Strategic Human Resource Management Practices and Organisational Performance: A Case of the National Assembly of Zambia ()
1. Introduction
The supposition on the practice of Human Resource Management (HRM) is that the organisation’s most important resources are the people working in the organisation and that organisational performance largely depends on them. For HRM to make meaningful impact on organisational performance, an appropriate range of human resource policies and processes must be developed and implemented effectively (Armstrong, 2008). Lawler and Mohrman (2003) also assert that HRM practices should be an integral part of the strategy of any large organization.
HRM practices are concerned with the management of people in an organisation from the time of recruitment until the time they separate from the organisation. Strategic human resource management (SHRM), knowledge management, organisation development, resourcing, performance management, learning and development, reward management and employee relations are some of the HRM practices (Armstrong, 2009).
“Strategic HRM is an approach that defines how the organization’s goals will be achieved through people by means of HR strategies and integrated HR policies and practices” (Armstrong, 2009: p. 29). Regardless of the definition controversy, it can be clearly stated that the development of the concept of SHRM has led to a significant revival of academic interest in HRM functions and a strengthening of both the theory and practice of human resource management. For example, in the realm of theory, SHRM provided intellectual support for the idea that people in an organization and the HRM system could provide a long-term source of competitive advantage (Kaufman, 2007).
O’riordan (2017) described SHRM as an interface between HRM and strategic management. In other words, it explains how the future development of an organisation and the achievement of its goals are supported by its human resource policies and practices. Having a skilled, competent and ambitious workforce is considered the basis of a competitive advantage, and SHRM encourages hiring, supporting and training highly skilled employees.
This paper is arranged as follows: in Section 1.0 is the introduction, statement of the problem and the conceptual framework. Section 2.0 consists of literature review and the research methodology is in Section 3.0. The results and discussion are presented in Section 4.0 which consists of demographic information of the respondents, test of reliability, bivariate analysis and multiple regression analysis. The conclusion is in Section 5.0, while Section 6.0 gives recommendations and finally the limitations of the study are presented in Section 7.0.
1.1. Statement of the Problem
Since the mid-1990s, numerous studies have been conducted in the United States and the United Kingdom to establish a link between SHRM and organizational performance. In general, these studies are very positive about the relationship between SHRM and organizational performance, but give little explanation why certain HR practices can improve organizational performance (Millmore, Lewis, Saunders, Thornhill, & Morrow, 2007). Armstrong (2008) also observed that many scholars of human resource management try to establish that there is an apparent connection between HRM practices and organisational performance. For that reason, much research has been done in order to answer questions whether HRM practices have a positive impact on organisational performance and how this impact is attained.
Darwish (2012) and Gituma and Beyene (2018), made reference to other scholars who were of the view that most studies that have been carried out in order to find out the relationship between SHRM practices and organisational performance, have been carried out in developed countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States of America. “As a result, HRM researchers have commonly argued that it is still difficult to draw generalised conclusions from these results and that there is a need for further investigations in different contexts” (Darwish, 2012: p. 217).
According to Gituma and Beyene (2018) SHRM is at the heart of all organizations, especially the public sector, helping people working in the public sector adapt to changing government roles. The need for public sector skills and knowledge in the areas of policy making, organisational management and public service delivery is more needed than ever. They were also of the view that studies on the linkage between SHRM practices and organisational performance that have been carried out in the African perspective, are very few. Hence, at the time of conducting this research, the researcher did not find any record of a study that had been carried out in Zambia on the research topic and specifically in a public sector organisation.
In addition, the National Assembly of Zambia has in place the Human Resource Department which spearheads the formulation and implementation of SHRM practices at the Institution such as organisation, resourcing, learning and development, performance and reward management and employee welfare. However, the impact that these SHRM practices have on organisational performance at the Institution is not known.
Therefore, the researcher tried to examine the impact of SHRM practices on organisational performance (employee commitment, employee performance and service delivery) by making specific reference to the National Assembly of Zambia.
1.2. Conceptual Framework
A conceptual framework based on SHRM practices (organisation, resourcing, learning and development, performance and reward management and employee welfare) at the National Assembly was formulated in order to examine the impact that they have on organisational performance in terms of employee commitment, employee performance and service delivery (Figure 1).
