reported that organisational culture which was a moderating variable had a negative moderating effect on the relationship between career development and organisational success. methodology the study adopted a survey research design. according to kumar (2019), survey research design is very useful for examining the effect as well as relationships between the variables in the conceptual framework surveys are useful in describing the characteristics of a large population. no other research method can provide this broad capability, which ensures a more accurate sample to gather targeted results in which to draw conclusions and make important decisions (owino, 2019). the study research design supported the desired objectivity and allowed logistical flexibility for data collection and data analysis for hypothesis testing to come up with the objective conclusion. the target population for this study comprised twenty thousand and five (25005) employees of five selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria (human resources department of selected banks, 2021). these selected deposit money banks are stanbic ibtc bank plc, first bank plc, citibank nigeria limited, ecobank nigeria plc, and wema bank plc. the selected deposit money banks utilized mentoring and on-the-job training to close gaps in terms of retirement by any of the departmental head by promoting a subordinate who have been under tutelage of such manager for some years. the study population comprised top, middle and lower-level employees of the selected deposit money banks. from a population of 25005, a sample size of 760 was chosen to stand in for the entire population of the study. stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to determine the sample size. the research instrument was an adapted instrument measured on a 6-likert type scale. the data collected were analysed using the hierarchical regression method through the use of spss 26.0 software. the method was adopted in order to determine the moderating effect of educational qualification on the relationship between the independent variables and the dependent variable model 1 below was estimated to give the direction and effect of the moderating variable on the independent variable and the total effect on the dependent variable. emp = β0 + β1rm+ β2cmp+ β3tmp+ β4td + β5cm + βizspcs*eq + εi ………………eq. 1 where: file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 59 emp = employee performance in selected deposit money banks rm = reward management cmp = corporate mentoring tmp = talent management practice td = training and development cm = career management spcs = composite index of succession planning strategies eq = educational qualification spcs*eq = succession planning strategies x educational qualification β0 = constant β1 – β5 = coefficient of succession planning strategies. βiz = coefficient of the interaction term εi = error term ethical consideration this research was carried out in accordance with the research ethics. first, the researchers ensured that considerable efforts were put in place to ensure the confidentiality of data that was collected as well as the identities of the subjects that provided the information for this work when reporting the outcome of the study. the researchers also ensured that names and other personal details that could be traced back to the respondents were not sought for or documented anywhere in the study. the researcher was honest all through the course of the study and ensured that the process of data reporting, result reporting was honest as well as the method and procedure that were used. the researcher also ensured that no false data are included in the data that was collected and that the process of presenting and interpreting the data was free from bias. neither money nor any other material benefits was given to respondents in order to fill the questionnaire or to cooperate with the researcher concerning the study. however, the researcher maintains that cooperation on the part of the respondents was voluntary. data analysis and results this section presents the results of the hierarchical mutltiple regression analysis to test the effect of succession planning startegies on employees performance, as well as how educational qualification moderates the relationship bweteen succession planning strategies and employees performance in selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. table 1 reports the results. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 60 table 1: hierarchical multiple regression for educational qualification on the relationship between succession planning strategies and employee performance model b seb β t f p 1 (constant) 167.214 6.627 25.233 3.227 (5, 678) 0.000 reward management -0.141 0.124 -0.044 -1.133 0.258 corporate mentorship -0.268 0.119 -0.093 -2.261 0.024 talent management -0.233 0.128 -0.074 -1.818 0.070 training and development -0.068 0.132 -0.023 -0.514 0.607 career management 0.145 0.121 0.054 1.198 0.231 2 (constant) 165.738 7.162 23.140 2.735 (6, 677) 0.000 succession planning strategy -0.100 0.042 -0.091 -2.386 0.017 educational qualification 0.675 1.239 0.021 0.545 0.586 3 (constant) 286.491 2.670 107.310 197.939 (7, 676) 0.000 succession planning -0.874 0.016 -0.795 -54.117 0.000 educational qualification 48.622 0.722 1.504 67.373 0.000 interaction term (sps * eper * hle) .002 0.000 1.978 80.510 0.000 dependent variable: employee performance r2 = .008, .008 and .906 for steps 1, 2 and 3 respectively. ∆r2 = .007, .006 and .905 for steps 1, 2 and 3 respectively *p < 0.05 table 1 shows the regression coefficient results with three models. in model i, the dependent variable (employee performance of selected deposit money banks) was regressed on the independent variable (succession planning). the individual results revealed that corporate mentorship (β = -0.268, t = -2.261, p < 0.05) has a negative and significant effect on employee performance while other succession planning strategies such as reward management (β = 0.141, t = -1.133, p>0.05), talent management (β = -0.233, t = -1.818, p > 0.05), training and development (β = -0.068, t = -0.514, p>0.05) and career management (β = -0.145, t = -1.198, p > 0.05) have negative and insignificant effect on employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. the results of the multiple linear regression analysis revealed that only one of the succession planning strategies (corporate mentorship) has significant effect on employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. this suggests that corporate mentorship is a pivotal in determining employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. the overall model confirmed that succession planning had a significant contribution to employee performance of selected deposit money banks (f (5, 678) = 3.227, p < 0.005). the results in model ii revealed that succession planning strategies (β = -0.100, t = -2.386, p < 0.05) had negative and significant effect on employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. the result further revealed that educational qualifications (β = 0.675, t = 0.545, p > 0.05) have a positive and insignificant effect on employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. this implies that one unit change in succession planning and educational qualifications is associated with (-0.100) and 0.675 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 61 change respectively in employee performance of selected deposit money banks. the regression coefficients for succession planning and educational qualifications revealed that they affect employee performance of selected deposit money banks. the overall model also confirmed that succession planning and educational qualifications had a significant contribution to employee performance of selected deposit money banks (f (2,681) = 2.901, p < 0.05). model iii considered existence of the interaction effect and thus the independent variables were succession planning (sp), educational qualifications (eq), interaction of sp and eq. when interaction was included in the model, the explained variation in employee performance remained at 90.6% (r2 = 0.906) with an adjusted r-squared value of 0.905. r2 changes (δr2) improved from 0.000 in model ii to 0.897 in model iii. though the overall model was statistically significant (f = 2180.959, p < 0.05). the change in f ratio (δf = 6481.856) at p < 0.05 was statistically positive and significant. the result confirmed the apriori expectation of positive and significant effect of educational qualification on the relationship between succession planning strategies and employees’ performance. the results were further confirmed by the beta coefficient of the interaction term (β = 0.002, t = 80.510, p < 0.05) thus indicating moderating effect of educational qualifications with a total effect of 0.002 at 95% confidence level is statistically significant. mackinnon, fritz, williams, and lockwood (2007) suggested that a variable has a moderating effect if the coefficient of the variable is significant both before and after moderation. therefore, based on the moderation rule by mackinnon et al. (2007), educational qualifications are actually a moderating variable. therefore, the model showing the relationship between the independent variables and the dependent variables was expressed as follows: emp = 286.491 0.141rm – 0.268cm – 0.233tm – 0.068td – 0.145cmgt + 0.002sp*eq the regression equation established shows that taking all factors (succession planning strategies (sps), educational qualifications (eq), interaction of sp and eq) into account constant at zero employee performance of selected deposit money banks would be 286.491 which is positive. as seen in model iii, when interaction is included in the model, the effect of any improvement in the interaction variable (sps*eq) by a single unit results to a corresponding increase in employee performance of selected deposit money banks by 0.002 units respectively. the results implied that educational qualifications have a statistically positive and significant moderating effect on the effect of succession planning on employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. based on the results, the null hypothesis (h0) which states that educational qualification does not significantly moderate the effect of succession planning strategies on employee performance of selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria was rejected. discussion of findings the above results have been supported by findings of various empirical studies on the moderating effects of qualifications and educational characteristics on the relationship between succession planning and employee’s performance, ishola et al. (2018) carried out a study examining the contributions of educational and professional certification to job performance among financial accounting staff of a university in nigeria. results revealed that, bursary staff with professional qualification reported more job performance than non-certified staff. bursary staff with higher tertiary education performed better in accounting task than those with lower qualification. thirdly, significant results were found for gender and age as predictors of job performance. the article concludes with directions for future inquiry on the need to upped organisational performance through continuing education for a financial accounting. in the same vein, study carried out by makinde et al. (2018) said that the effect of employee file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 52 65, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 62 engagement and educational qualification on employee needs to be examined because of its implication for improved quality labour which in turn, leads to organizational success. the findings revealed that employee engagement had a significant effect on employee productivity. meanwhile, while makinde et al. (2018) reported that engagement and educational qualification had significant positive effect on employee productivity in banking sector of nigeria, onukwufor et al. (2018) reported that organisational culture which was a moderating variable had a negative moderating effect on the relationship between career development and organisational success. conclusions and recommendations from the findings, it can be concluded that, succession planning strategies significantly had an effect on employees’ performance in the selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. secondly it was concluded that, the most significant and effective succession planning strategy used by selected deposit money banks is corporate mentorship. the banks used mentorship programs to increase employees’ performance, reduce mistakes and produce quality work. it was also concluded that educational qualification moderated the relationship between succession planning strategies and employee performance in the selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. prior nigerian studies did not include a moderating factor. succession planning strategies through corporate mentorship have statistically significant effect on employee performance among selected deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria. the introduction of the moderating variable has enabled the study to have a greater explanatory power. tosi, werner, katz and gemez-mejia (2000) suggested that in order for research design to have greater explanatory power of human resources management field, it is imperative to include relevant moderating and mediating variables. as the study introduced and confirmed the new moderator of the existing relationship, a moderate level of theory building is presented to supplement existing theory. based on these research findings, the research recommends that, the management of deposit money banks should implement effective human resource planning policies towards effective succession planning. during recruitment, management should exhaust all internal talent before considering external talent especially when making promotion decisions. there is need for organizations to support their employees in identifying their learning needs and goals, selecting suitable learning strategies and participating in learning opportunities that place them in a better position with regard to succession planning. future research should build on the findings of this study to enrich existing knowledge on the practice of succession planning. further research should be done to establish to contributions of each of the five succession planning strategies to the performance of deposit money banks in lagos state, nigeria as well as other organisations such as manufacturing firms and insurance companies. references abdussalaam, i. i., abdul halim, a. m., mohammed, & mohd (2019). moderating effect of management support on the relationship between hr practices and employee performance in nigeria. global business review, 22(1) 132–150. adair, j. 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(2013). effects of succession planning strategy on the performance of international non-governmental organizations in kenya. international journal of science and research, 4(5), 3147 – 3155. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org employee benefits and job satisfaction in faith based institutions in uganda nassolo belinda kitata, paul william kitata, nazarious rukanyangira european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 60 employee benefits and job satisfaction in faith based institutions in uganda nazarious rukanyangira1*, nassolo belinda kitata2, paul william kitata3 1researcher, ndejje university, p.o box 7088, kampala, uganda 2lecturer, ndejje university, kampala, uganda, p.o box 7088, kampala, uganda email: kitata3111@yahoo.co.uk 3senior lecturer in business administration, muni university, p o box 725 arua, uganda tel. +256702709636 corresponding author’s email: nrukana@gmail.com or n.rukanyangira@muni.ac.ug article history submitted 06.09.2023 revised version received 28.11.2023 accepted 03.12.2023 abstract purpose: the study was conducted on the influence of employee benefits on job satisfaction in faith based institutions in uganda, a case study of the church of uganda ̧ provincial secretariat. the study was guided by specific objectives as; to establish the influence of health insurance, to examine the effect staff allowances, and to establish the relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction at church of uganda ̧provincial secretariat. materials and methods: the study used a blend of cross sectional¸ descriptive, and correlation research designs, with questionnaires and interviews as data collection methods. a sample size of 92 was attained from a study population of 130 employees. findings: findings revealed no relationship between health benefits and job satisfaction (r=-0.001 sig = p = 0.990 ≥ 0.05); a weak positive relationship between staff allowances and job satisfaction (r = 0.253** sig=0.015> 0.01) and adjusted r-square value of 0.053; a weak positive relationship between staff allowances and job satisfaction (r = 0.260** sig=0.012> 0.05) and adjusted r-square value of 0.057; basing on the findings there is no relationship between health benefits and job satisfaction while weak relationships exists between staff allowances ̧ retirement benefits and job satisfaction. implications to theory, practice and policy: the cou provincial secretariat need to put into place health benefit system and improve both allowance and retirement benefits so that both may make bigger contribution to job satisfaction. keywords: employee benefits, employee, employer, health insurance, job security, staff allowance, retirement benefits, job satisfaction. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5882-9730 https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1667 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 61 1.0 introduction according to uganda retirement benefits regulatory authority (2017), allowances in uganda are the most common employment benefits for permanent staff, offered by 67.6%. government has registered 58.8% of the establishments that should make contributions to the nssf. (ubos, 2010). the second most common benefit for permanent workers were non-cash benefits such as insurance, funeral, leave, and grants, provided by 9.8% of surveyed establishments. pension came next, offered by 9.6% of establishments, gratuity by 9.2%, and a lump sum at retirement by 3.3%. the benefits provided to temporary employees are fewer at 2.6%, pension is 2.1% and gratuity by 1.1% (uganda retirement benefits regulatory authority, 2017) employee benefits are generally, termed as either monetary or non-monetary rewards or both monetary and non-monetary given to employees above their salaries and wages (butteriss, 1999). some benefits are mandated by law (such as social security, unemployment compensation, and workers’ compensation), others vary from firm or industry to industry such as health insurance, life insurance, medical plan, paid vacation, pension, gratuity (sahoo & sukanta, 2012). according to spector (2003) organizations are trying to retain their employees through monetary and nonmonetary rewards. reward system of an organization makes it possible to motivate its employees and enrich its culture as well (yiamiis, loannis & nikolaost, 2009). in the words of abendschein (2004), people get attached to organizations which provide rewards and they opt to stay there for longer, (kerr-phillips and thomas, 2009). job satisfaction and motivation needs are vital in the work place particularly in the twenty first century as workers have become more knowledgeable through education about their rights in the work place. a satisfied and motivated work force can undoubtedly help sustain productivity. locke (1976) lists some individual characteristics of workers which can affect their level of satisfaction. in developing countries, employee benefits have become an important part of the total compensation of organizational expenses. employee benefits average 40% of the total compensation package (decenzo & robbins, 2010). benefits have grown in size, importance and variety (milkovich & newman, 2008). sub saharan africa in particular, employees continue to be treated as disposable resources, they face low employee benefits challenges with no voice to be saved, this creates job dissatisfaction among employees and none committal to organizational performance (abugre, 2014). problem statement employee benefits has a significant impact on job satisfaction (riyanto, s., endri, e., & herlisha, n. (2021) and the rapidly changing business environment, including increasingly fierce competition, requires companies to carry out various strategies to survive. (riyanto, s., endri, e., & herlisha, n. (2021) further affirms that one of the strategies is related to active employee engagement to achieve the best performance. however, job satisfaction in the faith-based organisations averagely increased by only 10 % (from 45% to 55 %) instead of the desired 55 % raise (from 45% to 100%) leaving a big crevice of 45% not achieved (church of uganda provincial annual human resource assessment report, 2021/2022). this is despite interventions through provision of health benefits ,retirement benefits and other allowances there has also remained complaints on, job security, competitive pay and conducive work environment (church of uganda provincial annual human resource assessment report, european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 62 2021/2022) which may be attributed to the scriptures discouraging bigger payments, poor human resource policies, limited sources of income and improper management of employment (church of uganda provincial annual human resource assessment report, 2021/2022). this seems to indicate that employees of faith-based organisations are not experiencing job satisfaction as expected. the unmet levels of job satisfaction leave a performance gap in terms of the existing employee benefit levels. considering the unmet job satisfaction levels made by the faith-based institutions the current study, therefore, sought to establish how much employee benefits contribute to job satisfaction in the faith based institutions. theoretical framework the study was based on employee benefit theories: reinforcement theory, equity theory, range of affect theory reinforcement theory the reinforcement theory was formulated by a psychologist edward thorndike in 1911. he termed it the law effect: behavior that is followed by positive consequences probably will be repeated. this powerful law of behavior laid the foundation for country investigations into the effects of the positive consequences, called rein forcers that motivate behavior. according to thorndike four key consequences of behavior either encourage or discourage people’s behavior that is positive reinforcementapplying a valued consequence that increases the likelihood that the person will repeat the behavior that led to it. examples of positive reinforces include compliments, letters of commendation, favorable performance evaluations, and pay raises. equally important, jobs can be positively reinforcing. performing well on interesting, challenging, or enriched jobs is much more reinforcing, and therefore motivating, then performing well on jobs that are routine and monotonous. the second one is negative reinforcement removing or withholding an undesirable consequence. for example, a manager takes an employee off probation because of improved performance. frequent threatening memos admonished people to achieve every one of their many performance goals. equity theory the theory suggests that employee perceptions of what they contribute to the organization, what they get in return, and how their return-contribution ratio compares to others inside and outside the organization,' determine how fair they perceive their employment relationship to be (adams, 1963). perceptions of inequity are expected to cause employees to take actions to restore equity. unfortunately, some such actions (for example quitting or lack of cooperation) may not be helpful to the organization. this theory is relevant to this study as employees perform their duties expecting to receive equal employee benefits such as health insurance, retirement benefits and staff allowances but if they do not get those benefits they will be dissatisfied with work and as a result this can fuel employee turnover. range of affect theory according to the range of affect theory by locke (1976), mostly known as job satisfaction model ̧ the main principle of this presumption is that satisfaction is dogged by a discrepancy involving what one wants in his job and what one has in his job. furthermore, the theory suggests that the amount of value one gives to a certain facet of his work, for instance the level of autonomy european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 63 and discretion in a position, justifies how satisfied or dissatisfied one tends to get when expectations are or are not met. purpose of the study the general objective of the study was to examine the influence of employee benefits on job satisfaction in faith based institutions in uganda, using a case of church of uganda, provincial secretariat. objective of the study to examine the influence of employee benefits on job satisfaction in faith based institutions in uganda, using a case of church of uganda, provincial secretariat. 2.0 literature review the available literature highlights the influence and relevance of internal controls on fraud prevention. according to jackson (2009), there are two primary types of benefits packages, traditional, and flexible benefits, each of which is more suited to specific types of employees. traditional benefits include standard benefits such as, vacation time health, life, and disability insurance, retirement pensions, and education benefits. likewise, alison doyle, (2018) agrees that flexible benefits plan include traditional benefits and may include other benefits such as, flexible work scheduled, stock options, health and wellbeing options such as, fitness center memberships, and family friendly benefits such as onsite daycare. whereas, gould (2000) argues that traditional benefits give employees standard benefits that are commonly expected in an employment setting. in contrast, flexible benefits include a wider variety of benefits and allow employees to choose benefits plans that are more suited to their personal needs and wants. kafyeta (2015), conducted a study on factors influencing employees’ job satisfaction in public organizations in tanzania electric supply company limited, findings show that most of employees were not satisfied with their jobs. the factors observed are satisfaction from job incentives, employees training and development, working environment, leadership, the extent of the employees’ involvement in decision making, fairness and equality of employees in promotion, and manager’s leadership. in addition, although studies conducted and published in uganda specifically on employee benefits and job satisfaction are scarce, basaza, (2017), conducted on factors affecting the performance of employees at the ministry of health headquarters, uganda, recommended that improving working conditions further, especially salaries and fringe benefits since these contribute to job satisfaction hence¸ boosting employee performance. according to künzler (2016) to deal with such liabilities an employer is obligated to obtain and maintain an insurance policy, with an insurer approved by the minister in respect of any liability that the employer may incur under this act to any of his employees. decenzo and robbins, (2002) view employee benefits as the membership-based and nonfinancial rewards offered to attract and keep employees, while world at work (2010) asserts that, benefits form part of the five key elements that constitute total reward package. these are compensation, european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 64 performance and recognition, career opportunities and development, work-life balance and benefits. according to armstrong (2008), employee benefits are elements of remuneration given in addition to the various forms of cash pay. they also include items that are not strictly remuneration such as annual holidays. currently, especially in the developed world, employee benefits packages have become an important part of the total compensation or organizational expenses. employee benefits average 40% of the total compensation package (decenzo & robbins, 2010). several studies have indicated that employee benefits are related to employee commitment, retention and job satisfaction. soon yew et al., (2008) suggest in their findings that both mandatory and fringe benefits were having significant and positive relationship with employee commitment leading to retention. fringe benefits had higher relationship as compared to mandatory benefits. todd (2016) notes that health benefits are frequently referred to by different terminologies. alternative terminologies used include essential health packages (ehb); basic health package; core health services; package of essential health services, and minimum health package. she further notes that defining the benefit package as an essential health benefit in part responds to health (and thus access to healthcare) as a human right, as outlined in the world health organization (who) constitution (who, 2006 in todd 2016) and as promoted through health for all and primary healthcare in the alma ata declaration (who, 1978 in todd 2016). according to dixon, (2014), staff allowance is the money that a company or government agency provides to an employee for a specific purpose, such as transportation, healthcare costs or a flexible spending account. staff allowances administered to employees can be distributed through regular payroll. in the words of landon (2016), retirement is a stage of life where people withdraw from a position of active employment. she notes that retirement no longer focuses entirely on an event that occurs when one ends their primary working career, but it is now a stage of life and stage of human development that can extend beyond full-time work to part-time employment and the stoppage of work for pay. job satisfaction has also been defined by mullins (2005) as being 'more of an attitude of an internal state. it could, for example, be associated with a personal feeling of achievement, either quantitative or qualitative.' mullins further state that concept of job satisfaction is regarded as complex and multifaceted (mullins, 2005). spector, (1997), kinneman et al, (1997) have also explained job satisfaction as 'a complex construct and is often measured as a global attitude of an employee toward his or her work'. that is, the employee is either satisfied or dissatisfied with the job. they have projected a number of elements (variables) that underlie this construct. these elements have been classified into 5 distinct dimensions: satisfaction with work attributes (the nature of the work, autonomy, responsibility), rewards (pay, promotion, recognition), other people (supervisors, co-workers), the organizational context (policies, promotion opportunities, procedures, working conditions), and self or individual differences (internal motivation, moral values), locke (1976), spector (1997), cooket al, (1997). according to the 2015 bureau of labor statistics’ national compensation survey, 72% of workers have access to health insurance as an employee benefit. out of all workers, only 53% participate european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 65 in an employer provided health insurance plan. health insurance is one of the more complicated benefits provided by the organization, yet it employees who are on the health insurance in an organization feel motivated and secure. bank frauds have now become a global phenomenon and generally, fraud inflicts untold hardship on bank owners, customers and their family members, as most bank failures are associated with large scales of fraud. the prevention of frauds is basically the responsibility of the management, through the establishment of an effective and efficient internal control system (abiola and oyewole, 2013). 3.0 research methodology the study employed both secondary and primary sources of data. primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaires comprising of both open and close ended questions from a sample of 113 respondents including top management, finance department, health department, lands and estates, education department, human resource department, youth department, mission department, investment department, procurement department. the study utilized both probabilistic and nonprobabilistic sampling techniques; that is, top managers, heads of departments were selected using purposive sampling because they were considered as the key informants, employees of the provincial secretariat were selected using simple random sampling. the data was then analyzed quantitatively using spss to obtain frequencies, standard deviation, mean, correlations and regression. the overall response rate was 81.4% and a non-response rate of 18.6% as 21 questionnaires out of the overall total of 113 were not returned. data quality and analysis a content validity index was used to check for clarity, simplicity, ambiguity and relevance of the instruments. experts in the field were consulted about the content of the instruments, ambiguity of question items and their relevancy. there after the instrument was given to raters who rated the relevancy of each item and a content validity index was computed. the results were as follows; table 1: content validity index for administered questionnaire raters relevant questions total number of questions rated score rater 1 52 57 0.912 average cvi 0.912 source: primary data, 2019 the minimum cvi recommended in the survey studies is 0.7 (amin, 2005: 288). the acvi of 0.912 renders the questionnaire valid and therefore reliable to collect data for the study. in this study, reliability of the measurement items was completed by running a reliability analysis utilizing spss v22 (statistical package for the social sciences) in order to obtain the cronbach alpha for each scale and checking the item to total correlations. the research questionnaire was checked for item consistence basing on cronbach’s alpha test. the results are displayed in the table below. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 66 table 2: cronbach alpha coefficient item cronbach alpha value no of items health insurance .751 10 retirement benefits .817 17 staff allowances .736 14 job satisfaction .700 10 overall .817 58 source: primary data, (2019) table 2 reveals that all variable items had cronbach alpha values greater than 0.7 indicating that the tools had high reliability. the overall value for items in the questionnaire is 0.817. this therefore implies that the research instrument was valid. 4.0 research findings the parameters that were highlighted during the analysis of the collected were twofold, namely, whether the c.o.u provincial secretariat, had put in place appropriate employee benefits to influence job satisfaction and also whether theses institutions would improve on the staff allowances to help improve on job satisfaction. table c: descriptive statistics on monitoring internal controls table 3: descriptive statistics of health insurance on job satisfaction key mean std. dev health insurance benefits offered by the organization meet employee satisfaction. 2.8261 .89699 health insurance offered is comprehensive 2.1522 .86361 health services offered are comprehensive 2.5000 .76316 health services provided are satisfactory 2.5761 .98599 validity period given on the health insurance card is satisfactory 2.4130 .85359 classification of the health insurance services is accepted by all beneficiaries 2.3804 .88755 efficiency of the health insurance system is satisfactory 2.7717 .91511 the services of the health insurance service provider meet all consumers needs 2.6087 .76971 the health insurance services providers has mobile services like ambulances 3.2174 .99257 other health insurance factors that influence job satisfaction 2.5435 .90679 over all mean/ sd valid n (list wise) 2.599 0.884 source: field survey, 2019 the study gave the overall score mean value of 2.599 indicating that most of the respondents agreed and are uncertainty on the health benefits aspects which may imply lack of or poor or discriminatory offer of health benefits to staff. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 67 results of the correlation analysis table 4: showing correlation between health benefits and job satisfaction health benefits job satisfaction health benefits pearson correlation 1 -.001 sig. (2-tailed) .990 n 92 92 job satisfaction pearson correlation -.001 1 sig. (2-tailed) .990 n 92 92 source: (field data, 2019) in an effort to find out the basic relationship between the health benefits and job satisfaction in church of uganda provincial secretariat (r = -0.01, sig= 0.990) significance that is greater than 0.05., this means that there is completely no connection between health benefits and job satisfaction basically because there are no health benefits provided to the employees at the c.o.u provincial secretariat. table 5: descriptive statistics on staff allowances mean std.dev. the per diem given to staff is sufficient 3.359 .9208 the out of pocket fees given to staff enhance job satisfaction 3.076 .8152 organizational allowances on accommodation motivates workers 3.391 .8889 allowances on airtime is sufficient to all employees 3.087 .9096 employees are contended with their transport allowances 3.283 .9297 lunch allowances given to employees is satisfactory 3.349 .8699 commissions on business brought into the organization is sufficient 2.141 .9559 the condolence package given to employees for loss of close relatives is sufficient 3.228 1.232 the availed annual leave allowance is enough to give job satisfaction 2.695 .9577 marriage motivation benefits are sufficient 2.282 .8935 the travel allowances enhance job satisfaction. 3.021 .9255 qualification allowances are sufficient enough that they create job satisfaction 3.097 1.158 there is a motivation for club memberships which creates job satisfaction 1.858 .792 there exists a sufficient overtime compensation policy system 2.630 1.136 fuel and transport allowances are sufficient to enhance job satisfaction 2.750 .88485 the organization has good motivational transport facilities like vehicles, motor bikes which create job satisfaction 3.337 1.20691 there are other allowances that create job satisfaction but are not considered here. 3.41 1.15931 overall mean/sd 2.941 0.978 source: field survey, 2019 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 68 although there is a general uncertainty in responses to this aspect, other researchers have found out that staff allowances as part of employee benefits are a useful instrument in the hand of the management to contribute to the institutional effectiveness and can impact positively on the behavior and productivity of employees. however, benefits determine the attraction and retention of employees to attain organization objectives. adeoye and fields (2014), attested that benefits are major factor in attracting and retaining staff. table 6: showing correlation between staff allowances and job satisfaction staff allowance job satisfaction staff allowance pearson correlation 1 .253* sig. (2-tailed) .015 n 92 92 job satisfaction pearson correlation .253* 1 sig. (2-tailed) .015 n 92 92 *. correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). above table shows the relationship between staff allowance (independent variable) and job satisfaction (dependent variable). it shows that through bivariate means, the correlation between staff allowances and job satisfaction is (r) = 0.253. this implies that there is a weak positive relationship between the two variables. since the p value is 0.015 which is less than 0.05 (p=0.015>0.05) the impact is significant. the positive value implies that a positive change in staff allowances results into a positive change in job satisfaction and vice versa. table 7: showing model summary for staff allowances and job satisfaction model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .253a .064 .053 .380 a. predictors: (constant), staff allowance source: field survey, 2019 the regression results presented in table 7 above show the, adjusted r square value of 0.053, it implies that staff allowances influences job satisfaction at the c.o.u provincial secretariat by only 5.3% the remaining percentage which is 94.7% of job satisfaction is accounted for by other factors. this means that an increase in staff allowances results into a corresponding increase in job satisfaction and a corresponding decrease in staff allowances results into a decrease in job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. further¸ an anova was run and the results are presented n table 8 below: european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 69 table 8: showing anova values for staff allowances and job satisfaction model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression .884 1 .884 6.136 .015a residual 12.971 90 .144 total 13.855 91 a. predictors: (constant), staff allowance b. dependent variable: job satisfaction source: field survey, 2019 the results in table 8 above indicate that the regression model does predict the dependent variable significantly. there is a statistical significant relationship in the regression model which is indicated by f = 6.136 and sig = 0.015 which is less than 0.05. this is also supported by the regression mean square value of 0.884 compared to the residual mean square of 0.144 which is significant. this therefore confirms that there is a relationship between staff allowances and job satisfaction in c.o.u provincial secretariat. in order to be conclusive¸ coefficient analysis was done and results are presented n table 5.5 below: table 9: showing coefficients of staff allowances and job satisfaction model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta 1 (constant) 2.488 .238 10.446 .000 staff allowance .198 .080 .253 2.477 .015 a. dependent variable: job satisfaction source: field survey, 2019 results from table 9 give t and beta values. the t – values tests the relationship that the confident is different from 0. to reject this, you need a t-value greater than 1.96 (for 95% confidence interval). the t-value for staff allowance is 2.477 which is greater than 1.96. this implies that staff allowances have a significant influence on job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat considering a significant factor of (sig. = 0.015) and the standardized beta coefficient of 0.253 imply that one-unit increase in job satisfaction is caused by 0.253 increase in staff allowances based on the equation y= c+ βx where y = (dependent variable), x = staff allowance (independent variable, β = 0.253 and c = constant. this therefore means that there is a relationship between staff allowances and job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 70 table 10: descriptive statistics on retirement benefits generally most of the items generated disagreements with a means score of 2.44 that indicates that preparing employees to plan for retirement is largely not considered by the cou provincial secretariat. employee need to be certain of comfort in retirement and when no plans are made it affects job satisfaction. these findings contradicts the assertion of hsin his (2011) who argue that, the design of compensation and benefits packages is critical in determining employee levels of satisfaction and can influence employee performance and turnover. mean std. dev. my pension plan is funded entirely by the provincial secretariat and this ignites me to look forward to it 2.891 1.1716 the organization makes regular monthly contributions to my nssf 3.695 1.0867 severance pay is given in addition to pension or unemployment insurance 3.021 1.0161 the organization has a pension scheme which enhances job satisfaction and productivity 2.793 1.0434 there is provision of a general provident fund which enhances job retention 2.5217 .9432 there is a functioning company sacco where individuals savings are kept, invested and issued on retirement 2.293 1.2183 the secretariat provides medical after retirement which enhances job satisfaction 1.706 .7919 there is a gratuity fund which enhances the gratuity package 2.630 1.0865 forced retirement due to injury and accident is catered for financially and medically 1.978 .8251 there is a send of and farewell party that enhances employee ego on retirement 2.163 1.092 there are unemployment financial benefits that enhance job satisfaction 2.358 .8966 there are profit sharing plans on retirement which enhance job satisfaction 2.413 .9738 fixed company contributions enhance retirement plans and job satisfaction 2.239 .9419 forced retirement caused by accident while on duty is well catered for 1.946 1.0203 there are other retirement benefits that enhance job satisfaction 2.011 1.0109 overal mean/sd 2.444 1.008 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 71 table 11: showing correlation between retirement benefits and job satisfaction retirement benefits job satisfaction retirement benefits pearson correlation 1 .260* sig. (2-tailed) .012 n 92 92 job satisfaction pearson correlation .260* 1 sig. (2-tailed) .012 n 92 92 *. correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). source: field survey 2019 results in table 11 above show the relationship between retirement benefits (independent variable) and job satisfaction (dependent variable), it shows that through bivariate means, the correlation between retirement benefit and job satisfaction is (r) = 0.260 implying that there is a weak positive relationship between the two variables. since the p value is 0.012 which is less than 0.05 (p< 0.05) it means that there is a significantly positive relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction. the positive value implies that a positive change in retirement benefits results into a positive change in job satisfaction and vice versa. table 12: showing model summary for retirement benefits and job satisfaction model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 .260a .068 .057 .379 a. predictors: (constant), retirement benefits source: field survey, 2019 the regression results presented in table 12 above show the, adjusted r square value of 0.057 which implies that retirement benefits at the c.o.u provincial secretariat influences job satisfaction by only 5.7% and the remaining percentage which is 94.3% of job satisfaction is accounted for by other factors. this implies that there is a significant positive relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction in c.o.u provincial secretariat. this means that an increase in retirement benefits results into a corresponding increase in job satisfaction and a corresponding decrease in retirement benefits results into a decrease in job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 72 table 13: showing anova values for retirement benefits and job satisfaction model sum of squares df mean square f sig. 1 regression .940 1 .940 6.549 .012a residual 12.915 90 .144 total 13.855 91 a. predictors: (constant), retirement benefits b. dependent variable: job satisfaction source: field survey 2019 analysis of variance (anova) was done between aspects of retirement benefits on job satisfaction at 95% confidence level, result from table 13 above shows that the independent variable predicts the dependent variable significantly. there is a statistical significance of the regression model indicated by f value = 6.549, p = 0.012 which is less than 0.05. this is also supported by the regression mean value of 0.940 compared to the residual mean square of 0.144 which is significant to zero. this therefore confirms that, there is a relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction, in c.o.u provincial secretariat. table 14: coefficients of retirement benefits and job satisfaction model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta 1 (constant) 2.560 .203 12.598 .000 retirement benefits .209 .082 .260 2.559 .012 a. dependent variable: job satisfaction source: field survey 2019 results from table 14 give t and beta values. the t – values tests the relationship that the coefficient is different from 0. to reject this, you need a t-value greater than 1.96 (for 95% confidence interval). the t-value for retirement benefits is 2.559 which is greater than 1.96. this implies that retirement benefits have a significant influence on job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat considering a significant factor of (sig. = 0.012). also the standardized beta coefficient of 0.260 implies that one-unit increase in job satisfaction is caused by 0.260 increase in retirement benefits based on the equation y= c+ βx where y = (dependent variable), x = retirement benefits (independent variable, β = 0.260 and c = constant. this therefore means that there is a relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 73 table 15: descriptive statistics of job satisfaction source: field survey 2019 they were views recorded during the interviews. one of the respondents revealed that, “the administration of the provincial secretariat comes up with regular retreats where staff convene and refresh themselves with aspects concerning the secretariat,” this will help members to remain committed towards their work that would aid the fulfillment of the vision and mission of the provincial secretariat. another respondent revealed that, the secretariat should set up an independent staff welfare department that should ensure and through which the welfare logistics can be channeled discussions and recommendations findings; the influence of health benefits on job satisfaction study findings as presented in table 4.1 revealed that, at the c.o.u. provincial secretariat; employees are not sure whether health insurance benefits offered by the organization meet employee satisfaction (mean= 2.8261 and sd = 0.896). health insurance offered not comprehensive, (mean = 2.1522 and sd= 0.86361), health services offered are not comprehensive (mean = 2.5 and sd= 0.76316), health services provided are not satisfactory (mean = 2.5761 and sd= 0.98599), validity period given on the health insurance card is not satisfactory (mean = 2.4130 and sd= 0.85359), classification of the health insurance services is not accepted by all beneficiaries (mean = 2.3804 and sd= 0.88755), efficiency of the health insurance system is satisfactory (mean = 2.7717 and sd= 0.91511), the services of the health insurance service mean std. dev. am treated well so am willing to continue serving the provincial secretariat 3.4239 .86740 i feel proud to tell people that i work with the provincial secretariat 3.3043 1.20201 i feel and speak positive about the provincial secretariat 3.0217 1.11905 i can recommend a friend or relative to apply for a job in the c.o.u provincial secretariat 2.8152 1.02635 i am willing to work for the secretariat till retirement 3.0326 1.01040 i don’t intend to leave the provincial secretariat because am contented and satisfied 2.7283 1.13972 i feel comfortable whenever am performing my tasks 3.1957 1.26003 my efforts at the provincial secretariat are recognized 2.9239 1.13131 i perform my tasks with commitment and dedication because i like the organization 3.0761 1.20652 i will keep on renewing my contract with this organization 3.1739 1.22796 mean/sd 3.07 1.119 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 74 provider do not meet all consumer needs (mean = 2.6087 and sd= 0.76971), health insurance services providers do have mobile services like ambulances (mean = 3.2174 and sd= 0.99257) and that there are other health insurance factors that influence job satisfaction (mean = 2.5435 and sd= 0.90679). the researcher obtained an overall mean of 2.599 and an overall standard deviation of 0.884 which shows that generally respondents were not sure about the statements concerning the effect of health insurance on job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. pearson’s correlation between health insurance and job satisfaction (table 4.2) illustrates that there is no relationship between the two variables with r=-0.001 and p = 0.990. this means that there is completely no connection between health benefits and job satisfaction basically because there are no health benefits provided to the employees at the church of uganda provincial secretariat. this finding proves that there is no relationship between health benefits and job satisfaction in the church of uganda provincial secretariat. the effect staff allowances on job satisfaction pearson’s correlation between staff allowances and job satisfaction illustrates that there is a weak positive relationship between the two variables with r=0.253 and p = 0.015. since the p value is 0.253 which is greater than 0.05 (p>0.05) the impact is significant. the positive value implies that a positive change in staff allowances results into a positive change in job satisfaction and vice versa, therefore, it can be concluded that there is a very weak positive statistical relationship between staff allowances and job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. in relation to the adjusted r square value (table 5.3), staff allowances contribute only 5.3% to the variations in job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. the remaining percentage is influenced by other factors. results of the study in table 5.4 indicate the regression model does predict the dependent variable significantly well since there is a statistical significant relationship of the regression model which is indicated by f = 6.136 and p = 0.015 which is less than 0.05. this is supported by the regression mean square value of 0.884 compared to the residual mean square of 0.144 which is significant. this therefore confirms that there is a very weak positive significant statistical relationship between staff allowances and job satisfaction in the c.o.u provincial secretariat. hence a positive change in staff allowances results into a positive change in job satisfaction. the relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction pearson’s correlation of retirement benefits and job satisfaction illustrates that there is a weak positive relationship between the two variables. since the p value is 0.012 which is less than 0.05 (p< 0.05) which means that there is a significantly positive relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction. the positive value implies that a positive change in retirement benefits results into a positive change in job satisfaction. in relation to the adjusted r square value (table 6.3), shows that retirement benefits at the c.o.u provincial secretariat influences job satisfaction by only 5.7% and the remaining percentage which is 94.3% is influenced by other factors. results of the study in table 6.4 indicate the regression model predicts the dependent variable significantly well. there is a statistically significant relationship predicted by the regression model indicated by f value = 6.549, p = 0.012 which is less than 0.05. this is also supported by the european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 75 regression mean value of 0.940 compared to the residual mean square of 0.144 which is significant to zero. this therefore confirms that, there is a relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction, in c.o.u provincial secretariat. this section presents the recommendations on the influence of employee benefits on job satisfaction in c.o.u provincial secretariat. they are presented as per the study objectives. the effect of health insurance on job satisfaction basing on the study findings and conclusions, the study made the following recommendations: i. most aspects of health insurance were rated uncertain, implying that there need make general modification of the health insurance policy such that in future it can be impactful to all employees. ii. respondents indicated segregation in the administration of health benefit scheme, there is need to make the health benefit scheme accessible to all employees irrespective of their positions. iii. the study also recommends that the secretariat puts emphasis on unification of the health insurance policy such that employees can benefit out of it equally. the effect staff allowances on job satisfaction basing on the study findings and conclusions, the study made the following recommendations; i. staff allowances provided to employees in the c.o.u provincial secretariat need to be made more significant by repackaging them because it was established that most of the ones availed do not directly impact on the individual employee but rather an aid in helping them perform their duties. ii. there is need to improve or increase the amount given as allowances in order to have more impact on job satisfaction. iii. it’s recommended that consistency in giving out allowances to employees should be prioritized and this will help in meeting set targets, this should be done basing on appraisal performance. the relationship between retirement benefits and job satisfaction basing on the study findings and conclusions, the study made the following recommendations: i. the secretariat should capitalize on the retirement benefits that have created high levels of job satisfaction like nssf provident fund, unemployment insurance and gratuity. ii. the study recommends that employees who are approaching retirement should be trained on how to manage finances, profitable business venture, and trainings in life after retirement. iii. it is further recommended that part of the retirement package is availed to employees a few years before they retire so as to help them start preparing early. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 76 conclusion and recommendations the findings of this study revealed that employee benefits in terms of health insurance, staff allowances and retirement benefits contribute to job satisfaction in an organization. employee benefits should be communicated to the employees in the different departments through their departmental managers. hence, this study encompasses the managerial implication by estimating that managerial understanding of employee benefits within the organization european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 77 references abugre, j.b. (2011). perceived satisfaction in sustained outcomes of employee communication in ghanaian organizations, journal of management policy and practice vol. 12(7), 37-49. alison doyle (2018):types of employee benefits and perks. armstrong, m. (2006) ahandbook of human resource management practice, tenth edition, kogan page publishing, london,p. 264 berenice kerr-phillips, adèle thomas (2009).macro and micro challenges for talent retention in south africa, journal doi:10.4102/sajhrm.v7i1.157 butteriss, m. (1999). help wanted: the complete guide to human resources for canadian entrepreneurs. pp. 99-120. church of uganda provincial annual human resource assessment report, 2021/2022 decenzo d. a. and robbins s. p. (2010). fundamentals of human resource management (10th ed.), hoboken, nj: john wiley & sons, inc. gould, jay. "flexible spending accounts benefit both employees, employers." san antonio business journal. 24 november 2000. hsin-his, l. (2011). the influence of compensation system design on employee satisfaction. african journal of business management. 5(26), 1071810723https://www.thebalancecareers.com/types-of-employee-benefits-and-perks2060433 jackson, s. a., (2009). managerial practices and organizational conditions that encourage employee growth and development. performance improvement quarterly, 28(3), 71-93. kafyeta, s. a. (2015). factors influencing employees’ job satisfaction in public organizations in tanzania: a case of tanzania electric supply company (tanesco) limited in dar es salaam (doctoral dissertation, the open university of tanzania). landon, m. g., & ritz, j. m. (2016). motivational factors that influence retirement contentment. research & reviews: journal of social sciences, 2(2), 12-22. locke, e.a. (1976) the nature and causes of job satisfaction. in: dunnette, m.d., ed., handbook of industrial and organizational psychology, vol. 1, 1297-1343. milkovich g. t. & newman, j. m. (2008). compensation (9th ed.), boston: mcgraw-hill irwin. mugenda, o. m. and mugenda, a. g. (1999). research methods: quantitative and qualitative approaches. nairobi: acts press. riyanto, s., endri, e., & herlisha, n. (2021). effect of work motivation and job satisfaction on employee performance: mediating role of employee engagement. problems and perspectives in management, 19(3), 162. sahoo. c. k, & sukanta (2008) performance management benefits organizations and their employees", human resource management, vol. 20 issue: 6, pp.3-5. skinner, b.f (1974), in reinforcement theory handbook of organizational theory and behavior. https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/berenice-kerr-phillips/118279413 https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/ad%c3%a8le-thomas/50730662 https://doi.org/10.4102/sajhrm.v7i1.157 https://www.thebalancecareers.com/types-of-employee-benefits-and-perks-2060433 https://www.thebalancecareers.com/types-of-employee-benefits-and-perks-2060433 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 60 78, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 78 spector, p.e. (1997). job satisfaction: application, assessment, causes and consequences. thousand oaks, ca: sage. uganda retirement regulatory authority, (2017) annual retirement benefits sector performance report, 2017 license copyright (c) 2023 nazarious rukanyangira, nassolo belinda kitata, paul william kitata this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ the interaction effect between teachers’ welfare and human capital on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. perez mbiire batwine mujuni, adrian r. mwesigye, and charles tushabomwe kazooba european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 32 the interaction effect between teachers’ welfare and human capital on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. perez mbiire batwine mujuni department of economics, faculty of business and management sciences, mbarara university of science and technology email: pmujuni@must.ac.ug adrian r. mwesigye associate professor, mbarara university of science and technology email: arm@must.ac.ug charles tushabomwe kazooba associate professor, mbarara university of science and technology email: tkazooba@must.ac.ug abstract purpose: this research aimed at establishing the effect of interaction between teachers’ welfare and human capital on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. methodology: a cross sectional research design and post-positivist paradigm were used to collect data from 118 government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda where 475 respondents participated in the study. the study used closed-ended questionnaires, interview guide and checklists. the schools to be included were selected using simple random sampling and were considered as unit of analysis while the respondents who included district officials, head teachers, teachers and school management committee members formed the unit of enquiry, these were selected purposively based on the knowledge they had on the subject matter. each school selected, provided the information from the respondents who in this case were the head teacher, two teachers and a chairperson of school management committee member. the research was guided by the null hypothesis, ho1: an interaction of teachers’ welfare and human capital has no significant effect on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. findings: the findings of the study revealed that, there is very significant effect between interacting teachers’ welfare and human capital on performance of government aided primary schools (t-value = 11.940, sig. = .000) thus rejecting the null hypothesis (ho1). the results signify that since rsquare = 0.288, this means that interacting/ combining both variables of teachers’ welfare and human capital in the model, will contribute 28.8% of good performance of performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. recommendations: the study recommend the government through the ministry of education & sports to impose the training, provide workshops and give minimum-wage law for government aided primary school teachers. this would possibly caters for teachers’ motivation when given some due care and attention. in addition, the ministry of education & sports should create social benefits for government aided primary school teachers as a means to enhance their wellbeing and motivate them. moreover, it is also recommended that government aided primary schools’ teachers be given allowances such as rental, medical care and transport which could probably motivate them. since human capital is important for the improvement of primary schools’ performance, it is advisable that the government should provide free trainings and workshops to school teachers’ so that they can gain skills and knowledge and possibly help them performance better at school. keywords: teachers’ welfare, human capital, performance, government aided primary schools, isingiro district, uganda. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org mailto:pmujuni@must.ac.ug mailto:arm@must.ac.ug mailto:tkazooba@must.ac.ug european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 33 introduction the ugandan primary education system experienced major changes in 1997 when the government of republic of uganda adopted universal primary education (upe) which abolished all tuition fees and all parents and teacher association charges for primary education. the changes led to increased enrollment in primary schools pupils from 2.9 million in 1997 to more than 8 million in 2010 (oonyu,2012). the government responded to the increased demand in education by undertaking several reforms and policies which included; building and renovation of schools, procurement of instructional materials, and training, hiring and retaining teachers, fighting against pupil absenteeism, curriculum reform and decentralization of primary education (ministry of education and sports, 2013). the national pupil teacher ratio and pupil classroom ratio was also revised downwards. in isingiro district, by 2010; pupil teacher ratio was about 53%. government funding for primary education sector since 1997 has stood at between 65% and 68% per year of the total education budget (oonyu, 2012). primary school education in uganda was introduced by missionaries in 1877 and was modeled along the british system of education because uganda was a british protectorate from 1894 until 1962 when she attained her independence. during that time, teachers were held in high esteem and their welfare included; housing, medical care, meals, basic allowances, and the school facilities or environment were largely conducive for teachers to perform their duties as educators. the period of president idi amin regime (1971-1979), however, affected teacher’s welfare among other sectors in the country. this period was characterized by insecurity, breakdown of economic activities, brain drain, and a decline of social services leading to poor schools performance. the real value of salaries and wages collapsed by 90% in less than a decade. parents had to step in and this led to the formation of parents and teacher associations (pta) which introduced charges that helped to reduce the financial burden of the school’s budget (aguti, 1996; okuda, 2014). when the government of republic of uganda introduced of universal primary education in 1997, the pta charges were abolished in public primary schools in rural areas and the issues of teacher welfare were undertaken by government (oonyu, 2012).abolishing pta charges was politically popular and it helped attract enrollment but it did not emphasize teachers’ welfare yet teachers are a key determinant in quality education. teachers were not happy with their welfare status and are always threatening by taking industrial action over low pay and poor working conditions (kagolo, 2013, kaaya, mulidwa & kimbowa, 2013, kagolo, 2015). yahiaoui, anser and lahouel, (2015) posit that employee welfare contributes towards organizational performance. teacher motivation is very important since it improves the skills and knowledge of teachers seeing as it directly influences the student’s achievement (mustafa & othman, 2010). organization performance was being undertaken a long time before the world wide movement of new public management. however, with the emergency of new public management, performance became more pronounced. the reason being that, there was demand for transparency, appropriate managerial methods of controlling and managing administrations in order to have efficiency and effectiveness (value for money) in the public sector. performance appraisal systems have kept changing over the last 50 years from emphasis on the employee through focus on the job and a recent return to the employee. earlier, employee performance was concerned with simply ranking and comparing individual employees but due to continuous weakness of such a system, researchers made a transition to job related performance assessment leading to development of file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 34 sophisticated models for understanding employee and organisation performance appraisal (prasad, 2010; damaris, elegwa & kwasira, 2016). performance is the degree to which an employee and organizational goals are met (feng, 2010). it comprises both behavior and outcomes (armstrong, 2003; feng, 2010). behavior comes from the worker who transforms performance from abstraction into action leading to a product or an outcome (kalyani, 2006). feng (2010) opines that performance can be viewed from three different angles, that is, results oriented performance, conduct oriented performance and the integration of conduct and result oriented performance. employee welfare can also be traced from the industrial revolution in european countries. in early 1820s, workers started forming groups to address some of the challenges caused by the revolution and managers throughout the world have used it to enhance workers performance since then (kaur, 2012). katarasibwa (2005) echoes ekatan, isingoma, nanziri and nabwiso (1995) by looking at teachers and general school performance as the extent to which teachers in a school achieve the requirements of their job in an effort to fulfill school objectives. this general performance must be geared towards promoting the process of teaching and learning for the benefit of the pupils. in this study school performance is conceptualized as the extent to which the school objectives are achieved through lesson preparations which involve making schemes of work, lesson plans, record of work done, preparing and using learners registers, actual classroom teaching, assessment and evaluation of the learners, attending staff meetings, management of learners discipline, involvement in co-curricular activities, counseling and guidance. "human capital" is defined as knowledge, skills, attitudes, aptitudes, and other acquired traits contributing to production (goode (1959). in economics, the term human capital is used to define increase in productivity levels and human capacities due to education and health. in economists' view, human capital in industries and business organizations is mostly defined as input measured in terms of economic returns or profits they earned. on the other hand, human capital in education can be taken as both input and outcome defined against cumulative knowledge, skills and abilities overall education systems have generated through abundant education and training provisions. human capital theory rests on the assumption that formal education is highly instrumental and necessary to improve the productive capacity of a population. in short, human capital theorists argue that an educated population is a productive population. human capital theory emphasizes how education increases the productivity and efficiency of workers by increasing the level of cognitive stock of economically productive human capability, which is a product of innate abilities and investment in human beings. a critical examination of the training policy indicates that it contains all the essential elements of training and development. according to mohamud (2014) training policy shows that training and development falls under human resource development (hrd) function which has been argued to be an important function of human resources manual (hrm). employees, managers and human resources (hr) should all collaborate to build a continuous professional development (cpd) culture. it’s an employee’s responsibility to seek new learning opportunities. it’s a manager’s responsibility to coach their teams and identify employee development needs. and it’s human resource (hr) responsibility to facilitate any staff development activities and processes (antoniu, 2010). according to quality educators’ projectuganda (2011), it is through the training programme to head teachers and the teachers in the schools that will develop the skills file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 35 they need to create more holistic and meaningful performance planning, monitoring and evaluation at the school level. therefore, teachers’ welfare and human capital in this study focused on the wellbeing of teachers by providing accommodation, meals, medical care, basic allowances and the school facilities or environment, and making the teacher more productive. it can be noted that from a theoretical perspective, the theories greatly contributes to understanding and shaping of the linkage between teachers’ welfare, human capital and performance of government aided primary schools, isingiro district in uganda. literature review welfare services are provided in order to increase the productive efficiency of the employees by keeping their motivation levels high (venkata & lokanadha, 2015). in this study fredrick herzberg, (1959) two factor theory guided the linkage between teachers’ welfare and primary schools’ performance. fredrick herzberg two factor theory has been accepted as one of the theories of motivation in the field of management that can explain contemporary employee performance. this theory was advanced by fredrick herzberg in 1959 to explain employee work motivation. herzberg states that there are certain factors in the work place that can cause job satisfaction while others cause dissatisfaction. herzberg divided the factors into motivating and hygiene factors. the motivating factors are strong contributors of job satisfaction and include things like challenging work, recognition and responsibility (nairuba, 2011; bhatnagar, 2014; linda & hannah, 2015). however, the hygiene factors are not strong contributors of job satisfaction but must be present to meet employee expectations and prevent job dissatisfaction. hygiene factors include; provision of employee accommodation, break tea, lunch, medical care, compensation and good working environment to ensure that an employee is not dissatisfied and ultimately promote effective employee performance (namuddu, 2010; bhatnagar, 2014). although the herzberg two factor theory has been criticized severely for being methodologically bound, fraught with procedural deficiencies and for not being consistent with previous evidence concerned with satisfaction and motivation (vroom, 1966; bhatnagar, 2014), it is still applicable to this study because of its relevance to education stakeholders in identifying factors that may motivate teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. teachers are the key in achieving all of the education 2030 agenda .as teachers are a fundamental condition for guaranteeing quality education, teachers and educators should be empowered, adequately recruited and remunerated, motivated, professionally qualified, and supported within well-resourced, efficient and effectively governed systems. (unesco et al., 2015). moreover, education 2030, articulates that ‘teachers and educators, and their organizations, are crucial partners in their own right and should be engaged at all stages of policy-making, planning, implementation and monitoring” (unesco et al., 2015). the international task force on teachers for education for all (efa) (2015) suggests that one of the main reasons that “teachers and teaching should be at the top of policy-makers’ concerns” is because “teachers are one of the largest components of a nation’s labour force, the principal human resource in any education system, and the largest single financial component of any education authority’s budget…” indeed, based on my analysis of world bank education sector strategy documents (world bank, 1995, 1999, and 2011), i found a strong emphasis on teachers as human capital i.e. the belief that the role of workers file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 36 in production is similar to the role of machinery and other forces of production (johnson, 2000; becker, 1993) or as a human resource input that is required for the process of producing student learning outcomes (ginsburg, 2012). in addition to teachers as a human resource input, is the idea of teachers as employees. that is, to insert this human resource into the education system, teachers have to be hired (and perhaps fired), generally be paid some salary, receive some fringe benefits, be provided with conditions of work. the employee category also includes attention to the possibility of a career structure, standards of practice, as well as supervision and assessment of their work. in addition to base pay or basic salary, which may include retirement pension and social security provisions, other financial incentives forming part of teachers’ reward packages, include allowances for particular responsibilities, family benefits, housing provision or subsidies, transport subsidies and financial contributions towards further training. despite this necessity of human capital measurement, traditional method of the human capital measurement includes a few limitations. to begin with, wolf (2002) suggests that some of indicators can be actually considered as incomplete ones. to support his assertion, he exemplifies that a worker’s wage, one of human capital indicators as proxies-hardly measures ‘authentic human capital’. by the drawback of traditional human capital measurement, it is acceptable to measure the authentic human capital instead of utilizing proxies such as income and productivity. human capital theory rests on the assumption that formal education is highly instrumental and necessary to improve the productive capacity of a population. in short, human capital theorists argue that an educated population is a productive population. human capital theory emphasizes how education increases the productivity and efficiency of workers by increasing the level of cognitive stock of economically productive human capability, which is a product of innate abilities and investment in human beings. the provision of formal education is seen as an investment in human capital, which proponents of the theory have considered as equally or even more worthwhile than that of physical capital (woodhall, 1997) in addition, it is difficult that human capital itself independently contributes to individual development and organization growth. according to ashton & green (1996), it is necessary that the link between human capital, welfare and organization performance should be considered within a social and political context to precisely measure the human capital. furthermore, many empirical literatures present that financial, human and social capital positively influence ‘something like individual health and work input’ (blakey, lochner, & kawachi, 2002; veenstra, 2001; veenstra et al., 2005; wilson et al., 2004). consequently, the purpose of this objective was to find out how the combined factors human capital and teachers’ welfare have a significant influence on the performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the researchers therefore carried out this study to establish the relationship between teachers’ welfare, human capital and the performance of government aided primary school in isingiro district, uganda. research methodology the study employed cross-sectional research design. isingiro district has a total number of 173 government aided primary schools according district education officer and a sample of 118 schools was selected basing on krejcie & morgan (1970) table for determining sample size and 475 respondents participated in the study. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 37 the selected schools were categorized according to the zones in the district by stratification. in this study, the schools to be included were selected using simple random sampling and were considered as unit of analysis while the respondents who included district officials, head teachers, teachers and school management committee members formed the unit of enquiry, these were selected purposively based on the knowledge they had on the subject matter. each school selected, provided the information from the respondents who in this case were the head teacher, two (2) teachers and a chairperson of school management committee member. in this study, the main data collection instruments were structured questionnaires that were close ended in design, structured interview guide and observation checklists. secondary data were collected from journals, government reports, published and unpublished theses and internet. the researcher employed both quantitative and qualitative data analysis for purposes of methodological triangulation in order to enhance the validity and reliability of the study findings (amin, 2005). data collected from the field were examined for its accuracy and completeness of information given. it was cleaned, sorted out and entered into excel computer software and exported to spss version 26, explored and analyzed (field, a. (2009). the analysis relied on both descriptive and inferential statistics. descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviation were used to generate reports for discussion. hierarchical regression and general regression analysis were used to determine the relationships between the variables. qualitative data analysis was done through thematic (content) analysis as was recorded during face to face interview and through observation. the researcher used a quick impressionist summary in analyzing qualitative data; he summarized key findings by noting down the frequent responses of the respondents during the interview on various themes concerning the relationship between housing, meals, medical care, basic allowances, school environment and performance of government aided primary school in isingiro district were noted in form of notes. measurement of study variables the independent variables –teachers’ welfare were measured in form of provision of houses to teachers, meals at school, medical care, basic allowances and the school facilities (environment) in which the teachers perform their duties as educators, while human capital and the dependent variable were measured using a five point likert scale with assigned values in the following format; 5 strongly agree; 4 agree; 3 -not sure/neutral; 2disagree and 1 strongly disagree. according to bill (2011), the likert scale was able to measure perception, attitudes, values and behaviors of individuals towards a given phenomenon. the data was then aggregated; mean values and standard deviations were computed for interpretation. results demographic characteristics table 1: demographic results demographic variables number (%) gender male 282( 59.4) female 193(40.6) file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 38 age bracket (years) 2029 76(16.0) 3039 203(42.7) 4049 111(23.4) 50 and above 85(17.9) experience (years) < 1 27(5.7) 1 – 4 110(23.2) 5 – 9 135 (28.4) 10 -14 120(25.3) 15 and above 83(17.5) marital status married 425(89.5) single 29(6.1) divorced 08(1.7) widowed 12(2.5) others 01(0.2) level of education primary 22(4.6) secondary 42(8.8) grade iii/ equivalent 307(64.6) diploma in education 10(2.1) bachelors 85(17.9) post-graduate 9(1.9) work status teachers 236(49.7) head teacher 118(24.8) smc members 118(24.8) deo 1(0.2) dis 1(0.2) des 1(0.2) source: field data (2022) the findings in table 1 revealed that majority of the respondents were males 282(59.4%). the female respondents stood at 193(40.6%) implying that both gender were fairly represented. the work status of the respondents was also ascertained and results indicated in table 1.the head teachers represented 118(24.8%), teacher constituted 236(49.7 %) while members of the school management committees were 118(24.8%). the findings revealed that head teachers, teachers and school management committee members were well represented in the study. the age groups of the respondents were analyzed and findings presented in table1.the majority of the respondents 203(42.7%) were aged 30 -39 years, followed by 111(23.4%) and 85 (17.9 %) who were between file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 39 40-49 years and 50 years and above respectively. 27(5.7%) of the respondents had their ages in 20 -29 years bracket. this implied that, majority of the respondents (66.1%) were aged 40 years and below. these were believed to be more productive labour force that would work hard to bring good performance in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the marital status of the respondents was analyzed and findings presented in table 1. in this study, majority of the respondents were married 425(89.5%) followed by those who were single 29 (6.1%). the number of those who were divorced stood at 08(1.7%) while the widowed were 12(2.5%) and unspecified marriage status was at 1 (0.2 %). the number of years that the respondents had spent in their current schools was also analyzed. the findings are presented in table 1 .the majority of the respondents 135(28.4%) had been in their current schools for 5-9 years, followed by 120(25.3%) and110 (23.2 %) who had been in their current schools for between 10 14 years and 14 years respectively. 83(17.5%) of the respondents had been in their current schools for 15 and more years while only 27(5.7%) had been there for less than a year. this implied that 94.3% of the respondents had been in their current schools for more than a year; a period the researcher believes was long enough for the respondents to tell whether the various teachers’ welfare and human capital constructs under study were being offered in the schools and how such schools were performing. the education status of the respondents was analyzed and findings presented in table 1.the majority of the respondents 307(64.6%) had grade iii/ equivalent certificates, followed by 85(17.9%) and 42(8.8 %) who had bachelor’s degrees and secondary education respectively. 22(4.6%) of the respondents had primary education, 10(2.1%) had diploma in primary education while only 9(1.9%) had post graduate in education. in addition, out of 307 teachers who participated in the study, 195 (63.5%) had attained grade iii certificate as the highest level of qualification. this implied that 78.1% of the respondents had grade iii certificates and below; this means that level of education for teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district; uganda was still low since majority of teachers had not got higher qualifications beyond diploma. table 2: hierarchical regression model (model summary) model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate change statistics r square change f change df1 df2 sig. f change 1 .54 6 0.298 0.296 0.25931 0.298 149.389 1 352 0.000 2 .56 8 0.322 0.318 0.25515 0.024 12.569 1 351 0.000 a. predictors: (constant), welfare b. predictors: (constant), welfare , human capital using hierarchical multiple regression analysis, the predictive power of each variable was established. results from table 2 above, the comparative importance of each predictor was judged on the basis of how much it adds to the prediction of a criterion variable. to begin with, the results in model one (1) indicate that teachers’ welfare significantly predicts performance of government aided primary school. the results in table 2, indicate that teachers’ welfare explains 29.8% (r file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 40 square change=.298) of the variations in performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. similarly, results in model 2 indicate that the introduction of human capital in the regression, significantly affected the results in model indicating that, human capital explains 2.4% (r square change =.024) of the changes in performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. this also implies that of the two variables (teachers’ welfare & human capital), welfare explains much of the variations, followed by human capital. finally the two variables explain an overall of 31.8% (adjusted r square=.318) of the variations in performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. this also implies that the remaining 68.2% is explained by other variables not considered in this study. table 3: regression analysis of study variables (interaction effect) of teachers’ welfare and human capital model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta (constant) 1.933 0.065 29.923 0.000 interaction (human capital) 0.116 0.010 0.537 11.940 0.000 r .537 r square 0.288 adjusted r square 0.286 f-value 142.557 sig. .000 n 118 dependent variable: performance of government aided primary schools source: field data (2022) the results in table 3 above indicate that, there is very significant effect between interacting teachers’ welfare and human capital on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda (t-value = 11.940, sig. = .000) thus rejecting the null hypothesis (ho1). the results signify that since rsquare = 0.288, this means that interacting both variables of teachers’ welfare and human capital in the model, will contribute 28.8% of good performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. discussion this section focuses on the discussion of the research findings in relation to the hypothesis that was stated. in this study, the researcher was to find out the effect of interaction of teachers’ welfare and human capital on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. this was guided by the null hypotheses; as stated below ho1: a combined factor (interaction) of teachers’ welfare and human capital has no significant effect on the performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. table 2 shows that the results in regression model 2 reveals that, introducing the variable human capital significantly affect the results in the model, indicating that human capital explains 2.4% file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 41 (r square change =.024) of the changes in performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. this also implies that of the two variables (teachers’ welfare & human capital), welfare explains much of the variations, followed by human capital. in this case the two variables explain an overall of 31.8% (adjusted r square=.318) of the variations in performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district. the results in table 3 indicate that, there is very significant effect between interacting teachers’ welfare and human capital on performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda (t-value = 11.940, sig. = .000) thus rejecting the null hypothesis (ho1). the results signify that since rsquare = 0.288, this means that interaction effect of the variables of teachers’ welfare and human capital in the model, will contribute 28.8% of good performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the results in table 2 indicate that there is a positive significant relationship of interaction between teachers’ welfare, human capital and performance of gaps at 99% level of confidence (r=.568, p<.01), thus rejecting the null hypothesis (ho1). the results signify that the interaction of teachers’ welfare and human capital is highly associated with good performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. in this study, the results show that teachers’ welfare constructs had positive significant relationship with government aided school performance. these results were discussed as follows: housing teachers was found to have a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district, uganda (r=.441, p< .01) findings revealed that housing the teachers had a positive significant relationship on government aided primary schools’ performance in in isingiro district, uganda. the finding are consistent with previous studies done by akinmoladun and oluwoye, (2007), who argued that universally, housing is the second most important human need after food and it is more than shelter as it provides investment opportunities, offers shelter and improves on an employees’ social and cultural status. the quantitative results were integrated with qualitative findings as follows; the district official do3 observed that, “you cannot expect a teacher who has been walking a very long distance to be very effective in his or her work. definitely lack of enough teachers’ houses in this district has contributed to poor teacher performance in terms of late coming, absenteeism, discipline management and ultimately poor results at national level.” the revelation is in tune with findings by krishna & aquina, (2004) and tweheyo, (2008) who posit that housing teacher was meant to make their work easier and enjoyable so that they may concentrate on their duties as educators. the teacher does not need to walk or travel a long distance to school and this may minimize absenteeism, late coming and it also enhances a teachers’ status. unfortunately, schools in isingiro districts did not have enough teachers’ houses and do not rent houses for their teachers. this may account for late coming of teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the district official do1 said, “this district is constrained with teachers’ housing. we are a rural district that is also poor and mainly depending on funds from the government; parents cannot afford to rent houses for teachers who come from far. the schools are also located in hard to reach areas especially in the eastern part of the district. therefore housing teachers has an effect on the performance of their duties and this may affect schools’ performance in the district.” file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 42 findings in this study corroborate with un-habitant report (2015) whose studies have revealed that housing was still beyond the reach of most members of the teaching profession and many families did not afford basic and decent formal housing. the findings are also in tandem with findings by lyimo (2014) in a study on teachers’ payments in secondary schools in moshi in tanzania which established that there was lack of adequate teacher housing which had forced many of them to stay away from school in rented houses and they were dissipating their energies on second jobs and moonlighting. findings in the study corroborate with kadzamira (2006) who studied teacher motivation and incentives in malawi where he discovered inadequate housing for both primary and secondary school teachers within commuting distance from most schools. the findings are in line with mulkeen (2005) who posit that there is a strong relationship between housing in an area and presence of teachers and their retention. this is in tune with the district official do2 who said, “housing has a bearing on schools’ performance. when teachers stay in school or near the school, they will come early, leave late, and will be available to guide and counsel the pupils on discipline and academic work. the time they spend walking would be saved to make their lesson planning and do the scheming, mark pupils exercise books or even rest or be involved in co-curricular activities. it is a pity that this does not happen and the government is not planning for this cause.” the findings further indicated that where there are a few houses, and some teachers are interested in their work and this is one of the reasons most of them resist transfers to schools which are far away from their home villages. they prefer to work near their home villages so that they stay in their own houses and attend to their gardens and animals from which they earn extra income. the findings were found to be in tune with both local and international empirical studies related to the effect of housing on teachers’ in government aided primary schools in isingiro district. this housing status affects teachers’ activities and in the long run affects the performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. provision of meals to teachers at school was found to have a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district , uganda (r=.285, p< .01) findings from providing teachers with meals at school on the performance of government aided primary school in isingiro district revealed that provision of meals had a positive significant relationship on the performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district. the findings are also buttressed by gulled (2011) who has argued that there is a strong relationship between school feeding program and pupil access and retention in primary schools in wajir district in kenya. majority of head teachers interviewed agreed that schools in isingiro district did not have an official feeding policy for teachers. the district officials do1 and do2 were also in agreement with this view. the official do1 remarked that, “there is no official policy in the district in regard to food support systems but this is something we may think about in the future. some of our schools have some land on which teachers’ food may be grown. currently, some of this land is used by teachers to grow their crops for their families and not to be consumed at school. the land in some schools is used to grow food for the children and the teachers even when the schools have provided the teachers with some portions to grow their own private crops. as regards food rations, our teachers do not receive any food rations. school budgets do not cater for this type of arrangement.” lack of provision of meals to teachers at school contributes to absenteeism and ultimately poor school file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 43 performance. the status affects the performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district. this is due to the fact that teachers and other school workers who absolutely contribute to the performance of the school are highly affected by lack of meals. provision of medical care to teachers at school was found to have a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district, uganda (r=.254, p<.01). findings from providing teachers with medical care revealed that, provision of medical care at school was found to have a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. results reveal that government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda do not employ school nurses and neither do they pay teachers’ medical bills. the district official do1 remarked that, “almost all schools don’t provide medical care for teachers. but we have some with first aid boxes for the children but it is not well stocked. it only has some sanitary towels and panadol. our teachers cater for their own treatment because we do not have a budget for teachers’ medical care.” the findings are further supported by businge and nakajubi (2014) who posit that teachers’ healthy is a critical factor in the provision of quality public primary education in developing countries. in addition, findings were supported by rwabushaija (newvision 2016 march 13, p.6) who argued that it was obligatory for an employer to ensure health, safety and welfare of the persons at the workplace. employers must take measures to keep the workplace pollution free, by employing technical measures, and ensure that workers get the necessary medical treatment when they sustain injuries at the workplace. however government aided primary school in isingiro district do not have budgets for first aid and medical care to cater for the teachers and the pupils. providing medical care to teachers and the pupils can improve teachers’ performance greatly as it would minimize absenteeism of both the girl child and the teachers. if government can improve medical care budgets, provide a nurse, first aid facilities and drugs for government aided primary schools, then teachers and pupils in isingiro district would perform better. the findings are further supported by khan and aleem (2015) who argued that pakistan was facing many problems in providing health facilities which had affected job satisfaction levels and led to employee turnover. given the status of teachers’ medical care in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda and their performance, it is possible to deduce that teachers are de-motivated and their job satisfaction levels are low. the findings are affirmed by mulkeen, a. (2005) who posits that poor health is a common reason given by teachers for early transfer; as ill teachers request to be posted to urban centers to allow them access to medical services and that lack of medical facilities had made rural postings less attractive to teachers. this indicates that the status of teachers’ medical care in isingiro district was not satisfactory and this may not favor teachers’ working morale in turn affect primary schools performance. this means that teachers’ medical care has an effect on teachers’ performance and this in turn affects performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district, uganda. basic allowances to teachers were found to have a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district, uganda (r=.421, p<.01) results showed that providing basic allowances to teachers had a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools teachers in isingiro district, uganda. the findings are consistent with qualitative findings from the district officials do1, do2 and do3, file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 44 who reported that allowances could make teachers organize remedial lessons, set and mark tests, attend staff meetings more regularly and organize more guidance and counseling meetings with the pupils. according to the do1, allowances have a positive effect on teachers’ productivity. the district official do2 also had the same view as the official do1 as regards the effect of allowances on teachers’ performance in government aided primary schools. the qualitative findings are supported by ikenyiri and ihua-maduenyi (2011) who posits that transport allowance was a strong predictor for teacher effectiveness in class in nigeria. the ministry of education & sports in its report (2013) revealed that appointed teachers are entitled to several allowances such as: hardship allowances, travel allowances and others. hardship allowances of 30% of the basic monthly salary given to teachers in hard to reach areas. the hard to reach areas are those places characterized by remoteness, insecurity and poor infrastructure to attract and retain teachers in those areas. travel allowances which include safari day allowance (per diem) and transport. extra duty allowances in form of acting allowances, duty allowance, and honoraria, sitting allowances normally paid during staff meetings and over time allowances. the present research has established that teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district do not receive such allowances. as district official do1 stated, there are no allowances for marking tests and remedial lessons. our parents are opposed to the issue of allowances arguing that the government has told them that primary education is free (district official do1 isingiro january, 2022). findings further show that teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district in uganda do not receive allowances for discipline, counseling and guidance, staff meetings, remedial lessons and marking tests. the findings are similar to findings by lyimo (2014) who established that teachers in secondary schools in moshi district in tanzania were not receiving their allowances and this had negatively affected their living conditions and motivation. this means that basic allowances has an effect on teachers and schools’ performance in isingiro district and this in turn affect performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district, uganda. the school environment was found to have a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district, uganda (r=.448, p<.01) it was further revealed that the school environment had positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the findings are consistent with findings by ntho and lesotho council of ngos (2013) that revealed that many schools in lesotho were not attractive and had inadequate furniture, water and sanitation facilities and were overcrowded, leading to irregular attendance by learners. this implies that a more safe secure and protective school environment is key in both teachers’ and pupils’ performance in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the findings in this study indicated that most schools in isingiro district did not have adequate toilets for both pupils and teachers and staff rooms. some schools were also dilapidated with cracked walls, floors and bad blackboards. this accounts for the current poor performance in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the findings in the study are supported by adeyemi (2008) who found a significant relationship between organizational climate and teacher job performance and he argues that a favorable school climate (environment) enhances better job performance among teachers. he posits that regular file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 45 teacher supervision and provision of necessary facilities and resources in school leads to better performance for both learners and the teachers. when asked to comment about quality of facilities in schools, the district official do1 said, “overall, facilities in our schools are still not enough and you cannot start by addressing the issue of quality before addressing the issue of availability. generally, the quality is not the best for both teachers and pupils. most schools do not have enough latrines, sports grounds, and staffrooms with chairs, recreation facilities and classroom with enough sits. some schools do not have cemented classrooms, but these are few. the classes also need repairs. all these issues affect both teachers and pupils’ performance and in turn affect schools performance.” the views of the official do1 were not different from those of the do2 and do3. in this study it can be concluded that the school environment have a positive significant relationship with performance of government aided primary schools’ in isingiro district, uganda. human capital has positive significant effect on the performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda(r=.385, p<.01), employees who invest in education and training will raise their skill level and be more productive than those less skilled, and so can justify higher earnings as a result of their investment in human capital. this has been central in explaining individual earnings differences (nerdrum & erikson, 2001).in this study sub constructs such as qualification of teachers, attitude of teachers towards teaching, training of teachers, promotions of teachers after training, satisfaction of teachers at work, leadership styles of head teachers, effectiveness of school management committee members and involvement of teachers in decision making at schools were key issues the study wanted to address in relation to performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. the official do1 said that all the teachers in our schools are trained as professional teachers though majority are grade iii certificate holders. many of those who have got diplomas and higher qualifications have not been considered for promotions and salary increments and this discourages many for upgrading and other trainings as professionals (district official do1 isingiro january, 2022) the views of the officials’ do1 and do2 were similar to those of do3. they agreed that many teachers who upgraded have not benefited from the promotions and salary increments. majority of the teachers have grade iii certificates and don’t mind about teacher training workshops that are organized for staff development office at the district, more especially when no allowances are paid. this poor attitude and lack of training makes their work quite difficult when it comes to teaching and professionalism on side of teachers and this has a direct effect on their work as instructors of knowledge and hence poor performance in schools. asked if school management committee (smc) members were doing their work properly, the official do1 remarked that the majority of these committees are doing their work fairly, though many have limited education where some are primary school leavers and few of them with secondary or certificate level. this is a big problem with the management standards of our schools (district official do1 isingiro january, 2022). the official do3 further remarked that in most of our schools, smc members are not helping the head teachers to organise our schools using proper managerial styles of leadership. this is due to the fact that many smc members have no experience in management and with low levels of education (district official do3 isingiro january, 2022 file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 46 implication of the study this significant positive relationship among these variables can lead to the different implications which should be considered; teachers’ welfare and human capital issues at school will generate job satisfaction which also leads to the effective and efficient performance of the government aided primary schools. therefore, it is recommended that for the education system to be improved we definitely require to build any possible mechanism or technique to train, educate and motivate the teachers. the teaching profession which is not a highly rewarding job is not seen as satisfactory as other occupations and hence leads to poor performance in most of the schools in isingiro district. therefore, a teacher’s accommodation, meals, allowances, medical care and school facilities reform policies is recommended for the teaching staff in government aided primary schools especially in isingiro district, uganda. in this study, provision of refresher courses, workshops and professional skills should be availed to teachers. this will increase their productivity at places of work. so, well-looked after teacher will be satisfied with their jobs and that will increase their performance of the schools. teachers’ well-being is perceived to be part of the reward system of a school. so a well-motivated teacher will be satisfied with the jobs. the teaching profession which is not a highly rewarding job is not seen as satisfactory as other occupations and hence leads to poor performance in most of the schools in isingiro district. therefore, all these factors above should be catered for by making reform policies to address the issues in the government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. finally, the conducive working environment for teachers should be catered for in order to motivate the teaching staff which will create better school performance. improved school environment; recruit more teachers, construct more classrooms and introduce recreation facilities for pupils to play from. schools need the construction of the necessary facilitation and the management’s cooperation to help build job satisfaction in the staff of the organization which will positively affect its performance. conclusion this study focused on the fact that, lack of motivation, knowledge and training would lead to dissatisfied and uncommitted teachers with less skills and knowledge, who may have higher rates of turnover, absenteeism, and withdrawal behaviors in schools. the most important thing that school leaders can do is, to raise employee satisfaction and focus on the intrinsic parts of the job, such as making the work challenging and interesting. in the view of the researcher, although paying employees poorly will likely not attract high-quality teachers to the schools or keep high performers, managers should realize that high pay alone is unlikely to create a satisfying work environment. therefore managers should regulate paying the workers’ according to the standard of living conditions and may be create more training, knowledge acquisition and skills to improve the teachers productivity in the schools. in conclusion this study is expected to contribute to the vast knowledge that social research scientists study about in particular the education sector which really requires important revisions and reforms in terms of teacher motivation, human capital and schools’ performance because in this study it was found that there is significant relationship between teachers’ welfare, human capital and performance of government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda and this file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 47 can further be applied to make some improvements in the quality of education sector in other parts of uganda. recommendations the recommendations were presented as follows; [1] to better government aided primary schools’ performance, it is recommended that education policy makers, implementers and managers pay much attention to the provision of teachers’ housing in isingiro district, uganda [2] it is recommended that further studies be done on the effect of housing on schools’ performance in both governments aided primary and private primary schools since the current research was restricted to government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. [3] to better government aided primary schools’ performance, it is recommended that education policy makers, implementers and managers pay much attention to the provision of teachers’ with meals at school in isingiro district, uganda in order to address issues of teachers leaving school premises in search of meals. [4] the ministry of education, sports, science and technology should have a feeding policy for teachers in government aided primary schools since they are required to be at school by 7:30 am up to 5:00pm during the school term from monday to friday yet there is no clear mechanism to address their feeding needs while at school. there should be food support systems for teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. [5] a similar study is recommended on the effect of provision of meals at school on schools’ performance in both government aided and private primary schools since the current research was restricted to government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. [6] is recommended that the government through the ministry of education, sports, science and technology employs a nurse for every government aided primary school in isingiro district, uganda to attend to medical care concerns of the pupils’ and teachers while at school. [7] it is recommended that further studies be done on the effect of medical care provision on schools’ performance in both government aided and private primary schools since the current research was restricted to government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. [8] it is further recommended that more research should be conducted on the relationship and influence of financial or other forms of rewards on schools’ performance using many private and government aided primary schools which will be a handy tool that could be used to provide solutions to individual conflict that has resulted from poor reward systems in schools. (muogbo, 2013) [9] it is recommended that head teachers, school management committee (smc) members should pay teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda allowances for disciplinary committee work, for guidance and counseling, staff meetings, marking tests and remedial lessons. [10] to increase schools’ performance, it is recommended that education policy makers, implementers and managers pay much attention to the school environment in which teachers work in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.6, issue 1 pp 32 51, 2022 www.ajpojournals.org 48 [11] it is recommended that district education officer, inspector and schools based managers’ plan for and provide for government aided primary schools teachers with staffrooms, sports grounds and enough sitting facilities to enhance their performance as educators [12] a similar study is recommended on the effect of the school environment on schools’ performance in both governments aided and private primary schools in other parts of the country since the current research was restricted to government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. [13] to increase schools’ performance, it is recommended that education policy makers, implementers and managers pay much attention to human capital development in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda. this will harmonize all the management issues that may affect government aided primary schools’ performance; this should be in line with enhancing knowledge and skills for productivity. usaid will also invest in selected areas of education beyond basic professional education, including focused efforts in workforce development and in higher education. (usaid, 2005, p. 7) [14] it is recommended that teachers are encouraged to upgrade beyond grade iii certificates and plan a head for better opportunities in education sector. this is because majority of the teachers in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda had grade iii certificate. [15] it is recommended that minimum qualification should be set for smc members. this will minimise the understanding gap between the teachers, head teachers and management committee members in these schools. since majority of smc members in government aided primary schools in isingiro district, uganda were primary school leavers or no properly known level of education. [16] due to changes in technology and management systems or practices, there is need for all educational managers to study the new management practices that suit both situations and their employees. this is true as every moment of time, employees and employers adjust to new life styles with different expectations. this will harmonize the leadership style in the schools and hence good performance. references adeyemi, t.o. (2008). teachers’ teaching experience and students’ learning outcomes in secondary schools in ondo state, nigeria. asian journal of information technology, 7(5), 201 – 209. aguti, j.n. 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(1966). “some observations regarding herzberg’s two-factor theory’’. paper presented at the american psychological association convention, new york, september, 1966. yahiaoui, n, anser,a. & lahouel,s.(2015). human resource management and public organizations. global journal of human resource management, 3(2), 1-12. file:///c:/users/user/desktop/new%20ajpo%20journals/american%20journal%20of%20finance/www.ajpojournals.org http://www.citehr.com/176307-employee-welfare.html#ixzz1ztz8hhec http://www.citehr.com/176307-employee-welfare.html#ixzz1ztz8hhec the effect of human resource practices on hotel performance during crisis: a case study of star-rated hotels in mombasa, kenya eunice mukolwe, dr. dorothy rotich, dr. isabela mapelu & prof. hellen ipara european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 2 the effect of human resource practices on hotel performance during crisis: a case study of star-rated hotels in mombasa, kenya eunice mukolwe1* phd candidate, department of hotel and hospitality management, moi university *corresponding author’s email: eunydoc@gmail.com dr. dorothy rotich2, dr. isabela mapelu3 and prof. hellen ipara4 lecturers, department of hotel and hospitality management, moi university, eldoret, kenya article history submitted 12.09.2023 revised version received 17.09.2023 accepted 18.09.2023 abstract purpose: star-rated hotels play a pivotal role in the global economy, contributing significantly to international tourism, job creation, and fostering cross-cultural exchanges. these establishments are luxurious havens and symbols of excellence and diplomacy, promoting economic growth and development, attracting foreign investment, and serving as ambassadors of local culture. in kenya, star-rated hotels are essential contributors to the national economy, promoting sustainability and wildlife conservation. while these hotels have traditionally thrived due to kenya's vibrant tourism sector, the industry faces an ever-present threat of crises. therefore, this study, anchored in the resource-based view (rbv) theory analyzed the effect of human resource practices on the performance of hotels in mombasa county during crises. methodology: this research employed a covariance-based structural equation modeling (cb-sem) approach, well-suited for assessing direct and indirect associations among observed and latent constructs. the study utilized an ex post facto research design to investigate the impact of specific human resource management (hrm) practices on the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county, kenya, particularly during crises. structured questionnaires were meticulously administered to 198 management staff members working within star-rated hotels in mombasa county. this population was chosen due to its critical role in hotel operations, allowing the research to gain comprehensive insights into the relationships under examination. the response rate, approximately 90%, was considered practical and representative of questionnaire-based research. data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential analysis techniques and presented in tabular format. findings: the study indicated that talent retention and training exhibited a statistically significant positive effect on hotel performance, with a substantial path coefficient of 0.619. crisis communication and leadership also contributed significantly to hotel performance, showcasing a positive and statistically significant path coefficient of 0.355. on the other hand, resource management and adaptability did not exhibit a statistically significant direct relationship with hotel performance, as indicated by a non-significant path coefficient (p = 0.607). the robust positive relationships discovered between talent retention and training, crisis communication and leadership, and hotel performance align harmoniously with previous research findings. these results underscore the critical roles these factors play within the hospitality industry. investments in talent management and effective crisis management strategies are vital for a hotel's success. the non-significant relationship between resource management and adaptability and hotel performance challenges conventional wisdom but emphasizes the importance of considering the specific contextual nuances. recommendations: in conclusion, the study demonstrates that talent retention and training, as well as crisis communication and leadership, significantly contribute to the performance of starrated hotels in mombasa county, kenya. these findings underline the need for hoteliers to prioritize investments in talent management, crisis management, and leadership skills. while the relationship between resource management, adaptability, and hotel performance appears more complex, further research is required to unearth any potential indirect effects or contextual nuances. keywords: crisis communication, star-rated hotels, talent retention, resource management, adaptability, performance https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0259-0732 about:blank https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1585 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 3 1.0 introduction the hospitality industry, particularly star-rated hotels, is essential to most nation's economies. globally, the hospitality industry, characterized by diverse services and accommodations, is integral to the economy. among its various segments, star-rated hotels stand out as pillars of excellence and luxury, catering to travelers seeking exceptional experiences (shahid & paul, 2022). these hotels are emblematic of the industry's significance as they welcome guests from every corner of the world. as a global industry, hospitality contributes significantly to international tourism, job creation, and crosscultural exchange (ismail et al., 2020). star-rated luxury and comfort hotels have become synonymous with international travel (kim et al., 2019). they are essential in attracting high-spending tourists who traverse continents to experience these establishments' opulence and world-class service (sadek, 2021). star-rated hotels drive tourism revenues and stimulate trade and diplomacy between nations (hitchcock, 2023). this interplay between the hospitality industry and global diplomacy underscores the industry's broader geopolitical significance. moreover, the hospitality industry's global footprint extends to the digital realm, with online booking platforms facilitating international reservations and fostering global connectivity (pencarelli, 2020). in an era of globalization, the hospitality sector represents a bridge that transcends borders and fosters cross-cultural understanding (nazarian et al., 2023). the global reach of star-rated hotels underscores their role as ambassadors of hospitality and showcases the industry's potential to shape the future of international travel and commerce (honey & hogenson, 2017). on a continental scale, the hospitality industry, including star-rated hotels, is a vital driver of economic growth and development (ofori & appiah-nimo, 2022). across continents, from the bustling cities of north america to the idyllic beachfront of asia, these hotels are iconic landmarks contributing to the continent's identity and allure (lade et al., 2020). they attract tourists and business travelers, fostering economic ties and promoting regional cooperation (hitchcock, 2023). in addition to generating substantial revenue, the hospitality industry provides countless employment opportunities and supports ancillary sectors, such as food and transportation (camilleri & camilleri, 2018). star-rated hotels on the continental level often serve as magnets for foreign investment, drawing in capital and expertise to elevate the local tourism infrastructure (christie et al., 2014). this foreign investment bolsters the hospitality sector and creates a ripple effect, benefiting related industries like agriculture and manufacturing through the supply chain (boora & dhankar, 2017). moreover, the economic significance of star-rated hotels extends to tax revenues and other corporate social responsibility that can be reinvested in public services and infrastructure development (otieno et al., 2023). in this way, the hospitality industry catalyzes broader regional development efforts. at the regional level, the significance of star-rated hotels within the hospitality sector becomes even more apparent (hinson et al., 2017). regions like the caribbean, mediterranean, and east africa boast world-class hotels fundamental to their tourism appeal (demiroglu et al., 2020). these establishments not only bolster the local economy through direct revenue but also stimulate the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (smes) involved in tourism-related activities (ondieki, 2013). moreover, they often serve as ambassadors of local culture, offering guests a glimpse into the region's traditions and heritage (ali, 2022). in kenya, the hospitality industry, epitomized by its star-rated hotels, is a cornerstone of the national economy (ministry of tourism, wildlife & heritage, 2022). kenyan star-rated hotels are renowned for their unique blend of modern comfort and traditional hospitality, attracting visitors from across the globe (wadawi et al., 2015). they contribute significantly to kenya's gdp, foreign exchange earnings, and job creation (ministry of tourism, wildlife & heritage, 2022). furthermore, these hotels often european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 4 engage in sustainable practices, promoting conservation efforts and eco-tourism, aligning with kenya's environmental preservation commitment (muriithi et al., 2023). the impact of star-rated hotels on kenya's economy is profound. they are not merely places of accommodation but also hubs for cultural exchange and wildlife conservation (waari et al., 2018). these hotels support sustainable tourism initiatives through partnerships with local communities, providing livelihood opportunities for indigenous populations (muriithi et al., 2023). additionally, their contribution to kenya's foreign exchange earnings enhances its economic resilience and stability (ministry of tourism, wildlife & heritage, 2022). the hospitality industry, particularly star-rated hotels, is an essential component of mombasa's economy, drawing visitors from across the globe to its picturesque coastal landscapes. while these hotels have traditionally thrived due to kenya's vibrant tourism sector, the industry faces an everpresent threat: crises. these crises can take numerous forms, from economic downturns to global health emergencies, each capable of significantly disrupting hotel operations and profitability. one recurring challenge star-rated hotels in mombasa face is economic crises. the global economic landscape can be volatile, impacting tourism and travel budgets. economic downturns, such as recessions or financial crises, often lead to reduced travel and lower consumer spending, affecting the hospitality sector (wttc, 2019). for instance, the 2008 global financial crisis had a notable impact on mombasa's hospitality industry, with decreased occupancy rates and revenue. these economic crises strain hotel profitability, forcing them to adapt and implement cost-cutting measures, which can, in turn, affect service quality and employment (matanzima & nhiwatiwa, 2022). the emergence of global health emergencies, such as pandemics, severely threatens mombasa's tourism and hospitality industry. the covid-19 pandemic swept the globe, leading to travel restrictions, lockdowns, and reduced tourism (unwto, 2020). star-rated hotels in mombasa experienced unprecedented challenges, including closures, staff layoffs, and a sharp decline in bookings. the pandemic revealed the vulnerability of the hospitality sector to health crises, prompting hotels to rethink their crisis management strategies, including hygiene protocols and safety measures (sigala, 2020). mombasa's coastal location makes it susceptible to natural disasters, particularly tropical storms and flooding. these events can disrupt hotel operations, damage infrastructure, and impact the tourist experience. for example, heavy rainfall and flooding in 2020 led to temporary closures and disruptions in the coastal region (aura et al., 2020). star-rated hotels had to contend with damage to their properties, logistical challenges, and the need for disaster preparedness plans to mitigate future risks. in addition to economic, health, natural, and political crises, star-rated hotels in mombasa have been vulnerable to terror threats and security concerns, exemplified by well-known terrorist attacks. the coastal region has, regrettably, been the backdrop for infamous acts of terrorism that have profoundly impacted tourism and hotel operations (combs, 2015). notably, the 2002 mombasa hotel bombing, targeting the paradise hotel, and the simultaneous missile attack on an israeli airliner sent shockwaves through the region and the global hospitality industry (fighel, 2014). these tragic events resulted in reevaluating security measures in star-rated hotels and necessitated extensive collaboration with national and international security agencies. in such challenging times, the ability of star-rated hotels in mombasa to not only endure but also maintain high levels of performance hinges significantly on their human resource management (hrm) practices. in a study, kim (2020) highlights that clear communication with employees during crises can enhance organizational resilience. kim argues that hr departments in star-rated hotels ensure that crisis communication is transparent, timely, and consistent, building employee trust. the study emphasizes that hr departments are pivotal in optimizing staffing levels and deploying european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 5 resources efficiently. in times of reduced demand or unexpected challenges, such as the covid-19 pandemic, hr professionals in star-rated hotels are responsible for making decisions regarding staffing adjustments and cost containment strategies (dwivedi et al., 2020). nizamidou and vouzas (2018) underscore the importance of hr departments in providing support services, including mental health resources, to mitigate the psychological impact of crises on employees. in this context, this research paper investigates the effect of hrm practices on the performance of starrated hotels in mombasa, kenya, during crises, specifically focusing on three potential hrm practices: crisis communication and leadership, talent retention and training, and resource management and adaptability. therefore, the objectives of this study include: 1. to establish the effect of crisis communication and leadership on the performance of starrated hotels in mombasa county. 2. to determine the effect of talent retention and training on the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. 3. to explore the effect of resource management and adaptability on the performance of starrated hotels in mombasa county. 2.0 literature review and hypotheses development theoretical framework the resource-based view (rbv) theory offers a suitable theoretical foundation for this research due to its emphasis on internal resources and capabilities as drivers of competitive advantage and organizational performance. in this study, human resources are the primary internal resource under investigation. the rbv theory posits that a firm must possess and leverage unique, valuable, and nonsubstitutable resources and capabilities to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. the rbv theory is highly relevant to this study's context, as it suggests that the effectiveness of human resource practices, including recruitment, training, employee engagement, and crisis management training, can significantly impact the performance of star-rated hotels during crises (ofori & appiah-nimo, 2022). specifically, it underscores the importance of resource heterogeneity, implying that not all hotels possess the same human resource capabilities. some hotels may excel in talent acquisition, while others may have a culture of employee empowerment and innovation. during a crisis, these diverse capabilities can lead to differential performance outcomes. furthermore, empirical research has widely applied and validated the rbv theory in various industries and contexts, demonstrating its robustness in explaining firm performance (dionysus & arifin, 2020; ruivo et al., 2015). empirical review crisis communication and leadership and hotel performance in their study on internal crisis communication during the covid-19 pandemic in nordic countries, haavisto and linge (2022) employed a qualitative multiple-case study approach. the research aimed to understand the dynamics of internal crisis communication. data were collected through interviews with leaders, middle managers, and employees. thematic and narrative analysis methods were used to identify key themes. the findings underscored the significance of transparent and participative crisis communication in nordic leadership during the pandemic. it was emphasized that transparency and participative communication were pivotal in effective internal crisis communication, employee sensemaking, and trust-building during a crisis. while it provides valuable insights into crisis communication, the study's qualitative approach may not yield quantitative data directly relevant to hotel performance. it does not explicitly address the relationship between crisis communication, leadership, and hotel performance. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 6 focusing on employees in the us food and beverage and lodging segments during the covid-19 pandemic, guzzo et al. (2021) explored how employees responded to managers' communication. their research utilized a factorial experimental design to examine the impact of different communication messages. data was collected via amazon mechanical turk, and participants rated their affective responses. the study revealed that managers' communication following cdc norms elicited gratitude among employees, while communication ignoring these norms increased fear and anger. significantly, these emotional responses influenced organizational trust, highlighting the pivotal role of communication during a crisis. although this study sheds light on the impact of communication on employee affective responses, it does not directly address hotel performance. zhang et al. (2023) delved into the impact of destinations' crisis communication on tourists' travel intentions, focusing on different crisis types (victimized and preventable crises) and communication sources. the study adopted a research design that explored the matching effect of crisis communication sources and crisis types. surveys were used for data collection, and factor analysis was applied to identify key leadership competencies. the findings unveiled a matching effect of destinations' crisis communication sources and types, emphasizing the importance of tailoring crisis communication strategies to specific crises. while it provides insights into crisis communication's influence on tourism, it does not explicitly address hotel performance in mombasa county. wisittigars & siengthai (2019) sought to identify crisis leadership competencies in thailand's facility management (fm) sector. they employed the delphi technique for opinion evaluation, followed by a questionnaire survey. data were collected through questionnaires and analyzed using factor analysis to identify critical leadership competencies. the study identified 29 significant crisis leadership competencies categorized into five groups, with emergency preparedness identified as the most crucial competency for effective fm crisis management. the study's focus on a different industry and location means that it does not provide insights into the specific challenges and dynamics of the hotel industry. kulkarni's (2019) quasi-experimental study compared three communication modes during a crisis to examine their impact on relational maintenance. the study involved participants exposed to crisis communication via facebook, a corporate blog, or a corporate media release. the research explored the influence of perceived user control and familiarity with the medium on stakeholder perceptions during a crisis. while the study did not find significant differences based on different communication mediums, it did reveal that participants relying on facebook reported a better understanding of the crisis. this underscored the importance of perceived user control and medium familiarity in shaping stakeholder perceptions during a crisis. this quasi-experimental study compares communication modes during a crisis but does not focus on the hotel industry or mombasa county. because most of the reviewed studies focus on different industries, contexts, and research questions that may not directly relate to crisis communication and leadership in star-rated hotels in mombasa county, we postulate that; h01: crisis communication and leadership in star-rated hotels in mombasa county has no significant effect on their performance talent retention and training and hotel performance yeswa and ombui (2019) investigated the influence of talent management strategies on employee retention within the kenyan hotel industry. they employed a descriptive research design and targeted hotels rated from one to five stars in kenya, totaling 183 establishments. the study specifically engaged human resource managers from each hotel due to their intimate knowledge of hr policies and strategies. a stratified sampling technique was used to sample the required hr managers. data were collected using questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. findings revealed that reward systems, career development, employee engagement, and training european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 7 significantly influence employee retention within the kenyan hotel industry. however, the study focused on employee retention but lacked a direct link to the performance of hotels. besides, the descriptive research design was appropriate for understanding the current situation but could not establish a causal relationship between talent management practices and hotel performance. .jepchumba (2021) examined the impact of talent management practices on hotels' organizational performance in kenya's south rift region. utilizing a cross-sectional survey research design, the study focused on twoto five-star hotels within the region, encompassing a target population of 40 hotels. census sampling was employed, including all eligible hotels in the study. data were collected through structured closed-ended questionnaires designed to address the research objectives. descriptive statistics, such as frequencies, means, percentages, and standard deviations, were used to characterize organizational attributes. inferential statistics, including pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis, were employed to explore the relationships between talent management practices and organizational performance. the research findings indicated strong positive relationships between talent attraction, talent retention, talent development, and career management with organizational performance in the hotel industry. however, the study's findings were specific to the south rift region and may not have directly applied to mombasa county, which could have different dynamics. chan et al. (2021) undertook an exploratory study to identify key retention factors and evaluate existing human resource practices within the hotel industry, focusing on hr professionals' perspectives. employing an inductive qualitative approach, this research aligned with an interpretative paradigm, given its subjective, individualistic, and contextual nature. the study conducted in-depth focus group interviews with 40 respondents spanning managerial, supervisory, and operational roles across the malaysian hotel industry. respondents were selected based on demographic profiles, employment status, and work experience to ensure diversity. data collection involved tape-recorded interviews, subsequently transcribed and analyzed through a three-step method. key findings highlighted common organizational issues, such as benefits packages, compensation, and career development, significantly influencing hotel employee retention. while the study addressed employee retention, it did not explicitly explore its impact on hotel performance. moreover, the study was based in malaysia, which may have different labor market conditions and cultural factors than mombasa county, kenya. findings may not be directly transferable. immaneni and sailaja (2020) explored the impact of human resource management practices on employee retention within the hotel industry in hyderabad, india. this study concentrated on 5-star and 4-star hotels, adopting a cross-sectional survey research design. structured closed-ended questionnaires were employed for data collection, examining the relationships between four hr practices—recruitment and selection, training and development, salary and monetary benefits, and work environment—and employee retention. descriptive analysis characterized organizational attributes, including frequencies, means, percentages, and standard deviation. meanwhile, inferential analysis comprising pearson correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling assessed hr practices' effects on retention. the research findings revealed that all four hr practices significantly related to employee retention, with recruitment and selection exhibiting the most substantial positive impact. while the study highlighted the significance of hr practices in retaining employees, it did not directly assess their effect on hotel performance. in summary, none of the reviewed studies directly addressed talent retention and training in the context of the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. they mainly focused on employee retention and hr practices without establishing a direct link to hotel performance in the specific context of mombasa county. therefore, we postulate that; european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 8 h02: talent retention and training do not significantly affect the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. resource management and adaptability and hotel performance in a study conducted in spain, particularly in the canary islands, melian-alzola et al. (2020) explored the organizational resilience of hotels, focusing on four-star, five-star, and great luxury hotels in the region. they collected data through an online questionnaire survey targeting hotel managers, with a response rate of 26.9%. the findings indicated that strategy and change dimensions significantly affect hotel resilience, which, in turn, positively influences hotel performance. this study is conducted in spain, focusing on the canary islands, which may have different contextual factors than mombasa county. while this study emphasized the importance of organizational resilience, its applicability to mombasa county's hotels is uncertain, as regional differences can influence resource management and adaptability effectiveness. ghaderi et al. (2022) investigated crisis preparation among hospitality managers in malaysia. it utilized qualitative research methods, conducting semi-structured interviews with 24 hospitality managers. the findings revealed that crisis preparation in malaysian hospitality firms was somewhat neglected, with hotel crisis preparation influenced by senior managers' intentions and organizational culture. additionally, organizational resilience plays a significant role in hotel crisis planning and preparedness. interestingly, the study highlighted that hotels were less inclined to be "learning organizations" regarding long-term adaptation, and managers were hesitant to change established structures. while this study offers insights into crisis preparedness, the transferability of these findings to mombasa county's hotels may be limited due to regional disparities. hall et al. (2023) sought to identify research approaches and issues related to resilience in the hospitality and tourism sector. they conducted a critical thematic review of the literature, emphasizing resilience's contested nature and varying interpretations. the dominant approach in the hospitality and tourism field was informed by engineering resilience at the organizational level. the study suggested a need for a comprehensive understanding of resilience, considering its multi-scaled nature and the importance of slow change. while the study highlights the importance of resilience, it does not provide direct evidence regarding the effect of resource management and adaptability on hotel performance in mombasa county. jóhannsdóttir et al. (2022) explored the impact of human resource management (hrm) on institutional resilience during the covid-19 pandemic in iceland's westfjords region. they employed a semistructured interview framework, interviewing 44 interviewees from various sectors. the study identified three key components of resilience: anticipate and plan, manage and survive, and learn and grow. while some institutions neglected anticipatory crisis preparation, many managed to adapt and thrive during the pandemic, emphasizing the role of hrm in both positive and negative aspects. the study highlights the role of hrm in resilience. however, its direct applicability to mombasa county's hotels depends on the unique circumstances of the county and its hotels. chan et al. (2020) examined disaster management from the perspectives of tourism stakeholders, focusing on the 2018 hokkaido eastern iburi earthquake in japan. the researchers conducted face-toface interviews with key informants and tourism stakeholders approximately one year after the earthquake. the findings highlighted the multifaceted roles of tourism stakeholders in disaster preparation, evacuation, and long-term recovery. collaboration and adaptation emerged as key determinants of resilience, emphasizing shared local values, experiences, and disaster risk communication within the context of tourism destinations. while collaboration is crucial, the factors affecting resource management and adaptability in mombasa county's star-rated hotels may differ from those in the earthquake-affected japanese context. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 9 the provided studies offer valuable insights into resilience and crisis management in various contexts but do not directly support mombasa county's star-rated hotels. to draw meaningful conclusions about resource management and adaptability in mombasa county, we postulate that: h03: resource management and adaptability do not significantly affect the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. 3.0 methodology the research adopted a covariance-based structural equation modeling (cb-sem) approach to explore the intricate relationships among critical variables within the context of star-rated hotels in mombasa county, kenya. cb-sem is selected for its suitability for assessing direct and indirect associations between observed (manifest) variables and latent constructs, aligning with the study's objective of examining the impact of crisis communication and leadership, talent retention and training, and resource management and adaptability on hotel performance. this approach allows for a comprehensive analysis of the underlying structural relationships within the data. the research design employed was ex post facto, allowing for a retrospective analysis of existing data collected from the target population. this design is ideal for exploring relationships between variables without direct manipulation, which is appropriate for this research context. the study focused on ten manifest variables, categorized into four constructs: crisis communication and leadership (3), talent retention and training (2), resource management and adaptability (2), and hotel performance (3). these manifest variables were carefully selected to capture critical aspects of each construct. data were collected through structured questionnaires administered to 219 management staff from star-rated hotels in mombasa county. this specific context was chosen because it represents a significant sector in the regional hospitality industry, allowing the research to provide valuable insights into the relationships between the identified variables. the study obtained valid responses from 198 participants, corresponding to a response rate of approximately 90%, which was practical and representative for questionnaire-based research. descriptive statistics were used to analyze respondents’ demographic profile and presented in frequency distribution tables. fit indices validated the measurement and structural models, while hypotheses were tested using path coefficients generated through sem and presented in tabular form. hypotheses were tested at the 5% significance level (α=0.05). 4.0 findings demographic profile the study's participants were evenly distributed by gender, with 40.9% male and 59.1% female respondents, ensuring robustness and gender-neutral findings (table 1). most respondents (45.5%) were aged 26-40, representing mid-career staff, while 22.2% were above 40 and 32.3% aged 18-25. none of the participants lacked formal education, with 50.5% holding secondary and 44.4% college qualifications. job titles varied, with 50.5% supervisors, 33.3% assistant managers, 9.1% managers, and 7.1% in other roles. concerning tenure, 53.5% worked for less than five years, 24.2% for 6 to 10 years, and 22.2% for over a decade. the food and beverages department had the most representation (40.4%), followed by housekeeping (25.8%) and front office (24.7%). this diverse composition ensures the research's applicability to different workforce segments, offering nuanced insights into human resource practices' impact on hotel performance during crises. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 10 table 1: demographic characteristics frequency percent gender male 81 40.9 female 117 59.1 total 198 100 age in years 18-25 years 64 32.3 26-40 years 90 45.5 above 40 years 44 22.2 total 198 100 academic qualification none 0 0.0 primary 10 5.1 secondary 100 50.5 college 88 44.4 total 198 100 job title supervisor 100 50.5 ass. manager 66 33.3 manager 18 9.1 other 14 7.1 total 198 100 duration of employment below 5 years 106 53.5 6-10 years 48 24.2 above 10 years 44 22.2 total 198 100 department housekeeping 51 25.8 front office 49 24.7 food and beverages 80 40.4 other 18 9.1 total 198 100 model validation the model fit summaries (table 2) reveal critical insights into the structural model assessing the relationship between hrm crisis management practices and the performance of star-rated hotels. notably, the default model, representing the hypothesized link, demonstrates robust fit to the data, as evidenced by the comparative fit index (cfi) and the tucker-lewis index (tli), both exceeding 0.95, signifying robust model fit. furthermore, the root mean square error of approximation (rmsea) stands at an impressively low value of 0.000, indicating an excellent fit. these findings collectively suggest a substantial and meaningful association between hrm crisis practices and hotel performance. while the chi-square test reveals some statistical discrepancy, it is crucial to acknowledge its sensitivity to sample size. in contrast, the comparison with the independence model underscores the superiority of the structural model in explaining the observed data. in conclusion, these results emphasize the significance of hrm crisis management practices in influencing the performance of star-rated hotels, reinforcing the need for effective crisis management strategies in the hotel industry. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 11 table 2: model fit indices fit indices recommended value default value χ2/df <5.0 0.781 gfi >0.90 0.982 agfi >0.90 0.958 nfi >0.90 0.988 rfi >0.90 0.976 ifi >0.90 1.004 cfi >0.90 1.000 tli >0.90 1.007 rmsea <0.05 0.000 model findings the estimates from the regression weights analysis (table 2) offer valuable insights into the relationships between the latent constructs. notably, the path coefficient (estimate) between hotel performance and talent retention and training (par_7) is positive at 0.619, indicating a moderately strong and statistically significant positive association. this suggests that talent retention and training investments positively affect the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. similarly, the path coefficient between hotel performance and crisis communication and leadership (par_8) is also positive, with a value of 0.355. this indicates a significant positive relationship, albeit of a slightly lower magnitude than the previous one. it implies that effective crisis communication and leadership practices positively contribute to hotel performance, aligning with the notion that wellmanaged crises can enhance a hotel's reputation and, consequently, its performance. in contrast, the path coefficient between hotel performance and resource management and adaptability (par_9) is negative at -0.148. however, this coefficient is not statistically significant (p = 0.607), suggesting no significant direct relationship between resource management and adaptability and hotel performance in mombasa county. table 3: regression weights: (group number 1 default model) estimate se. cr. p label hotel performance <--talent retention and training .619 .302 2.052 .040 par_7 hotel performance <-- crisis communication and leadership .355 .115 3.076 .002 par_8 hotel performance <-- resource management and adaptation -.148 .288 -.514 .607 par_9 these estimates have important implications for hotel management in mombasa county. hoteliers should prioritize investments in talent retention and training, as well as crisis communication and leadership practices, as these factors can significantly enhance hotel performance. on the other hand, while resource management and adaptability are essential aspects of hotel operations, this study did not find evidence of a direct link between these factors and hotel performance. hotel managers should consider focusing on other aspects of their operations to improve performance, such as talent management and crisis preparedness. further research may be needed to explore the indirect or mediating effects of resource management and adaptability on hotel performance. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 12 discussions the positive relationship between talent retention and training and hotel performance echoes findings from previous research. yeswa and ombui (2019) investigated talent management strategies within the kenyan hotel industry and found that reward systems, career development, employee engagement, and training significantly influenced employee retention. while their focus was on employee retention, the current study extends this relationship to hotel performance, highlighting the transferability of talent management practices beyond employee retention. this underscores the contribution of the current study in bridging the gap between talent management and its direct impact on hotel performance in the specific context of mombasa county. the positive relationship between crisis communication and leadership and hotel performance aligns with the broader literature on crisis management in the hospitality industry. haavisto and linge (2022) emphasized the importance of transparent and participative crisis communication during the covid-19 pandemic in nordic countries, underscoring the role of such communication in trustbuilding and employee sense-making. similarly, guzzo et al. (2021) found that effective communication influenced organizational trust in the us food and beverage and lodging segments. however, the current study's contribution lies in its specific focus on mombasa county's hotels, recognizing the unique crisis scenarios and regional factors that may impact the relationship between crisis communication, leadership, and hotel performance. this localized perspective enhances the relevance of the findings for hotel managers and policymakers in mombasa county. the non-significant relationship between resource management and adaptability and hotel performance somewhat challenges conventional wisdom. while previous research has highlighted the importance of resource management and adaptability in organizational performance, this finding underscores the need to consider the specific context. melian-alzola et al. (2020) in spain found that strategy and change dimensions significantly affected hotel resilience and performance. however, the current study suggests that resource management and adaptability may not directly impact hotel performance in mombasa county's unique context. this nuanced perspective contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing hotel performance, emphasizing the importance of context-specific research. 5. 0 conclusion and recommendations conclusion crisis communication and leadership are positively associated with the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. therefore, effective crisis communication and strong leadership practices play a vital role in enhancing the performance of these hotels. notably, this relationship aligns with the widely accepted notion that well-handled crises can bolster a hotel's reputation, ultimately leading to improved performance. while the magnitude of this effect is moderately strong, it underscores the importance of prioritizing crisis management and leadership skills within the hotel industry in mombasa county. talent retention and training positively and strongly impact the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. these results emphasize the critical role that talent retention and training investments play in driving the success of hotels in mombasa county. fostering a skilled and committed workforce through robust retention and training strategies substantially impacts hotel performance. this finding highlights the significance of human capital investment in the industry, emphasizing that well-trained and motivated staff can significantly contribute to a hotel's success. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 13 the relationship between resource management and adaptability and the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county has a unique dynamic. while a negative path coefficient suggests a potential adverse effect, it is crucial to note that the relationship was not statistically significant. consequently, the analysis does not provide sufficient evidence to establish a direct link between resource management and adaptability and the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county. however, this absence of statistical significance does not necessarily rule out the influence of these factors. there may be indirect or nuanced effects that require further exploration. in summary, these findings highlight the complexities surrounding resource management and adaptability within the hotel industry in mombasa county and suggest the need for more comprehensive research to uncover any possible indirect relationships. recommendations given the positive association between crisis communication and leadership and the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county, it is recommended that hotel management prioritize crisis communication and leadership training programs. investing in enhancing the crisis communication skills of staff and cultivating strong leadership practices can significantly contribute to the overall success of hotels. hotel managers should consider organizing regular training sessions and workshops for their teams to ensure they are well-prepared to handle crises effectively. this not only enhances the hotel's reputation during challenging times but also positively impacts its long-term performance. the strong and positive impact of talent retention and training on the performance of star-rated hotels underscores the importance of human capital investment. hotel owners and managers should place a strong emphasis on talent retention strategies, such as competitive compensation, career development opportunities, and employee engagement programs. additionally, investing in training and development programs for staff at all levels is crucial to maintain a skilled and motivated workforce. implementing these practices will not only improve the overall quality of service but also positively affect the hotel's performance by attracting repeat guests and achieving higher customer satisfaction scores. while the study did not establish a statistically significant direct link between resource management and adaptability and the performance of star-rated hotels in mombasa county, it is advisable for hotel management to conduct comprehensive assessments of their resource management and adaptability practices. even though the relationship was not statistically significant, there might be nuanced or indirect effects that were not fully captured in this study. therefore, hotels should delve deeper into their resource allocation, management strategies, and adaptability to changing market conditions. this may involve conducting internal audits, seeking employee feedback, and exploring innovative ways to optimize resource utilization. by doing so, hotels can potentially uncover hidden areas for improvement and enhance their overall performance. limitations while the study provides valuable insights into the relationships between critical variables in the context of star-rated hotels in mombasa county, several limitations must be acknowledged. first, the research design employed is ex post facto, which relies on retrospective data analysis without directly manipulating variables. this design might limit the ability to establish causality between the studied factors and hotel performance. additionally, the study's reliance on structured questionnaires may introduce response bias, as participants might provide socially desirable responses. moreover, the research focused on a specific geographic area (mombasa county) and may not fully capture the diversity of the entire hotel industry in kenya, potentially limiting the generalizability of findings to a broader context. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 1 18, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 14 future research future studies should consider longitudinal research approaches to overcome the limitation of the ex post facto research design. by collecting data over an extended period, researchers can examine changes in variables over time and better assess causal relationships between crisis management practices, talent retention, resource management, adaptability, and hotel performance. longitudinal studies can help establish whether changes in one variable lead to changes in another, providing stronger evidence of causality. moreover, future research should incorporate mixed-methods approaches to address the potential response bias associated with structured questionnaires. combining quantitative surveys with qualitative methods like interviews or focus groups can provide a more comprehensive understanding of the studied phenomena. qualitative data can capture nuances, motivations, and contextual factors that may not be apparent in quantitative surveys alone. this approach can offer richer insights into hotel crisis management, talent retention, and resource management. while this study focused on mombasa county, future research should aim to expand the geographic scope to include a more diverse sample of hotels across different regions of kenya or even beyond the country's borders. a broader sample can enhance the generalizability of findings and provide insights into how contextual factors, such as local culture and market conditions, may influence the relationships between management practices and hotel performance. given this study's non-significant direct relationship between resource management and adaptability and hotel performance, future research should delve deeper into potential indirect or mediating effects. investigating whether resource management and adaptability influence other variables affecting hotel performance could uncover hidden mechanisms that were not evident in the current analysis. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 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(2023). the matching effect of destinations' crisis communication. journal of travel research, 62(3), 491-516 the impact of work-life balance on employee work quality improvement in nigeria abdulakeem abiodun solihu, itohan iyobhebhe and aitaa sam kilimvi european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 46 the impact of work-life balance on employee work quality improvement in nigeria abdulakeem abiodun solihu1*, itohan iyobhebhe2 & aitaa sam kilimvi3 1unicaf university in partnership with royal docks school of business and law, university of east london. 2university of lagos. 3lecturer, faculty of management science, muni university, uganda; lecturer, royal docks school of business and law, university of east london *corresponding author’s e-mail: sa.kilimvi@muni.ac.ug article history submitted 24.06.23; revised version received 26.06.23; accepted 28.06.2023 abstract purpose: the challenge of achieving a healthy work-life balance (wlb) is a persistent concern in many organizations, with only a minority of businesses taking proactive measures to address it. consequently, it is imperative to assist workers in establishing a healthy work-life balance. the primary aim of this study is to analyze the impact of work-life balance on enhancing employees' work quality. the research attempted to provide answers to the following research questions: i) does flexible work arrangements impact employee job quality? (ii) do leave policies to contribute to enhancing employee job quality? (iii) do opportunities for career advancement impact employee work quality? methodology: the study employed epistemological research design, which concerns the logical inquiry and acquisition of knowledge reflecting on the researcher's perspective on the topic. the research used an inductive and interpretive methodology. secondary data was obtained from google scholar, research gate, and other open access sources, to locate relevant and current publications for analysis and interpretation. publications from 2012 and 2022 on wlb, work quality, leave policies, career progression, fwas, and the impact of wlb on improving work quality considered as search variables. findings: the findings showed a significant impact of flexible work arrangements (fwas) on the quality of employee work. additionally, a positive correlation was observed between employee work quality and leave programs. finally, the study's findings indicate that career development opportunities impact the quality of productive work. recommendations: consequently, the research suggests that adopting flexible work arrangements (fwas) by business managers could lead to an increase in employee contentment, a reduction in stress levels, and ultimately, an enhancement in work performance. the study also recommended that organizations provide employees with adequate and unobstructed access to leave and opportunities for career progression, as this can lead to increased job satisfaction. keywords: work-life balance, employees work quality, flexible work arrangements, carrier development file:///c:/users/geek/downloads/0000-0002-2615-2147 https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1516 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 47 1.0 introduction the work life balance (wlb) initiative began in the 1930s when the kellogg company experimented with a three-day workweek to assist employees in better balancing their professional and personal obligations (banerjee and verma, 2022). in today's demanding economy, organizations seek workers who can balance their professional and personal lives more than ever (boamah et al., 2022). nevertheless, studies indicate that organizations prioritize short-term earnings above long-term profitability and, as a cost-cutting tactic, diminish wlb initiatives (yadav et al., 2022). uddin et al. (2022) describe wlb as the degree to which an individual's pursuits mutually support one another; it exists when a worker's personal and professional lives are in harmony. it is how employers permit workers to attend to personal obligations without jeopardizing their job. work quality is tasks that meet or surpass the company's standards (widarko and anwarodin, 2022). hence, excellent work generally satisfies time requirements and objectives and contains relevant information. several authors have discussed wlb issues over the years (uddin et al, 2022). should employees search for their ideal way of life in their spare time? or would they continue to indulge in their interests if they insisted on a less-than-ideal lifestyle away from work? workers require assistance to meet professional and personal needs because job quality is becoming more sought after and essential to an organization's sustainability, which puts employees under constant pressure to prove their worth and promote the company. also, wlb is threatened when passion takes precedence over work and little time or effort is put into it. this chapter presents the research problem, the research objectives, research questions and the significance of the study. statement of the problem work-life balance (wlb) is a problem that has hampered organizations for so long that it has become a usual way of life that only a small number of businesses address. chapman and karau (2023) assert that because firms constantly look for innovative solutions to address consumer wants (furr et al., 2022), time constraints have become a primary concern for employees. employees are subjected to longer working hours, with little time left for leisure. in a study on countries with the best work-life balance, buchholz (2022) unveiled that people in italy enjoy the best work-life balance. only 3 percent of employees in the country work more than 50 hours a week. denmark, norway, spain and the netherlands are also ranked highly. however, in the same report, the us comes in 29th because more than a tenth of people have long working hours. workers, therefore, require support in creating a healthy wlb because the organization takes so much of their time, not because they are incompetent. as a result, a healthy wlb considers a person's financial, social, and psychological health, which impacts their overall productivity. wlb issues are rarely discussed in organizations, and many employees in nigerian firms today experience stress due to a lack of job flexibility, increasing work pressure, and longer working hours. workplace stress impacts employees, management, and society, raising the risk of anxiety, obesity, nicotine addiction, and mental health problems (kumar et al., 2023). improving employee wlb could significantly increase organizational performance, but the stress of heavy workloads and extended workdays result in low input and output from employees. hence, spending too much time working and not having enough time for leisure or with families affects employee health and work performance. these challenges continue to impede employee’s performance as a result, the study’s goal is to explore how wlb can improve employees job quality, with focus on fwas, leave policies, and career advancement opportunities. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 48 research aims and objectives previous studies have shown that wlb mean different things to different people. however, it typically refers to the point at which a person's attention is equally divided between work and personal lives. in recent study, mazaheri et al. (2023) found a positive correlation between leave policy and employee output and a negative correlation fwas and employee output. another study discovered a correlation between wlb and productivity, confirming that it influences an employee's overall level of productivity (ogunola, 2022; mulang, 2022). this study aims to determine the effect of wlb on employee job quality improvement; the specific objectives are as follows: 1. determine the extent to which flexible work arrangement improve employee job quality. 2. determine the extent that leave policies impact the improvement of employee work quality. 3. assess the impact of career advancement possibilities on employee work quality. research questions 1. does flexible work arrangements impact employee job quality? 2. do leave policies contribute to enhancing employee job quality? 3. do opportunities for career advancement impact employee work quality? significance modern hr studies demonstrate that organizations have increased productivity, commitment, and focus standards, making wlb monitoring crucial (brooks et al., 2022). this study will help policymakers and hr better comprehend wlb practices so that the employment act may be improved. also, to motivate employees to give their best effort, the study's findings will compel the nigerian ministry of labor to adopt a wlb policy. labor unions within organizations will be motivated to advocate wlb policies once they see the favorable effects of wlb initiatives on the quality of employees' work. by analyzing wlb practices, this study would assist in minimizing the enormous gap between work and leisure. due to the paucity of empirical data, this study provides scholars and students with a basis for wlb practices in nigeria. research hypotheses 2.0 literature review this chapter presents various works of literature pertinent to the issues of wlb and employee job quality was carefully selected and reviewed since the purpose of the literature study is to juxtapose the various works of literature and establish clear connections to the topic. as a result, the first section summarizes and describes the concepts of the study. the second section introduces the research model, the third section h0: there is no significant relationship between flexible work arrangement and employee job quality. h0: there is no significant relationship between leave policies and employee job quality. h0: there is no significant relationship between career advancement and employee job quality. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 49 discusses the theoretical frameworks that served as the study's guide, and the fourth and final sections describe the empirical research on wlb and how it influences employee performance. conceptual framework the conceptual framework provides the meanings of the contextual issues under study. a flexible work arrangement (fwa) is a human resource management (hrm) technique that gives employees some control over their workday scheduling, location, and duration (saks, 2022). the term also refers to various career alternatives allowing employees to complete work outside the conventional 9-to-5 weekday schedule (agbanu et al., 2023). hence, fwas are not confined to a single physical location, such as a traditional office (rahman et al., 2022), hence, it allows employees to determine workday schedules so long as clock-ins are made for the minimum daily hours. additionally, leave policy refers to organizations approach to handling employees' requests for time off (petts et al., 2022). the program aims to maintain an equilibrium between efficiency, effectiveness, and staff satisfaction by giving employees rights to leave and the circumstances under which those rights can be utilized (williamson, 2019). companies should have leave policies to avoid losing valued employees who may be forced to resign due to work pressure and family needs (bao, 2022). therefore, a strategy for leave demonstrates to workers that they have choices in the event of unexpected need for time off (moss and deven, 2020). according to morris et al (2021), career includes not just jobs but also training acquired to satisfy company’s standards, as well as the emotions and motivations cultivated as a result of the time in an establishment. hence, whether a worker has been in the same position for several decades or has risen through ranks via promotions and job changes, career is the sum of the worker professional experiences and skills (mello et al., 2022). professional growth is a means of continuously adapting to new circumstances and enhancing workers' skills and knowledge (van der heijden et al., 2020; crăciun, 2023). in understanding work quality, this refers to the extent to which an employee's performance meets or exceeds what is demanded. to support excellent performance, employers should foster working environments that promote worker well-being and job satisfaction (darvishmotevali and ali, 2020). therefore, indications of excellent job quality encompass five job dimensions; organization of work, pay, job security, leeway for creativity and innovation, and opportunities for growth and development (lehndorff, 2021). since work quality is a great indicator of personnel wlb, firms should prioritize promoting wlb among staff members in light of the positive relationship it has on high productivity. research conceptual model the developed conceptual model guided the research and postulate a connection between wlb and the improvement of work quality. leave policies, career advancement, flexible work arrangement and work quality are the four factors that make up the independent and dependent variables, respectively. arrows showed connections between variables to emphasize their interconnectedness. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 50 wlb and work quality figure 1: conceptual model source: researcher (2023) theoretical framework the study is hinged on two principal theories that portend to explain the phenomenon of work life balance (wlb). these are the organization support theory and the spill over theory. organizational support theory this theory posits that workers commonly believe that employers truly appreciate and value them (shanock et al., 2019). employees' demands for acceptance, psychological support and esteem are thus satisfied when they feel appreciated for who they are and what they provide to the company (arshadi, 2011). organizational manifestations like these result from the political, ethical, and financial accountability of the organization for its members, which in turn governs role behaviors. hence, workers evaluate their worth to the company based on how they are treated. equal opportunity, support, compensation, and a positive work environment are all indicators of organizational loyalty (rhoades and eisenberger, 2002). spill over theory this theory considers issues of both professional and home life (audretsch and lehmann, 2022). according to schüttengruber et al. (2023), effort, attitude, and time spillover can be harmful if relationships between job and family are not rigorously regulated. hence, employees benefit from good spillover when they balance their personal and professional lives. wlb is a function of professional and private factors, such as workplace culture and family obligations because they shape workers’ experience (guest (2002). hence, there is a spillover when an area of an employee’s life affects another; this idea describes the circumstances that lead to a collision between personal and professional obligations. empirical literature fwa and work quality john (2017) conducted a study on the effects of flexible work arrangements (fwa) on the quality of employee work and organizational productivity. the research utilized a survey methodology using structured questionnaire. most employees concurred that fwas benefit them and their employers by work quality fleible work arrangment leave policies career advancement european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 51 facilitating improved time management and personal obligations. the research revealed a positive association between fwas and work quality, as employees who utilized the fwa reported significant job performance. a limitation of structured questionnaire is that respondents cannot freely express themselves. the utilization of secondary data may have yielded disparate findings from the obtained results, hence, the proportion of individuals who expressed agreement to the fwas could have been equivalent to those who dissented. however, the research suggests that managers should identify employees who would benefit from fwa and allow them to pursue it. fsb (2009) conducted a study to determine the influence of fwa on the productivity of smes. the study was chosen in this current research because of its relevance to wlb. the author employed primary data in this study; it is possible that a combination of primary and secondary data could have given a different result. however, the study revealed that flexi-time improves customer service, lowers employee absenteeism and stress, increases work quality, and saves costs on recruiting and training new workers. it was discovered that the best way to boost output, employee morale, and survival during a recession is to experiment with new workweeks. to weather economic storm, it would benefit companies if managers and workers had more leeway in how work is carried out. therefore, the study recommended that smes and large companies offer fwas, and assess staff performance. leave policies and work quality given the significance of the topic of leave programs to overall job performance, this study draws on the work of moleki (2014), who investigated the connection between leave policy and productivity. the researcher used a qualitative technique by collecting data from 257 workers via questionnaire; the researcher then evaluated how workers coped with stressful conditions like delivering services on time with few resources. the findings showed that granting leave to employees has significant financial implications for organizations. however, if leave is not managed and monitored, it can result in significant financial losses for the company in the form of wasteful expenditures. the researcher believes that the result might have been different if the study had included more respondents and used interviews as its data collection method, also if employees have easy access to leaves, they may be less available to work. kadiri et al. (2021) conducted a study pertinent to this research. the researchers investigated the impact of leave policies on workers efficiency. it surveyed 276 participants using structured questionnaires. the data collected were subjected to analysis using a combination of descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. the study's results indicate that leave policy is a significant factor in explaining the fluctuations in productivity levels. specifically, employees' work quality experienced a significant decline in the absence of a leave policy. consequently, a proposition suggested that organizations mandate employee leave and implement strict enforcement measures. it is conceivable that using interviews and focus groups as the methodology could have yielded divergent findings, wherein employees might have reported diminished productivity due to frequent leave opportunities. career advancement on work quality samuel (2016) conducted a study to gain a deeper understanding of career development and productivity challenges. this study recognized the significance of career advancement in the context of wlb. the study's primary aim was to identify the obstacles impeding the employee’s progression. results indicate that training and development initiatives positively impact career advancement, as evidenced by increased likelihood of being promoted or transferred to different positions within the organization, which indicate that job quality is positively impacted by career advancement. sugiarti's (2022) research shows a direct correlation between career advancement and high-quality work productivity using structured questionnaire, the researcher however believes that using observation european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 52 techniques could yield divergent outcomes where providing employees with numerous career advancement opportunities may harm job quality because they may be required to attend frequent training sessions, impeding their ability to execute primary job responsibilities effectively. 3.0 methodology this chapter explores the research methodology and philosophical approach utilized in the study. it describes the research design and approach, sampling techniques, sources of secondary data, data quality, and ethical considerations. research approach and design the study takes an epistemological tack, which concerns the logical inquiry of knowledge and its acquisition; hence, it reflects the researcher's perspective on the topic (castela and romo-vázquez, 2023). this perspective was chosen because it provides a framework for summarizing the study, widening the scope and enhancing understanding of this research (turner, 2022). therefore, the researcher operated as a stand-in for the phenomenon under study, a tactic congruent with an interpretive methodology. given the requirement for some flexibility, the author opted for an interpretive methodology consisting of a literature review. since the literature review allows researchers delve deeper into the causes and effects of issues, it assisted the researcher in relying on questions/hypotheses to explore and establish a comprehensive picture of the problems that plague wlb and employee work quality (pringle-nelson, 2023), and acquiring evidence to support or contradict the researcher's assumptions. the research used an inductive methodology involving analyzing the data before presenting the findings; it was chosen because it allows researchers to gradually move from the specifics to general in analyzing findings (mahdi and ismail, 2023). in light of this, the researcher began by considering the study questions with scholarly journals concentrating on each question; hence, the researcher then shifted from the contents of a specific article to a larger set of arguments. this resulted in collecting and analyzing pertinent articles and data about wlb and its effect on the quality of work produced by employees. this research was aided by case studies through desk research. it was chosen because it enabled the researcher to conduct a detailed analysis of the research from multiple perspectives, and offers a valuable and applicable experience for future studies. therefore, a literature review was conducted to establish the foundation for this study; the literature review thoroughly examines relevant publications that present pertinent data, hypotheses, and case studies. hence, it was conducted to answer the research questions/hypotheses by evaluating and criticizing earlier studies; locating and constructing findings by drawing on existing information; for the simple reason that literature reviews help researchers improve their topics by drawing on the findings of previous studies (kuckertz and block, 2021). as a result, publications pertinent to wlb and work quality were gathered for findings and analysis. sampling and source of data the researcher employed a purposive sampling technique to select the most relevant publications to address the study's question on the impact of wlb on work quality; hence, thirty (30) pertinent publications were acquired through archived copies of previously conducted research via desk studies. the benefits of desk studies over field studies are their lower cost and quicker turnaround time, as well as the ability to judge the validity of the data independently (boslaugh, 2012). european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 53 table 1: sources of secondary data sources number of journals open access journals 21 paid journals 9 total 30 search engines employed: elsevier, google scholar, researchgate secondary sources, as opposed to primary sources, make it simpler for researchers to assemble data for comparisons or longer periods (johnston, 2014). it was also advantageous to use secondary data because it involved less effort and was more efficient than acquiring primary data (sileyew, 2019). therefore, the researcher utilized google scholar, paid access, and open access, to locate relevant and current publications. the researcher believes that the quality of the journals included in these databases, particularly the peer-reviewed journals, is sufficient to offer the information required for this study. furthermore, the selection procedure took some time, journals published before 2012 were disqualified (only the last ten years were considered2012 and 2022). wlb, work quality, leave policies, career progression, fwas, and “the impact of wlb on improving work quality” were used as search variables to identify relevant publications. quality of secondary data the findings of this study can be extrapolated to a larger population because they are based on verified, and tested data from other studies. several papers and articles were found in research databases, but only the highest quality and most relevant were included in the final analysis. articles that met the journal's and authors' criteria for quality were used extensively, while journals that did not specifically address wlb and work quality were excluded. since this study was conducted in nigeria, it was unnecessary to include articles from other african and international countries, as the data acquired in other nations would not be applicable in nigeria, especially regarding how a better wlb can improve work quality. as a result, the only way to ensure that the study included high-quality material was to integrate information from numerous papers dealing with the same elements; a single article was insufficient to cover all the research questions/hypotheses. the researcher, therefore, ensured that the study's credibility was maintained by including thorough and exact citations for every publication utilized. therefore, the study was conducted with utmost regard for ethics, ensuring total confidentiality and precision. although there are studies on wlb, only a few have investigated how wlb affects the quality of workers' output, hence, it was a struggle to get the appropriate data. therefore, articles that urged respondents to remain anonymous and withhold contact information were used because doing so was necessary to comply with ethical standards and protect the respondents' privacy, neutrality, and confidentiality. one potential drawback of secondary research is that it may not provide sufficient answers to the current research questions being explored. secondly, a more rigorous methodology is necessary, as the researcher may be constrained by time and must conduct a thorough investigation to uncover pertinent data; the data gathered may be susceptible to bias. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 54 4.0 findings this chapter provides an explanation of the study's findings based on a review of relevant literature on the impact of wlb on employee work quality in nigeria. hence, the following research questions were developed to aid the study’s objectives: (i) does flexible work arrangements impact employee job quality? (ii) do leave policies contribute to enhancing employee job quality? (iii) do opportunities for career advancement impact employee work quality? the journals reviewed examined the impact of wlb on employee work quality in nigeria; however, each study employed a distinct methodology; three primary methods were identified: case study, qualitative method, and quantitative method. the exact findings gathered from the publications are presented below; rq1: does flexible work arrangement influence employee job quality? a study conducted by ifeoma (2019) was chosen because of its applicability to the nigerian labor force. the study was conducted to evaluate how different banks monitored fwa and employees' performance. the study had a population size of 348; however, only 186 participants were included in the sample using the taro yamane method. the researcher used a systematic questionnaire with questions designed to collect data on all the relevant research factors. cronbach's alpha (α) was utilized to examine the instrument's reliability and 0.891 was derived after the testing. the researcher went further and employed descriptive statistics to summarize the data, and the pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was utilized for hypothesis testing. table 2 displays the level of contentment among participants regarding adoptable employment arrangements. the findings of the descriptive statistics indicate that the mean score for the capacity of flexible work arrangements to decrease employee absenteeism is 4.46 and the average score for the leeway provided to employees to determine their work schedules is 4.28. furthermore, the mean score for employees’ utilization of leave programs and productivity is 4.12. the data indicates that on average, flexible work arrangements are associated with higher levels of respondent satisfaction and productivity. the mean value of all elements compared to the highest possible score of 15 is 12.86. it serves as a reliable indication of the efficacy of flexible work arrangements in enhancing employee productivity. table 2: mean score of flexible work arrangements and work quality statement n mean max min std error fwas reduce absenteeism 186 4.46 5 1 0.778 employees are given a leeway to decide fwas 186 4.28 5 1 0.756 leave programs reduce absenteeism 186 4.12 5 1 0.74 sum 186 12.86 15 3 2.308 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 55 pearson correlation figure 2: pearson correlation (fwas and employee work quality). the data showed a significant and positive relationship between flexi-time and work quality amongst nigerian workers that with an r value of .796 and p value < .01); it implies that allowing workers some degree of flexibility in their schedules was correlated with higher productivity levels; hence, both employees and employers benefit when employees have more leeway in their workday structure. rq2: do leave policies contribute to the enhancement of employee job quality? the study of kadiri et al. (2020) on the efficiency of leave policies on the performance of nigerian workers is relevant to this study. the primary objective of this study was to investigate the impact of annual leave on the productivity of government workers in kwara state upon their return to work. quantitative research was also undertaken in this study, with 275 participants drawn from the ministries and departments of the state responsible for employee scheduling, assigning, and appraisals. the study used a standardized questionnaire to collect data for analysis, with a total number (275) of government employees serving as the sample size. the researcher employed descriptive and inferential statistics to analyze the data and present the results coherently and thoroughly. pearson correlation, 0.796 sig. (2-tailed), 0.000 n, 186 pearson correlation sig. (2-tailed) n 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% fwas and work qualtiy european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 56 model summary figure 3: leave policies and work quality with an r-value of 0.707 suggesting a positive link between employees' work quality and leave policies, and an r squared value of 0.500 emphasizing that annual leave days utilization accounts for 50% of the variations in an employee's work quality, the study concluded that leave policies have a significant impact on employee productivity with a p-value of 0.000 showing that the value is significantly smaller than the 5% cutoff. the study's results, therefore, lend credence to the competing theory that taking time off increases employee work quality. the result proved that a worker's leave policy is a major factor in the observed variation in output. rq3: do opportunities for career advancement impact employee work quality? ugwu (2021) conducted a study that employed a survey design, with in-depth interviews and questionnaires as the primary data collection instruments. the study's main goal was to determine the influence of career development on the work performance of lecturers in state universities in the eastern region of nigeria. the article was selected due to its applicability to nigeria and prospective impacts on the nigerian labor force. five (5) state universities, including ebonyi, imo, enugu, anambra, and abia state, provided knowledgeable personnel for the research, with a total population of 3,250. using the statistical method devised by freund and william, a sample size of 344 was appropriate; however, only 294 employees returned the questionnaire with filled-out responses. in addition, pearson's correlation coefficient (r) was used to evaluate reliability, with a result of 0.70, which was deemed satisfactory. 0.707 500 0.484 0.55521 0.0000 100 200 300 400 500 600 r r square adjusted r square std error p-value leave policies and work quality european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 57 pearson correlation figure 4: career development and work quality the graph indicates that career development improves the quality of workers' output, based on a comparison of the computed z-value ranging from 5.686<7.261 and a significant value of 0.000 lower than the 0.005 thresholds. it implies that employees' job quality and efficiency improve when they participate in career development programs. summary of findings based on the review of several articles, the predominant results indicate that the matter of wlb, encompassing elements such as career progression, leave policies, and flexible work arrangements, presents persistent challenges for employees. failure to address these challenges may result in decreased productivity. the findings indicate that there is a positive correlation between flexible work schedules, leave policies, and professional growth opportunities with work quality among employees in nigeria. analysis of findings the chapter analyzes the findings from the review of pertinent literature concerning wlb and employee work quality in nigeria. it describes the results in relation to pre-existing knowledge and novel insights that surfaced as a consequence of this investigation. evaluation of findings in contemporary times, companies strive to attain competitive advantage by mandating employees to demonstrate value to the organization's growth through extended work hours, while disregarding personal obligations. therefore, the following research questions were developed to achieve the study's aim: (i) does flexible work arrangements impact employee job quality? (ii) do leave policies contribute to enhancing employee job quality? (iii) do opportunities for career advancement impact employee work quality? according to the findings, there is a favorable correlation between fwas and work quality among employees in nigeria (ifeoma, 2019). this implies that providing employees with a certain degree of schedule flexibility increases productivity. therefore, fwas offer several advantages to employees that enhance work quality; one benefit is that fwas enable employees to exercise greater control over work 7.261 0.000 294 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 kolmogorov-smirnon sig. (2-tailed) n career development and work quality european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 58 and personal lives, improving wlb as they can efficiently allocate time and energy. hence, implementing fwas, such as remote work or flexible hours, reduces the time employees commute to and from workplaces, reducing stress. also, employees with fwas perceive themselves as more appreciated by employers, resulting in higher job contentment. the flexibility afforded by managing work around personal responsibilities can enhance employees' health and well-being. in addition, employees who maintain good health are likely to exhibit higher productivity levels and take fewer sick leaves; this can be attributed to the ability of individuals to optimize work patterns based on unique differences, or strengths. the study findings also revealed a positive correlation between the quality work and the leave policies provided (kadiri et al., 2020). this implies that the absence of leave programs results in behavioral consequences, including diminished work output, decreased productivity, heightened absenteeism and employee turnover, and health-related issues. hence, the presence of burnout and stress among employees is detrimental to organizational effectiveness, as employees' satisfaction and commitment are crucial factors in achieving success within an organization. employee leave programs are crucial for both the workforce and the organizational well-being; therefore, implementing leave programs can enhance employee productivity in various ways; employees who take time off to prioritize their mental and physical well-being exhibit sustained productivity over time. implementing leave programs can enhance employees' job satisfaction by affording them a perception of equilibrium between professional and personal lives. in addition, leave programs allow employees to engage in professional development activities such as attending conferences, taking courses, or pursuing other relevant opportunities, thereby providing opportunities for employees to enhance skills and knowledge, which can increase the organization's value. according to the research findings, the enhancement of career development positively impacts the employees work quality (ugwu, 2021). it implies that companies offering career progression prospects reap greater employee advantages; a career-oriented approach empowers workers to enhance skills to effectively navigate professional trajectory. consequently, career development yield various advantages for employees that directly influence productivity. for instance, career development endeavors such as training programs, and mentoring offer employees a chance to acquire new skills and knowledge, when employees are provided with career development opportunities, they experience job quality as they are more inclined towards embracing novel challenges and confronting arduous tasks. career development programs give employees more defined understanding of career objectives and the necessary steps to attain them, as well-defined objectives enhance the motivation and productivity of employees. therefore, investing in employee career development means that the organization values advancement and wellbeing. career development initiatives also facilitate the creation of skilled workforce, thereby enabling the identification and cultivation of potential candidates for future higher-level positions. re-assessment of research questions in relation to research findings and literature the three research questions that were investigated in this study served as the basis for the analysis of the results; rq1: does flexible work arrangements impact employee job quality? the study found a clear and substantial correlation between flexi-time and the quality of workers' output in nigeria (ifeoma, 2019). according to a meta-analysis of related studies, there is an association between fwas and employee work quality. for instance, this finding agrees with the results of john's (2017) study. the researcher examined how different work schedule options impacted employee satisfaction and business outcomes. the study employed a questionnaire survey design, and data were analyzed using european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 59 spss. according to the findings, most workers agree that fwas help them and their employers save time. employees who took advantage of the fwa saw a marked improvement in their performance, suggesting a strong correlation between fwas and the quality of their work. thus, the study's findings indicate that it would be advisable for managers to identify those employees who stand to gain from flexible work arrangements (fwa) and provide them with the opportunity to avail of such arrangements. rq2: do leave policies contribute to the enhancement of employee job quality? according to the findings of the research carried out by kadiri et al. in 2020, there is a correlation between the quality of the job performed by employees and the policies regarding time off. the findings are supported by the review of previous research as well; for instance, these findings are consistent with the results of moleki (2014), in which the researcher investigated the relationship between leave policy and productivity using a qualitative methodology that involved the use of a questionnaire to gather responses from workers. the objective of the study was to assess the coping mechanisms of staff members in the face of stressful conditions, such as meeting service delivery deadlines while availing themselves of leave options. according to the findings, the policy of offering paid time off to workers has significant effects on both the productivity of workers and the organizations. rq3: does opportunities for career advancement impact employee work quality? according to the research findings, a favorable correlation was established between the enhancement of career development and the overall productivity of employees (ugwu, 2021). this finding is corroborated by previous research; for instance, samuel (2016) conducted a study to gain a deeper understanding of career advancement and employee efficacy. the study's primary aim was to identify the obstacles that impede employees' progress. the study revealed that opportunities for career growth positively impact the job quality delivered by employees, as evidenced by the timely delivery of tasks with fewer errors. the researcher posited that employees face considerable hindrances in their endeavor to progress in their careers, such as limited entry to training prospects and a dearth of open positions. 5.0 conclusion and recommendations the chapter elucidates the findings and conclusion drawn from the data and analysis. the recommendations explicitly address the research objectives and the extent to which they have been met. the research comprises the following chapters: the first chapter introduced the topic and deliberated on the fundamental matter that instigated the study. in chapter two contains an evaluation of pertinent literature of the variables identified in the research. chapter three expounded on the methodology employed in the study. the fourth chapter presents the research findings, while the fifth chapter provides an analysis and interpretation of the data. the sixth chapter draws logical conclusions and offers recommendations based on the study's findings. conclusion this research examined the impact of wlb on employees' work quality. the analysis of the research objectives was facilitated by a selection of relevant literature. therefore, the study addressed the following research inquiries; (i) does flexible work arrangements impact employee job quality? (ii) do leave policies to contribute to enhancing employee job quality? (iii) do opportunities for career advancement impact employee work quality? i. the study's results indicate a correlation between flexible work arrangements and employee job quality with a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.70, providing insight into the first research question. it indicates that the implementation of fwa significantly impacts the quality of work produced by employees, with positive outcomes observed; hence, granting workers appropriate schedule european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 60 flexibility increases productivity levels. consequently, both employers and employees gain from a more flexible day-to-day arrangement. ii. the second research question was tackled through a comprehensive analysis, which revealed that leave policies significantly impact the quality of work produced by employees with an r-value of 0.707, r squared value (0.500), and p-value of 0.000. this indicate that leave policies positively impacts the quality of employees' jobs as a crucial component of achieving wlb. this, in turn, enables employees to effectively manage their personal responsibilities while being productivity. therefore, employees must be granted access to leave, including but not limited to annual vacation, sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave, compassionate care leave, academic leave, and public holidays. iii. the third research outcome answers the third research question, revealing that career advancement prospects significantly impact the quality of work produced by employees, with a significant value of 0.000. hence, the positive correlation between career advancement opportunities and employee work quality showed that employees demonstrated greater drive and dedication towards their work when they perceive that the organization provides avenues for career development. recommendations the recommendations put forth in this study were derived from the three research questions and corresponding objectives, which includes the following: the implementation of flexible work arrangements (fwa) the study recommends that business managers should implement fwas as it has the potential to enhance employee satisfaction and alleviate stress, ultimately resulting in an improvement in work quality. hence, allowing employees to telecommute or modify their work schedules to align with their individual needs and preferences enhances their work-life equilibrium, enhancing their general welfare and job contentment. the adoption of fwas is recommended as a means of enhancing the ability of employers to attract and retain skilled personnel; therefore, to optimize the favorable effects of fwas on employee work quality, it is advisable for management to provide specific directives regarding work procedures and offer resources that facilitate employees' work and team communication. the research also recommends that managers conduct periodic employee assessments to ascertain their ability to maintain a healthy equilibrium between work and personal life and to tackle any challenges that may emerge. the availability of leave programs based on the findings, it is recommended that managers offer employees appropriate and unimpeded access to leave as sufficient leave entitlements have been shown to aid workers in maintaining overall well-being, and managing unforeseen emergencies. furthermore, the implementation of leave policies has the potential to foster a favorable organizational climate and enhance the well-being and job satisfaction. it is also recommended that management comprehend that the efficacy of leave policies in augmenting the quality of employee job is contingent upon how they are formulated and executed. hence, when leave policies are excessively restrictive or pose significant accessibility challenges, their efficacy in promoting employee well-being and job quality may be compromised. the research further suggests that managers should periodically evaluate and revise leave policies to guarantee that they cater to the requirements of the workforce and conform to the prevailing benchmarks. prospects for professional growth and development the study recommends that training sessions should be led by qualified personnels so that management and employees can gain the most from each training session as these sessions can facilitate the acquisition european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 46 65, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 61 of new abilities and expertise, thereby enhancing job effectiveness. it is advisable that career opportunities are allocated equitably and hindrances to advancement, such as partiality, are entirely eliminated. thus, employers must offer unbiased equal opportunities to all their employees. providing career advancement opportunities also gives employees a sense of meaning and a well-defined trajectory for realizing career objectives; hence, it is recommended that managers furnish employees with prospects for career advancement. implications for future research the research adds to existing literature by demonstrating that wlb, encompassing fwas, leave policies and career progression, significantly influences employee work quality. however, further investigation could be undertaken to ascertain the impact of telecommuting/remote work on financial performance of enterprises. the analysis conducted in the study indicates that leave policies influences work quality, consequently, it is imperative to examine and compare different forms of leave policies effect on job performance. further research investigations could be conducted to explore the effects of career progression on employee satisfaction and operational performance across various organizations. furthermore, organizations can comprehensively evaluate their policies regarding leave, fwas, and programs for career progression to implement requisite adjustments in areas of deficiency. also, present study examined a limited amount of data. nevertheless, augmenting the sample size in forthcoming research undertakings to encompass additional literature about wlb would confer significant benefits. limitations of the research the research provides insight into wlb and employee work quality improvement in nigeria; 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performance appraisal systems and employee motivation in tunisia edith walter tunis el manar university article history submitted 17.03.2024 revised version received 26.04.2024 accepted 31.05.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the relationship between performance appraisal systems and employee motivation in tunisia. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study indicated that wellstructured appraisal systems can significantly enhance employee motivation by providing clear and measurable goals, constructive feedback, and recognition of achievements. when employees understand the criteria by which they are evaluated and perceive the appraisal process as fair and transparent, their motivation to improve performance and achieve organizational goals increases. furthermore, appraisal systems that incorporate regular feedback and involve employees in goal-setting foster a sense of ownership and commitment, further boosting motivation. however, the effectiveness of these systems heavily depends on their design and implementation. appraisal systems perceived as biased, inconsistent, or solely focused on criticism can demotivate employees, leading to disengagement and decreased performance. thus, the relationship between performance appraisal systems and employee motivation is strongly influenced by the perceived fairness, clarity, and constructiveness of the appraisal process. implications to theory, practice and policy: self-determination theory, goalsetting theory and expectancy theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the relationship between performance appraisal systems and employee motivation in tunisia. organizations should adopt a tailored approach to design pas that align with the unique motivational needs and challenges of different sectors, roles, and work arrangements. policymakers should emphasize the importance of cultural sensitivity in pas design and implementation. keywords: performance, appraisal systems, employee motivation http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 2 walter, (2024) introduction the influence of organizational culture on employee engagement is a critical area of focus for modern businesses seeking to optimize performance and foster a positive work environment. employee motivation is a cornerstone of productivity and performance in developed economies such as the usa, japan, and the uk. one notable trend in these regions is the growing emphasis on intrinsic motivators, as highlighted by deci and ryan (2017). they suggest that autonomy, purpose, and mastery are significant factors driving motivation among employees. for instance, companies like google and apple in the usa have implemented innovative motivational strategies such as flexible work arrangements and creative workspaces, resulting in higher levels of job satisfaction and engagement. in developing economies across latin america and southeast asia, employee motivation often revolves around a combination of financial incentives and career development opportunities. research by nguyen, ho and nguyen (2019) emphasizes the significant impact of competitive salaries and benefits on motivation levels in countries like brazil and vietnam. additionally, these regions prioritize career advancement as a key motivator, with employees seeking opportunities for growth and upward mobility within organizations. for example, in brazil, companies like petrobras and embraer have implemented career development programs that include training, mentoring, and promotions based on merit, which contribute to higher levels of motivation and job satisfaction among employees. in other developing economies such as those in southeast asia, central asia, and the middle east, employee motivation trends vary based on cultural, economic, and organizational factors. for instance, in countries like malaysia and the united arab emirates (uae), multinational corporations and local companies alike focus on a mix of financial incentives and non-monetary benefits to motivate employees. research by abdullah and ismail (2021) highlights the importance of recognition programs, career development opportunities, and work-life balance initiatives in enhancing motivation levels among employees in these regions. companies like petronas in malaysia and emirates group in the uae have implemented comprehensive employee engagement strategies that include performance bonuses, training programs, and flexible work arrangements, resulting in higher job satisfaction and retention rates. similarly, in central asian countries like kazakhstan and uzbekistan, organizations prioritize employee motivation through initiatives that promote professional growth and job security. research by khamzina and tulepbayeva (2020) underscores the significance of training and development programs, fair compensation packages, and supportive leadership in motivating employees in these regions. companies such as kazmunaygas in kazakhstan and uzavtosanoat in uzbekistan invest in employee training, skill enhancement, and career progression pathways to foster motivation and loyalty among their workforce. in eastern european countries like poland and romania, companies prioritize employee motivation through a blend of financial rewards and job security. kijewska and olejnik-smółka (2018) emphasize the importance of fair compensation, performance-based bonuses, and stable employment conditions in motivating employees in these regions. noteworthy examples include pko bank polski in poland and banca transilvania in romania, which offer competitive salaries, bonuses tied to individual and team performance, and professional development opportunities to enhance motivation and engagement among their employees. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 3 walter, (2024) turning to south american economies such as argentina and colombia, organizations focus on employee motivation by promoting work-life balance, career progression, and recognition. cafferata and pulido (2021) highlight the significance of flexible work arrangements, training programs, and appreciation initiatives in boosting motivation levels. leading companies like mercadolibre in argentina and bancolombia in colombia prioritize employee well-being, regular feedback mechanisms, and structured career paths to foster a motivated and productive workforce. in african nations like egypt and morocco, employee motivation strategies often include competitive salaries, performance-based incentives, and recognition programs. el-said, elfaramawy, and el-henawy (2019) stress the role of fair compensation, rewards tied to achievements, and acknowledgment of employee contributions in driving motivation. companies such as telecom egypt in egypt and maroc telecom in morocco implement robust reward systems, leadership development initiatives, and employee engagement activities to enhance motivation and performance within their organizations. moreover, in the middle east, countries like saudi arabia and qatar witness a focus on employee motivation through a combination of monetary rewards, recognition, and a conducive work environment. research by al-haddad, (2020) emphasizes the role of organizational culture, job security, and empowerment in driving motivation among employees in these regions. companies like saudi aramco in saudi arabia and qatar airways in qatar emphasize employee engagement, feedback mechanisms, and performance-based rewards as part of their motivation strategies, leading to increased productivity and employee satisfaction. in india and indonesia, rapid economic growth has led to a focus on performance-based rewards and recognition as crucial motivators for employees. organizations in these countries often tie financial incentives to individual or team performance, driving employees to achieve specific targets and goals adisa and afolabi (2018). for instance, indian it companies like infosys and tata consultancy services (tcs) offer performance bonuses and incentives based on project outcomes and client satisfaction, motivating employees to excel in their roles and contribute to the company's success. in sub-saharan african economies like nigeria and south africa, employee motivation trends are shaped by factors such as job stability, organizational culture, and social recognition. adisa and afolabi (2018) highlight the importance of leadership support and transparent communication in fostering motivation among employees in these regions. companies such as mtn group in south africa and dangote group in nigeria prioritize employee well-being through initiatives like employee wellness programs, recognition schemes, and opportunities for career progression, all of which contribute to a motivated and engaged workforce. moreover, in emerging economies such as vietnam and nigeria, there is a growing emphasis on employee empowerment and involvement in decision-making processes. research by le and nguyen (2020) underscores the importance of participative management styles and open communication channels in motivating employees. companies like viettel in vietnam and flour mills of nigeria empower employees by involving them in decision-making, problem-solving, and goal-setting, which not only increases motivation but also fosters a sense of ownership and commitment to organizational objectives. performance appraisal systems (pas) are crucial tools for evaluating employee performance and influencing motivation levels within organizations. four prominent pas include 360-degree http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 4 walter, (2024) feedback, management by objectives (mbo), behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars), and the critical incident technique (cit). 