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Figure 1. Conceptual framework for analysing the impact of SHRM practices on organisational performance at the National Assembly of Zambia.
2. Literature Review
This section presents the literature review on strategic human resource management practices and organisational performance. The literature highlights various view points and explanations on strategic human resource management and organisational performance and the potential gaps that exist in successfully implementing strategic human resource management practices.
2.1. Historical Overview of the Study
Human resource management is considered a general activity that involves managing the labour of others in production and dates back to the dawn of human history. The first visible roots of HRM functionality practiced in today’s modern business organizations emerged at about the same time in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the United States in the late 19th century. Japan experienced almost the same development about 10 years later (Kaufman, 2007). Armstrong (2014) also posits that an early reference to human resources was made in the year 1966. Further, he explained that it was later stated that “people are an important resource” in the organisation. However, HRM only appeared in the 1980s through the works of what may be its founding fathers. These were the American scientist Charles Fombrun and his colleagues in the “Matching Model”, and Michael Beer and his colleagues in the “Harvard Framework”.
HRM had a conceptual framework of underlying philosophies through a wide range of theories. That is, from behavioural science to strategic management, human capital and labour relations. HRM’s philosophy has been strongly criticized by scholars for being business-oriented and operational, but it has become clear that the term HRM has probably been adopted as a synonym for what was once known as personnel management. Therefore, the criticism has decreased (Armstrong, 2014).
The term SHRM evolved in the 1990s and is proactive and comprehensive in human resource management, focusing on issues such as human resource management practices and alignment with organizational strategic goals, and incorporation of human resource management. A targeted, value-based approach has become more meaningful in strategic approach to strategic organizational management, engaging senior management teams with HR functions, transferring HR practices to line managers and adding value to employee compensation, selection, performance evaluation, and organizational performance through HRM (Gituma & Beyene, 2018). Future research on SHRM should focus on conceptually expanding the role of SHRM. Historically, SHRM has been seen as the interface between HRM and strategic management. There are many studies focused on understanding the function of HRM (especially HRM practice), and can be strategically adjusted to directly contribute to its competitive advantage (Allen & Patrick, 2007).
2.2. Nature of Strategic Human Resource Management Practice
According to O’riordan (2017), textbooks and commentators have increasingly referred SHRM instead of HRM, Since the 1990s. One of the key characteristics of human resource management is that, it is strategic. This means that human resource policies and practices are influenced by the organization’s overall goals, which is great. However, the terms SHRM and HRM have often been used interchangeably and the difference between the two is primarily conceptual and academic. In essence, strategic HRM is a concept; it is a broad understanding of how to achieve integration or “fit” between HR and business strategies, the advantages of taking a longer-term view of where HR should go and how to get there, and how to develop and implement coherent and mutually supportive HR strategies. It’s also about how HR professionals should approach strategic thinking on a daily basis. This means they work as part of the management team, ensuring that HR activities continue to complement and bring value to the organisation’s business strategy (Armstrong, 2014).
2.3. Strategic Human Resource Management and Organisational Performance
All organisations are obliged by the stakeholders to perform well. In doing so, they depend on the quality, commitment, enthusiasm, expertise and skills of the people who work for them at all levels. The message of resource-based views is that HRM can help add value and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage through strategic development of the organisation’s human resource (the employees). The specificity of HRM is the assumption that performance gains are achieved by people within the organisation. Therefore, if appropriate HR policies and practices are in place, HRM can also be assumed to affect organisational performance (Armstrong, 2014).
According to (Millmore et al., 2007), one of the main concerns of researchers in the past years has been to demonstrate that there is a cause-link between HR and organisational performance. However, Armstrong (2014) was of the view that many studies have shown a link between HRM and performance, but it leaves uncertainty about the cause and effect. “HR practices seem to matter; logic says it is so; survey findings confirm it. Direct relationships between performance and attention to HR practices are often fuzzy, however, and vary according to the population sampled and the measures used.” (Armstrong, 2014: p. 54) “After hundreds of research studies we are still in no position to assert with any confidence that good HRM has an impact on organization performance.” (Armstrong, 2014: p. 54)
There is no consensus among researchers on what HRM practices should be or how many practices can improve the performance of an organization. Almost all studies of HRM Performance Links use different combinations of HR practices. There is no standard or semi-standard list of HR practices that need to be considered and measured in terms of their relationship to organizational performance (Darwish, 2013).