360-degree feedback allows employees to receive input from various sources like peers, supervisors, and subordinates, enhancing self-awareness and intrinsic motivation to excel (gomez-mejia, balkin & cardy, 2019). similarly, management by objectives (mbo) fosters motivation by involving employees in goal-setting, promoting ownership, and autonomy over their work (armstrong & taylor, 2019). these pas encourage active participation and provide clear expectations, positively impacting employee motivation. furthermore, behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars) and the critical incident technique (cit) focus on objective evaluation criteria, ensuring fairness and transparency in performance assessments. bars assesses employee behaviors based on specific criteria, while cit examines performance based on critical incidents (miller, bouckenooghe & de witte, 2018). by utilizing these pas, organizations create structured appraisal processes that motivate employees to perform at their best to meet defined standards and expectations. problem statement despite the widespread adoption of performance appraisal systems (pas) in organizations, there remains a need to explore and understand the nuanced relationship between pas and employee motivation. in recent years, studies have highlighted the potential impact of pas on various aspects of employee motivation, including intrinsic motivation, job satisfaction, and performance outcomes (gomez-mejia, balkin & cardy, 2019). however, there is a gap in understanding the specific mechanisms through which different types of pas, such as 360-degree feedback, management by objectives (mbo), behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars), and the critical incident technique (cit), influence employee motivation in contemporary work environments. moreover, with the evolving nature of work and the increasing emphasis on employee engagement and well-being, there is a growing interest in examining how modern pas practices align with motivational theories and contribute to positive organizational outcomes (armstrong & taylor, 2019). understanding the interplay between pas design, implementation processes, and employee motivation is essential for organizations seeking to optimize their performance management strategies and create a motivated workforce that drives sustainable success. theoretical framework self-determination theory (sdt) originated by deci and ryan, sdt focuses on intrinsic motivation and the role of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in driving behavior (deci & ryan, 2017). this theory posits that individuals are intrinsically motivated when they feel a sense of autonomy in their actions, competence in their abilities, and connection to others. in the context of the relationship between performance appraisal systems (pas) and employee motivation, sdt suggests that pas that promote autonomy, provide opportunities for skill development (competence), and foster positive relationships (relatedness) can enhance intrinsic motivation and job satisfaction. goal-setting theory developed by locke and latham, goal-setting theory emphasizes the importance of setting clear and specific goals to motivate individuals and improve performance (locke & latham, 2019). this theory suggests that challenging yet attainable goals, coupled with feedback and commitment, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 5 walter, (2024) lead to higher levels of motivation and task performance. in the context of pas and employee motivation, goal-setting theory highlights the significance of management by objectives (mbo) pas, where employees participate in setting their own goals aligned with organizational objectives, thereby enhancing motivation through goal clarity and ownership. expectancy theory proposed by vroom, expectancy theory posits that individuals are motivated to act in a certain way based on their expectations of the outcome and the belief that their efforts will lead to desired rewards (vroom, 2018). this theory emphasizes the importance of three key factors: expectancy (belief in one's ability to perform a task), instrumentality (belief that performance will lead to desired outcomes), and valence (value attached to the outcomes). in the context of pas and employee motivation, expectancy theory suggests that when employees perceive a clear link between their performance, appraisal outcomes, and rewards, they are more motivated to exert effort and achieve desired outcomes. empirical review smith and johnson (2019) embarked on an in-depth investigation into the intricate interplay between performance appraisal systems and employee motivation within the dynamic context of the hospitality industry. employing a meticulous mixed-methods approach, the study meticulously conducted surveys and insightful interviews with 300 employees and managers from various hospitality establishments. the study's findings unveiled a compelling narrative—a discernible positive correlation between the efficacy of appraisal systems and heightened motivation levels among employees, particularly when feedback mechanisms were not just frequent but also offered in a constructive and meaningful manner. such findings underscored the crucial role of feedback quality and consistency in fostering employee motivation. consequently, the study's recommendations were robust and practical, emphasizing the urgent need for hospitality organizations to proactively implement regular feedback mechanisms and invest in training programs aimed at equipping managers with the skills to conduct more effective and impactful performance appraisals. by doing so, organizations could effectively enhance employee motivation levels, thereby contributing to a more engaged and high-performing workforce in the vibrant hospitality sector (smith & johnson, 2019). lee and kim (2021) delved deeply into the intricate relationship between performance appraisal criteria and intrinsic motivation among healthcare professionals—a cohort known for their unique motivations and challenges. through a meticulously designed quantitative study, lee and kim gathered data from a diverse sample of 500 healthcare workers, representing various roles and levels within the healthcare landscape. the study's insightful analysis revealed a compelling insight—the pivotal role of clear and relevant appraisal criteria in significantly influencing intrinsic motivation levels among healthcare professionals. furthermore, the study highlighted how such heightened intrinsic motivation translated into tangible outcomes such as increased job satisfaction and enhanced performance metrics. building upon these compelling findings, lee and kim's recommendations were poignant and actionable, advocating for the development and implementation of specific, transparent, and role-aligned appraisal criteria within healthcare organizations. by aligning appraisal criteria with the unique demands and expectations of different healthcare roles, organizations could effectively bolster intrinsic motivation levels among their http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 6 walter, (2024) workforce, thereby fostering a more engaged, satisfied, and ultimately, high-performing cadre of healthcare professionals (lee & kim, 2021). chen and wang (2018) represented a significant leap forward in understanding the nuanced dynamics between performance feedback frequency, employee motivation, and engagement within the dynamic realm of it organizations. leveraging a sophisticated longitudinal approach, the study meticulously conducted quarterly surveys over a year, engaging with 200 it professionals working across diverse domains within the it sector. through their rigorous analysis, chen and wang unearthed a compelling correlation—a positive relationship between higher feedback frequency and elevated levels of motivation, engagement, and job satisfaction among it professionals. such insights underscored the transformative potential of consistent and meaningful feedback mechanisms in driving employee motivation and fostering a more vibrant and committed workforce within it organizations. in light of these pivotal findings, chen and wang's recommendations resonated deeply, advocating for the proactive implementation of regular feedback cycles and the development of targeted training programs aimed at empowering supervisors and managers with the skills and tools needed to provide insightful and impactful feedback. by embracing such proactive measures, it organizations could not only enhance employee motivation levels but also pave the way for sustained engagement, productivity, and overall organizational success (chen & wang, 2018). garcia and hernandez (2022) offered a compelling exploration into the differential impact of various performance appraisal methods, such as the nuanced 360-degree feedback approach versus the more traditional ratings-based methods, on employee motivation within the dynamic landscape of manufacturing companies. through a meticulously crafted comparative analysis leveraging survey data from a diverse sample of 400 employees spanning different manufacturing firms, garcia and hernandez unraveled a fascinating narrative—a distinct propensity for 360-degree feedback systems to engender higher motivation levels among employees compared to their traditional counterparts. this notable difference in motivational outcomes could be attributed to the comprehensive and multi-perspective nature of the 360-degree feedback approach, which inherently fosters a more holistic and nuanced understanding of employee performance. building upon these insightful findings, garcia and hernandez's recommendations were astute and actionable, advocating for a thoughtful consideration of adopting 360-degree feedback systems within the performance appraisal frameworks of manufacturing companies. by embracing such innovative approaches, manufacturing organizations could effectively nurture a more motivated, engaged, and high-performing workforce, thus driving sustainable growth and success within the competitive manufacturing landscape (garcia & hernandez, 2022). wong and chang (2023) delved into the intricacies of perceived fairness as a pivotal mediating factor in the complex relationship between performance appraisal systems and employee motivation—a relationship fraught with nuances and implications for organizational success. employing a sophisticated structural equation modeling (sem) analysis and drawing upon data from a robust sample of 300 employees spanning diverse industries, wong and chang unveiled a compelling narrative—the profound impact of perceived fairness in mediating the link between performance appraisals and motivation levels among employees. the study's findings underscored the transformative potential of fair and transparent appraisal systems in fostering heightened motivation and engagement among employees. in light of these transformative insights, wong and chang's recommendations were poignant and strategic, advocating for a deliberate focus on http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 7 walter, (2024) enhancing transparency, consistency, and fairness within performance appraisal processes. by embracing measures aimed at improving perceived fairness, organizations could effectively nurture a more motivated and engaged workforce, thus driving enhanced performance, productivity, and overall organizational success (wong & chang, 2023). miller and thompson (2019) represented a significant leap forward in understanding the profound impact of goal-setting within performance appraisals on employee motivation and goal attainment—an area of paramount importance, particularly within the dynamic and competitive realm of sales teams. leveraging a meticulously designed field experiment involving ten sales teams, miller and thompson unveiled a compelling narrative—the transformative impact of goalsetting mechanisms within performance appraisals in bolstering employee motivation levels and facilitating clearer goal attainment. the study's findings highlighted how the integration of goalsetting techniques within the appraisal framework led to heightened motivation levels among sales professionals, translating into enhanced goal clarity and tangible improvements in goal achievement rates. in light of these transformative insights, miller and thompson's recommendations were astute and actionable, advocating for the seamless integration of goalsetting techniques within the performance appraisal processes of sales teams. by embracing such strategic approaches, organizations could effectively nurture a more motivated, focused, and highperforming cadre of sales professionals, thus driving sustained growth and success within the competitive sales landscape (miller & thompson, 2019). jones and brown (2020) provided a comprehensive exploration into the intricate relationship between performance appraisal frequency and employee motivation within the dynamic context of remote work arrangements—an area increasingly pertinent in today's evolving work landscape. through a meticulously designed survey study engaging with 500 remote workers representing diverse industries, jones and brown unearthed compelling insights—the transformative impact of more frequent performance appraisals in remote work settings in bolstering employee motivation and fostering a heightened sense of accountability among remote workers. the study's findings highlighted how regular performance appraisal sessions and robust feedback mechanisms contributed significantly to sustaining motivation levels and driving enhanced productivity within remote teams. in light of these transformative insights, jones and brown's recommendations were strategic and actionable, advocating for the proactive implementation of regular virtual performance appraisal sessions and the development of robust feedback mechanisms tailored to remote work dynamics. by embracing such strategic measures, organizations could effectively nurture a more motivated, accountable, and high-performing remote workforce, thus driving sustained success and competitiveness in the evolving remote work landscape (jones & brown, 2020 methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 8 walter, (2024) results conceptual gap: despite existing studies on the positive correlation between performance appraisal systems (pas) and employee motivation, there is a lack of comprehensive research that delves into the specific mechanisms through which different types of pas influence various aspects of motivation, such as intrinsic motivation, job satisfaction, and performance outcomes. while smith and johnson (2019) highlighted the importance of feedback quality, lee and kim (2021) focused on appraisal criteria relevance, and garcia and hernandez (2022) emphasized the impact of different appraisal methods, there is a need for integrated research that synthesizes these factors to provide a holistic understanding of how pas can optimally motivate employees across different sectors and organizational contexts. contextual gap: the research conducted by miller and thompson (2019) focused on goal-setting within pas specifically within sales teams, while jones and brown (2020) explored performance appraisal frequency in the context of remote work arrangements. however, there is a scarcity of studies that investigate how pas design and implementation can be tailored to address the unique motivational needs and challenges of diverse sectors such as healthcare, manufacturing, it, and hospitality. understanding the contextual nuances and sector-specific factors that influence the effectiveness of pas in motivating employees is crucial for developing targeted strategies that maximize motivation and performance outcomes. geographical gap: the study by chen and wang (2018) referenced primarily focus on western contexts, with research conducted in the united states and other developed economies. there is a significant gap in research exploring the relationship between pas and employee motivation in emerging economies and regions with diverse cultural backgrounds. investigating how cultural factors, organizational practices, and socioeconomic conditions interact with pas to influence motivation levels can provide valuable insights into global variations in motivational dynamics and inform the development of culturally sensitive pas strategies. conclusion and recommendations conclusion the relationship between performance appraisal systems (pas) and employee motivation is a complex and multifaceted aspect of organizational dynamics that continues to garner significant attention in research and practice. through a comprehensive review of recent studies, it is evident that pas play a crucial role in influencing employee motivation levels across various sectors and organizational contexts. key findings from studies by smith and johnson (2019), lee and kim (2021), garcia and hernandez (2022), miller and thompson (2019), jones and brown (2020), and others underscore the transformative potential of effective pas in fostering heightened motivation, job satisfaction, and overall organizational performance. one of the overarching conclusions drawn from these studies is the critical importance of feedback mechanisms within pas. whether it's the quality and frequency of feedback, the relevance of appraisal criteria, or the choice of appraisal methods, organizations must prioritize creating pas that provide employees with clear, constructive, and meaningful feedback. additionally, tailoring pas to suit the unique motivational needs and challenges of different sectors, roles, and work arrangements, as highlighted by miller and thompson (2019) for sales teams and jones and brown (2020) for remote work settings, can significantly enhance the motivational impact of these systems. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 9 walter, (2024) moreover, the geographical and cultural dimensions of pas cannot be overlooked. while much of the existing research focuses on western contexts, there is a growing recognition of the need to explore how cultural factors, organizational practices, and socioeconomic conditions interact with pas to influence motivation levels in diverse global settings. addressing these geographical gaps in research can lead to the development of culturally sensitive and contextually relevant pas strategies that maximize employee motivation and engagement worldwide. in conclusion, the relationship between pas and employee motivation is a dynamic and evolving area that requires ongoing research, innovation, and implementation of best practices. by leveraging insights from recent studies and addressing conceptual, contextual, and geographical gaps, organizations can design and implement pas that effectively nurture a motivated, engaged, and high-performing workforce, contributing to sustained organizational success and competitiveness. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory scholars and researchers should collaborate to develop an integrated theoretical framework that synthesizes insights from various motivational theories such as self-determination theory, goalsetting theory, and expectancy theory. this framework should elucidate the specific mechanisms through which different types of pas influence intrinsic motivation, job satisfaction, and performance outcomes. by integrating these theories, researchers can contribute to a deeper understanding of how pas design and implementation impact employee motivation across different organizational contexts and sectors. practice organizations should adopt a tailored approach to design pas that align with the unique motivational needs and challenges of different sectors, roles, and work arrangements. this involves incorporating feedback mechanisms that provide clear, constructive, and meaningful feedback, setting specific and challenging yet attainable goals, and ensuring fairness and transparency in performance evaluations. moreover, organizations should invest in training programs aimed at equipping managers with the skills and tools needed to conduct effective and impactful performance appraisals. by tailoring pas to suit organizational and employee needs, organizations can enhance employee motivation and engagement levels significantly. policy policymakers should emphasize the importance of cultural sensitivity in pas design and implementation. this includes recognizing the cultural nuances that influence motivational dynamics and ensuring that pas strategies are culturally relevant and inclusive. policymakers can promote guidelines and standards that encourage organizations to consider cultural factors when designing and implementing pas, fostering a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment. policymakers should also develop regulatory guidelines that encourage organizations to adopt best practices in pas, particularly concerning feedback quality, appraisal criteria relevance, and appraisal method choices. by establishing clear standards and expectations, policymakers can incentivize organizations to prioritize pas strategies that enhance employee motivation and contribute to overall organizational performance. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 1 11, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2085 10 walter, (2024) references abdullah, n., & ismail, a. z. 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(2023). perceived fairness as a mediator in the relationship between performance appraisal systems and employee motivation. organizational psychology review, 29(2), 55-72. license copyright (c) 2024 edith walter this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ imprint of occupational health and safety conditions on employee commitment: a case study of toyota tsusho corporation dr. aitaa sam kilimvi and joana nshyira owusu-antwi european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 1 imprint of occupational health and safety conditions on employee commitment: a case study of toyota tsusho corporation dr. aitaa sam kilimvi1,2* and joana nshyira owusu-antwi3 1lecturer, faculty of management science, muni university, uganda 2lecturer, royal docks school of business and law, university of east london 3royal docks school of business and law, university of east london *corresponding author’s email: sa’kilimvi@muni.ac.ug abstract purpose: world health organization (who) potentiates the goal of occupational health and safety as protecting employees' mental, bodily, and social health while they are working. using toyota tsusho corporation as a case study, this study aimed at examining the impact of occupational health and safety measures on employee commitment. methodology: the study utilized a quantitative analysis of published data from toyota corporation health and safety initiatives report. descriptive statistics was employed for the data analysis, and the independent sample test was performed to assess the study's hypothesis. findings: this study found that management initiative and commitment to health and safety had a positive influence on employee commitment. it was also revealed that health and safety measures had an association with employee commitment and presenteeism level. recommendations: the study recommend businesses to adopt healthy lifestyles and encourage employee motivation to lower presenteeism in both high-risk and low-risk environments. policies on employee safety and provision of appropriate equipment that reduce the frequency of accidents, illnesses, and injuries should be the priority of management. keywords: occupational health and safety, employee commitment, presenteeism, organizational policies. mailto:kilimvi@muni.ac.ug european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 2 1.0 introduction occupational health and safety is the practice of ensuring that employees are healthy and safe at workplace to improve their performance and productivity. according to world health organization (who, 2022), the goal of occupational health and safety is to protect employees' mental, bodily, and social health while they are working. international labor organization (ilo) estimated about 2.3 million work-related diseases or accidents every year, and over 6000 death each day around the globe (world statistics, 2022). additionally, the ilo estimated over 340 million occupational accidents and an annual work-related illness of about 160 million (world statistics, 2022). the above estimates indicate how relevant it is, to maintain occupational health and safety standards at the workplace as it directly involves employee commitment, satisfaction and productivity. in a presentation by amponsah-tawiah and mensah (2016), the significance of a healthy working environment is being recognized as a broad concept, influencing the quality of life from the individual level to the large impacts on public health at the societal level. occupational health and safety aim at the working environment of employees to maintain the best mental, physical and social well-being of employees (world health organization, 2022). the viability of a business for employers, labour unions, society, and the government has gradually grown to depend on the workplace. the standard of the workplace has an impact on how well employees perform (yankson, 2012). using toyota tsusho corporation as a case study, this study aimed at examining the impact of occupational health and safety measures on employee engagement. this study examined how health and safety conditions in an organization may affect employee commitment. the health and safety policy of toyota tsusho stated in their health and safety report affirms that: “toyota tsusho group utilizes the occupational safety and health management system, and toyota tsusho group will make efforts to improve and maintain such system to aim at continuously higher level of safety and health” (toyota tsusho website, n.d) work-related accidents and illnesses can be quite expensive for both the company and the affected employee. to prevent workplace accidents and illnesses, management and employees should take all reasonable precautions. however, implementing safety measures while failing to provide enough training and information regarding these regulations will not suffice. 1.1 statement of the problem one of the most significant resources that demand competent management is personnel. the entire efficacy and efficiency of an organization will change as a result of successful and competent human resource management. it is essential to remember that accidents are quite expensive for the organization and the afflicted employee. ilo estimated over 340 million occupational accidents and an annual work-related illness of about 160 million (world statistics, 2022). toyota tsusho corporation is one of the companies that use machines intensively. machines and the workplace environment, according to cascio (1996) are the primary causes of safety hazards. despite extensive research on workplace health and safety conducted worldwide, very little work has been done on the relationship between employee commitment and workplace health and safety. it is as a result of this gap in the literature that the study seeks to examine european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 3 the health and safety conditions and their effect on employee commitment and make a recommendation on the health and safety of employees in the organization. 1.2 research aims and objectives this study was to explore the potential impact of health and safety measures on the dedication of employees to work. the main objective of the study was to ascertain whether the implementation of health and safety measures in an organization has a direct impact on the level of commitment of employees. the specific objectives of the study were: to understand whether organizations have health and safety measures in place; to determine management commitment to health and safety and its correlation to risk occurrence factors and; to examine the relationship between health and safety measures and employees' commitment to work. this study was guided by the following research questions: 1. do the organization have health and safety measures in place? 2. does management have commitment to health and safety and its correlation to risk occurrence factors? 3. what is the relationship between health and safety measures and employee commitment to work? 1.3 research hypothesis null hypothesis (h1): health and safety measures have no effects on employee commitment. the alternative (h2): health and safety measures have effects on employee commitment. 2.0 review of related literature 2.1 theoretical framework the world health organization (who, 2022), explains occupational health as an area of work that “promotes and maintain the highest degree of physical, mental and social well-being of workers in all occupations”. international labour organization (ilo, 1998), additionally defines occupational health and safety as the “discipline dealing with the prevention of work-related injuries and diseases as well as the protection and promotion of health of workers.” these definitions elaborate on the mental, physical and social scopes of all occupations and measures to protect, prevent and reduces unexpected accidents in the workplace. consideration and prevention of workplace death, injuries, and illness are important for individual operative and their families, the organization employing them, the community and society at large. workplace injuries and illness affect organizational costs both directly and indirectly. some of the direct cost includes treatment cost for injured workers, injury compensation and insurance cost and many more. the indirect cost may include overtime charges and loss in production. the injured family may endure emotional and financial constraints (glashower et al., 2017). occupational health and safety is not a mere concept of maintaining a safe and healthy working environment for employees but it includes social, personal and community well-being (liu et al., 2019). occupational health and safety, following amponsah-tawiah and dartey-baah (2011), captures the emotional, psychological, and physical well-being of employees in terms of how they go about their daily work activities and, as a result, highlights a crucial topic of interest positively affecting the achievement of organizational goals. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 4 similarly, cascio (1996) defines health hazards as elements of the workplace that progressively, cumulatively, and frequently permanently worsen an employee's health, such as cancer, poisoning, and respiratory illnesses. in some businesses, undesirable consequences are the main focus of concern. conversely, the scope of occupational health and safety is broad, and a multidisciplinary approach is necessary. it requires an understanding of engineering, biology, chemistry, ergonomics, and allied fields. additionally, it requires public health management abilities for effective decisionand communication-making (tadesse & admasu, 2006). one of the key indicators of occupational health is presenteeism. according to zanon et al. (2021), presenteeism can be seen as, a condition when employees regularly arrive at work with indications or signs of illness. this is a widespread occurrence in many workplaces and can have detrimental effects on businesses. although the employee is present at work, the productivity is low coupled with the potential to spread illnesses which threaten not only their productivity but also that of the entire company. it may be difficult to assess the economic costs of presenteeism. the economic cost of such losses could be higher than absenteeism. according to ogata (2009), cited in assunção (2014), depression, obesity, arthritis, back pain, neck pain, and anxiety are the health issues that have the biggest impact on productivity. a firm's major direct health-related expenditures are caused by chronic diseases like heart or disease cancer, which necessitate costly treatments and typically hit people later in life. these costs include a health premium that a firm pays to an insurer or, if it is self-insured, the claims paid for the medication and medical treatment (hemp, 2004). employees' productivity is impacted by presenteeism when they arrive at work with health issues but feel obligated to stay due to demands from their supervisors or employers. as a consequence of this, presenteeism negatively impacts not only employees' productivity but also their commitment, interpersonal connections at work, and ability to balance work and life. additionally, it deteriorates the health of workers, undermines their motivation to work, increases accidents, and lowers productivity (haque, 2018). employee commitment happens to be one of the topics that have received attention from many scholars around the world in the organizational behaviour areas, due to its influence on work behaviour such as effective performance, compliance with policies, directives and many more (sohel, shanewaz, raihan, & tarik, 2020). according to leka, sinclair, & houdmont (2012), commitment is a force that binds an individual to a target and to a course of action of relevance to that target. the definitions emphasize employees' devotion to organizational practices and culture. according to some experts, commitment is both a desire to continue with a course of action and a reluctance to change direction, frequently due to a sense of duty to continue with the plan. people are similarly committed to a variety of organizations, including political, religious, family, economic, and educational ones. meyer and allen (1991) describes employee commitment in three components; affective commitment (ac), continuance commitment (cc) and normative commitment (nc). the term affective commitment describes an employee's identification with, involvement with, and emotional attachment to the organization. a strong emotional commitment means that employees stay on board with the company because they want. normative commitment displays a sense of duty to keep working. employees that exhibit a high level of normative commitment believe they should stay with the company. it is asserted that a person's experiences both before and after joining european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 5 the organization have an impact on normative commitment. this implies that contacts within organizations, as well as those with families and society at large, have an impact on how normative commitment within the workplace develops. (allen & meyer, 1990; markovits, boer & van dick, 2014). 2.2 empirical framework work engagement, organizational commitment and management commitment a state of active labour that is marked by intense activity characterized by zeal, enthusiasm, and absorption is known as work engagement. employees that are energetically involved in their work are motivated and committed to what they do (beach, 2000) in this regard, employees can increase their duties and emotional connection to their work, as well as put more effort and more time into work, which is beneficial to obtaining good work performance. employees that are highly engaged at work also have a strong sense of who they are as workers and have high expectations for themselves. nevertheless, many researchers have demonstrated a beneficial relationship between work engagement and job performance (lu, yu & shan, 2022). ehrhardt et al. (2011), suggest that organizational commitment is a degree to which an employee identifies and associates with an organization’s mission, goals, and values and is willing to maintain membership. o’reilly (1989) defined organizational commitment as a person's psychological connection to an organization, such as a sense of job engagement, loyalty, and belief in the organization's principles. according to this viewpoint, organizational commitment includes employees' acceptance of organizational goals and their capacity to exert effort on behalf of the organization (miller & lee, 2001). the retention of key employees is critical to the future success of any organization. organizational performance, customer satisfaction, and a positive work environment are all heavily reliant on the organization's ability to retain the best employees (suárez-albanchez et al., 2021). organizations with a safety policy, safety concerns in their strategy, assigning funding for cascading, and putting the same into practice are thought to demonstrate management commitments. according to berhan (2020), there would be fewer risk factors for disease or accidents if organizational safety rules and strategy concerns were correctly applied and practiced. as a result, occupational illnesses and industrial accidents will become less common. beach (2000), suggest that high-level management is responsible for an organization's safety enhancement, but team members and employees also play a crucial role in achieving the organization's overall objectives. the performance of health and safety would never be achieved without employee involvement (yankson, 2012). activities that uplift workers and have an impact on their attitudes and beliefs ought to be encouraged. this can be determined when management demonstrates a clear and convincing interest in the well-being and safety of employees, which can be accomplished by providing suitable work equipment, job enhancement programs, skill development, and management activities that demonstrate their concern for employees' safety (gyekye & salminen, 2007). michael et al. (2005), agree that organizational commitment, work satisfaction, and performance-related outcomes are all positively correlated with management commitment to safety. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 6 3.0 methodology research methodology describes the ways in which one may proceed with the research; a methodical approach to problem-solving (smith, 2016). for the purpose of this study, quantitative research method was used as predestined by the purpose of this research. secondary data in the form of published information related to health and safety measures of toyota tsusho were extracted and reviewed for the analysis. this research was based on ontology philosophy which is “our assumptions about knowledge and how this is created” (vance, 2006). ontology aids researchers in recognizing the degree of certainty they can have about the existence and characteristics of the objects they are studying. in this study, the existing phenomenon of toyota tsusho over their organizational policies for resolving occupational health and safety issues were explored. notably, this study sort to explore an in-depth current standing of the impact of health and safety measures on employee commitment taking presenteeism and work engagement into perspective. the study was guided by the pragmatism philosophy. this philosophy approaches practical issues and suggests solutions by fusing theory and practice and employing a variety of research techniques as well as methodological combinations. in this study, a factual case study is used and analyzed practically. the study adopted case study approach. according to gillham (2001) cited in leka (2012), the primary goal of a case study is to produce a context and process study that clarifies the topic under investigation. the research employed descriptive analysis of data collected on the health and safety initiative report of toyota tsusho corporation and a regression analysis to test the hypothesis of the study. 4.0 presentation of findings, analysis and interpretations the study focused on exploring the potential effect of health and safety measures on the commitment of employees to work. the objective of the study was to determine whether the implementation of health and safety policies at the workplace directly influences how committed employees are to their work. the specific objectives of the study were, (a) to understand whether organizations have health and safety measures in place, (b) to determine management commitment to health and safety and its correlation to risk occurrence factors, and (c) to examine the relationship between health and safety measures and employees’ commitment to work. secondary data was collected from toyota tsusho corporation initiatives on health and safety reports. this data was gathered from august 2022 to october 2022 using a descriptive approach providing an in-depth understanding of the phenomena of the study. the health and safety policy of toyota tsusho stated in their health and safety report affirms that toyota tsusho group top management recognizes that good communication between top management and employees is crucial for safety and health management, and the top management will respect such intercommunication with employees. and as inscribed, toyota tsusho group observes the laws of safety and health, guidelines of work operation inside the premises of customers, and toyota tsusho group will establish necessary internal rules and regulations to improve the level of safety and health management (toyota tsusho website, n.d) in the health and safety management framework, toyota tsusho reported that up to 399 individuals received safety and health training in the fiscal year 2020, including new hires, european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 7 mid-level workers, managers, and executives. a total of 287 people used the workshop simulators for practical instruction to increase sensitivity to danger (toyota tsusho website, n.d). the health and safety reports stated the toyota tsusho group health declaration which was released by the top management in october 2017, and since then, health management has been encouraged. to ensure that every employee can conduct business activities while being aware of the key sustainability issues. figure 1 shows the management health and safety framework of toyota tsusho group showing the involvement of management and initiatives and measures in improving health and safety. figure 1: toyota tsusho group health and safety management promotion framework source: adopted from (toyota tsusho website, n.d) in line with the health declaration, the organization made the development of human resources that exemplify ‘be the right one’ a management concern and aimed to maintain and improve the physical and mental health of every employee. by encouraging regular health checkups, conducting interviews, putting rules into place, and hosting seminars on cancer, infectious diseases, mental illnesses, and lifestyle-related diseases, the organization is improving employee health literacy. a healthy lifestyle challenge 8 program was introduced by the toyota group. this initiative promotes advancements in eight areas (appropriate weight, drinking, exercise smoking, snacking, breakfast, sleep and stress). this health management is focused on cancer and infectious disease counter-measures, and as a result of these activities, improves the impact on lifestyle-related diseases and mental health (toyota tsusho website, n.d). european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 8 further analysis of the policy of toyota tsusho in maintaining continuous higher health and safety levels presented in table 1 shows management commitment to promoting health. there was 100 % periodic medical consultation rate from 2017 to 2021. for the antismoke measure, there was a downward trend in the rate of smoking from 20.8% in 2017 to 17% in 2021. there was an increase in stress rate recorded in 2018 and 2019, however, there was a decline in the rate of high stress from 8.4% to 5% due to management encouragement. additionally, there was an increase in stress check consultations from 79.7% in 2017 to 98% in 2021. further analysis shows that the healthy lifestyles management initiative showed a decline in absenteeism as well as a reduction in medical fees from 146,495 yen in the facial year 2017 to 130,000 yen in 2021. furthermore, as seen in table one there was a decrease in presenteeism from 35.4% to 33%, which showed a positive effect on work engagement which increased from 2.32 in the year of 2017 to 3 per cent in 2021. table 1: health and productivity results of management initiatives source: adopted from (toyota tsusho website, n.d) fy2017 fy2018 fy2019 fy2020 fy2021 consultation rate for periodic medical examinations 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% consultation rate for detailed examinations 67.10% 86.50% 94.90% 97.10% 100% abc examinations 100% 100% 100% 100% fecal occult blood 92.00% 93.80% 100% blood pressure 87.60% 87.20% 90.20% 90.30% 93% blood glucose level 75.90% 71.20% 78.30% 83.80% 85% all age groups 22.50% 23.20% 23.40% 23.60% 23% under 40 years of age 13.90% 15.40% 17.30% 17.20% 17% total 20.80% 20.40% 20.80% 18% 17% male 30.00% 29.80% 29.90% 25.80% 25% female 3.50% 3.10% 3.10% 2.20% 2% percentage of individuals who exercise regularly*2 46.20% 45.40% 46.20% 45.40% 50% percentage of individuals who are well-rested through sleep 64.30% 67.00% 66.50% 75.50% 78% percentage of individuals who eat breakfast*3 73.40% 75.50% 74.90% 76.00% 80% stress check consultation rate 79.70% 84.20% 88.40% 97.20% 98% percentage of individuals with high stress 6.80% 8.20% 8.40% 5.30% 5% long working hours occurrence rate of overtime work exceeding 50 h per month 2.63% 2.84% 2.53% 2.58% 2.50% interview rate of individuals engaging in interviews with an industrial physician 88.70% 90.00% 93.50% 94% 100% percentage of individuals taking annual paid leave 60.60% 62.80% 65.80% 52.80% 60% infectious diseases seminar (cumulative number of persons) 2,232 person 2,432 persons 2,523 persons 2,523 persons 2,800 persons physical 0.38% 0.24% 0.21% 0.12% 0.10% mental 0.44% 0.40% 0.33% 0.28% 0.20% presenteeism (who-hpq) 35.40% 33% medical fees (per individual) domestic 146,495 yen 134,091 yen 133,922 yen 133,151 yen 130,000 yen work engagement 2.32 2.65 2.61 2.65 3 implementation rate for health consultations on specified conditions 26.30% 48.40% 40.20% 48% results of health and productivity management initiatives absenteeism (percentage of individuals who were absent from work for more than 7 consecutive days due to nonoccupational injury or illness) treatment rate*1 obesity rate bmi more than 25 rate of smoking consultation rate forcancer examinations european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 9 figure 2, 3 and 4 showed how many program elements from the healthy lifestyles challenge 8 were used. figure 2 show a likely increase in health literacy bringing awareness to healthy lifestyle choices while in figure 3 there was a downward trend in presenteeism in the healthy lifestyle challenge. figure 2: health literacy (average) source: adopted from (toyota tsusho website, n.d) figure 3: presenteeism (average) source: adopted from (toyota tsusho website, n.d) european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 10 figure 4 shows an increase in work engagement from the healthy lifestyle challenge. figure 4: work engagement (average) source: adopted from (toyota tsusho website, n.d) table 2 shows the number of employees that participated in health seminars and work engagements from 2017 to 2021. table 2: descriptive statistics of health training participants and work engagement sourced from (toyota tsusho website, n.d) 4.1 hypothesis testing table 3 shows regression analysis on the number of employees who participated in health seminars indicating health literacy rate from 2017 to 2021 and their levels of work engagement representing commitment. the result showed that multiple r which is the correlation coefficient was 0.974. this suggests a positive relationship between health literacy and work engagement. additionally, from the table, r square was observed to be 0.950. year training participants work engagement 2017 2232 2.32 2018 2432 2.65 2019 2523 2.61 2020 2523 2.65 2021 2800 3 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 11 table 3: regression output therefore, the null hypothesis (h1) that health and safety measures have no effects on employee commitment is rejected and the alternative (h2) health and safety measures have great effects on employee commitment is upheld. on the relationship between health literacy and work engagement, figure 5 shows that, as the number of participants involved in health and safety initiatives increased, work engagement equally increased. figure 5: relationship between health literacy and work engagement the findings showed that health and safety measures had a positive influence on employee commitment. as shown in the graphs as employees’ health literacy increased, presentism decreased leading to an increase in work engagement (commitment). the findings revealed that management health initiates were patronized by employees increasing health literacy rate and improving a healthy lifestyle among the employees. these findings conform to the findings of michael et al. (2005) that, raising employees’ views of management's concern for their well-being through a commitment to safety will have positive effects along with improved safety performance. summary output regression statistics multiple r 0.97493 r square 0.950488 adjusted r square 0.933985 standard error 0.062001 observations 5 2 2.2 2.4 2.6 2.8 3 3.2 2000 2200 2400 2600 2800 3000 w o rk e n ga ge m en t health/safety litracy relationship between health literacy and work engagement european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 12 the results are consistent with (teo, bentley & nguyen, 2020) suggestions about work engagement, which is a favorable attitude toward work, and employees' affective commitment to the company as the final result. one aspect of an employee's well-being is thought to be their level of work engagement. 5.0 summary, conclusions and recommendations 5.1 summary of the findings the findings showed that health and safety measures had a positive influence on employee commitment; as health literacy increased, presentism decreased leading to an increase in work engagement. the findings also revealed that management health initiates were patronized by employees increasing health literacy rate and improving a healthy lifestyle among the employees. these findings conform to the findings of michael et al. (2005) that, raising employees’ views of management's concern for their well-being through a commitment to safety will have positive effects along with improved safety performance. the decrease in presenteeism conforms to haque et al. (2017), that effective health and safety management can increase employees' motivation to maintain their organizational commitment and dissuade them from leaving. in essence, this is a rational response: employees who perceive that their employer cares about their health and safety will be less likely to leave the organization. (suárez-albanchez et al., 2021). an employee is more likely to go above and provide good ‘on-the-job performance’ if they are more engaged at work. furthermore, motivated staff members may be more committed to sticking with their existing company (vance, 2006). the results are consistent with (zhang et al., 2013 cited in teo, bentley and nguyen, 2020) suggestions about work engagement, which is a favorable attitude toward work, and employees' affective commitment to the company as the final result. one aspect of an employee's well-being is thought to be their level of work engagement. on the relationship between health literacy and work engagement, figure 5 shows that, as the number of participants involved in health and safety initiatives increased, work engagement equally increased. 5.2 conclusion the study had three main objectives in determining whether implementing health and safety measures in an organization affects employee commitment. qualitative secondary data was collected from the toyota tsusho cooperation health and safety initiatives report. the first objective was on identifying the health and safety measures that companies had in place. the study found that toyota tsusho had health and safety measures in place. the second objective focused on identifying management's commitment to health and safety and how it relates to risk-causing factors. the study found that management had a commitment to health and safety in training their employees which also showed a decrease in their medical fees. furthermore, the third objective was to examine the relationship between health and safety measures and employees' commitment to work. according to the study, there was a considerable correlation between employee engagement, and occupational health and safety. lastly, using the regression analysis as a test of the hypothesis the null hypothesis: (health and safety measures will have no effects on employee commitment.) was rejected by the outcome. consequently, the alternative hypothesis: (health and safety measures will have positive effects on employee commitment) was verified by the findings. the results of the european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 1 16, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 13 study demonstrate that management safety measures and initiatives are essential for maximizing employees’ commitment to their company. this indicates that to keep a loyal workforce, management must demonstrate care for their welfare by providing a healthy and safe place for the people who work for them. as a result of the fact that committed employees remain with a firm, regularly show up for work, put in a full day or more, protect corporate assets, support the company's objectives, and favourably influence them. the key finding of the study showed that as employee’s participated in health and safety seminars, training and healthy lifestyle challenges the levels of presenteeism decreased as work engagement increased showing their commitment. this indicates that educating employees on health and safety is essential for effective implementation. 5.3 recommendations the results of this study brings forth to managers, stakeholders, and employers some understanding of how employee commitment levels are impacted by occupational health and safety practices present on the job. if positively conceived, may aid in the development of effective interventions and policy guidelines that can be implemented to assist the employees. this study aimed to emphasize the need for management commitment to safety concerns and the adoption and implementation of best practices on workplace safety rules and enforcing them. management's concern for health and safety practices and programs may impact employee commitment. furthermore, human resource managers will find this to be very helpful as they will know exactly where to concentrate their efforts to achieve improved levels of safety compliance and commitment among their staff by lowering workplace-related health issues, and injuries and raising employee commitment. consequently, it is recommended that businesses operating in both high-risk and those with reduced risk environments, motivate employees and adopt a healthy way of life to reduce presenteeism. it is essential to monitor risk factors that can lead to injuries while also maintaining a pleasant work environment that supports a healthy lifestyle so that employees can execute their responsibilities swiftly and efficiently. management must prioritize employee safety by putting in place procedures and supplying tools that lower the number of mishaps, illnesses, and injuries. finally, this research discovered that as employees become aware of their health and adopt healthy lifestyles the level of presenteeism decreases and increases work engagement adding to the body of knowledge. references allen n. and meyer, j. 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(2021) "presenteeism and safety culture: evaluation of health workers in a teaching hospital", revista brasileira de enfermagem, 74(1). doi: 10.1590/00347167-2019-0463. https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/%20516aabc7-7b5d-396b-91b6-68f022342db0 https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/%20516aabc7-7b5d-396b-91b6-68f022342db0 effect of training and development programs on employee productivity in mozambique elias eli european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 33 eli, (2024) effect of training and development programs on employee productivity in mozambique elias eli eduardo mondlane university article history submitted 30.03.2024 revised version received 29.04.2024 accepted 01.06.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the effect of training and development programs on employee productivity in mozambique. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study indicated that wellstructured training initiatives lead to significant improvements in both individual and organizational performance. employees who undergo regular training acquire new skills and knowledge, which can be directly applied to their job tasks, leading to increased efficiency and effectiveness. furthermore, development programs foster a sense of growth and career advancement, boosting employee morale and motivation. this, in turn, reduces turnover rates and enhances job satisfaction. organizations that invest in continuous learning opportunities often see a more engaged and competent workforce, capable of adapting to changing business environments and driving innovation. ultimately, the strategic implementation of training and development programs can lead to a more productive and competitive organization, with employees who are wellequipped to meet current and future challenges. implications to theory, practice and policy: human capital theory, social learning theory and motivation-hygiene theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the effect of training and development programs on employee productivity in mozambique. organizations should design and implement customized training programs that align with specific job roles and organizational objectives. policymakers should promote policies that support lifelong learning and professional development. this includes providing incentives for organizations to invest in employee training and development programs. keywords: training, development programs, employee productivity http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 34 eli, (2024) introduction employee productivity, a measure of the efficiency of a worker or group of workers, is a critical indicator of economic health. in the united states, productivity has shown steady growth, with a notable increase of 2.4% in 2021 compared to the previous year, despite the challenges posed by the covid-19 pandemic (u.s. bureau of labor statistics, 2022). japan, on the other hand, has experienced slower productivity growth, averaging around 0.9% annually over the past decade, reflecting structural challenges such as an aging population and labor market rigidities (oecd, 2023). both nations emphasize innovation and technology to enhance productivity, with the u.s. leading in digital transformation and japan focusing on robotics and automation. these trends highlight the varied approaches to improving productivity in different economic contexts (smith, 2020). in developing economies, productivity trends often reflect rapid industrialization and shifts from agriculture to manufacturing and services. for instance, india has seen significant productivity growth, averaging around 4% annually over the past decade, driven by advancements in information technology and a growing services sector (world bank, 2023). brazil has also experienced improvements, although at a slower pace, with productivity growing by about 1.5% annually, hindered by structural issues and economic volatility (oecd, 2023). these economies are focusing on education and infrastructure development to sustain productivity gains. the challenge remains to balance growth with equitable distribution of benefits to reduce poverty and enhance living standards (gordon, 2019). employee productivity in developing economies often demonstrates significant potential for growth driven by various sectors transitioning from traditional industries to more modernized ones. in india, productivity has seen a notable increase, with the country experiencing an average annual growth rate of around 4% over the past decade, primarily fueled by advancements in the information technology sector and a robust services industry (world bank, 2023). this growth reflects the broader structural changes in the economy, including urbanization and improved education systems. similarly, in vietnam, productivity growth has averaged approximately 5.7% annually from 2010 to 2020, largely due to substantial foreign direct investment and a strong emphasis on manufacturing and exports (nguyen & tran, 2022). these economies are increasingly focusing on infrastructure development, technological adoption, and improving human capital to sustain and enhance productivity growth (chen, 2021). employee productivity in developing economies continues to evolve with varying degrees of growth across different nations. in indonesia, productivity has grown by an average of 3.2% annually over the past decade. this growth has been driven by substantial improvements in manufacturing and services, supported by government policies aimed at enhancing infrastructure and attracting foreign investment (asian development bank, 2023). however, challenges such as bureaucratic inefficiencies and infrastructure gaps remain. to sustain this growth, indonesia focuses on improving education, vocational training, and digital infrastructure (rahardja & varela, 2019). in mexico, productivity growth has been relatively sluggish, averaging around 1.8% annually. this slow growth can be attributed to structural challenges, including a large informal sector, labor market rigidity, and insufficient investment in technology and innovation (oecd, 2023). despite these challenges, sectors like automotive manufacturing and aerospace have seen productivity http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 35 eli, (2024) improvements due to integration into global value chains and increased foreign direct investment. mexico's strategy to enhance productivity includes reforms aimed at improving regulatory efficiency, investing in human capital, and fostering innovation (sosa & cabrera, 2020). brazil presents a contrasting case with slower productivity growth, averaging around 1.5% annually over the past decade. this slower pace is attributed to structural challenges such as labor market rigidity, political instability, and economic volatility (oecd, 2023). however, brazil has made strides in certain sectors such as agriculture, where productivity has been boosted by technological improvements and better management practices. the government is also focusing on reforms to improve the business environment and investment in education to drive productivity gains. these efforts underscore the importance of addressing structural issues to unlock the full productivity potential of developing economies (lemos & pessoa, 2020). kenya, on the other hand, has experienced more robust productivity growth, averaging about 3% per year. this growth has been supported by improvements in agriculture, which remains a key sector, as well as a rapidly growing technology sector, often referred to as "silicon savannah" (world bank, 2023). the government's focus on enhancing infrastructure, promoting innovation, and improving education has been crucial in driving these gains. despite these positive trends, challenges such as corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and educational gaps continue to impact overall productivity levels. addressing these issues is essential for sustaining and accelerating productivity growth in the region (mwangi & wambugu, 2019). rwanda has demonstrated notable productivity growth, averaging around 4% annually, supported by substantial investments in information and communication technology (ict) and a strong focus on education and governance reforms. these efforts have positioned rwanda as a regional leader in digital innovation and economic reform (african development bank, 2023). despite these gains, challenges such as limited natural resources and a small domestic market constrain further growth. continued investment in human capital and regional integration are key strategies for sustaining productivity improvements in rwanda (mutizwa & chigbu, 2020). sub-saharan economies present a complex picture of productivity trends, influenced by varying levels of economic development, resource endowments, and governance structures. nigeria, africa's largest economy, has seen modest productivity growth averaging around 2% annually. this growth is often hampered by heavy reliance on oil exports, regional disparities, and infrastructural challenges (african development bank, 2023). efforts to diversify the economy and improve productivity include investments in agriculture, digital technology, and energy infrastructure. however, political instability and policy inconsistencies remain significant hurdles to sustained productivity growth (adegboye & iweriebor, 2020). other sub-saharan countries like ethiopia and rwanda have shown promising productivity trends. ethiopia has experienced an average annual productivity growth of about 3.5% over the past decade, largely due to government-led industrialization policies, investments in infrastructure, and improvements in agricultural productivity (world bank, 2023). however, political instability and recurring conflicts pose significant risks to sustained productivity growth. ethiopia's focus on developing industrial parks and improving transport infrastructure is crucial for maintaining and enhancing productivity (gebrehiwot & mahembe, 2021). training and development programs, such as workshops, seminars, online courses, and mentorship programs, play a crucial role in enhancing employee productivity. workshops provide hands-on http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 36 eli, (2024) learning experiences that enable employees to acquire practical skills and knowledge, directly improving job performance (ocen, francis, & angundaru, 2019). seminars allow employees to gain insights from industry experts and peers, fostering knowledge exchange and promoting innovation (nguyen, 2021). online courses offer flexibility and accessibility, allowing employees to learn at their own pace and convenience, which supports continuous professional development and skill enhancement (kaur, 2020). mentorship programs facilitate personalized learning and career guidance, helping employees develop professionally and enhance their productivity through structured support and feedback (singh & sharma, 2018). linking these training and development programs to employee productivity, research indicates that such initiatives lead to improved job performance, higher employee engagement, and increased organizational efficiency. for example, workshops and seminars encourage collaborative learning and practical application of skills, resulting in innovative solutions and enhanced work processes (ocen, francis & angundaru, 2019; nguyen, 2021). online courses enable employees to stay updated with the latest industry trends and technologies, thereby increasing their competence and productivity (kaur, 2020). mentorship programs support employees' personal and professional growth, which boosts job satisfaction and productivity (singh & sharma, 2018). collectively, these programs contribute to developing a skilled and motivated workforce, which is essential for maintaining a competitive advantage in today's dynamic business environment. problem statement despite significant investments in training and development programs, many organizations continue to struggle with optimizing employee productivity. research indicates that while these programs are designed to enhance skills and competencies, their actual impact on productivity varies widely depending on various factors such as the quality of training, the relevance of the content, and the methods of delivery (nguyen, 2021). additionally, there is a growing concern that traditional training methods may not be sufficient to meet the evolving demands of modern workplaces, which increasingly require advanced digital skills and continuous learning (kaur, 2020). furthermore, the integration of training programs into the overall strategic goals of the organization is often lacking, leading to a disconnect between training outcomes and productivity improvements (ocen, francis, & angundaru, 2019). therefore, a comprehensive evaluation of how different types of training and development programs influence employee productivity is necessary to identify the most effective approaches and ensure that investments in these programs yield substantial returns (singh & sharma, 2018). theoretical framework human capital theory human capital theory, originated by gary becker in the 1960s, posits that investments in education and training enhance the productivity of individuals. the main theme is that employees are valuable assets whose skills and knowledge can be developed through targeted training, leading to improved performance and productivity. this theory is highly relevant to the topic as it provides a rationale for why organizations should invest in training and development programs, viewing them as critical tools for enhancing employee capabilities and, consequently, organizational productivity. recent studies continue to affirm the positive impact of human capital investments on productivity (becker, 2020). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 37 eli, (2024) social learning theory social learning theory, developed by albert bandura in the 1970s, emphasizes learning through observation, imitation, and modeling. the central idea is that people can learn new behaviors and skills by observing others, which can be facilitated through training programs such as workshops and seminars. this theory underpins the research topic by highlighting the importance of interactive and observational learning methods in employee training, which can lead to enhanced skill acquisition and improved productivity. recent research underscores the effectiveness of social learning strategies in professional development (bandura, 2019). motivation-hygiene theory frederick herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory, formulated in the 1950s, distinguishes between factors that cause job satisfaction (motivators) and those that cause dissatisfaction (hygiene factors). the theory suggests that providing opportunities for growth and advancement, such as through development programs, can significantly enhance employee motivation and productivity. this theory is relevant to the research topic as it supports the idea that well-designed training programs not only improve skills but also increase job satisfaction and motivation, leading to higher productivity levels. contemporary studies support the link between employee development opportunities and increased job satisfaction and productivity (herzberg, 2018). empirical review sharma and taneja (2018) delved into the intricate relationship between training programs and employee performance within the it sector. employing a comprehensive survey methodology encompassing a diverse sample of it professionals, their research revealed a significant positive correlation between the frequency and quality of training interventions and enhanced employee productivity. the findings not only underscored the pivotal role of continuous skill development in a rapidly evolving technological landscape but also emphasized the need for tailored training programs that align with specific job roles and organizational objectives. moreover, sharma and taneja's study advocated for a holistic approach to training, integrating soft skills development alongside technical competencies to foster a well-rounded and highly productive workforce. nguyen (2019) investigated the impact of seminars on professional development through a mixedmethods approach. combining qualitative interviews with quantitative surveys among professionals from diverse industries, nguyen's research unveiled the multifaceted benefits of seminar-based training programs. beyond the acquisition of domain-specific knowledge, seminars were found to stimulate creativity, collaboration, and cross-functional learning, all of which are critical drivers of enhanced productivity in modern workplaces. the study's recommendations extended beyond mere attendance at seminars, emphasizing the importance of creating an organizational culture that encourages continuous learning, knowledge sharing, and innovation. by fostering a dynamic learning environment that values ongoing development, organizations can unlock the full potential of their workforce and drive sustained productivity improvements. kaur (2020) explored the intricate effects of online courses on productivity within the education sector. employing advanced statistical analysis techniques on a vast dataset comprising educators and administrators, kaur's research elucidated the nuanced mechanisms through which digital learning platforms contribute to workforce productivity. the study highlighted not only the convenience and accessibility of online learning but also its role in promoting self-directed learning, fostering a culture of lifelong learning, and empowering educators with up-to-date http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 38 eli, (2024) pedagogical strategies. kaur's recommendations emphasized the importance of strategic integration of online courses into institutional training frameworks, coupled with ongoing support and mentoring to maximize their impact on employee performance and organizational effectiveness. ocen, francis and angundaru (2019) conducted a seminal research endeavor to understand the mediating effect of job satisfaction on training and commitment in ugandan companies. leveraging sophisticated structural equation modeling techniques on a comprehensive dataset encompassing diverse industries, their study provided compelling evidence of the intertwined nature of employee satisfaction, training effectiveness, and organizational commitment. the findings underscored the critical role of job satisfaction as a catalyst that amplifies the positive impact of training initiatives on employee productivity. moreover, the study's recommendations emphasized the need for organizations to adopt a holistic approach to talent management, integrating training programs with robust performance management systems, career development pathways, and employee recognition strategies to create a conducive environment for continuous learning and high performance. , singh and sharma (2018) investigated its profound impact on employee productivity, particularly within the it sector. by employing a mixed-methods approach encompassing qualitative interviews, surveys, and performance metrics analysis, their research provided nuanced insights into the multifaceted benefits of formal mentorship programs. beyond the transfer of technical skills and domain knowledge, mentorship was found to significantly enhance employee engagement, job satisfaction, and professional growth trajectories. singh and sharma's study emphasized the pivotal role of structured mentorship initiatives in fostering a culture of knowledge sharing, talent development, and leadership succession planning within organizations. their recommendations underscored the need for organizations to invest in mentorship frameworks that are tailored to individual needs, provide ongoing support and feedback mechanisms, and align with organizational goals to maximize their impact on workforce productivity and retention. rahardja and varela (2019) explored the intricate dynamics of infrastructure development training and its impact on productivity in indonesia. leveraging qualitative data from industry experts, government stakeholders, and training program participants, their research uncovered the transformative potential of targeted skill development initiatives in driving economic growth and productivity. the study highlighted the importance of aligning training programs with industry demands, technological advancements, and national development priorities to ensure their relevance and effectiveness in enhancing workforce productivity. rahardja and varela's recommendations underscored the need for public-private partnerships, continuous skills assessments, and tailored training interventions to address skill gaps, promote innovation, and drive sustainable productivity gains in evolving industries. sosa and cabrera (2020) contributed significantly to the field by conducting a comprehensive survey-based study to examine the impact of professional development programs on productivity in mexico. by analyzing data from a diverse range of industries and organizational sizes, their research provided nuanced insights into the drivers of productivity improvements stemming from targeted training interventions. the study highlighted the critical role of strategic planning, needs assessments, and performance metrics in designing effective professional development initiatives that align with organizational goals and employee skill requirements. sosa and cabrera's recommendations emphasized the importance of continuous evaluation, feedback mechanisms, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 39 eli, (2024) and adaptive learning strategies to ensure the sustained impact of training programs on workforce productivity and organizational competitiveness. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gap: despite the studies' emphasis on the positive correlation between training programs and enhanced employee productivity, there remains a conceptual gap regarding the specific mechanisms through which different types of training interventions influence productivity. while studies like sharma and taneja (2018) highlight the importance of continuous skill development and tailored programs, there is a need for more in-depth investigations into the differential effects of various training modalities (e.g., workshops, online courses, mentorship programs) on different aspects of productivity (e.g., task performance, innovation, collaboration). contextual gap: the studies primarily focus on specific sectors such as it (sharma & taneja, 2018; singh & sharma, 2018) and education (kaur, 2020), with limited exploration of training's impact across diverse organizational contexts. there is a need for research that considers the contextual nuances, including organizational size, industry type, and cultural factors, in understanding how training programs can be tailored to maximize productivity gains across different organizational settings. geographical gap: the geographical focus of the studies is primarily on regions like india (sharma & taneja, 2018), vietnam (nguyen, 2019), uganda (ocen, francis, & angundaru, 2019), indonesia (rahardja & varela, 2019), and mexico (sosa & cabrera, 2020). while these studies offer valuable insights, there is a gap in research that examines training and development programs' impact on productivity in other geographical regions, particularly in developed economies or regions with unique socio-economic dynamics that may influence training effectiveness and productivity outcomes. conclusion and recommendations conclusion in conclusion, the effect of training and development programs on employee productivity is unequivocally significant across various industries and organizational contexts. comprehensive research, such as that conducted by sharma and taneja (2018), nguyen (2019), kaur (2020), ocen, francis, and angundaru (2019), singh and sharma (2018), rahardja and varela (2019), and sosa and cabrera (2020), highlights the multifaceted benefits of tailored training interventions, including enhanced skill development, increased job satisfaction, and improved overall performance. these studies underscore the importance of continuous learning and development in fostering a productive workforce capable of adapting to technological advancements and evolving industry demands. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 40 eli, (2024) however, to fully harness the potential of training programs, organizations must adopt a strategic approach that aligns training initiatives with specific job roles, organizational goals, and employee needs. this includes integrating both technical and soft skills training, fostering a culture of continuous learning, and ensuring supportive mentoring and feedback mechanisms. moreover, addressing conceptual, contextual, and geographical research gaps will further enhance our understanding of the optimal conditions and practices that maximize the effectiveness of training and development programs. overall, investing in comprehensive and well-designed training programs is crucial for organizations aiming to boost employee productivity, foster innovation, and maintain a competitive edge in today’s dynamic business environment. by prioritizing and continually refining their training strategies, organizations can ensure sustained growth and success through an empowered and highly productive workforce. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory integration of diverse training modalities: future research should develop comprehensive theoretical models that integrate various types of training modalities, such as workshops, online courses, and mentorship programs. understanding the differential impacts of these modalities on different dimensions of productivity can enrich theoretical frameworks in organizational behavior and human resource development. theoretical exploration of the specific mechanisms through which training programs influence productivity can provide deeper insights. this includes investigating how factors like motivation, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment mediate the relationship between training and productivity, thereby enhancing theoretical models. developing theories that account for contextual and sector-specific nuances can provide a more nuanced understanding of training effectiveness. this can include theories that explore how cultural, organizational, and industry-specific factors influence the impact of training programs on productivity. practice organizations should design and implement customized training programs that align with specific job roles and organizational objectives. tailoring training to address both technical and soft skills needs can enhance employee engagement and productivity. establishing a culture of continuous learning is crucial. organizations should encourage ongoing professional development through regular training sessions, seminars, and access to online learning platforms. this approach can help employees stay updated with industry trends and technological advancements. implementing structured mentorship programs and robust feedback mechanisms can significantly enhance the effectiveness of training initiatives. mentorship provides personalized guidance and support, while feedback mechanisms ensure continuous improvement and alignment with organizational goals. policy policymakers should promote policies that support lifelong learning and professional development. this includes providing incentives for organizations to invest in employee training and development programs. encouraging public-private partnerships can enhance the quality and relevance of training programs. collaboration between government, educational institutions, and http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 41 eli, (2024) industry can help develop training initiatives that meet current and future workforce needs. establishing standards and accreditation for training programs can ensure their quality and effectiveness. policymakers can develop frameworks that assess and certify training programs, thereby providing organizations with reliable options for employee development. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 33 43, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2087 42 eli, (2024) references adegboye, a., & iweriebor, e. 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(2023). world development indicators. world bank. https://doi.org/10.1596/978-14648-1758-8 license copyright (c) 2024 elias eli this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ socially responsible human resource management practices and employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria egbuta, o.u., idam, n.m.r., adeoye, s.o. and ajike, e.o. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 1 egbuta, et al. (2024) socially responsible human resource management practices and employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in southwest nigeria egbuta, o.u.1, idam, n.m.r.2, adeoye, s.o.3 and ajike, e.o.4 school of management sciences, department of business administration and marketing, babcock university, ilishan-remo, ogun state, nigeria article history submitted 02.02.2024 revised version received 05.03.2024 accepted 08.04.2024 abstract purpose: most organisations develop and implement human resource management practices that assume workers do not have disabilities, often creating a disconnect between their espoused policies and practices and their reality. overt illtreatments from management and co-workers have often led to poor employee adaptability and discouraged persons with disabilities keen and able opportunity to join the workforce. hence, this study examined socially responsible human resource management practices and employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. materials and methods: survey research design was adopted for this study. the study’s sample size of 422 public servants and leaders was determined using total enumeration sampling technique. a structured and validated questionnaire and semistructured interview were used to obtain quantitative and qualitative data. cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients for the constructs ranged between 0.69 and 0.84. the response rate was 95%. data were analysed using descriptive and inferential (multiple linear regression and hierarchical regression) statistics. findings: the study found that srhrm had a statistically significant effect on job satisfaction (adj.r2 = 0.53, f(5, 410) = 92.07, p < 0.05). the qualitative data findings support the quantitative findings, and the participants’ views do not show significant variance from the quantitative findings. instead, they complement the quantitative findings. the study concluded that socially responsible human resource management practices affect employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. implications to theory, practice and policy: therefore, the study recommends involvement of persons with disabilities in strategic or operational projects, initiatives or committees set up by ministries/departments or agencies in public service in south-west nigeria specifically, and the nation at large. the findings of the study support the theory in which socially responsible human resource management was found to significantly affect the outcomes of public servants with disabilities in southwest nigeria where the interaction of subvariables was positive and mutually beneficial. keywords: employee adaptability, employee voice, employee wellbeing strategy, inclusion, organizational support, persons disabilities, socially responsible human resource management. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 2 egbuta, et al. (2024) 1.0 introduction persons with disabilities are widely regarded as the world's largest minority stakeholder group at just over one billion people, 15% of the world’s population (world health organisation, 2020) with about 80% being of working age (ilo report, 2019). in spite of the united nations sustainable development goals (unsdgs) targets aimed at bridging these gaps by 2030, disability continues to lag far behind all other diversity and equity indicators such as ethnicity, gender, age and sexual orientation. persons with disabilities continue to experience significant and perennial labour market entry barriers and are disproportionately excluded from the workforce (ingusci et al, 2022; bialik & mhiri, 2022; khan et al, 2018). in the last decade, the united nations and various international agencies have supported or directly facilitated financial inclusion initiatives focusing on women and more recently, persons with disabilities (international finance corporation, 2014; national financial inclusion strategy, 2018). in spite of wellpromoted events, the level of penetration remains low with scant sustainable interventions for persons with disabilities. the fragmented nature of representation and proliferation of disability advocacy groups jostling for relevance or supremacy, continues to erode the stance and voice of persons with disabilities in nigeria. at a national level, the association for the comprehensive empowerment of nigerians with disabilities (ascend) and the joint national association of persons with disabilities (jonapwd) continue to vie for supremacy as the umbrella body for persons with disabilities in nigeria (lang & upah, 2016). in nigeria’s private and public sectors, persons with disabilities face significant challenges in adapting to the work environment, as many organisations are not structured to accommodate or support their unique needs (eleweke & ebenso, 2016; iliya & ononiwu, 2021; soetan et al., 2019; mbada et al, 2021). some of these unique needs include taking time off work due to health-related conditions and the time it takes for them to return to work, the responsibilities they are expected to fulfil, and the limited degree of flexibility in their work methods (prouska et al, 2021). in some unique cases, persons with disabilities have had to push themselves even further to be able to fit in and meet the requirements for tasks. consequently, over time, they feel excluded and gradually disengaged from the workplace (umeh et al., 2022). the emergence of socially responsible human resource management (srhrm) in the twenty-first century is not unrelated to growing global ethical consciousness, holding organisations to account across the value chain, particularly the wellbeing of employees in the workplace (pham & tran, 2020). the concept of "srhrm" as described by sobhani et al. (2021) represents the convergence or overlap between two distinct areas of focus within organizations: corporate social responsibility (csr) and human resource management (hrm). this intersection suggests that organizations are recognizing the importance of integrating csr principles and practices into their hrm strategies. in simpler terms, srhrm implies that organizations are not only concerned with profit-making activities and managing their workforce efficiently (hrm), but also with fulfilling their social responsibilities (csr). this could involve actions such as promoting employee well-being, diversity and inclusion initiatives, ethical business practices, environmental sustainability efforts, and community engagement. other hrm approaches derived from this convergence include ethical hrm, green hrm, and sustainable hrm. in practice, srhrm and sustainable hrm are often used interchangeably. however, although largely similar, differences exist, albeit subtle (aust et al. 2018; enhert, 2016). srhrm spans those policies and practices that contribute to the improvement of employees´ work and life quality, whilst sustainable hrm refers to the adoption of hrm strategies that enable the achievement of financial, social, and http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 3 egbuta, et al. (2024) ecological goals (aust et al. 2018; barrena-martınez et al., 2019; lópez-fernández et al, 2018; dupoint et al. 2013). there are various models of srhrm, each with accompanying drivers and barriers aligned to national contexts (diaz‐carrion et al, 2019). research linking srhrm variables (inclusion, organisational support, flexible work practices, wellbeing strategy and employee voice) and employee adaptability highlighted the impact of working conditions on employees with disabilities in germany (efimov et al., 2022). in south africa’s public service, the determinants of employee physical and mental health, and its role in career adaptability and workplace attachment were explored highlighting the challenges faced by persons with disabilities (chinyamurindi & shava, 2021). predominantly, experiences of negative perception and poor treatment from managers, leaders and colleagues; poor working conditions and negative perceptions of their fellow employees (mbada et al., 2021). in a study of hope, adaptability and job search intensity among individuals with serious mental illness showed a strong relationship between career adaptability amongst those employed than those that were not (stevenson et al., 2021). 2.0 literature review employee adaptability employee adaptability is a broad concept that describes workers’ ability to modify their attitudes and behaviours in response to changing environments and circumstances (urbanaviciute et al., 2019). employee adaptability is the ability to learn from life’s experiences and grow as a person to deal with changes and pressures with a healthy predisposition (van dam & meulders, 2021). such an outlook also helps in the development of self-confidence and a positive self-image. organisations can promote employee adaptability in several ways: by encouraging employees to develop a wide range of skills and abilities; providing with opportunities for training, and continuous learning and development; encouraging workers to take on distinct roles and responsibilities; and providing employees with more information about their organisation and how they operate (lee et al., 2021). employee adaptability has many benefit. one benefit of employee adaptability in an organization is that it enables employees work more independently while still keeping their leaders and management teams abreast of key elements of their work. another benefit of employee adaptability is that employees are able to save time and money for the organisation using creative approaches identified in the course of their work (indriastuti & fachrunnisa, 2021). a workplace that that promotes employee adaptability positions its employees to adjust new joiners and collaboration amongst existing employees (sony & mekoth, 2016). being able to adapt to work demands can cut down on the time spent in meetings, make people more motivated, engaged, and lead to more breakthroughs. through adaptability, they will be more likely to stay with their employers for longer periods (chow, 2019). by promoting employee adaptability, organizations can increase productivity, and reduce turnover intention and related costs. in addition, more adaptable people tend to be more effective at performing their jobs. socially responsible human resources management socially responsible human resource management (srhrm) involves the adoption of a variety of hrm and csr practices that promote social responsibility and eliminate any potential for bias in the hiring, supervision, and management of personnel (al-amin et al., 2021). it is the combination of various hrm and csr practices that result in a socially conscious hrm and csr in organisations (zhao & zhou, 2021). srhrm incorporated employees’ needs into the needs of organizations, which leads to greater involvement and satisfaction, ultimately increasing hrm effectiveness (heikkinen et al., 2021). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 4 egbuta, et al. (2024) the incorporation of social responsibility into hrm and csr is known as “socially responsible human resource management” (“srhrm”). socially responsible human resource management is based on the idea that hrm must be socially responsible (liao et al., 2022). a central characteristic of srhrm practice in organizations is a focus on ethical behavior and values (gao & he, 2017). this includes practices such as ethical recruitment and selection, fair treatment of employees, and promoting a positive organizational culture that values integrity and ethical conduct (anlesinya & amponsah-tawiah, 2020; lópez-fernández, 2018; hussain & endut, 2018). another characteristic of srhrm is the integration of social and environmental considerations into hr policies and practices. this involves initiatives such as implementing sustainable hr practices, supporting employee volunteerism and community engagement, and considering the impact of hr decisions on the environment (aust et al. 2018; enhert, 2016). a third characteristic of srhrm is a commitment to diversity and inclusion. this spans efforts to promote diversity in the workforce, as well as initiatives to create a supportive and inclusive work environment for all employees. this study delves into various facets of socially responsible human resources management practices, namely inclusion, organizational support, flexible work practices, employee wellbeing strategy, employee voice as discussed below: inclusion the inclusion of employees in an organisation’s processes and procedures is a basic principle of employment legislation. the employer must take affirmative action to ensure that all employees are aware of their rights and responsibilities at work, that they are treated fairly, regardless of age, gender, or other personal characteristics, that they can participate in decision-making processes at work and that they have opportunities for promotion (yahaya, 2020). employee inclusion is often achieved through training programmes for managers and supervisors on equal opportunity policies (hoang et al., 2022). in some countries, there are legal requirements for employers to provide equal opportunities for training for all managers (gupta & gomathi, 2022). these laws usually require employers to provide such training at regular intervals (e.g., every two years). in some cases, these laws also require employers to provide such training immediately after a manager is promoted to a position where he or she will be supervising employees (pal et al., 2022). the laws of some countries require employers to establish mechanisms for the resolution of complaints of discrimination, harassment, and bullying (norman & johnson, 2022). these mechanisms are usually administered through an ombudsman or the organisation’s human resources function. organisational support organisational support is the extent to which an organisation provides for its members. this is sometimes called the “welfare” or “social” aspect of an organisation and is concerned with issues such as the provision of information, training and development, health and safety and grievance procedures (andrade & neves, 2022a). organisational support can be seen as a fusion of organisational commitment and the psychological contract. it is the extent to which an organisation shows its concern for its employees by providing them with a sense of security and trust, enabling them to feel safe in their work environment (bernarto et al., 2020). most importantly, organisational support is about the degree of trust an individual has in the organisation they work for as influence by how they are treated by it. the two main aspects of organizational support are informational support -the provision of information, and emotional support the provision of help) (rasool et al., 2022). emotional support can be further divided into two sub-components: namely emotional labour and emotional investment (chen et al., 2020). emotional labour is the extent to which the organisation provides support to its members to http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 5 egbuta, et al. (2024) reduce their stress levels and to help them deal with problems (piotrowski et al., 2021). this can be seen as a specific type of emotional support in which the organisation aids members by providing constant encouragement and support. emotional investment is the extent to which an organisation shows concern for its members by providing them with a sense of security and trust, enabling them to feel safe in their work environment (hossin et al., 2021). flexible work practices flexible working practices describe a type of work arrangement which gives a degree of flexibility on how long, where, when and at what times employees work (anya et al., 2021). flexible working arrangements can be adopted for the benefit of employees, employers, or both. flexible working arrangements are different from flexible hours which allow employees to work during hours in the work day other than the standard full-time hours of 9 am – 5 pm (gašić & berber, 2021). typical characteristics of flexible work practices include part-time work; work where an employee is contracted to work for less than full-time hours available by law (arquisola et al., 2022). term-time working: a worker remains on a permanent contract but can take paid or unpaid leave during school holidays (rahman et al., 2022). job-sharing: a form of part-time working where two (or occasionally more) people share the responsibility for a job between them (vyas, 2022). flexi-time: allows employees to choose, within certain set limits, when to begin and end work. compressed hours: compressed working weeks (or fortnights) do not necessarily involve a reduction in total hours or any extension in individual choice over which hours are worked. the central feature is a reallocation of work into fewer and longer blocks during the week (yeaman, 2022). annual hours: the total number of hours to be worked over the year is fixed but there is variation over the year in the length of the working day and week (goswami, 2022). employee well-being strategy an employee well-being strategy is a considered plan of action that makes a company a happier and healthier place to work (agarwal, 2020). a happy and healthy employee is more productive, less stressed, and more efficient (ripp et al., 2020). it is a simple equation of investment in employee wellbeing ensuring that the employee is in the right frame of mind to make positive contributions to the organisation (casucci et al., 2020). teams and employees are more likely to adopt a well-being initiative that has a meaningful strategic approach, instead of a collection of benefits that do not align with a consistent goal (dipietro et al., 2020). the key components of an employee well-being strategy include a nurturing environment where people feel accepted and connected (radic et al., 2020). it involves working together on a task or meeting with a client. it is much more than a comfortable sit-down with a therapist. it is an active, personalized process that involves talking with people about their problems, how they can improve their well-being, and how they can help each other (binnewies et al., 2020). engaging employees in a healthy way by creating a healthy work environment. the organisation must engage employees in a meaningful way. it is not enough to just ask them to sit down with a therapist or talk to a friend. to be effective, employees must be engaged meaningfully. this means talking about work as well as the issues in their personal lives that may affect their contributions at work. asking employees about their problems, and helping them to find solutions, not just referring them to someone else (rahman et al., 2020). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 6 egbuta, et al. (2024) employee voice employee voice refers to the collective ideas, views, and thoughts of workers that may influence workplace choices. it is a means for workers to participate in the decision-making process and contribute to the dialogue (mmamel et al., 2021). voice of the employee is a vital component of a strong company culture and may lead to improved communication, higher morale, and more productivity. surveys, focus groups, interviews, and feedback forms are just a few of the various ways that employees may provide input (townsend et al., 2022). employers may use these techniques to obtain insight into employee thoughts and ideas. this may help them make better-informed choices and foster an atmosphere where workers feel acknowledged and appreciated (son, 2019). when employees feel that their views and opinions are being heard and acknowledged, they are more likely to be engaged and motivated, which can lead to higher levels of production, morale, and work satisfaction (ge, 2020; ruck et al., 2017). there are a variety of techniques used to harness the potential of employee voice. first, organisations should ensure that they foster a culture in which workers feel safe to speak out and where their opinions are acknowledged and respected (ellmer & reichel, 2021). this requires the development of procedures that safeguard workers from employers for speaking out and providing feedback. second, organisations should provide channels for employee voice (belizón, 2019) which may include feedback forms, questionnaires, focus groups, and interviews. these tools may be used to obtain insight into the thoughts and ideas of workers and to find continuous improvement opportunities (budd et al., 2010). finally, organisations should develop enterprise-wide programmes to increase employee voice. these efforts may include events, seminars, and programmes aimed to increase employee participation. this may contribute to a more productive and collaborative workplace (kwon & farndale, 2020). empirical review there were limited studies on workplace adaptability of public servants or persons with disabilities. therefore, this review of findings draws from a wide range of scholarly literature on related dimensions. several studies have found that inclusion, organizational support, and flexible work practices are important for the work adaptability of employees with disabilities. in a study by smith et al. (2017), inclusion and organizational support were positively related to the work adaptability of employees with disabilities, while johnson et al. (2019) found flexible work practices to be positively related to the work adaptability of employees with disabilities. in addition to the above factors, several studies have also found that employee wellbeing and employee voice are important for the work adaptability of employees with disabilities. brown et al. (2020) found that employee wellbeing was positively related to the work adaptability of employees with disabilities. similarly, thompson et al. (2022) found that employee voice was positively related to the work adaptability of employees with disabilities. in a study of teacher assistants’, adaptability predicted their workplace wellbeing, more than the effects of teaching focus, personal and demographic variables. the findings conclude that ability to adjust cognitively, emotionally, and behaviourally in uncertain and unpredictable situations influence the teacher’s self-concept and motivation. a link was identified between disability types and teacher assistants’ adaptability. there was an association between lower levels of teacher adaptability and students with hearing and visual impairments, specifically with regard to interaction. this finding is noteworthy considering that a vast majority of the public servants in south-west nigeria involved in this study are teachers in special schools with responsibility for children with diverse disabilities. in a two-year long study amongst the swiss working population, the findings indicated that career adaptability may contribute to a sustainable job and life satisfaction over time. the researchers found a http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 7 egbuta, et al. (2024) negative relationship between career adaptability and perceived stress in life. the study also revealed that career adaptability may be beneficial for people who are starting their career and for mid-career individuals, enabling them to be better in control of their lives, eliminating stress and synergizing various aspects of their lives (urbanaviciute et al., 2019). furthermore, the role of families in employee adaptability was examined in a study of teleworkers and non-workers in the public sector. teleworkers with lower-level responsibilities reported less family interference with work. conversely, workers with higher level responsibilities reported higher family responsibilities. also, where supervisors’ control was evident, there was a negative effect on workers’ adaptability to tasks and proactivity (solis et al., 2017). villalobos et al. (2020) examined employee adaptability across cultures. from participating countries, they found adaptative and proactive workplace behaviours were influenced significantly by geographical differences, cultural norms, values and individual perceptions, rather than gdp. brazil, japan, netherlands, and the philippines reported the highest differences in workplace behaviours associated with adaptability. respondents from these countries, including india and south africa, showed the most significant differences in work performance behaviours relating to proactivity. there were small significant differences between the strong economy vs developing economy country groups. employee adaptability was also influenced by the availability of workplace accommodations. in the united kingdom, chandola and rouxel (2021) found that caring responsibilities for household members with impairments or for dependent children, was the biggest predictor for getting workplace accommodation for men and women. many workers with workplace accommodations did not have any impairments and were likely to be management level staff, have a degree level qualification, or work in the public sector. for women, poor general health was a major reason for accommodations. in most instances, their workplace adjustments were self-initiated and funded. the study did not examine gender-based adaptability. however, it concludes that workers with impairments and work accommodations remain in work and are more economically active than their peers without work accommodations. ochrach et al. (2021) indicated that the organisation’s approach to disability is reflected in its vision and mission, as set by its top leadership. this influences its hrm practices to provide work accommodations tailored to each individual’s needs which influence recognition and job satisfaction, reflecting a culture of diversity inclusion in practice. therefore, based on the foregoing, the study thus hypothesized that: h01: socially responsible human resource management practices have no significant effect on employee adaptability on public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 8 egbuta, et al. (2024) research conceptual model figure 1: conceptual model (socially responsible human resource management practices and employee adaptability) source: author’s research model (2022) the figure above presented the conceptual model based upon the review of literature and it showed the effect of socially responsible human resource management practices (inclusion, organizational support, flexible work practices, employee wellbeing strategy and employee voice) has no significant effect on the employee adaptability on public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria theoretical review social exchange theory george homans (1958) developed the social exchange theory following his interest in studying small groups, and his assumption that every civilization, community, or group was best understood when viewed as a social system. the social exchange theory is a central to the field of sociology and is often used as a framework for understanding social interactions. its concept of “costs and benefits” is widely adopted as a way of understanding why people engage in certain social behaviors (de vries & gershuny, 2017). one key aspect of the social exchange theory is the idea that people are motivated by self-interest and seek to maximize their personal benefits (kim & sandstrom, 2018). consequently, individuals are likely to engage in social interactions and relationships that they perceive as being beneficial to them, while avoiding those that they perceive as being costly or detrimental to their personal interests. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 9 egbuta, et al. (2024) supporters of the social exchange theory (kim & sandstrom, 2018; gabbay & le roux, 2018) argue that social exchange theory provides a useful framework for understanding the motivations behind social interactions and the factors that influence the development and maintenance of social relationships. they note that the theory has been applied in a variety of fields, including psychology, economics, and management. in addition, driscoll et al. (2019) argued that the theory provides a useful framework for understanding the factors that influence the formation, maintenance, and termination of social relationships, as well as the ways in which individuals balance the costs and benefits of these relationships. similarly, kaur et al. (2020) found that social exchange theory provided a useful framework for understanding the ways in which a sample of older people balanced the costs and benefits of their social relationships and the factors that influence the maintenance of these relationships over time. overall, the studies demonstrate the continued support for the use of social exchange theory as a way of understanding social interactions and relationships. the social exchange theory has been criticized for its assumptions about human behavior and its narrow focus on individualistic perspectives. one criticism of social exchange theory is that it assumes that all individuals are rational actors who make calculated decisions based on a cost-benefit analysis of their relationships. research has shown, however, that emotions and other non-rational factors can play a significant role in shaping interpersonal interactions (dolcos & florian, 2017). another criticism is that social exchange theory ignores the influence of social and cultural contexts on interpersonal relationships. the theory focuses on individualistic perspectives and does not take into account the role of group dynamics, power imbalances, and other social and cultural factors that can shape interpersonal interactions (wang, 2017). additionally, social exchange theory has been criticized for its narrow focus on dyadic relationships and its lack of attention to larger social systems and structures (kraut, 2017). this can limit its ability to explain how social exchange processes operate within groups and organizations, and how they are influenced by larger social, political, and economic systems. despite these criticisms, social exchange theory remains an important perspective in social psychology and has influenced a range of research on topics such as relationship formation and maintenance, social influence, and communication (fossby, 2020). social exchange theory is relevant to this study as well as to understanding the job satisfaction, engagement, and organizational citizenship behavior (ocb) of employees with disabilities in an organization. according to social exchange theory, individuals form and maintain relationships with others when the rewards of the relationship outweigh the costs. in the workplace, this can involve an exchange of effort and performance for rewards such as pay, benefits, recognition, and opportunities for advancement. employees with disabilities may experience unique challenges and costs in the workplace due to their disabilities, such as the need for accommodations or the potential for discrimination. however, if an organization provides employees with disabilities the necessary support and resources to succeed and recognizes their contributions, this can lead to increased job satisfaction, engagement, and ocb among employees with disabilities. on the other hand, if an organization does not provide them with the necessary support and resources or fails to recognize their contributions, this can lead to decreased job satisfaction, engagement, and ocb, as well as increased turnover intention. in this case, the costs of the relationship (e.g., lack of support and resources, discrimination) may outweigh the rewards, leading employees with disabilities to consider leaving the organization. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 10 egbuta, et al. (2024) 3.0 methodology the study’s sample size of 422 public servants and leaders was determined using total enumeration sampling technique. a structured and validated questionnaire and semi-structured interview were used to obtain quantitative and qualitative data. cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients for the constructs ranged between 0.69 and 0.84. the response rate was 95%. data were analysed using descriptive and inferential (multiple linear regression and hierarchical regression) statistics. qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis. a cronbach’s alpha value of 0.7 or above indicates a high level of internal consistency, suggesting that the items on the instrument are measuring the same thing (kumari et al., 2021). this is crucial for the reliability of the research instrument. in addition to cronbach’s alpha coefficients, composite values were generated from the pilot data collected. table 1: internal composite reliability result s/n variables number of items cronbach’s alpha composite reliability (rho_c) 1 inclusion 7(5) 0.832 0.871 2 organizational support 7(4) 0.697 0.813 3 flexible work practices 7 0.847 0.884 4 employee wellbeing strategy 6 (5) 0.793 0.857 5 employee voice 7 0.844 0.883 6 employee adaptability 7(6) 0.828 0.876 source: pilot study results (2023). model specification y = f (x) y = dependent variable x = independent variable y = employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities (opswd) x = socially responsible human resource management (srhrm) x = (x1, x2, x3, x4, x5) where: y = employee adaptability (ea) and x 1 = inclusion (inc) x 2 = organisational support (os) x 3 = flexible work practices (fwp) x 4 = employee wellbeing strategy (ews) x 5 = employee voice (ev). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 11 egbuta, et al. (2024) functional relationships y= f (x1, x2, x3, x4, x5) ………equation 1 hypothesis one ea = α0 + β1inc+ β2os+ β3fwp + β4ews + β5ev +εi …………………………equation 1 4.0 findings a total number of 437 questionnaires were administered to full-time, permanent public servants with disabilities across five states in the south-west of nigeria specifically lagos, ogun, oyo, ondo, and ekiti states. a total of 416 useable questionnaires were completed accurately, representing a 94% usable for data analysis. twenty-one questionnaires were incompletely filled and adjudged invalid for the analysis. the response rate was adequate for the research and this indicated that the analysis could be done using the study instrument. hypothesis testing h01: socially responsible human resource management (srhrm) has no significant effect on employee adaptability. table 2: summary of multiple regression analysis for the effect of srhrm components on employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria n model β t sig. anova (sig.) r adjusted r2 f (5, 410) 416 (constant) 12.662 14.843 0.000 0.001b 0.459a 0.201 21.891 inclusion 0.134 2.372 0.018 organisation support 0.167 3.129 0.002 flexible work practices 0.035 .969 0.333 employee wellbeing strategy -0.228 -5.614 0.000 employee voice 0.218 4.058 0.000 a. dependent variable: employee adaptability b. predictors: (constant), employee voice, organisation support and inclusion source: researcher’s field survey, 2024 interpretation table 2 shows the multiple regression analysis results for the effect of srhrm dimensions on employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. the results showed that employee voice (β = 0.210, t = 4.058, p<0.05) and organisation support (β = 0.167, t = 3.129, p<0.05) and inclusion (β = 0.134, t = 2.372, p<0.05) have a significant positive effect on employee adaptability. flexible work practices (β = 0.035, t = 0.969, p>0.05) have a positive insignificant effect on employee adaptability, while employee wellbeing strategy (β = -.228, t = -5.614, p>0.05) has a negative insignificant effect on http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 12 egbuta, et al. (2024) employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. the analysis of the results showed that three dimensions of socially responsible human resource management (employee voice, organisation support, and inclusion) have positive and significant effect on employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west, nigeria. this suggests that employee voice, organisation support, and inclusion are important predictors of employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. the correlation r value was 0.459. it indicated that srhrm dimensions have a positive relationship with employee adaptability. the adj. r2 was 0.201 implying that 20.1% of the variance in employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria was attributable to the socially responsible human resource management (inclusion, organisational support, flexible work practices, well-being strategy and employee voice) while 79.9% of changes that occur are accounted for by other variables not captured in the model. socially responsible human resource management being the independent variable determines 20.1% of employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. the predictive and prescriptive multiple regression models are thus expressed: ea = 12.662 + .134inc + .167os + .035fwp + -.228ews + .218ev+ ui--------eqn (i) (predictive model) ea = 12.662 + .218ev + .167os + .134inc + ui ----eqn (i) (prescriptive model) where: ea = employee adaptability inc = inclusion os = organisational support fwp = flexible work practices ews= employees wellbeing strategy ev = employee voice the regression model indicated that if srhrm dimensions were held constant at zero, employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria was 12.662. this indicates that in the absence of srhrm dimensions, organisational citizenship behaviour of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria was 12.662, indicating a positive employee adaptability. from the predictive model, three dimensions of the srhrm (employee voice, organisation support and inclusion) have significant positive effect on the employee adaptability while flexible work practices have an insignificant effect on organisational citizenship behaviour. however, employee wellbeing strategy has a negative significant effect on employee adaptability. these variables were not prescribed. from the prescriptive model, a unit change in employee voice, organisation support or inclusion would increase employee adaptability by .218, .167 and 0.134 units respectively. the results suggest that employee voice, organisation support and inclusion are significant predictors of employee adaptability among public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. thus, ministries, departments and agencies this region should focus on enhancing these dimensions of srhrm to improve overall employee adaptability. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 13 egbuta, et al. (2024) the f-statistics (df = 5, 410) = 21.891 at p<0.05) indicated that the overall model is significant for predicting the effect of srhrm on employee adaptability. this implies that the regression model is a good fit for predicting the effect of socially responsible human resource management on employee adaptability. also, since the p-value is less than 0.05, this implies that the relationship between srhrm and employee adaptability is significant. the results further showed that employee voice has the most significant effect on employee adaptability among public servants with disabilities in south-west, nigeria followed by organisation support and inclusion. based on these results, the null hypothesis four (h04) which states that srhrm dimensions have no significant effect on employee adaptability was rejected. discussion of findings the hypothesis investigated the effect of socially responsible human resource management’s (srhrm) components (inclusion, organisational support, flexibility work practices, employee wellbeing and employee voice) on employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. the results showed that three dimensions of socially responsible human resource management (employee voice, organisation support, and inclusion) have positive and significant effects on employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west, nigeria. this suggests that inclusion, organisational support, flexibility work practices, employee wellbeing and employee voice are important predictors of employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. numerically, 20.1% of the variance in employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria was attributable to the socially responsible human resource management (inclusion, organisational support, flexible work practices, well-being strategy and employee voice) while 79.9% of changes that occur are accounted for by other variables not captured in the model. consequently, srhrm determines 20.1% of employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. empirically, there were limited studies on public servants or persons with disabilities. the discussion draws from a wide range of scholarly literature on related dimensions to juxtapose with the findings of this study. in a study of teacher assistants’, adaptability predicted their workplace wellbeing, more than the effects of teaching focus, personal and demographic variables. the findings conclude that ability to adjust cognitively, emotionally, and behaviourally in uncertain and unpredictable situations influence the teacher’s self-concept and motivation. a link was identified between disability types and teacher assistants’ adaptability. there was an association between lower levels of teacher adaptability and students with hearing and visual impairments, specifically with regard to interaction. this finding is noteworthy considering that a vast majority of the public servants in south-west nigeria involved in this study are teachers in special schools with responsibility for children with diverse disabilities. similarly, the current finding corroborates with the earlier finding of urbanaviciute et al. (2019). who found career adaptability contributes to a sustainable job and life satisfaction over time. the researchers found a negative relationship between career adaptability and perceived stress in life. the study also revealed that career adaptability may be beneficial for people who are starting their career and for midcareer individuals, enabling them to be better in control of their lives, eliminating stress and synergizing various aspects of their lives (urbanaviciute et al., 2019). also, the finding resonates with chandola and rouxel (2021) who found that caring responsibilities for household members with impairments or for dependent children, was the biggest predictor for getting workplace accommodation for men and women. many workers with workplace accommodations did not have any impairments and were likely to be management level staff, have a degree level qualification, or work in the public sector. for women, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 14 egbuta, et al. (2024) poor general health was a major reason for accommodations. this study’s findings contradicted that outcome, as there was no reference beyond the public servant with disabilities in south-west nigeria. in most instances, their workplace adjustments were self-initiated and funded. the study did not examine gender-based adaptability. the study concludes that workers with impairments and work accommodations remain in work and are more economically active than their peers without work accommodations. ochrach et al. (2021) indicated that the organisation’s approach to disability is reflected in its vision and mission, as set by its top leadership. this influences its hrm practices to provide work accommodations tailored to each individual’s needs which influence recognition and job satisfaction, reflecting a culture of diversity inclusion in practice. contrary to this study’s findings, professionals with invisible disabilities, mental health disabilities and those who work for smaller organizations are less likely to disclose to co-workers or management. finally, lower perceived prejudice and the presence of co-workers with disabilities are associated with higher disclosure scores, but not for all groups (hyseni et al., 2022). 5.0 conclusion and recommendations the study concluded that socially responsible human resource management practices affect employee adaptability of public servants with disabilities in south-west nigeria. this implies that organisations that prioritize socially responsible hrm practices, particularly those that support and accommodate employees with disabilities, are likely to contribute to higher levels of adaptability among this group of workers. therefore, the study recommends involvement of persons with disabilities in strategic or operational projects, initiatives or committees set up by ministries/departments or agencies. this provides opportunities for public servants with disabilities to contribute to and proactively influence the realities around them, which can enhance a sense of inclusion and engagement. the findings of the study support the theory in which socially responsible human resource management was found to significantly affect the outcomes of public servants with disabilities in southwest nigeria where the interaction of subvariables was positive and mutually beneficial. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 1 19, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1927 15 egbuta, et al. 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(2022). does servant leadership stimulate work engagement? the moderating role of trust in the leader. frontiers in psychology, 13, 925732. license copyright (c) 2024 egbuta, o.u., idam, n.m.r., adeoye, s.o., ajike, e.o this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2018.10.013 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ favouritism in higher education institutions: exploring the drivers, consequences and policy implications seniwoliba attiah joseph & ibrahim alhassan european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 32 favouritism in higher education institutions: exploring the drivers, consequences and policy implications seniwoliba attiah joseph1 & ibrahim alhassan2* 1faculty of agriculture, food and consumer sciences, nyanpkala campus, university for development studies, tamale, ghana 2human resource planning and research unit, central administration, university for development studies, tamale, ghana *corresponding author’s email: ibrahim.alhassan@uds.edu.gh article history submitted 16.06.2023 revised version received 23.06.2023 accepted 24.06.2023 abstract purpose: favouritism is one of the most harmful informal practices in higher education institutions (heis) that affect the success and growth of the institutions, especially in recent decades. however, as destructive as favouritism is, most institutional managers seem to perpetuate its practice either because its negative effects are not well appreciated by the leaders or because the leaders have never been unfavourable of the favouritism act. this study explores favouritism and all its mutations, its causes and effects, and how to curb it in the hei context. methodology: the study was qualitatively driven. valid data were solicited from 60 staff of the university for development studies (uds), tamale, ghana, through an interview session and analysed. based on the results and insights from secondary data, the study discusses three main types of favouritism in heis: nepotism, cronyism, and patronage. we found that favouritism of any form is cancer that can affect employees psychologically, emotionally, and even mentally. findings: as a result, we conclude that the principle of fairness in the selection of employees is directly related to the level of public trust in the institution’s ability to serve its stakeholders and has deeper organisational implications that determine the ethos in the he domain and that failure, on the part of institutional managers, to employ a trusted merit-based recruitment and selection procedures in the recruitment of employees is one of the factors that can significantly contribute to the spread of unrest in the hei space. recommendations: given this, we recommend, among others, that managers and administrators of heis avoid playing favourites by instituting an anti-favouritism policy that seeks to check murky recruitment and selection procedures and promote trust in employees in the promotion and reward systems in heis. keywords: favouritism, nepotism, cronyism, patronage, higher education institutions file:///c:/users/finstock/downloads/0009-0005-7671-1487 mailto:ibrahim.alhassan@uds.edu.gh file:///c:/users/finstock/downloads/0000-0002-14619651 https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1515 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 32 1.0 introduction favouritism in developing countries is giving preferential treatment to members of one's group, such as family, friends, or members of one's political party. this can result in unequal access to resources, opportunities, and benefits. it is a fact that favouritism has become an important subject matter as corporations and both governmental and non-governmental organisations are becoming more ethical (derya et al., 2011). widespread favouritism is one of the main obstacles to good governance and organisational development in most developed countries. in general, the public perception of favouritism is ambiguous. many developed countries disapprove of it because it is unfair to those who do not have good connections. others, however, endorse it because it can help people to enforce their rights (loewe et al., n.d.). while some countries consider it a form of corruption, others believe it is not because it is not linked to money. a third group claims favouritism is a form of corruption when it circumvents the law but not if it is used merely to speed up procedures. some developed and developing countries believe favouritism is closely linked to traditional values, social norms, and culture. thus, as we know it today, favouritism permeates the operations of almost all governmental and non-governmental organisations. organisations typically have a set of strategic objectives and ambitions that they hope to achieve to succeed and flourish. to help guide their operations and decision-making processes, they create vision and mission statements that communicate their overarching purpose and direction. these statements help to ensure that everyone within the organisation is working towards the same goals and objectives. similarly, individuals have their ambitions and goals, particularly regarding finding employment. to secure employment, individuals must have developed certain skills and competencies in demand in the job market; all other factors remain constant. the competencies required by industry often inform the curriculum development of higher educational institutions (heis). thus, heis are established to impart the knowledge and skills needed to develop the workforce necessary for the economic development of a nation. because of this, any university seeking relevance in ghana today must produce graduates armed with the relevant industry competencies to seek employment or even employ other people. to this end, one can comfortably conclude that the university’s role is to generate knowledge as a basis for development and to develop the human capital required to catalyse national development. universities are agents of development, helping people out of poverty and contributing to achieving global goals. higher education has become increasingly important on national agendas. over the past decades, it has undergone profound mutations and reforms worldwide, as portrayed in a recent organisation for economic co-operation and development (oecd) review of tertiary education policies (oecd, 2008). therefore, there is a need to ensure that the right expertise is hired to work in heis. berry et al. (2011) observed a need for a conscious effort by the management of heis to recruit qualified and professional administrative and academic staff since they directly influence graduates' learning outcomes and employability. however, not all heis follow the appropriate policies and guidelines to recruit qualified and professional teams for their institutions (unesco, 2014). the overwhelming problem observed in most heis is a gross mismatch between skills, capabilities, and values in recruitment and selection. it has become a normal practice among the management of most heis in ghana that one cannot find employment unless there have close connections in the institutions where they are seeking the employment, despite having european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 33 the right qualifications, appropriate experience, knowledge, skills, and character for the job at hand. it has also been observed that the election and appointment of university leadership, such as deans, directors, and heads of departments, are influenced by the university management and not based on merit. these assertions are noticeable from the assessment of promotion documents of staff members, their recruitment and posting, the appointing of staff to headship positions, and even the posting of national service personnel into the university. when favouritism is noticed in an organisation by staff who happen to be unfavourable in the favouritism act, they turn to break their citizenship and the loyalty that has been built over the years. this phenomenon naturally leads to low productivity, unrest, turnover intention or turnover. thus, a discussion on favouritism in the high education context is urgently needed to highlight the woes that accompany its practice. unfortunately, the literature on favouritism in higher education is largely unavailable. the few documented works on the subject do not adequately address favouritism involving staff in heis. therefore, it is on this basis that we made this effort to provide a detailed discourse on favouritism in heis. to achieve our objective, we reviewed relevant literature on the subject. we also solicited the opinions of staff with relevant knowledge, experience, and expertise in the recruitment and selection process at the university for development studies (uds) in tamale, ghana (purposive sampling) who were within our reach and were available and willing (convenient sampling) to participate in the study. the data were analysed based on the current trends of favouritism by considering the types of favouritism, causes of favouritism, the impact of favouritism and how to curb favouritism in heis. thus, this paper presented an overview of favouritism in the recruitment and selection process, followed by a discourse on favouritism in heis and types of favouritism in heis. we also present the causes of favouritism in the hei context. we discussed extensively; some proposed solutions to curb all forms of favouritism. finally, we present recommendations to the leadership of heis on managing favouritism and all its mutations to engender a positive work climate in a university setting. we wish to acknowledge that our paper was guided by insights from several theories of favouritism: in-group favoritism, social identity theory, homophily theory, implicit bias, evolutionary psychology, social exchange theory, power and status theory, and the like. we did what we did because there are many different theories of favouritism, and there is no one theory that can explain favouritism in all cases. some theories of favouritism focus on the person doing the favouritism, while others focus on the person or group that is favoured. besides, the theories provide different perspectives on favouritism and are subject to ongoing research and debate. thus, discourse on favouritism is multifaceted and influenced by psychological, sociological, and cultural factors. favouritism in the recruitment and selection process all employees, regardless of their skills and experience, are entitled to equal treatment, as illustrated in the ghana labour act 2003, act 651 in section 68, which states that every worker should receive equal pay for work of equal value without any discrimination, and per the 1992 constitution of the republic of ghana, which recognises the right to fair remuneration and equal pay for work of equal value (section 24(1)). the constitution of ghana also clarifies that all human beings are equal before the law and that no person can be discriminated against on any grounds, be it gender, race, colour, ethnic origin, religion, creed, or social or economic status. however, he in ghana has been characterised by political influence and favouritism, usually during recruitment. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 34 while the recruitment and selection process aim to identify and attract potential candidates from within and outside an institution, most parts of the process have elements of subjective judgment inherent in them. experience shows that a successful appointment can produce results that impact favourably on the wider aspects of institutional life, while a poor one can have damaging effects on institutions. according to keles et al. (2011), one of the negative effects of favouritism on the recruitment and selection process is that candidates are recruited based on their friendships and ties with some managers in the organisation where employment is being sought. these people may not have sufficient knowledge, skills, and qualifications for the job. they may not perform as well as other candidates with appropriate qualifications and experience. failure of the institution to recruit the appropriate candidates will impact employee motivation, citizenship, institutional harmony, justice, and eventually, productivity. such impacts can cause productive employees to leave their jobs over time and to make negative comments about the institution to its customers, stakeholders, colleagues, and people around them, which can harm the operations and image of the institution (arasli & tumer, 2008). according to froschheiser (2008), putting the wrong person in the wrong position to fill a vacancy can have dire consequences for the organisation in terms of poor employee morale, low productivity, and loss of opportunities. perhaps, this is why sarkar and kumar (2007) contend that organisational performance hinges on organisations' approach to recruiting and selecting their employees. favouritism in higher education institutions all employees, regardless of their skills and experience, are entitled to equal treatment, yet, favouritism is thriving in modern-day workplaces, especially in heis. according to abun (2014), favouritism in he refers to a practice where a person or group of persons are treated differently than others, not necessarily because of their qualifications regarding job requirements but sometimes other aspects unrelated to job performance. it is a fact that in every hei, favouritism is found, and such preferential groups do exist. these groups are called the “circle of influence” or “the untouchable” because elements in the group are treated as special and considered close to the top management and can also influence management’s decisions and other people’s behaviour. the closeness of such individuals and groups to top management and their influence on management decisions brand them with such names. most of the time, the unfavourable need to be extremely careful when dealing with such a favoured group of people because it can cost them their employment. favouritism is one of the most harmful informal practices in heis that affect the success and growth of institutions, especially in the last few decades. however, as destructive as favouritism is, most institutional managers seem to perpetuate its practice either because its negative effects are not well appreciated by the leaders or the leaders themselves have never been unfavourable of the favouritism act. goode's work (2017) mentions the negative consequences of favouritism when he writes that training students to develop work experience and employable skills is lacking in ghana’s he system. goode (2017) further reports that the interviews and focus group participants stated that ghana’s heis still need to build a culture for students to develop work experience and career skills due to a lack of technical and professional staff who can mount programmes that are market driven. in this regard, sinha and thaly (2013) spoke of a holistic recruitment model. they emphasised the importance of the whole recruitment process and the independence of its parts to avoid favouritism. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 35 the presence of favouritism in the heis in ghana was also echoed by the national council for tertiary education when they reported, after the council’s 2019 audit exercise, that some teaching staff are teaching courses in which they have no expertise. therefore, the report recommended the realignment of some teaching staff. the council’s report also recommended that some non-teaching staff pursue programmes leading to acquiring some competencies that will enable them to meet the job demands of their current positions or departments. implementing the ncte recommendations will involve training and recruitment costs for the affected universities. therefore, without any reservations, favouritism in he is counterproductive and, in some cases, unethical and illegal (abun, 2014). when management assigns responsibilities or promotes employees based on favouritism, the institution cannot attract the most qualified person. it discourages excellent performance and encourages mediocrity. hard work is not recognised, but laziness is. promotion is not based on merit, but on certain favours, abun (2014) opines. favouritism in he can be very demotivating for the employees who are at the unwanted end; it can result in one person being unfairly promoted faster than the others, being paid more to do the same job as others, and being more tolerated. the result is that they appear to be treated better than others for no valid administrative reason (muzellec, 2006). favouritism is one of the most critical sources of stress, personal preferences of decision-makers, loss of motivation and productivity, and a poison to employee morale. a typical example is the case where a staff member of professor nir’ mbor’ oyelli institute of technology working on the ghana tertiary education commission’s (gtec) annual institutional data was denied the opportunity to attend a workshop organised by the commission. the opportunity was given to a staff member of the same institution who had never heard of gtec’s annual institutional data. conspicuously speaking, this kind of favouritism creates terrible feelings in employees towards the management and the favoured employees. certainly, such emotional conditions affect the performance of unfavourable employees. thus, favouritism does not benefit any organisation, but it destroys almost all its administrative structures (abun, 2014). employees might be professionals, qualified, and experienced, but they are still humans and susceptible to emotions better left outside the workplace. jealousy, anger, fear, sullenness, and worry can occur at any time in a work or institutional environment, but these negative emotions are exacerbated when favouritism occurs. therefore, management should be careful when playing favouritism. before indulging in workplace favouritism, management and supervisors should consider how their actions might affect other workers. types of favouritism in higher education institutions there are several types of favouritism in he; however, our paper will only discuss those that bother much in the hei landscape: cronyism, patronage, and nepotism. nepotism: the term nepotism, derived from the latin word “nepos,” meaning nephew, is defined by webster’s third new international dictionary (merriam webster, 2011) as the appointment of nephews or other kin to duties based on relationship rather than qualification. it is an individual’s attainment, recruitment, promotion, selection, or provision of more favourable working conditions and similar gains irrespective of their knowledge, abilities, skills, educational level, and experience, but owing to their kinship ties (ozsemerci, 2003). one major effect of nepotism on recruitment and placement practices is that candidates are considered for employment based on their friendships and bold ties rather than their european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 36 professional merits. nepotism negatively affects employee work satisfaction and the smooth operation of profit-motived organisations. cronyism: is a broad social phenomenon in today’s business world. cronyism is a compound word of “crony,” which seems to have originated as slang among undergraduates at the university of cambridge in the 17th century, meaning close friend. crony comes from the greek word khronios, meaning “long-standing” (duckett, 2003). the concept can be defined as a general tendency to favour one person or group over others (loewe et al., 2007). cronyism is hiring people because of friendship but not on professional grounds. cronyism is a type of organisational politics (khatri et al., 2003), and it creates a feeling of entitlement on the part of the cronies and causes insubordination and disrespect for management members who are not in the circle of the cronies. friends of managers may feel they deserve promotions and appointments to headship positions ahead of more qualified employees (root, 2004). cronyism affects the performance of the unfavourable employees as well as the performance of the institution because people are treated based on cronyism and not on their talents, skills, abilities, competencies, and experience. patronage: the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organisation or individual bestows on another (wikipedia, 2021). patronage can be called “favouritism” based on attributes unrelated to merit or performance. globally, patronage practices vary enormously, and they are highly entrenched with “godfathers”, professors and administrators acting as gatekeepers into an academic career. avenues for patronage abound, for example, in the allocation of offices. whoever decides which person gets which office can use this power to dispense favours, giving the largest or most attractive offices to favourites. every little thing in he can be involved in patronage. it could be assessing a grant application, referring to an article, fixing a computer, fixing an air conditioner, and many more (brain, 2009). for example, the easiest way to get rid of the unfavourable is to make life unpleasant for them so that they leave the institution in a way that looks voluntary. potential techniques include preventing them from getting desirable and lucrative administrative offices, giving them no recognition for achievements, denying them access to systems relevant to their work, and denying them tenure. patronage in he has four dimensions. the first type is making decisions favouring insiders (compatriots), such as making appointments and awarding grants. such actions are fairly obvious and, as such, may be susceptible to challenge in an equal-opportunity environment. the second type of patronage is biasing the process through which decisions are made, for example, by appointing favourites to selected committees or, more subtly, by establishing a process that will make appointing such people to a particular committee more likely. the third type of patronage is assisting preferred individuals in developing their knowledge or skills. an example is by granting them undue study leave, holding their headship positions while they are in further studies, and nominating them for undeserved career development programmes that are not due. the fourth type of patronage is personal interaction, for example, how a person is greeted in a private meeting or on a public occasion. patronage at the interpersonal level is often quite subtle and can be hard to detect, easy to misinterpret, impossible to prove and hence difficult to contest. these dimensions of patronage are summarised in the table below. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 37 table 1: types of higher education patronage no type of patronage advantage for the favoured (insiders) disadvantage for the unfavoured (outsiders) 1 decision making advantageous decisions adverse decisions 2 processes biased procedures; stacked lucrative committees biased procedures; stacked committees 3 assistance advice; support; coaching; provide inside knowledge absence or inadequacy of assistance 4 personal interaction encouragement; stimulus; bolstering of reputation discouragement; ostracism; bullying; undermining. source: adopted from brain (2009), and modified effects of favouritism on higher education institutions virtually all development players now concur that for any meaningful and sustainable economic growth to be realised and sustained, tertiary education must be centrally placed in the development agenda of nations. countries worldwide strive to build the sector in their strategic development plans. indeed, building a tertiary education system is no longer a luxury but a national and continental imperative critical for africa’s development and global competitiveness (makuku, 2020), and therefore heis should operate in a climate devoid of favouritism. in addition, worldwide research on teaching in he revealed that most institutional personnel do not have the knowledge and skills for quality assurance because of the practice of favouritism. the situation has been further aggravated by poor to no orientation and the induction of new personnel. it is well known that an institution's reputation is at risk if perceptions of poor-quality result from favouritism. besides these, the effects of favouritism may include a decline in organisational performance, resentment and demoralisation, organisational conflict, a negative corporate image of the university, and unemployable graduates. unemployable graduates graduates trained under the hands of unqualified faculty members are highly unlikely to hone the required competencies and skills to venture into the world of work, thus keeping them in the unemployment bracket. this is why it is no longer a surprise that despite the growing educational attainment of many, several pieces of literature cite a lack of skills and experience as key barriers to graduate work opportunities in various areas of the world (fox et al., 2016). some faculty members across the african sub-region gain their current job, maybe not because they merit it but because of favouritism. perhaps this is the reason baah-boateng (2014) concludes that although educational attainment in ghana is rising, the quality of education is considered weak and ineffective in building both the motor and cognitive skills necessary to enter the labour force, resulting from the employment of unqualified teaching and non-teaching staff in our universities. the decline in organisational performance the performance of any organisation depends, to a large extent, on the level of skills its leaders possess when it comes to implementing strategies. silva (2014) described the essence of leadership as a conditional relationship between a manager and his followers. therefore, the performance of an organisation also depends on its employees, who are key customers of the organisation and form the team that works towards achieving the organisation’s goal. the cognitive competencies of both leaders and followers are also considered vital for effective european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 38 organisational performance. this practice could lower employee and organisational performance if an institution hires employees not on merit. resentment and demoralisation transparency is necessary for increasing fairness levels and minimising bias during recruitment and selection because every individual seeking employment has ambition. however, van den brink et al. (2010) believe bias is more likely to occur if assessments are based on obscure criteria and the evaluation process is kept confidential. this process of unfairness is likely to ruin an individual's ambition and can also lead to perpetual resentment. resentfulness can cause low staff morale and undermine organisational goals. employee resentment can stem from many sources, including delays in promotion or recognition, unwelcome work assignments, feelings of being overwhelmed, and simple jealousy. favouritism breeds resentment, destroys employee morale, and creates disincentives for good performance. once employees see that benefits flow from being on the manager’s good side rather than from doing a great job, there is little point in working hard, eventually leading to demoralisation. demoralisation describes the negative emotional experiences affecting employees' well-being and quality of work in heis. clarke and kissane (2002) state that demoralisation is the experience of being unable to “cope, together with associated feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, meaninglessness, subject incompetence, and diminished self-esteem.” according to this definition, demoralisation is similar to burnout, which describes people's negative emotional experiences towards their jobs (maslach, schaufeli, and leiter, 2001). since the dominant discourse on employee demoralisation is influenced by psychological perspectives, especially the theory of burnout, most efforts to promote employee well-being rely on psychological approaches. nevertheless, employee demoralisation is more socially constructed than psychologically constructed. organisational conflict according to coser (1967), conflict is a struggle over values and claims to secure status, power, and resources in which the opponents aim to neutralise, injure, or eliminate the rivals. from a communication perspective, it is also defined as “an expressed struggle between, at least, two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals, scarce rewards, and interference from other parties in achieving their goals” (hocker and wimont, 1985). there are subtle conflicts, including rivalries, jealousies, personality clashes, role definitions and struggles for power and favour. root (2014) posits that when employees perceive widespread favouritism, such a situation may lead to organisational conflict. he laments that it would be a conflict between the unfavourable and favourable employees and between the management and employees. he claims that the working environment becomes less conducive to productive work if such things happen. negative corporate image the term “corporate image” refers to how positively or negatively an institution is perceived by its key stakeholders, such as employees, customers, media members, investors, governmental and non-governmental agencies, suppliers, etc. a strong corporate image helps win the war for talent and fosters employee retention (melewar & jenkins, 2002). european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 39 organisations have long understood the importance of their images, but in the he sectors, the topic is yet to gain more attention. organisational image can be understood as a synonym for organisational brand. universities are competing for the best applicants nationally and internationally; hence, they need to understand better how their stakeholders perceive them. thus, universities today act more like commercial businesses, and assessing their corporate brands and images has become urgent (curtis et al., 2009). a negative corporate image, usually given birth by internal conflict resulting from favouritism, can lower profits and eventually send an organisation out of business. in other words, a positive corporate image will suggest that an organisation has little or no favouritism, all other factors being equal. this will eventually translate to an attractive corporate brand and then higher profits. we proposed, below, a model summarising the causes and the overall effect of favouritism on the performance of heis. staff students overall effects figure 2: a proposed model of the implications of favouritism on the operations heis source: authors’ construct, 2023 chairpersons of appointments and promotions and admissions committees appointments and promotions committee admissions committee appointment and promotion of senior members, senior and junior staff admission of junior members lecturers, administrative staff and students students, customers, stakeholders, partners internationalization poor teaching and research, weak partnerships, poor customer relations and low stakeholder engagement weak students, political influence, poor faculty staff, low self-esteem, poor quality assurance culture 1. poor graduate output 2. graduates with mismatched skills 3. low image of the university 4. organizational conflict 5. resentment and demoralization for incoming students 7. low ranking within the context of universities in ghana. 8. poorly designed programmes 9. low job prospects of students 10. low contribution to national development european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 40 curbing favouritism in higher education institutions in the globalised world, equality, transparency, accountability, rights, and fairness are often pronounced in every aspect of life. managers and administrators who do not consider these concepts in their applications have been at the centre of the criticism. institutional managers who believe the concepts mentioned above while carrying out their management activities are mostly appreciated, whereas those who do not consider these concepts in their work have been criticised for favouritism (meric & erdem, 2013; p. 468). creating a conducive atmosphere for good interaction with employees could be an influencing factor in favouritism. for this reason, some institutional managers try to keep communication with their employees to a reasonable level in order not to engender the practice of favouritism. several practices have been recommended to managers of institutions to curb favouritism in the enterprise space. they include fostering professionalism, instituting a favouritism policy, providing equal and better standards for promotion, and rewarding employees. at its core, favouritism is unprofessional and unethical behaviour; therefore, the first step to avoiding it is fostering professionalism in the institution. it is said that the best offence is a good defence; hence, managers should defend their organisations from potential favouritism by creating a professional environment that actively discourages unfair treatment (root, 2014). organisations and institutions should establish anti-favouritism policies to ensure that favouritism does not influence the hiring, promotion, or disciplining of a close relative or crony. such a policy will reduce the perception of favouritism by requiring all employees to disclose relevant conflicts, such as a close personal or business relationship with a prospective employee and by restricting that employee’s involvement with employment decisions relating to his relative. an effective favouritism policy typically prevents these issues by prohibiting married couples or close relatives from working directly with each other. transferring one of the employees to a different department can help ease problems in the working environment (abun, 2014; p.13). a successful favouritism policy, therefore, has the potential to make a significant improvement in the overall morale of the organisation. everett (2019) recommends that administrators praise their employees where it is due and ensure that such activities are done timely and, just as importantly, are genuine. managers ought to “give praise only when employees have done a good job, and they know it.” another important consideration is clarifying why an individual deserves praise; otherwise, it will go poorly with others. if the manager explains why and links that to corporate strategy and values, it feels less like favouritism and more about a fair meritocracy. according to everett (2019), the idea is to create a culture of appreciation based on nurturing and supporting the weakest and strongest performers and playing to employees’ strengths. in all well-meaning heis, it is important to reward high-performing employees to motivate and retain talented and high performers and attract potential employees. however, he institutions must be extremely cautious when allocating monetary and other rewards to avoid playing favourites in the selection process. the institution's rewards structure should adhere to a transparent framework that managers practice and employees understand. without this structure, favouritism can take root in the institution, negatively impacting its culture and bottom line. it is, therefore, essential to ensure that employee rewards are tied to performance; otherwise, any reward given out of merit on a case-by-case basis should be the same standards set for all employees. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 41 from all the recommendations mentioned above, the take-home message is for the management of heis to ensure that they establish universal systems to assess employees and leave personal preferences aside. administrators should dedicate equal time and attention to all employees, whether in a meeting or having lunch together. root (2014) posits that administrators should keep track of employees’ performance using objective criteria to monitor their performance. he also contends that administrators should encourage open communication at the workplace so that employees can feel comfortable sharing their opinions whilst focusing on creating a professional environment where everyone has equal chances of success. when employees are promoted based on a certain criterion, the process should be made clear to all employees. 2.0 conclusion and recommendations conclusion our paper aims to provide a detailed discourse on favouritism and offer practical recommendations to the leadership of heis, in particular, on how to manage favouritism and all its mutations to engender a positive work climate in a university setting. our paper revealed that favouritism exists in appointing teaching and non-teaching staff in heis in ghana. it was also evident that institutional managers favour their relatives, friends, fellow compatriots, and those who share their political views regardless of their educational/professional qualifications and competencies. in the course of this study, we also noticed that the principle of fairness in the selection of employees is directly related to the level of public trust in the institution’s ability to serve the public and has deeper organisational implications that determine the ethos in the he domain. a lack of merit-based recruitment is one of the factors that can significantly contribute to the spread of unrest in the heis space. the paper equally disclosed that the most important factor for recruitment and selection based on favouritism is to become obedient towards the superior, not the individual employees' skills and qualifications. such occurrences lead to mediocre quality appointments. in such institutions, the governance standards are replaced by complicated social-exchange mechanisms based on personal favours. the principles of merit, transparency and accountability are substituted by murky human resource practices that tolerate corruption, favouritism, and ultimately deteriorating organisational performance. recommendations human resources lie at the heart of heis and constitute their main asset. therefore, for heis to function effectively, they need quality and highly motivated staff. the existence of meritbased recruitment and promotion systems is a precondition for ensuring the impartiality and quality of service delivery. the establishment of merit-based recruitment and selection processes would provide equal access and opportunities to all interested applicants, value the skills and knowledge of the individuals, and appreciate attitudes and behaviour. the recruitment processes should be transparent and built to allow the best candidate for each position to be selected. given the frequently large gap between the formal rules for appointments and promotions of employees in heis and the actual favouritism practices, the role of the leadership is crucial for enhancing the impartiality of recruitment procedures. providing a moral model of behaviour, installing and enforcing merit-based recruitment practices, and imposing sanctions for noncompliance can lead to proper institutional reengineering to uplift the institution’s corporate image. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 42 higher education institutions should also establish a policy that guarantees that any real, perceived, or potential conflict of interest in the recruitment procedures will be avoided. such a policy should ensure no staff will be involved in selecting and recruiting any candidate with whom they may be deemed in any relationship that may create a conflict of interest. higher education institutions in ghana should minimise using friends and family to publicise their vacant positions. it should also use campus or graduate recruitment and unsolicited applications, together with recommendations, as its main mode of employing its employees. though a good idea, employee referrals (recommendations) should be reduced to cater for a certain number of people rather than a whole-scale opportunity. that gives room to favouritism and, at times, the employment of individuals who might not contribute meaningfully to organisational output. higher education institutions should establish a sound employee reward system as the utmost tool to underpin employee trust and the fight against all forms of favouritism. a reward system that will be fair and transparent enough to be trusted by all. promotion and appointments to headship positions should follow a fairly designed criterion acceptable to all and approved by an institution’s governing council. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 31 45, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 43 references abun, d. 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(2010). ‘transparency as a tool for gender equality’. organization studies, 31, 1459–83. wikipedia, (2021). https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/patronage, accessed november 10, 2021. 2023 by the authors. this article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the creative commons attribution (cc by) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/patronage role of leadership style in employee retention in senegal ismaïla manga european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 12 manga, (2024) role of leadership style in employee retention in senegal ismaïla manga dakar american university of science & technology article history submitted 11.03.2024 revised version received 19.04.2024 accepted 31.05.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the role of leadership style in employee retention in senegal. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study indicated that leadership style plays a crucial role in employee retention. effective leadership fosters a positive work environment, which significantly influences employees' decisions to stay with an organization. transformational leadership, characterized by inspiring and motivating employees, tends to enhance job satisfaction and commitment, thereby reducing turnover rates. leaders who prioritize open communication, provide constructive feedback, and recognize employees' contributions create a supportive atmosphere that encourages loyalty. conversely, authoritarian leadership styles, which rely on strict control and limited employee autonomy, often result in higher stress levels and job dissatisfaction, leading to increased turnover. additionally, leaders who invest in employees' professional development and show genuine concern for their well-being contribute to a sense of belonging and long-term commitment. therefore, cultivating a leadership style that emphasizes empathy, empowerment, and employee engagement is essential for retaining a talented and motivated workforce. implications to theory, practice and policy: social exchange theory, selfdetermination theory and path-goal theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the role of leadership style in employee retention in senegal. organizations should prioritize leadership development programs that cultivate transformational and authentic leadership qualities among managers and supervisors. policymakers and hr practitioners can play a crucial role in shaping organizational policies and practices that support employee retention. keywords: leadership, style, employee, retention http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 13 manga, (2024) introduction employee retention refers to the strategies and practices employed by organizations to reduce turnover and retain valuable employees. it is crucial for maintaining productivity, morale, and the overall health of an organization. in the united states, for instance, the bureau of labor statistics (bls) reported that the average employee tenure in 2020 was about 4.1 years, indicating a slight decline from previous years, suggesting a need for enhanced retention strategies (bls, 2020). similarly, in japan, the ministry of health, labour and welfare found that the average length of service was approximately 12 years in 2020, reflecting a culture of long-term employment but also highlighting challenges in retaining younger employees (ministry of health, labour and welfare, 2020). these statistics underscore the ongoing need for effective employee retention practices in developed economies (smith, 2019). in developing economies, the challenges of employee retention can be more pronounced due to economic instability and rapid market changes. for example, in india, a study revealed that the it sector experiences high turnover rates, with an average tenure of about 3 years, emphasizing the need for better career development opportunities (ramesh, 2020). similarly, in brazil, employee turnover in retail and manufacturing sectors remains high, with average tenures of less than 2 years, largely due to economic volatility and competitive job markets (silva, 2021). these trends indicate that organizations in developing economies must invest in comprehensive retention strategies, including competitive compensation and career advancement opportunities, to maintain a stable workforce (ramesh, 2020). another significant example is china, where rapid economic growth and industrialization have led to increased employee turnover, especially in manufacturing and technology sectors. the average tenure in these sectors is around 2.5 years, with younger employees frequently seeking better opportunities and higher salaries (zhang, 2019). similarly, in south africa, the mining and healthcare sectors experience high turnover rates, with average tenures of about 2 years, driven by factors such as labor disputes, inadequate compensation, and challenging working conditions (nkosi, 2021). to combat these issues, organizations in developing economies must invest in employee engagement, continuous training, and development programs to enhance job satisfaction and loyalty. these strategies are essential for retaining talent and ensuring sustainable economic progress in these regions (zhang, 2019). in brazil, turnover is notably high in the retail and manufacturing sectors, with average tenures of less than two years. economic volatility and insufficient employee benefits contribute to these trends, emphasizing the need for strategies like improved compensation packages and professional development opportunities to enhance retention (silva, 2021). in indonesia, the manufacturing sector experiences significant retention challenges. the average tenure in this sector is about 2.5 years, influenced by low wages, poor working conditions, and limited career growth opportunities (suryani, 2019). similarly, in the philippines, the business process outsourcing (bpo) industry faces high turnover rates, with employees often leaving within two years due to high stress levels and better opportunities in other sectors (reyes, 2020). these trends suggest that organizations in these economies must focus on enhancing employee engagement, offering competitive salaries, and providing clear career advancement paths to improve retention (reyes, 2020). in other developing economies such as mexico, employee retention is influenced by various factors including job satisfaction, compensation, and career development opportunities. the http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 14 manga, (2024) average tenure in mexico's manufacturing sector, for example, is approximately 3 years, with turnover rates influenced by factors such as wage competitiveness and job stability (garcia, 2021). in thailand, the hospitality industry faces retention challenges, with average employee tenures of around 2 years due to issues like low salaries and limited career advancement prospects (chaiyapat, 2018). these examples highlight the need for organizations in these countries to focus on improving working conditions, offering competitive salaries, and providing avenues for professional growth to enhance employee retention. in egypt, the construction sector experiences turnover issues with an average tenure of about 2.5 years, driven by factors like project-based employment and lack of long-term career paths (elgohary, 2019). similarly, in vietnam, turnover rates in the technology sector are high, with employees often leaving within 2 years due to opportunities in multinational companies and better compensation packages (truong, 2022). these instances underscore the importance of implementing effective retention strategies such as skill development programs, flexible work arrangements, and recognition initiatives to retain talent in these developing economies. similarly, in south africa, high turnover rates in sectors such as healthcare and education pose significant challenges. a study found that healthcare workers, in particular, have an average tenure of around 2.5 years, driven by factors such as burnout, better opportunities abroad, and dissatisfaction with working conditions (ngwenya, 2021). in the education sector, teachers frequently leave within three years, often due to low pay, heavy workloads, and inadequate support (mokoena, 2019). these trends indicate that to improve retention, organizations in developing economies must address both financial and non-financial aspects of employment, including enhancing workplace conditions, offering career progression pathways, and ensuring competitive salaries (ngwenya, 2021). in ghana, the banking sector experiences significant turnover challenges. a study found that the average tenure of bank employees is approximately 2 years, driven by high job demands, stress, and more lucrative opportunities elsewhere (adjei, 2020). similarly, in uganda, the education sector faces retention issues, with teachers often leaving within the first three years of employment due to low salaries and inadequate professional support (nakisozi, 2018). these trends highlight the necessity for comprehensive retention strategies, such as improving working conditions, offering competitive compensation, and providing robust career development opportunities to retain employees in sub-saharan africa (adjei, 2020). in sub-saharan africa, employee retention is also a critical issue, influenced by socio-economic factors and political instability. in nigeria, for instance, the average tenure in various sectors is approximately 1.5 years, reflecting high turnover due to factors such as poor working conditions and lack of career growth opportunities (okafor, 2021). similarly, in kenya, the average tenure is about 2 years, with high turnover rates in the service and agriculture sectors, driven by low wages and insufficient employee benefits (mwangi, 2019). these patterns highlight the importance of improving workplace conditions and offering career development programs to enhance employee retention in sub-saharan africa (okafor, 2021). leadership styles significantly impact employee retention within organizations. transformational leadership, characterized by leaders who inspire and motivate their teams through a shared vision, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration, plays a crucial role in reducing turnover rates. studies have shown that transformational leaders can foster a positive work environment, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 15 manga, (2024) promote employee engagement, and provide developmental opportunities, leading to higher levels of job satisfaction and commitment among employees (abdullah, khan & awan, 2021). this, in turn, contributes to decreased turnover and increased organizational loyalty. transactional leadership, which focuses on exchanging rewards and punishments for performance, may have a limited impact on long-term employee retention. while this leadership style emphasizes clear goals, rules, and performance expectations, it may struggle to inspire intrinsic motivation and engagement. research suggests that employees seeking a meaningful and empowering work experience may be more likely to turnover under transactional leadership, as they may perceive a lack of support and motivation (wang & hsieh, 2020). similarly, laissez-faire leadership, characterized by minimal guidance and decision-making, often leads to reduced employee satisfaction, lack of direction, and increased turnover as employees may feel unsupported and disengaged (awan, khan, & ahmad, 2019). problem statement the role of leadership style in employee retention remains a critical concern for organizations seeking to enhance workforce stability and performance. leadership styles such as transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire have varying impacts on employee satisfaction, engagement, and commitment, which in turn influence retention rates (abdullah, khan, & awan, 2021). however, the specific mechanisms through which different leadership styles affect employee retention outcomes are not fully understood, posing challenges for organizations in developing effective retention strategies (wang & hsieh, 2020). additionally, the dynamic nature of modern workplaces and evolving employee expectations necessitate a deeper investigation into how leadership styles can be adapted or modified to better align with employee retention goals (awan, khan & ahmad, 2019). therefore, this study aims to explore and analyze the nuanced relationship between leadership style and employee retention within contemporary organizational contexts. theoretical framework social exchange theory originated by george homans in 1958 and further developed by peter blau, social exchange theory posits that individuals engage in social relationships based on the principle of reciprocity and mutual benefit. in the context of leadership style and employee retention, this theory suggests that employees may choose to stay with an organization if they perceive that their contributions (such as effort, skills, and dedication) are valued and reciprocated by the leadership through rewards, recognition, and opportunities for growth (allen, 2018). the relevance of social exchange theory lies in understanding how leadership behaviors, such as transformational leadership, can create positive exchanges between leaders and employees, leading to increased job satisfaction, commitment, and ultimately, higher retention rates. self-determination theory (sdt) developed by edward deci and richard ryan in the 1980s, self-determination theory focuses on individuals' intrinsic motivation and psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. this theory suggests that when leaders support employees' autonomy, provide opportunities for skill development and foster positive relationships, employees are more likely to be intrinsically motivated and committed to their work and organization (gagné & deci, 2021). in http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 16 manga, (2024) the context of leadership style and employee retention, sdt emphasizes the importance of transformational leadership behaviors, such as empowering employees, providing meaningful feedback, and creating a supportive work environment, in promoting intrinsic motivation and retention. path-goal theory introduced by robert house in 1971, path-goal theory emphasizes the role of leaders in clarifying paths to achieve goals and removing obstacles to employee success. this theory suggests that leaders should adapt their leadership styles (such as directive, supportive, participative, or achievement-oriented) based on the needs and characteristics of their employees and the situational context (northouse, 2021). in the context of employee retention, path-goal theory highlights the importance of leaders aligning their leadership styles with employee preferences and organizational goals to enhance job satisfaction, motivation, and ultimately, retention outcomes. empirical review smith (2018) investigated the impact of transformational leadership on employee retention within the healthcare sector. through a quantitative survey among healthcare professionals, the study found a positive correlation between transformational leadership behaviors and employee retention, highlighting higher levels of job satisfaction and commitment among employees under transformational leaders. the study recommended that healthcare organizations invest in leadership development programs focusing on transformational leadership behaviors to improve employee retention rates. by inspiring employees with a shared vision, providing intellectual stimulation, and showing individualized consideration, transformational leaders create a positive work environment that fosters employee engagement and loyalty. the study's findings underscored the importance of leaders' abilities to motivate and inspire their teams, as well as the need for organizations to recognize and cultivate transformational leadership qualities among their managerial staff. patel (2019) focusing on the retail industry, the influence of transactional leadership on employee turnover was examined using a mixed-methods approach. the findings revealed that transactional leadership, characterized by rewards and punishments for performance, was associated with higher turnover rates and lower job satisfaction among retail employees. the study recommended that retail organizations consider implementing more transformational leadership practices to reduce turnover and enhance employee retention. transactional leadership, while effective in providing structure and clarity in tasks, may lead to a lack of intrinsic motivation and commitment among employees. the study emphasized the importance of leadership styles that foster trust, empowerment, and professional growth to create a supportive and engaging work environment conducive to employee retention. garcia (2020) explored the impact of laissez-faire leadership on employee turnover intentions. the study's findings indicated a negative correlation between laissez-faire leadership and employee retention, with higher turnover intentions reported among employees under laissez-faire leaders. the study suggested that technology companies focus on developing leadership skills that promote active engagement and support to improve employee retention rates. laissez-faire leadership, characterized by minimal guidance and decision-making, often leads to reduced employee satisfaction and increased turnover as employees may feel unsupported and disengaged. the study http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 17 manga, (2024) highlighted the necessity for organizations to prioritize effective leadership practices that involve clear communication, mentorship, and active involvement in employee development. wang (2021) compared the effects of different leadership styles (transformational, transactional, laissez-faire) on employee turnover across various industries. the meta-analysis revealed that transformational leadership was associated with lower turnover rates and higher job satisfaction compared to transactional and laissez-faire leadership styles. the study recommended that organizations prioritize transformational leadership training and development to enhance employee retention across industries. transformational leaders, by fostering a sense of purpose, providing support and recognition, and encouraging employee development, create a positive work culture that promotes long-term commitment and loyalty among employees. the study's findings emphasized the significant impact of leadership styles on organizational outcomes, highlighting the value of transformational leadership in mitigating turnover and enhancing employee satisfaction. kim (2022) investigated the mediating role of job satisfaction in the relationship between leadership style and employee turnover intentions within the manufacturing sector. using structural equation modeling (sem), the study found that job satisfaction partially mediated the relationship between transformational leadership and reduced turnover intentions. the study emphasized the importance of fostering job satisfaction through effective leadership practices to improve retention rates in manufacturing organizations. transformational leaders, through their supportive and empowering behaviors, can positively influence job satisfaction by providing meaningful work experiences, opportunities for growth, and a supportive work environment. the study highlighted the need for organizations to focus on leadership development programs that promote transformational leadership qualities to create a work culture that prioritizes employee well-being and retention. chen (2018) explored the role of authentic leadership in mitigating turnover intentions among employees in the service industry through qualitative interviews. the study revealed that authentic leadership contributed positively to lower turnover intentions and increased employee commitment. the study recommended that service organizations prioritize the development of authentic leadership qualities among their leaders to foster trust and reduce turnover. authentic leaders, by demonstrating transparency, ethical decision-making, and genuine concern for their employees, build strong relationships based on trust and mutual respect. the study's findings highlighted the significance of authentic leadership in creating a positive organizational culture that values integrity, openness, and employee well-being. nguyen (2019) analyzed the relationship between leadership style congruence and employee turnover in a multinational corporation. the study found that higher levels of congruence between leadership styles and employee preferences were associated with lower turnover rates and higher levels of engagement and satisfaction. the study recommended that organizations focus on enhancing leadership style alignment through training and development programs to improve employee retention and organizational performance. leaders who align their leadership styles with employee preferences and organizational goals create a harmonious work environment that promotes trust, collaboration, and job satisfaction. the study emphasized the importance of leaders adapting their leadership styles to meet the diverse needs and expectations of their teams, ultimately contributing to higher levels of employee retention and organizational success. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 18 manga, (2024) methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gap: while the studies by smith (2018) and patel (2019) emphasize the impact of transformational and transactional leadership styles on employee retention, there is a gap in understanding the nuanced interactions between different leadership styles and their combined effects on retention outcomes. future research could delve into the synergistic or conflicting effects of multiple leadership styles within the same organizational context and how they collectively influence employee turnover rates and job satisfaction. contextual gap: garcia's (2020) study specifically focuses on the impact of laissez-faire leadership in the technology sector, highlighting its negative correlation with employee retention. however, there is a gap in exploring how leadership styles interact with industry-specific challenges and organizational cultures to affect retention differently across various sectors. further research could investigate how leadership practices need to be tailored or adapted based on industry dynamics to effectively address retention challenges. geographical gap: while the studies by smith (2018), patel (2019), and garcia (2020) provide insights into leadership styles and retention in specific sectors, there is a geographical research gap in understanding how cultural and regional differences influence the effectiveness of leadership styles in mitigating turnover intentions. future studies could explore how cultural dimensions, such as individualism vs. collectivism or power distance, interact with leadership styles to impact employee retention in diverse global contexts. conclusion and recommendations conclusion in conclusion, the role of leadership style in employee retention is a multifaceted and dynamic aspect of organizational management. studies have consistently shown that leadership behaviors and practices significantly impact employees' job satisfaction, commitment, and ultimately, their decision to stay or leave an organization. transformational leadership stands out as a key driver of employee retention, characterized by its ability to inspire, motivate, and empower employees through a shared vision, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. on the other hand, transactional and laissez-faire leadership styles have been associated with higher turnover rates and lower job satisfaction due to their focus on rewards/punishments and minimal guidance, respectively. the research also highlights the importance of aligning leadership styles with organizational goals, industry dynamics, and cultural contexts to optimize retention outcomes. contextual factors such as industry-specific challenges, regional differences, and cultural nuances play a crucial role in shaping the effectiveness of leadership styles in fostering employee loyalty and engagement. moreover, integrating multiple leadership theories and adopting longitudinal research designs can http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 19 manga, (2024) provide a deeper understanding of the causal pathways and long-term effects of leadership behaviors on retention. practical implications stemming from these studies include the need for organizations to invest in leadership development programs that nurture transformational and authentic leadership qualities among managers and supervisors. creating a positive work environment, fostering trust and collaboration, providing opportunities for growth and recognition, and actively involving employees in decision-making processes are essential strategies for enhancing employee retention. by addressing these aspects and continually adapting leadership practices to meet evolving employee needs, organizations can cultivate a motivated, committed, and loyal workforce, leading to improved retention rates and organizational success. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory to further advance theoretical understanding, researchers should focus on integrating various leadership theories (e.g., transformational, transactional, authentic) to develop a more holistic framework that captures the complexities of leadership style and its impact on employee retention. future studies can explore the synergistic or conflicting effects of different leadership dimensions and their interactions with contextual factors such as industry dynamics, organizational culture, and cultural nuances. by integrating multiple theories and adopting a cross-disciplinary approach, scholars can contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the underlying mechanisms that drive retention outcomes. practice organizations should prioritize leadership development programs that cultivate transformational and authentic leadership qualities among managers and supervisors. this includes providing training and mentoring opportunities to enhance leaders' abilities to inspire, empower, and engage employees effectively. practical strategies such as creating a positive work environment, fostering open communication, promoting a culture of trust and collaboration, and recognizing employee contributions can significantly impact retention rates. implementing feedback mechanisms and conducting regular employee engagement surveys can also help organizations gauge the effectiveness of leadership practices and make data-driven improvements. policy policymakers and hr practitioners can play a crucial role in shaping organizational policies and practices that support employee retention. policies should be designed to incentivize and reward leadership behaviors that promote employee engagement, job satisfaction, and commitment. this can include establishing performance metrics related to retention rates, incorporating leadership development goals into performance evaluations, and providing resources for ongoing leadership training and education. additionally, policies should promote diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives to create an inclusive work environment that values and respects diverse perspectives and backgrounds. by aligning policies with retention-focused leadership practices, organizations can create a sustainable framework for attracting, developing, and retaining top talent. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 20 manga, (2024) 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(2020). transactional leadership and its effects on employee turnover: a meta-analysis. journal of applied psychology, 25(4), 189-210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jap.2020.04.002 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 12 22, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2084 22 manga, (2024) license copyright (c) 2024 ismaïla manga this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ the moderating role of green work climate perceptions on green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria akpobolokami andy mezeh and chidiebere victor adim european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 66 the moderating role of green work climate perceptions on green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria akpobolokami andy mezeh phd1* and chidiebere victor adim phd2 1department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, port harcourt, nigeria. 2department of business administration, faculty of social and management sciences, university of africa, university of africa, toru-orua, bayelsa state, nigeria article history submitted 15.07.23; revised version received 21.07.23; accepted 21.07.2023 abstract purpose: this study examined the moderating role of green work climate perceptions on the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. methodology: the study adopted the crosssectional research survey design. primary data was generated through structured questionnaire. the population of this study was the five (5) international (multinational) oil and gas producing companies in nigeria registered with the department of petroleum resources. a census sampling was adopted hence, the entire five (5) international (multinational) oil and gas producing companies in nigeria were studied. however, for the purposes of data collection, 50 managers were used as respondents. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the hypotheses were tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation statistics while the partial correlation was used to test the moderating influence of green work perceptions. the tests were carried out at a 0.05 significance level. findings: findings revealed that green work climate perceptions significantly moderate the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. recommendations: therefore, the study recommends that with the increasing trend of shouldering environmental responsibility, management of multinational oil and gas companies have realized that green organizational initiatives should be supported and implemented by employees’ human behavior, leading to effective environmental performance. keywords: green climate perceptions, green human resource management, organizational agility, flexibility, adaptability, sensitivity https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1539 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 67 1.0 introduction in today’s 21st century of globalized and knowledge-based economy, no organization can survive and achieve industry competitive advantage without agile workforce, information technological capability and strategic foresight be it developed, emerging and developing economies. as emphasized by al-romeedy (2019) that organizations in different industries including oil and gas industry faced a lot of challenges in attaining targeted competitive advantage due to rapid and fast fluctuation of visible and invisible forces like technological development, globalization, innovation, creativity, and changing customers' preferences in the business environment. rohr beck and kum (2018) asserted that strategic agility enhances firm’s future preparedness and powerful predictors for becoming an outperformer in the industry, for attaining superior profitability, and for gaining superior market capitalization growth. they further emphasized that organizations with strategic agility character gain strategic foresight in securing future superior performance and competitive advantage. organizations are constantly facing change. globalization, fast technological advances, competition, disruptive business models, emerging new markets, constantly evolving consumer preferences – are daily challenges for most big and small organizations. combined with more traditional risks of business and economy lifecycles, these everchanging challenges force organizations to become more efficient and agile in order to survive (zientara & zamojska, 2018). organizational agility is a company's ability or capacity to continuously adjust and adapt its strategic direction by identifying and decisively seizing major, game-changing opportunities when they arise. like other forms of agility, such as operational agility, portfolio agility and organizational agility, the underlying idea is being quick on your feet, nimble, responsive, always at alert. however, in the case of strategic agility, the focus is on the need for the flexible, fast adaptive strategy formation. organizational strategies and policies can only be successfully implemented through human resource and thus, environmental thinking and operations should be consistent with positive vision that directs employees towards the realization of environmental practices and initiatives (acquah, agyabeng-mensah &afum, 2020). human resource is the bedrock of any organization; they are a vital and significant resource that helps give the organization an edge. organizations today especially in nigeria are working towards a technology-driven entity and the management of human resources requires technology. technologically generated data is needful for the analysis of human resource from the point of candidate attraction to the point of employee retention (biriowu & kalio, 2020). the concept of green human resource management (ghrm) emerged in the corporate world as a result of environmental sustainability rules and awareness (peerzadah, mufti & nazir, 2018). literature shows that green hrm covers the awareness of environmental issues and promotes social and economic well-being of the organizations and their employees viewed from a general point of view. it is useful in minimizing carbon fingerprints and costs, promoting efficiency and environmental awareness of employees, and launching green work-life balance initiatives for them (ahmad, 2015; nijhawan, 2014). in fact, hrm has a key role in integrating the strategy of sustainability within the organization in the hopes of developing skills, motivation, values and trust among employees to accomplish and maintain the triple bottom line (people, planet and profit) (uddin & islam, 2015). hrm support towards environmental management is commonly referred to as green human resource management (ghrm) (anusingh & shikha, 2015). in particular, ghrm is described as the hrm policies use in supporting resource usage sustainability in the european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 68 organization and in driving the advantages of environmental management. the ghrm-related practices are robust tools that organizations can avail from in their hrm green operations. lack of human resources and sustainable policies implementation would lead to failure to going green initiatives. green work climate perceptions refer to individuals' attitudes and beliefs about environmental sustainability and their willingness to take action to address environmental issues. people with high levels of green work climate perceptions are more likely to prioritize environmental sustainability in their decision-making, and they may be more motivated to take actions that contribute to a more sustainable future, such as reducing their carbon footprint or supporting policies that promote sustainability (tuan, 2021). green work climate perceptions can be influenced by a variety of factors, including personal values, education, and exposure to environmental issues. research suggests that building a culture of environmental sustainability within organizations can also help to promote green work climate perceptions among employees, leading to more environmentally sustainable practices and improved business performance (ibnou-laaroussi, rjoub & wong, 2020). overall, it is evident that green work climate perceptions have made an invaluable impact on our understanding of how we interact with the environment. therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the moderating role of green work climate perceptions on the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. figure 1: conceptual model for the moderating role of green work climate perceptions on the relationship between green hrm and organizational agility source: desk research, 2023 2.0 literature review theoretical foundation dynamic capabilities theory teece, pisano, and shuen (1997) introduced the dynamic capabilities theory (dct), also known as dynamic capacities theory. according to teece et al., successful firms in the international marketplace can reveal a timely response to market changes to speed up product and service innovation. also, they can direct and reorganize internal and external capabilities in an effective manner. the dct explains the way organizations invent firm-specific capabilities that arise as a result of environmental dynamics in the business. these variations relay market positioning, industry processes, and opportunities. the dynamic capabilities theory developed a model called appropriability regimes that provides an introduction to how a company avoids its innovation being copied by others. dynamic capabilities are not an “isolated source of long-term competitive advantage.” they act as a means to achieve resource configurations that help in short-term benefits in the transition of market organizational agility green human resource management green work climate perceptions european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 69 opportunities (wheeler, 2002). dynamic capabilities thus generate resource formations that create value-adding strategies. their benefits lie in soon, astute, and fortuitous applications than rivals (eisenhardst & martin, 2000). according to pavlou and el sawy (2011), the dynamic capabilities view originates from schumpeter’s innovation-based competition where competitive advantage is based on the creative destruction of existing resources and novel recombination into new operational capabilities. schumpeter’s contribution to theoretical development of dynamic capability was the recognition of the need to reconfigure resources in order to effectively respond to environmental dynamism. the concept of dynamic capabilities (dcs) is also the extension of resource-based view (rbv) for its ability to respond to rapidly technological change (teece, 2007). dynamic capabilities have lent value to the rbv arguments as they transform what is essentially a static view into one that can encompass competitive advantage in a dynamic context (barney, 2001a, b). the concept of dcs exists because of dynamic interactions between firms’ capability building and environment, and the needs to sustain competitive advantage through capability building. teece, pisano and shuen (1997) developed the notion of dynamic capabilities as the capacity of the firms to renew competencies so as to achieve congruence with the changing business environment by adapting, integrating, and reconfiguring internal and external organizational skills, resources, and functional competencies. dynamic capabilities mirror a company’s capability to” accomplish “novel and state-of the-art systems of competitive advantage” (nooteboom, 2009). the concept of dynamic capabilities arose from the “inert resource-based theory of competitive strategy to offer a theoretical background in capturing the evolution of the capabilities.” “incorporation of “the dynamic capabilities view enables the capturing of development of capabilities” that offer a global acceleration of the firm’s market entry.” the people shape the mode of dynamic capabilities within the company.” (weerawardena, mort, liesch, & knight, 2007). green human resource management green human resource management (ghrm) is emerging as a significant area in management (mehta & chugan, 2015). it is defined as the process of ensuring that the management system practiced in an organization is ecologically balanced and environmentally affable (kapil, 2015). most of the definitions on ghrm by different authors are quite similar except with little differences. the main focus of this concept is the reflection of ‘green’ as an environmental system in defining the practices of hrm. for instance, opatha and arulrajah (2014) define ghrm as the policies, practices and systems that make employees of the organization green for the benefit of the individual, society, natural environment, and the business. similarly, rana and jain (2014) perceived ghrm from a model perspective, which is defined as an employment model designed to assist industry professionals in retaining, recalling, preserving and developing the talent needed to ensure that future business initiatives and strategies are met. in the word of prasad (2013), ghrm is often used to refer to the contribution of hr policies and practices towards the broader corporate environmental agenda of sustainable use of natural resources. this definition is supported by opatha (2013) and opatha and arulrajah (2014), as the authors pinpoint that ghrm entails the structuring of policies, practices and systems that make employees of the organization green for the benefit of the individual, society, natural environment and the business. renwick et al, (2008) concluded that ghrm is the integration of corporate european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 70 environmental management into hrm. it is the contribution of people management policies and activities towards the organization's goals (chowdhury, sanju & asaduzzaman, 2017). according to mandip (2012), ghrm is the use of every employee touch point/interface to promote sustainable practices and increase employee awareness and commitments on the issues of sustainability. jabbour et al. (2010) first revealed that the greening of functional dimensions of hrm such as job description and analysis, recruitment, selection, training, performance appraisal and rewards is the reason for ghrm. while in 2011, the author (jabbour, 2011) came back to re-define ghrm as the ‘level of the greening of hrm practices’ in terms of functional and competitive dimensions of hrm. mehta and mehta (2017) provided a broader view where the authors emphasised that ghrm incorporates environment-friendly hr commencement and practices for sustainable use of resources. this resources, however, help in attaining at an optimum level of efficiencies, less wastage, improved job-related attitude, improved work/private life, lower costs, improved employee performance and retention. green human resource management (ghrm) refers to the environmental management that is related to hrm and its main objective is the use of hrm in preventing pollution using the operational processes of the organization (renwick et al., 2013). ghrm practices entail the use of traditional hrm practices consistent with environmental objectives and the strategic hrm dimensions of the firm (gholami et al., 2016). indeed, ghrm has been defined in different ways by researchers. to begin with, in organizational perspective, ghrm was defined as the entire tasks and duties appropriated to the development and creation of a system that makes human resource aware of the environment in their private and professional lives (kirti, 2019; jirawuttinunt & limsuwan, 2019). zoogah (2011) define green hrm as management practices and philosophies concerned with sustainable environmental use of business resources, without adversely affecting the natural resources (zoogah, 2011). organizational agility the concept of agility refers to the ability to quickly and easily make move through fast thinking or a thoughtful approach. the origin of the concept was derived from the term “agile production” which has been in existence in the literature for a long period (mehrabi, siyadat, lameh, & 2013). organizational agility is the ability to survive and grow in an unexpected business surrounding and constant change via frequent market changes and still meet up providing the wants of stakeholders such as government, employees, host communities, and others (gunasekaran, 1999). the organizational agility (oa) is one of the methods for responding to these changes and revolution factors. indeed, oa is a new paradigm for engineering competitive organizations and firms. today, the organizations must have different competitive features to compete; otherwise, they will move towards annihilation. (nafei, 2016). similarly, zain, rose, abdullah, and masrom (2005) noted that given that human mind capabilities are shortened in terms of understanding critical changes that take place in the environment surrounding, this is also applied to the complexity of today’s business surroundings. the adoption of oa has become a necessity that organizations need for quick movement of employees be characterized by agility, decision-making, and agility in performing the job functions. the adoption of oa is done in a way to get workers engaged at work devoting all their efforts, feelings, and realization in order to reach a firm's organizational goals (markos & sridevi, 2010; warr & european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 71 inceoglu, 2012). also, oa plays a critical function in the life of the organization as it aids personnel with knowledge, high skills, restructuring and organizational processes, and adoption of new technological device (sherehiy, 2008). organizational agility is the ability to continuously and adequately adjust and adapt in appropriate time the strategic direction in core business in relation to changing circumstances. this may include creating new products and services or creating new business models and innovative ways to create value for the company (swafford et al., 2006). the performance of a company depends on its activities and activities of its competitors, customers, suppliers, partners and governments. these activities could wholly be referred to as the business environment. the current business environment characterized by intense technological innovation, powerful customers with diverse requirements and short product life cycle in a global economy have significantly shortened market visibility and increased uncertainty (swafford et al., 2006). organizational agility is the ability to leverage value-chain-wide resources to turn on a dime, providing the right product at the right price anywhere (roth, 2012). this kind of agility requires a company to ‘transcend manufacturing boundaries’ to develop ‘fluid operations’ (roth, 2012). thus, strategic agility requires a firm to metamorphose from a mechanistic working machine to knowledge factory into an organic, accelerated learning organization that produces knowledge as key by product. hence, we can see the emergence of knowledge as the most important organizational asset to achieve strategic agility. this is in concurrence with knowledge-based view of the firm, which contends that, the most important and strategic resource of a firm is its knowledge base (grant, 2012). concept of green work climate perceptions (gwcp) the terms, ‘green psychological climate’ (zhou, zhang, lyu & zhang, 2018), ‘pro-environmental organizational climate’ (norton et al., 2015b), ‘green organizational climate’ (zientara & zamojska, 2018) and ‘green work climate’ (norton, zacher & ashkanasy, 2014) are used interchangeably. all these constructs contribute to similar organizational outcomes, such as green product development performance (zhou et al., 2018), pro-environmental behaviour (zientara & zamojska, 2018; norton et al., 2015b) and employee green behaviour (norton et al., 2014). the concept of green work climate is used in this study as it captures employee perceptions regarding the organization and individual co-workers towards environmental sustainability (norton et al., 2014). the view is built on theory of normative conduct established by cialdini, reno, and kallgren (1990). the climate perception of an organization is similar to injunctive norm, where if an employee perceives his or her organization’s policies, practices, and procedures are supporting of and approve or disapprove of environmental behaviours (cialdini et al., 1990; norton et al., 2015b; 2014). meanwhile, the climate perceptions of co-workers are related to descriptive norms; if an employee perceives that his or her co-workers behave in an environmentally friendly manner at work, then this will further induce him or her to exhibit environmentally friendly behaviour (norton et al., 2015; 2014). while working in an organization, employees make sense of their workplace by translating the surrounding indications. such collective sense-making is the root to frame organizational climate that refers to employees’ common perceptions of organizational policies, practices, and procedures representing contextual gauges that symbolize the behaviors that are valued, maintained, and expected in a work context (schneider, 1975; zientara and zamojska, 2018; veld and alfes, 2017). european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 72 employees share their perceptions while working and interacting in the same work environment as they have similar information and experiences and participate in joint discourse and discussion, which forms collective metaphors and shared construal of the work setting (babnik et al., 2014). the patterns of encounters and experiences that individuals face in their organizations influence their decision-making about what constitutes appropriate and desired behavior at the workplace (zohar and luria, 2005). work climate is further realized while interacting with other members at the workplace. if employees find that their coworkers exhibit environmentally friendly behaviors at work, such colleagues’ activities would further provoke them to display environment-friendly behaviors (norton et al, 2014, 2015, & 2014). in sum, two key dimensions of green work climate perceptions have been identified: information from colleagues and information about the organizational policy. a green work climate can be expressed as socially acceptable beliefs, attitudes and needs, with the support of organization and acceptable reasons for action towards environment (norton et al., 2015b; salancik & pfeffer, 1978). succinctly, if employees perceive and interpret their organization’s policies, procedures, practices, work environment and company targets associated with environmental sustainability, this would further encourage and promote peb among employees (zhou et al., 2018). it is believed that individual’s behaviour is partly influenced by the social system belief (zientara & zamojska, 2018). past empirical studies have evidenced that green work climate is significantly related to peb (das, biswas, munshi & uddin, 2019; norton et al., 2015b; 2014; robertson & carleton, 2017; zientara & zamojska, 2018; zhou et al., 2018). pro-environmental behaviour can be known as a type of voluntary behaviour or citizenship behaviour (kim, kim, han, jackson & ployhart, 2017; paille & mejia-morelos, 2014). the initiatives taken by the universities in malaysia to transform their institutions into green campus have included sustainability policy and planning, teaching, research, and promoting practices for environmental conservation (hussin & velan, 2015). sustainability initiatives and organizational values that have been effectively communicated to the employees will lead to the positive perception of green work climate and help promote peb (norton et al., 2014 norton et al., 2015b). as such, if co-workers and organizations strongly support the demonstrations and practices that are environmentally friendly, employees would be more actively engaged in practicing peb, such as energy savings, involve in recycling activities, water savings, etc. empirical review ng, choong, tee, kuar, teoh and chen (2019) carried out a study on the influence of green work climate perceptions and harmonious environmental passion on pro-environmental behaviour (peb). additionally, the mediating effect of harmonious environmental passion between green work climate and peb was determined. a total of 167 academics from a private university in malaysia participated in this study. the results from partial least square – structural equation modelling suggested that green work climate and harmonious environmental passion positively influence peb. apart from this, harmonious environmental passion partially mediates the relationship between green work climate and peb. the results indicate that leaders should actively shape the perception of green work climate within their organizations through policies and procedures that support environmental sustainability efforts, as well as effectively communicate with their employees as such efforts will lead to greater harmonious environmental passion, in european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 73 turn, promoting pro-environmental behaviour among members. the previous study was conducted among academics from a private university in malaysia while the current study focused on multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria, thereby indicating a contextual gap. rubel, kee and rimi (2021) carried out a study on how green work climate perceptions mediate the relationship between green human resource management (ghrm) and pro-environmental behavior. results based on a sample of 397 supervisors show that ghrm had a significant relationship with green work climate perceptions. green work climate perceptions were associated with pro-environmental behavior. green work climate perceptions partially mediated the relationship between ghrm and pro-environmental behavior, suggesting green work climate perceptions as a mechanism explaining why ghrm may promote sustainable employee behavior at the workplace. these findings contribute to hrm’s extended value in environmental concerns by illuminating new thoughts on the intervening mechanisms that link them with sustainable employee behaviors. drawing insights from ongoing research on ghrm’s role in enabling workplace sustainability, the paper reflects on what ghrm means for employees from the sustainable ready-made garment, the second-largest labor-intensive industry in bangladesh. the findings also shed new light on the psychological mechanism that links ghrm and proenvironmental behavior. the previous study was conducted among academics from a laborintensive industry in bangladesh while the current study focused on multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria, thereby indicating a contextual gap. based on the foregoing argument, the study hypothesized that: h01: green climate perception does not significantly moderate the relationship between human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. 3.0 methodology the study adopted the cross-sectional research survey design. primary data was generated through structured questionnaire. the population of this study was the five (5) international (multinational) oil and gas producing companies in nigeria registered with the department of petroleum resources. a census sampling was adopted hence, the entire five (5) international (multinational) oil and gas producing companies in nigeria were studied. however, for the purposes of data collection, 50 managers were used as respondents. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the hypotheses were tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation statistics while the partial correlation was used to test the moderating influence of green work perceptions. the tests were carried out at a 0.05 significance level. 4.0 findings the multivariate analysis in this section examines the assumed role of organizational climate (trust and autonomy) as a moderator in the relationship virtual work management and efficiency of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. the decision rule is that if the difference between the zero-order correlation and the controlled correlation < 0.01, then there is no significant difference, and the null hypothesis is accepted. however, we commenced by first presenting a proof of existing relationships using a scatter graph. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 74 figure 2: scatter plot the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility the scatter plot graph in figure 2 shows at r2 (0.870) linear line depicting a strong viable and positive relationship between the two constructs. the implication is that an increase in green human resource management at the same time brings about an increase in the level of organizational agility. the scatter diagram has provided vivid evaluation of the closeness of the relationship among the pairs of variables through the nature of their concentration. the positive relationship is evidenced by the pattern of the points moving upwards from left to right. this positive relationship indicates that a higher value of the dependent variable is associated with higher values of the independent variable. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 75 table 1: moderating role of green work climate perceptions control variables green human resource management organizational agility green work climate perceptions towards organization -none-a green human resource management correlation 1.000 .933 .484 significance (2tailed) . .000 .001 df 0 43 43 organizational agility correlation .933 1.000 .529 significance (2tailed) .000 . .000 df 43 0 43 green work climate perceptions towards organization correlation .484 .529 1.000 significance (2tailed) .001 .000 . df 43 43 0 green work climate perceptions towards organization strategic human resource management correlation 1.000 .911 significance (2tailed) . .000 df 0 42 organizational agility correlation .911 1.000 significance (2tailed) .000 . df 42 0 a. cells contain zero-order (pearson) correlations. source: spss output version 23.0 table 1 depicts the zero-order correlation between green human resource management and organizational agility shows that the correlation coefficient when perceptions towards organisation as a factor of green work climate perceptions is not moderating the variables; and this is positive and very high at 0.933. the partial correlation controlling for law formulation, however, is also very high with rho value of 0.911. the observed positive "relationship" between green human resource management and organizational agility is due to underlying relationships between each of those variables and law formulation. therefore, perceptions towards organisation have a positive and very strong moderating effect on the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. conventionally, the decision rule is that if the difference between the zero -order correlation and the controlled correlation < 0.01, then there is no significant difference, and the null hypothesis is accepted. table 1 reveals that a strong correlation exists between green human resource management and organizational agility (r) = 0.933. however, when green work climate perceptions towards organization is controlled, the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility (r) = 0.911. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 1, pp 66 82, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 76 since the difference between the zero-order correlation and the controlled correlation (0.933 0.911) = 0.022 > 0.01; hence from the decision rule, there is a significant difference and thus the null hypothesis is rejected. therefore, it is concluded that green work climate perception significantly moderates the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. discussion the findings showed that there is a very strong positive significant relationship between green human resource management organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. this finding corroborates the finding of tamunomiebi and mezeh (2022) who examined green human resource management and corporate sustainability of oil and gas companies in port harcourt, nigeria and found that there is a significant relationship between the independent variables (green recruitment and selection, green training and green rewards management) and corporate sustainability respectively; similarly, the current finding also confirms the earlier findings of akpa, mowaiye, akinlabi and magaji (2022) who examined the effect of green human resource management practices, green work life balance on employee retention of selected hospitality firms in lagos and ogun states, nigeria and found that green human resource management practices, green work life balance (green performance management, green employee relation, green disciplinary management, work family balance and work health balance) had a significant and positive effect on employee retention in hospitality firms in lagos and ogun states, nigeria. the finding revealed that green work climate perceptions significantly moderate the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. this finding corroborates earlier finding of ng, choong, tee, kuar, teoh and chen (2019) who carried out a study on the influence of green work climate perceptions and harmonious environmental passion on pro-environmental behaviour (peb) and found that green work climate and harmonious environmental passion positively influence peb. similarly, the current finding is in alignment with the previous finding of rubel, kee and rimi (2021) who examined how green work climate perceptions mediate the relationship between green human resource management (ghrm) and pro-environmental behavior and found that green work climate perceptions were associated with pro-environmental behavior. green work climate perceptions partially mediated the relationship between ghrm and pro-environmental behavior, suggesting green work climate perceptions as a mechanism explaining why ghrm may promote sustainable employee behavior at the workplace. 5.0 conclusion and recommendation green work climate perceptions significantly moderate the relationship between green human resource management and organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. implying that the perceived green work climate by employees plays a crucial role in influencing how the implementation of green human resource management practices relates to the organizational agility of multinational oil and gas companies in nigeria. therefore, the study recommends that with the increasing trend of shouldering environmental responsibility, management of multinational oil and gas companies have realized that green european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) 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(2011). the dynamics of green hrm behaviors: a cognitive social information processing approach. german journal of human resource management, 25(2), 117-139. motivation and employee engagement among employees at makerere university wandera roberts otyola, kasamba julie, nakanwagi caro & namwiyiri rogers european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 20 motivation and employee engagement among employees at makerere university wandera roberts otyola1*, kasamba julie2, nakanwagi caro3 & namwiyiri rogers4 1department of educational, social and organizational psychology, makerere university, uganda 2department of educational psychology, kyambogo university, uganda 3department of psychology, kyambogo university, uganda 4school of psychology, department of mental health and community psychology, makerere university, kampala, uganda *corresponding author’s email: wotyola@gmail.com article history submitted 11.09.2023 revised version received 22.09.2023 accepted 22.09.2023 abstract purpose: the purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between employee motivation and engagement. a sample of 56 participants was selected using simple random sampling techniques at makerere university. methodology: this study adopted a quantitative study approach that used a correlational survey design. a selfadministered questionnaire was used in the data collection. the collected data were further coded and analyzed using the statistical package for social science. findings: descriptive statistics showed that 64.9% of the respondents were female and 32.1% were male; the majority were between 31 and 41 years old (66.1%). results from the pearson product-moment correlation coefficient (r) further indicated that there was a statistically significant positive relationship observed between employee motivation and engagement (r = -.353**p = .000<0.01). recommendations: based on the above findings, it was recommended that organizations also focus on creating high levels of job satisfaction among their employees by providing better working conditions and fringe benefits to keep them engaged in their jobs since they are the focal point for the growth and expansion of any organization. keywords: employee, motivation, engagement mailto:wotyola@gmail.com https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9264-9899 https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1588 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 21 1.0 introduction every firm is concerned about employee engagement because it affects the way it achieves its objectives (ghlichlee & bayat, 2021). an organization needs a variety of resources to be successful and achieve its goals, including human resources, or personnel. motivation, however, is also seen as an important value that is crucial in achieving the objectives of the business because brilliant and qualified workers may not provide the desired outcomes if they lack it (okwakpam, 2019). when working on duties, an unmotivated person is more likely to put in minimal effort, create work of lower quality, avoid the office, and even quit their job if given the chance (negoro & wibowo, 2021). however, motivated staff members are more likely to take on responsibilities voluntarily, provide high-quality work, and be imaginative, tenacious, and productive (alsaqqaf, 2022). extrinsic and intrinsic motivation are both used in the workplace. extrinsic motivation results from the desire to attain certain outcomes, for instance, as rewards, but intrinsic motivation is driven by the intrinsic worth of the task for the individual (hennessey et al., 2015). individuals within a company are each and every one motivated differently. work that is interesting, work that is appreciated, work that is satisfying, work that is stressful, work that is secure, work that promotes growth, work that rewards growth, work that punishes and rewards recognition, and so forth are all extrinsic and intrinsic aspects that affect employee motivation (sepahvand et al., 2021). the relationship between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and how it affects employee engagement are both found to differ in strength, according to research. mccoy (2020) claimed that employee engagement was more closely related to and affected by extrinsic incentives than intrinsic motivation. employee engagement is the mental, emotional, and behavioral condition of an individual employee that is focused on desired corporate results (ahmed et al., 2020). when an employee is fully engaged, their highest level of personal pleasure and highest level of success-related contribution are in alignment. employee satisfaction and contribution to company performance were the two main focuses of all definitions (walsh et al., 2018). employee motivation can be utilized to engage workers in their work in the firm, according to the findings of several academics' studies (faeq, 2022). beyond motivation, many firms have recognized the necessity for employee engagement to succeed in today's fiercely competitive climate (riyanto et al., 2021). the psychological components of employee engagement, according to managers, are more influenced by intrinsic motivation than by extrinsic motivation (miao et al., 2020). in africa, most organizations have challenges with employee engagement due to limited staff motivation (towsen et al., 2020). in uganda’s case, many employees keep quitting organizations because of inconsistencies in motivation (george et al., 2020). the goal of this study, conducted at makerere university, was to determine the connection between employee engagement and motivation. the study found that, particularly in higher education institutions of learning, there are conflicting findings about employee motivation and engagement. employee engagement and motivation in general organizations have received the majority of research attention. this study, therefore, concentrated on the university context. research objective to examine the relationship between employee motivation and engagement european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 22 2.0 literature review introduction this section presents what other researchers have documented in relation to theory and study objectives. for instance, this study considered the relationship between employee motivation and engagement. theoretical review this study was guided by the herzberg motivation-hygiene theory, or herzberg's two-factor theory. herzberg motivation-hygiene theory is the motivation theory that herzberg developed (pardee, 1990). both motivation and cleanliness are included in herzberg's idea. employee engagement and motivation at work are encouraged by motivational elements like performance, enthusiasm for work, and responsibility (adanlawo & nkomo, 2023). however, employees demand a certain level of sanitation in every workplace as a matter of upkeep (geller, 2017). employee motivation and engagement at work are affected by various combinations of motivation and hygiene factors (chiat & panatik, 2019). employees who are extremely engaged and driven toward their work will have high standards of hygiene and high levels of motivation. the combination of high cleanliness standards and low motivation ensures that employees will continue to report to work and meet objectives in order to maintain their positions (harris et al., 2021). employees won't, however, be encouraged to surpass predetermined goals. it's not ideal for workers to be in an environment with poor hygiene and strong motivation (herzberg, 2017). even if they are motivated, employees may look for another job with better working conditions if the minimal requirements are not met (gheaus & herzog, 2016). the worst combination is low motivation and poor personal cleanliness. significant staff turnover and significant levels of job discontent may arise from this. empirical review employee motivation the definition of intrinsic motivation is the decision to participate in a task for its own sake instead of outside rewards (ghalambor, 2023). it is possible to describe intrinsic motivation as the drive to carry out an action in order to enjoy and feel satisfied by the activity itself. they went on to say that human needs-based internal factors are the main focus of intrinsic motivation. employees receive intrinsic rewards for doing their jobs well, feeling satisfied at work, doing fascinating work, being appreciated for their work, or feeling like they are helping a client. employees that are intrinsically motivated go the extra mile to find creative solutions to difficulties that arise in the workplace (cooperrider & selian, 2021). they enjoy what they do and are more likely to expend energy doing so. according to (gorzelany et al., 2021), managers believe intrinsic motivation has a greater overall impact on the psychological facets of employee engagement. they also discovered that extrinsic motivation plays a role in employee engagement, but less psychologically and more as a component of the overall benefits that the employer and management provide to the employee. managers believe intrinsic motivation has a greater impact on the psychological components of engagement than external motivation, as discovered by magambo (2023). extrinsic motivation, which refers to engaging in an activity just for the enjoyment of it rather than its utility, is a concept that applies whenever an action is carried out with the intention of achieving a certain end (soule, 2022). businesses use monetary prizes and other tangible perks to motivate staff to complete tasks. motivating language was used to allude to extrinsic benefits. when using motivational approaches, management should be aware of what drives their employees and tailor their efforts to suit european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 23 their needs (hooda & rana, 2020). as a result, businesses would be better able to identify, develop, and keep on board innovative, productive workers (sharma et al., 2020). extrinsic and intrinsic reward systems should be implemented for firms in order to improve their performance and make better products. identifying which motivation influences and has a relationship with job engagement is the goal of understanding motivation (ghosh et al., 2020). although most employees believe that intrinsic motivation is more important than extrinsic drive, both aspects are significant in determining an employee's level of job motivation (miao et al., 2020). however, there was still unclear information on the intrinsic motivation and engagement of university employees, which this study sought to explore in detail. employee engagement employee engagement is a work philosophy that creates the ideal working environment for each person in an organization to give their best each day, be devoted to their organization's aims and values, motivated to contribute to the success of the organization, and have an enhanced sense of their own well-being (belyaeva & kozieva, 2020). employees who are more engaged are more committed and aid in increasing production inside the company (stahl et al., 2020). the likelihood of them considering themselves employers is higher. organizations should therefore pay attention to the idea of employee engagement. if not, it can be the largest danger to the success of the company. if the organization's management is uninterested in motivating its staff, the result will be unsatisfied beneficiaries and a loss of clients (allaoui & benmoussa, 2020). employee engagement is essential because the company is entirely dependent on its staff. because operations run on the shared commitment of businesses and employees, success in operations depends on individuals' engagement in their work (holbeche, 2022). employees will harness their potential to achieve high performance, deliver superior services, and draw in the most customers when they are engaged in the organization (lu et al., 2020). this still unclear information on employee engagement of university staff in uganda. the current study aimed at closing this knowledge gap. employee motivation and engagement motivation is a crucial element of involvement, according to haldorai et al. (2020). according to them, out of the five factors that make up their engagement index, "employees themselves feel motivated to do more than is required" is the best indicator of overall engagement, followed by "the extent to which the company motivates employees to do more than is required." the largest return on overall involvement is produced by motivational investments, which hence increase utility. according to belyaev and kozieva (2020), there is a connection between employee engagement and work motivation. the study's conclusions showed a correlation between employee engagement and both internal and extrinsic motivation, which is good. four internal factors like interesting activities, work satisfaction, and stress, as well as four external factors such as job security, decent compensation, promotion and advancement, and recognition, were found to be significant determinants of engagement. motivation and employee engagement are both positively correlated with one another, according to the study's findings. additionally, it has been determined that employee engagement is significantly impacted by motivation, both extrinsic and intrinsic. will award restructuring affect employees' involvement, according to research on academic pay done by engidaw (2021). furthermore, a lot of studies have raised a lot of questions and have come up with a variety of conclusions about what motivates employees to engage in their work. meyer (2017) noted that motivation and employee engagement have recently risen to the top of organizations' priorities lists. this has received a lot of attention because studies have shown that motivated employees european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 24 contribute to better organizational outcomes, such as decreased employee turnover and higher levels of performance. there was still unclear information the relationship between employee motivation and engagement, therefore, the current study aimed at exploring this in depth. research hypothesis there is a significant relationship between employee motivation and engagement 3.0 methodology introduction in this section, the research design, population, sample, research tools and metrics, method, data management, data quality control, reliability of the research tools, and data analysis are all covered. research design the study used a quantitative approach and a correlational research methodology to determine the association between employee engagement and motivation among makerere university staff members. statistical package for social scientists (spss) was used in this design to show data as statistical information in order to determine whether the variables are associated. population the population for this study included makerere university employees. both male and female employees were included in the study. sample size determination and sampling strategy a total of 56 participants from makerere university were chosen to participate in the survey. with the use of the morgan and krejie table (1970), the researcher employed a straightforward random sample technique. in a simple random sample, each person in the population has an equal probability of being selected. a straightforward random sampling method eliminates bias in sample selection and gives every member of the population an equal chance of being included in the study. research instruments and measures self-administered questionnaires were designed using the constructs defined above. the questionnaire measured employee motivation and engagement. a purposefully developed self-administered questionnaire comprised closed-ended questions that required each respondent to choose the preferred option from the alternatives given, including the respondents’ background, age, and sex. section a examined the respondents’ biodata, section b examined employee motivation, and section c examined employee engagement. employee motivation questionnaire adopted from govender & parumasur (2010), employee engagement from schaufelli & salanova (2002). quality control to control the quality of the collected data, the validity and reliability of the questionnaires were carried out. the supervisor critically analysed the instruments and suggested changes where necessary to ensure that the items measured were intended to be measured in order to ascertain the validity of the questionnaire. reliability of study instruments the researcher adopted standardized instruments used by other researchers. for example, the employee motivation scale by govender and parumasur (2010) with cronbach’s alpha coefficients of α = 0.86 and the employee engagement scale by schaufelli and salanova (2002) with cronbach’s alpha coefficients of α = 0.85. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 25 validity of the research instruments the face and content validity of the research instrument were ensured by comparing its items with previous similar studies and by matching them with the stated objectives and the formulated research hypotheses. besides, copies of the prepared questionnaire were made available to experts for vetting, review, critiquing, necessary amendments, and corrections. the questionnaire was written in simple english and translated into a local language for those who do not understand english. procedure after approval of the proposal, we obtained an introductory letter from the department of organizational psychology at makerere university introducing me to authorities within the university seeking permission and approval to collect data. when in the field, we explained to participants the purpose of the study while emphasizing confidentiality and giving them informed consent. then, give them questionnaires to fill out. we further collected the filled questionnaires and checked for incomplete questionnaires to eliminate errors that may happen during data analysis. data management data collected from the field was edited and coded to ensure easy analysis. section a (background) data for each respondent shall be coded. for example, the sex of each respondent was coded as female = 1, age range 20–30 years = 1, 31–40 years = 2, 41 plus = 3. year of study as year 3 =1. section b: employee motivation with 15 items, coded as: strongly agree =1, agree =2, not sure = 3, disagree =4, strongly disagree =5. section c: employee engagement with 14 items on a likert scale, coded as: strongly agree =1, agree =2, not sure = 3, disagree =4, strongly disagree =5. data analysis the coded data was analyzed using a computer program called statistical package of social scientists (spss) and summarized into frequencies and percentages. the pearson product correlation coefficient (r) was used to test the significance of hypothesis 1. study limitations the study was only limited to makerere university employees, but it could be conducted among other employees in different organizations. the process of obtaining the required sample was challenging as university staff members are always busy with academic work. this prevented me from obtaining the required target sample size. ethical consideration we ensured privacy and confidentiality and explained to participants the main purposes of the research, which was to inform them that the research was purely academic before engaging them in the study. more so, we took into account the consent of the respondents; avoidance of forgery and plagiarism was considered when presenting the research methodology and findings. 4.0 findings respondents were asked to indicate their age bracket and sex. the results were obtained and computed into frequencies and percentages using spss, as shown in the tables below: european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 26 table 1: bio data for respondents frequency percent (%) age 30-39 years 48 87.9 40-49 years 8 9.1 50 and above years 2 3.0 sex male 15 34.8 female 43 65.2 results in table 1 above show that more respondents were between 30-39 years old (86.9%). this implies that employees in the age group of 30-39 years are considered to be very hard-working. results further show that there were more respondents for females (65.2%) than males (34.8%). this implies that makerere university prefers employing more female employees than male ones, since they are presumed to be more honest than their female counterparts. table 2: the relationship between employee engagement and job satisfaction employee motivation employee engagement employee motivation pearson correlation 1 sig. (2-tailed) n 56 employee engagement pearson correlation .353** 1 sig. (2-tailed) .000 n 56 56 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). hypothesis one states that there is a significant relationship between motivation and employee engagement. the findings in table 2 above show that there is a significant positive relationship between motivation and employee engagement (r =.353**, p =.000). this is because the p value is less than the level of significance (0.01) in magnitude (p˂0.01). therefore, the alternative hypothesis is retained, and it is concluded that there is a significant positive relationship between motivation and employee engagement. this means that when they are motivated, they become engaged in their jobs. discussion employee motivation and engagement employee motivation is significantly related to engagement. this means that an increase in employee motivation leads to an increase in employee engagement. in agreement with the current study findings, haldorai et al. (2020) stated that out of the five factors that make up their engagement index, "employees themselves feel motivated to do more than is required" is the best indicator of overall engagement, followed by "the extent to which the company motivates employees to do more than is required." the largest return on overall involvement is produced by motivational investments, which hence increase utility. consistent with the current study by belyaev and kozieva (2020), there is a connection between employee engagement and work motivation. the study's conclusions showed a correlation between employee engagement and both internal and extrinsic motivation, which is good. four internal factors like interesting activities, work satisfaction, and stress, as well as four external factors such as job security, decent compensation, promotion and advancement, and recognition, were found to be significant determinants of engagement. motivation and employee engagement are both positively correlated with one another, according to the study's findings. additionally, it has been determined that employee engagement is significantly impacted by motivation, both extrinsic and intrinsic. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 27 in line with the current study, engidaw (2021) stated that award restructuring will affect employees' involvement, according to research on academic pay. furthermore, a lot of studies have raised a lot of questions and come up with a variety of conclusions about what motivates employees to engage in their work. in addition, meyer (2017) noted that motivation and employee engagement have recently risen to the top of organizations' priority lists. this has received a lot of attention because studies have shown that motivated employees contribute to better organizational outcomes, such as decreased employee turnover and higher levels of performance. therefore, it was concluded that employee motivation significantly influences employee engagement in an organization. 5.0 conclusion and recommendations conclusion since the findings indicate that employee motivation is significantly related to employee engagement. this means that employees who are well motivated do what it takes to achieve organizational objectives through engagement. recommendation organizations should also focus on creating high levels of job satisfaction among their employees by providing better working conditions and fringe benefits to keep them engaged in their jobs since they are the focal point for the growth and expansion of any organization. areas for further research we suggest that further research should be done on the relationship between employee motivation and engagement among academic staff at different universities in uganda. this will help in creating awareness among higher institutions of learning in both private and public institutions about the benefits of motivating employees to promote employee engagement. acknowledgments we thank everyone who participated in organizing this article in a meaningful way. authors details 1college of humanities and social sciences, school of psychology, department of, educational, social and organizational psychology, makerere university, kampala, makerere hill road, wandegeya. uganda. 2faculty of education, department of, educational psychology, kyambogo university, kampala, kyambogo hill road. uganda 3faculty of education, department of, educational psychology, kyambogo university, kampala, kyambogo hill road. uganda 4college of humanities and social sciences, school of psychology, department of mental health and community psychology, makerere university, kampala, makerere hill road, wandegeya. uganda. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 19 30, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 28 references adanlawo, e. f., & nkomo, n. y. 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(2018). does happiness promote career success? revisiting the evidence. journal of career assessment, 26(2), 199-219. more to work than money: harnessing work-life balance in traditional occupations through psychosocial and cultural functions of work fomba emmanuel mbebeb european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 34 mbebeb (2024) more to work than money: harnessing work-life balance in traditional occupations through psychosocial and cultural functions of work fomba emmanuel mbebeb1* fed, the university of bamenda, cameroon article history submitted 16.05.2024 revised version received 25.06.2024 accepted 26.07.2024 abstract purpose: the study argues that work itself appears muscular and economic but the soft meaning ascribed to work has implications on work-life balance, and people management particularly in traditional occupations. it further asserts that excessive valuation of the economic dimension of work has deprived work of intrinsic values, which naturally undermines decent work and work-life balance as well as the meaningfulness of work. although many conceptualizations have tied work to economic functions of paid work, the current reflection transcends to meaning-making through analysis of psychosocial and cultural significance of work and how these values could be purposefully integrated in promoting the values of work-life balance and wellbeing through people management practices incontext. material and methods: the materials used in the study were documents derived for secondary sources in the context of interest. the study deployed content analysis that is a flexible research method and has been used widely in the social sciences and human resource management. it was used to classify content in thematic forms and analysis meaningfulness and work functions in a systematic, rigorous approach through the use of documents obtained and information generated through observation in the course of the study. findings: from the analysis, it was observed that the drive towards decent work has ignited critical debates on work-life balance, and scaling economic interest and workplace happiness factors is becoming a great challenge to decent work demand in work life as a whole. despite the economic value, satisfying orienting aspects of work and pleasure are drawn from the psychological, social and cultural functions of work in the traditional sector. it further unveiled that the nature of work in traditional occupations advocates existential harmony between work and life, although with interferences from modern work values. with particular focus on traditional occupations in cameroon, the paper persists that the significance of work in indigenous survival economy unveils invaluable mental, affective and cultural gains, which are capable of bridging between work life and subjective wellbeing. implication to theory, practice and policy: nevertheless, the paper does not argue against pay as a whole, but emphasizes that meaningfulness in nonpaid work is often undermined in economicoriented discourses, theories and practices. while the present analysis recognizes the criticality of imported models in people management at work, it reiterates that work in pre-colonial africa was life, and life was work and did not exclude management practices. while recognizing the perception of work as modern and economic driven, the paper advocates the intrinsic benefits of work in traditional occupations that are synonymous to lifestyle and their integration into mainstream people management practices. critical lessons are drawn with implications to human resources policy, theory building with indigenous inputs and contingent practices in both modern and traditional sectors. keywords: work, money, culture, psychosocialbenefits, work-life-balance, subjective-wellbeing, traditional occupations http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 35 mbebeb (2024) 1.0 introduction in certain economic and management debates, wellbeing at work has been perceived as a means to performance and productivity, and not an end in itself, thereby positioning work as a drive for monetary reward. this is prevalent in both traditional and modern conceptions where the notion of work is very critical and concerns all imaginable human activities designed to satisfy human needs (akpala, 1984; rosso, dekas, and wrzesniewski, 2010). this depicts the elasticity of work and meanings ascribed to it in different cultural contexts particularly with traditional occupations. traditional occupations involves traditional work activities mostly in agriculture and crafts with building inclusive in the building of traditional economies and attention is drawn to the implications of these activities to work-life balance (ratnam, 2011). the one thing needful is that meaningful work is viewed as a way to bring harmony, if not balance, to the busy lives of workers providing them with well‐being and enhanced performance and dedication (steger, 2017). this view has also been reiterated by aju, orugun and hamosi (2013) that work instinct is associated with pleasure that provides opportunities for individuals to achieve something, exercise one’s imagination and intelligence, change personality, to know oneself, meet other people, help them and feel competent and powerful in life. it would be recalled that before the advent of modern work and organisations in africa, work and occupations took a purely traditional form as indigenous socio-cultural activities designed for subsistence and survival purposes. although work has become one of the most challenging issues to individuals, families and societies, it serves multiple functions in terms of life satisfaction. this is consistent with the view of steger (2017) that work is harmonious with meaning and purpose in the worker’s life as a whole, and helps workers to build more meanings in their lives. following the desire of many persons to render work meaningful, more individuals desire to their work to be meaningful, rather than just a source of income and it has recognized by many organizations that fostering meaningful work is crucial for engaging their employees (lysova, allan, dik, duffy & steger, 2019). with regards to traditional forms, adebayo (2015) recounted that indigenous practices of what is termed work today has been in existence before the coming of westerners to africa and work has witnessed a lot of changes. in indigenous business, work culture and strategies were executed from a purely customary platform on the basis of the role it played in people and communal life. since people are very much lured to extrinsic gains, attraction to material adaptive strategies became a cultural pattern highly expressed in many communities (fomba, forgako and kinge, 2019). this has been peculiar with subsistence and existence requirements with very high desire for satisfaction in the process of carrying out work activities. culturally, work cuts across wellbeing, and meanings are attached to occupations in term of needs and harmonisation of core values of life with work in order to grease life course as a whole. in this respect, the meaning of work literature has become a product of a long tradition of inquiry spanning many disciplines. this is the reality despite the fact that the field lacks overarching structures that would facilitate greater integration, consistency, and understanding of this body of research (rosso et al., 2010). the main interest and focus is on the usefulness of work, and how work is balanced with life in traditional african context as a strategy to achieve livelihood agendas and life satisfaction. today, this has been fused with the notion of work-life balance, which is consistent with that of exchange, and where each worker receives some form of reward in exchange for services rendered, which may be intrinsic or extrinsic (steers and porter, 1987). in addition, emerging debates on job and life satisfaction has become an exciting area of concern since it is http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 36 mbebeb (2024) locked up in work-life balance (wlb), where there is high demand for equity between work and life satisfaction in both modern and traditional sectors. this brings to the forefront the current debate on intrinsic values of work through exploration of psychosocial and cultural gains in traditional occupations in africa. the main question of interest today is whether there is more to work than money or whether work is just a means to an economic end. attempting a response, steger (2017), explained that meaningful work appeals to people’s subjective experience that work is significant, harmonious and energetically synergistic with meaning and purpose in broader lives. this implies that workers through their work stand to benefit much more from work in terms of intrinsic values, and this is visible with the so called “non-work” activities in indigenous societies. in this respect, fomba (2007) pointed out that indigenous enterprises have not reached formalized organizational development with formal structures and strategies in customary practices such as farming, community work, blacksmithing and repairs. nevertheless, such unstructured activities in modern terms still serve many functions other than economic or financial. consequently, work-life balance is often built on significant socio-cultural ideology, and this draws from the fact that the status of individuals in society also depends on the state of their economic life. work settings frequently perceive employee well‐being as an engine for improved performance, motivated by the idea that a happy worker is a better worker suggesting that work-related well‐being delivers impressive return on investment (steger, 2017). this is obvious, but lamentable that intrinsic gains following return in investment such as social approval, self-esteem, happiness and sense of worth are yet to be major attractions in business discourses. although this materialistic orientation is dominant in work life principles and practices, the meaning and value that work provides to people seeks to understand the role work plays in human life and society (steger, 2017). this reflects the essence of work in subjective wellbeing, which is inherent in african traditional occupations, and which serves a commendable level of psychosocial, spiritual and cultural functions to workers and communal life. in the present paper, the values of work have been discussed in a variety of ways, not only in economic terms, but also within the broader context of with value systems related to different domains of life in society. such value systems or attributions of meaning have made different categorization in terms of intrinsic and extrinsic gains and this has been captured in the present paper in terms of economic, psychosocial and cultural functions of work. the present exploration is very useful considering that some frantic attempts have been made in the domain of work psychology to draw in cultural technology to analyze the force of cultural patterning in energizing occupational behavior (fomba et al. 2019). it argues fervently that there is more to work than money in traditional occupations, acknowledging that work plays an adaptive function, and values derived from work could be resuscitated and integrated into mainstream work practices. while upholding the economic functions of work as critical to workers and societal development, the study further examines the psychosocial and cultural functions derived from african traditional occupations, with particular reference to the cameroon society. the present point of interest and focus is that work is inherent in human existence in the african context, and cannot be separated from existential and core values of the people. this has been in practice as a survival strategy before the advent of modern or “white man”, work, which remains dominant values being perpetrated from generation to generation through existing cultural mechanisms. with precision, the paper explores the nature of traditional occupations, work functions and how extended http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 37 mbebeb (2024) meanings can promote life satisfaction in survival activities in modern times. the present study employs a purely qualitative design to explore meaningfulness of work, work functions and how they relate and promote work life balance in traditional occupations. traditional occupations in the traditional sector the mission is central to the strategy of goal achievement and this implies traditional values that society ensures for survival strategy strategies through traditional occupations. to ratnam (2011), traditional occupations are those practiced by successive generations, rooted in customs and practices and focused on subsistence economies, pre-dating colonization and the industrial revolution. generally, local people engage in a variety of activities such as traditional farming practices, petty trading, rice cultivation, cassava production and home gardening. this is perceived in terms of indigenous economy which is not always in terms of core financial values. although it is evident that the traditional sectors will performance better with the practice of business principles, the distinctive features and values of traditional occupations should be advocated to promote work-life balance. to peoples forest programme [pfp] (2016) traditional occupations refer to livelihood/subsistence activities such as fishing/fisheries, hunting, farming and gathering of plants, fruits, nuts and mushroom. these activities are carried out by people and managing those in these activities cannot be undermined in a sector with low skill base in people management. while traditional occupation is mostly associated with the “old” and low level of education, ratnam (2013) clarified that modernity and tradition are more complex concepts that refer to embedded values and ideologies, production technologies, knowledge systems, levels of mechanization, and integration with capitalist modes of production and marketing. this simply implies that the concepts of modern and traditional occupations are not synonymous to new and old respectively. although work is an upshot of traditional occupations, the status and trends in the practice of traditional occupations is one of the agreed indicators to measure progress towards traditional knowledge and customary practices. in the wake of diverse reforms in the traditional sector, the focus on the human factor is critical and the management of people has been given the importance it deserves. despite the fact that there is a conspicuous similarity and overlap in practices (pfp, 2016), people management needs a sorting out process where human resource management functions align strictly with the felt needs of the people and the workplace in order to balance their lives. a look at the meaningless of work the concept of work was introduced in 1826 by the french mathematician gaspard-gustave coriolis as "weight lifted through a height", which is based on the use of early steam engines to lift buckets of water out of flooded ore mines. useful contributions have also come from physics, which defines work as a force, and a force is said to do work if there is a displacement of the point of application in the direction of the force. this energy-expenditure definition considers any activity that requires energy and effort as work. in generic terms, work has also been understood in terms of direct or indirect paid activity, goal-directed activity or any pleasurable or enjoyable activity. there is no doubt that work assists in the provision iof basic needs and other vital functions in the society. from a broader standpoint, aju, orugun, & hamosi (2013) explained that work is an activity that enables individuals fit into the world, creates neworks, uses talents, learn, grow and develop identity and nurture a sense of belonging in order to adapt to the demands of the http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/gaspard-gustave_coriolis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/gaspard-gustave_coriolis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/steam_engine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/displacement_(vector) european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 38 mbebeb (2024) environment. although the term “work” is customarily used to denote the exertion of effort toward some end, it refers to activities oriented toward the production of goods and services for one’s own use or for pay particularly in economic terms. apart from economic value, the conception of work as a means of generating income also underlies most sociological scholarship on work in different societies particularly in indigenous communities. while fomba (2007) defined work as a goal directed human activity designed towards goal achievement and needs satisfaction, rosso et al. (2010) conceptualized work as an end state of an activity that people desire and feel should be realized in order to have some value in the process of working. people mostly perceive work as a money making business since working for money allows them to obtain reward and satisfy basic needs. moreover, work can be unpaid such as family duties, household chores, schooling, voluntary activities, community services and socio-cultural ceremonies. this draws from the understanding that efforts have been exerted, time taken and distance covered in the process of realizing a given work assignment. therefore, work is synonymous with business, occupation, employment, job, function, office, and can be said to be any activity undertaken in return for payment in money or in kind or in exchange of service (akpala, 1984, 226). in addition, work can be full time, part time or casual, and in traditional communities, most of the paid assignments are piece rate. it would be noted that individual differences have a lot to do with perceptions and behaviours toward work activities and processes. consequently, work means strikingly different things to different people and the type or amount of meaning people find in their work shape their feelings, thoughts, and behaviors (rosso et al., 2010). the meaning or significance of work is a derivative of individual subjective interpretation and collective thinking of work in relation to personal and societal values and expectations. it should be interesting to note that the capacity for work to be in harmony with and to help nurture meaning in the worker’s broader life is one level of transcendence higher than the job itself (steger et al., 2017). this implies that the value of work results from the meanings that societies attach to work and also act as a source of meaning individuals draw from their work (rosso et al., 2010). therefore, unlike in modern organisations, work in the indigenous sector could be perceived as any given paid or unpaid task executed at a given time in place and driven by meaning and significance to self and community. it is therefore essential to explore the nature and work types in traditional occupations in local context to better explore meaning in the process of work-life balance. work as life in traditional occupations ordinary perceptions of work hold that work is life and life is work. indigenous communities as modern societies cherish work as an indispensable value necessary for adaptability, considering that it is the lone way to produce goods and services for sustainable livelihood. work is generally considered to be a positive form activity that contributes to the welfare of individuals, communities and societies, and the role of traditional occupations cannot be underrated. the traditional work sector or system connotes pre-industrial or communal subsistence operations with simple technologies in a framework where one cannot separate economic interest from family or communal interest (akpala, 1984). small-scale business activities are generally a sole proprietorship, with many stakeholders who are usually family members and kinsmen, but with just a few paid workers bound by geographical, social and psychological factors and ensure the day-to-day running of the activities (fomba, 2007). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 39 mbebeb (2024) this positions family members and kinsmen at the centre of occupational activities implying that they are responsible for the provision of necessary resources for any work activity. at the same time challenges arising from work processes are often managed in a purely humanistic style to maintain solidarity and cohesion between individuals as workers and individuals as family members or kinsmen. according to thornberry (2017) indigenous peoples in central africa are still overwhelmingly engaged as workers in the informal economy and their traditional occupations are linked to land and natural resources or working informally for private individuals. this is justified by the fact that the communities are generally agrarian, and the exploitation of agricultural resources is no doubt a dominant activity of the people. all about work in traditional occupations revolve mainly around agriculture and the family. it is evident that as a fundamental unit of society, the place of the family as a fundamental unit of economic activities cannot be undermined (fomba, 2007), and the realization of such economic activities depend on the expression of work behaviours. although indigenous peoples in the region represent specific groups whose ways of life and traditional occupations place them at the margins of society (thornberry, 2017), there are other benefits of work ascribed to them as compared to the so called “working class” in white collar occupations. with respect to survival strategies, hunting, gathering and fishing remain by far some of the significant subsistence activities. at the same time these activities are often therapeutic and equally give them a lot of fun and satisfaction in the process realization. indigenous peoples in central africa have developed highly specialized livelihood strategies adapted to the specific conditions of their territories and the practice of traditional occupations appears the most significant form of work activity (thornberry, 2017). cameroon as other countries in the subregion is agrarian, and the place of small-scale agriculture including animal husbandry cannot be overemphasized in traditional occupations. this goes with the production of food crops such as cassava, yam, maize, fruits, potatoes as well as keeping of animals such as goats, pigs, cattle, fowls and rabbits. principal products often gathered in traditional occupations by indigenous communities include honey, wild yams, mushrooms, caterpillars, koko leaves, and various other wild fruits and leaves (thronberry, 2017). small-scale commerce being carried out by the people is also part of traditional occupations, and this is often observed with the sale or exchange of products, particularly in goods and services. in the traditional setting, work has been communal with no clear distinction between owners who controlled work and workers who rendered services for pay (akpala, 1984). in terms of realizing work assignments, the men, women and children are generally involved, although work in traditional communities faces a lot of challenges. apart from dominant farming activities and production of farm inventories, workers could be observed showcasing their natural skills in woodcraft, sculpture and commercial activities and this attracts both intrinsic and extrinsic values. an added advantage of these occupations is that they are mostly outdoor activities, and often very refreshing and stress-relieving for workers leading to the expression of positive feelings among workers. as non-monetary motivators, they are very important in the satisfaction of varying needs of those who are actively involved in different occupations in their respective communities. a systematic and in-depth exploration of gains inherent in traditional occupations stands to portray meanings or significance derived from occupational activities in the traditional sector. unlike in the modern sector which is more organised and rigorous, workers do not have the latitude to enjoy the pleasures of outdoor activities which are therapeutic, and are always under pressure, strain and http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 40 mbebeb (2024) stress. this has implications on health and performance and justify the rationale behind the functions of work in the traditional sector and work life balance that need to be creatively adopted into the mechanisms of modern work sector to inform decent work and wellbeing. imperative of traditional economic gains despite the fact that the present paper reproaches the dwindling value and significance of intrinsic values of work in african context, money remains a core attraction and derivative of work, and plays important roles in individual and collective wellbeing. financial incentive is one of the major attractions that influence people to work since workers expect their efforts to be rewarded with money (fomba, 2007). with this recognition, financial packages have been perceived as invaluable in facilitating performance and this has implications on reward system at work. even with traditional occupations, financial and material incentives have been recognized as critical needs, and individuals’ financial circumstances at times determine meanings ascribed to work. this no doubt justifies the role of monetary compensation deployed to motivate and promote performance of workers in different contexts. this is why workers with inadequate incomes and those with great financial needs will always lay more emphasis on economic value of work. in advanced industrial societies psychological needs at times can be met only through paid work and strong emphasis is being made on the psychological importance of paid work (gill, 1999). this is real particularly where the meaning of work is defined and obtained not from the intrinsic value of work, but through extrinsic attributes that generate satisfaction at work and in life. therefore, work for pay simply implies the economic and/or material functions of work to individuals in any work situation. steger (2017) further explained that people with a job orientation focus consider work as an avenue toward financial or material compensation with little or no concern about the meaning of work. this concurs with the economic view that workers desire economic benefits, and are capable of marshalling resources and maximising rewards in all conditions (adeboye, 2015). although the money thesis is tenable in needs satisfaction and life adjustment, there are other intrinsic benefits required in work-life balance other than economic. this is the case with benefits from traditional occupations in african society, which suggests that traditional way of living is less materialistic even in work situations. although cultural values that have great concern for materialism do not absolutely respond to sustainable development of mindsets and work behaviour (fomba et al., 2019), changing perceptions of work has been observed in traditional activities, and interest is currently being shifted towards work for pay. this could be due to the fact that tendency to engage in economic activities among human beings is connected with human hedonistic principles and their inherited survival instinct (adeboye, 2015). this no doubt expresses the need to explore other dimensions of work functions beliefs. mental and emotional derivatives a stable mental and emotional state is indispensable in performance and productivity, which in turn produces a sound psychological state for sustainable livelihood and subjective wellbeing. the influence of work centrality to individuals has been recognized and proponents of work argue that the meaningfulness of work vary depending on the depth or strength of correlation between an individual and work aju et al. (2013). this means that psychological gains are equally derived from work activities though they are seemingly invisible and most often remain in oblivion in work-life debates. this depicts the significance of psychological meaning of work in the present analysis, and how it affects the life of workers in community-based activities. interest in the http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 41 mbebeb (2024) centrality of work to people’s life suggests that variability in the meaningfulness of work depends on the strength of the relationship between an individual and work itself (rosso et al., 2010). from this standpoint, meaningful work scholarship seeks to optimize occupational opportunities in such a way that worker motivation, effort, and productivity are enhanced, while simultaneously enjoying greater well‐being, health, and belongingness (steger, 2017). this is the orientation and practice in the traditional sector, and further advocates that workers constitute the alpha and omega of occupational assignments. the understanding is that work gives a personal meaning to workers, from which brooder meaning is generated to affect other facets of life. although work activities are means of subsistence, they have psychological functions to play since work gives personal meaning to participants in terms of adjustment, mental health, satisfaction and self-worth. this invariably means that human beings are pleasure seekers and instinctually alerted to any activity that connects with human survival (adeboye, 2015). it is evident that the acquisition of survival drives has been recognized as facilitators of work motivation in all work types, and though achievement drive is a motivating factor, it also generates feelings of self-efficacy in the worker. with regard to psychological functions, it should be noted that the amount of perceived or felt significance of work can vary greatly since a single work experience may be experienced as extremely meaningful by one individual and not very meaningful by another (rosso et al., 2010). therefore, individual differences set in and play a great role in meaning attributions implying that people can give different significance to the same work activities. for instance, the fulfillment of personal potential and self-realization have been perceived as very important values derived from work in different cultures and this does not exclude the traditional sector in africa. this concurs with the view of steers & porter (1987) that work is a source of identity, self-esteem and selfactualization. self-esteem for instance is important because of feelings of accomplishment from work at any level. this helps to fulfill individuals’ motivations that optimistic and resilient individuals can make invaluable contributions to work and life in their communities. since work has been perceived as an avenue for gaining a sense of achievement, mastery, status, or advancement in organizations (steger, 2017), the traditional sector as a survival strategy cannot be excluded in fostering subjective wellbeing. workers in indigenous settings also display a proud sense of work identity, advancement, achievement and feelings of importance in their occupations. most often such perceptions and emotional expressions occur within the context of social self and expectations from community values. the social significance of work it is evident that any work setting such as an organisation is a social system and comprises people who share their thinking and feelings together, whether pleasant of unpleasant. work is a social fact because in the process of producing and delivering goods and services, people interact in groups to realize specific activities, and in the process social needs are activated and they require appropriate social responses. the only challenge is that interest in the role of socialization has been on the use of social capital to foster performance, while little has been explored on the impact of work activities on people’s social relationships and wellbeing. traditionally, the significance of wlb in employment relations tend to explore prospects that impact on employer-employee relationships such as productivity, motivation, job satisfaction and acceptable workplace morale (akanji, 2013). this demonstrates emerging interest in the social construction of meaning in work as a source of significance to work in different sectors. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 42 mbebeb (2024) work in indigenous community is commonly perceived as a social action since people are most often involved in groups, teams or communities. akpala (1984,) maintained that the relationship with work in the traditional system is largely a face-to-face affair between individuals and small groups of family and community members. in the sector, social relations create conditions for the expression of work behaviours, facilitate operations of economic activities, and in return derive social gains from members as groups or communities. the interactions of individuals and relationships with other persons or groups have been recognized as a source of meaning to work with the visible role of coworkers, leaders, families, groups and communities (rosso et al., 2010). moreover, people with a calling orientation at work are interested in self-fulfillment, prosocial benefits, and a sense of purpose that work provides, particularly in terms of making the society a better place (steger, 2017). it is clear that social relations in indigenous work settings do not only create conditions of work, but at the same time generate social benefits from working together and living in a mutually beneficial manner with others. this is consistent with steers & porter (1987) that work generally serves several social functions since the workplace provides opportunities for meeting new people and developing friendships. this reflects the communal and cohesive nature of indigenous communities loaded with social values that have been inculcated into work life, and which indirectly balances work and life in traditional occupations. work life as life style culture is lifestyle and work is a way of life of a people, and used to adapt to the exigencies of their environment and to aju at al. (2013) work is central in many cultures and it is important and significant for a lot of people as a cultural fact. culture has been recognized as a powerful determinant of thinking and behavior in many work settings and its influence on economic behaviors and community-based economic activities cannot be disputed (fomba, 2007). generally, people ascribe significance to work from a culturally-induced worldview and value systems in-context. it should be understood that work plays a cultural ecology function since work is perceived as a cultural activity (fomba et al., 2019), and demands occupational drivers to satisfy needs of workers according to culturally prescribed expectations. therefore, work is likely to be deemed meaningful when the social and cultural systems around them ascribe value to their work activities (rosso et al., 2010). this is due to the fact that the analysis of significance is dependent on social and cultural forces driving interpretations, and not only on individual psychological factors such as experience, perceptions and emotions. moreover, it has been intimated that some of the earliest writings on the meaning of work are rooted in the perspective that broad social and cultural forces have a powerful influence on the meanings people make of work (rosso et al., 2010). although culture has an important role in determining work practices and processes, work also plays an adaptive function to cultural demands in society. this demonstrates the elasticity and indispensability of culture in any human endeavor, and this is obvious with traditional occupations in africa that nourishes cultural values at work. emerging debates on work and environment have recognized cultural patterning as an adaptive mechanism capable of energizing work behaviours and driving a sustainable future (fomba et al., 2019). although culture has been positioned as an adaptive strategy in the process of survival, culture remains a way of life, and a way of work life to individuals and communities. therefore, meaningful work has to be cultivated and harnessed to maximize performance, build strong brands, nurture innovation, and benefit both employees and their host communities (steger, 2017). since work affects workers and communities, it requires the deployment of cultural forms in the process http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 43 mbebeb (2024) of adaptability. in traditional communities, work activities have been interwoven with their cultural ecology and this is demonstrated through existing traditional beliefs usually expressed through fatalistic practices (fomba et al., 2019). this is the lifestyle of a people, and it cannot be separated from work activities since activities carried out by members give them collective meaning. at times work activities are actualised as imposing cultural forms based on personcommunity linkages with regards to expectations of indigenous institutions. this is why at times work is paid in kind using motivators like alcohol, cigarettes, salt or soap (thornberry, 2017). this is common in rewarding efforts or in reinforcing work behaviours in traditional work settings. anyway, drawing from the present assessment, the different meanings ascribed to work are significant due to the multi-dimensional nature of workers and their needs at work, and in life in their community as a whole. the essence of exploring meanings is to determine the usefulness of work to individuals and groups, and equally advocates the need to balance work and life values in work processes. prospecting work and life on a scale placing work and life on a scale portrays the notion of balance and expresses the need for equity and fairness between work and life satisfaction. work reflects the way values are patterned and recognized as facilities that can reinforce survival, and this is being projected through traditional occupations (fomba et al., 2019). the concept of work has been examined in terms of needs satisfaction and life adjustment considering that work is designed to satisfy diverse needs of individuals and groups, whether material or non-material. emerging debates on the significance of work charts a wide terrain across many disciplines and interest is in the benefits that workers derive from work across cultures (rosso et al., 2010). this no doubt reiterates the significance of work, not only as an economic tool but also as a process of life satisfaction. in the process, work enables people to balance their lives through the consumption of goods and services in any situation, and such could be satisfied through psychological and material incentives. this is why participation in work activities has often been considered as a form of socialization that serves physical and mental development functions (thornberry, 2017). for instance, the satisfaction of needs that have been embedded in our social, ethical, and cultural structures has been strongly advocated at work considering that deprivation will lead to undesired consequences on the state of the worker (gill, 1999). as western societies have become more fragmented, there has been a breakdown of community and a growing culture where commercial values increasingly dominate and challenge wellbeing of workers (cartwright and holmes, 2006). this appears contrary to indigenous african societies where a degree of solidarity exists and extends to work setting with high concern for people, though often low concern for performance. despite the reticence in western scientific debates on the comprehensive benefits of work, social and behavioural orientations have recognised work as life and life as work. this position strives for a balance between work and life, as two distinct concepts that cannot be practically divorced with regard to decent work. although work-life research is a social concept originating from western societies (akanji, 2013), the practice of wlb is inherent in african culture and occupations. customarily, work transcends the execution of designated tasks for economic motives to the perception of value in work as part of life. despite the recognition that modern organisations have been visible in fostering performance and productivity, the intrinsic aspects of african traditional work cannot be oversighted, despite deficiencies in theoretical explanations. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 44 mbebeb (2024) unlike the dichotomy observed in modern structures, work and management of people in indigenous occupations have been done from a purely humanistic and holistic standpoint where work is inalienable to life and vice versa. this is why increased attention needs to be paid to work group situations in different contexts (thornberry, 2017), and this is the platform on which prevailing practices in the traditional sector is built. there is no doubt that the sector looks unrefined or crude at the surface, but a close look unveils that work is harmonious with meaning and purpose in the worker’s life as a whole, expectations of the family and that of the entire community. despite the inevitable role of the community in fostering collective values of work, extant review of literature in organizational research on the significance of work largely centers on individual perceptions of meaning (rosso et al., 2010). this portrays the lack of interest or nonchalance, even by african scholars and researchers in exploring the intrinsic values of the indigenous work sector in africa. despite the lacuna in documentation, there are elements of practices that agree with norms of decent work, and from which workers reap a lot of benefits other than pay in traditional occupations. therefore, emerging debates on wlb imply a gentle request to resuscitate african work values as a strategy in fostering meaningful work and sustainable living. this is built on the premise that indigenous occupations are considerably cultural and social expressions capable of fostering the dynamics of balance between work and life. generally, changes in the workplace today have tended to significantly increase the demands placed on employees, which are often to the detriment of their health and personal life (cartwright and holmes, 2006). but this is not always the case with african traditional occupations since work is always spiced with values and desires of life such as solidarity, eating, drinking and singing together by men, women and children. it is therefore difficult to separate work from their individual and collective identity and operations of daily life. although the drive towards decent work has ignited critical debates in work life balance, balancing economic interest and factors that contribute to happiness at work has been a big challenge to organizational management processes. in this respect, gill (1999) argued that the abstraction of non-pecuniary rewards and all potential losses introduce systematic biases into the economic diagnosis of root causes of socio-economic malaise, and the remedies it places on the agenda of social policy. consequently, many employees and their organisations face challenges in balancing life and work, and this deprives many workers of the intrinsic benefits of life expected to reap at work (akanji, 2013). anyway, this raises curiosity on how workers in their quests for rational living manage pressures between their work and community life given the array of challenges being faced by the working population. from the foregoing, it is essential to move beyond economic work to psychosocial and cultural work in order to maximize work-life balance and subjective wellbeing through meaningful work activities and situations. 2.0 conclusion and recommendations conclusion the present study has underscored the nature and benefit of traditional occupations with the understanding that gains from practice transcend economic to psychosocial and cultural benefits with implication to people management at work. it has been recognized that mainstreaming work life balance is often fraught with challenges due to uncritical reflection and ascription of meaning to work, which is dominantly economic in perspectives. although the philosophy and practices of http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 45 mbebeb (2024) indigenous and modern work appear to differ greatly, there is a common point of meeting, and this is where fairness is achieved between work and life. despite the fact that industrial relations and the traditional system seems to be poles apart, there are some significant factors in the traditional system observed as capable of infusing into the modern and complicated relationship at work for better results (akpala, 1984). this justifies the reason for strongly reiterating that there is more to work than money since meaningful work is not just a trivial ascription, but loaded with personal and communal significance. in this respect, economic behaviors are largely influenced by cultural values since coordination and management styles are dictated by social interest (fomba, 2007, 58). it would be recalled that discussion has unfolded with the juxtaposition of both modern and traditional work scenes to explore meaning and balance in work and life. another interest is how traditional work values can be resuscitated and integrated into modern work setting in african context in order to meet the needs and desires of local workers. from the foregoing debate, it is evident that traditional occupations maintain an enviable balance between work and life at all levels considering that work activities often extend to social and cultural manifestations and life course of the people with ensuing gains. from all analysis the benefits derived from work often transcend pay to non-monetary benefits, and this has given a lot of meaning to indigenous workers in local contexts. recommendations although the modern and tradition sectors different in structure, culture and operations they are all interested in decent work and satisfactory work life at all times. cultural values distinct managerial practices in modern organisations and traditional sector but work in the latter is spiced with life values which are also good for mechanistic organisations in order to balance life and work. the good side of it is that dominant values of traditional labor system are still present in modem work settings and constitute the basis on which small-scale business organizations are structured and managed (fomba, 2007). this is a genuine recognition of positive features of traditional occupations in the process of developing a work-life balance model that draws in the communal lifestyle of workers. a sorting process should be put in place to determine the progressive values of the traditional sector for necessary integration into mainstream work-life balance strategies building on humanistic values and principles of operations in traditional occupations. african managers have always deployed euro-american management style in a purely african context, which is dominated by indigenous occupations. considering that the present argument is not a rejection of western people management style, the study advocates that there should be resuscitation and integration of indigenous strategies into mainstream human resource management principles and practices. this also gives opportunity to contextualist theory building particularly in the indigenous sector that can be adapted to modern organisations conventionally operating in local contexts. testing traditional models of practice is the core value interest in human resource management study and the present exploratory work could be of interest to rigorous testing and authentication. this is a fervent appeal to research in people management sciences to use current themes generated in the study on meaningfulness of work and work-life balance and investigate further using mix method approaches especially in validating the claims of the present study through quantitative design. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 34 47, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2230 46 mbebeb (2024) references aju, o, orugun, j.j. & hamosi, e.e. 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(2017) working conditions of indigenous women and men in central africa: an analysis based on available evidence, geneva: international labour organization license copyright (c) 2024 fomba emmanuel mbebeb this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ effects of remote work policies on employee job satisfaction in burundi phillip ntihirageza european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 1 ntihirageza (2024) effects of remote work policies on employee job satisfaction in burundi phillip ntihirageza université de mwaro article history submitted 17.05.2024 revised version received 25.06.2024 accepted 28.07.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the effects of remote work policies on employee job satisfaction in burundi. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study indicated that remote work can enhance job satisfaction by providing employees with greater flexibility and autonomy, allowing them to better balance their work and personal lives. this flexibility often leads to reduced stress levels and increased overall well-being, contributing to a more positive work experience. furthermore, the elimination of commuting time and costs, coupled with the ability to create a personalized and comfortable working environment, further enhances job satisfaction. however, these benefits are not universal; some employees may experience feelings of isolation and a lack of camaraderie with colleagues, which can negatively affect job satisfaction. effective communication and support from management are crucial in mitigating these challenges. overall, while remote work policies generally tend to improve job satisfaction by offering flexibility and work-life balance, they must be implemented thoughtfully to address potential drawbacks related to social interaction and team cohesion. implications to theory, practice and policy: job characteristics theory, selfdetermination theory and social exchange theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the effects of remote work policies on employee job satisfaction in burundi. organizations should develop flexible remote work policies tailored to individual employee needs. incorporate mental health support into remote work policies. organizations should provide access to mental health services and promote a culture of well-being to reduce burnout and improve job satisfaction. develop policies that foster a strong, inclusive organizational culture even in remote settings. keywords: remote, work policies, employee, job satisfaction http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 2 ntihirageza (2024) introduction the advent of remote work policies, driven by technological advancements and the global push towards flexibility in the workplace, has significantly reshaped traditional employment dynamics. employee job satisfaction in developed economies such as the usa, japan, and the uk has shown varying trends. in the usa, a survey conducted by the society for human resource management (shrm) in 2021 found that 57% of employees reported being satisfied with their jobs, a significant increase from previous years. in japan, however, job satisfaction remains relatively low, with a 2022 study by the japan institute for labour policy and training indicating that only 44% of employees are satisfied with their work. in the uk, a 2020 report by the chartered institute of personnel and development (cipd) revealed that 64% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, reflecting a stable trend over the past five years. these statistics highlight the diverse landscape of job satisfaction across developed economies, influenced by cultural, economic, and organizational factors (nankervis, compton, & baird, 2021). in developing economies, job satisfaction varies widely due to economic conditions and labor market structures. in india, a 2022 study found that 52% of employees reported job satisfaction, influenced by factors such as work-life balance and career advancement opportunities. in brazil, a survey conducted in 2021 showed that 58% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, with job security and social benefits being key determinants. similarly, in china, a 2020 study indicated that 60% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, highlighting the importance of organizational culture and management practices. these findings suggest that while job satisfaction in developing economies is generally lower than in developed countries, it is gradually improving due to economic growth and better working conditions (garcía & miralles, 2022). in developed economies, the focus on work-life balance and organizational support plays a crucial role in enhancing job satisfaction. for example, in the usa, companies like google and apple are known for their comprehensive employee benefits and supportive work environments, contributing to higher job satisfaction rates. in japan, companies such as toyota have implemented initiatives to improve work-life balance and reduce overwork, aiming to boost employee satisfaction. the uk's national health service (nhs) has also seen improvements in job satisfaction through initiatives focused on staff well-being and mental health support. these examples illustrate how organizations in developed economies are actively working to improve job satisfaction through various strategies (nankervis, compton, & baird, 2021). in developing economies, multinational corporations and local companies are adopting practices to enhance employee job satisfaction. in india, it companies like infosys and tcs have implemented flexible working hours and career development programs to improve job satisfaction. in brazil, companies such as petrobras have focused on employee engagement and recognition programs, which have positively impacted job satisfaction. in china, alibaba group has introduced initiatives to promote a positive work culture and provide career growth opportunities, leading to higher job satisfaction among employees. these efforts highlight the growing recognition of the importance of job satisfaction in developing economies (garcía & miralles, 2022). in other developed economies, job satisfaction trends reflect various socio-economic factors and cultural attitudes towards work. in germany, for instance, a 2021 study by the institute for employment research (iab) found that 67% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, with strong labor protections and a robust social welfare system contributing to high satisfaction http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 3 ntihirageza (2024) levels. in canada, a 2020 survey by the conference board of canada revealed that 62% of employees reported job satisfaction, highlighting the importance of work-life balance and supportive management practices. in australia, a 2022 report by the australian hr institute indicated that 70% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, driven by flexible working conditions and comprehensive employee benefits. these examples show how developed economies prioritize different aspects of job satisfaction to meet their workforce's needs (schaufeli, 2022). job satisfaction in other developing economies shows significant variability influenced by economic growth and labor market conditions. in mexico, a 2021 study found that 55% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, with job security and income levels being key factors. in indonesia, a 2020 survey indicated that 57% of employees reported job satisfaction, with organizational support and career development opportunities playing critical roles. in vietnam, a 2022 study revealed that 60% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, emphasizing the importance of supportive work environments and opportunities for professional growth. these findings highlight the ongoing efforts in developing economies to enhance job satisfaction through various organizational and policy initiatives (tran, 2021). in sub-saharan africa, job satisfaction is influenced by unique regional challenges and opportunities. in south africa, a 2021 study found that 55% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, with factors such as job security and income playing significant roles. in nigeria, a 2020 survey revealed that 50% of employees reported job satisfaction, with workplace environment and management practices being key determinants. similarly, in kenya, a 2019 study indicated that 53% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, highlighting the importance of social support and job stability. these statistics underscore the ongoing efforts to improve job satisfaction in sub-saharan economies through better labor policies and organizational practices (mutuma & kinyua, 2020). in additional sub-saharan african countries, job satisfaction is influenced by regional economic conditions and organizational practices. in ghana, a 2021 survey indicated that 54% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, with factors such as job security and income playing significant roles. in ethiopia, a 2020 study found that 52% of employees reported job satisfaction, highlighting the importance of a supportive work environment and fair compensation. in uganda, a 2019 survey revealed that 51% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, with social support and job stability being key determinants. these examples demonstrate that sub-saharan economies are making efforts to improve job satisfaction through better labor policies and organizational practices (kiptum & cheruiyot, 2019). remote work policies have become increasingly vital in today's dynamic work environment, significantly impacting employee job satisfaction. four prevalent remote work policies include flexible scheduling, provision of necessary technology, virtual team-building activities, and clear communication guidelines. flexible scheduling allows employees to balance their work and personal lives, thus enhancing job satisfaction and reducing stress (smith, 2019). the provision of necessary technology ensures that employees have the tools they need to perform their tasks efficiently, leading to higher productivity and satisfaction (jones, 2020). virtual team-building activities foster a sense of community and belonging among remote workers, mitigating feelings of isolation and boosting morale (brown, 2021). additionally, clear communication guidelines help in setting expectations and maintaining transparency, which are crucial for remote work success and employee satisfaction (davis, 2018). these policies collectively create a supportive remote work environment that addresses the unique challenges of remote working, thereby enhancing overall job satisfaction (lee, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 4 ntihirageza (2024) 2022). by prioritizing these policies, organizations can not only improve job satisfaction but also increase employee retention and productivity (kim, 2020). therefore, effectively implemented remote work policies are instrumental in fostering a positive work culture and enhancing employee well-being in the modern workplace (white, 2023). problem statement the rapid shift to remote work induced by the covid-19 pandemic has presented significant challenges for organizations in maintaining employee engagement, productivity, and job satisfaction. despite the flexibility and potential benefits associated with remote work, many employees report feelings of isolation, communication barriers, and difficulties in separating work from personal life. these issues are exacerbated by inadequate technological support and unclear remote work policies, leading to increased stress and decreased job satisfaction (clark, karau, & michalos, 2020). furthermore, managers often struggle with overseeing remote teams effectively, which can result in misalignment of goals and expectations, further impacting employee morale and performance (wang, liu, qian, & parker, 2021). addressing these challenges is crucial for organizations to fully leverage the advantages of remote work and ensure a satisfied, productive workforce. theoretical framework job characteristics theory job characteristics theory, developed by hackman and oldham in 1976, posits that job satisfaction is influenced by five core job dimensions: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback. these dimensions impact critical psychological states that lead to positive work outcomes, including job satisfaction. this theory is relevant to remote work policies as it highlights the importance of autonomy and feedback, which are critical in a remote work setting. policies that enhance these dimensions, such as flexible working hours and regular virtual check-ins, can improve job satisfaction among remote employees (li, 2021). self-determination theory self-determination theory (sdt), introduced by deci and ryan in the 1980s, emphasizes the role of intrinsic motivation and identifies three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. satisfaction of these needs leads to enhanced motivation and well-being. sdt is pertinent to the study of remote work policies as it underscores the significance of autonomy and relatedness. remote work policies that support autonomy and foster connections through regular communication and collaborative tools can enhance job satisfaction (ryan & deci, 2019). social exchange theory social exchange theory, proposed by blau in 1964, suggests that social behavior is the result of an exchange process to maximize benefits and minimize costs. it emphasizes the role of reciprocity and the mutual benefits derived from social interactions. this theory is applicable to remote work policies as it highlights the importance of trust and reciprocal relationships between employers and employees. policies that facilitate regular virtual interactions and provide necessary support can foster a positive exchange relationship, enhancing job satisfaction (cropanzano & mitchell, 2020). empirical review clark, karau and michalos examined the impact of flexible work arrangements on job satisfaction among remote workers. using a mixed-methods approach, the researchers surveyed 500 remote employees and conducted in-depth interviews with 50 participants. they http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 5 ntihirageza (2024) found that flexible working hours significantly increased job satisfaction by improving worklife balance. the study recommended that organizations adopt flexible work schedules to enhance employee well-being. the researchers also highlighted the importance of clear communication and technological support in remote work settings. they suggested that regular virtual meetings and feedback mechanisms can further boost job satisfaction. the study concluded that flexible work arrangements are a critical factor in enhancing job satisfaction among remote workers. wang, liu, qian and parker (2021) focused on the role of technological support in remote work settings. they surveyed 600 remote employees from various industries and analyzed the data using structural equation modeling. the findings indicated that employees who received adequate technological support reported higher levels of job satisfaction and productivity. the study recommended that organizations invest in reliable technology and provide continuous it support to remote workers. it also emphasized the need for training programs to help employees adapt to new technologies. the researchers found that a lack of technological support led to increased stress and reduced job satisfaction. they concluded that technological infrastructure is essential for maintaining high job satisfaction in remote work environments. golden and eddleston (2019) explored the effects of remote work policies on work-life balance and job satisfaction. using a longitudinal design, the researchers tracked 450 employees over two years to assess changes in job satisfaction. they found that remote work policies that allowed for greater autonomy and flexibility significantly improved work-life balance and job satisfaction. the study recommended that organizations develop policies that promote autonomy and reduce micromanagement. the researchers also suggested that regular virtual social interactions can mitigate feelings of isolation. they concluded that remote work policies should be tailored to individual employee needs to maximize job satisfaction. baker, avery and crawford (2018) investigated the impact of communication practices on job satisfaction in remote work environments. they conducted a survey of 400 remote employees and used qualitative interviews to gather additional insights. the study found that frequent and clear communication from managers was strongly correlated with higher job satisfaction. the researchers recommended that organizations establish regular communication protocols and use multiple channels to keep remote employees engaged. they also suggested that managers receive training on effective virtual communication techniques. the study highlighted the importance of transparency and timely feedback in remote work settings. the researchers concluded that effective communication practices are crucial for maintaining job satisfaction among remote workers. smith and clarke (2022) examined the relationship between remote work policies and employee engagement. they surveyed 500 employees working remotely due to the covid19 pandemic and used regression analysis to interpret the data. the findings revealed that remote work policies that included regular virtual team-building activities and clear performance metrics significantly enhanced employee engagement and job satisfaction. the study recommended that organizations incorporate team-building exercises into their remote work policies. the researchers also stressed the importance of setting clear expectations and providing regular feedback. they found that engaged employees were more likely to report high job satisfaction and productivity. the study concluded that remote work policies should focus on both individual and team dynamics to maximize engagement and satisfaction. allen, golden and shockley (2021) explored the impact of remote work policies on employee mental health and job satisfaction. they conducted a survey of 550 remote employees and used path analysis to examine the relationships between variables. the study found that remote work http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 6 ntihirageza (2024) policies that included mental health resources and support significantly improved job satisfaction and reduced burnout. the researchers recommended that organizations provide access to mental health services and promote a culture of well-being. they also suggested that managers receive training on recognizing and addressing mental health issues in remote work settings. the study highlighted the link between mental health support and job satisfaction in remote work environments. the researchers concluded that comprehensive remote work policies should address both job performance and employee well-being. davis and green (2020) examined the role of organizational culture in remote work satisfaction. they surveyed 480 remote employees and conducted focus groups to gather qualitative data. the findings indicated that a strong, inclusive organizational culture positively influenced job satisfaction among remote workers. the study recommended that organizations foster a culture of inclusivity and support to enhance remote work satisfaction. the researchers also suggested that remote work policies include initiatives to build and maintain organizational culture. they found that employees who felt connected to their organization’s culture reported higher job satisfaction and commitment. the study concluded that organizational culture is a critical factor in determining remote work satisfaction. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gaps: despite extensive research on various aspects of remote work policies and job satisfaction, there remains a gap in understanding the comprehensive impact of these policies on different dimensions of employee well-being. for example, clark, karau, and michalos (2020) focus on flexible work arrangements and work-life balance, but there is limited exploration of how these policies affect long-term career development and professional growth. similarly, studies like wang, liu, qian, and parker (2021) emphasize technological support, yet there is a need for more nuanced analysis of how different types of technological tools specifically contribute to job satisfaction and performance. additionally, the impact of remote work policies on team dynamics and interpersonal relationships within remote teams requires further investigation (smith & clarke, 2022). contextual gaps: current studies often concentrate on remote work experiences during the covid-19 pandemic, such as the work by smith and clarke (2022), which may not fully represent the long-term implications of remote work policies. as many studies were conducted during an unprecedented global crisis, their findings may be contextually biased by the unique challenges and constraints of the pandemic period. moreover, allen, golden, and shockley (2021) highlight the importance of mental health resources in remote work settings, yet there is a lack of longitudinal studies that track the impact of these resources over time. there is also a need to explore how remote work policies evolve and adapt post-pandemic, addressing new challenges and opportunities that arise in a more stable environment. geographical gaps: while the reviewed studies cover diverse regions, there is a noticeable gap in research from non-western contexts. most of the existing literature, including studies by golden and eddleston (2019) and baker, avery, and crawford (2018), predominantly focuses on western countries such as the united states and europe. this leaves a significant http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 7 ntihirageza (2024) gap in understanding the effects of remote work policies in other cultural and economic contexts, particularly in asia, africa, and latin america. for instance, davis and green (2018) emphasize organizational culture in remote work satisfaction, but how cultural differences in these regions influence remote work experiences remains underexplored. to build a comprehensive global perspective, future research should include diverse geographical contexts and consider how local cultural, economic, and social factors shape remote work policies and their impact on job satisfaction. conclusion and recommendation conclusion the research on the effects of remote work policies on employee job satisfaction reveals significant benefits and challenges associated with these arrangements. flexible work schedules, as highlighted by clark, karau, and michalos (2020), and technological support, as noted by wang, liu, qian, and parker (2021), are critical factors that enhance job satisfaction by improving work-life balance and reducing stress. additionally, studies like those by golden and eddleston (2019) and smith and clarke (2022) emphasize the importance of autonomy, regular communication, and virtual team-building activities in fostering a supportive remote work environment that enhances employee engagement and satisfaction. however, the findings also indicate several areas requiring further exploration. the impact of remote work policies on long-term career development, professional growth, and mental health support needs more in-depth investigation, as highlighted by allen, golden, and shockley (2021). moreover, while most studies focus on western contexts, there is a significant gap in understanding how remote work policies affect employees in non-western regions, as pointed out by davis and green (2018). overall, the implementation of effective remote work policies requires a holistic approach that considers individual employee needs, technological infrastructure, clear communication practices, and mental health resources. by addressing these aspects, organizations can maximize the benefits of remote work arrangements, leading to higher job satisfaction and productivity among employees. future research should aim to fill the identified gaps to provide a more comprehensive understanding of remote work's diverse impacts across different contexts and cultures. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory future research should integrate diverse theoretical perspectives to better understand the multifaceted impact of remote work policies on job satisfaction. for instance, combining insights from job demands-resources theory (bakker & demerouti, 2018) with selfdetermination theory (deci & ryan, 2000) can provide a more comprehensive understanding of how autonomy, support, and workload affect remote workers. conduct longitudinal studies to track the long-term effects of remote work policies on job satisfaction. this will help in understanding how these policies impact career progression, professional development, and employee well-being over time. explore the impact of remote work policies in different cultural and geographical contexts to develop a global understanding of their effects on job satisfaction. this will help in identifying cultural nuances and contextual factors that influence the effectiveness of remote work policies. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 8 ntihirageza (2024) practice organizations should develop flexible remote work policies tailored to individual employee needs. this includes offering various forms of flexibility, such as adjustable working hours and locations, to enhance work-life balance and job satisfaction (clark, karau, & michalos, 2020). invest in reliable technological infrastructure and continuous it support to ensure remote employees have the necessary tools to perform their tasks efficiently. providing regular training on new technologies can help employees adapt and reduce stress associated with remote work (wang, liu, qian, & parker, 2021). establish clear communication protocols and regular virtual meetings to keep remote employees engaged and informed. managers should receive training on effective virtual communication techniques to ensure transparency and timely feedback (baker, avery, & crawford, 2018). policy incorporate mental health support into remote work policies. organizations should provide access to mental health services and promote a culture of well-being to reduce burnout and improve job satisfaction (allen, golden, & shockley, 2021). develop policies that foster a strong, inclusive organizational culture even in remote settings. this includes initiatives to build and maintain organizational culture through virtual team-building activities and regular social interactions (davis & green, 2018). define clear performance metrics and allow greater autonomy for remote employees. this can enhance job satisfaction by reducing micromanagement and fostering a sense of trust and responsibility among employees (golden & eddleston, 2019). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 1 10, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2369 9 ntihirageza (2024) references allen, t. d., golden, t. d., & shockley, k. m. 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(2023). remote work culture and employee well-being. journal of occupational health psychology, 38(1), 112-128. license copyright (c) 2024 phillip ntihirageza this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ effect of team based support on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya dr. rael mandago & johnstone kipcumba tarus european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 48 mandago, et al. (2024) effect of team based support on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya dr. rael mandago1* & johnstone kipcumba tarus2 1lecturer, koitalel samoei university, kenya 2mba student, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture and technology article history submitted 20.06.2024 revised version received 26.07.2024 accepted 28.08.2024 abstract purpose: to assess the effect of team based support on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya materials and methods: in a bid to effectively achieve these objectives, the study adopted a descriptive research design based on samples drawn from across the insurance companies in uasin gishu county. the target population was 754 insurance companies’ employees. a two-stage sampling technique was adopted where stratified random sampling was used to select the insurance companies after which simple random sampling was used to select respondents within the insurance companies. the study used the krejcie and morgan table (1970) to calculate the sample size which was 260 respondents from the target population of 754 respondents. the sample size was distributed proportionally to the insurance companies according to neyman’s allocation formula to maximize survey precision. data was collected by use of self-administered questionnaires which was tested for validity and reliability after piloting 26 questionnaires at kisumu city insurance companies. data was analyzed by use of both inferential and descriptive statistics using spss version 25. findings: there is a significant effect of team-based support on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya ((=.108, p=0.004). these findnings are based on the social exchange theory. implications to theory, practice and policy: the organization should invest in team-based support amongst employees. the insurance companies should ensure that they strengthen their policy frameworks which recognize and enhance team-based support within various domains of their operations. the team should have clarity of purpose and concern for others built on mutual trust for cohesiveness to perpetuate organizational commitment. besides as a team the employees should use their diversity of skills and knowledge to develop diverse talents for optimal organizational commitment. keywords: organizational commitment, team based support, trust http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 49 mandago, et al. (2024) 1.0 introduction building a committed and efficient workforce relies on effective human resource management (hrm) processes at the corporate level and contributions at the individual level. thus, the hrm practices embraced should engender a social exchange relationship that positively influences and predicts organizational commitment (haley, 2018). in this regard the high involvement work systems (hiws) as a hrm practice needs to enhance a reciprocity of organizational commitment at the expense of employee turnover or counter work productive behavior. this is in line with the argument of omilion-hodges, ptacek and zerilli, (2016) that when an organization identifies the different types of impactful hrm practices which leads to higher levels of organizational commitment they can experience an advantage in retaining their valuable workforce. uribetxebarria, gago, legarra and elorza, (2020) adds that team based support directly predicts organizational commitment. a team is a group of people who work together to accomplish something beyond their individual self-interests; however, not all groups are teams (katzenbach & smith, 2006). a team is a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed in a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. highperformance work teams have an advantage over the work of individuals because each member can offer new ideas, talent and viewpoints (bednar & welch, 2020). in addition, high-performance work teams predictably execute strategy, meet goals and need little management oversight because they are empowered and responsible for their functional activity and accountable for performance. properly developed teamwork relations enhance multiple skills on the individual members where there is creative problem-solving skills and easy learning when there is an introduction of new concepts. at an effective teamwork level, learning becomes easier in comparison to the absence of teamwork and individual performance is improved with the enhanced learning (howard, turban, & hurley, 2016). a caring environment and job satisfaction had significant direct impact on organizational commitment amongst employees working in a chinese insurance company (fu & deshpande, 2014). however fu, he, and zhang, (2020) laments that the high turnover rate of insurance agents in china makes it hard for insurers to sustain an effort to grow and expand consistently and organically. the turnover rates rate of insurance companies' management personnel is 9%, the turnover rate of principal professional staff is 18% on average in china an index of wanning organizational commitment (www.asiainsurancereview.com., 2018). there is a high turnover and low organizational commitment of life insurance work force in sri lankan insurance market (dona & hearth, 2015). according to ingsih, prayitno, waluyo and suhana (2020) the lack of scholarly staff and a failure to attract and retain qualified academic staff can be witnessed in south african educational institutions all incriminated for wanting state of hiws and organizational commitment. in addition, south africa ranks eighth globally in employee turnover at 7.7% owing to low organizational commitment and dissatisfactory human resource practices (www.hrreporter.com., 2018). in ghana issifu (2020) found that employees’ affective, continuance and normative commitment are predicted by their job satisfaction in enterprise life insurance company limited. the annual reports of procredit savings and loans company limited in ghana have indicated that staff retention remained a major challenge throughout the year, as both banks and non-bank financial institutions continued to poach experienced staff (gyensare, 2013). universities in http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 50 mandago, et al. (2024) uganda face employee commitment challenges which impede successful attainment their objectives owing to challenges in effective utilization of human resource management practices with an inclination of high employee involvement systems (mugizi & nuwatuhaire, 2019). based on the review of previous studies related to organizational commitment and high employee involvement systems. there is scarce literature on the link between high employee involvement systems in the african context. in kenya there has been low organization commitment and turnover of the workforce has been high because of low entry and exit barriers in the industry (ira., 2013). graham (2008) cited in (kinyanjui, 2015) studied the internal operational procedures in the kenyan insurance industry as compared to the greek insurance industry which included human resource procedures concluded that there is wide spread dissatisfaction both internally and externally stemming from the insurances failure to satisfy customers and employees alike. thus, the growth of insurance industry in kenya is lower than the country's average economic growth (lang’at, 2018). in this regard, organizations in kenya insurance companies in kenya without exception to uasin gishu county, kenya have to constantly manage its human resources optimally to engender their commitment for high organizational returns. though the mechanics of how to forge the right level of employee commitment to the organization is still not straightforward, more specifically among insurance firms in kenya (dome, kemboi & kogei kapkiai, 2017). statement of the problem organization commitment helps the organization to create a larger whole that is often a driving force behind a firm’s performance, and its employees’ wellbeing. this is further explained by the fact that organizational commitment is a volitional psychological bond reflecting dedication to and responsibility for a particular target leading to organizational performance (klein, becker, & meyer, 2012). these warrants the adoption of human resource management practices which invokes employee behaviors which are in tune with organizations missions and visions for optimal organizational performance. in the contrary organizations where employees are neither committed to the organization nor to their jobs, organization distress remains a common place leading to poor employee performance and organizational performance problems (eslami & gharakhani, 2012). lower levels of commitment may be an index of a lack of coherent strategies linking human resource development interventions to increasing commitment in the workplace. these gives eminence to the adoption of high involvement work systems to realize organizational commitment by insurance companies. in this regard substantial efforts have been devoted by insurance companies to have a committed work force to enhance their performance. objectives to assess the effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya 2.0 literature review theoretical framework this study was informed by the social exchange theory. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 51 mandago, et al. (2024) social exchange theory social exchange theory was proposed by blau (1964) and provides for an explanation for social exchange relationships at the workplace (blau, 2017). social exchange theory proposes that social behavior is the result of an exchange process (surma, 2016). social exchange theory says that if the costs of the relationship are higher than the rewards, such as a lot of effort or money put into a relationship and not reciprocated then recipients may be demotivated (gould-williams & davies, 2005). social exchange theory posits that human relationships are formed by the use of a subjective cost-benefit analysis and the comparison of alternatives (çelik & rasoolimanesh, 2021). social exchange theory thus remains an instrumental model for interpreting society as a series of interactions between people that are based on estimates of rewards and punishments (crossman, 2017). it can therefore be, argued that our interactions are determined by the rewards or punishments that we expect to receive from others, which we evaluate using a cost-benefit analysis model (whether consciously or subconsciously). reciprocity is ingrained in the set as a cultural mandate, in which those who do not comply are punished. in fine those who receive the rewards must reciprocate in particular behavior. individuals with a strong exchange orientation are more likely to return a good deed than those with low exchange orientation (amir, et al., 2016). eisenberger et al. (2004) cited in laura, janaki and michele, (2015) argue that reciprocity represents quid pro quo propensities whether positive or negative. a negative reciprocity orientation involves the tendency to return negative treatment for negative treatment; a positive reciprocity orientation involves the tendency to return positive treatment for positive treatment. social exchange theory puts forward those employees feel pleased to perform more than their duties by showing organizational commitment, when they feel that their organization takes care of them (sabrina, 2016). in fine, high involvement work systems is capable of making employees reciprocate through heightened organizational commitment. this gives credence to the use of this theory in understanding high involvement work systems and organizational commitment. the relevance of this theory is that it assumes that high involvement work systems such as team based support are key for organizational commitment. employees continue to establish social relations through team based support on the basis of their expectations that such team based support would be mutually advantageous. these altogether denotes the capacity of team based support in modifying employee behavior which is reciprocated through organizational commitment. however social factors have the capacity to infuse a sense of ownership to the employees which motivates them to put consistent efforts to get the work done hence increased organizational commitment. in consequence, social exchange theory examines the processes instigating and perpetuating reciprocity in social relations, or the mutual gratifications between individuals. assumption of social exchange theory is rationalized by the fact that individuals establish and promote social relations on the basis of their expectations that such relations would be mutually advantageous. many critique this theory for presuming that people always make rational decisions, and point out that this theoretical model fails to capture the power that emotions play in our daily lives and in our interactions with others. this theory also undercuts the power of social structures and forces, which unconsciously shape our perception of the world and our experiences within it, and play a strong role in shaping our interactions with others (crossman, 2017). besides there is http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 52 mandago, et al. (2024) strong evidence supporting the existence of cultural and individual differences in endorsement of reciprocity (leung & cohen, 2011). conceptual framework the current study conceptualizes a relationship between team based support and organizational commitment. figure 2.1 conceptual framework source: (author, 2024) empirical literature a leader with team support is one that makes employees feel heard, valued, and cared about. (kurtessis, et al., 2017). thus there is need for support role that front-line supervisors, midlevel managers and organizational leaders to assume to enable their employees to be successful in an increasingly complex and competitive global business context. a good supervisor enables employees to achieve their personal as well as organizational goals (rabbani, akram, habib, & sohail, 2017). supervisors are front side of the organization hence their support galvanizes much of organizational commitment. according to gilbert, (2013) organization should prepare supervisors to erect workplace, where employees wish for a long-term stay, provided that each level of performance and prospects can improve their competence to work. if the supervisors do not demonstrate that they take into account the subordinates’ contributions, there will be a decrease in belonging and confidence feelings (ferreira, 2014). thus, there is need for enhanced proximity and regular interaction with the subordinates by the supervisors to make it easier for employees to seek and receive feedback on actions consistent with the aspired values. regarding particularly the affective commitment, quite a few studies show that team based support is related to the affective commitment towards the organization (dasborough, ashkanasy, tee & herman, 2009). racicot, kernan, and nicholls (2019) examined the impact of management and team member support on employee attitudes through the mediating effect of safety climate in the eastern united states. five hundred fifty-six physicians and nurses from a large teaching hospital in the eastern united states completed survey items assessing their perceptions of management support, team member support, and safety climate as well as job satisfaction and organizational commitment. results indicated that while job satisfaction and commitment were directly affected by perceptions of management and team member support, these relationships were also partially mediated by safety climate. in addition, the results suggested that team member support contributed to the prediction of safety climate over and above the effect of management support alone indicating that multiple sources of support may be important in developing positive safety climates. however the study was not conducted in the kenyan context. dependent variable (organization commitment) independent variable (incentives) team based support clarity of purpose trust concern for others organization commitment -normative -affective -continuance http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 53 mandago, et al. (2024) tawil et al., (2022) reviewed the important role of shared vision based teamwork cohesiveness (svbtc) in bridging organizational commitment (oc) and organizational citizenship behavior (ocb) for employees of an organization. the study was conducted using a library research method based on theoretical studies and references to reputable scientific journal articles. the study concepts included perceived organizational support (pos), organizational commitment (oc), shared vision based teamwork cohesiveness (svbtc), and organizational citizenship behavior (ocb). the study was carried out with systematic steps which included: determining concepts and building logic between concepts, building study models, setting criteria for articles from reputable journals, and selecting articles in journals that meet the criteria based on the results of the study conducted, the study concluded that efforts to create employee ocb must begin with presenting good pos first, then good pos, team work will encourage an increase in oc, so that it has a positive impact on ocb. however, the study was not conducted amongst insurance companies. jungert (2012) investigated meaning of support from co-workers and managers in teams when working. in two studies, one with a sample of 45 employees in a swedish private researchoriented company (6 females and 39 males) and one with a sample of 235 swedish care givers (214 females and 21 males) completed surveys. results showed that employees perceived high levels of motivation and self-efficacy. study 2 also showed that employees perceived greater support for autonomy from co-workers than from managers but greater support for competence from managers. as in previous studies, support from managers was significantly positively related to employees’ outcomes. however, results also showed that co-worker support predicted these outcomes over and above the effects of managerial support and that support for autonomy was related to motivation while support for competence was related to self efficacy. however, the study didn’t focus on organizational commitment. ghorbanhosseini, (2013) provided a model for determining impact of organizational culture, teamwork and organizational development on organizational commitment with emphasis on the mediating role of human capital. the 266 employees of safa industrial group were selected using random sampling and they responded research tools. path analysis test was used for analysis of research data. findings show that organizational culture, teamwork, and organizational development have direct and significant impact on human capital. in addition, human capital has a positive effect on organizational commitment. organizational culture, teamwork and organizational development have direct and significant effect on organizational commitment. finally, findings show that human capital has mediating role between organizational culture, teamwork, organizational development and organizational commitment. however, the study was not conducted in the kenyan context. a study by zincirkiran, emhan, and yasar, (2015) focused on the employees of public and private hospitals in diyarbakir. the results suggest that there is a positive linear relationship between team work, organizational commitment and organizational performance variables. research gaps the studies presented conceptual, contexual and the methodological gap. racicot, kernan, and nicholls (2019) study was not conducted in the kenyan context thus showing a contextual gap. the current investigation was done in kenya. jungert (2012) investigated meaning of support from co-workers and managers in teams when working. however, the study didn’t focus on organizational commitment thus showing a conceptual gap. tawil et al., (2022) used library http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 54 mandago, et al. (2024) research method thus showing a methodological gap. the current investigation adopted a descriptive research design. 3.0 materials and methods in a bid to effectively achieve these objectives, the study adopted a descriptive research design based on samples drawn from across the insurance companies in uasin gishu county. the target population was 754 insurance companies’ employees. a two-stage sampling technique was adopted where stratified random sampling was used to select the insurance companies after which simple random sampling was used to select respondents within the insurance companies. the study used the krejcie and morgan table (1970) to calculate the sample size which was 260 respondents from the target population of 754 respondents. the sample size was distributed proportionally to the insurance companies according to neyman’s allocation formula to maximize survey precision. data was collected by use of self-administered questionnaires which was tested for validity and reliability after piloting 26 questionnaires at kisumu city insurance companies. data was analyzed by use of both inferential and descriptive statistics using spss version 25. 4.0 findings descriptive statistics descriptive statistics of team based support properly developed teamwork relations enhance multiple skills on the individual members where there is creative problem-solving skills and easy learning when there is an introduction of new concepts. at an effective teamwork level, learning becomes easier in comparison to the absence of teamwork and individual performance is improved with the enhanced learning (howard, turban, & hurley, 2016). according to table 1 a total of 70.3% of the respondents both agreed and strongly agreed that the goals of the organization and their department are clear to them (m=3.90 sd=1.045), 13.1 % were in disagreement while 16.6% were undecided. when employees trust their employers, have clear goals, they are much more likely to work together towards as team for purposes of achieving the same ultimate business goals. besides rosenstein (2023) notes that when everyone has a clear understanding of everything, they need to know about the work required to effectively achieve their goal. besides, a majority of the employees 66.9% of the respondents agree that their team members participate in setting and prioritizing goals working together (m=3.85 sd=1.322), 22.6% were in disagreement while undecided were 10.6%. this is hinged on the fact that working in unison to achieve a common goal is hinged clarity, everyone has a clear understanding of everything they need to know about the work required to effectively participate in achieving their goal which emboldens their level of commitment. a total of 67.8% of the respondents also agreed and strongly agreed that they trust members of their team are willing to share their knowledge and skills without fear (m=4.11 sd=.988), 7.5% disagreed and strongly disagreed while 24.6% were undecided. a total of 68.3% of respondents agreed and strongly agreed that high levels of commitment and encouragement from colleagues have enabled them to thrive amongst challenges and pressures (m=3.96 sd=1. 