3. Research Methodology
The research design that was used in this study was quantitative survey design. According to Kothari (2004), quantitative research is based on the measurement of quantity or amount. It is applicable to phenomena that can be expressed in terms of quantity. Quantitative is primarily used as a synonym for data collection techniques (such as questionnaires) or data analysis procedures (such as graphs and statistics) that generate or use numerical data. Conversely, Survey strategies allow the researcher to collect quantitative data that can be quantitatively analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (Saunders et al., 2007). Therefore, a predominantly closed-ended questionnaire was used to obtain the respondent’s views regarding the impact of SHRM practices on organisational performance at the National Assembly of Zambia.
Creswell and Clark (2011) define a population as “a group of individuals who have the same characteristic”. In this case, the study population for this research was the employees of the National Assembly of Zambia. The population of employees at the National Assembly of Zambia was 1200. Five hundred and eighty-five (585) employees were based at the headquarters and the Constituency Offices had a total of six hundred and fifteen employees (615).
The sample size should not be too large or too small. It should be optimal. An optimal sample meets the requirements for efficiency, representativeness, reliability and flexibility. When determining the sample size, the researcher must determine not only the acceptable reliability of the estimate, but also the required accuracy (Kothari, 2004).
The following formula was employed in order to determine the sample size for this study:
where:
n = sample size,
N = population of the study,
e = margin of error percentage.
Data Collection Procedure and Analysis
The study incorporated both primary and secondary sources of data.
Primary data—This component of the research involved collecting data from the participants by using a questionnaire.
Secondary data—This method was used to supplement inadequacies arising from using primary sources and supporting the problem statement under study. Information was gained by researching websites and other written materials such as books, magazines, journals and reports.
Data analysis was done using IBM SPSS Software. The Mean and standard deviation methods were used to determine the magnitude and direction of relationships between variables. In addition, the Pearson Correlation Coefficient and Multiple Regression Analysis were adopted. The Mean and standard deviation helped to rank some of the factors that influence the dependent variable. In addition to mean and standard deviation, an analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used in order to strengthen the validity of the results. To analyze qualitative data, the researcher used content analysis.
4. Results and Discussion
This section highlights the research results for the study from the frequency, descriptive, correlation and regression tests. The results were interpreted using SPSS and were then presented in charts, graphs and frequency tables for easy understanding.
The study results were adequate to attain the objectives of the study and respond to the study questions. The discussion of findings covers the study objectives and study questions in detail in order to give statistical interpretation of the results.
4.1. Demographic Information of the Respondents
Figure 2 below shows that 59% of the respondents on gender were male while 41% were female.
Figure 3 indicates that 8 respondents representing 5% had a certificate as the highest level of education. Those who had a diploma were 27 representing 16%. 99 respondents, representing 60% had a first degree and 30 respondents representing 18% had a master’s degree as highest level of education.
In Figure 4, 13 respondents, representing 8% had a length of employment of less than 1 year. 42 respondents and 110 respondents, representing 25% and 67% had a length of employment of 1 - 5 years and more than 5 years, respectively.
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Figure 2. Gender distribution of the respondents. Source: Survey data (2022).
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Figure 3. Respondent’s highest level of education. Source: Survey data (2022).
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Figure 4. Respondent’s length of employment. Source: Survey data (2022).
4.2. Test of Reliability
Ursachi et al. (2015) state that the common accepted rule is that α of .6 to .7 indicates an acceptable level of reliability. The α of .8 or greater a very good level of reliability, values higher than .95 are not necessarily good, since they might be an indication of redundance.
Table 1 shows that the Cronbach’s Alpha values for all the independent variables (organisation, resourcing, learning and development, performance and reward management and employee welfare) tested were >.7. The dependent variable also had a value of >.7.
4.3. Bivariate Analysis
According to Sarangam (2021), Bivariate analysis is a type of statistical analysis in which two variables are observed with each other. One of the variables is dependent and the other is independent. Variables are indicated by X and Y. In this research, bivariate analysis was done in order to establish the relationship between strategic human resource management practices and organisational performance at the National Assembly. Pearson Correlation Coefficient (r) was used to establish the relationship between strategic human resource management practices and organisational performance by ranking the two (02) variables using ordinal scale. This was done in order to find out whether there was a correlation between the independent variables and the dependent variable before addressing the main objective of this research.
A Pearson correlation coefficient was run as shown in Table 2, to determine the correlation between organisation and organisational performance using responses from the respondents. The results revealed that there was a weak, positive correlation between organisation and organisational performance (r = .056, p = .477). Since the p > .05, it means that there is no statistically significant correlation between organisation and organisational performance.
Table 3 indicates that the Pearson correlation coefficient on the correlation between resourcing and organisational performance revealed that there was a strong, positive correlation (r = .504, p = .001). Since the p < .05, it means that there is statistically significant correlation between resourcing and organisational performance.
Source: Survey data (2022).
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Table 2. Pearson correlation coefficient between organisation and organisational performance.
Source: Survey data (2022)
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Table 3. Pearson correlation coefficient between resourcing and Organisational Performance.
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Source: Survey Data (2022).
Table 4 shows that the Pearson correlation coefficient on the correlation between learning and development and organisational performance was a strong, positive correlation (r = .605, p = .001). With the p < .05, there was statistically significant correlation between learning and development and organisational performance.
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Table 4. Pearson correlation coefficient between learning and development and Organisational Performance.
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Source: Survey Data (2022).
Table 5 shows that the Pearson correlation coefficient on the correlation between performance and reward management and organisational performance revealed that there was a strong, positive correlation (r = .526, p = .001). With the p < .05, there is statistically significant correlation between performance and reward management and organisational performance.
A Pearson correlation coefficient was run as shown in Table 6, to determine the correlation between employee welfare and organisational performance using responses from the respondents. The results indicated that there was a strong, positive correlation between employee welfare and organisational performance (r = .457, p = .001). Since the p < .05, it means that there is statistically significant correlation between employee welfare and organisational performance.
Table 7 illustrates that the Pearson correlation coefficient on the correlation between all human resource management practices and organisational performance indicated that there was a strong, positive correlation (r = .611, p = .001). With the p < .05, there was statistically significant correlation between all human resource management practices and organisational performance.
H6: There is a relationship between all Human Resource Management practices and organisational performance
The null hypothesis was therefore accepted since the results indicated that p < .05 (see Table 11 for a summary of hypothesis results).
4.4. Multiple Regression Analysis
In order to find out the impact of strategic human resource management practices on organisational performance, a Multiple Regression Analysis (MRA) was formulated. According to Gallo (2015) regression analysis is a mathematical way to find out which of the variables actually have an impact. It answers the questions: which factor is the most important? Which one can be ignored? How do these elements work together? And perhaps the most important question is how confident are we about all these factors?. MRA calculates multiple correlation coefficients R2. The independent variable explains the percentage of variance of
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Table 5. Pearson correlation coefficient between performance and reward management and organisational performance.
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Source: Survey Data (2022)
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Table 6. Pearson correlation between employee welfare and organisational performance.
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Source: Survey Data (2022).
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Table 7. Pearson correlation between all human resource management practices and organisational performance.
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Source: Survey Data (2022).
the dependent variable. The contribution of the independent variable to the dependent variable is measured by the beta value and can be explained based on the p or t value (Miranda & Fernando, 2020).
Table 8 indicates an R Square of .439 which, when translated to a percentage, is 44%. This means that, 44% of the impact of Organisational Performance at the National Assembly could be credited to the collective impact of predictor variables and for that reason, hypothesis 6 is supported.
Strategic Human resource Management Practices in the model above showed the ability to predict Organisational Performance (R2 = .439). In this model the value of R2 denotes that 44% of the observed variability in Organisational Performance can be accounted for by Strategic Human Resource Management Practices (Employee Welfare, Organisation, Resourcing, Performance and Reward Management, Learning and Development).
However, 56% is not accounted for and this means that the 56% of the variation of Organisational Performance is related to other variables which are not depicted in the model. Table 9 shows that this variance was highly significant as indicated by the F value (F = 24.893 and p < .01).