050), 6.0% strongly disagreed and disagreed while 25.6% were undecided. lastly 77.9% of the respondents agreed and strongly agreed that their supervisor encourages shared solutions to a colleague’s challenges for best results (m=4.07 sd=.856), 5.5% were in disagreement while 16.6% were undecided. it is http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 55 mandago, et al. (2024) therefore evidence that the insurance companies practice team-based support to influence organizational commitment based on the weighted mean of team-based support of 4.01 and sd .651. the implication of this is that there should be policy frameworks which recognize and enhance team-based support within various domains of their operations. the team should have clarity of purpose and concern for others built on mutual trust for cohesiveness to perpetuate organizational commitment. clarity of purpose of a team improves a team’s ability to execute, its ability to change directions confidently, and its overall satisfaction. in the realms of organizational support concern for others and trust remains supreme. table 1: descriptive statistics of team based support responses sd % d% ud% a% sa% mean sd the goals of the organization and my department are clear to me 2.0 11.1 16.6 43.2 27.1 3.82 1.017 my team members participate in setting and prioritizing goals working together 3.5 19.1 10.6 16.6 50.3 3.91 1.300 i trust members of my team are willing to share their knowledge and skills without fear 0.0 7.5 24.6 20.6 47.2 4.08 1.010 high levels of commitment and encouragement from colleagues have enabled me to thrive amongst challenges and pressures 2.5 3.5 25.6 29.1 39.2 3.99 1.010 my supervisor encourages shared solutions to a colleagues challenges for best results 0.0 5.5 16.6 44.2 33.7 4.06 .851 team based support 4.01 .651 source: research data, (2023) descriptive statistics of organizational commitment the dependent variable of the study was organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. results presented in table 2, reveals that 89.9% of respondents concurred that they are concerned about leaving their organization without guaranteeing a new job (m=4.33 sd= .666) while 0.5% were in disagreement. 91.4% of the respondents were of the view that even if they wanted to leave their organization, it is very hard for them right now (m=4.41 sd= .651), 1.0% were in disagreement while 6.5% were undecided. 83% of the respondents were also in agreement that they consider the problems of the organizations as their own problems (m=4.35 sd= .770), 0.5% were in a disagreement while 16.6% were undecided. 79.4% of the respondents agreed that as for their opinion, being loyal to the organization is important (m=4.23 sd=.770) while 20.6% were undecided. 80.4% of the respondents also agreed that thy would be http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 56 mandago, et al. (2024) happy to spend the rest of the rest of their professional life in their organization (m=4.29 sd= .788) while 0.5% were in disagreement and 19.1% were undecided. based on the weighted mean of 4.36 and sd of 0.568 the respondents were in agreement with all the statements on ocb. table 2: descriptive statistics of organizational commitment responses sd % d% ud% a% sa% mean sd i’m concerned about leaving this organization without guaranteeing a new job 0.0 0.5 9.5 46.7 43.2 4.33 .666 even if i wanted to leave this organization, it is very hard for me right now 0.0 1.0 6.5 43.2 49.2 4.41 .659 i consider the problems of the organizations as my own problems 0.0 0.5 16.6 30.2 52.8 4.35 .770 as for my opinion, being loyal to the organization is important 0.0 0.0 20.6 35.7 43.7 4.23 .770 i’d be happy to spend the rest of my professional life in this organization 0.0 0.5 19.1 31.2 49.2 4.29 .788 organizational commitment 4.36 0.568 source: research data, (2023) correlational analysis correlation coefficient shows the magnitude and direction of the relationship between the study variables. the correlation analysis output in table 3 shows that there is a positive significant correlation between team based support and organizational commitment at p< 0.01 level of significance where r=.485. this implies that an organization that adopts high team based support is bound to attain organizational commitment. this is supported by uribetxebarria, gago, legarra and elorza, (2020) adds that hiws directly predicts organizational commitment table 3: high involvement work system vs organizational commitment **correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). *. correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). source: (field data, 2023) team based support organizational commitment team based support 1 organizational commitment .485** 1 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 57 mandago, et al. (2024) regression analysis the study used multiple regression analysis so as to establish the relationship of independent variables and dependent variable that is team based support vs organizational commitment of insurance companies in uasin gishu county as presented in table 4. table 4: effect of team based support on organizational commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta 1 (constant) .774 .200 3.872 .000 team based support .108 .037 .141 2.918 .004 a. dependent variable: organizational commitment h01: there is no significant effect of team-based support on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. result reveal standardized regression coefficient for team-based support (=.108), implies that an increase of 1 standard deviation in team-based support is likely to result in a 0. 108 standard deviations increase in organizational commitment. t-test was used to identify whether the predictor was making a significant contribution to the model. when the t-test associated with  value is significant then the predictor is making a significant contribution to the model. the results show that work force diversity (t =2.918, p<.05). therefore, the null hypothesis was rejected. thus, it can be concluded that team-based support has a statistically significant effect on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. these findings are supported by tawil et al., (2022); racicot, kernan, and nicholls (2019) and jungert (2012) who also found a positive link between teem based support and organizational commitment. the findnings are based on the social exchange theory.this is ascribed to the fact that through team based support employees give attention and support to all their colleagues and not just those they feel personally compatible with courtesy of team cohesiveness which translates to organizational commitment. the most self-serving benefit of team support amongst employees is that it will produce better results for the company. however, employees who feel supported by their manager and colleagues are more likely to be satisfied with their jobs and work through professional challenges more easily hence organizational commitment (newsome, 2023). in this regard promotion of team-based support amongst employees working for the insurance companies remain key in attaining their organizational commitment. the team should have clarity of purpose and concern for others built on mutual trust for cohesiveness to perpetuate organizational commitment. clarity of purpose of a team improves a team’s ability to execute, its ability to change directions confidently, and its overall satisfaction because the employees will have more confidence that they’re doing the most important work they can be doing and understand why it matters in the grand scheme of things. however, rosenstein, (2023) rejoins that don’t get addicted to clarity. intrinsic to doing great things that haven’t been done before is a large amount of ambiguity. a team that freezes in the face of ambiguity is a team that can’t get very far in navigating uncharted territories. never the less in the realms of organizational support concern for others and trust remains supreme. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 58 mandago, et al. (2024) 5.0 conclusion and recommendations conclusions there is a significant effect of team-based support on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. these findnings are based on the social exchange theory. this implies the the perceived value that employees attach to the team based support would enhance organizational commitment. in this regard promotion of team-based support amongst employees working for the insurance companies remain key in attaining their organizational commitment. recommendations the organization should invest in team-based support amongst employees. the insurance companies should ensure that they strengthen their policy frameworks which recognize and enhance team-based support within various domains of their operations. the team should have clarity of purpose and concern for others built on mutual trust for cohesiveness to perpetuate organizational commitment. besides as a team the employees should use their diversity of skills and knowledge to develop diverse talents for optimal organizational commitment. the study concentrated on team based support and how it affects organizational commitment. however, the study did not examine the differences in application of team based support system among the insurance companies and establish whether there are any differences in organizational commitment amongst them due to team based support. therefore, further research should compare the extent of difference in terms of organizational commitment amongst the insurance companies and hiws. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 48 60, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2366 59 mandago, et al. 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(2020). the link between hiwps and well-being at work: the mediating role of trust. employee relations: the international journal. license copyright (c) 2024 dr. rael mandago, johnstone kipcumba tarus this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ impact of flexible work arrangements on employee job satisfaction in zambia susan mulikita european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 44 mulikita, (2024) impact of flexible work arrangements on employee job satisfaction in zambia susan mulikita chalimbana university article history submitted 14.03.2024 revised version received 23.04.2024 accepted 28.05.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the impact of flexible work arrangements on employee job satisfaction in zambia. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study indicated that when employees are allowed flexibility in their work schedules, such as the ability to work from home, choose their own hours, or have compressed workweeks, they tend to report higher levels of job satisfaction. this increase in satisfaction is largely attributed to improved work-life balance, reduced commuting stress, and the autonomy to manage their time effectively. furthermore, flexible work arrangements can lead to increased productivity and lower turnover rates, as employees feel more trusted and valued by their employers. these arrangements also cater to diverse needs, accommodating those with family responsibilities, health issues, or other personal commitments, thereby enhancing their overall well-being and job satisfaction. however, the success of such arrangements depends on effective communication, clear expectations, and support from management to ensure that both organizational goals and employee needs are met. implications to theory, practice and policy: job characteristics theory, selfdetermination theory and conservation of resources theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the impact of flexible work arrangements on employee job satisfaction in zambia. organizations should implement flexible work policies that offer a range of fwas, including telecommuting, flexible hours, compressed workweeks, and job sharing, to cater to diverse employee needs and preferences. policymakers should advocate for flexible work legislation that supports the implementation of fwas across industries and sectors, ensuring that employees have legal protections and rights when engaging in flexible work arrangements. keywords: flexible, work arrangements, employee, job satisfaction http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 45 mulikita, (2024) introduction employee job satisfaction encompasses a range of factors including work environment, compensation, job security, and work-life balance. in the united states, job satisfaction levels have shown a positive trend, with over 50% of employees reporting satisfaction with their jobs as of 2021, an increase from previous years (smith, 2021). similarly, in japan, although traditionally lower in job satisfaction due to long working hours and high stress, there has been a gradual improvement. a 2020 survey revealed that job satisfaction in japan had risen to 45%, reflecting efforts to improve work conditions and work-life balance (tanaka, 2020). these trends highlight the importance of organizational policies in enhancing employee morale and satisfaction in developed economies. in latin america, countries like argentina and colombia also experience low job satisfaction due to economic instability and inadequate working conditions. in argentina, a 2020 study found that only 38% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, with issues such as inflation, job insecurity, and inadequate wages being major contributors to dissatisfaction (martinez, 2020). similarly, in colombia, job satisfaction is affected by factors such as high unemployment rates and poor working conditions. a 2019 survey revealed that only 36% of colombian employees were content with their jobs, pointing to the need for better economic policies and improved labor conditions (rodriguez, 2019). in developing economies, the scenario differs significantly. for instance, in india, job satisfaction is often lower due to factors such as inadequate compensation, poor working conditions, and limited career growth opportunities. a study in 2019 indicated that only 38% of indian employees were satisfied with their jobs, pointing to significant room for improvement (kumar, 2019). in brazil, economic instability and high unemployment rates have adversely affected job satisfaction, with only 35% of employees expressing contentment in a 2020 survey (silva, 2020). these statistics underscore the challenges faced by developing nations in fostering job satisfaction amidst economic and structural hurdles. in developing economies, job satisfaction is often influenced by a range of socio-economic challenges such as low wages, inadequate working conditions, and limited career advancement opportunities. for example, in india, job satisfaction has been notably low due to these factors, with a 2019 study indicating that only 38% of employees were satisfied with their jobs (kumar, 2019). this dissatisfaction is largely attributed to the disparity between employee expectations and the realities of the job market, which is characterized by high competition and low remuneration. similarly, in brazil, economic instability and high unemployment rates have adversely affected job satisfaction. a 2020 survey found that only 35% of brazilian employees were content with their jobs, reflecting the economic and structural challenges that hinder job satisfaction in the region (silva, 2020). moreover, in countries like mexico and indonesia, job satisfaction is also affected by factors such as job security and working conditions. in mexico, a 2020 study reported that just 40% of employees felt satisfied with their jobs, with many citing concerns over job security and inadequate benefits as primary reasons for their dissatisfaction (lopez, 2020). in indonesia, the situation is similar, where job satisfaction remains low due to poor working conditions and limited opportunities for professional growth. a 2021 survey indicated that only 37% of indonesian employees were satisfied with their jobs, highlighting the pervasive issues that need to be http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 46 mulikita, (2024) addressed to improve job satisfaction in developing economies (sutrisno, 2021). these examples underscore the critical need for policy interventions that can enhance job satisfaction by addressing these socio-economic challenges. in developing economies, job satisfaction often faces challenges due to economic instability, insufficient wages, and limited career opportunities. in the philippines, for instance, job satisfaction is relatively low, with a 2020 survey showing that only 40% of employees were satisfied with their jobs. the main reasons cited include inadequate compensation, long working hours, and a lack of career advancement opportunities (garcia, 2020). in vietnam, despite rapid economic growth, job satisfaction remains an issue. a 2019 study found that just 42% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, highlighting issues such as job security, working conditions, and management practices as key areas of concern (nguyen, 2019). in other developing economies, job satisfaction continues to be influenced by a variety of socioeconomic and organizational factors. in thailand, for instance, job satisfaction has been relatively low due to economic challenges and high levels of job insecurity. a 2020 study indicated that only 41% of thai employees were satisfied with their jobs, with common complaints including inadequate pay, lack of job security, and poor work-life balance (chantarasorn, 2020). similarly, in bangladesh, job satisfaction is impacted by factors such as low wages, poor working conditions, and limited opportunities for career advancement. a 2019 survey found that only 34% of bangladeshi employees were content with their jobs, highlighting the significant challenges faced by the workforce (rahman, 2019). in indonesia, despite significant economic growth, job satisfaction remains an issue due to persistent socio-economic challenges. a 2021 survey revealed that only 37% of indonesian employees were satisfied with their jobs, with many citing inadequate compensation, lack of career growth opportunities, and job insecurity as primary reasons for their dissatisfaction (sutrisno, 2021). in egypt, job satisfaction is similarly low, with a 2018 study reporting that only 35% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, largely due to inadequate wages, poor working conditions, and a lack of professional development opportunities (abdalla, 2018). these examples from various developing economies highlight the common challenges that need to be addressed to improve job satisfaction across different regions. in egypt, job satisfaction is also relatively low due to economic hardships and organizational challenges. a 2018 study reported that only 35% of egyptian employees were satisfied with their jobs, primarily due to inadequate wages, poor working conditions, and a lack of professional development opportunities (abdalla, 2018). similarly, in pakistan, job satisfaction is affected by factors such as job security, remuneration, and working conditions. a 2019 survey indicated that only 36% of pakistani employees were content with their jobs, underscoring the need for better employment policies and organizational practices to enhance job satisfaction (khan, 2019). these examples from various developing economies illustrate the common challenges that need to be addressed to improve job satisfaction across different regions. moreover, in south africa, despite being one of the more developed economies in sub-saharan africa, job satisfaction remains a concern. a 2020 study showed that only 34% of south african employees were satisfied with their jobs, with many citing factors such as job insecurity, inadequate remuneration, and poor working conditions as primary reasons for their dissatisfaction (ncube, 2020). in ghana, the situation is comparable, where a 2021 survey found that only 35% http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 47 mulikita, (2024) of employees were content with their jobs due to similar issues of job security and inadequate compensation (osei, 2021). these examples highlight the urgent need for improved labor policies and better organizational practices to enhance job satisfaction in sub-saharan africa. in sub-saharan africa, job satisfaction is influenced by unique socio-economic factors. in nigeria, for instance, high levels of unemployment and underemployment contribute to low job satisfaction. a study in 2018 found that just 30% of nigerian employees were satisfied with their jobs, largely due to poor working conditions and insufficient wages (akinyemi, 2018). similarly, in kenya, job satisfaction is hindered by issues such as inadequate compensation and limited professional development opportunities. a 2019 survey revealed that only 32% of employees were satisfied with their jobs, highlighting the need for significant improvements in employment conditions (mwangi, 2019). these findings emphasize the pressing need for targeted policies to enhance job satisfaction in sub-saharan africa. flexible work arrangements (fwas) have gained prominence in modern workplaces due to their potential to enhance employee job satisfaction. key fwas include telecommuting, flexible hours, compressed workweeks, and job sharing. telecommuting allows employees to work from home, reducing commute stress and improving work-life balance, which significantly boosts job satisfaction (bloom, liang, roberts & ying, 2018). flexible hours give employees control over their work schedules, increasing autonomy and personal satisfaction (allen, golden & shockley, 2020). compressed workweeks, where employees work longer hours over fewer days, offer extended rest periods, contributing to higher job satisfaction by preventing burnout (hornung, rousseau, & glaser, 2019). job sharing, where two employees share the responsibilities of one full-time position, enhances work-life balance and reduces stress, thereby increasing job satisfaction (kossek & olliermalaterre, 2020). each of these fwas caters to specific employee needs, such as flexibility, autonomy, and improved work-life balance, all of which are crucial for job satisfaction. research indicates that employees with access to fwas report higher job satisfaction, reduced stress levels, and increased organizational commitment (gajendran & harrison, 2018). thus, implementing fwas is a strategic approach for organizations aiming to enhance employee well-being and productivity. by addressing diverse employee needs, fwas can foster a more satisfied and motivated workforce. problem statement the rapid evolution of workplace dynamics, driven by technological advancements and shifting employee expectations, has led to an increased adoption of flexible work arrangements (fwas) such as telecommuting, flexible hours, compressed workweeks, and job sharing. despite the growing prevalence of these arrangements, there remains a significant gap in understanding their comprehensive impact on employee job satisfaction. recent studies have indicated mixed outcomes, with some suggesting that fwas enhance job satisfaction by improving work-life balance and reducing stress (bloom, liang, roberts, & ying, 2018; allen, golden & shockley, 2020), while others point to potential drawbacks such as feelings of isolation and diminished team cohesion (gajendran & harrison, 2018). given these conflicting findings, there is a pressing need for more nuanced research to delineate the specific conditions under which fwas most effectively contribute to employee satisfaction. addressing this gap is crucial for organizations aiming to http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 48 mulikita, (2024) design effective work policies that maximize employee well-being and productivity (kossek & ollier-malaterre, 2020). theoretical framework job characteristics theory originated by hackman and oldham, the job characteristics theory posits that specific job characteristics—such as task variety, autonomy, and feedback—affect employee motivation and job satisfaction. this theory is relevant to the study of flexible work arrangements (fwas) because fwas typically increase job autonomy, a core component of the theory, which can enhance job satisfaction. by allowing employees greater control over their work schedules and environments, fwas can positively influence their motivation and satisfaction levels. recent research supports the idea that job autonomy, fostered by fwas, leads to higher job satisfaction (saragih, 2018). self-determination theory developed by deci and ryan, self-determination theory (sdt) emphasizes the importance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in fostering intrinsic motivation and well-being. this theory is pertinent to fwas because these arrangements can enhance employees' sense of autonomy and competence by providing flexibility and control over their work tasks and schedules. as a result, employees are likely to experience higher job satisfaction and well-being. recent studies indicate that fwas enhance job satisfaction by fulfilling the psychological needs outlined in sdt (ryan & deci, 2020). conservation of resources theory proposed by hobfoll, the conservation of resources (cor) theory suggests that individuals strive to obtain, retain, and protect their resources, which include personal characteristics, conditions, and energies. fwas can be viewed as a resource that helps employees conserve energy and reduce stress by providing more control over their work-life balance. this, in turn, can lead to higher job satisfaction as employees feel less drained and more supported in managing their work and personal lives. recent literature supports the link between resource availability, such as fwas, and increased job satisfaction (hobfoll, halbesleben, neveu, & westman, 2018). empirical review bloom, liang, roberts and ying (2018) explored the impact of telecommuting on employee job satisfaction was investigated through surveys conducted across various industries. the purpose was to determine whether telecommuting, as a form of flexible work arrangement (fwa), positively influenced job satisfaction. the methodology involved tracking employees' job satisfaction levels over time, comparing those who telecommuted with those who did not. findings indicated a significant positive correlation between telecommuting and increased job satisfaction, particularly among employees with higher levels of autonomy and control over their work. employees who telecommuted reported greater satisfaction with their work-life balance and reduced stress due to reduced commuting time and increased flexibility. the study recommended that organizations consider implementing telecommuting policies to enhance job satisfaction and employee well-being. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 49 mulikita, (2024) allen, golden and shockley (2020) explored the impact of flexible hours on employee job satisfaction, focusing specifically on the healthcare sector. the study utilized surveys and interviews with healthcare professionals to assess their satisfaction levels and perceptions of flexible scheduling options. results indicated a positive correlation between flexible hours and job satisfaction, especially among healthcare workers who needed to balance work with caregiving responsibilities. employees appreciated the autonomy and control over their schedules, which contributed to improved work-life balance and overall job satisfaction. based on these findings, the study recommended that healthcare organizations consider offering flexible scheduling options to improve employee job satisfaction and retention rates. hornung, rousseau and glaser (2019) investigated the impact of compressed workweeks on employee job satisfaction and work-life balance. the study involved surveys, focus groups, and organizational data analysis to gather insights from employees and assess their satisfaction levels. results showed that employees with compressed workweeks reported higher job satisfaction and improved work-life balance compared to those on traditional schedules. the extended rest periods provided by compressed workweeks contributed to reduced burnout and increased job satisfaction among employees. the study recommended that organizations consider offering compressed workweek options as part of their flexible work arrangements (fwas) to enhance employee satisfaction and promote work-life balance. kossek and ollier-malaterre (2020) assessed the impact of job sharing on job satisfaction and performance outcomes. the study tracked performance metrics and conducted employee surveys to measure job satisfaction levels among participants in job sharing arrangements. findings indicated a positive relationship between job sharing and job satisfaction, with no significant negative impact on performance outcomes. job sharing arrangements were particularly beneficial in promoting work-life balance and reducing job stress, leading to higher levels of job satisfaction among participants. based on these results, the study recommended that organizations consider job sharing as a viable option for enhancing job satisfaction and supporting employee well-being. gajendran and harrison (2018) examined the relationship between various fwas and job satisfaction across different industries. the study synthesized existing research studies on telecommuting, flexible hours, compressed workweeks, and job sharing to assess their impact on employee job satisfaction. findings from the meta-analysis consistently showed that fwas were associated with higher levels of job satisfaction across sectors. employees who had access to fwas reported greater satisfaction with their work arrangements, leading to increased overall job satisfaction. the study recommended that organizations adopt a range of fwas tailored to employees' needs to enhance job satisfaction and promote employee well-being. saragih (2018) investigated the impact of fwas, specifically job autonomy, on job satisfaction among knowledge workers. the study utilized surveys and interviews with knowledge workers in different organizations to gather insights into their perceptions of job autonomy and its relationship with job satisfaction. results revealed a positive correlation between job autonomy facilitated by fwas and higher levels of job satisfaction among knowledge workers. employees who had more control over their work tasks and schedules reported greater satisfaction with their jobs. based on these findings, the study recommended that organizations implement and promote fwas to attract and retain high-performing knowledge workers and enhance overall job satisfaction. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 50 mulikita, (2024) ryan and deci (2020) explored the impact of fwas on job satisfaction and organizational commitment in a cross-cultural study. the study involved surveys and organizational data from multiple countries to assess the relationship between fwas and employee attitudes. results showed a positive association between fwas and both job satisfaction and organizational commitment across different cultural contexts. employees who had access to fwas reported higher levels of job satisfaction and stronger commitment to their organizations. the study recommended that organizations operating globally implement fwas consistently across locations to promote employee satisfaction and foster organizational commitment. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual research gap: the studies primarily focus on the positive impact of flexible work arrangements (fwas) on employee job satisfaction. however, there is a lack of exploration into potential negative outcomes or challenges associated with fwas. future research could delve deeper into the potential downsides of fwas, such as increased feelings of isolation, difficulties in team collaboration, or potential effects on career progression. understanding both the positive and negative aspects of fwas would provide a more comprehensive view and enable organizations to address potential challenges effectively gajendran and harrison (2018). contextual research gap: the majority of the studies concentrate on specific sectors such as healthcare or knowledge work. there is a need for research that explores the impact of fwas across a broader range of industries and organizational contexts ryan and deci (2020). different industries may have unique challenges and opportunities related to fwas, and understanding these variations can provide valuable insights for designing tailored fwa policies. additionally, studies could examine how organizational culture and leadership styles influence the effectiveness of fwas in different contexts. geographical research gap: while some studies mention cross-cultural aspects briefly, there is a limited focus on how cultural differences influence the implementation and outcomes of fwas. future research could explore how cultural values, norms, and societal expectations impact employees' perceptions and experiences of fwas across different countries and regions hornung, rousseau and glaser (2019). this would help in developing culturally sensitive fwa policies and practices that resonate with employees from diverse backgrounds. additionally, comparative studies across various geographical locations can uncover best practices and lessons learned in fwa implementation, contributing to global knowledge sharing and organizational effectiveness. conclusion and recommendations conclusion in conclusion, the impact of flexible work arrangements (fwas) on employee job satisfaction is significant and multifaceted. research spanning various industries and sectors has consistently shown that fwas, including telecommuting, flexible hours, compressed workweeks, and job http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 51 mulikita, (2024) sharing, play a crucial role in enhancing job satisfaction among employees. these arrangements provide employees with increased autonomy, flexibility, and control over their work schedules and environments, leading to reduced stress, improved work-life balance, and overall higher levels of job satisfaction. furthermore, empirical studies have highlighted the positive correlation between fwas and organizational outcomes such as employee retention, productivity, and well-being. by offering fwas, organizations can attract and retain talent, boost employee morale, and create a more positive and productive work environment. however, it's essential to note that the effectiveness of fwas in enhancing job satisfaction depends on various factors, including organizational culture, job role, and individual preferences. overall, the evidence suggests that embracing fwas as part of strategic workforce management can yield substantial benefits in terms of employee job satisfaction, organizational performance, and employee well-being. moving forward, continued research and implementation of tailored fwas can contribute to creating flexible, inclusive, and fulfilling work environments that support both employees' personal lives and organizational goals. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory researchers should conduct longitudinal studies to better understand the long-term impact of fwas on job satisfaction. this would help in capturing any changes or trends in job satisfaction over time as employees engage with fwas. researchers should explore moderating variables such as job role, organizational culture, and individual preferences to understand the conditions under which fwas are most effective in enhancing job satisfaction. future research should integrate diverse theoretical frameworks such as job characteristics theory, self-determination theory, and conservation of resources theory to provide a comprehensive understanding of how fwas influence job satisfaction. practice organizations should implement flexible work policies that offer a range of fwas, including telecommuting, flexible hours, compressed workweeks, and job sharing, to cater to diverse employee needs and preferences. organizations should provide training and support for managers and employees to effectively navigate fwas, including training on time management, communication, and collaboration in remote or flexible work settings. organizations should foster a culture of trust and open communication to ensure that employees feel empowered and supported in utilizing fwas without compromising productivity or job satisfaction. policy policymakers should advocate for flexible work legislation that supports the implementation of fwas across industries and sectors, ensuring that employees have legal protections and rights when engaging in flexible work arrangements. policymakers should collaborate with researchers and industry experts to develop evidence-based policies that promote the adoption of fwas and their positive impact on job satisfaction, employee well-being, and organizational outcomes. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 52 mulikita, (2024) governments and organizations can offer incentives such as tax benefits or grants to encourage organizations to adopt fwas and create more flexible and inclusive work environments. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 44 54, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2086 53 mulikita, (2024) references abdalla, i. 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(2020). work-life balance and job satisfaction in japan: recent trends. japanese management journal, 12(2), 234-248. https://doi.org/10.1501/jmj.v12n2.2020.234 license copyright (c) 2024 susan mulikita this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ deferred benefits and employee retention in tierone deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria dr. iwo sokari samuel-ikiroma & prof. s.a. jaja european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 45 deferred benefits and employee retention in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria dr. iwo sokari samuel-ikiroma1* & prof. s.a. jaja2 1department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, port harcourt, nigeria 2department of management, faculty of management sciences, rivers state university, nkpolu-oroworukwo, port harcourt, nigeria article history submitted 10.11.2023 revised version received 23.11.2023 accepted 27.11.2023 abstract purpose: this study examined the relationship between deferred benefits and employee retention in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. the study adopted the cross-sectional research survey design. materials and methods: primary data was generated through structured questionnaire. the population of this study was 135 employees in the regional offices of 5 tierone deposit money banks in located in port harcourt from where all the activities of the banks covering rivers, delta, edo, bayelsa, akwa ibom and cross rivers are coordinated. the sample size of 101 was determined using taro yamane sample size determination formula. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the hypotheses were tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation coefficient. the tests were carried out at a 0.05 significance level. findings: the findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between deferred benefits and employee retention in tier-one deposit money banks in southsouth, nigeria. thus, the study conclude deferred benefits positively enhances employee retention in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. implications to theory, practice and policy: therefore, it was recommended that deposit money banks should develop a comprehensive deferred benefits package that includes various components such as retirement plans, pension schemes, stock options, profit-sharing, and long-term incentives. the package should be tailored to meet the needs and preferences of employees while aligning with the bank's financial capabilities. keyword: deferred benefits, employee retention, job stability, promotion opportunities https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1665 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 46 1.0 introduction in organizations today, employees are regarded as the most important assets to the organization. according to chandra (2019), engaged employees are seen as the strategic assets of the organization and the ability of the organization to engage employees will lead to retention of employees. thus, organizations strive to retain skilled employees. witemeyer (2013), and theuri (2017) refer to employee engagement as the attitude of an employee towards work in an organization, which contains an approach of vigor, devotion, absorption, enthusiasm, and interest. a committed workforce is vital because they help the organization reap benefits and realize its goals and objectives. such benefits and actualized goals are increased efficiency, higher earnings per employee, higher performance (okoro & ihenyen, 2020) and productivity, lower absenteeism, higher level of customer satisfaction, and lower turnover rates (saks, 2006; michael & stephen 2014; and ashraf & siddiqui, 2020). in a practical sense, it is not who the organisation hires that matters but who the organization retains. thus, the real issue for management is the frantic effort towards identifying and retaining top performing employees (kennedy & daim, 2010). employee retention is a major concern for organizations, as high employee turnover can be costly and disruptive. retaining employees is very important to the organization as it affects the organization positively, via high employee morale and high employee productivity (mitchell et al., 2010); more so, employee retention has become a vital issue of concern for organizations that seeks to improve their performance. mandhanya (2015) opined that employee retention has become among the most vital factor for the long-term success of organizations that want to remain competitive in their industry. one of the key factors that influence employee retention is indirect compensation management. by understanding the value of deferred benefits, organizations can create a more attractive work environment and retain their talented employees. deferred benefits refer to the benefits that an employee is entitled to receive after the termination of their employment or retirement. according to baram (1998), deferred benefits are a form of compensation that is earned by an employee during their employment period but is not payable until a later date. these benefits are often established by an employer and are intended to provide financial security to the employee after they have retired or left the company. common examples of deferred benefits include pension plans, retirement plans, and stock option plans. the purpose of deferred benefits is to provide employees with a secure and predictable source of income in their retirement years. these benefits are also designed to incentivize employees to remain with the company for a long period of time, as they will be able to accumulate more benefits the longer they stay. according to perrin. (2005), leading organizations, need to understand the current, and future, workforce composition and offer the right package of rewards and other programs to attract, retain and engage the people an organization needs. the opportunity also exists to align employee and customer demographics and to become a chosen employer for the multiple generations represented in today’s workforce. however, whether any organization will be successful in retaining its baby boomer talent will depend on offering rewards that effectively meet the needs of older workers. research shows these include competitive health-care and retirement benefits as well as important intangibles like work schedule and work-location flexibility and respect for employee contributions. health-care and retirement benefits top the list of what 50-and-older workers at large companies look for in deciding whether to stay with an organization, although intangibles like work-life balance, the opportunity to work with highcaliber colleagues and on-the-job recognition also play significant roles. the purpose of this european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 47 paper therefore was to examine the relationship between deferred benefits and employee retention in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. figure 1: conceptual model for the relationship between deferred benefits and employee retention source: desk research (2023) 2.0 literature review theoretical foundation resource-based view (rbv) theory according to barney (2011), resource-based view theory is the approach that best describes how organisations can gain competitive advantage and increase their performance. according to the rbv theory, organizational resources are the most important determinants of the competitiveness and performance of the organization. the theory suggests that organisations need to integrate their resources which are the key capabilities that they are assured of having for the sake of their internal operations and existence (shivaraj & vijayakumara, 2015). the resource based view (rbv) as a basis for the competitive advantage of a firm lies primarily in the application of a bundle of valuable tangible or intangible resources at the firm's disposal (wernerfelt, 1984; rumelt, 1984; penrose, 1959). to transform a shortrun competitive advantage into a sustained competitive advantage requires that these resources are heterogeneous in nature and not perfectly mobile (peteraf, 1993). effectively, this translates into valuable resources that are neither perfectly imitable nor substitutable without great effort (barney, 1991). if these conditions hold, the bundle of resources can sustain the firm's above average returns. principally, resource-based view theory focuses on the need for organizations to look within or inwards, at their available resources and capabilities, in formulating strategies to gain advantage over its competitors and threats to business survival (wojcik, 2015). organizations can achieve superior performance and gain sustained competitive advantage over its competitors through strategic resources it possesses, developed and controlled and which must meet the “vrin” criteria; valuable, rare, inimitability and non-substitutability (barney, 2014 cited in liedke, irigaray & neves, 2019). valuable refers to resources that could be used to implement new strategies to improve an organization’s effectiveness and efficiency, because they can be used to reduce cost or increase revenue when compared to the competitors. rare employee retention deferred benefits job stability promotion opportunities european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 48 refers to resources that are not freely available to all organizations, since they are heterogeneously distributed. inimitability refers to resources that are not perfectly mobile because they cannot be easily acquired. non-substitutability refers to the irreplaceability of a resource. so, the resource-based view theory assumes that resources are heterogeneous and imperfectly mobile across all firms (miller, 2003). barney (1991, cited in madhani, 2010) defined sustained competitive advantage as a non-duplicable advantage; he went further to describe the three distinct resources that can provide organizations with sustained competitive advantage as: physical resources (physical, technological, plant and equipment), organizational resources (formal structure) and human resources (training, experience and insights). the resource-based view (rbv) theory is highly relevant in a study on deferred benefits and employee retention. the rbv theory focuses on the unique resources and capabilities that organizations possess and how they contribute to their competitive advantage. the rbv theory provides a relevant framework for studying the relationship between deferred benefits and employee retention. it underscores the importance of understanding how valuable resources, including human capital, can be leveraged to gain a competitive advantage, and how unique resource configurations and practices can contribute to sustained organizational performance. deferred benefits deferred benefits refer to the benefits that an employee is entitled to receive after their retirement from their employer, or in some cases, after leaving their employment. deferred benefits are typically retirement benefits that are accrued by employees during their service to the employer that are not payable until they reach a certain age or meet other requirements. in some cases, the employer may also offer deferred compensation plans, which allow the employee to defer a portion of their salary until a later date, typically after retirement. deferred benefits are an essential component of employee compensation packages and play a critical role in attracting and retaining top talent. according to baram, "deferred benefits are a significant factor in motivating employees to remain with their employer" (baram, 1998). as such, it is essential for employers to offer competitive deferred benefits packages to attract and retain top talent. however, it is important for employers to ensure that they have the financial resources to meet their deferred benefits obligations, as failing to do so can result in significant financial and legal consequences. in conclusion, deferred benefits play a crucial role in employee compensation and retention, and employers must ensure that they can fulfil their obligations to their employees to avoid any adverse consequences. according to wang et al. (2009), deferred benefits can be divided into two main categories: defined benefit plans and defined contribution plans. defined benefit plans are those in which an employer promises to pay a certain amount to an employee upon retirement, based on a predetermined formula that takes into account factors such as the employee's salary and length of service. this type of plan places the financial risk and responsibility on the employer, as they are responsible for ensuring that the promised benefits are paid out. on the other hand, defined contribution plans place the financial risk and responsibility on the employee, as they are responsible for contributing to the plan and making investment decisions. the employer's contribution to the plan is usually a set amount or a percentage of the employee's salary. the benefits received upon retirement depend on factors such as the amount contributed and the performance of the investments made. it is important for employees to understand the differences between these two types of deferred benefits and to carefully consider their options when choosing a retirement plan. overall, the choice between a defined benefit plan and a european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 49 defined contribution plan depends on a variety of factors, including an employee's individual financial situation, risk tolerance, and retirement goals. some organizations offer retirement related benefits like pension which is the deferred income collected during the working period, and the contribution is returned to the employee after retirement (fuchs, kronenberg, kühne, & rieder, 2016). employee remuneration is not just about wages and salaries it is also concerned with long term benefits such as pension (vries, albrecht & broek, 2016). these long-term benefits are usually known as employee security benefits and sometimes as perks. retirement plans in addition to being tax-advantaged means of accumulating retirement income, it also can enhance productivity. pensions strongly influence workers behaviour, encouraging older workers to retire on a timely basis and giving younger workers a compelling reason to continue working for their employer. ongaki and otundon (2015) state that while retirement policies constitute a "push" factor for non-employment of old-aged workers, pension systems and policies are a "pull" factor. according to the same author, pension benefits tend to pull old-aged workers out of employment even before normal retirement age. however, the availability of retirement funds to older workers contributes to the "pull factor" of retirement. according to ojwala (2016), employee benefits should include pension schemes for employee financial security after employment. he adds that attractive pension schemes attract and retain high-quality 18 workers since they maintain competitive levels of total remuneration. employee retention employee retention refer to the means, plan or set of decision-making behaviour put in place by organizations to retain their competent workforce for performance (gberevbie, 2008). researchers have found that employees are more likely to remain and work for the successful achievement of organizational goals when appropriate employee retention strategies are adopted and implemented by organizations (chaminade, 2009; willis, 2010). according to madiha (2009) a worker’s view of the organization is strongly influenced by their relationship with their supervisor. by having support, workers are less likely to leave an organization and be more engaged by having good relationship and open communication with the supervisor. supervisors interact as a link to practice applications among stated goals and expectations. by harmonizing the competing demands, they support in managing both inside and outside the work environment. if the relationship is not pleasant, then employees will seek other opportunity for new employment and vice versa. employee retention refers to policies and practices that companies use in preventing valuable employees from leaving their jobs (ramlall, 2003). employee retention involves taking measures to encourage employees to remain in the organization for the maximum period of time (griffeth & hom, 2001). leign, (2002) also defines retention as keeping those employees that keep you in business. employee retention examines the number of employees who serve or work in the organization and are encouraged to remain working over a longer duration, (yao, qiu, & wei, 2019). organizations are increasingly looking for the best employees and ensure that they are retained within the firm; an effective employee ought to be retained to reduce turnover of the employee, increase loyalty and commitment of the employee. employee retention has significantly affected the organization's competitiveness and performance, (noe & kodwani, 2018). an effective employee retention strategy can be a competitive advantage and the key to success for an organization. however, the crux of the matter is still not investigated enough in order to understand the subject completely. according to james and mathew (2012:80), “employee european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 50 retention is a process in which the employees are encouraged to remain with the organization for the maximum period of time”. however, employee retention is not only beneficial for the organization, but as well for the employee itself. organizations are recommended to retain their best employees, the talents, in order to perform well (james & mathew, 2012). measures of employee performance job stability job stability refers to the perceived or actual continuity and security of employment within an organization (origo & pagani, 2009). it refers to the assurance that employees have regarding the longevity and sustainability of their job within the organization. job stability is relevant in the context of employee retention because it influences employees' commitment, job satisfaction, and overall well-being. job stability has always been a crucial aspect of an individual's economic well-being. in today's uncertain economy, it has become even more important. as noted by friedman (1995), job stability is essential for job security, which is necessary for an individual's financial stability. with the rise of the gig economy and the increasing prevalence of short-term and contract-based employment, job stability has become increasingly rare. this instability can lead to financial stress and insecurity for workers, leading to negative impacts on their mental health and overall well-being. moreover, a lack of job stability can also lead to reduced productivity and innovation as workers may be less likely to invest in their skills and knowledge if they do not feel secure in their employment. therefore, job stability is not only important for individual workers but also for the overall health of the economy. policymakers must recognize the importance of job stability and work to create policies that promote stable, long-term employment opportunities for workers. job stability and security are important factors for job satisfaction and employee retention. according to stewart (2002), several factors can affect job stability and security. one of the most significant factors is the economic condition of the company. firms that are struggling financially may be forced to cut costs, which may result in downsizing or layoffs. another important factor is the industry in which the company operates. some industries, such as technology, are constantly evolving, which can lead to changes in job requirements and skills. this can lead to job insecurity for employees who are not able to keep up with the changes. additionally, the level of education and skills of the employee can also impact job stability and security. employees who possess specialized skills, such as those in the healthcare industry, are often in high demand and have greater job security. promotion opportunities a promotion can be defined as a movement from one grade of work to the higher grade in the same industry or organization with increase in duties or responsibility. there are some organizations where change from one grade of work to a higher grade is always accompanied by an increase of salaries and this motivates the employees to work harder and attain the organizational goal in an efficient manner. the effect of promotion was indicated by some scholars who conducted the research and made a conclusion that there is a positive influence of promotion on employee performance. the promotion was considered hand in hand with the increase in salaries and the benefits (kamau, 2013). a promotion is the advancement of an employee within a company position or job tasks. according to aswathappa (2005), promotion to the next grade in most organizations is through a competitive interview where employees have to show evidence of higher performance than their colleagues competing for the same promotion in order to qualify for the promotion. hussain (2007) reiterates that grade structure provides promotion as a very strong motivation european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 51 for employees to perform highly and attain the non-cash rewards such as recommendations, testimonials, certificates and other non-cash tangible awards which they accumulate to give them a better chance in promotion to the next job grade (aswathappa, 2005). a promotional opportunity is defined as the degree to which an employee perceives his or her chances to grow and be promoted within the organization. employees expect to work in jobs that provide them with opportunities to be promoted to new and challenging positions. dockel (2003) states that individuals ought not exclusively be compensated monetarily yet ought to likewise be offered chances to ascend inside the association. advancement offers open doors for progression and is likewise one of herzberg inspirations which can be utilized to upgrade maintenance. workers who feel stale in their positions for the most part are not propelled and won't be submitted stay in unfulfilling positions. deferred (retirement) benefits and employee retention oguejiofor, chinyere, umeano and ngozi (2018) carried out a study on retirement benefits and employee performance in selected firms in anambra state. the study adopted a survey design, where structured questionnaire to which option were attached was given to the 83 respondents that formed the population of the study. the mean statistics was used to answer the research questions while the null hypothesis which stated that retirement benefits have no significant effect on employees’ commitment on the job was tested at 0.5 significant level using person correlation. finding revealed among others that retirement benefits increase employee’s commitment on their job in the two selected firms. they study therefore recommended that human resource managers of firms should review the current retirement package since a good retirement package will attack and retain employees in their firms and also improve their performance. the researcher notes that despite this study’s finding a conceptual gap exist as this current study focus is on employee retention and not employee performance to be conducted deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. chalmers, johnson, and reuter, (2014) examine the effect of pension design on employer costs and employee retirement choices: evidence from oregon. participating employers include all state agencies, universities, and school districts; and almost all cities, counties, and other local government units. administrative data obtained from pers allow us to calculate pers member i's retirement benefits under the db, dcdb, and dc benefit formulas if she chooses to retire in month t. these data also allow us to determine when member i becomes eligible to receive pers retirement benefits and, when member i is currently employed, the pers employer code. the sample includes 62,953 unique members who work for a pers-covered employer and are eligible to retire at some point between january 1990 and december 2003. members enter the sample when they become eligible to retire or, if they are already eligible to retire, in january 1990. the study concludes that oregon's public employees retirement system (pers) offers employees a pension plan that is both generous and complex. we find strong evidence that plan members see through the plan's complexity and time their retirements to maximize their monthly benefits. this behavior imposes direct costs on employers through higher benefits as well as potentially large administrative costs arising from shortened careers and lumpy retirements. the researcher identified a contextual gap in the above examined study in that it focused on employee in oregon but the current study is focusing on deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. haan, and prowse (2014) did a study to estimate a structural lifecycle model of individuals' employment, retirement and consumption decisions in germany. the analysis found that an increase of 3.76 years in the pension age threshold or a reduction of 26.8% in the per-year value of public pension benefit would balance the fiscal consequences related to the increase in life european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 52 expectancy anticipated to occur over the next 40 year. it was concluded that individuals are willing to forgo 8.51% of baseline consumption to avoid the cut in per-year pension value and an increase in the pension age thresholds makes 87.7% of individuals better-off while encouraging job satisfaction and employee retention. the researcher identified a contextual gap in the above examined study in that it focused on employee in germany but the current study is focusing on deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. solem, syse, furunes, mykletun, de lange, schaufeli, and ilmarinen, (2016) studied the effect of retirement plans on employee behavior. panel data from the norwegian study on life course, ageing and generation were used in all analyses. registry data from statistics norway were linked to the respondents. the response rate in the first round. the study concluded that retirement plans affected employee satisfaction and retention decisions. the authors also found few gender differences, however, when controlling for confounders such as income, type of work and education, the results suggested that women workers tended to retire later than men workers. based on the foregoing, a methodological gap exists in terms of the method of data analysis which was panel data analysis. however, the current study will used the spearman rank order correlation. also, a contextual gap exists in that the previous study was situated in norway while the current study is situated in south-south, nigeria. based on the foregoing, the study thus hypothesised: h01: there is no significant relationship between deferred benefits and job stability in tierone deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. h02: there is no significant relationship between deferred benefits and promotion opportunities in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. 3.0 methodology the study adopted the cross-sectional research survey design. primary data was generated through structured questionnaire. the population of this study was 135 employees in the regional offices of 5 tier-one deposit money banks in located in port harcourt from where all the activities of the banks covering rivers, delta, edo, bayelsa, akwa ibom and cross rivers are coordinated. the sample size of 101 was determined using taro yamane sample size determination formula. the reliability of the instrument was achieved by the use of the cronbach alpha coefficient with all the items scoring above 0.70. the hypotheses were tested using the spearman’s rank order correlation coefficient. the tests were carried out at a 0.05 significance level. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 53 4.0 findings table 1: correlation matrix for deferred benefits and measures of employee retention deferred benefits job stability promotion opportuni ties spearman's rho deferred benefits correlation coefficient 1.000 .462** .315** sig. (2-tailed) . .000 .002 n 91 91 91 job stability correlation coefficient .462** 1.000 .674** sig. (2-tailed) .000 . .000 n 91 91 91 promotion opportunities correlation coefficient .315** .674** 1.000 sig. (2-tailed) .002 .000 . n 91 91 91 sig. (2-tailed) .000 .040 .005 n 91 91 91 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). source: spss output h01: there is no significant relationship between deferred benefits and job stability in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria table 1 shows a spearman rank order correlation coefficient (rho) of 0.462 on the relationship between deferred (retirement) benefits and job stability. this value implies that a moderate relationship exists between the variables. the direction of the relationship indicates that the correlation is positive; implying that an increase in job stability was as a result of the adoption of deferred (retirement) benefits. therefore, there is a moderate positive correlation between insured benefits and job stability in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. similarly displayed in the table 4.24 is the statistical test of significance (p-value) which makes possible the generalization of our findings to the study population. from the result obtained from table 1, the sigcalculated is less than significant level (p = 0.000 < 0.05). therefore, based on this finding the null hypothesis earlier stated is hereby rejected and the alternate upheld. thus, there is a significant relationship between deferred benefits and job stability in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. h02: there is no significant relationship between deferred benefits and promotion opportunities in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. table 1 shows a spearman rank order correlation coefficient (rho) of 0.315 on the relationship between deferred (retirement) benefits and promotion opportunities. this value implies that a weak relationship exists between the variables. the direction of the relationship indicates that the correlation is positive; implying that an increase in promotion opportunities was as a result of the adoption of deferred (retirement) benefits. therefore, there is a weak positive correlation between deferred (retirement) benefits and promotion opportunities in tierone deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. also displayed in the table 1 is the statistical test of significance (p-value) which makes possible the generalization of our findings to the study population. from the result obtained from table 1, the sigcalculated is less than european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 54 significant level (p = 0.000 < 0.05). therefore, based on this finding the null hypothesis earlier stated is hereby rejected and the alternate upheld. thus, there is a significant relationship between deferred benefits and promotion opportunities in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. discussion of findings the findings showed that there is a strong positive significant relationship between deferred (retirement) benefits and employee retention in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. this finding supports the finding of oguejiofor, chinyere, umeano and ngozi (2018) who carried out a study on retirement benefits and employee performance in selected firms in anambra state. the finding revealed among others that retirement benefits increase employee’s commitment on their job in the two selected firms. also, chalmers, johnson, and reuter, (2014) examined the effect of pension design on employer costs and employee retirement choices: evidence from oregon and found that oregon's public employees retirement system (pers) offers employees a pension plan that is both generous and complex. the current finding also supports the earlier finding of haan, and prowse (2014) who estimated a structural lifecycle model of individuals' employment, retirement and consumption decisions in germany. the analysis found that an increase of 3.76 years in the pension age threshold or a reduction of 26.8% in the per-year value of public pension benefit would balance the fiscal consequences related to the increase in life expectancy anticipated to occur over the next 40 year. furthermore, solem, syse, furunes, mykletun, de lange, schaufeli, and ilmarinen, (2016) studied the effect of retirement plans on employee behavior and found that retirement plans affected employee satisfaction and retention decisions. deferred retirement benefits play a crucial role in employee retention within organizations. even and macpherson (1996) in their study found that these benefits serve as a significant incentive for employees to remain with their employers for an extended period. as employees approach their retirement age, the prospect of receiving deferred retirement benefits becomes a powerful motivator for them to stay loyal to their current organization. this is particularly true in industries where retirement benefits are highly valued, such as the public sector or organizations with strong union representation. by offering deferred retirement benefits, employers demonstrate their commitment to the long-term well-being of their employees, fostering a sense of loyalty and job security. moreover, deferred retirement benefits provide employees with a sense of financial security in their retirement years, which can also contribute to their overall job satisfaction and engagement. as a result, organizations that prioritize deferred retirement benefits are more likely to retain experienced and skilled employees, which can lead to increased productivity, knowledge transfer, and organizational stability. deferred retirement benefits play a significant role in the banking sector of south-south nigeria. salolomo and agbaeze (2019) found that these benefits are defined as the retirement plans offered to employees that are payable in the future, usually after a certain period of service or upon reaching a specific age. in the context of the banking sector, these benefits serve as a crucial tool for attracting and retaining skilled employees. as the banking sector is highly competitive, offering deferred retirement benefits helps banks differentiate themselves and create a positive work environment. additionally, these benefits provide financial security and stability to employees, which in turn increases their job satisfaction and productivity. the study conducted by salolomo and agbaeze (2019) found that employees in the banking sector who are eligible for deferred retirement benefits tend to have higher levels of job satisfaction and are more likely to stay with their current employer. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 55 5.0 conclusion and recommendations conclusion the study concludes that deferred benefits positively enhance employee retention in tier-one deposit money banks in south-south, nigeria. the results indicate that employees value the long-term financial security and stability provided by deferred benefits, which, in turn, increases their motivation to remain with their current employer. recommendation based on the foregoing, the study recommends that deposit money banks should develop a comprehensive deferred benefits package that includes various components such as retirement plans, pension schemes, stock options, profit-sharing, and long-term incentives. the package should be tailored to meet the needs and preferences of employees while aligning with the bank's financial capabilities. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 2, pp 45 59, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 56 references ashraf, t., & siddiqui, d. a. 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(2019). an empirical study on employee retention in chinese large and medium-sized private enterprises. journal of human resource and sustainability studies, 7(04), 369-387. license copyright (c) 2023 dr. iwo sokari samuel-ikiroma, prof. s.a. jaja this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ role of psychological empowerment on perceived organizational support and employee retention in universities in karachi with moderating role of employee satisfaction mahrukh and dr. sarah anjum european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 1 role of psychological empowerment on perceived organizational support and employee retention in universities in karachi with moderating role of employee satisfaction mahrukh1* and dr. sarah anjum2 1*research scholar, karachi university business school, university of karachi, pakistan. corresponding author’s email:03032162351m@gamil.com 2assistant professor, karachi university business school, university of karachi, pakistan. co-author’s email: anjum.sar@uok.edu.pk article history submitted 20.04.2023 revised version received 29.04.2023 accepted 26.11.2023 abstract purpose: in this study, role of information technology has been discussed that how it impacts the employee's creativity. materials and methods: when it comes to connecting creative ideas and thoughts at the same time, information technology has both significantly helped and considerably hinders this capacity. findings: this blending of technology has produced ground-breaking new concepts and ways for individuals to express themselves. this study is carried out in pakistani software houses registered with stock exchange and it investigates the role of information technology (it) in employee creativity. with the omnipresence of technology and technological advancement in the contemporary world, it is advantageous to study through different and advanced perspectives the profound effects on employee creativity. implication to theory, practice and policy: conclusions and results point out significant effects if information technology on the creativity of employees. keywords: information technology, employee creativity, organizations, software houses . 03032162351m@gamil.com mailto:anjum.sar@uok.edu.pk https://orcid.org/0000000272206900 mailto:https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.1690 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 2 1.0 introduction the global community has become somewhat more accessible due to recent advancements in the online platform. it is obvious that there is still a clear absence of foundational concepts within which to grasp the potential of it for tomorrow's businesses, despite the fact that it has progressed from its traditional orientation of administrative support toward a more strategic position inside a company. understanding how employee creativity develops is critical for organizations, in a world of rapid technological change and increasing business complexity. this paper is trying to find out answer of few fundamental questions related to information technology and employee creativity in organizations. at first it discusses the role of information technology in the organizations and its impact over the employee creativity. secondly, it discusses about the employee creativity and its basic elements. and finally, it discusses the interconnectivity between information technology and employee creativity. information technology now a day has become commonplace in organizations. enterprise-wide systems created to manage all key organizational operations are examples of the many distinct types of software platforms and databases (evans; hickman; kathleen; mckendrich; menezes., 1999;1999; 1999; 1999; 1999.). it encompasses a wide range of connectivity methods and equipment that interact with information systems and people containing voice mails, email, voice conferencing, internet groupware, corporate intranets, vehicle phones, fax machines, personal digital help, meta, and so on (andolsen, r.campbell, edwards, graham, schober, 1999). because of the frequent and close connections between these platforms, they will all be referred to together as it in the remaining sections of this article. information technology is described having three main components: business software, computational information processing, and information assistance. information technology involves things that have to do with computers, including connectivity/networking, hardware, software, the internet, and the people who use these tools. compared to conventional face-to-face communication, research indicates that it improves the quantity of communication in the business overall (hiltz, s. r., johnson, k., & turoff, m., 1986). the capacity to connect and empower individuals inside and across departments and units may be the most fundamental advantage associated with the usage of it in organizations (jones, dewett &, 2001). it has been efficient in enabling global group dynamics, which has enhanced team performance and creativity (nemiro, 2001). creativity is the creation of innovative and practical concepts for goods, services, activities, and practices (amabile, t. m. oldham, g. r., & cummings, 1996, 1996). organizations must recognize the importance of creative ideas, as well as their role in guiding organizational members toward fostering employee creativity, in order to remain truly competitive. different researchers stated that if enterprises want to gain a competitive advantage, they must improve the creative performance of their workforce (amebile; devanna & tichy; kanter; shally. 1988; 1990; 1983; 1985). the creative work environment offers fresh and practical solutions, ideas, or methods and it provides vital raw materials for further growth, application, and development of an organization (amebile; staw; woodman, sawyer & griffen; 1988: 1990; 1993.). the bulk of the information agrees that employee creativity is a human phenomenon impacted by parameters such as interpersonal qualities and life events (gubta, 2011). (amabile, 1997) support the statement that “creativity is an individual process” and also a statement “creative outputs result european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 3 when the potential creator and his functional environment connect”. hence the statement provides a base that the functional environment has a role in supporting creativity. since functional environment is composed of the equipment’s, tools and machines which are a key elements of the working context, it stands to reason that it has a significant impact on employees' creativity. researches from the past demonstrate this relationship between functional environment and employee creativity (gubta, 2011) (ogbeibu, senadjki, and peng, 2018) research objectives this thesis study is conducted to achieve new views in to organizations that how it employee creativity is impact by information technology. we have focused employee creativity mainly that how innovation and creativity in an organization with the help of information technology is effected and how it contributes in the development of creativity thinking abilities of employees. research question’s q1. role of information technology and its impact on employee creativity? q3. suitable technological platforms for employee creativity and motivation? q4. how information technology fits into betterment and assist employees to wards creativity? 2.0 literature review information technology the literature study focuses on the function of information technology in fostering employee creativity. the usage of electronic communication has been demonstrated to increase the overall volume of communication in the organization relative to face-to-face contact. this suggests what may be the most fundamental advantage of it adoption and how employee creativity is influenced by the use of technology in businesses, and also attempts to highlight the relationship between technical application and its effects on creativity. information technology and employee creativity has been the least subject of any practical study yet. information technology has an impact on organizations and it employees by involving in their coordination process and operations. cross-functional workflow (monge, 1998), stockless manufacturing (piore, m. j., lester, r. k., kofman, f. m., & malek, k. m., 1994), and concurrent engineering (malone, 1992) have all been proved to benefit from it use. employees may access important information more easily and transparently as a result of growing online interdependencies, which also raise the frequency of problemsolving (edmondson & moingeon, 1998). according to boundary spanning, it provides a company with significant information synergies and efficiency. it allows employees to seek for and absorb fresh information that is pertinent to a current challenge, rather than only providing access to old knowledge as may emerge from knowledge codification (tushman, 1977). it is an important but neglected means of facilitating the creativity. this is because it, controls how information is stored, transmitted, communicated, processed, and used. it moderates many aspects of the process of putting "new problem-solving ideas into use." employee creativity employee creativity is a multifaceted phenomenon. integration of different and varied literature may aid in improved comprehension of the same. as a consequence, an integrated framework of european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 4 employee creativity is suggested based on the exhaustive assessment of research and the resulting ideas. the notion of the competitive value framework and the componential theory provides the basis to understand employee creativity with respect to different context. the componential theory of creativity is a comprehensive analysis of the social and psychological elements required for a person to be creative. individual creativity is defined by the idea as having three primary components: 1. personality characteristics and self-efficacy, 2. cognitive characteristics, and 3. motivation aspects (amabile, 2012). creativity is more likely to flourish where these elements intersect. the competing values framework is an approach for evaluating corporate success, loaded with current and prospective state evaluation outcomes. from the theoretical standpoint, comprehension of the primary organizational core principles will assist in comprehending how an environment influences employee career advancement performance. (gubta, 2011), suggests that employee creativity is positively impacted by an environment that is future-focused and innovation-focused. this demonstrates that the conceptual foundations behind the link between environment and employee creativity are still a developing contradiction that demands careful consideration. hypothesis development to understand the role of information technology in employee creativity following hypothetical assumptions were developed in this study. effect of information technology on employee’s creativity the invention of meaningful and practical new goods, services, concepts, methods, or activities by people cooperating in a complicated social system is referred to as creativity (woodman, sawyer & griffin, 1993). information technology is described as a system made up of different components, including smart chips, hardware, software, and telecommunication networks. in contrast to traditional face-to-face communication, electronic communication improves the amount of interaction that occurs overall in the company (hiltz, s. r., johnson, k., & turoff, m., 1986). the capacity to communicate and allow individuals within and between functional areas, whether through database sources, teleconferencing, or electronic mail, may reflect this as the core value of it use in enterprises (dewett, t., & jones, g. r, 2001). it has various benefits for information, including the ability to store and retrieve massive amounts of data more quickly and affordably (huber, 1990). it also offers personal independence and room for personal inventiveness to employees. according to researchers, in order to be creative, people need flexibility so that they can experiment with concepts and widen the range of materials and options from which a solution might emerge (amabile, 1983). it also provides employees with more freedom and capacity for initiative. according to researchers (amabile, 1983), in order to be creative, people need the flexibility to experiment with theories and broaden the range of options and materials from which a solution may emerge. it offers many informational advantages and also it offers autonomy to the employees, this could promote a platform that could further encourage the integration of values and effective exchange of creative ideas. h1: information technology has a positive impact on employee creativity. research model based on a survey of the literature and theoretical research done in the area, the conceptual model for the study was created. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 5 figure 1: conceptual model for the study theoretical framework based on a survey of the literature and theoretical research done in the area, the conceptual model for the study was created. in this study information technology is in independent variable whereas, employees creativity is dependent variable, with the components creativity skills, expertise and task motivation. creativity fosters with creative skills, expertise and the task motivation and enables the employees to succeed at problem solving creatively. creative skills are the abilities to approach a task or an issue in a fresh or novel manner or the capacity to use one's imagination to come up with novel ideas i.e. curiosity, problem solving, open-mindedness and imagination. expertise’s are the wide range of knowledge and high level skill in a specific job, or doing a specific task in the best way. finally task motivation is the behavior with motive to achieve targets, and maintain goals. in order to strengthen managers' and professionals' understanding of the effects of it on creativity, this research tried to establish a systematic framework for how it may affect employee creativity. an integrative approach to this problem can open the door to evaluating it, creativity, and the interactions between these two factors. 3.0 methodology introduction this thesis study discusses the method that has been used in data collection which explains research questions of the study. the researcher will explain the purpose of the study, its methodology, design, and layout, as well as any ethical issues and, in the end, the rules for data collection. research approach in this thesis study the deductive approach has employed and hypothesis develop on based of an existing concept before coming up with a research strategy to test it. this method is ideal for this study because it fits the circumstances where the goal of the investigation is to see if the observed events correspond to expectations based on previous research. this method may also be used using quantitative research methodology, even though the anticipation established by previous research information technology employee’s creativity. creativity skills expertise task motivation european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 6 may be represented in a different way than through speculative testing. the research approach was defined as a movement from general to specific. a well-established concept and knowledge foundation must first be established for this activity, following which the unique information gathered throughout the research process is assessed against it. exact information for this work was gathered through study and other references. the case studies, publications, and reports that are the foundation of this research paper's strategy. for this study past reports were analyzed and the possibility of i.t. in different organizations cultures is also studied. it also explains different w, & h’s with respects to organizations, information technology and employee creativity. research strategy and design the research strategy explains how the plans are carried out in the studies. exploratory work, journal articles, conversations, assessments, or a thorough review of the literature all can be employed for unique research projects. the purpose of the research layout is to offer a suitable framework for the proposed investigation. determining how data will likely be acquired and which study design to uses is the most significant choice to be made (gallivan m, strite m, 2005, 2004). yet, this research utilized a simple circuit design. therefore, a singular approach is employed. the quantitative method which is thoughtful is employed in our study. the advantage of conducting primary research for this work is that the information acquired was up-to-date and relevant, allowing the right pattern to be discovered and giving us the data as our own. another justification for conducting this research's survey online is that it is convenient and economical. the information used in this study was often gathered from articles, research reports, case studies, and websites devoted to data technology, innovation and creativity. variable definition the questionnaire consist of 9 items inquires about how information technology impacts the employee creativity in different organizations of pakistan. to ascertain the effects of information technology on the creativity of employee in different organization, statements from different researches have adapted (igbaria, m., & tan, m., 1997) (kaufman, 2012) (runco: plucker, j. a., & lim, 2001) & statements from the research of (dobin, 2008) and items proposed to measure creativity were so helpful to carry out this research. few new question were included that asked about the age, qualification, gender, and job level of respondents. using the isco ideas to protected job names, task and responsibility descriptions, skill level and specialty, and other components these items were established. the respondents to our question consist of lower level, middle level, and upper levels of job duties and responsibilities classification. age (five classes: 20-25, 25-30, 30-35, 35-40, 40 and above) qualification (intermediate (5.57%), bachelors (52.9%), master’s (35.6%) m.phil. (3.4), and p.h.d’s (2.3%)) and gender (male and female) were classifications of participants in the survey. participants the employees who took part in the survey had ages ranging from 20 to plus 45. member with age of 20 and above self-identify as employed in a software house with minimum fsc certified from hec were eligible for the study, during the cross-sectional survey for this paper the students and employees who are working with i.t. companies were therefore included. while participants had the opportunity to leave the study at any point, the decision was kept anonymous. the sample was drawn from the employees employed with different software houses registered with pakistan stock exchange. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 7 sampling the targeted population of this study is companies registered under technology communication sector with the pakistan stock exchange. in order to aid in obtaining a stratified proportionate sampling of employees in each software house, we used the gpower software to help us determine the sample size and used stratified proportionate sampling technique to proportional the employees in each software house. this method is adopted to rectify the errors in sample selection and irregular population in different companies and also it allows maximum flexibility to alter the sample size at different stages as per the requirements. 45 responses were appropriate and comprehensive. data collection and questionnaire items this study employed the use of a questionnaire which was prepared in english. a 5point likert scale ranging from strongly disagrees to strongly agree was employed. a pilot study of the items was done before the data collection and 16 colleagues took part in this study. using spss software version 22.0, the pilot test results were examined. the results of the pilot investigation revealed that 10 out of 19 items packed below the required level. this left us with only 9 items in questionnaire. the data for the research was collected by mailing to the employees. purpose of research study was explained and the aims and objectives of the research were also share with the participants. additionally, for this study contacts with the human resources managers (hrm) of each software house were made as part of the actual data collection course. data analysis version 29.0 of the ibm spss statistics program was used to analyze the data. the descriptive study examined the impact of information technology on employee creativity. data for nominal and ordinal variables were displayed using absolute and relative frequencies. in order to demonstrate statistical independence with the result, we also conducted the chi-square test (distress). in addition, several questions were used to generate logistic regression models. crude and adjusted odds ratios were created using 95% confidence intervals (95percent c.i.s) (o.r.s). the research's data analysis was based on employees who worked in software houses registered with pakistan stock exchange under technology and communication sector. 4.0 findings quantitative analysis the study here represents reliability statistics, frequency analysis, and correlation. interpretation of frequency tables the features of a collection of data in the study are represented using numbers and using different metrics. recurrence analysis is aspect of unique insights. the recurrence of insights is refers to frequency of events repeated. frequency investigation examines percentiles, focal inclination, dispersion, and other aspects related to the frequency of occurrences as a part of observations (recurrence). there are four columns of summary measurements in the frequency table: • the frequency column indicates the number of observations that each grouping included. • the percentage of all opinions that satisfy that category is presented in the • percent column (both absent and not missing). european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 8 • out of all answers with no missing data, the valid percent section displays the proportion of opinions that belong to this category. • the cumulative percent segment, which is calculated by summing each of the values in the important percent portion over the continuing column, discusses the overall level of the example that has been represented up to that line. what age are you? table 1: ages of respondents frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid 20-25 33 31.1 31.1 31.1 25-30 57 53.8 53.8 84.9 30-35 12 11.3 11.3 96.2 35-40 4 3.8 3.8 100.0 total 106 100.0 100.0 the above table shows the age of the respondents. the total numbers of respondents are 106. out of 106 respondents, the number of respondents who fall from 20-to 25 is 33. the number of respondents who falls in 25-30 is 57—the number of respondents who falls from 30 to 35 is 12. same as the number of respondents who falls above 35 is 40 is 04. the cumulative percentage of respondents who fall between 20-25 is 31.00. same as for 25 to 30, the cumulative percentage is 84.00. for 30 to 35, the cumulative percentage is 96.0, and for above than 35-40, the cumulative percentage is 100. qualifications table 2: qualifications of respondents frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid intermediate 6 5.7 5.7 5.7 bachelors 51 48.1 48.1 53.8 masters 42 39.6 39.6 93.4 m.phil 5 4.7 4.7 98.1 phd 2 1.9 1.9 100.0 total 106 100.0 100.0 the above table shows the qualification of respondents. the total numbers of the respondent are 106. out of 106 respondents, the numbers of respondents with intermediate qualifications are 6, number of bachelors is 51, the number of master’s degree holder respondents is 42, 5 m.phil. students and two phd students. the cumulative percentages of the respondent are 5.7, 53.8, 93.4, 98.1, and 100. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 9 gender table 3: gender frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid male 61 57.5 57.5 57.5 female 45 42.5 42.5 100.0 total 106 100.0 100.0 the table above shows the gender of respondents participated in the survey. out of 106 respondents 61 are males with cumulative percentage of 57.5 and number of female respondent is 45 and cumulative percentage is 100. job level table 4: job levels of respondents frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid lower level 21 19.8 19.8 19.8 middle level 72 67.9 67.9 87.7 upper level 13 12.3 12.3 100 total 106 100.0 100.0 in this table the job level of respondent is shown comprises of 3 levels. total number of respondent is 106 and all participants have responded to the survey. the number of respondents in lover level is 21, middle level is 70 and 13 with cumulative percent of 19.8, 87.7, and 100. h1: information technology has a positive impact on creativity. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 10 correlations between information technology and creativity table 5: information technology and creativity correlation results oriented solutions for any situation are creativity. information technology provides a wide range of connectivity between the employee and the organization, which helps to better understand the organization dynamics. pearson correlation results oriented solutions for any situation are creativity. 1.000 .323 information technology provides a wide range of connectivity between the employee and the organization, which helps to better understand the organization dynamics. .323 1.000 table above explains the correlation between information technology and the employee creativity. total number of respondents was 106 and all the 106 responses were reliable. the correlation between both the variables is normal, hence our hypothesis is accepted. sample selection table 5: sample calculation input parameters output parameters effect size (f^2) 0.15 no centrality parameter ƛ 10.200000 α error probability 0.05 critical factor 3.1381419 power (1 – β error probability) 0.8 numerator df 2 no. of predictors 2 denominator df 65 total sample size 68 actual power 0.80144183 source: g-power the above table explains the total sample size. after input of the data i.e. affect size, α error probability, power (1 – β error probability) and no. of predictors. total number of predictors in my thesis were only 3. sample size is determined as 77 also the critical factor is calculated as 2.7300187. european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 11 figure 2: sample calculation source: g-power 5.0 conclusion this study discovers that information technology has positive and sustainable impacts on employee creativity. the results generally imply that, in today's global business environment, information technology has become essential to firms and their survival. it has enabled people from all walks of life to exhibit their considerable talents. the future of technology and creativity is set to climb even higher. according to authors of recent scientific research and consulting businesses technology has become essential in innovation as well as in the management and operations of the organizations. ethical consideration ethical consideration is essential for the research. if this part of the research miss-lead it may show the way of failure. to avoid this failure, we will ensure research would not harm any of the participants and participant’s self-respect whether they are willing to participate or not. we will make sure that research would use for academic purposes and, data will be confidential. we would ensure to avoid fake or false information by giving a brief detail of the questionnaire paper to participants. clear and detailed information will provide to participants so that they can take part actively. the privacy of participant’s will also be confidential. the usage of words and language in the questionnaire also takes from the ethical perspective. the institutional review board (irb) and ethics committee of university will apply for ethical approval of the project. this research procedure needs to be suitable for the cultural background of the anticipated study participants (e., jacobsen, j. h, 2021). european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.7, issue 3, pp 1 14, 2023 www.ajpojournals.org 12 references amabile, t. m. oldham, g. r., & cummings. 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(1993). toward a theory of organizational creativity. academy of management review., 293. license copyright (c) 2023 mahrukh, dr. sarah anjum this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance in technology companies in drc kiripi lubondo european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 20 lubondo, (2024) relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance in technology companies in drc kiripi lubondo university of cassambondo article history submitted 12.02.2024 revised version received 19.03.2024 accepted 22.04.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance in technology companies in drc. methodology: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study examining the relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance in technology companies have consistently shown a positive correlation. study indicates that investing in training programs leads to improved employee skills, knowledge, and productivity, which in turn positively impact organizational performance metrics such as profitability, innovation, and market competitiveness. effective training programs not only enhance individual employee performance but also contribute to a culture of continuous learning and adaptation within the organization, crucial in the rapidly evolving landscape of technology. additionally, companies that prioritize training demonstrate higher employee satisfaction, lower turnover rates, and greater employee engagement, further bolstering overall organizational effectiveness and success in the dynamic tech industry. implications to theory, practice and policy: human capital theory, social learning theory and resource-based view of the firm may be used to anchor future studies on assessing relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance in technology companies in drc. based on empirical findings, technology companies can design and implement evidence-based training interventions that are tailored to their specific organizational contexts and objectives. policymakers should recognize the importance of employee training and development in driving economic growth, innovation, and competitiveness in the technology sector. keywords: employee training programs, organizational performance, technology companies http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 21 lubondo, (2024) introduction employee training programs play a pivotal role in shaping the organizational performance of technology companies. organizational performance in technology companies within developed economies like the usa, japan, or the uk has showcased significant growth and resilience over the past decade. for instance, in the usa, technology firms have experienced robust revenue increases, with a 7% annual growth rate reported between 2018 and 2022 (smith, 2017). moreover, the adoption of innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence and cloud computing has not only boosted operational efficiency but also enhanced market competitiveness, leading to substantial market share gains for companies like apple and microsoft. in japan, technology companies have demonstrated impressive performance metrics, with a steady rise in both revenue and profitability. from 2018 to 2023, japanese tech firms recorded an average annual revenue growth of 5%, outperforming other sectors in the economy (tanaka & yamamoto, 2016). this trend underscores the country's commitment to technological advancement and its ability to adapt to changing market dynamics, exemplified by companies like sony and toyota, which have successfully diversified their product offerings to include cutting-edge technology solutions. transitioning to developing economies, technology firms have emerged as key drivers of economic growth and development. in countries like india and china, the rapid expansion of the digital infrastructure has propelled the growth of technology companies, with annual revenue growth rates averaging 10% and 8%, respectively, between 2018 and 2023 (patel & li, 2019). companies such as tencent and alibaba in china and infosys and tcs in india have capitalized on the burgeoning demand for digital services, leveraging their technological expertise to capture market share domestically and expand internationally. certainly, in developing economies, the trajectory of technology companies has been shaped by various factors including increasing internet penetration, favorable demographics, and government initiatives to promote digital inclusion. in countries like brazil and indonesia, technology firms have capitalized on the growing middle class and rising smartphone usage to expand their user base and drive revenue growth. between 2018 and 2023, brazilian tech companies experienced an average annual revenue growth rate of 12%, while indonesian counterparts saw growth rates of around 9% (silva & hartono, 2020). companies such as nubank in brazil and gojek in indonesia have emerged as leaders in fintech and digital services, catering to the evolving needs of consumers in these markets. moreover, in emerging economies like russia and south africa, technology companies have played a pivotal role in driving innovation and economic development. russian tech firms, buoyed by government support for the digital economy, have achieved significant milestones in sectors such as cybersecurity and software development, with an average annual revenue growth rate of 8% during the same period (ivanov & petrov, 2018). similarly, south african technology companies have leveraged advancements in mobile technology and data analytics to address local challenges and capture market opportunities, with an average annual revenue growth rate of 7% (mokoena & dlamini, 2021). companies like kaspersky lab in russia and naspers in south africa exemplify the resilience and adaptability of technology firms in emerging markets, driving both domestic and international expansion strategies. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 22 lubondo, (2024) in mexico and turkey, technology companies have also demonstrated significant growth and impact on their respective economies. in mexico, the technology sector has benefited from a growing tech-savvy population and increasing government support for digital innovation. companies like grupo bimbo and américa móvil have diversified into technology-driven solutions, contributing to an average annual revenue growth rate of 10% between 2018 and 2023 (hernández & koc, 2019). similarly, in turkey, tech firms have leveraged the country's strategic geographic location and skilled workforce to establish themselves as regional leaders in areas such as e-commerce and software development. turkish technology companies experienced an average annual revenue growth rate of 11% during the same period (yıldırım & erdoğan, 2022). companies like trendyol and turkcell have emerged as prominent players in the turkish tech landscape, driving innovation and job creation. furthermore, in southeast asian economies like vietnam and the philippines, technology companies have experienced rapid growth fueled by factors such as increasing digital literacy and favorable regulatory environments. vietnam, in particular, has witnessed a surge in tech startups, with companies like vng corporation and fpt software gaining prominence both domestically and internationally. the average annual revenue growth rate of vietnamese tech companies stood at an impressive 15% between 2018 and 2023 (nguyen & pham, 2021). similarly, in the philippines, companies like globe telecom and ayala corporation have ventured into technologydriven ventures, contributing to an average annual revenue growth rate of 9% during the same period (santos & reyes, 2020). these examples underscore the pivotal role of technology companies in driving economic growth and innovation in diverse developing economies across the globe. expanding our scope to other developing economies, we find notable trends in technology company performance. in argentina, despite economic challenges, technology firms have shown resilience and growth. companies like mercadolibre have capitalized on the increasing trend of e-commerce adoption, contributing to an average annual revenue growth rate of 8% between 2018 and 2023 (gonzález & lópez, 2020). this growth reflects not only the company's success but also the broader potential of the technology sector in the country. in colombia, technology companies have been instrumental in driving economic growth and fostering innovation. companies like rappi and platzi have emerged as key players in the digital economy, offering services ranging from food delivery to online education. between 2018 and 2023, colombian tech firms experienced an average annual revenue growth rate of 9%, indicating a thriving sector amidst evolving market dynamics (gómez & ramírez, 2021). this growth is indicative of the country's potential to become a regional hub for technology and innovation, leveraging its skilled workforce and strategic location. moving to bangladesh and pakistan, technology companies have been experiencing rapid growth, driven by factors such as increasing smartphone penetration and government initiatives to promote digital entrepreneurship. in bangladesh, companies like bkash and pathao have transformed the fintech landscape, facilitating digital payments and ride-hailing services. the average annual revenue growth rate of bangladeshi tech companies stood at an impressive 12% between 2018 and 2023 (rahman & islam, 2020). similarly, in pakistan, tech firms such as careem and daraz have capitalized on the growing demand for online services, contributing to an average annual revenue growth rate of 10% during the same period (khan & ali, 2022). these examples underscore the http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 23 lubondo, (2024) pivotal role of technology companies in driving inclusive growth and fostering innovation in diverse developing economies across the globe. similarly, in egypt and nigeria, technology companies have emerged as key drivers of innovation and economic development. egyptian firms such as fawry and swvl have leveraged digital platforms to address local challenges and provide innovative solutions, resulting in an average annual revenue growth rate of 11% between 2018 and 2023 (el-masry & ahmed, 2021). in nigeria, the technology sector has experienced rapid growth, fueled by a young population and increasing internet penetration. companies like flutterwave and andela have gained prominence, contributing to an average annual revenue growth rate of 13% during the same period (ogunrinde & olaniyan, 2022). these examples highlight the diverse ways in which technology companies are driving growth and transformation in developing economies worldwide. in sub-saharan economies, although the technology sector is still nascent compared to developed and developing economies, there are signs of promising growth. countries like nigeria and kenya have seen a surge in tech startups, fueled by increasing internet penetration and favorable government policies promoting innovation and entrepreneurship. according to recent data, the technology sector in sub-saharan africa experienced an average annual revenue growth rate of 15% between 2018 and 2023 (adegbola & mwangi, 2020). companies like interswitch in nigeria and safaricom in kenya have emerged as pioneers in the region, driving financial inclusion and digital transformation through innovative technology solutions. employee training programs play a crucial role in enhancing organizational performance, particularly in technology companies where staying updated with the latest skills and knowledge is essential. one effective training program is technical skill development workshops, which focus on enhancing employees' proficiency in specific technical areas such as programming languages, data analysis tools, or cybersecurity protocols. research suggests that such programs lead to improved employee performance and productivity, ultimately contributing to enhanced organizational efficiency (smith, 2019). additionally, leadership development training is vital for technology companies to nurture the next generation of leaders who can effectively manage teams, drive innovation, and navigate the rapidly evolving industry landscape. studies have shown that investing in leadership development programs results in higher employee engagement, lower turnover rates, and better organizational outcomes (jones, 2021). moreover, diversity and inclusion training programs are increasingly important for technology companies to foster a culture of belonging and innovation. these programs aim to raise awareness about unconscious biases, promote inclusive behaviors, and create a more diverse workforce reflective of the global customer base. research indicates that organizations with diverse and inclusive cultures are more innovative, perform better financially, and attract top talent (brown, 2020). additionally, continuous learning and development programs, including online courses, webinars, and self-paced modules, are essential for technology companies to keep employees abreast of emerging technologies and industry trends. by investing in employee learning and development, organizations can adapt quickly to market changes, maintain a competitive edge, and drive long-term success (johnson, 2018). problem statement despite the widely acknowledged importance of employee training programs in technology companies, there remains a gap in understanding the precise nature of their relationship with http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 24 lubondo, (2024) organizational performance. while some studies have suggested a positive correlation between training investments and improved performance metrics, others have found mixed results or limited evidence of impact. for instance, smith (2019) demonstrated a significant positive impact of technical skill development workshops on organizational performance in technology firms, indicating that employees' enhanced proficiency in specific technical areas led to improved productivity and efficiency. however, jones (2021) found that leadership development programs, although beneficial for employee engagement and retention, did not always translate into measurable improvements in organizational outcomes such as profitability or market share. moreover, the dynamic nature of the technology industry, characterized by rapid innovation and disruption, adds complexity to the relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance. while continuous learning and development are essential for staying competitive in this environment, the effectiveness of training initiatives may vary depending on factors such as the relevance of skills taught, the alignment with organizational goals, and the ability to adapt to evolving market demands. thus, there is a need for comprehensive research that examines the nuanced interplay between different types of training programs and various dimensions of organizational performance in technology companies. by addressing this gap, organizations can make informed decisions about resource allocation and strategic investments in employee development to drive sustainable growth and success in the dynamic technology sector. theoretical framework human capital theory originated by gary becker in the 1960s, human capital theory posits that investments in employee education and training contribute to the accumulation of human capital, which in turn enhances individual productivity and organizational performance. in the context of technology companies, this theory suggests that training programs aimed at developing employees' technical skills and knowledge can lead to increased innovation, efficiency, and competitive advantage (becker, 2018). social learning theory developed by albert bandura in the 1970s, social learning theory emphasizes the importance of observing, imitating, and modeling behaviors within social contexts. in the context of employee training programs in technology companies, this theory suggests that learning is not only an individual process but also occurs through interactions with peers, mentors, and supervisors. thus, training programs that facilitate collaborative learning and knowledge sharing can lead to enhanced problem-solving abilities, creativity, and organizational performance (bandura, 2020). resource-based view (rbv) of the firm originated in the 1980s by scholars such as wernerfelt and barney, the rbv posits that a firm's competitive advantage stems from the unique bundle of resources and capabilities it possesses. in the context of technology companies, this theory suggests that human resources, including employees' skills, knowledge, and abilities acquired through training programs, constitute valuable intangible assets that contribute to organizational performance (barney, 2019). empirical review smith (2018) examined the impact of technical skill development workshops on various organizational performance metrics within technology companies. employing a mixed-methods http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 25 lubondo, (2024) approach, the study integrated quantitative surveys with qualitative performance data analysis to gain a holistic understanding of the relationship between employee training programs and organizational outcomes. findings from the study revealed a significant positive correlation between employees' participation in technical skill development workshops and improvements in key performance indicators such as productivity, efficiency, and quality of output. specifically, employees who engaged in these training programs exhibited higher levels of proficiency in relevant technical areas, leading to enhanced problem-solving abilities, streamlined processes, and increased innovation within their respective teams and departments. consequently, the study recommended that technology companies allocate additional resources towards investing in technical skill development initiatives, with a particular emphasis on designing and delivering targeted training programs tailored to meet the specific needs and objectives of the organization. jones (2020) explored the effectiveness of leadership development programs in enhancing organizational performance within technology companies. utilizing a qualitative research design, the study involved conducting interviews with key stakeholders, including program participants, managers, and executives, as well as facilitating focus group discussions to gather rich, contextual insights into the perceived impact of leadership training initiatives. through the analysis of qualitative data, the study uncovered several noteworthy findings regarding the contributions of leadership development programs to organizational success. specifically, participants reported experiencing significant improvements in their leadership capabilities, communication skills, and decision-making abilities following their participation in the training programs. moreover, the study identified a strong correlation between enhanced leadership competencies and positive outcomes at the team and organizational levels, including increased employee engagement, higher levels of innovation, and improved project outcomes. based on these findings, the study recommended that technology companies prioritize investments in leadership development initiatives as a strategic means of fostering a culture of innovation, driving organizational growth, and maintaining a competitive edge in the dynamic technology landscape. brown (2019) conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis aimed at synthesizing existing research findings on the effectiveness of diversity and inclusion training programs within technology companies and their impact on organizational performance. drawing upon a diverse range of empirical studies published within the past decade, the meta-analysis employed rigorous methodological procedures to systematically evaluate the outcomes associated with diversity training initiatives across various organizational contexts. findings from the meta-analysis revealed a nuanced relationship between diversity training and organizational performance, with several key trends emerging from the synthesized data. firstly, the study identified a positive association between well-designed diversity training programs and a range of desirable outcomes, including increased employee satisfaction, reduced turnover rates, and enhanced innovation and creativity within the workforce. however, the study also highlighted the importance of program design and implementation, noting that the effectiveness of diversity training initiatives was contingent upon factors such as content relevance, delivery methods, and organizational commitment to fostering an inclusive work environment. as such, the study recommended that technology companies adopt a strategic approach to diversity and inclusion training, focusing on creating comprehensive, evidence-based programs that address the unique needs and challenges of their workforce while promoting a culture of belonging and respect. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 26 lubondo, (2024) patel (2021) explored the relationship between continuous learning programs and organizational performance within technology firms. utilizing a large-scale survey instrument administered to employees across various technology companies, the study collected quantitative data on participants' engagement in continuous learning activities, perceptions of skill development, and perceived impacts on organizational outcomes. through statistical analysis of survey responses, the study revealed compelling evidence of a positive association between employee participation in continuous learning programs and key indicators of organizational performance. specifically, employees who actively engaged in learning initiatives reported higher levels of job satisfaction, increased productivity, and improved project outcomes compared to their counterparts who did not participate in such activities. moreover, the study found that continuous learning played a crucial role in enhancing employees' adaptability to change, enabling them to stay abreast of emerging technologies and industry trends, and thereby contributing to the overall agility and competitiveness of the organization. in light of these findings, the study recommended that technology companies prioritize investment in continuous learning initiatives as a strategic imperative for fostering a culture of lifelong learning, driving employee development, and sustaining organizational success in an increasingly dynamic and competitive business environment. garcía (2018) investigated the role of mentoring programs in enhancing organizational performance within technology companies. adopting a mixed-methods research design, the study involved the administration of surveys to employees participating in formal mentoring relationships, supplemented by in-depth interviews with both mentors and mentees to capture qualitative insights into the perceived benefits and challenges associated with the mentoring experience. through the analysis of survey data and qualitative interviews, the study uncovered several key findings regarding the impact of mentoring programs on organizational outcomes. firstly, the study identified a strong positive correlation between participation in mentoring programs and various indicators of employee development and retention, including increased job satisfaction, enhanced skill acquisition, and greater career advancement opportunities. additionally, qualitative data revealed that mentoring relationships facilitated knowledge transfer, skill development, and professional networking, thereby contributing to improved organizational performance through enhanced employee capabilities and collaboration. based on these findings, the study recommended that technology companies invest in the establishment of formal mentoring programs as a strategic means of fostering talent development, promoting knowledge sharing, and enhancing organizational resilience in the face of evolving market dynamics and technological disruptions. khan (2022) evaluated the impact of certification programs on organizational performance within technology firms. employing a mixed-methods research approach, the study involved the collection and analysis of both quantitative performance metrics and qualitative feedback from program participants over an extended period. through statistical analysis of preand postprogram performance data, the study revealed a significant positive correlation between employees' attainment of relevant certifications and key indicators of organizational success, such as project outcomes, client satisfaction, and revenue generation. additionally, qualitative findings indicated that certification programs played a critical role in enhancing employees' technical competencies, boosting their confidence, and validating their expertise in specialized domains, thereby contributing to improved performance and competitive advantage for the organization. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 27 lubondo, (2024) based on these findings, the study recommended that technology companies invest in certification programs as part of a broader strategy to support employee development, promote professional growth, and align workforce capabilities with organizational objectives. nguyen (2018) explored the relationship between e-learning initiatives and organizational performance within technology companies. through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with employees and organizational leaders, the study sought to gain insights into the perceived benefits, challenges, and outcomes associated with the implementation of e-learning programs. findings from the study revealed several key themes regarding the impact of e-learning initiatives on organizational performance. firstly, participants highlighted the flexibility and accessibility of e-learning platforms, which allowed employees to acquire new skills and knowledge at their own pace and convenience, thereby enhancing their job performance and adaptability to changing job roles and responsibilities. additionally, participants noted that elearning programs facilitated knowledge sharing and collaboration among geographically dispersed teams, leading to improved communication, teamwork, and problem-solving capabilities within the organization. however, participants also identified challenges such as technological barriers, limited managerial support, and concerns regarding the quality and relevance of elearning content. based on these findings, the study recommended that technology companies adopt a strategic approach to e-learning implementation, focusing on addressing barriers to adoption, enhancing content quality, and providing adequate support and resources to maximize the effectiveness of e-learning initiatives in driving organizational performance and competitiveness. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gaps: smith (2018) and patel (2021) provided valuable insights into the impact of technical skill development workshops and continuous learning programs on organizational performance, respectively, there is a lack of comprehensive conceptual frameworks that integrate various dimensions of employee training with specific organizational outcomes. future research could focus on developing theoretical models that elucidate the mechanisms through which different types of training programs influence organizational performance in technology companies, considering factors such as skill relevance, learning transfer, and organizational culture. contextual gaps: jones (2020) and garcía (2018) shed light on the effectiveness of leadership development and mentoring programs, respectively, in enhancing organizational performance within technology companies. however, these studies primarily focus on qualitative insights from specific organizational contexts, limiting generalizability across different technology firms. future research could explore the contextual factors that moderate the relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance, such as organizational size, industry sector, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 28 lubondo, (2024) and cultural dynamics, to provide a more nuanced understanding of the effectiveness of training initiatives in diverse settings. geographical gaps: the study included in the analysis cover a range of geographic locations, there is a notable absence of research from emerging technology markets, particularly in regions such as africa, latin america, and southeast asia nguyen (2018). given the rapid growth of technology sectors in these regions, there is a need for empirical studies that investigate the relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance within diverse cultural and economic contexts. by addressing this geographical gap, researchers can contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of how training initiatives impact organizational outcomes in technology companies worldwide. conclusion and recommendations conclusion in conclusion, investigating the relationship between employee training programs and organizational performance in technology companies is crucial for understanding how investments in human capital translate into tangible business outcomes. the reviewed study provides valuable insights into the diverse range of training initiatives implemented within technology firms and their impacts on various facets of organizational performance. from technical skill development workshops to leadership development programs, diversity training, continuous learning initiatives, mentoring programs, certification programs, and e-learning initiatives, each type of training program offers unique opportunities to enhance employee capabilities, foster innovation, improve collaboration, and drive overall organizational success. however, while existing research highlights the positive associations between employee training and organizational performance metrics such as productivity, efficiency, employee engagement, innovation, and customer satisfaction, there are still several conceptual, contextual, and geographical gaps that warrant further exploration. future research endeavors should aim to develop comprehensive theoretical frameworks, consider contextual factors that moderate the effectiveness of training programs, and explore diverse cultural and economic contexts to provide a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between employee training and organizational performance in technology companies worldwide. overall, as technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace, organizations must prioritize investments in employee training and development initiatives to remain competitive and adapt to changing market dynamics. by fostering a culture of continuous learning, knowledge sharing, and talent development, technology companies can not only enhance their employees' skills and capabilities but also drive innovation, achieve sustainable growth, and maintain a competitive edge in the dynamic and ever-evolving landscape of the technology industry. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory future research should focus on developing robust theoretical models that integrate various dimensions of employee training, organizational performance, and contextual factors. these frameworks should elucidate the mechanisms through which different types of training programs http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2067 29 lubondo, (2024) influence organizational outcomes, providing a theoretical basis for understanding the complexities of the relationship. drawing on insights from fields such as organizational behavior, human resource management, and organizational psychology can enrich theoretical understandings of how employee training impacts organizational performance in technology companies. by incorporating interdisciplinary perspectives, researchers can offer novel insights and frameworks that capture the multifaceted nature of the relationship. practice based on empirical findings, technology companies can design and implement evidence-based training interventions that are tailored to their specific organizational contexts and objectives. these interventions should prioritize the development of technical skills, leadership capabilities, diversity and inclusion, continuous learning, mentoring relationships, certification programs, and e-learning initiatives to drive tangible improvements in organizational performance. organizations should cultivate a culture that values continuous learning, knowledge sharing, and talent development. by investing in employee training programs and creating supportive learning environments, technology companies can empower their workforce to acquire new skills, adapt to technological advancements, and contribute to organizational success. policy policymakers should recognize the importance of employee training and development in driving economic growth, innovation, and competitiveness in the technology sector. by advocating for supportive policy frameworks that incentivize investments in workforce development and lifelong learning, policymakers can create an enabling environment for technology companies to prioritize training initiatives and enhance organizational performance. collaboration between academia, industry, and government can facilitate knowledge exchange, research translation, and evidencebased policymaking in the field of employee training and organizational performance. policymakers should support initiatives that promote collaboration and knowledge-sharing across sectors, fostering innovation and driving positive outcomes for technology companies and society as a whole. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 1, pp 20 32, 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(2022). technology sector dynamics and growth strategies in turkey. international journal of emerging markets, 17(1), 217-234. doi: 10.1108/ijoem-06-2020-0415 license copyright (c) 2024 kiripi lubondo this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ effects of performance appraisal systems on employee career development in tunisia edith walter european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 48 walter (2024) effects of performance appraisal systems on employee career development in tunisia edith walter tunis el manar university article history submitted 17.05.2024 revised version received 26.06.2024 accepted 28.07.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the effects of performance appraisal systems on employee career development in tunisia. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study found that these systems provide structured and systematic methods for evaluating employee performance, identifying strengths and areas for improvement. when effectively implemented, performance appraisals offer valuable feedback that helps employees understand their progress and align their goals with organizational objectives. this alignment fosters a culture of continuous improvement and skill development, enabling employees to identify and pursue opportunities for career advancement. moreover, performance appraisals often incorporate individual development plans that outline specific training and development activities tailored to each employee's career aspirations. these plans can include mentoring, coaching, and access to professional development resources, which are crucial for career growth. the process also facilitates open communication between employees and supervisors, promoting a clearer understanding of career expectations and potential career paths within the organization. however, the effectiveness of performance appraisal systems in fostering career development largely depends on their design and execution. transparent, fair, and objective appraisal processes that are perceived as unbiased by employees are more likely to be effective. implications to theory, practice and policy: goal-setting theory, social learning theory and constructivist learning theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the effects of performance appraisal systems on employee career development in tunisia. organizations should consider adopting comprehensive feedback systems that integrate multidimensional feedback, including inputs from peers, subordinates, and supervisors. it is recommended that mandatory implementation of multidimensional feedback systems be advocated across organizations. keywords: performance, appraisal systems, employee, career development http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 49 walter (2024) introduction performance appraisal systems are a crucial component of human resource management, significantly influencing employee career development. employee career development is a critical aspect of organizational strategy that focuses on enhancing employees' skills, competencies, and career paths within a company. in the united states, companies increasingly invest in career development programs to retain talent and boost productivity. according to a report by the society for human resource management (shrm, 2021), organizations that offer comprehensive career development opportunities experience a 25% lower turnover rate. for example, tech giants like google and microsoft have implemented robust career development frameworks, including mentorship programs and continuous learning initiatives, which have resulted in high employee engagement and satisfaction. such investments not only contribute to individual career growth but also align with organizational goals, fostering a more skilled and motivated workforce. in japan, career development is deeply integrated into the corporate culture, with many companies emphasizing lifelong employment and continuous professional growth. a study by nakata and jansen (2020) found that 70% of japanese firms provide regular training and development opportunities for their employees. for instance, toyota has a well-established internal promotion system and extensive training programs, contributing to its reputation for quality and efficiency. these efforts lead to a more committed workforce, with statistics indicating that 85% of employees feel their skills are continuously enhanced within their roles. the strong emphasis on career development in japan not only supports individual employee aspirations but also enhances overall organizational performance and innovation. in developing economies, employee career development is gaining traction as organizations recognize its importance for economic growth and competitiveness. in india, for instance, the it sector has seen significant investment in employee training and career development, with companies like infosys reporting that over 70% of their employees participate in ongoing training programs. a study by kumar and kumar (2021) highlights that organizations that invest in employee development experience a 30% increase in productivity. similarly, companies are increasingly adopting mentorship programs to support career progression, leading to higher job satisfaction and lower attrition rates. these initiatives reflect a growing awareness among organizations about the role of career development in achieving sustainable growth and enhancing employee loyalty. in brazil, many organizations are starting to implement structured career development frameworks as a response to competitive pressures and talent shortages. a survey by oliveira and de lima (2022) revealed that 65% of brazilian firms have established formal career paths for employees, aiming to foster internal mobility and skill enhancement. for instance, companies like embraer invest heavily in employee training and leadership development programs, resulting in a marked increase in employee engagement and productivity. as a result, organizations that prioritize career development are not only cultivating a skilled workforce but are also positioning themselves to adapt to market changes effectively. the increasing focus on career development in these economies underscores the recognition of its strategic importance for long-term organizational success. in developing economies, employee career development is increasingly recognized as a vital component for fostering economic growth and enhancing organizational competitiveness. in india, for example, the it sector has made substantial investments in employee training and career development initiatives. companies like infosys report that over 70% of their employees actively participate in ongoing training programs designed to enhance skills and competencies. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 50 walter (2024) according to kumar and kumar (2021), organizations that prioritize employee development experience a productivity increase of up to 30%. additionally, mentorship programs are becoming more common, significantly contributing to employee career progression and job satisfaction. this shift reflects a growing understanding among organizations about the critical role of career development in promoting loyalty and retention among their workforce. additionally, in the philippines, the government and private sector are collaborating to promote employee career development as a means of addressing skill gaps in the economy. a report by santos and cruz (2023) found that around 60% of companies in the philippines have established formal training programs aimed at enhancing employee skills. organizations such as ayala corporation actively invest in employee growth through structured development programs, which have shown to lead to a significant increase in employee satisfaction and retention rates. this investment in career development not only enhances individual capabilities but also contributes to the overall productivity of firms, indicating that effective career development strategies are essential for achieving organizational goals in developing economies. in kenya, employee career development is gaining traction as organizations recognize the need to enhance workforce skills amid rapid economic changes. a recent survey conducted by kinyanjui (2022) indicated that about 70% of kenyan firms prioritize employee training and career development initiatives. companies such as safaricom have launched comprehensive programs that include mentorship and leadership development, resulting in increased employee engagement and a more motivated workforce. this focus on career advancement not only aids in retaining top talent but also significantly boosts organizational performance, with studies showing a correlation between career development and productivity improvements of up to 25%. as kenyan businesses increasingly adopt these initiatives, they are positioning themselves to compete more effectively in both local and global markets. moreover, in uganda, the need for effective career development programs has become apparent as organizations seek to enhance their competitive edge. a study by mugisha (2022) found that about 70% of ugandan companies have adopted formal training initiatives aimed at skill enhancement and career growth. companies like uganda breweries are leading the way by offering comprehensive training and development programs that contribute to employee engagement and productivity. as ugandan firms increasingly prioritize career development, they are not only investing in their employees’ futures but also contributing to the broader economic landscape by cultivating a skilled and motivated workforce. in sub-saharan africa, the emphasis on employee career development is crucial for fostering economic growth and addressing skills shortages. countries like ghana are increasingly implementing career development initiatives as part of their workforce strategy. according to a study by adjei (2021), approximately 65% of ghanaian firms have integrated career development programs into their hr practices, leading to improved employee performance and retention. companies such as mtn ghana provide robust training and mentorship opportunities, resulting in higher employee satisfaction and productivity levels. this trend reflects a growing recognition of the importance of investing in human capital to achieve sustainable organizational success. in sub-saharan africa, employee career development remains a pivotal issue as organizations strive to address skills gaps and promote sustainable economic growth. many companies in countries like nigeria and kenya are beginning to invest in career development initiatives, recognizing their importance in enhancing workforce capabilities. a study by adebayo and agboola (2021) found that 60% of organizations in nigeria have implemented training http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 51 walter (2024) programs aimed at employee skill development, leading to a significant increase in job performance. for example, companies such as dangote group have established extensive training programs that contribute to the professional growth of their employees, thereby enhancing productivity and organizational performance. performance appraisal systems are structured methods for evaluating employee performance, providing feedback, and guiding career development. these systems serve multiple purposes, including enhancing employee engagement, identifying training needs, and aligning individual goals with organizational objectives. common appraisal systems include 360-degree feedback, management by objectives (mbo), behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars), and continuous performance management. each of these systems plays a crucial role in fostering employee career development by facilitating open communication and offering targeted growth opportunities. for instance, 360-degree feedback allows employees to receive comprehensive insights from peers, subordinates, and supervisors, encouraging self-awareness and personal development (sonnentag, 2021). management by objectives (mbo) links performance evaluations to specific, measurable goals, thereby guiding employees toward career advancement through clear expectations. behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars) provide a detailed framework for assessing performance based on specific behaviors, which can help identify areas for development. continuous performance management promotes ongoing dialogue between employees and managers, ensuring that career development discussions are integral to regular evaluations. by integrating these systems into organizational practices, companies can effectively support employee career growth while simultaneously driving performance and productivity (pulakos, 2020). ultimately, performance appraisal systems are essential tools for nurturing talent and aligning individual aspirations with broader organizational goals. problem statement despite the recognized importance of performance appraisal systems in fostering employee career development, many organizations struggle to implement these systems effectively. research indicates that ineffective performance appraisals can lead to unclear career pathways, decreased employee motivation, and limited professional growth (pulakos, 2020). additionally, the disconnect between performance feedback and career advancement opportunities often results in employee dissatisfaction and higher turnover rates (sonnentag, 2021). organizations frequently fail to align performance appraisal outcomes with strategic career development initiatives, undermining the potential benefits of these systems. thus, understanding the specific effects of performance appraisal systems on employee career development is critical for organizations seeking to enhance workforce engagement and productivity in a competitive environment. theoretical framework goal-setting theory originated by edwin locke in the 1960s, goal-setting theory posits that setting specific and challenging goals leads to higher performance. this theory is relevant to performance appraisal systems as they often establish performance metrics that guide employees toward achieving their career objectives. effective performance appraisals can enhance goal clarity and motivation, ultimately fostering career development (locke & latham, 2019). by aligning individual goals with organizational objectives, employees are more likely to experience growth and advancement in their careers. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 52 walter (2024) social learning theory developed by albert bandura, social learning theory emphasizes the importance of observational learning, imitation, and modeling in behavior development. this theory is significant for performance appraisals as employees often learn from feedback and the behaviors demonstrated by their peers and supervisors. performance appraisal systems that incorporate feedback can significantly influence employee career development by encouraging positive role modeling and skill acquisition (bandura, 2020). constructivist learning theory constructivist learning theory, associated with theorists like jean piaget and lev vygotsky, posits that individuals construct knowledge through experiences and reflections. this theory is pertinent to performance appraisals as they provide critical experiences that shape employees' understanding of their roles and career paths. effective performance appraisal systems facilitate self-reflection and adaptive learning, thereby promoting career development (brown, 2021). empirical review smith and jones (2022) aimed to explore how 360-degree feedback impacts employee career development in the united states. using a mixed-methods approach, they combined surveys from 300 employees with in-depth interviews of managers across various sectors. their findings indicated a 25% increase in career satisfaction and clarity regarding career paths for employees receiving 360-degree feedback. the researchers emphasized the importance of diverse feedback sources for helping employees understand their strengths and areas for improvement. they recommended organizations implement comprehensive feedback systems to enhance employee engagement and support career progression. this study underscores the role of multidimensional feedback in fostering career development and suggests incorporating diverse perspectives into appraisals can lead to better employee growth outcomes. the implications for management are clear: investing in 360-degree feedback can lead to substantial gains in career satisfaction. this study contributes significantly to understanding the impact of holistic feedback systems. the practical recommendations include adopting more inclusive feedback mechanisms to enhance career clarity. the research highlights the critical need for diverse evaluation sources. smith and jones’s work provides valuable insights for improving employee career development through performance appraisals. lee (2021) examined the relationship between performance management systems and employee career advancement in south korea. utilizing a quantitative survey methodology, the study collected data from 400 employees across various industries. results indicated a significant correlation between effective performance management practices and a 30% increase in promotions. lee emphasized the need for organizations to enhance appraisal systems to create clearer career pathways for employees. the study highlights the crucial link between structured performance management and career development, advocating for better alignment of appraisal processes with employee aspirations. recommendations included developing robust performance management frameworks to facilitate career growth. this research underscores the importance of aligning performance management systems with career development goals. the findings suggest that well-structured appraisals can significantly impact career progression. lee's study provides critical insights into the role of performance management in career advancement. the study's practical implications are significant for organizational hr practices. by focusing on effective performance management, companies can enhance career development opportunities for their employees. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 53 walter (2024) brown and taylor (2020) investigated the effects of management by objectives (mbo) on employee growth in the uk. this longitudinal study tracked productivity and career development metrics in 250 organizations over three years. the findings revealed that organizations utilizing mbo experienced a 20% increase in employee promotions and skill acquisition. brown and taylor recommended that companies adopt mbo frameworks to align employee performance with career growth. this research emphasizes the significance of goal alignment in career development, suggesting that shared objectives can enhance employee advancement. the study illustrates that clear, measurable goals are essential for promoting career development within organizations. the practical recommendations include implementing mbo frameworks to facilitate career progression. the research highlights the critical role of goal-setting in career advancement. brown and taylor’s study provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of mbo in fostering employee growth. the study's findings underscore the importance of aligning employee goals with organizational objectives. this research significantly contributes to understanding the impact of mbo on career development. rahman (2021) explored the impact of behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars) on employee performance and career development in indonesia. using a quantitative approach, rahman surveyed 350 employees across different industries. the study found that bars led to a 15% improvement in performance ratings and a 10% increase in employee promotions. rahman recommended integrating bars into performance appraisal systems to enhance clarity and support career progression. this research supports the use of structured evaluation methods and highlights the effectiveness of precise appraisal frameworks in promoting career success. the findings suggest that detailed, behavior-based appraisals can significantly impact career development. rahman's study provides critical insights into the role of bars in performance appraisals. the practical implications include adopting bars for more accurate evaluations. this research underscores the importance of precise appraisal methods for career progression. rahman's work significantly contributes to understanding the effectiveness of bars in career development. gonzalez (2019) studied the relationship between continuous performance management and employee engagement in mexico. using a case study approach, gonzalez analyzed data from five organizations implementing continuous feedback systems. the results showed a 30% increase in employee engagement and career satisfaction among participants. gonzalez recommended adopting continuous performance management to foster career development. this research highlights the effectiveness of ongoing feedback in supporting employee growth, suggesting that continuous engagement can significantly impact career trajectories. the study demonstrates that regular, constructive feedback is crucial for maintaining employee engagement and promoting career advancement. the findings suggest that continuous feedback systems are essential for career development. gonzalez's study provides valuable insights into the impact of ongoing performance management. the practical recommendations include implementing continuous feedback systems to enhance career satisfaction. this research significantly contributes to understanding the role of continuous feedback in career development. adjei (2020) explored the effects of performance appraisal feedback on employee career trajectories in ghana. using a qualitative methodology, adjei conducted interviews with 200 employees from diverse sectors. the study found that constructive feedback significantly influenced career decisions, with 70% of participants reporting enhanced clarity in career planning. adjei recommended that organizations prioritize meaningful feedback in their appraisal systems to aid career development. this research underscores the importance of feedback in shaping career outcomes and emphasizes that effective communication is key to http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 54 walter (2024) fostering employee advancement. the findings highlight the necessity of prioritizing constructive feedback in performance appraisals. adjei's study provides critical insights into the role of feedback in career development. the practical recommendations include focusing on meaningful feedback to enhance career planning. this research significantly contributes to understanding the impact of performance appraisal feedback on career trajectories. moyo (2021) examined the relationship between performance appraisal satisfaction and career development in south africa. utilizing a survey of 300 employees, moyo found that satisfaction with performance appraisals correlated with a 25% increase in career development activities. the study recommended enhancing appraisal systems to improve employee satisfaction and career growth opportunities. this research indicates the crucial role of satisfaction in performance appraisal systems for fostering career development. the findings suggest that positive appraisal experiences lead to more proactive career management among employees. moyo's study provides valuable insights into the impact of appraisal satisfaction on career development. the practical recommendations include improving appraisal systems to enhance employee satisfaction. this research significantly contributes to understanding the role of appraisal satisfaction in career advancement. moyo's work highlights the importance of satisfying appraisal experiences for career development. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gaps: while studies by smith and jones (2022) and rahman (2021) highlight the benefits of structured feedback mechanisms like 360-degree feedback and behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars), there is a lack of comparative analysis between different feedback systems. future research could focus on comparing the efficacy of various feedback mechanisms in different organizational contexts to determine the most effective practices for enhancing career development. lee (2021) and brown and taylor (2020) emphasize the importance of structured performance management and goal-setting (mbo) for career advancement. however, there is a gap in understanding how these systems can be integrated with newer approaches like continuous performance management highlighted by gonzalez (2019). research could investigate hybrid models that combine traditional and continuous performance management practices to optimize career growth. while gonzalez (2019) underscores the importance of continuous feedback, there is limited research on the optimal frequency and timing of feedback for maximizing career development. studies could explore how varying the frequency and timing of feedback affects employee engagement and career progression. contextual gaps: smith and jones (2022) and lee (2021) provide insights across various sectors, but there is a need for more sector-specific studies to understand the unique challenges and opportunities in different industries. research could focus on sector-specific performance management practices and their impact on career development in industries such as technology, healthcare, and manufacturing. while existing studies highlight the importance of performance management systems, there is limited exploration of how organizational culture influences the effectiveness of these systems. future research could examine the interplay between organizational culture and performance management practices to identify culture-specific http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 55 walter (2024) strategies for career development. most studies, including those by brown and taylor (2020) and rahman (2021), focus on larger organizations. there is a gap in understanding how performance management and feedback systems impact career development in smes. research could investigate the unique needs and constraints of smes in implementing effective career development practices. geographical gaps: while studies by lee (2021), rahman (2021), and moyo (2021) cover regions like south korea, indonesia, and south africa, there is limited research in other regions such as south america, the middle east, and eastern europe. future studies could explore performance management and career development practices in these under-researched regions to provide a more comprehensive global perspective. the impact of cultural differences on the effectiveness of performance management and feedback systems is not well explored. research could investigate how cultural factors in different regions influence employee perceptions of feedback and career development, leading to region-specific recommendations for organizations. there is a need for cross-cultural comparative studies to understand the universal versus culture-specific aspects of performance management practices. comparative research between countries with different cultural backgrounds could provide insights into the adaptability and effectiveness of various performance management systems across different cultural contexts. conclusions and recommendations conclusions the exploration of performance appraisal systems and their effects on employee career development reveals significant insights into how structured feedback and management practices can influence career trajectories. studies demonstrate that multidimensional feedback mechanisms, such as 360-degree feedback, and structured evaluation frameworks, like behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars), can significantly enhance career satisfaction, clarity, and progression. the evidence from various geographic and cultural contexts, including the united states, south korea, the uk, indonesia, mexico, ghana, and south africa, underscores the universal importance of effective performance management systems in fostering employee growth. implementing comprehensive feedback systems that incorporate diverse perspectives, as emphasized by smith and jones (2022), can lead to substantial improvements in career satisfaction and clarity. similarly, lee's (2021) findings highlight the crucial link between effective performance management practices and career advancement, advocating for robust appraisal systems that align with employee aspirations. the role of management by objectives (mbo) in promoting career development through goal alignment, as investigated by brown and taylor (2020), further supports the importance of clear, measurable objectives in enhancing career growth. continuous performance management, as studied by gonzalez (2019), and the emphasis on meaningful, constructive feedback, as highlighted by adjei (2020), underscore the need for ongoing engagement and communication in career development processes. the correlation between appraisal satisfaction and proactive career management, as observed by moyo (2021), reinforces the idea that positive appraisal experiences are critical for fostering career development activities. overall, the body of research suggests that performance appraisal systems are integral to employee career development, providing the necessary structure, feedback, and clarity for employees to navigate their career paths effectively. future research should continue to explore http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 56 walter (2024) the comparative efficacy of different feedback mechanisms, the integration of traditional and continuous performance management practices, and the cultural and sector-specific factors that influence the effectiveness of these systems. by doing so, organizations can develop tailored appraisal systems that not only enhance employee performance but also support long-term career development and satisfaction. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory the integration of multidimensional feedback models into theoretical frameworks is essential for enhancing our understanding of how performance appraisal systems impact employee career development. multidimensional feedback, such as 360-degree feedback, offers insights from various perspectives including peers, subordinates, and supervisors, which is crucial for a comprehensive understanding of an employee’s performance. smith and jones (2022) found that incorporating diverse feedback sources significantly increased career satisfaction and clarity regarding career paths. this finding underscores the need for theories to account for the complex interplay of different feedback types in shaping career outcomes. additionally, the alignment between goal-setting frameworks, such as management by objectives (mbo), and career development outcomes needs to be emphasized. brown and taylor (2020) highlighted that clear, measurable goals are essential for promoting skill acquisition and employee advancement. theoretical models should explore how shared objectives within mbo frameworks facilitate career growth. furthermore, the role of structured evaluation methods like behaviorally anchored rating scales (bars) should be integrated into theoretical discussions. rahman (2021) demonstrated that bars led to significant improvements in performance ratings and employee promotions, suggesting that precise, behavior-based appraisals can significantly impact career development. understanding these mechanisms can provide deeper insights into the effectiveness of different appraisal frameworks in promoting career success. practice in practical terms, organizations should consider adopting comprehensive feedback systems that integrate multidimensional feedback, including inputs from peers, subordinates, and supervisors. such systems have been shown to enhance employee engagement, career satisfaction, and clarity regarding career paths, as evidenced by smith and jones (2022). implementing these comprehensive feedback mechanisms can help employees understand their strengths and areas for improvement, ultimately supporting career progression. additionally, companies should develop robust performance management frameworks that align appraisal processes with employee aspirations. lee (2021) found that effective performance management practices were significantly correlated with increased promotions and career development opportunities. organizations can facilitate career growth by ensuring that appraisal systems are well-structured and aligned with employees' career goals. continuous performance management practices, such as regular, constructive feedback, are also crucial for maintaining employee engagement and promoting career satisfaction. gonzalez (2019) demonstrated that ongoing feedback systems led to significant improvements in employee engagement and career satisfaction. adopting continuous performance management practices can help organizations support employee growth and maintain high levels of engagement, thereby fostering long-term career development. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 57 walter (2024) policy from a policy perspective, it is recommended that mandatory implementation of multidimensional feedback systems be advocated across organizations. policymakers should encourage the adoption of 360-degree feedback mechanisms to ensure that diverse feedback sources are utilized in performance appraisals. smith and jones (2022) highlighted the importance of such comprehensive feedback systems in enhancing employee career development and engagement. policies should also aim to standardize performance management practices across industries, ensuring that appraisal systems are robust and aligned with career development goals. lee (2021) emphasized the need for organizations to enhance appraisal systems to create clearer career pathways for employees. standardizing these practices can help in creating a uniform approach to career development across different sectors. furthermore, policymakers should promote the adoption of continuous performance management practices by providing incentives and guidelines for organizations. continuous feedback systems are essential for maintaining employee engagement and supporting career growth, as demonstrated by gonzalez (2019). encouraging organizations to implement regular, constructive feedback mechanisms can significantly enhance career development opportunities for employees. by integrating these recommendations into policy, organizations can create more effective performance appraisal systems that support long-term career development and employee satisfaction. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 47 58, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2371 58 walter (2024) references adebayo, m. a., & 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(2021). performance appraisal: challenges and future directions. european journal of work and organizational psychology, 30(4), 526-535. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432x.2021.1917758 license copyright (c) 2024 edith walter this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ relationship between workplace diversity and employee productivity in brazil alves souza european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 23 souza, (2024) relationship between workplace diversity and employee productivity in brazil alves souza universidade estadual de campinas article history submitted 30.03.2024 revised version received 29.04.2024 accepted 31.05.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the relationship between workplace diversity and employee productivity in brazil. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: diverse work environments, which include variations in race, gender, age, cultural background, and other attributes, tend to foster a more inclusive and innovative atmosphere. such environments enable different perspectives and ideas to converge, enhancing problem-solving capabilities and creativity. studies have shown that companies with diverse teams often outperform those with more homogenous workforces in terms of financial performance and market share. additionally, diversity in the workplace can lead to higher employee engagement and satisfaction, as employees feel valued and respected for their unique contributions. however, the positive impact of diversity on productivity is contingent on effective diversity management and inclusion practices. without proper inclusion strategies, diversity alone can sometimes lead to misunderstandings or conflicts that may negatively impact productivity. therefore, organizations that actively promote inclusivity and leverage the strengths of a diverse workforce tend to see significant improvements in employee productivity and overall business performance. implications to theory, practice and policy: social identity theory (sit), information-processing theory and resourcebased view (rbv) theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the relationship between workplace diversity and employee productivity in brazil. implement diversity training programs that go beyond awareness to foster genuine inclusivity, respect, and appreciation for diverse perspectives within teams. advocate for diversity and inclusion policies at the organizational and governmental levels, ensuring that legal frameworks support diversity initiatives and protect employees from discrimination and bias. keywords: workplace, diversity, employee, productivity http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 24 souza, (2024) introduction the relationship between workplace diversity and employee productivity is a multifaceted and dynamic one that has garnered significant attention in recent years. in developed economies like the usa, employee productivity has shown a steady increase over the years, as indicated by performance evaluations and output metrics. for instance, a study by smith and johnson (2019) found that the average output per worker in the manufacturing sector increased by 12% from 2015 to 2020. this increase was attributed to advancements in technology and process optimization, leading to higher efficiency ratios across various industries. similarly, in japan, employee productivity has been a focal point for economic growth strategies. according to a report by tanaka and yamamoto (2018), performance evaluations in the service sector indicated a 15% improvement in customer satisfaction scores, correlating with a 10% increase in employee productivity from 2016 to 2021. these trends highlight the importance of continuous performance monitoring and feedback mechanisms in enhancing productivity in developed economies. in australia, efforts to enhance employee productivity have been observed in the healthcare sector. a study by smith, brown, and wilson (2020) indicated a 15% improvement in patient care efficiency metrics, such as reduced wait times and increased patient satisfaction scores, from 2018 to 2023. this improvement was attributed to the implementation of digital health technologies and process optimization strategies, showcasing the impact of innovation on productivity in serviceoriented industries. moving to the middle east, the united arab emirates (uae) has focused on improving productivity in the construction sector. al-khalifa and al-farsi (2019) reported a 20% increase in construction output per labor hour between 2016 and 2021, driven by investments in advanced construction methods and project management practices. these initiatives highlight the role of technology adoption and skill development in driving productivity gains in emerging economies with growing infrastructure needs. in latin america, colombia has made strides in boosting employee productivity in the financial services sector. gomez and martinez (2022) revealed a 10% increase in efficiency ratios within banking operations from 2017 to 2022, attributed to digital transformation initiatives and improved customer service processes. these findings underscore the potential for productivity enhancements across various sectors in diverse global regions through targeted strategies and organizational innovations. moving to developing economies, countries like brazil have also witnessed notable improvements in employee productivity. a study by silva and oliveira (2022) revealed that output metrics in the agriculture sector grew by 8% annually from 2018 to 2022, driven by investments in mechanization and skill development programs. this indicates a positive trajectory for productivity enhancement in emerging markets. in canada, a focus on employee productivity has been evident, particularly in the technology sector. a study by chen and wong (2020) found that performance evaluations in software development teams showed a 25% increase in product delivery speed between 2017 and 2022, driven by agile methodologies and continuous improvement practices. this improvement underscores the importance of organizational culture and innovation in driving productivity gains in advanced economies. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 25 souza, (2024) on the other hand, in mexico, efforts to boost employee productivity in the manufacturing industry have been significant. according to a report by rodriguez and garcia (2021), output metrics in automotive manufacturing demonstrated a 15% growth in units produced per hour worked from 2018 to 2023, attributed to investment in advanced manufacturing technologies and workforce training. these findings highlight the potential for emerging economies to enhance productivity levels through strategic investments and industry-specific initiatives. in developing economies like india, there has been a notable focus on improving employee productivity to drive economic growth. a study by sharma and gupta (2021) highlighted that performance evaluations in the it sector demonstrated a 20% increase in project completion rates from 2018 to 2023, signaling enhanced efficiency and task management practices. this improvement aligns with india's broader strategy to leverage its human capital for competitive advantage in the global market. similarly, in china, efforts to boost employee productivity have yielded significant results. according to a report by li and wang (2019), output metrics in the manufacturing industry showed a 15% growth in output per hour worked between 2016 and 2021, driven by technology adoption and workforce upskilling initiatives. these findings underscore the importance of targeted investments and policy frameworks aimed at enhancing productivity levels in developing economies. in ghana, initiatives aimed at enhancing employee productivity in the agricultural sector have shown promising outcomes. a study by mensah and ampofo (2018) revealed a 10% increase in output per worker in cocoa farming between 2015 and 2020, attributed to training programs and the adoption of modern farming techniques. this improvement underscores the role of skill development and technology transfer in driving productivity growth in key sectors of sub-saharan african economies. additionally, in south africa, efforts to improve employee productivity in the manufacturing sector have been notable. a report by van der merwe and joubert (2023) indicated a 12% rise in efficiency ratios within manufacturing operations from 2018 to 2023, facilitated by lean management practices and investment in automation. these findings highlight the potential for sub-saharan african countries to achieve substantial productivity gains across diverse industries through strategic interventions and effective utilization of resources. in sub-saharan economies such as kenya, efforts to boost productivity have shown promising results. according to a report by ngugi and mwangi (2020), efficiency ratios in the manufacturing sector improved by 20% between 2017 and 2022, following initiatives aimed at streamlining production processes and adopting lean management principles. these findings underscore the potential for substantial productivity gains in developing regions when accompanied by strategic interventions and policy support. moving to sub-saharan economies, nigeria has experienced notable advancements in employee productivity, particularly in the banking sector. a study by adeleke and mohammed (2022) found that efficiency ratios in banking operations improved by 25% from 2017 to 2022, attributed to digital transformation initiatives and streamlined processes. this indicates the potential for significant productivity gains across various sectors in sub-saharan africa with the right interventions and conducive business environment. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 26 souza, (2024) workplace diversity, encompassing factors like racial and gender diversity, is crucial in modern organizational settings. research by johnson and smith (2019) highlights that diverse teams tend to have a broader range of perspectives, leading to increased creativity and innovation. this diversity of thought and experience can positively impact employee productivity by fostering more comprehensive problem-solving approaches and encouraging a culture of continuous learning and development. moreover, a study by lee and brown (2021) emphasizes the link between workplace diversity and improved employee engagement. when employees feel included and valued irrespective of their background, they are more likely to be motivated and committed to their work. this higher level of engagement translates into higher performance evaluations, increased output metrics, and improved efficiency ratios, ultimately contributing to enhanced overall productivity within the organization. problem statement in contemporary organizational contexts, the relationship between workplace diversity and employee productivity remains a critical area of inquiry. as organizations increasingly prioritize diversity and inclusion initiatives, there is a growing need to understand the specific mechanisms through which demographic diversity, such as racial and gender diversity, influences employee productivity. recent research by johnson (2018) has suggested that diverse teams can lead to enhanced creativity and innovation, yet the precise impact of diversity on performance evaluations, output metrics, and efficiency ratios requires further exploration. additionally, studies by lee (2020) have indicated a positive association between workplace diversity and employee engagement, but the nuanced effects on productivity levels within different industries and organizational structures warrant deeper investigation. therefore, this study aims to investigate the complex relationship between workplace diversity dimensions and various aspects of employee productivity within the context of contemporary organizations. theoretical framework social identity theory (sit) sit, developed by henri tajfel and john turner, suggests that individuals' self-concept is influenced by group memberships, and people strive for a positive social identity by favoring their in-group over out-groups. in the context of workplace diversity and productivity, sit implies that diverse teams can enhance productivity by fostering a sense of inclusivity and reducing intergroup biases that hinder collaboration. research by van knippenberg, de dreu, and homan (2019) demonstrates that leveraging social identity can lead to increased team performance in diverse settings, highlighting the relevance of sit in understanding how workplace diversity impacts productivity. information-processing theory information-processing theories, such as those by john sweller, focus on how individuals process and retain information. applied to workplace diversity, this theory suggests that exposure to diverse perspectives and ideas can enhance cognitive flexibility and problem-solving abilities, ultimately boosting productivity. studies like those conducted by lu, shin, and yoo (2020) show that exposure to diverse teams can lead to improved decision-making processes due to enhanced http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 27 souza, (2024) information processing capabilities, supporting the relevance of information-processing theory in the context of workplace diversity and productivity. resource-based view (rbv) theory rbv, introduced by jay barney, emphasizes the importance of firm-specific resources and capabilities in achieving competitive advantage. in relation to diversity and productivity, rbv suggests that diverse human capital, skills, and perspectives within an organization can be valuable resources that contribute to enhanced productivity and innovation. recent research by chen, wang and fan (2021) highlights how diversity-related resources, such as varied skills and experiences, positively impact organizational performance, emphasizing the relevance of rbv in understanding the relationship between workplace diversity and productivity. empirical review jackson and smith (2018) conducted a longitudinal study to delve into the influence of workplace diversity on employee productivity within the technology sector. their purpose centered on exploring how diversity, measured through demographic variables, impacted productivity, gauged through performance metrics, across 20 tech companies over a five-year period. methodologically, they employed surveys to gather data, focusing on inclusive leadership and communication strategies within diverse teams. their findings revealed a positive correlation between increased diversity and heightened productivity, particularly in environments that prioritized inclusive practices. in light of their results, jackson and smith (2018) recommended tech organizations to foster inclusive cultures and provide diversity training to further augment productivity. johnson and anderson (2019) embarked on a study to unravel the nexus between cultural diversity and employee productivity within multinational corporations. their study involved interviews and surveys conducted across various departments and hierarchical levels within five global companies. the aim was to understand how cultural diversity influenced innovation, problemsolving, and overall productivity, ultimately contributing to competitive advantage. their findings showcased that cultural diversity played a pivotal role in enhancing productivity through improved collaboration and creativity. consequently, johnson and anderson (2019) recommended organizations to promote cross-cultural collaboration and implement robust diversity management programs to harness the potential productivity gains stemming from cultural diversity. liu and chen (2020) delved into the effects of gender diversity on team performance and productivity, focusing specifically on the finance industry. employing performance data from 50 teams in financial firms, they compared teams with balanced gender representation against those with skewed gender ratios. their study illuminated that teams with balanced gender diversity exhibited higher levels of creativity, collaboration, and productivity when juxtaposed with homogenous teams. in light of their findings, liu and chen (2020) recommended organizations to promote gender-balanced teams and address gender biases in recruitment and promotion processes to optimize productivity. sharma and gupta (2021) sought to unravel the correlation between age diversity and employee productivity, focusing their study on manufacturing companies. their cross-sectional survey encompassed employees from various age groups across 30 manufacturing firms, with http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 28 souza, (2024) productivity gauged through output metrics and employee satisfaction. their study underscored that age-diverse teams showcased heightened adaptability, knowledge sharing, and overall productivity compared to age-homogeneous teams. as a result, sharma and gupta (2021) recommended organizations to leverage age diversity through initiatives such as mentorship programs and intergenerational knowledge transfer to enhance productivity. chen and wang (2022) conducted a comprehensive study examining the impact of ethnic diversity on employee productivity within hospitality organizations. their mixed-methods approach combined quantitative analysis of performance data with qualitative interviews among employees from diverse ethnic backgrounds. their findings unveiled that ethnic diversity fostered creativity, customer satisfaction, and employee engagement, ultimately leading to improved productivity and business performance. consequently, chen and wang (2022) recommended organizations to cultivate inclusive environments and celebrate cultural diversity to harness its potential for enhancing productivity. kim and lee (2023) delved into the relationship between educational diversity and team productivity within academic institutions. their case study encompassed multiple departments within a university, analyzing team performance data alongside the educational backgrounds of team members. their findings highlighted that teams with diverse educational backgrounds exhibited superior problem-solving abilities, innovation, and research output, contributing significantly to enhanced productivity. kim and lee (2023) suggested promoting interdisciplinary collaboration and creating platforms for knowledge exchange across disciplines to leverage educational diversity for productivity gains. wang and li (2023) directed their study towards investigating the impact of diversity of thought on employee productivity within consulting firms. their methodology involved surveys and interviews among consultants from diverse backgrounds, measuring productivity through client feedback and project success rates. their research uncovered that diversity of thought stimulated critical thinking, creativity, and strategic decision-making, resulting in improved project outcomes and client satisfaction. consequently, wang and li (2023) recommended cultivating a culture of inclusion, embracing diverse perspectives, and integrating them into problem-solving processes to enhance productivity and spur innovation. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gap: while the studies collectively highlight the positive correlation between diversity and productivity, there is a conceptual gap in terms of the specific mechanisms or processes through which diversity leads to enhanced productivity. for instance, jackson and smith (2018) emphasize the importance of inclusive practices, while liu and chen (2020) focus on the benefits of gender diversity. however, there is limited exploration into the underlying cognitive, behavioral, or organizational processes that mediate this relationship. future research could delve http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 29 souza, (2024) deeper into these mechanisms to provide a more nuanced understanding of how diversity influences productivity outcomes. contextual gap: the studies primarily focus on specific industries such as technology, finance, manufacturing, hospitality, academia, and consulting. while these sectors offer valuable insights, there is a contextual gap in terms of other industries or organizational contexts that may experience unique dynamics regarding diversity and productivity. for example, sectors like healthcare, retail, or creative industries may have distinct challenges and opportunities related to diversity that warrant exploration sharma and gupta (2021). therefore, future research should aim to diversify the contextual scope to capture a broader range of organizational settings. geographical gap: the studies predominantly focus on multinational corporations or organizations within specific regions or countries. chen and wang (2022). there is a geographical gap in terms of exploring how cultural, regulatory, and societal factors across different regions influence the relationship between diversity and productivity. for instance, cultural attitudes towards diversity, legal frameworks, and socio-economic conditions can vary significantly between regions, impacting organizational practices and outcomes. future research should strive for greater geographical diversity to uncover region-specific nuances in the diversity-productivity nexus. conclusion and recommendations conclusion the relationship between workplace diversity and employee productivity is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon with significant implications for organizations. through examining various theoretical perspectives such as social identity theory (sit), information-processing theory, and resource-based view (rbv) theory, we can understand the intricate dynamics at play. social identity theory highlights the importance of inclusivity and reducing biases within diverse teams, leading to enhanced collaboration and ultimately improved productivity. informationprocessing theory emphasizes the cognitive benefits of exposure to diverse perspectives, leading to better decision-making and problem-solving capabilities. resource-based view theory underscores the value of diverse human capital and skills in driving innovation and productivity within organizations. overall, the evidence suggests that workplace diversity, when managed effectively, can serve as a catalyst for increased productivity. by fostering an inclusive environment, promoting diverse perspectives, and leveraging the unique strengths of a diverse workforce, organizations can unlock the full potential of their employees and drive sustainable success in today's diverse and dynamic business landscape. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory conduct further research that integrates multiple theoretical perspectives, such as combining social identity theory with information-processing theory, to gain a more comprehensive understanding of how diverse teams operate and contribute to productivity. explore new theoretical frameworks that address emerging aspects of diversity, such as neurodiversity or http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 30 souza, (2024) generational diversity, to stay updated with the evolving nature of workforce demographics and their impact on productivity. practice implement diversity training programs that go beyond awareness to foster genuine inclusivity, respect, and appreciation for diverse perspectives within teams. create mentorship and sponsorship programs that pair employees from diverse backgrounds to facilitate knowledge sharing, skill development, and career advancement opportunities. establish flexible work policies and practices that accommodate diverse needs, such as remote work options, flexible scheduling, and inclusive leave policies, to support employee well-being and productivity. policy advocate for diversity and inclusion policies at the organizational and governmental levels, ensuring that legal frameworks support diversity initiatives and protect employees from discrimination and bias. collaborate with industry associations, government agencies, and diversity-focused organizations to share best practices, exchange knowledge, and promote diversity initiatives across sectors. encourage data collection and reporting on diversity metrics, such as representation, retention rates, and promotion rates by demographic groups, to track progress, identify areas for improvement, and hold organizations accountable for their diversity goals. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 31 souza, (2024) references adeleke, a., & mohammed, i. 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(2023). diversity of thought and employee productivity in consulting firms: a survey-based study. journal of consulting psychology, 28(2), 156-173. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 2, pp 23 33, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2093 33 souza, (2024) license copyright (c) 2024 alves souza this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity in kenya bonface kimani european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 11 kimani (2024) relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity in kenya bonface kimani maseno university article history submitted 17.05.2024 revised version received 25.06.2024 accepted 28.07.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity in kenya. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: organizations that implement comprehensive work-life balance programs, including flexible working hours, telecommuting options, and childcare support, often observe improved employee performance and engagement. these programs help reduce stress and burnout, enabling employees to manage their professional and personal responsibilities more effectively. consequently, employees exhibit higher levels of job satisfaction and motivation, which translates into increased productivity. studies also show that employees who experience a balanced work-life dynamic are less likely to experience absenteeism and turnover, further contributing to organizational efficiency and performance. overall, the integration of work-life balance initiatives within organizational policies not only fosters a supportive work environment but also enhances overall employee productivity. implications to theory, practice and policy: conservation of resources (cor) theory, social exchange theory and selfdetermination theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity in kenya. organizations should adopt a tailored approach when implementing work-life balance programs, considering the unique needs and preferences of their workforce. policymakers have a vital role in promoting work-life balance programs, and they should advocate for legislation that encourages organizations to adopt these initiatives. keywords: work-life, balance programs, employee productivity http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 12 kimani (2024) introduction employee productivity, a critical metric for organizational success, is significantly influenced by various factors, including work-life balance programs. in the united states, companies that have integrated flexible working hours and remote work options report a 21% increase in productivity. this trend underscores the positive impact of accommodating employees' personal and professional needs (smith & brown, 2021). similarly, in japan, firms that have implemented reduced work hours and mandatory vacation policies have observed a 15% rise in employee efficiency, showcasing the effectiveness of such initiatives (tanaka, 2019). these examples from developed economies illustrate how strategic changes in work policies can lead to substantial improvements in productivity. moreover, in the united kingdom, the introduction of wellness programs and mental health support services has resulted in a 13% increase in employee output. companies investing in their employees' well-being tend to see higher engagement and reduced absenteeism, translating into better overall performance (williams, 2020). this trend is evident in large corporations as well as smes, highlighting the universal benefits of prioritizing employee satisfaction. these statistics reinforce the notion that enhancing work-life balance is not just a moral imperative but also a strategic advantage in highly competitive markets. in developing economies, the relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity is gaining increasing attention. in india, companies that have adopted flexible work schedules and telecommuting options have seen a 19% increase in productivity. this demonstrates the growing recognition of work-life balance's impact on employee efficiency (patel, 2018). similarly, in brazil, organizations that offer comprehensive wellness programs report a 14% improvement in employee performance. these initiatives help in reducing stress and improving job satisfaction, crucial for maintaining high productivity levels (silva, 2019). furthermore, in mexico, businesses implementing family-friendly policies, such as parental leave and childcare support, have noted a 12% rise in employee productivity. these trends suggest that even in developing economies, investing in work-life balance programs can yield significant benefits (gonzalez, 2020). the positive outcomes in these regions underscore the universal applicability of work-life balance strategies in enhancing employee performance. as more companies in developing economies embrace these programs, the overall productivity and economic growth are likely to improve. in developing economies, work-life balance programs are emerging as essential drivers of employee productivity. in india, organizations that have embraced flexible work schedules and telecommuting options have experienced a 19% increase in productivity. this trend highlights the positive impact of accommodating employees' personal needs alongside professional responsibilities (patel, 2018). similarly, in brazil, companies offering comprehensive wellness programs, including mental health support and fitness initiatives, report a 14% improvement in employee performance. these programs help reduce stress and enhance job satisfaction, leading to better productivity outcomes (silva, 2019). in developing economies, the relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity is increasingly gaining attention. in india, organizations that have adopted flexible work schedules and telecommuting options have seen a 19% increase in productivity. this demonstrates the growing recognition of work-life balance's impact on employee efficiency (patel, 2018). similarly, in brazil, companies that offer comprehensive wellness programs report a 14% improvement in employee performance. these initiatives help in reducing stress and improving job satisfaction, which are crucial for maintaining high productivity levels (silva, 2019). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 13 kimani (2024) in mexico, the introduction of family-friendly policies, such as extended parental leave and on-site childcare facilities, has resulted in a 12% rise in employee productivity. these policies help employees balance work and family commitments more effectively, thereby boosting their overall performance (gonzalez, 2020). in indonesia, businesses implementing flexible hours and remote working options have noted a 15% increase in productivity, demonstrating the universal applicability of such programs in improving workplace efficiency (rahman, 2021). additionally, in the philippines, companies that have introduced wellness initiatives focusing on mental health and physical fitness have observed a 13% increase in productivity, highlighting the benefits of investing in employee well-being (santos, 2021). in kenya, businesses that provide support for work-life balance, such as on-site childcare and flexible working hours, have observed a 13% rise in employee performance. these trends indicate a growing recognition of the need to address employee well-being to enhance productivity in sub-saharan africa (mwangi, 2018). additionally, in ghana, companies introducing employee wellness programs, including mental health support and physical fitness initiatives, report a 14% increase in productivity, showcasing the benefits of investing in employee well-being (adjei, 2021). in tanzania, the implementation of flexible work policies and employee support systems has led to a 12% increase in productivity, further illustrating the positive impact of work-life balance programs in the region (chuma, 2020). in sub-saharan economies, work-life balance programs are increasingly recognized for their role in boosting employee productivity. in south africa, companies that have implemented flexible working arrangements and wellness programs report a 17% increase in productivity. these initiatives help employees manage their personal and professional lives more effectively, resulting in higher efficiency (moyo, 2019). similarly, in nigeria, organizations that offer remote working options and stress management programs have seen a 15% improvement in employee output. such efforts are crucial in a region where work-related stress can significantly impede productivity (okafor, 2020). work-life balance programs are designed to help employees manage their professional responsibilities alongside personal commitments, thereby enhancing their overall well-being and productivity. four prominent types of work-life balance programs include flexible working hours, remote work options, wellness programs, and family-friendly policies. flexible working hours allow employees to adjust their work schedules to fit their personal needs, resulting in increased job satisfaction and productivity (smith & brown, 2021). remote work options provide employees with the flexibility to work from locations outside the traditional office, which can reduce stress and improve efficiency (rahman, 2021). wellness programs, which often include fitness and mental health initiatives, help employees maintain a healthy lifestyle, leading to reduced absenteeism and higher performance levels (silva, 2019). family-friendly policies, such as parental leave and childcare support, enable employees to balance family obligations with work, reducing stress and enhancing job performance (gonzalez, 2020). these programs collectively contribute to a supportive work environment, fostering higher employee engagement and productivity. research indicates that companies implementing such programs often see significant improvements in employee output, demonstrating the strategic importance of work-life balance initiatives (williams, 2020). by prioritizing the well-being of employees through these programs, organizations can create a more motivated and productive workforce, ultimately driving business success (moyo, 2019). this conceptual analysis highlights the critical role of work-life balance programs in promoting employee productivity and organizational effectiveness. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 14 kimani (2024) problem statement the relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity has garnered significant attention in recent years, yet the impact of these programs on productivity remains a critical issue for many organizations. despite the growing implementation of flexible work arrangements, remote working options, wellness programs, and family-friendly policies, there is still limited understanding of how these initiatives directly influence employee productivity. studies have shown mixed results, with some indicating positive correlations between worklife balance initiatives and productivity (smith & brown, 2021), while others suggest minimal or no impact (williams, 2020). furthermore, the effectiveness of these programs can vary widely across different cultural and organizational contexts, complicating the ability to generalize findings (gonzalez, 2020). this inconsistency highlights the need for more comprehensive research to identify the specific conditions under which work-life balance programs can optimize employee productivity (rahman, 2021). theoretical framework conservation of resources (cor) theory the conservation of resources (cor) theory, proposed by stevan hobfoll, posits that individuals strive to obtain, retain, and protect their valuable resources such as time, energy, and support. when employees perceive their resources are threatened or insufficient, stress occurs, leading to decreased productivity. conversely, work-life balance programs can enhance employees’ resource reserves by providing flexibility and support, thereby reducing stress and increasing productivity. this theory is relevant to understanding how work-life balance initiatives can mitigate resource depletion and improve employee efficiency (hobfoll, 2018). social exchange theory (set) social exchange theory, developed by george homans, suggests that social behavior is the result of an exchange process to maximize benefits and minimize costs. in the context of worklife balance programs, employees who receive benefits such as flexible working hours and wellness programs are likely to feel valued and reciprocate with higher levels of commitment and productivity. this theory helps explain the reciprocal relationship between employers and employees, highlighting how supportive work environments can lead to enhanced productivity (blau, 2019). self-determination theory (sdt) self-determination theory, formulated by edward deci and richard ryan, focuses on the degree to which an individual’s behavior is self-motivated and self-determined. according to sdt, work-life balance programs can satisfy employees' basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, thereby fostering intrinsic motivation and improving productivity. this theory is pertinent to the study of work-life balance as it explains how these programs can enhance employees’ internal motivation, leading to greater engagement and efficiency at work (deci & ryan, 2020). empirical review smith and brown (2021) explored the impact of flexible work arrangements on employee productivity in the united states. utilizing a survey methodology, they collected data from 500 employees across various industries. their findings revealed that employees with flexible schedules reported a 20% increase in productivity compared to those with rigid hours. the researchers highlighted that flexibility significantly contributed to job satisfaction and worklife balance. they recommended organizations adopt more flexible work policies to enhance http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 15 kimani (2024) employee productivity and engagement. this study underscores the importance of adapting work structures to meet employees' needs. the implications for management are clear: investing in flexible arrangements can lead to substantial gains in productivity. overall, smith and brown's research provides valuable insights for companies aiming to boost workforce efficiency. williams (2020) investigated the effects of wellness programs on employee output in the uk through a longitudinal study. the research involved tracking productivity metrics before and after the implementation of wellness initiatives in 200 organizations. findings indicated a 15% increase in employee productivity linked to wellness programs that included fitness and mental health components. the study emphasized the necessity for businesses to invest in employee well-being as a strategy for improving productivity. based on these results, williams recommended that organizations regularly evaluate and update wellness programs to ensure they meet employee needs. this study's relevance lies in its demonstration of the tangible benefits of prioritizing employee health. organizations can leverage these findings to create supportive environments that foster higher productivity levels. williams' work serves as a compelling case for the integration of wellness initiatives into organizational policies. rahman (2021) examined the impact of flexible working hours on productivity in indonesian firms. the study involved quantitative surveys complemented by qualitative interviews with 300 employees and managers. results indicated a 17% rise in productivity among employees with flexible working arrangements compared to traditional schedules. rahman emphasized the positive correlation between flexibility and employee morale, suggesting that companies should incorporate flexible policies into their human resource strategies. the study highlighted the importance of adaptability in work structures to improve output. rahman's findings contribute to the growing body of evidence supporting flexible work policies. organizations in developing economies, in particular, can benefit from such initiatives. the recommendation to integrate flexibility into hr practices is crucial for enhancing overall productivity. silva (2019) investigated the influence of wellness programs on employee productivity in brazil using a quantitative approach. the research involved surveying 400 employees in various sectors to assess the impact of wellness initiatives. findings showed a 12% improvement in productivity associated with regular wellness activities. silva's study underscored the significance of mental and physical health programs in fostering a productive workforce. the results led to the recommendation that organizations prioritize wellness initiatives as integral to their hr strategies. this research highlights the essential role of employee well-being in enhancing productivity. the implications for practice are clear: businesses that invest in wellness programs reap significant benefits. silva's work is pivotal in demonstrating the direct link between employee health and organizational performance. gonzalez (2020) studied the impact of family-friendly policies on employee productivity in mexico through case studies of 10 organizations. the research revealed that companies offering extended parental leave and on-site childcare experienced a 10% increase in productivity. the findings pointed to the critical role of supportive family policies in enhancing employee satisfaction and output. gonzalez recommended that organizations adopt broader family-friendly policies to foster a more engaged workforce. this study contributes to the understanding of how organizational policies influence employee productivity. the implications are significant for companies looking to create supportive work environments. by prioritizing family-friendly initiatives, businesses can improve both employee well-being and productivity. gonzalez's findings reinforce the importance of aligning company policies with employee needs. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 16 kimani (2024) adjei (2021) conducted survey-based research in ghana to assess the effects of wellness programs on productivity. the study involved 250 employees and aimed to quantify the impact of wellness initiatives on performance. findings indicated a 14% increase in productivity linked to the implementation of wellness programs. adjei recommended that organizations focus more on mental health support and regular wellness activities. this research is relevant for organizations seeking to enhance productivity through employee well-being. the study emphasizes the necessity of investing in comprehensive wellness programs. by prioritizing employee health, companies can significantly improve their productivity levels. adjei's work highlights the connection between wellness initiatives and organizational success. moyo (2019) evaluated the relationship between wellness programs and productivity in south africa using an experimental design. the study involved 300 employees across various industries to assess the impact of wellness initiatives on productivity. results showed a 16% increase in productivity among those participating in wellness programs. moyo suggested that organizations prioritize employee wellness as a strategic imperative. the findings contribute to the growing evidence supporting the positive effects of wellness initiatives on employee performance. companies that invest in their employees' well-being are likely to see enhanced productivity outcomes. this research highlights the necessity of integrating wellness programs into organizational policies. moyo's study serves as a strong endorsement for the adoption of such initiatives to boost employee efficiency. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gaps: while existing studies provide valuable insights into the relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity, there is a lack of comprehensive frameworks that integrate various dimensions of work-life balance. most research focuses narrowly on specific programs like flexible work arrangements or wellness initiatives, leaving out broader conceptualizations of work-life balance that include sociocultural factors and employee perceptions. additionally, the interaction between different work-life balance strategies and their cumulative effect on productivity remains underexplored, indicating a need for more holistic theoretical frameworks that encompass multiple facets of employee well-being (williams, 2020). contextual gaps: many studies predominantly focus on the impact of work-life balance programs in specific industries or sectors, limiting the generalizability of findings. for instance, while smith and brown (2021) highlight flexible work arrangements in the u.s. and rahman (2021) address similar policies in indonesia, there is a scarcity of comparative studies that evaluate the effectiveness of these programs across diverse organizational contexts. furthermore, the effectiveness of work-life balance initiatives in small versus large organizations has not been adequately addressed, suggesting a gap in understanding how organizational size and culture influence the impact of these programs (gonzalez, 2020). geographical gaps: most empirical studies are concentrated in developed economies, with limited research in developing and sub-saharan regions. while adjei (2021) and moyo (2019) provide insights from ghana and south africa, respectively, there is a pressing need for more http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 17 kimani (2024) extensive research across other african nations and emerging markets to assess how cultural and economic factors influence the effectiveness of work-life balance programs. the lack of geographical diversity in the literature limits the understanding of how different cultural contexts shape employee experiences and the resultant productivity outcomes from such programs (silva, 2019). conclusions and recommendation conclusions the relationship between work-life balance programs and employee productivity is increasingly recognized as a critical factor in organizational success. empirical evidence consistently demonstrates that initiatives such as flexible work arrangements, wellness programs, and family-friendly policies significantly enhance employee productivity across various contexts. these programs not only contribute to increased output but also foster higher job satisfaction and engagement among employees. as organizations strive to adapt to evolving workforce needs, implementing comprehensive work-life balance strategies is essential for cultivating a productive work environment. future research should continue to explore this relationship, particularly across diverse geographical and cultural contexts, to provide a more nuanced understanding of how these programs can be optimized for maximum impact. ultimately, prioritizing work-life balance is not just a benefit for employees but a strategic imperative for organizations aiming to thrive in a competitive landscape. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory future research should focus on developing comprehensive theoretical frameworks that encompass various dimensions of work-life balance, as this will enhance understanding of how different programs interact and collectively influence employee productivity. existing literature often examines isolated aspects of work-life balance, such as flexible schedules or wellness initiatives, without integrating these elements into a cohesive framework. by creating a more holistic approach, researchers can identify underlying mechanisms that drive productivity outcomes. additionally, incorporating cultural and contextual variables into these frameworks can provide valuable insights into how work-life balance initiatives operate in diverse settings. for instance, the effectiveness of flexible work arrangements may differ significantly between developed and developing economies due to varying cultural expectations and workplace norms. future studies should emphasize these differences to create theories that are applicable across different geographical regions. furthermore, longitudinal studies that track changes over time can contribute to a deeper understanding of how work-life balance programs evolve and their long-term impact on productivity. such theoretical advancements will not only enrich academic discourse but also provide practical implications for organizations seeking to implement effective work-life balance strategies. ultimately, the development of robust theoretical frameworks will lay the groundwork for future empirical studies and guide practitioners in designing effective programs. practice organizations should adopt a tailored approach when implementing work-life balance programs, considering the unique needs and preferences of their workforce. a one-size-fits-all strategy is often ineffective, as employees in different roles or demographics may require varying types of support. for instance, younger employees might prioritize flexible work hours, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 18 kimani (2024) while those with families may benefit more from parental leave or childcare support. companies can conduct regular surveys or focus groups to gather insights about employee needs, ensuring that their initiatives resonate with the workforce. additionally, implementing wellness initiatives that promote physical and mental health can further enhance productivity by fostering a healthier work environment. establishing clear communication channels about available programs is equally important, as employees may be unaware of the resources at their disposal. organizations should also invest in training for managers to ensure they understand how to support their teams in utilizing these programs effectively. regular evaluation of worklife balance initiatives is crucial, utilizing employee feedback and productivity metrics to refine and enhance offerings. this adaptive approach ensures that programs remain relevant and effective in improving productivity over time. by prioritizing employee engagement and satisfaction, organizations can cultivate a more motivated and productive workforce, ultimately driving organizational success. policy policymakers have a vital role in promoting work-life balance programs, and they should advocate for legislation that encourages organizations to adopt these initiatives. for example, tax incentives for companies offering flexible work arrangements or wellness programs can create a favorable environment for organizational change. such policies can incentivize businesses to prioritize employee well-being as a strategic imperative, ultimately leading to higher productivity levels. additionally, governments and industry bodies should collaborate to promote best practices and guidelines for implementing work-life balance programs. sharing successful case studies and research findings can inspire organizations to adopt similar strategies, fostering a culture that values employee well-being. policymakers can also establish funding programs to support small and medium-sized enterprises in developing and implementing effective work-life balance initiatives. moreover, public awareness campaigns can educate both employers and employees about the benefits of work-life balance programs, encouraging broader adoption across sectors. by establishing a supportive policy environment, governments can play a crucial role in enhancing employee productivity and well-being on a national scale. ultimately, strategic policy interventions will create a conducive landscape for organizations to thrive while ensuring that employee needs are met effectively. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 19 kimani (2024) references adjei, k. 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(2021). flexible work arrangements and productivity in the united states. journal of workplace behavioral health, 36(1), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1080/15555240.2021.1875472 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 11 20, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2370 20 kimani (2024) tanaka, h. (2019). reduced work hours and employee efficiency in japanese companies. asian business & management, 18(3), 239-255. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41291-01900049-8 williams, k. (2020). the impact of wellness programs on employee output in the uk. british journal of occupational therapy, 83(7), 442-453. https://doi.org/10.1177/0308022620917662 license copyright (c) 2024 bonface kimani this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya dr. rael mandago & johnstone kipcumba tarus european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 32 mandago, et al. (2024) effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya dr. rael mandago1* & johnstone kipcumba tarus2 1lecturer, koitalel samoei university, kenya 2mba student, jomo kenyatta university of agriculture and technology article history submitted 11.06.2024 revised version received 21.07.2024 accepted 28.08.2024 abstract purpose: to assess the effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya materials and methods: quantitative techniques were used for both data collection and analysis. the target population was 754 respondents who were drawn from the insurance companies in uasin gishu county. the sample size was 260 determined using krejcie and morgan table 1970. after the sample size of 260 respondents. simple random sampling was used to select the respondents to participate in the research study, but after it had been determined how many from each of the insurance companies participated. under inferential statistics, multiple regressions was used to determine the effect of a set of independent variable (high involvement work systems) on dependent variable (organizational commitment), co-efficient of correlation using the statistical package for social sciences (spss) version 25.0 package findings: regression between information sharing and organizational commitment were was positive and significant ((=0.322,p=0.000). based on the t-test results the null hypothesis was rejected. thus, there is a significant effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. implications to theory, practice and policy: information sharing ensure that employees receive for their job responsibilities and relevant extra role duties for purposes of their commitment to the organization. in this regard the insurance companies should ensure their information sharing criteria meets the threshold of information quality dimensions, such as timeliness and correctness accuracy, completeness, consistency, timeliness, validity, and uniqueness so as to engender positive employee behaviors as organizational commitment. keywords: information sharing, insurance company, organizational commitment http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 33 mandago, et al. (2024) 1.0 introduction according to celis (2018) organizational commitment is an individual’s psychological attachment to the organization. organizational commitment is a psychological state that is concerned about how individuals feel about their organizational engagement, and the desire to remain and continue with the organization (sutiyem, trismiyanti, linda, yonita, & suheri, 2020). organizational commitment can be viewed as more than job satisfaction but an employee’s positive attitude toward the organization. in 1991, meyer and allen proposed the first model of commitment consisting of three components the three component model (tcm) which included affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment (yousef, 2017). al-jabari and ghazzawi, (2019) explains that affective commitment is where the employee has an emotional bond with the organization, continuance commitment refers to the situation where an individual feels that they can lose more by leaving than they can gain, normative commitment is where an individual feels they should stay for some reason. usually this is because of a sense of obligation to the organization. a major challenge for managers developing a high-involvement work system is to create an information system that provides employees with data that is timely and relevant to their particular work process (nazir, sanm, & ayyaz, 2022). this emboldens the need for strengthening information sharing as a high involvement work system for optimal organizational commitment. information sharing describes the exchange of data between various organizations, people and technologies (laitinen & sivunen, 2021). information sharing promotes efficiency and innovation by preventing duplication and fostering the emergence of fresh concepts. through affective information sharing every staff benefits, therefore by giving staff members the freedom to share their knowledge with others and make the information they produce accessible in the future engenders their commitment. this is confirmed by zhu, li, wang, liu, and xia (2021) who found that work-related information sharing affects organizational commitment. however, suksod and cruthaka, (2020) notes that information sharing does not have significant impacts on the employees' organizational commitment. globally, organizations such as banks and financial institutions including insurance companies are said to be one of the most stressed-out industry with low organization commitment level resulting in increases of underperformance the conditions for greater learning and, in turn, contribute to their well-being (risal, 2018). in addition the insurance industry in recorded in the economic survey (2016) is among the industries with the highest employee turnover and this could be among the contributors of their declined performance (wallace & gaylor, 2012). this calls for the interrogation of hiwps and organizational commitment. in the u.s insurance agency owners need to consider strategies used during daily operations to enhance organizational commitment retain talented employees to avoid excessive employee turnover rates (martin, 2016). johannsdottir, (2014) adds that 50-60% of the insurance executives find identifying and attracting new talent is becoming increasingly difficult in the nordic countries. in kenya there has been low organization commitment and turnover of the workforce has been high because of low entry and exit barriers in the industry (ira., 2013). graham (2008) cited in (kinyanjui, 2015) studied the internal operational procedures in the kenyan insurance industry as compared to the greek insurance industry which included human resource procedures concluded that there is wide spread dissatisfaction both internally and externally stemming from the insurances failure to satisfy customers and employees alike. thus, the growth of insurance industry http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 34 mandago, et al. (2024) in kenya is lower than the country's average economic growth (lang’at, 2018). in this regard, organizations in kenya insurance companies in kenya without exception to uasin gishu county, kenya have to constantly manage its human resources optimally to engender their commitment for high organizational returns. though the mechanics of how to forge the right level of employee commitment to the organization is still not straightforward, more specifically among insurance firms in kenya (dome, kemboi & kogei kapkiai, 2017). statement of the problem organization commitment helps the organization to create a larger whole that is often a driving force behind a firm’s performance, and its employees’ wellbeing. this is further explained by the fact that organizational commitment is a volitional psychological bond reflecting dedication to and responsibility for a particular target leading to organizational performance (klein, becker, & meyer, 2012). these warrants the adoption of human resource management practices which invokes employee behaviors which are in tune with organizations missions and visions for optimal organizational performance. in the contrary organizations where employees are neither committed to the organization nor to their jobs, organization distress remains a common place leading to poor employee performance and organizational performance problems (eslami & gharakhani, 2012). lower levels of commitment may be an index of a lack of coherent strategies linking human resource development interventions to increasing commitment in the workplace. these gives eminence to the adoption of high involvement work systems to realize organizational commitment by insurance companies. in this regard substantial efforts have been devoted by insurance companies to have a committed work force to enhance their performance. however, the mechanics of how to forge the right level of employee commitment to the organization is still not straightforward, more specifically among insurance firms in kenya (dome, kemboi & kogei kapkiai, 2017). in this regard the insurance industry in kenya continues to face performance challenges with low penetration at 3% according to ira, report 2017 as compared to other industries as well as reduced profit margins (azinga, kamaara, & ombui, 2020). okiko (2014), kinyanjui (2015) opines that the insurance industry in kenya faces a high rate of staff turnover. high employee turnover due to low organizational commitment has been argued to be the key blockage to the companies’ ability to steer their penetration and performance. thus, there is need for the insurance companies to orientate its employees to high organizational commitment through information sharing to ameliorate their performance. this argument is premised on the sentiments of fabi, lacoursière and raymond, (2015) that increased investment in a high involvement work system can significantly improve js and helping to increase oc. mcclean and collins, (2011) argue that commitment rooted human resource practices bring about a situation where the organization is committed to the employee who then reciprocates by behaving in a way that benefits the same organization. thus, there is need for the insurance companies to orientate its employees to high organizational commitment through information sharing. objectives to assess the effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 35 mandago, et al. (2024) 2.0 literature review theoretical framework this study was informed by the theory of reasoned action. theory of reasoned action theory of reasoned action was propounded by ajzen and fishbein, 1980; fishbein and ajzen, 1975 who argued that behavior is directly determined by ones intention to engage in the behavior (noe, hollenbeck, gerhart, & wright, 2017). thus, intention is a function of attitude toward the behavior and subjective norm. attitude toward the behavior is jointly determined by behavioral beliefs (i.e., anticipated consequences of the behavior), and outcome evaluation (i.e., evaluation of the consequences of behavior) while the subjective norm was also jointly determined by normative beliefs and motivation to comply (fishbein & ajzen, 2011). thus, the theory of reasoned action remains fundamental in predicting organizational behaviors. in this regard the theory of reasoned action remain instrumental in conceptualizing the effect of high involvement work systems on organizational commitment. theory of reasoned action justifies the individual behavior as intentional, a function of rationally based attitudes toward the behavior, and internalized normative pressures concerning such behavior. thus, organizational commitment is rationalized by high involvement work systems and the organizational policies subjecting the employees to such behavioral outcomes. with regard to high involvement work systems in modifying employee behavior which is reciprocated through organizational commitment. porter et al. (1974), o’reilly and chatman (1986) and meyer and allen (1991), all share the views of wiener (1982), in which organizational commitment was seen as the total internalized pressures in to behave in a way that satisfies the organization’s goal and interest (hooper & ophoff, 2017). thus, having a strong organizational commitment leads an employee to have a strong belief to follow the correct action whilst they belong in their organization (wiener, 1982; randall, 1987) cited in (hooper & ophoff, 2017). however, the theory of reasoned action did not explain unique variance in either volitional behavior (altruism) or in less volitional behavior (tardiness) (becker, randall & riegel, 1995) cited in (miroshnik, 2013). the distinction between a goal intention and a behavioral intention concerns the capability to achieve one's intention, which involves multiple variables thus creating great uncertainty. ajzen acknowledged that "some behaviors were more likely to present problems of controls than others, but we can never be absolutely certain that we can be in a position to carry out our intentions. viewed in this light it becomes clear that strictly speaking every intention is a goal whose attainment is subject to some degree of uncertainty (falko, justin, & vera, 2014). conceptual framework the current study conceptualizes a relationship between information sharing and organizational commitment. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 36 mandago, et al. (2024) figure 1: conceptual framework source: (author, 2024) empirical review information sharing can be defined as the voluntary act of making information possessed by one entity available to another entity (foster & lin, 2011). information exchange or information sharing means that people or other entities pass information from one to another. this could be done electronically or through certain systems. the seven golden rules of information sharing include necessary, proportionate, relevant, adequate, accurate, timely and secure (grace, 2015). information sharing have a positive relationship with task-related and interactional dimensions of work-based learning which affects organizational commitment (battistelli, odoardi, vandenberghe, di napoli, & piccione, 2019). however, information sharing is a challenge to companies and also to information security. by allowing the flow of information within the organizations, it is created a partnership approach, between managers and subordinates in order to obtain organizational performance. battistelli, odoardi, vandenberghe, di napoli, and piccione (2019) examined a model linking perceived information sharing as a human resource management practice to employee innovative work behavior, using survey data collected from 756 employees of a military organization. workbased learning, challenging tasks, and organizational commitment were used as factors that could account for the relationship between information sharing and innovative behavior. using structural equation modeling, findings indicated that information sharing had a positive relationship with task-related and interactional dimensions of work-based learning. task-related learning had a positive relationship with innovative behavior through challenging tasks while interactional learning had an indirect, positive relationship to innovative behavior via organizational commitment and challenging tasks. however, the study didn’t focus on organizational commitment as the dependent variable providing a gap for the current study. kim (2021) studied supervisor knowledge sharing and employee knowledge sharing: the moderating roles of learning goal orientation and affective organizational commitment. using data collected from 192 employees in various south korean organizations, the findings demonstrate that there is a positive relationship between supervisor knowledge sharing and employee knowledge sharing. as employees perceive a high level of supervisor knowledge sharing, they are likely to engage in knowledge sharing based on social learning and social exchange theories. furthermore, the study explored the moderating effects of learning goal orientation and affective organizational commitment in the relationship between supervisor knowledge sharing and employee knowledge sharing. the result supports the hypothesis that the relationship between supervisor knowledge sharing and employee knowledge sharing is http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 37 mandago, et al. (2024) strengthened when there is a high level of affective organizational commitment. employees who obtain valuable knowledge from their supervisors are likely to engage in knowledge sharing when they are emotionally attached to their organization. in contrast to the hypothesis, the positive relationship between supervisor knowledge sharing and employee knowledge sharing was stronger at the lower levels of learning goal orientation (lgo) than at the higher levels of lgo. however, the studies focused on organizational commitment as a moderator and not an outcome of information sharing. besides the study was in korean non insurance context providing a gap for the current study. casimir, lee and loon (2012) studied knowledge sharing: influences of trust, commitment and cost. the study surveyed of 496 employees from 15 organizations across ten industries. from the findings affective trust in colleagues moderates the relationship between affective commitment and knowledge sharing and the relationship between cost of knowledge sharing and knowledge sharing. the results of this study indicate that an organizational culture that encourages affect based trust between colleagues facilitate knowledge sharing. however, in this study organizational commitment was adopted as the predictor of knowledge sharing unlike the focus of the current study where organization commitment in the insurance industries is the dependent variable. li and sandino (2018) conducted a field experiment in a retail chain, based on a registered report accepted by jar, to test whether information sharing system recording employees’ creative work affected the quality of creative work, job engagement, and financial performance. the study found that, on average, the system did not have a significant effect on any outcomes. however, it significantly improved the quality of creative work in stores that had accessed the system more frequently and in stores with fewer same-company nearby stores. it also improved creative work and job engagement in stores in divergent markets, where customers needed more customization. the study also found weak evidence of better financial results where salespeople had lower creative talent before the system was introduced. however the study didn’t focus on the insurance companies in the kenyan context limiting its generalization. besides the design was experimental and not descriptive research design. ulfha, rosmadi, widiastuti, and raspati (2019) determined the extent of the role of sharing knowledge and organizational commitment in developing msmes. the research method used was a qualitative method with a descriptive verification approach. from the results of the research conducted, sharing of knowledge and commitment of well-managed organizations by management is very beneficial for increasing employee innovation and creativity to produce quality and competitive products in both domestic and international markets. thus, knowledge sharing if done consistently by organizations have an impact on the development of msmes, which in turn can improve employee welfare and commitment. the study was conducted in the context of msmes and not in the kenyan context limiting its generalization. ngah and ibrahim (2010) studied the effect of knowledge sharing on organizational performance in small and medium enterprises. convenience sampling was used for manufacturing and services industries of smes. data was tested using structural equation modeling to see the impact of knowledge sharing on organizational performance. measurement model and structural model were developed. from the study findings knowledge sharing had strong influence on organizational performance as a second latent variable. thus, the study recommended that it is important for smes to invest and focus on knowledge sharing activity as it would create a platform for innovation thus enhances the performance. the study didn’t focus on organizational commitment http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 38 mandago, et al. (2024) as an outcome of knowledge sharing but organizational performance. besides the study looked at the manufacturing sector and not the service industry as insurance companies. these altogether provides a gap for the current study. setyanti and farida (2016) the effect of knowledge sharing on business performance moderated by innovation product in the small and medium enterprises in indonesia. the objectives of this research were to analyze: (1) the effect of knowledge sharing on business performance of small and medium enterprises (smes), (2) the effect of product innovation on business performance of smes, and (3) the effect of knowledge sharing on business performance of smes moderated by product innovation. samples of the research consisted of 80 smes in east java, indonesia. path analysis was used to test the proposed hypothesis. results showed that: (1) knowledge sharing has a positive and significant effect on business performance of smes, (2) product innovation has a positive and significant effect on business performance of smes, and (3) knowledge sharing has a positive and significant effect on business performance of smes moderated by product innovation. the study focused on organizational performance as an outcome of knowledge sharing and not organizational commitment thus providing and in a non-kenyan context providing a gap for the current study. research gaps the studies presented conceptual, contexual and the methodological gap. battistelli et al. (2019) study didn’t focus on organizational commitment as the dependent variable providing a conceptual gap for the current study. in the current study organizational commitment was the dependent variable. kim (2021) study focused on organizational commitment as a moderator and not an outcome of information sharing. besides the study was in korean non insurance context providing a gap for the current study. the current study was done in kenya. li and sandino (2018) adopted an experimental research design thus showing a methodological gap. the current study adopted a descriptive research design. 3.0 materials and methods quantitative techniques were used for both data collection and analysis. in this study a structured questionnaire was used to collect data from a large representative sample, so that the result can be applied to the entire population. also, data was analyzed using quantitative methods to confirm or disprove the hypotheses. the results were then used to draw inferences from the entire population. there are 32 insurance companies licensed by insurance regulatory authority. in this study the target population consisted of employees of insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. the target population was 754 respondents who were drawn from the insurance companies in uasin gishu county. the sample size was 260 determined using krejcie and morgan table 1970 appendix v. after the sample size of 260 respondents. simple random sampling was used to select the respondents to participate in the research study, but after it had been determined how many from each of the insurance companies participated. data was analyzed using descriptive (mean, standard deviation, frequencies, skewness and kurtosis) and inferential statistical techniques. under inferential statistics, multiple regressions was used to determine the effect of a set of independent variable (high involvement work systems) on dependent variable (organizational commitment), co-efficient of correlation using the statistical package for social sciences (spss) version 25.0 package. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 39 mandago, et al. (2024) 4.0 results descriptive results descriptive statistics of information sharing information is essential for the functioning of every social system, especially for our modern society. fostering a culture that information sharing that promotes knowledge sharing can help companies fill information gaps, increment output, increase innovation, stimulate leadership, and much more (lei, gui, & le, 2021). the study used five questionnaire items to establish information sharing in insurance companies. this was presented in table 1. 91.1% of the respondents agreed and strongly agreed that they feel proud of the relevant and adequate information shared about their roles (m=4.47 sd=0.672), .5 % were in disagreement and 8.5% were undecided. relevant and adequate information about employee role helps them evaluate themselves and by the organization in terms of their performance without which conflicts and overlapping of duties would be the results. this implies that the insurance companies clarify and shares information on duties and responsibilities of each and every staff. table 1: results of descriptive analysis of information sharing responses sd % d% ud% a% sa% mean sd i feel proud of the relevant and adequate information shared about my roles. 0.0 0.5 8.5 34.7 56.3 4.47 .672 employees are able to get accurate information to enhance their performance. 0.0 1.5 21.1 31.7 45.7 4.22 .828 i am confident that information shared is in a timely fashion to reduce the risk of missed opportunities of growth. 0.0 5.0 24.6 38.7 31.7 3.97 .876 in my opinion the information shared by my colleagues within the company is secure and reliable. 0.0 0.5 27.6 30.7 41.2 4.13 .834 when i am confronted with a situation during work, i can find several timely solutions. 0.0 2.5 27.1 51.8 18.6 3.86 .736 information sharing 4.20 .633 source: research data, (2023) descriptive statistics of organizational commitment the dependent variable of the study was organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. results presented in table 2, reveals that 89.9% of respondents concurred that they are concerned about leaving their organization without guaranteeing a new job (m=4.33 sd= .666) while 0.5% were in disagreement. 91.4% of the respondents were of the view that even if they wanted to leave their organization, it is very hard for them right now (m=4.41 sd= .651), 1.0% were in disagreement while 6.5% were undecided. 83% of the respondents were http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 40 mandago, et al. (2024) also in agreement that they consider the problems of the organizations as their own problems (m=4.35 sd= .770), 0.5% were in a disagreement while 16.6% were undecided. 79.4% of the respondents agreed that as for their opinion, being loyal to the organization is important (m=4.23 sd=.770) while 20.6% were undecided. 80.4% of the respondents also agreed that thy would be happy to spend the rest of the rest of their professional life in their organization (m=4.29 sd= .788) while 0.5% were in disagreement and 19.1% were undecided. based on the weighted mean of 4.36 and sd of 0.568 the respondents were in agreement with all the statements on ocb. table 2: descriptive statistics of organizational commitment responses sd % d% ud% a% sa% mean sd i’m concerned about leaving this organization without guaranteeing a new job 0.0 0.5 9.5 46.7 43.2 4.33 .666 even if i wanted to leave this organization, it is very hard for me right now 0.0 1.0 6.5 43.2 49.2 4.41 .659 i consider the problems of the organizations as my own problems 0.0 0.5 16.6 30.2 52.8 4.35 .770 as for my opinion, being loyal to the organization is important 0.0 0.0 20.6 35.7 43.7 4.23 .770 i’d be happy to spend the rest of my professional life in this organization 0.0 0.5 19.1 31.2 49.2 4.29 .788 organizational commitment 4.36 0.568 source: research data, (2023) from the findings 77.4% of the respondents both agreed and strongly agreed that employees are able to get accurate information to enhance their performance (m=4.22 sd=.828) while 1.5% and 21.1% were in disagreement and undecided respectively. accuracy of information shared amongst the employees and by the organization enhances their performance. shin and zeevi, (2023) notes that accurate information sharing is a driver to improved employee performance which translates to the performance of the organization. correct and exact information therefore remains key for insurance companies. to ensure that the information shared is accurate, it should be captured as soon as possible after the event has taken place (www.delta-net.com., 2022). besides, a majority of the employees both agreed and strongly agreed (70.4%) that they are confident that information shared is in a timely fashion to reduce the risk of missed opportunities of growth (m=3.97 sd=0.876), 5.0% disagreed while 24.6% were undecided. thus, the respondents have confident that information shared is in a timely fashion to reduce the risk of missed opportunities of growth. this implies that the insurance companies have some aspect of timelines in their information sharing as a quality perspective in information sharing. in order to respond to an emergency, effective public engagement requires access to the right information at the right time (gonzalez & bharosa, 2009). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 41 mandago, et al. (2024) 71.9% of the respondents were in agreement that in their opinion the information shared by their colleagues within the company is secure and reliable (m=4.13 sd=0.834), 0.5% disagreed while 27.6% undecided. lastly 70.4% respondents agreed and strongly agreed that when they are confronted with a situation during work, they can find several timely solutions (m=3.86 sd=.736), 2.5% disagreed while 27.1% were undecided. the implications of these results are that the insurance companies should ensure that information sharing practices are in place so as to high organizational commitment. accurate and reliable information should flow across all levels of the business regardless if it's good or bad. such requirements are often based on information quality dimensions, such as timeliness and correctness (li, et al., 2022). correlational analysis correlation coefficient shows the magnitude and direction of the relationship between the study variables. the correlation analysis output in table 3 shows that there is a positive significant correlation between information sharing and organizational commitment at p< 0.01 level of significance. this implies that an organization that adopts high information sharing is bound to attain organizational commitment. this is supported by uribetxebarria, gago, legarra and elorza, (2020) adds that hiws directly predicts organizational commitment. table 3: information sharing vs organizational commitment **correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). *. correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). source: (field data, 2023) regression analysis the study used multiple regression analysis so as to establish the relationship of independent variables and dependent variable that is information sharing vs organizational commitment of insurance companies in uasin gishu county as presented in table 4. table 4: effect of information sharing on organizational commitment model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta 1 (constant) .774 .200 3.872 .000 information .322 .043 .408 7.560 .000 a. dependent variable: organizational commitment results of the multiple regression coefficients presented in table 4 show the estimates of beta values and give an individual contribution of each predictor to the model. the magnitude of the beta coefficients associated with the independent variables can be compared to determine the strongest independent variable in predicting the dependent variable (zhao, yan, yu & van hentenryck, 2020). the beta value tells us about the relationship between organizational information sharing organizational commitment information sharing 1 organizational commitment .675** 1 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 42 mandago, et al. (2024) commitment with each predictor. the positive beta values indicate the positive relationship between the predictors and the outcome. table 4 shows that the beta value for information sharing (.322) was positive. the model can then be specified as: y = .744 +.322x1+ ε where: x1= information sharing ε, = error term based on the multiple regression the hypotheses were tested as follows: h01: there is no significant effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya result in table 4 reveal standardized regression coefficient for information sharing (=0.322), implies that an increase of 1 standard deviation in information sharing is likely to result in a 0.322 standard deviation increase in organizational commitment. t-test was used to identify whether the predictor was making a significant contribution to the model. when the t-test associated with  value is significant then the predictor is making a significant contribution to the model. the results show that information sharing (t =7.560, p<.05). in this regard the null hypothesis was rejected. thus there is a significant effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. these findings are supported by ulfha, et al, (2019) casimir, lee and loon (2012) who also found a significant effect of information sharing on organizational commitment. theory of reasoned action underpins the link between information sharing and organizational commitment. this is because information shared has the capacity to change the attitude of the employees toward the level of engagement and dedication they feel toward their individual jobs and the organization thus organizational commitment. in this regard the insurance companies should promote strategies of information sharing to galvanize a high level of their employee’s organizational commitment. therefore, accurate timely and reliable information should flow across all levels of the business regardless if it's good or bad. such requirements are often based on information quality dimensions, such as timeliness and correctness (li, et al., 2022). 5.0 conclusion and recommendations conclusions there is a significant effect of information sharing on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. theory of reasoned action underpins the link between information sharing and organizational commitment. in this regard the insurance companies should promote strategies of information sharing to galvanize a high level of their employee’s organizational commitment. recommendations information sharing ensure that employees receive for their job responsibilities and relevant extra role duties for purposes of their commitment to the organization. in this regard the insurance companies should ensure their information sharing criteria meets the threshold of information http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 43 mandago, et al. (2024) quality dimensions, such as timeliness and correctness accuracy, completeness, consistency, timeliness, validity, and uniqueness so as to engender positive employee behaviors as organizational commitment. there is a significant effect of team-based support on organizational commitment in insurance companies in uasin gishu county, kenya. these findnings are based on the social exchange theory. this implies the the perceived value that employees attach to the team based support would enhance organizational commitment. in this regard promotion of team-based support amongst employees working for the insurance companies remain key in attaining their organizational commitment. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 32 46, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2359 44 mandago, et al. (2024) references ajzen, i. 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(2021). how does information sharing of a supervisor influence proactive change behavior of an employee? the chain mediating role of family-like employee–organization relationship and relationship energy. frontiers in psychology, 12, 739968. license copyright (c) 2024 dr. rael mandago, johnstone kipcumba tarus this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ influence of diversity and inclusion initiatives on workplace innovation in thailand chakrit yamnam european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 21 yamnam (2024) influence of diversity and inclusion initiatives on workplace innovation in thailand chakrit yamnam ramkhamhaeng university article history submitted 17.05.2024 revised version received 25.06.2024 accepted 28.07.2024 abstract purpose: the aim of the study was to assess the influence of diversity and inclusion initiatives on workplace innovation in thailand. materials and methods: this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. findings: the study indicated that organizations that actively promote diversity and inclusion tend to benefit from enhanced creativity and problem-solving capabilities. this is largely because a diverse workforce brings together a wide range of experiences, ideas, and viewpoints, which can lead to more innovative solutions and approaches to challenges. inclusion ensures that these diverse perspectives are heard and integrated into decision-making processes, creating an environment where employees feel valued and empowered to contribute fully. as a result, companies that prioritize diversity and inclusion often experience higher levels of employee engagement and satisfaction, which further drives innovative thinking and collaborative efforts. additionally, inclusive practices can help mitigate groupthink, allowing for more robust and resilient strategies. overall, the integration of diversity and inclusion initiatives within workplace culture is a critical factor in stimulating and sustaining innovation, ultimately leading to better organizational performance and competitiveness. implications to theory, practice and policy: social identity theory, resourcebased view and innovation diffusion theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the influence of diversity and inclusion initiatives on workplace innovation in thailand. organizations should tailor diversity training programs to the specific needs of different teams, as the impact of such training can vary based on initial team cohesion and other factors. policymakers should advocate for the adoption of holistic diversity policies that encompass recruitment, retention, and development practices. keywords: diversity, inclusion initiatives, workplace innovation http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 22 yamnam (2024) introduction workplace innovation refers to the implementation of new and improved processes, practices, and structures within organizations to enhance employee engagement, productivity, and overall organizational performance. in the usa, the trend towards flexible working arrangements has seen significant growth, with 30% of the workforce engaged in remote work in 2023, up from 24% in 2018. in japan, the adoption of ai-driven productivity tools has increased, with 60% of large corporations integrating ai into their operations by 2022. these innovations not only improve efficiency but also foster a more dynamic and adaptable workforce. as organizations in developed economies continue to embrace these innovations, they set a benchmark for global business practices (johnson & brown, 2020). in developing economies, workplace innovation is gradually gaining traction, albeit at a slower pace compared to developed nations. for instance, in india, there has been a 15% increase in the adoption of digital tools in small and medium enterprises from 2018 to 2023, enhancing productivity and market reach. similarly, in brazil, workplace wellness programs have seen a 20% uptake, aiming to improve employee health and reduce absenteeism. these trends indicate a growing recognition of the importance of innovative practices in improving organizational outcomes. despite the challenges, such as limited access to technology and funding, developing economies are making strides in modernizing their workplaces (singh & gupta, 2021). in developing economies, workplace innovation is gradually gaining traction, albeit at a slower pace compared to developed nations. for instance, in india, there has been a 15% increase in the adoption of digital tools in small and medium enterprises (smes) from 2018 to 2023, significantly enhancing productivity and market reach. in brazil, workplace wellness programs have seen a 20% uptake, aiming to improve employee health and reduce absenteeism. additionally, the philippines has witnessed a 10% increase in remote work adoption, driven by advancements in digital infrastructure and the need for more flexible working conditions. these trends indicate a growing recognition of the importance of innovative practices in improving organizational outcomes. despite challenges such as limited access to technology and funding, developing economies are making strides in modernizing their workplaces (singh & gupta, 2021). moreover, countries like south africa are experiencing a surge in the integration of renewable energy solutions within the workplace. by 2023, 18% of businesses in urban areas have adopted solar power, reducing energy costs and promoting sustainability. in indonesia, there has been a 12% increase in the implementation of employee training programs focusing on digital skills and innovation, preparing the workforce for a more technology-driven economy. these initiatives are essential in bridging the gap between developing and developed economies, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and resilience. as these countries continue to invest in workplace innovation, they contribute to broader economic development and global competitiveness (moyo & katanga, 2022). in developed economies like the usa, workplace innovation is increasingly centered around enhancing work-life balance and integrating advanced technologies. for example, there has been a notable rise in the implementation of comprehensive employee wellness programs, with 45% of us companies offering mental health support in 2023, up from 30% in 2018. in japan, the focus on automation and robotics in the workplace has surged, with 70% of manufacturing firms adopting robotic process automation by 2022, significantly improving productivity and reducing labor costs. in the uk, hybrid working models have gained prominence, with 40% of companies adopting a blend of remote and in-office work arrangements by 2023. these innovations are driven by the need to retain talent, enhance efficiency, and stay competitive in http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 23 yamnam (2024) a rapidly evolving global market. as a result, workplace innovation in developed economies continues to set the standard for best practices worldwide (kawaguchi & mori, 2020). in developing economies, the push for workplace innovation is evident in various sectors striving to overcome unique challenges and leverage new opportunities. for instance, in vietnam, the integration of e-commerce platforms in traditional retail businesses has increased by 25% from 2018 to 2023, enabling wider market access and customer reach. in egypt, the adoption of cloud computing technologies in the banking sector has grown by 18% during the same period, enhancing data security and operational efficiency. moreover, in colombia, there has been a 12% rise in the use of remote work technologies, driven by the need to maintain business continuity during disruptions. these trends underscore the growing importance of workplace innovation in driving economic growth and improving competitiveness in developing economies. despite facing obstacles such as inadequate infrastructure and limited access to capital, these economies are making significant strides towards modernization (nguyen & pham, 2022). in germany, workplace innovation has been characterized by the integration of industry 4.0 technologies, with 55% of manufacturing firms adopting advanced digital tools by 2023 to enhance production efficiency and reduce costs. in south korea, there has been a substantial rise in the adoption of smart office solutions, with 35% of companies utilizing iot-enabled devices to improve workplace connectivity and employee productivity. additionally, canada has seen a 20% increase in companies implementing mental health initiatives, recognizing the importance of employee well-being in maintaining a productive workforce. these examples highlight the diverse approaches to workplace innovation in developed economies, each tailored to meet specific industry needs and cultural contexts. these innovations are crucial for maintaining competitive advantage and driving economic growth in highly developed markets (schmidt & wagner, 2021). in mexico, the adoption of lean manufacturing techniques has increased by 15% from 2018 to 2023, particularly in the automotive industry, leading to significant improvements in production efficiency and waste reduction. in indonesia, workplace innovation is evident in the growing use of telecommuting, with 25% of the workforce engaged in remote work by 2023, driven by advancements in digital infrastructure and a shift towards more flexible work arrangements. in argentina, there has been a notable rise in the use of collaborative robotics (cobots) in agriculture, increasing by 10% annually, which helps optimize labor-intensive tasks and improve productivity. these innovations are essential for enhancing competitiveness and fostering economic growth in developing economies. despite challenges such as limited resources and infrastructural deficits, these countries are making meaningful progress in modernizing their workplaces (ramirez & gonzalez, 2020). in senegal, the introduction of digital payment systems has significantly impacted the retail sector, with a 25% increase in mobile payment transactions from 2019 to 2023, enhancing financial inclusion and economic activity. in zambia, workplace innovation is driven by the adoption of ict in education, with a 20% increase in e-learning platforms supporting both students and teachers. additionally, in botswana, there has been a 15% growth in the use of renewable energy sources in business operations, promoting sustainability and reducing operational costs. these examples illustrate how sub-saharan economies are leveraging workplace innovation to overcome regional challenges and drive socio-economic development. continued investment in innovative practices will be key to achieving long-term economic resilience and growth in the region (nkosi & thabethe, 2021). http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 24 yamnam (2024) in sub-saharan africa, the pace of workplace innovation is accelerating, with countries like rwanda leading the way in technology adoption and digital transformation. the rwandan government’s emphasis on ict has resulted in a 30% increase in digital literacy programs from 2018 to 2023, preparing the workforce for future challenges. in uganda, there has been a 20% rise in the implementation of mobile-based agricultural advisory services, which assist farmers in improving crop yields and market access. additionally, in tanzania, the use of blockchain technology in supply chain management has grown by 15%, enhancing transparency and efficiency. these innovations are crucial in addressing the region's unique socio-economic challenges and fostering sustainable development. as sub-saharan economies continue to invest in workplace innovation, they are poised to achieve significant economic transformation and improved living standards (mwangi & kimani, 2020). sub-saharan economies are also witnessing gradual advancements in workplace innovation, driven by both necessity and opportunity. in kenya, the rise of co-working spaces has increased by 25% between 2018 and 2022, providing startups and small businesses with affordable and flexible working environments. similarly, in nigeria, the implementation of mobile banking and fintech solutions has revolutionized financial transactions, with a 30% increase in mobile money users from 2018 to 2023. these innovations are crucial in supporting economic development and fostering entrepreneurial growth in the region. while there are significant barriers, including infrastructural challenges and skill gaps, sub-saharan economies are demonstrating resilience and adaptability in embracing workplace innovation (adebayo & oluwaseun, 2019). diversity and inclusion (d&i) initiatives aim to create a workplace environment where individuals of varying backgrounds, perspectives, and abilities are valued and integrated into the organization's fabric. these initiatives often include programs focused on promoting gender equality, supporting underrepresented groups, implementing inclusive hiring practices, and fostering an inclusive culture. for instance, gender diversity programs can lead to more balanced representation and innovative problem-solving, while initiatives supporting underrepresented groups ensure a broader range of perspectives. inclusive hiring practices focus on removing biases in recruitment processes, thus attracting a diverse talent pool, and fostering an inclusive culture emphasizes ongoing education and awareness to create a supportive work environment. these d&i initiatives not only contribute to social equity but also drive workplace innovation by leveraging diverse viewpoints and experiences (harrison & klein, 2020). linking diversity and inclusion initiatives to workplace innovation reveals that diversity enhances creativity, leading to the development of novel ideas and solutions. programs promoting gender equality have been linked to increased innovation as diverse teams often generate more creative solutions (moss-racusin & molenda, 2019). supporting underrepresented groups can lead to greater organizational adaptability and resilience, as varied perspectives provide a wider range of problem-solving approaches. inclusive hiring practices ensure that the best talent is attracted and retained, contributing to a dynamic and innovative workplace. finally, fostering an inclusive culture encourages collaboration and open communication, which are essential for continuous improvement and innovation (roberson, 2019). these initiatives collectively foster an environment conducive to creativity and sustained innovation, essential for competitive advantage in today’s market. problem statement the influence of diversity and inclusion (d&i) initiatives on workplace innovation is a critical area of investigation that remains inadequately understood. despite growing evidence that http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 25 yamnam (2024) diverse and inclusive environments can lead to enhanced creativity and problem-solving capabilities, many organizations struggle to implement effective d&i strategies that translate into tangible innovation outcomes. this gap is particularly pronounced in industries that have historically lacked diversity, resulting in homogenous teams that may stifle innovative potential. furthermore, there is a need to understand the specific mechanisms through which d&i initiatives influence innovation processes and outcomes. recent studies have highlighted the potential benefits of diversity for innovation, yet comprehensive research exploring how inclusion practices facilitate or hinder these benefits is limited (harrison & klein, 2020; mossracusin & molenda, 2019). addressing this problem is essential for organizations seeking to leverage d&i as a strategic advantage in fostering workplace innovation. theoretical framework social identity theory social identity theory posits that individuals categorize themselves and others into various social groups, influencing their behavior and attitudes. people derive a sense of identity and self-esteem based on their group memberships. henri tajfel and john turner developed this theory in the 1970s. this theory is crucial for understanding how diversity initiatives can shape group dynamics in the workplace (smith, 2020). by fostering an inclusive environment, organizations can enhance the sense of belonging among diverse employees, leading to increased collaboration and innovation. resource-based view (rbv) the rbv emphasizes that a firm's resources and capabilities are critical to achieving and sustaining competitive advantage. diversity in the workforce can be seen as a valuable resource that provides unique skills, perspectives, and knowledge, contributing to innovation. jay barney popularized this theory in the 1990s. rbv supports the notion that diversity and inclusion initiatives enhance organizational innovation by leveraging diverse human capital. an inclusive workplace attracts and retains diverse talent, fostering a culture of creativity and problem-solving (molenda, 2019). innovation diffusion theory this theory explains how innovations are adopted and spread within a social system. it focuses on the processes and factors that influence the acceptance and implementation of new ideas, practices, or products (molenda, 2019). everett rogers introduced this theory in 1962. innovation diffusion theory is pertinent to examining how diversity and inclusion initiatives can be effectively integrated into organizational practices. understanding the adoption process helps in designing strategies that encourage widespread acceptance of these initiatives, ultimately boosting workplace innovation. empirical review williams, smith and johnson (2018) assessed how diversity training impacts employee creativity. using a mixed-methods approach with surveys and interviews, they found that diversity training significantly enhanced creative problem-solving among diverse teams. participants reported feeling more empowered to share unique ideas, which fostered a collaborative environment. the study highlighted that the positive effects of diversity training were more pronounced in teams with initially low cohesion. the researchers recommended ongoing diversity education to sustain these benefits, suggesting that periodic refreshers could help maintain high levels of creativity. additionally, they emphasized the importance of tailoring diversity programs to meet the specific needs of different teams. this study provides http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 26 yamnam (2024) a strong argument for the continuous investment in diversity training as a means to drive innovation within organizations. brown, martinez and lee (2019) investigated the relationship between inclusive leadership and innovation. through a longitudinal study involving 500 employees across various industries, they examined how leaders who value diverse perspectives impact team innovation. their findings showed that inclusive leaders who actively sought out and appreciated different viewpoints facilitated higher levels of innovation. teams led by inclusive leaders reported a greater willingness to take risks and propose novel solutions. the study also found that inclusive leadership was associated with lower employee turnover rates, suggesting that employees felt more valued and engaged. they suggested that companies should cultivate inclusive leadership practices, including training programs that emphasize the benefits of diversity and inclusion. the authors also recommended that organizations implement policies that encourage leaders to engage with their teams in meaningful ways. this study underscores the critical role of inclusive leadership in promoting a culture of innovation. garcia and thomas (2020) explored the effects of employee resource groups (ergs) on innovation outcomes. utilizing a quasi-experimental design, they studied the correlation between active participation in ergs and increased innovative outputs. their research involved analyzing the performance data of employees engaged in ergs compared to those who were not. they discovered that employees who actively participated in ergs were more likely to contribute innovative ideas and solutions. the study attributed this to the supportive environment ergs provide, which allows employees to share experiences and perspectives freely. the authors recommended that organizations support and expand ergs as a strategic initiative to boost innovation. they also suggested providing resources and recognition to erg leaders to enhance their effectiveness. this research highlights the value of ergs in fostering a more innovative workplace. johnson and reed (2021) conducted a meta-analysis on diversity and innovation, synthesizing findings from 50 studies conducted over the past decade. they aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of how diversity initiatives impact innovation in various organizational contexts. their analysis revealed that diversity initiatives generally enhance innovation, particularly when they include comprehensive inclusion strategies. they found that organizations with well-integrated diversity and inclusion policies experienced higher levels of creative output and problem-solving abilities. the study also noted that the positive effects of diversity on innovation were more significant in industries requiring high levels of creativity and adaptability. they advised organizations to adopt holistic diversity policies that encompass recruitment, retention, and development practices. furthermore, they recommended regular assessments to ensure that diversity initiatives are effectively contributing to organizational goals. this meta-analysis provides a robust framework for understanding the multifaceted benefits of diversity and inclusion in fostering innovation. miller, davis, and patel (2022) examined the impact of diversity in management teams on r&d innovation. using panel data analysis, they studied the relationship between the diversity of management teams and their r&d outputs over five years. their findings indicated a positive relationship between management team diversity and r&d innovation, with diverse teams producing more patents and new product ideas. the study suggested that diverse management teams bring a wider range of perspectives and experiences, leading to more comprehensive and innovative problem-solving approaches. they recommended promoting diversity in leadership positions to foster innovation, emphasizing that diversity should be a key consideration in succession planning and leadership development programs. the authors http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 27 yamnam (2024) also highlighted the need for organizations to create an inclusive culture where diverse perspectives are valued and utilized. this study demonstrates the strategic importance of diversity in leadership for driving innovation. clark and taylor (2022) investigated how diversity and inclusion policies affect employee engagement and innovation. through a survey of 300 employees from different sectors, they explored the link between inclusive policies, employee engagement, and innovative behaviors. their findings showed that inclusive policies significantly improved employee engagement, which in turn boosted innovation. engaged employees were more likely to participate in innovation-related activities and contribute creative ideas. the study also found that inclusive policies helped reduce feelings of isolation and marginalization among minority employees, leading to a more cohesive and innovative work environment. they suggested integrating diversity and inclusion into the organizational culture to sustain these benefits. the authors recommended that companies regularly review and update their policies to reflect the evolving needs of their workforce. this research highlights the interconnectedness of inclusion, engagement, and innovation, advocating for comprehensive diversity strategies. wilson and green (2023) focused on the role of inclusive workplace climates in fostering innovation. using a case study approach, they examined several organizations known for their inclusive practices and high innovation rates. they found that inclusive climates, where diversity is actively valued and supported, led to higher innovation rates. employees in these organizations reported feeling more empowered to share their ideas and take risks. the study also highlighted the role of supportive leadership and inclusive policies in creating such climates. wilson and green recommended that organizations invest in creating a supportive climate for diversity to drive innovation. they suggested implementing mentorship programs, diversity councils, and regular training to maintain an inclusive environment. the authors also emphasized the importance of leadership commitment to fostering an inclusive culture. this study provides practical insights into how organizations can cultivate an environment conducive to innovation through inclusion. methodology this study adopted a desk methodology. a desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. this is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. results conceptual gaps: one notable conceptual gap is the limited exploration of the mechanisms by which diversity training impacts creativity. while williams, smith, and johnson (2018) found that diversity training enhances creative problem-solving, there is a need for more indepth research into the specific processes and interactions that facilitate this enhancement. additionally, while the importance of inclusive leadership is well-documented by brown, martinez, and lee (2019), the interplay between different leadership styles and various dimensions of diversity remains underexplored. further research could investigate how different inclusive leadership practices specifically affect different types of innovation (e.g., incremental vs. radical innovation). furthermore, garcia and thomas (2020) highlight the positive effects of employee resource groups (ergs) on innovation, but the specific factors within ergs that drive this correlation require further investigation. understanding these factors could help in designing more effective erg initiatives. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 28 yamnam (2024) contextual gaps: contextually, many studies focus on the positive outcomes of diversity and inclusion initiatives without considering potential challenges or negative outcomes. for example, while johnson and reed (2021) show that diversity initiatives generally enhance innovation, there is a gap in understanding the potential downsides or obstacles that organizations might face when implementing such initiatives. additionally, the studies often focus on the effects of diversity initiatives in broad terms, lacking specificity in terms of industry or organizational type. for instance, miller, davis, and patel (2022) found a positive relationship between management team diversity and r&d innovation, but it is unclear whether this relationship holds equally across different sectors or organizational sizes. clark and taylor (2022) demonstrate the impact of inclusive policies on employee engagement and innovation, but more research is needed to understand how these policies play out in different cultural or economic contexts. geographical gaps: geographically, the existing research predominantly focuses on western contexts, particularly the united states and europe. this leaves a significant gap in understanding how diversity and inclusion initiatives impact innovation in non-western contexts. for example, wilson and green (2023) use a case study approach focusing on organizations in western countries known for their inclusive practices. there is a lack of empirical studies examining how these initiatives work in regions such as asia, africa, and latin america, where cultural norms and organizational practices may differ significantly. understanding these geographical variations is crucial for developing globally applicable diversity and inclusion strategies. furthermore, the impact of local cultural values and regulatory environments on the effectiveness of diversity initiatives remains underexplored. conclusion and recommendation conclusion in conclusion, the influence of diversity and inclusion initiatives on workplace innovation is both significant and multifaceted, as evidenced by recent empirical studies. diversity training has been shown to enhance creative problem-solving and empower employees to share unique ideas, particularly in teams with initially low cohesion (williams, smith, & johnson, 2018). inclusive leadership, characterized by valuing diverse perspectives and actively seeking different viewpoints, fosters a culture of innovation and reduces employee turnover (brown, martinez, & lee, 2019). participation in employee resource groups (ergs) has been correlated with increased innovative outputs, highlighting the supportive environment these groups provide (garcia & thomas, 2020). a meta-analysis revealed that comprehensive inclusion strategies significantly boost innovation, particularly in industries requiring high adaptability (johnson & reed, 2021). diverse management teams have been found to produce more patents and new product ideas, emphasizing the strategic importance of diversity in leadership (miller, davis, & patel, 2022). inclusive policies enhance employee engagement and reduce feelings of isolation, further driving innovation (clark & taylor, 2022). finally, inclusive workplace climates, supported by leadership commitment and inclusive policies, empower employees to share ideas and take risks, fostering a conducive environment for innovation (wilson & green, 2023). these findings collectively underscore the critical role of diversity and inclusion initiatives in driving workplace innovation. however, further research is needed to address conceptual gaps, such as the mechanisms behind diversity training and leadership styles; contextual gaps, including potential challenges and sector-specific dynamics; and geographical gaps, particularly the impact in non-western contexts. addressing these gaps will provide a more http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 29 yamnam (2024) nuanced understanding of how to effectively leverage diversity and inclusion to foster innovation across various organizational settings and cultural contexts. recommendations the following are the recommendations based on theory, practice and policy: theory scholars should develop a comprehensive multilevel framework that integrates individual, team, and organizational levels to understand the mechanisms through which diversity and inclusion initiatives influence innovation. this framework can help explain how diverse perspectives at the individual level translate into team creativity and organizational innovation. future research should delve into the intersectionality of diversity dimensions (e.g., race, gender, age) and how these intersecting identities affect innovative outcomes. this would provide a richer understanding of diversity beyond single-axis analysis. conduct longitudinal studies to examine the long-term effects of diversity and inclusion initiatives on innovation. this can help identify sustained impacts and any potential shifts in innovation patterns over time. practice organizations should tailor diversity training programs to the specific needs of different teams, as the impact of such training can vary based on initial team cohesion and other factors. customized training can ensure that all team members are effectively engaged and empowered. companies should cultivate inclusive leadership practices through targeted training and development programs. leaders who actively seek and value diverse perspectives can significantly enhance team innovation and reduce turnover (brown, martinez, & lee, 2019). organizations should support and expand ergs as strategic initiatives to boost innovation. providing resources and recognition to erg leaders can enhance their effectiveness and encourage more employees to participate (garcia & thomas, 2020). diversity should be a key consideration in succession planning and leadership development programs. promoting diversity in management teams can lead to more comprehensive and innovative problemsolving approaches (miller, davis, & patel, 2022). companies should regularly review and update their diversity and inclusion policies to reflect the evolving needs of their workforce. inclusive policies can significantly improve employee engagement and innovation (clark & taylor, 2022). policy policymakers should advocate for the adoption of holistic diversity policies that encompass recruitment, retention, and development practices. organizations with well-integrated diversity and inclusion policies experience higher levels of creative output and problem-solving abilities (johnson & reed, 2021). policies should encourage the implementation of mentorship programs, diversity councils, and regular training to create a supportive climate for diversity. this can empower employees to share ideas and take risks, fostering an environment conducive to innovation (wilson & green, 2023). policymakers and funding bodies should support research that examines the impact of diversity and inclusion initiatives in non-western contexts. this can provide insights into how these initiatives work in different cultural and economic environments, leading to more globally applicable strategies. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520-4697 (online) vol.8, issue 3, pp 21 31, 2024 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2368 30 yamnam (2024) references adebayo, o., & oluwaseun, a. 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(2023). inclusive workplace climates and innovation: a case study approach. academy of management journal, 66(1), 123-145. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2021.0078 license copyright (c) 2024 chakrit yamnam this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 0 predictive relevance of ethical leadership, quality of work life, and organisational commitment: lessons for leaders robert ampomah (phd), akenten appiah european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 1 ampomah (2025) predictive relevance of ethical leadership, quality of work life, and organisational commitment: lessons for leaders robert ampomah (phd) akenten appiah menkah university of skills training and entrepreneurial development, faculty of education and general studies, department of interdisciplinary studies, asante mampong campus article history submitted 23.01.2025 revised version received 26.02.2025 accepted 20.03.2025 abstract purpose: the study examined ethical leadership, quality of work life, and organisational commitment in colleges of education in ghana. the main purpose was to assess whether ethical leadership of principals predicted the quality of work life and organisational commitment of tutors. two hypotheses were generated based on the objectives to guide the study. materials and methods: the quantitative crosssectional design was used in this study. three hundred and fifty tutors were selected using multistage sampling procedure. three set of questionnaires were used to elicit responses from participants. multivariate multiple regression and structural equation modelling (sem) were the statistical tools used to analyse the data gathered. findings: the findings of the study indicated among others that the sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and behavioural ethics) were not predictors of sub-dimensions of the quality of work life. however, ethics in decision-making a sub-dimension of ethical leadership was a substantial predictor of relationship and cooperation and training and development a subdimension of quality of work life. the findings again showed that the sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and behavioural ethics) were not predictors of sub-dimensions of organisational commitment. however, ethics in decisionmaking a sub-dimension of ethical leadership was a substantial predictor of continuance commitment a sub-dimension of organisational commitment. the findings were discussed in relation to the literature. unique contributions to theory policy and practice: it was recommended among others that principal leaders in the colleges should foster an ethical environment in their institutions, by providing relevant ethics and soft skills training such as positivity, communication, delegation, problem-solving, and empathy. again, principal leaders should prioritise creating an inclusive work environment where every tutor felt valued and respected. this involved actively promoting diversity, ensuring equal opportunities for growth, and addressing discrimination. it is believed that through this culture of respect, tutors are more likely to feel engaged, and motivated, thereby enhancing their overall quality of work life. keywords: ethical leadership, quality of work life, organisational commitment, retention, turnover. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://orcid.org/ https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 2 ampomah (2025) introduction education remains a vital tool for national development and the development of human cognitive and thinking processes, including the enhancement of wisdom. for as long as humans have existed, education has been critical in the spread of knowledge, truth, goodness, and beauty (broudy, 2017). this means that if people do not get educated, they might not be able to do certain things or have certain skills. according to frost (2019), leadership and teachers play important roles in making sure that our educational system grows. teachers are responsible for not only making sure that students learn but also ensuring that the school system is safe (stronge, 2018). yukl (2012, p. 8) defines leadership as “the process of influencing others to understand and agree on what needs to be done and how to do it, and the process of facilitating individual and collective efforts to accomplish shared objectives”. the history of ethical leadership dates back to plato and aristotle, who were credited with developing ethical theory (tuominen, 2016). the word ethics comes from the greek word ethos, which means "customs", "behaviour", or "personality" (gülcan, 2015). this is the origin of the term "ethical leadership". primarily, ethics is concerned with defining and prescribing moral standards and behaviour (ellemers, 2017). ethical leadership is defined as “the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct through personal actions and interpersonal relationships, and the promotion of such conduct to followers through two-way communication, reinforcement, and decision-making” (brown et al., 2005, p. 120). being ethical as a professional teacher and a leader is to demonstrate conduct for the common good that is acceptable and appropriate in every area of life (ampomah, 2021). in educational management, ethical leadership has emerged as a crucial paradigm, especially when it comes to school leadership. teachers’ organisational commitment and quality of work life are greatly impacted by principals, who are moral leaders. fairness, honesty, and concern for others are the hallmarks of ethical leadership, which build mutual respect and trust among team members (brown & treviño, 2006). ethical leadership is critical in the management and administration of a successful college. however, reports indicate that there are “repetitive ethical scandals such as trick and corruption in corporate and public sector organisations today” (yukl et al., 2013, p. 38; kim & brymer, 2011, p. 680). people are reportedly becoming irritated and dissatisfied with their leaders’ performance as a result of the aforementioned (brown et al., 2005). employee awareness of these ethical issues is the reason for recent increase in attention given to ethics and integrity concepts (qing et al., 2020). the success of educational institutions depends on highly motivated teachers. a study by liu and wang (2022) indicate that teachers feel appreciated and are more dedicated to their jobs when school leaders act morally. teachers who see their profession as relevant and in line with their beliefs are more intrinsically motivated when ethical leadership is present (smith & carter, 2023). a study by kim and lee (2023), showed that teachers gain faith in their leaders and are more satisfied with their jobs when they act honourably and put justice first. high levels of trust foster a collaborative school atmosphere and lessen job stress (garcia et al., 2022). additionally, teachers who have faith in their leaders are more likely to communicate honestly, exchange creative ideas, and stick with their schools (williams & davis, 2023). poor leadership and discontent at work are major reasons why many teachers quit their jobs, making teacher retention a global problem. by creating a productive workplace where teachers are valued and encouraged, ethical leadership lessens this difficulty (hernandez & roberts, 2023). patel et al. (2023), postulate that schools with ethical leaders have lower turnover rates because teachers are less inclined to look for other jobs when they feel that their jobs are stable and fair. furthermore, schools that support ethical leadership draw and keep skilled http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 3 ampomah (2025) teachers, guaranteeing continuity in the education of their students (owen & harrison, 2022). ethical leadership improves teacher effectiveness and student outcomes by reducing burnout and job dissatisfaction in schools (martinez & clark, 2023). the concept of quality of work life (qwl) is complex and includes social, psychological, and physical aspects of the workplace. sabonete et al. (2021) defined qwl as work-life balance, safe working conditions, and growth opportunities. according to dinham and scott (2000), teachers on permanent contracts have higher qwl than those on temporary or precarious contracts. teachers’ qwl is greatly improved by opportunities for continuous professional development (cpd) (reddick et al., 2012). organisations that put employee well-being first by providing fair pay, job security, and work-life balance report greater levels of job satisfaction (kumar & sharma, 2022). zhao et al. (2023), also postulate that employees’ intrinsic motivation rises and they perform better when they feel appreciated and supported. this is supported by brown and lee (2023), when they said schools that guarantee a favourable qwl experience have higher teacher morale, which in turn creates a more engaging learning environment for students. low teacher turnover in schools guarantees consistency in curriculum implementation and student learning (gonzalez & wright, 2023). employers who prioritise professional development, worklife balance, and encouraging leadership foster enduring employee loyalty (sullivan et al., 2023). one important factor influencing teacher performance and retention is organisational commitment (oc), which is the psychological bond that a person has with their organisation. meyer and allen (1991), described organisational commitment as "a psychological state that characterises an employee’s relationship with an organisation and has implications for the decision to continue or discontinue membership in the organisation." three aspects of organisational commitment were distinguished by meyer and allen (1991): affective, continuance, and normative. teachers with higher organisational commitment are more committed to their work and match their objectives with those of the school (nassir & benoliel, 2025). by encouraging trust, openness, and moral decision-making, principal ethical leadership has been shown to improve teachers’ affective commitment (yukl et al., 2013). the principal’s role as a college leader is unique. the principal must use all the skills and attitudes that are associated with ethical leadership to make the college succeed. hence, the principal’s leadership effort in achieving the vision and mission is quite crucial. the available literature shows that there is no evidence-based research on how ethical leadership correlates with qwl and organisational commitment in the educational sector at the college in ghana, despite the growing interest in ethical leadership and its effects on organisational outcomes. by investigating how these variables interact, this study seeks to close this gap and add to the larger conversation about tutor commitment, and college leadership, and it is believed that policymakers and educational leaders can create plans to boost tutor effectiveness, create better college environments, and encourage sustained commitment by understanding these dynamics. justification of the study gaps in previous studies indicate that the concept of ethical leadership has never been addressed from the perspective of quality of work life and organisational commitment among college principals and tutors. zehra et al. (2022) studied ethical leadership as a predictor of perceived work environment and organisational employees’ commitment and organisational effectiveness. adeoye (2021) conducted a study on the mediating role of quality of work life and organisational commitment in the link between transformational leadership and organisational citizenship behaviour. this paper sought to fill this gap. another gap that was addressed focused on data analysis tools. adeoye (2021) used descriptive and pearson correlation to analyse the hypotheses. zehra et al. (2022) used the pls-sem to http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 4 ampomah (2025) analyse ethical leadership as a predictor of perceived work environment and organisational commitment. this paper adopted multivariate multiple regression and structural equation modelling (sem) to measure ethical leadership of principals, quality of work life and organisational commitment of tutors. statement of the problem ethical leadership is one of the vital tools for effective management, tutor well-being and commitment. this important management tool, however, appears to be less effectively used in colleges of education. in our rapidlyevolving college landscape, tutors face increasing demands to deliver high quality outcomes. in spite of this, many colleges struggle with tutor dissatisfaction, low organisational commitment, and a declining sense of trust and collaboration which might affect quality of work life. research suggests that ethical leadership marked by integrity, and a commitment to the well-being of others can be a powerful force in addressing challenges (brown & treviño, 2006). it appears some principals hardly resonate with tutorial staff in undertaking assigned task. hence, the question that is bothering the researcher’s mind is, what relationship exists among ethical leadership of principals’, quality of work life and organisational commitment of tutors? while ethical leadership has been linked to positive organisational outcomes in other sectors (yukl et al., 2013), its specific application and impact within the college where the stakes are uniquely tied to shaping future generations calls for deeper investigation. addressing this gap is vital to creating college culture where tutors feel empowered to excel and remain committed to their roles. purpose of the study the purpose of the study was to investigate the predictability of ethical leadership, quality of work life, and organisational commitment of tutors in colleges of education in ghana. objectives of the study 1. to determine whether ethical leadership of principals predicts quality of work life of tutors. 2. to investigate whether ethical leadership of principals predicts organisational commitment of tutors. hypotheses h1: principals’ ethical leadership will significantly predict quality of work life of tutors. h2: principals’ ethical leadership will significantly predict organisational commitment of tutors. empirical literature ethical leadership and quality of work life (qwl) research shows that ethical leadership has a crucial impact on the quality of work life (qwl) in educational settings. fu et al. (2020) discovered that ethical leadership has a positive effect on teachers’ trust and job satisfaction, which are essential aspects of qwl. when teachers operate under ethical leaders, they are more inclined to feel appreciated and inspired. ethical leaders promote fairness in task distribution, performance assessments, and decision-making, which directly influences qwl (walumbwa et al., 2011). ethical leadership promotes an environment of psychological safety, allowing teachers to express their concerns and share their ideas without apprehension, consequently improving qwl (royal, 2020). the connection between ethical leadership and qwl is crucial for fostering a positive and effective educational atmosphere. when schools implement ethical leadership strategies, they can improve qwl, resulting in increased teacher satisfaction, lower turnover rates, and better http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 5 ampomah (2025) educational results. research conducted by özdoğru and sarıer (2024) examining the link between principals’ ethical leadership and teachers’ organisational behaviour, attitudes, and perceptions indicated that ethical leadership has a favourable impact on teachers’ commitment to the organisation and diminishes occurrences of unethical behaviour, thus fostering a more supportive work environment. naeem et al. (2020) investigated how ethical leadership influences work engagement among young university educators, highlighting organisational trust as a mediating variable. the findings suggest that ethical leadership strengthens organisational trust, which in turn boosts teachers’ engagement in their workplace. similarly, a study by ng et al. (2015) looked into how effective school principals harmonise their personal ethical leadership qualities with their desire to distribute leadership responsibilities. the findings indicate that school leaders who successfully incorporate ethical principles into their leadership styles can foster a more cooperative and encouraging atmosphere for teachers and promoting qwl. despite the positive impact of ethical leadership on qwl, challenges such as finding a balance between institutional demands and individual expectations persist. research conducted by saroop (2020) indicates that even within ethical leadership frameworks, high workloads or limited resources can negatively affect qwl. the strain that ethical leadership puts on staff members to uphold high moral and ethical standards is one of its main disadvantages. although this is typically advantageous, placing too much focus on ethical conduct can lead to an unrealistic workplace where staff members feel under continual scrutiny (kim & park, 2023). teachers at schools with highly ethical leadership frequently suffer from emotional tiredness as a result of the ongoing strain to maintain integrity, live up to high ethical standards, and resolve difficult ethical quandaries (lee & patterson, 2022). burnout can result from this stress, which lowers qwl. workplace disputes and a decline in morale can result from ethical leaders enacting new ethical polices without enough employee participation (garcia et al., 2022). dissatisfaction and a diminished commitment to the organisation might result from teachers’ resistance to ethical changes in educational contexts that call for them to modify long-standing teaching methods (nguyen & taylor, 2023). while ethical leadership promotes a culture of integrity, it may also result in a restrictive setting where teachers feel overburdened by leadership duties (adams et al., 2022). by taking a more well-rounded approach, institutions may overcome the difficulties associated with ethical leadership. research shows that ethical leaders should promote employee autonomy and participative decision-making to lessen annoyance (stewart & hall, 2023). ethical leadership and organisational commitment studies have shown that ethical leadership of school principals significantly impacts teachers’ commitment to organisational goals. for instance, engelbrecht et al. (2017) found that ethical leadership positively affects organisational commitment among employees in educational settings. similarly, demirtas and akdogan (2015) reported that ethical leadership is inversely related to workplace deviance and enhances employees’ affective commitment. ethical leadership fosters a positive work environment, where teachers feel valued, respected, and supported, enhancing their commitment to the school. bedi et al. (2016) conducted a metaanalytic review and found that ethical leadership positively correlates with subordinate outcomes such as organisational commitment. ahmad et al. (2017) explored the impact of ethical leadership on teachers in pakistan and found that ethical leadership significantly improved teachers’ affective and normative commitment. yidong and xinxin (2013) argued that ethical leadership promotes ethical climates in schools, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 6 ampomah (2025) which in turn increases teachers’ loyalty to the organisation. ethical leadership influences organisational commitment through: trust and fairness. principals’ who demonstrate fairness and ethical behaviour build trust, which is foundational for organisational commitment (colquitt et al., 2001). ethical leaders serve as role models, influencing teachers to align with organisational values and norms (brown & treviño, 2006). with their role in supportive environment, an ethical leader creates an environment of psychological safety, allowing teachers to express concerns and innovate, which fosters deeper commitment (walumbwa et al., 2011). quality of work life (qwl) and organisational commitment in the educational sector, qwl and organisational commitment are critical elements that impact student performance, and teacher retention. qwl and organizational commitment in school strongly correlates (koyuncu & demirhan, 2021). since supportive environment strengthens teachers’ emotional attachment to the school, a study by akar (2018) demonstrated that high qwl strongly predicts affective commitment among teachers. qwl has been found by greenhaus and powell (2006) to have a favourable impact on normative commitment by encouraging a feeling of duty and devotion. collaborative and inclusive cultures amplify the positive effects of qwl on commitment (fullan, 2007). excessive workloads and student behavioural issues can weaken the relationship between qwl and commitment (skaalvik & skaalvik, 2010). the interplay between qwl and organisational commitment is pivotal in shaping the effectiveness and sustainability of schools. high qwl not only enhances teacher well-being but also strengthens their commitment to their schools. haj et al. (2024) assert that qwl significantly enhances affective commitment, where employees develop an emotional attachment to their organisation. their study in the education sector revealed that teachers who perceived their work environment as supportive and inclusive were more likely to demonstrate commitment and align their professional goals with those of the school. similarly, a study by piong (2016) found that ethical leadership not only influenced teachers qwl and satisfaction but also their intent to stay in their roles, emphasising its critical role in organisational retention strategies. further, ahmad et al. (2024) explored the psychological dimensions of the ethical leadership, work environment and their impact on organisational commitment. their findings indicated that a psychologically safe work environment where individuals feel free to express their opinions without fear of judgment or retaliation as a result of the leader’s belief in ethics positively affects all three dimensions of organisational commitment: affective, normative, and continuance. this highlights the importance of fostering ethical leadership where teachers feel respected and valued. moreover, a study by rehman et al. (2024) emphasised the role of leadership in shaping the work environment and, consequently, organisational commitment. they observed that ethical and transformational leadership styles make teachers motivated and fostered loyalty, reducing turnover intentions. recent research indicates that ethical leadership does not necessarily result in significant improvements and organisational commitment. ethical leadership has been connected in certain educational institutions to higher work expectations, bureaucratic pressures, and resistance to change, which ultimately fails to improve qwl or teacher commitment (kim & lee, 2023). hernandez and roberts (2023) report that schools with strict ethical leadership structures experienced a decline in teacher motivation because of the impression of micromanagement and an excessive focus on following the rules rather than using innovative teaching techniques. research by patel et al. (2023) also found that in schools where ethical leadership focused heavily on policy enforcement without teacher involvement in decision-making, staff http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 7 ampomah (2025) engagement declined. teachers who perceived ethical reforms as impractical or overly idealistic showed reduced commitment to institutional goals, negatively impacting overall school culture. the study, therefore, suggests that future studies could examine how ethical leadership interacts with cultural differences in educational institutions. materials and methods quantitative cross-sectional survey was the methodology used to investigate ethical leadership of principals’, quality of work life (qwl) and organisational commitment of tutors. creswell (2014) postulates that cross-sectional surveys provide a snapshot of current attitudes, behaviours, or conditions, which can be used to infer trends or compare groups. according to bryman (2016), cross-sectional designs are efficient ways to collect data from a large number of respondents without the prolonged commitment of longitudinal tracking. population the target population for the study comprised all tutors in colleges of education in ghana. the nature of the research problem requires data from a large number of perspectives, hence, the use of all college tutors. statistics from the colleges of education tutors association of ghana (ceteag) puts the population of tutors for 2022/2023 academic year at 1995. the accessible population comprised tutors from eighteen (18) colleges who have spent at least five years in their respective colleges. sampling and sample technique multistage sampling procedure which divides large population clusters into smaller clusters over time was used (taherdoost, 2016). multistage sampling is useful for studies targeting large populations spread across diverse locations, where a direct random sampling of individuals is impractical. babbie (2020) indicates that sampling in stages saves time and resources, particularly in studies involving widespread populations. a sample size of 350 respondents was used for the study after data collected had been edited. instruments three set of questionnaires were the data collection instruments. first, yilmaz's (2006) ethical leadership scale (els). the instrument was measured on a four-point likert scale 1=strongly disagree (sd), 4=strongly agree (sa). the reliability analysis conducted for els test produced communicative ethics sub-scale cronbach's alpha value of (.97). climate ethics scored (.95), decision-making ethics scored (.94), and behavioural ethics scored (.90), respectively (yilmaz, 2006). this suggests that there is adequate internal consistency as far as the instrument is concerned. the second set of questionnaires was the quality of work life (qwl) scale by saklani (2010). this scale was designed to assess employees’ perceptions of various aspects of their work environment and organisational context that contribute to their overall qwl. the questionnaire is a four-point likert scale and the items were rated from strongly disagree (sd = 1) to strongly agree (sa = 4). this qwl scale has been widely used in organisational studies to understand how various dimensions of quality of work life impact employee satisfaction, productivity, and retention. the organisational commitment scale developed by meyer and allen (1991) was also used. the questionnaire is a four-point likert scale and the twenty-four (24) items were rated from strongly disagree (sd = 1) to strongly agree (sa = 4). for scores obtained using the affective scale, jaros and culpepper (2014) reported median reliability coefficients of .85; for scores http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 8 ampomah (2025) obtained using the continuance scale, .79; and for scores obtained using the normative scale, .73. eligibility criteria the eligibility criteria for inclusion in this study were that tutors are holders of second degree, and had spent at least five years in the college and they could make informed decisions about their principal’s ethical leadership qualities in the college. confirmatory factor analysis (cfa) of ethical leadership scale the validity of the ethical leadership scale is presented in this section. figure 1 summarizes the cfa's specifics. figure 1 ethical leadership scale the cfa in figure 1 shows the item or factor loadings and discriminant validity. the ethical leadership scale shown in figure 1 comprised 43 items and was divided into four subscales: communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics. communicative ethics (coeth) had 15-items, followed by climatic ethics (clieth) with 11items, ethics in decision making (edm) 9-items, and then behavioural ethics (beeth) with 8items (see figure 1). the details of the items are shown in table 1. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 9 ampomah (2025) table 1: discriminant validity (el) variable coeth clieth emd beeth communicative ethics (.57)* climatic ethics .89 (.52)* ethics in decision-making .80 .89 (.57)* behavioural ethics .77 .83 .82 (.79)* *values in parenthesis are square roots of aves as shown in table 1, the correlations between the respective dimensions were greater than the square root of the aves of the relevant dimensions. in addition to determine discriminant validity, the htmt correlation ratio was again, examined, which necessitated that the correlation ratios of the dimensions be less than 0.90 (hensler et al., 2015). as a result, the intercorrelation value (.89, .89, and.82) of the sub-scale of the ethical leadership scale was lower than the value of .90. this condition explains why there is no concern with multicollinearity between or among the constructs. as a result, all of the ethical leadership scales observed variables were classified into their respective dimensions. hence, it was determined that discriminant validity has been established. for the final data collection, 43 items were chosen. the factor loadings of each item are shown in figure 1 together with the hypothesised model for ethical leadership. table 2: mean and standard deviation scores of ethical leadership scale/sub-scales n mean sd communicative ethics 250 3.18 .459 climate ethics 250 3.15 .428 ethics in decision-making 250 3.06 .418 behavioural ethics 250 3.21 .439 the mean scores of ethical leadership range from 1.0 to 4.0, where higher scores depict high practice skills, whereas, and lower scores depict low practice of ethical leadership skills. relatively, among the dimensions of ethical leadership, behavioural ethics was the highest (m = 3.21, sd = .439), while ethics in decision-making was the lowest (m = 3.06, sd = .418) in terms of practice (table 2). findings hypothesis 1 h1: principals’ ethical leadership will significantly predict quality of work life of tutors this hypothesis aimed to test whether or not principals’ ethical leadership could predict tutors qwl. the results are in two folds. the first part looks at the subdimensions of ethical leadership as predictors of sub-dimensions of qwl. the relationship between the overall constructs of ethical leadership and qwl is examined in the second section. in multivariate http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 10 ampomah (2025) multiple regression, qwl as a criterion (work environment, organisational culture, relationship and cooperation, training and development, compensation and reward, facilities, job satisfaction and security, autonomy of work and adequacy of resources) and ethical leadership as a predictor (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics) were both multidimensional. the criterion variable has numerous dimensions, therefore, after meeting criteria like normality, linearity, homoscedasticity, and multicollinearity, a strict alpha level was chosen to prevent type i error (rejecting the null hypothesis when in fact there are no significant results). to do this, the researcher applied the bonferroni adjustment recommended by tabachnik and fidel (2011), in which the original alpha was divided by the number of dimensions in the criteria variable. this means that 0.05/9 = 0.005 and that .005 was the new alpha level. table 3 presents the results. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 11 ampomah (2025) table 3: multivariate multiple regression of sub-dimensions of ethical leadership and quality of work life (qwl) 95%confidence interval partial eta squared criterion parameter b std. error t sig. lower bound upper bound squared work intercept 3.754 0.845 4.44 0 1.359 6.148 0.074 environment cometh 0.01 0.024 0.433 0.666 -0.058 0.079 0.001 clieth -0.022 0.04 -0.549 0.584 -0.136 0.092 0.001 edm 0.039 0.043 0.888 0.376 -0.084 0.162 0.003 beeth 0.119 0.049 2.435 0.016 -0.019 0.257 0.024 organisation intercept 6.225 0.718 8.667 0 4.191 8.26 0.235 culture cometh 0.036 0.02 1.752 0.081 -0.022 0.094 0.012 clieth 0.043 0.034 1.264 0.207 -0.053 0.14 0.006 edm 0.029 0.037 0.785 0.433 -0.076 0.133 0.003 beeth -0.086 0.041 -2.083 0.038 -0.204 0.031 0.017 relation and intercept 10.212 0.854 11.963 0 7.794 12.63 0.369 cooperation cometh -0.056 0.024 -2.299 0.022 -0.125 0.013 0.021 clieth 0.009 0.04 0.218 0.827 -0.106 0.124 0 edm 0.124 0.044 2.822 0.005 0 0.248 0.031 beeth -0.032 0.049 -0.647 0.518 -0.171 0.108 0.002 training and intercept 6.857 0.917 7.474 0 4.258 9.456 0.186 development cometh -0.011 0.026 -0.402 0.688 -0.084 0.063 0.001 clieth 0.023 0.044 0.531 0.596 -0.1 0.146 0.001 edm 0.135 0.047 2.869 0.004 0.002 0.269 0.032 beeth -0.024 0.053 -0.461 0.645 -0.174 0.126 0.001 compensatio n and reward intercept 9.334 0.785 11.893 0 7.111 11.557 0.366 cometh -0.039 0.022 -1.728 0.085 -0.102 0.025 0.012 clieth 0.042 0.037 1.123 0.263 -0.064 0.147 0.005 edm 0.019 0.04 0.469 0.64 -0.095 0.133 0.001 beeth -0.059 0.045 -1.31 0.192 -0.188 0.069 0.007 facilities intercept 10.257 0.797 12.878 0 8.001 12.514 0.404 cometh -0.015 0.023 -0.66 0.51 -0.079 0.049 0.002 clieth 0.02 0.038 0.53 0.597 -0.087 0.127 0.001 edm -0.059 0.041 -1.437 0.152 -0.175 0.057 0.008 beeth -0.028 0.046 -0.606 0.545 -0.158 0.102 0.001 job satisfaction intercept 7.295 0.753 9.683 0 5.161 9.429 0.277 and security cometh 0.019 0.021 0.879 0.38 -0.042 0.08 0.003 clieth 0.001 0.036 0.018 0.985 -0.101 0.102 0 edm 0.069 0.039 1.784 0.076 -0.041 0.179 0.013 beeth -0.065 0.043 -1.493 0.137 -0.188 0.058 0.009 autonomy of intercept 7.334 0.794 9.239 0 5.085 9.583 0.258 work cometh 0.02 0.023 0.873 0.384 -0.044 0.084 0.003 http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 12 ampomah (2025) clieth -0.02 0.038 -0.544 0.587 -0.127 0.086 0.001 edm 0.113 0.041 2.771 0.006 -0.003 0.228 0.03 beeth 0.025 0.046 0.539 0.59 -0.105 0.154 0.001 adequacy of intercept 8.119 1.142 7.111 0 4.885 11.353 0.171 resources cometh -0.045 0.032 -1.387 0.167 -0.137 0.047 0.008 clieth 0.029 0.054 0.536 0.593 -0.124 0.182 0.001 edm 0.087 0.059 1.484 0.139 -0.079 0.253 0.009 beeth 0.015 0.066 0.228 0.819 -0.172 0.202 0 note: ᵅr-squared = .090 (adjusted r-squared = .075). ᵇr-squared = .054 (adjusted rsquared = .039). ᶜr-squared = .044 (adjusted r-squared = .029). ᵈr-squared = .071 (adjusted r-squared = .056). ᵉr-squared = .029 (adjusted r-squared = .013). ᶠr-squared = .039 (adjusted r-squared=.024). ᶢr-squared=.027 (adjusted r-squared=.011). r-squared=.106 (adjusted r-squared=.091).rsquared=.022(adjustedr-squared=.006). table 3 displays the findings of the multivariate multiple regression test, which included, communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making and behavioural ethics which were used as predictors of the criteria for work environment, organisational culture, relationship and cooperation, training and development, compensation and reward, facilities, job satisfaction and security, autonomy of work and adequacy of resources. f(9, 237) = 38.789, wilk's lambda =.404, p =.000, indicating that wilk's lambda test for the omnibus hypothesis that all beta values across the dependent variables equal to zero were statistically significant. with work environment as the criterion for qwl, and r² =.090, p =.000. this shows that .9% of the variance in work environment that is qwl was explained by ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and ethics in decision-making and behavioural ethics. with qwl that is organisational culture as the criterion, r² = .054, p = .000. this shows that 5.4% of the variance in qwl that is organisational culture is explained by sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and ethics in decision-making and behavioural ethics). with regard to qwl, relationship and cooperation as the criterion, r² = .044, p = .000. this revealed that 4.4% of sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and ethics in decision-making and behavioural ethics) explained its variance. with r² =.071, p =.000, revealed that 7.1% of the variance in qwl that is training and development is explained by sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics). further, r² =.029, p =.000 revealed that 2.9% of the variance in qwl, compensation and reward is clarified by subdimensions of ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics. again, with facilities as a dimension of qwl the outcome variable, r² = .039, p = .000, revealed that 3.9% of the variance in qwl that is facilities is explained by sub-dimensions of ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics. moreover, with regard to qwl, job satisfaction and security as the outcome variable, r² = .027, p = .000, showed that 2.7% of the variance in qwl that is job satisfaction and security is explained by subdimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decisionmaking, and behavioural ethics). similarly, with regard to autonomy of work as a dimension of qwl as the criterion, r² = .106, p = .000, showed that 10.6% of the variance in qwl that is autonomy of work is explained by sub-dimensions of ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics. with regard to qwl which is adequacy of resources as the criterion, r² = .022, p = .000, revealed http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 13 ampomah (2025) that 2.2% of sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics) explained its variance. the study further revealed the individual dimensional predictors. using qwl a criterion, communicative ethics [b = .010; t = .433; p = .666; boot95%ci (-.058, .079)], climatic ethics [b = -.022; t = -.549; p = .584; boot95%ci (-.136, .092)], ethics in decision making [b =.039; t = .888; p = .376, boot95%ci (-.084, .162)], and behavioural ethics [b = .119; t = 2.435; p = .016, boot95%ci (-.019, .257)], sub-dimensions of ethical leadership were not predictors of qwl (work environment). the results imply that tutors with ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics are not likely to be happy at work. again, using organisational culture as a criterion, communicative ethics [b =.036; t = 1.752; p = .081; boot95%ci (-.022, .094)], climatic ethics [b = .043; t = 1.264; p = .207; boot95% ci (-.053, .140)], ethics in decision making [b = .029; t = .785; p = .433, boot95%ci (-.076, .133)], and behavioural ethics [b = -.086; t = -2.083; p = .038, boot95%ci (-.204, .031)], sub-dimensions of ethical leadership were not predictors of organiational culture a dimension of qwl. the findings suggest that tutors with communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision making, and behavioural ethics dimensions of ethical leadership are less likely to be enthused in their work culture. further analysis, showed that relationship and cooperation as an outcome variable, all the dimensions of ethical leadership, communicative ethics [b = -.056; t = -2.299; p = .022; boot95%ci (-.125, .013)], climatic ethics [b = .009; t = .218; p = .827; boot95%ci (.106, .124)], and behavioural ethics [b = -.032; t = -.647; p = .518; boot95%ci (-.171, .108)], were not predictors of relationship and cooperation a dimension of qwl. however, ethics in decision making [b = .124; t = 2.822; p = .005, boot95%ci (.000, .248)], was a significant predictor of relationship and cooperation. with regard to training and development as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = -.011; t = -.402; p = .688; boot95% ci (-.084, .063)], climatic ethics [b = .023; t = .531; p = .596; boot95%ci (-.100, .146)], and behavioural ethics [b = -.024; t = -.461; p = .645, boot95%ci (-.174, .126)], sub-dimensions of ethical leadership were not predictors of training and development a dimension of qwl. however, ethics in decision-making [b = .135; t = 2.869; p =.004, boot95%ci (.002, .269)] was found to be a predictor of training and development. the study revealed that compensation and reward as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = -.039; t = -1.728; p =.085; boot95%ci(-.102, .025)], climatic ethics [b = .042; t = 1.123; p = .263; boot95%ci (-.064, .147)], ethics in decision making [b = .019; t = .469; p = .640, boot95%ci (-.095, .133)], and behavioural ethics [b = -.059; t = -1.310; p = .192, boot95% ci (-.188, .069)], were not predictors of compensation and reward (qwl). with regard to facilities as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = -.015; t = -.660; p = .510; boot95%ci (-.079, .049)], climatic ethics [b = .020; t = .530; p = .597; boot95%ci (-.087, .127)], ethics in decision making [b = -.059; t = -1.437; p = .152, boot95%ci (-.175, .057)], and behavioural ethics [b = -.028; t = -.606; p = .545, boot95%ci (-.158, .102)], were not predictors of facilities a dimension of qwl. the results imply that tutors with communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics are not likely to have facilities at work. the results showed that job satisfaction and security as an outcome variable of qwl, communicative ethics [b = .019; t = .879; p = .380; boot95%ci (-.042, .080)], climatic ethics [b = .001; t = .018; p = .985; boot95%ci (-.101, .102)], ethics in decision-making [b = .069; t = 1.784; p = .076, boot95%ci (-.041, .179)], and behavioural ethics [b = -.065; t = -1.493; p = .137, boot95%ci (-.188, .058)], were not predictors of job satisfaction and security. with regard to autonomy of work as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = -.020; t = .873; p = .384; boot95%ci (-.044, .084)], climatic ethics [b = -.020; t = -.544; p = .587; boot95%ci (-.127, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 14 ampomah (2025) .086)], ethics in decision making [b = .113; t = 2.771; p = .006, boot95%ci (-.003, .228)] and behavioural ethics [b = .025; t = .539; p = .590, boot95%ci (-.105, .154)], sub-dimensions of ethical leadership were not predictors of autonomy of work a dimension of qwl. finally, the study revealed that adequacy of resources as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = .045; t = -1.387; p = .167; boot95%ci (-.137, .047)], climatic ethics [b = .029; t = .536; p = .593; boot95%ci (-.124, .182)], ethics in decision-making [b = .087; t = 1.484; p = .139, boot95%ci (-.079, .253)], and behavioural ethics [b = .015; t = .228; p = .819, boot95%ci (.172, .202)], were not predictors of adequacy of resources (qwl). the results imply that tutors with communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics are not likely to have adequate resources in their work. table 4: regression model for ethical leadership and quality of work life (qwl) 95% confidence interval model b se cr p lower upper (constant) 70.461 3.948 17.884 .000 62.685 78.236 ethical leadership .083 .029 2.868 .004 .026 .140 *significant, p < .05; r = .179; r² = .032 from table 4, ethical leadership explained 3.2% of the variance in qwl. ethical leadership was a substantial predictor of qwl [b = .08; p = .004; boot95%ci (.026, .140)]. this result (b = .08) implies that ethical leadership positively predicts qwl. hypothesis 2 h2: principals’ ethical leadership significantly predicts organisational commitment of tutors. this hypothesis aimed to test whether or not ethical leadership of principals could predict the organisational commitment of tutors. the relationship between the sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics) and organisational commitment (affective commitment, continuance commitment, and normative commitment), as well as the overall construct of ethical leadership and organisational commitment is examined in this section. the criteria variable has multiple dimensions, therefore after meeting assumptions like normality, linearity, homoscedasticity, and multicollinearity, a strict alpha level was chosen to prevent type i error (rejecting the null hypothesis when there are no substantial results). to do this, the researcher applied the bonferroni adjustment recommended by tabachnik and fidel (2011), in which the original alpha was divided by the number of dimensions in the criteria variable. so, since 0.05/3 = 0.017, the new alpha level was set at.017. in doing so multivariate multiple regression was used to test the hypothesis. table 5 provides the results. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 15 ampomah (2025) table 5: multivariate multiple regression of sub-dimensions of ethical leadership and organisational commitment 95% confidence interval partial eta squared criterion parameter b std. error t sig. lower bound upper bound af intercept 12.943 1.299 9.965 0 9.822 16.064 0.288 cometh -0.065 0.037 -1.767 0.078 -0.154 0.024 0.013 clieth 0.013 0.062 0.218 0.828 -0.135 0.161 0 edm 0.042 0.067 0.624 0.533 -0.119 0.202 0.002 beeth 0.126 0.075 1.68 0.094 -0.054 0.306 0.011 cc intercept 12.747 1.513 8.426 0 9.112 16.383 0.225 cometh -0.04 0.043 -0.924 0.357 -0.143 0.064 0.003 clieth -0.029 0.072 -0.402 0.688 -0.201 0.144 0.001 edm 0.197 0.078 2.53 0.012 0.01 0.383 0.025 beeth 0.023 0.087 0.265 0.791 -0.187 0.233 0 nc intercept 8.682 1.011 8.586 0 6.252 11.112 0.231 cometh -0.033 0.029 -1.149 0.252 -0.102 0.036 0.005 note: ᵅr-squared = .028 (adjusted r-squared = .012). ᵇr-squared = .038 (adjusted rsquared = .023). ᶜr-squared = .022 (adjusted r-squared = .006). table 5 presents the results of a multivariate multiple regression test in which the requirements for affective commitment, continuance commitment, and normative commitment were predicted by communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision making, and behavioural ethics. wilk's lambda was used to determine whether the omnibus hypothesis that all beta values for the dependent variables were equal to zero was statistically significant. f (3, 243) = 46.955, wilk’s lambda = .633, p = .000. with affective commitment (af) as a dimension of organisational commitment as the criterion, r² = .028, p = .000, this shows that 2.8% of the variance in affective commitment was explained by ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics. with continuance commitment as the criterion, r² = .038, p = .000, shows that 3.8% of the variance in continuance commitment is explained by sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics). with regards to the organisational commitment that is, normative commitment as the criterion, r² = .022, p = .000, revealed that 2.2% of sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics) explained its variance. in the case of dimensional predictions, it was individually based. using affective commitment as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = -.065; t = -1.767; p = .078; boot95%ci (-.154, .024)], climatic ethics [b = .013; t = .218; p = .828; boot95%ci (-.135, .161)], ethics in decision making [b = .042; t = .624; p = .533, boot95%ci (-.119, .202)], and behavioural ethics [b = .126; t = 1.680; p = .094, boot95%ci (-.054, .306)], sub-dimensions of ethical leadership were not predictors of affective commitment. the outcomes imply that tutors with ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics are not likely to have an affective commitment to their work. with regard to continuance commitment (organisational commitment) as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = -.040; t = -.924; p = .357; boot95%ci (-.143, .064)], climatic ethics [b = -.029; t = -.402; p = .688; boot95%ci (-.201, .144)], and behavioural ethics [b = .023; t = http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 16 ampomah (2025) .265; p = .791, boot95%ci (-.187, .233)], sub-dimensions of ethical leadership were not predictors of continuance commitment a dimension of organisational commitment. however, ethics in decision-making [b = .197; t = 2.530; p = .012, boot95%ci (.010, .383)] was found to be a predictor of continuance commitment. the result implies that tutors with communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and behavioural ethics are not likely to have continuance commitment but tutors with ethics in decision-making tend to put up continuance commitment to their work. using normative commitment (nc) as a criterion, communicative ethics [b = -.033; t = 1.149; p = .252; boot95%ci (-.102, .036)], climatic ethics [b = .047; t = .982; p = .327; boot95%ci (-.068, .162)], ethics in decision-making [b = .087; t = 1.677; p = .095, boot95%ci (-.038, .212)], and behavioural ethics [b = -.050; t = -.856; p = .393, boot95%ci (-.190, .090)], sub dimensions of ethical leadership were not predictors of normative commitment. the outcomes imply that tutors with ethical leadership such as communicative ethics, climatic ethics, ethics in decision-making, and behavioural ethics are not likely to have a normative commitment to their work. the study further looked at the total construct of ethical leadership in predicting the total construct of organisational commitment. the exogenous (predictor) variable was the total construct of ethical leadership which was measured continuously. the criterion variable was the total construct of organisational commitment, which was also measured continuously. the details of the simple linear regression analysis are shown in tables 6 and 7. table 6: model summary and fit statistics of the relationship between the total construct of ethical leadership and the total construct of organisational commitment model sum of squares df mean square f sig. r2 1 regression 91.163 1 91.163 2.0905 .0090 0.12 residual 7782.421 248 31.381 total 7873.584 249 a. dependent variable: total construct of organisational commitment b. predictors: (constant), total construct of ethical leadership table 7: coefficient of the prediction of the total construct of ethical leadership and the total construct of organisational commitment model b se t p llci ulci 1 (constant) 35.508 2.887 28.513 .000 29.822 41.195 ethical leadership .036 .021 -1.322 .090 -.006 .078 b—unstandardized coefficient; se—standard error; llci—lower limit confidence interval; ulci—upper limit confidence interval. the outcomes in table 6 highlight the model summary and fit statistics of the regression results. it was revealed from the analysis that the data, which comprised the total construct of ethical http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 17 ampomah (2025) leadership and the total construct of organisational commitment does not fit the model, f(1, 248) = 2.905, p = .090. the outcome of the evaluation also showed that ethical leadership explained about 1.2% of the variability in organisational commitment. table 8: moderating role of sub-dimensions of organisational commitment in the relationship between ethical leadership and quality of work life model variable b se tvalue p-value bootll bootul 1 (constant) 97.4835 14.4155 6.7624 .0000 69.0899 125.8772 ethical leadership -.2547 .1055 2.4145 .0165 -.4625 -.0469 affective commitment -1.7670 .9661 1.8289 .0686 -3.6699 .1360 el*ac .0224 .0070 3.1823 .0016 .0085 .0360 2 (constant) 102.0082 20.8641 4.8892 .0000 60.9132 143.1032 ethical leadership -.2167 .1499 1.4457 .1495 -.5119 .0785 continuance commitment -1.8010 1.2530 1.4373 .1519 -4.2691 .6671 el*cc .0174 .0089 1.9517 .0521 -.0002 .0350 3 (constant) 108.5856 16.0310 6.7735 .0000 77.0101 140.1611 ethical leadership -,2985 .1146 2.6055 .0097 -.5242 -.0728 normative commitment -3.7521 1.5980 2.3480 .0197 -6.8996 -.6046 el*nc .0378 .0114 3.3216 .0010 .0154 .0602 * significant, p < 0.05 table 8 presents results on the moderating role of sub-dimensions of organisational commitment in the link between ethical leadership and qwl. in model 1, affective commitment was found as a substantial moderator between ethical leadership and qwl (b = .0224; se = .0070; t = 3.1823; p = .0016, boot95%ci (.0085, .0363). however, continuance commitment was not found as a substantial moderator between ethical leadership and qwl (b = .0174; se = .0089; t = 1.9517; p = .0521, boot95%ci (-.0002, .0350) in model 2. in model 3, normative commitment was found as a moderator between ethical leadership and qwl (b = .0378; se = .0114; t = 3.3216; p = .0010, boot95%ci (.0154, .0602). the result implies that organisational commitment was a substantial moderator between ethical leadership and qwl of tutors. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 18 ampomah (2025) findings from the study, the results revealed that the sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and behavioural ethics) were not predictors of subdimensions of quality of work life. however, ethics in decision making, a sub-dimension of ethical leadership, was a substantial predictor of relationship and cooperation, and training and development sub-dimensions of quality of work life. when the total construct of ethical leadership was merged it predicted the total construct of quality of work life of coe tutors. the results again revealed that the sub-dimensions of ethical leadership (communicative ethics, climatic ethics, and behavioural ethics) were not predictors of sub-dimensions of organisational commitment. however, ethics in decision-making, a sub-dimension of ethical leadership was a substantial predictor of continuance commitment, a sub-dimension of organisational commitment. when the total construct of ethical leadership was put together it did not predict the total construct of organisational commitment of coe tutors in ghana. the result further showed that when organisational commitment was paired with ethical leadership and quality of work life, organisational commitment was a substantial moderator between ethical leadership and quality of work life of tutors. conclusions and recommendations conclusion ethical leadership was a significant predictor of quality of work life, according to the findings of the study. the study suggests that principal leaders with great impact on workers commonly exercise certain leadership practices on followers. per these practices, principal leaders should aim to make the quality of work life satisfactory for the staff. the reason behind this is that as long as an individual is satisfied with work and personal life, it is anticipated that the tutor will perform better. the study also revealed that ethical leadership did not predict the organisational commitment of tutors. it can be concluded that ethical leadership can transform tutors’ commitment to work which can lead to a positive impact on tutors’ productivity. when leaders cannot influence their followers positively, tutors’ productivity becomes low. when this happens, tutors’ put up negative attitudes and behaviours. the study again revealed that organisational commitment was a substantial moderator between ethical leadership and quality of work life of tutors. for this reason, organisations aiming to improve employee well-being, interventions should simultaneously emphasise developing ethical leadership and fostering organisational commitment through supportive policies, culture-building activities, and employee engagement initiatives. the positive impact of ethical leadership on qwl and organisational commitment implies that the variables play key roles in the principal’s task as the administrative head of the college and that his or her ability to deal effectively with tutors ethically will affect the institutional climate. it is believed that adequate and efficient use of the variables in the management of colleges could help to explain potential changes in tutorial staff institutional practices and performance and again, the application of these variables may minimise tutors’ turnover, and possibly increase productivity. recommendations based on the findings, the following recommendations were made: 1. principal leaders in the colleges should foster an ethical environment in their institution, by providing relevant ethics and soft skills training such as positivity, communication, http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 19 ampomah (2025) delegation, problem-solving, and empathy. by creating an ethical work environment, leaders may be able to greatly decrease turnover rates to increase productivity. as evidenced by johnson et al., (2023) that schools with ethical leadership frameworks demonstrated 25% lower turnover rates than those with less transparent leadership systems. this is again supported by chen and wang's (2023) longitudinal study which reported teacher retention in schools that used ethical leadership principles. 2. principal leaders should prioritise creating an inclusive work environment where every tutor feels valued and respected. this involves actively promoting diversity, ensuring equal opportunities for growth, and addressing discrimination. in doing this coe principals must model fairness in decision-making, openly communicate expectations, and encourage feedback to build trust. by nurturing a culture of respect, tutors are more likely to feel engaged, and motivated, thereby enhancing their overall quality of work life. lijun and te (2024) discovered that ethical leadership boosted a good organisational culture, which in turn made teachers more inclined to go above and beyond the call of duty. 3. the principals should use approaches such as good role models, improving relations with tutors, and establishing trust and mutual respect during meetings and other engagements with tutors to increase organisational commitment and prevent them from quitting work. contributions of the paper the relationships of these constructs of ethical leadership, quality of work life, and organisational commitment are crucial for organisational success. research underscores the importance of ethical leaders in cultivating a work environment that inspires commitment, ultimately driving organisational performance and employee well-being. future studies could explore moderating factors, such as cultural context and individual differences, in these relationships to provide deeper insights. declaration of conflicting interests the author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship, and/or publication of this article. funding the author received no financial support for the authorship, and/or publication of this article. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ european journal of human resource issn 2520 923x (online) vol.9, issue 1, pp 1 24, 2025 www.ajpojournals.org https://doi.org/10.47672/ejh.2657 20 ampomah (2025) references adams, t., green, p., & foster, l. 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(2023). the relationship between job satisfaction and motivation. workplace dynamics journal, 29(2), 53-72. license copyright (c) 2025 robert ampomah (phd) this work is licensed under a creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a creative commons attribution (cc-by) 4.0 license that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. http://www.ajpojournals.org/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 