Table 10 gave an explanation of the predictor variables that could contribute to the relationship with the dependent variable. Holding all the other independent variables (Employee Welfare, Organisation, Resourcing, Performance and Reward Management, Learning and Development) constant, the regression equation reviewed that Organisational Performance at the National Assembly will be 1.274.
The model also gave an explanation that if all other predictor variables are taken at zero, a unit decrease in organisation would lead to −.064 decrease in Organisational Performance. A unit increase in resourcing would lead to .100 increase in Organisational Performance. Further, the model showed that a unit increase in the learning and development would lead to .326 increase in Organisational Performance. Furthermore, the model exhibited that a unit increase in performance and rewards management would lead to lead to .145 increase in Organisational Performance and a unit increase in Employee Welfare would
a. Predictors: (Constant), Employee Welfare, Organisation, Resourcing, Performance and Reward Management, Learning and Development. Source: Survey Data (2022).
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Table 9. Analysis of variance (ANOVA).
a. Dependent Variable: Organisational Performance; b. Predictors: (Constant), Employee Welfare, Organisation, Resourcing, Performance and Reward Management, Learning and Development. Source: Survey Data (2022).
a. Dependent variable: Organisational performance. Source: Survey data (2022).
lead to .191 increase in Organisational Performance at the National Assembly.
1) H1: Organisation has a positive impact on organisational performance.
For organisation, the value of t was −1.119. This therefore means that the null hypothesis was rejected.
2) H2: Resourcing has a positive impact on organisational performance.
The value of t for resourcing was 1.065. The null hypothesis was accepted.
3) H3: Learning and Development has a positive organisational performance.
Learning and development had a t value of 3.449. Therefore, the null hypothesis was accepted.
4) H4: Performance and Rewards management has an impact on organisational performance.
Performance and reward management had a t value of 1.982. The null hypothesis was accepted.
5) H5: Employee welfare has a positive impact on organisational performance.
The t value for employee welfare was 3.260. Therefore, the null hypothesis was accepted.
To test for the significance of the coefficients, test statistics which are reported under the t column were formed. For organisation, the value of t was −1.119 (p = .265, p > .01). For resourcing, the value of t was 1.065 (p = .289, p > .01). Learning and development had a t value of 3.449 (p = .001, p < .01). The t value for performance and reward management was 1.982 (p = .049, p > .01). For employee welfare, the value of t was 3.260 (p = .001, p > .01).
Despite resourcing having a positive impact on organisational performance, the result showed a weak, positive impact. Therefore, it can be concluded that learning and development, performance and reward management and employee welfare have significant impact on organisational performance at the National Assembly (see Table 11 for a summary of hypothesis results).
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Table 11. Summary of hypothesis results.
Source: Author (2022).
4.5. Findings on the Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents
It was found that the majority of the respondents in this study were male and it was also found that the majority of the respondents in this were married. The findings also revealed that a total of 81 respondents, out of 165 valid responses, were aged between 41 and 50. In addition, it was found that 60% of the respondents had a first degree as their highest level of education. 70% of the respondents were employed on permanent basis, while 67% of the respondents had worked for the National Assembly for more than five (05) years.
4.6. Findings on the Respondent’s Human Resource Management Practices Knowledge and Organisational Knowledge
The findings revealed that almost all respondents were knowledgeable about human resource management practices at the National Assembly with 50% majority of the respondents indicating that their knowledge about human resource management practices at the National Assembly was good. Only 2% indicated that their knowledge about human resource management practices at the National Assembly was poor. This gave confidence to the researcher that the responses by the respondents in this study were based on an informed point of view because of their awareness about human resource management practices at the National Assembly.
In addition, the findings showed that a good number of the respondents were involved in HRM practices at the National Assembly. However, only 47% majority of the respondents indicated their involvement in HRM practices as good with 8% and 1% indicating poor and very poor, respectively.
The majority of the respondents, at 39%, indicated that their knowledge about the National Assembly strategic plan was moderate. However, 38% and 8% indicated that their knowledge about the National Assembly strategic plan was good and very good, respectively.
4.7. Findings on the Impact of Organisation
The findings revealed that the respondents were in agreement, by a mean of 3.86 that the organisational structure contributes to organisational performance at the National Assembly. Nevertheless, the respondents also agreed, by a higher mean of 3.96 that organisational performance can improve if the organisational structure was reviewed.
Consequently, the findings of the bivariate analysis which was done in order to find out the correlation between organisation and organisational performance revealed a week, positive correlation (p > .05). Meaning that, there was no statistically significant correlation.
Further, the findings of the MRA which was done in order to test the null hypothesis (organization has a positive impact of organisational performance) also revealed that the t value for organisation was −1.119 which resulted in the null hypothesis being rejected. Therefore, this study has shown that there is need to review the aspect of organisation among the strategic human resource management practices at the National Assembly.
Hence, the respondents made a recommendation that the National Assembly should redesign the Departmental organogram and that a scientific approach should be used when making changes to the organisational structure. According to Millmore et al. (2007), the organisational structure does not just represent the working relationships in an organisation because its importance is essential and strategic to organisations than simply producing organisational charts to show who reports to whom. It can be argued that strategic management of key elements of HR functions, such as recruitment and selection, pay and reward, training and development, leads to strategic HR policies and practices. This is arguably true, but without an organisational structure that supports current and future activities in these key HR areas, achieving this strategic approach can be difficult, if not impossible (Millmore et al., 2007).
4.8. Findings on the Impact of Resourcing
The findings on the impact of resourcing showed that the respondents were in agreement, by an average mean score of 3.70 that resourcing has an impact on organisational performance at the National Assembly.
The bivariate analysis findings on the correlation between resourcing and organisational performance revealed a strong, positive correlation (p < .05). Meaning that, there was a statistically significant correlation.
Further, the findings of the MRA which was done in order to test the null hypothesis (resourcing has a positive impact of organisational performance) also revealed that the t value for resourcing was 1.065 which resulted in the null hypothesis being accepted. In that regard, it was concluded that the aspect of resourcing among strategic human resource management practices at the National Assembly positively impacted organizational performance.
However, recommendations were made by the respondents on the need for the National Assembly to implement inter-departmental support services, selective hiring and external recruitments. According to Millmore et al. (2007), recruitment and selection is only part of the human resourcing practice but it is at the centre of human resourcing in an organisation. The importance attached to recruitment and selection is evident in the assertion that appointment decisions are some of the most crucial ones ever taken by employers. Therefore, there is need for Management at the National Assembly to improve on the aspect of recruitment and selection in response to the finding of this study which showed that despite resourcing having a positive impact on organisational performance, the result showed a weak, positive impact.
4.9. Findings on the Impact of Learning and Development
The study found that the respondents were in agreement that learning and development contributes to organisational performance at the National Assembly. This was shown by an average mean score of 3.57 in the descriptive statistics on the impact of learning and development. Mdhlalose (2020) conducted a study with the aim of evaluating the impact of Training and Development on organisational performance. Among the findings of the study, it was found that employee’s performance increases after completing a training programme.
The bivariate analysis findings on the correlation between learning and development and organisational performance revealed a strong, positive correlation (p < .05). This meant that, there was a statistically significant correlation.
The findings of the MRA which was done in order to test the null hypothesis (learning and development has a positive impact of organisational performance) also revealed that the t value for learning and development was 3.449 which resulted in the null hypothesis being accepted. Therefore, it was concluded that the aspect of learning and development among strategic human resource management practices at the National Assembly had a positive impact on organisational performance. Mdhlalose (2020), in a study conducted to evaluate the impact of training and development on organisational performance, found that training and development had a positive impact on the overall performance of the workforce within the department that was under study.
Nevertheless, the recommendations from the respondents were an indication that the National Assembly can do more regarding learning and development in order to further improve its impact on organisational performance. One of the recommendations from the respondents was on the need for the National Assembly to development a policy about succession planning. The statement in the descriptive statistics, on the impact of learning and development, that the National Assembly has a deliberate succession plan which contributes to organizational performance, had the lowest mean of 3.08, followed by a mean of 3.22 on the statement that the National Assembly regularly sponsors staff for training in line with the strategic plan. This later mean is supported by the recommendation of the respondents that investment was needed in training of employees to create an organisation in which the rate of learning matches the pace of change and that the capacities of employees should be developed at all levels to support performance improvement.
4.10. Findings on the Impact of Performance and Reward Management
The descriptive statistics findings indicated that the respondents were in agreement that performance and rewards management contributed to organisational performance at the National Assembly, based on the average mean score of 3.58.
The bivariate analysis findings on the correlation between performance and reward management and organisational performance revealed a strong, positive correlation (p < .05). Therefore, there was a statistically significant correlation.
The findings of the MRA which was done in order to test the null hypothesis (performance and reward management have a positive impact of organisational performance) revealed that the t value for performance and reward management was 1.982 which resulted in the null hypothesis being accepted. Therefore, it was concluded that performance and reward management positively impacted organisational performance at the National Assembly.
The respondents made a recommendation that the National Assembly should implement modern performance appraisal systems like the 360 degrees. The other recommendations were on the need to introduce best performer of the month awards and on the need to leverage Information Communication Technology (ICT) applications such as the Human Resource Information Management Systems (HRIMS) to enhance management of human resource and performance capacities.
A Mean of 3.32 was the lowest for the descriptive statistics on the impact of performance and reward management. This was on a statement that performance appraisal at the National Assembly is based on agreed targets between the supervisor and subordinate at the start of the appraisal period. This lower Mean is warranted by the respondent’s recommendation that the performance appraisal system should be improved in order for it to have proper targets that are easily reviewable and that the appraisal system needs to be revised to ensure that it is responsive to the job descriptions of staff and KPIs.
In a study on strategic human resource management practices and organisational performance at the National Insurance Corporation of Eritrea, Gituma and Beyene (2018), found that the corporation did exceptionally well in performance appraisal. For example, management at the corporation uses the results of employee’s performance as a basis for selecting best performers who are in turn rewarded in a number of ways. However, it was found that performance management was hindered by numerous factors which included, but were not limited to inadequate qualified personnel to conduct objective performance appraisals; absence of job description owing to labour shortage which forced the corporation to reassign staff duties on a contingency basis. Moreover, supervisor’s; and limited practices of the formal performance evaluation criteria as well as absence of formal performance appraisal guidelines/policies were major bottlenecks to performance management.
4.11. Findings on the Impact of Employee Welfare
The findings showed that the average Mean score for the descriptive statistics on the impact of employee welfare was 3.96. This means that the respondents agreed that employee welfare had an impact on organizational performance at the National Assembly.
The bivariate analysis on the correlation between employee welfare and organisational performance found that there was a strong, positive correlation (p < .05). Therefore, there was a statistically significant correlation.
The findings of the MRA which was done in order to test the null hypothesis (employee welfare has a positive impact of organisational performance) revealed that the t value for employee welfare was 3.260 which resulted in the null hypothesis being accepted. Therefore, it was concluded that employee welfare positively impacted organisational performance at the National Assembly.
The only recommendations from the respondents regarding employee welfare were for the National Assembly to subscribe to health insurance schemes in order for members of staff to have a variety of health facilities and that the National Assembly should subscribe to a health fitness centre or build a fitness centre.
4.12. Findings on the Relationship between All Human Resource Management Practices and Organisational Performance
The findings revealed through the descriptive statistics that the respondents agreed that organisation, resourcing, learning and development, performance and reward management and employee welfare contributed to employee commitment, employee performance and service delivery by a Mean of 3.81, 3.83 and 3.85, respectively. The findings also revealed that the respondents were in agreement on the collective contribution to employee commitment, employee performance and service delivery by organisation, resourcing, learning and development, performance and reward management and employee welfare. This was shown in the descriptive statistics by a Mean of 3.87.
The bivariate analysis on the correlation between all human resource management practices and organisational performance also found that there was a strong, positive correlation (p < .05). Therefore, there was a statistically significant correlation between all human resource management practices and organisational performance at the National Assembly.
4.13. Other Findings from the Respondents Recommendations
The other findings were that the respondents were of the view that there is need for institutional transparency, employee engagement and access to information by the employees. The respondents were also of the view that employees should be able to give feedback to their supervisors and Management. The need for Management at the National Assembly to get feedback anonymously from employees, considering that National Assembly employees do not belong to a trade union, was recommended by the respondents.
It was also revealed that the respondents were of the view that the National Assembly should avoid employee attrition and that employees in the constituency offices should be recruited on permanent and pensionable basis.
4.14. Future Research
Numerous issues suitable for further studies arose from this study. This study was limited to one Public Institution (the National Assembly of Zambia). Therefore, future studies can be conducted in other public Institutions in Zambia in order to validate the findings of this study. A number of public Institutions can also be studied at the same time in order to generalise the findings to other Public Institution.
Further, the study reviewed that 44% of the observed variability in Organisational Performance can be accounted for by Strategic Human Resource Management Practices (Employee Welfare, Organisation, Resourcing, Performance and Reward Management, Learning and Development) at the National Assembly. Therefore, there is need to conduct research in order to find out the other variables that account for the 56% of the variation of Organisational Performance.
5. Conclusion
The correlation results for this study established that there was a weak relationship between organisation and organisational performance at the National Assembly. However, the correlation results showed a strong relationship between resourcing and organisational performance. There was also a strong relationship between learning and development and organisational performance. Further, performance and reward management as well as employee welfare also showed a strong relationship with organisational performance. In general, the correlation results revealed that there was a strong relationship between all human resource management practices and organisational performance at the National Assembly.
Nevertheless, the multiple regression analysis results revealed that only 44% of the observed legitimacy in organisational performance at the National Assembly could be accounted for by strategic human resource management practices which were depicted in the model for this study. This meant that 56% of the disparity of organisational performance was related to other factors which were not included in the model for this study.
The multiple regression analysis results also showed that organisation had a negative impact on organisational performance at the National Assembly, while resourcing had a weak, positive impact. Learning and development had a strong positive impact and performance and reward management also showed a moderate, positive impact. Further, employee welfare had a strong positive impact on organisational performance at the National Assembly. Therefore, it was concluded that learning and development, performance and rewards management and employee welfare have significant impact on organisational performance at the National Assembly.
The data collected by the questionnaire in form of recommendations by the study participant on human resource management practices that could improve organisational performance at the National Assembly, could help Management at the National Assembly to improve inadequacies in strategic human resource management practices revealed by this study.
6. Recommendations
Based on the data that was collected during the study, the researcher was able to formulate recommendations that may be useful to Management at the National Assembly in the implementation of SHRM practices. The followings are the recommendation:
1) There is need for Management at the National Assembly to review the organisational structure in order to address the negative effect that it has on organisational performance as revealed by this study.
2) The National Assembly should break down organisational silos that exist at the Institution. One way to do this could be by implementing inter-departmental support services whereby departments are able to supplement each other when there is a shortfall of manpower in one department. This can also give employees an opportunity to experience working in other departments and it can also improve employee skills and capabilities.
3) The National Assembly should have a deliberate policy on continuous professional development as well as a succession plan policy. It is also important for the National Assembly to orient all the employees on the operations of the Institution. This is important because employees need to understand how their work contributes to the success of the organisation.
4) There is also need for the National Assembly to devise a target setting system which should inform the employee’s performance appraisal. The appraisal system should also be responsive to the job descriptions and key performance indicators and the strategic plan.
5) The National Assembly should have a deliberate policy on Institutional transparency, employee engagement and access to information in order to discourage hearsay and rumour mongering. Employees should also be allowed to give feedback to supervisors and Management. This can be done through the use of suggestion boxes or employee engagement meetings.
7. Limitations of the Study
There are usually limitations when conducting research. This is because a single study is not able to deal with all facets of the problem. This study’s limitation was that it only used quantitative methods for data collection. Therefore, the study was unable to capture people’s emotions, attitudes and behaviours. Also, the researcher did not have an opportunity to ask the participants questions using an open-ended questionnaire which would have resulted in both qualitative and quantitative methods research methods. Another limitation was that the study focused only on the National Assembly of Zambia, thereby the researcher not being able to generalise the findings to other public Institutions.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to acknowledge the participants in this study for their valuable contribution and the National Assembly of Zambia for allowing the author to conduct the study at the Institution.