ABSTRACT

The study takes an empirical inquiry to ascertain the Effect of Talent Management on Employee’s Productivity. The purpose of the study is to determine whether talent management has the potency to increase employee’s productivity in the Nigerian public sector especially in Delta State. The survey design method was used in the course of the study. The population of the study was 4,730 which comprises of the senior, middle and junior staff from five selected public sector in Delta State. The sample size was determined at 364, using Taro Yamane’s Statistical technique. Out of 364 questionnaires administered, 273 questionnaires were returned in good faith. The paper employed both primary and secondary sources in generating its data and utilizes tables and simple percentages for data analysis. Three hypotheses were formulated and the statistical instrument used for testing the hypotheses was        Z - score at 5% level of significance. Findings indicate that a well planned and managed talents increases organizational productivity and talent management provides the potentials for long-term competitive advantage. It also concludes that a well planned and managed talent helps employees to contribute optimally towards organizational productivity and top management participation in the implementation of talent management programs helps to improve employee’s productivity. The study therefore, recommends that organization should properly plan and manage their talent programs by providing adequate resources and encouragement of top management participation to ensure proper implementation of talent management programs that aims at improving employees’ productivity.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page                                                                                          ii

Certification                                                                                                iii

Dedication                                                                                         iv

Acknowledgement                                                                             v

Abstract                                                                                            vi

Table of content                                                                                vii

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study                                                            1

1.2 Statement of the problem                                                            2

1.3 Objectives of the study                                                                3

1.4 Research questions                                                                      4

1.5 Research hypotheses                                                                             4

1.6 Scope and limitation of the study                                                         5

1.7 Significance of the study                                                             5

CHAPTER TWO

2.0 Review of related literature                                                                   7

2.1 Conceptual review                                                                      8

2.2 Talent management                                                                    9

2.3 Drivers for talent management                                                   11

2.4 Performance management and appraisal                                              14

2.5 Talent management and organization performance                        16

2.6 Talent management development programme                                      17

2.7 Talent management and reward management                              18

2.8 Factors that affect talent management practice                                     19

2.9 Talent management strategy and business strategy                     21

2.10 Top management involvement                                                 22

2.11 Employee engagement                                                               23

2.12 Theoretical framework                                                             25

2.13 Empirical review                                                                       28

CHAPTER THREE

3.0 Research methodology                                                               29

3.1. Research design                                                                          29

3.2 Area of study                                                                              30

3.3 Population of the study                                                              30

3.4 Sample and sampling techniques                                                          31

3.5 Validity and reliability                                                                31

3.6 Method of data analysis                                                             31

CHAPTER FOUR

4.0 Presentation of data and analysis                                                         32

4.1 Research questions                                                                     33

4.2 Testing of hypotheses                                                                          38

CHAPTER FIVE

5.0 Summary of findings, conclusion and recommendations

5.1 Discussion of research results                                                    42

5.2 Conclusion                                                                                           43

5.3 Recommendations                                                                       44

References                                                                                         46

Appendix                                                                                          51

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Prominent researchers within human resource management and strategy wrote that “The workforce is the most expensive yet poorly managed assets in most organizations” (Becker & Beatty, 2009). Although to increase the effectiveness of a firm, several resources can be used to achieve this, which include money, men, and machine; of these resources the most important of them all is the people aspect of the organization. Nowadays, land, capital and fixed assets are no longer key resources for the organizations to be highly competitive in the current global economy (Gardener, 2002). Human capital is a key resource to adapt the organizations to the worldwide competitive challenges. Organizations are now competing against each other to acquire and retain talents in order to maintain their operations and continue to grow in terms of service and profitability. (Gerdner, 2002; Kehinde, 2012).

Besides, the world is suddenly faced with the need to make a sharp break from old habits to deliberately learn new ways of doing things. Processes are altered, factory designs are often outdated in less than five years and paralleling the compression of product and process life circles of the organizations. As a result, productive and innovative energy is apparent in every domain of business life. In such a chaotic times and crowded market places, employee productivity and innovation forms the essence of sustainable competitive advantage. Successful organizations will be those that hinge on the ability to attract, develop, retain, motivate, and lead a diverse array of appropriately skilled people, since the human factor drives everything.

Research has shown that talent management practices with a strong focus on strategy have a statistically significant impact on the attractiveness of the company, as well as the achievement of business goals, customer satisfaction and corporate profit, (Bethke-Langenegger, Mahler, and Staffel, 2011).

The workforce serving in the Nigerian public service at all tiers of government is mostly bloated, un-widely and ineffective. The service which used to be engine room of progressive policy formulation, implementation and the sole provider of basic social amenities that sustained livelihood and propelled economic development of the country, has since degenerated into a creaky apparatus of political patronage that ignores merit and put round pegs in square holes. (Abdulahi, et al, 2001).

Despite various interventions to revamp the public sector undertakings, the sector has remained in a tail spin. Confirming this, Ayida (1997) laments that in spite of several reviews and commissions of investigation, the public service of today remains a shadow of what it should be. According to him, some of the lofty ideas of efficiency, professionalism and accountability have not been achieved. Corroborating on this unfortunate situation, Adeyemo et al (2008) stress that the superstructure has remained defective and the several public service review exercises ended up with the civil service being put in a straight jacket.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The dynamics of the global business environment has become a challenge to the business organizations, both in the private and in the public sector enterprise and there is need for flexible, innovative and rational approach to the management of human capital, so as to achieve maximum productivity.

The need for business organizations to continually search for new and better means of achieving competitive advantage requires that the capacity of every functional areas in the organization to improve organizational performance becomes under scrutiny. (Kehinde, 2012). Many organizations today, fails to plan and implement appropriately their talent management policies, processes and programs and this affected the process of acquiring, developing and retaining talents that contribute to their organizational goals.

Again, in some organizations, the top managements are not actively involved in talent management practices. As a result, they did not consider talent management as a critical part of their own jobs and they fail to recognize that better talents, pull all other performance levers (Micheal, et al 2001), To increase employee’s productivity in the public sector enterprise, organizational talent management, policies, processes and programs must be planned, developed and implemented effectively, so that employee’s productivity would make a substantial impact on the firm’s performance.

The study therefore seeks to examine how talent management development programs and policies are planned, implemented and managed in Delta State Public sector and its effect on employee’s productivity.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The main objective of the study is to examine the effect of talent management in increasing employees’ productivity in Delta State Public Sector. The specific objectives include to:

1.         Determine whether a well planned and managed talents increases employee productivity.

2.         Ascertain whether top management participation in the implementation of talent management programs improves employee’s productivity.

3.         Determine whether current talent management programs and techniques adopted aims at improving employee productivity.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The study undertakes to examine the following research questions:

1.         How does a well plan and managed talent increase employee productivity?

2.         Does top management participation in talent management implementation improve employees’ productivity?

3.         To what extent do the adopted talent management programs and techniques improve employee productivity?

1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

Arising from the background, subsequent objectives of the study and research questions, the following hypotheses were generated for testing.

Hypothesis I

1. Well planned and managed talents does not increase employee productivity.

Hypothesis II

2. Top management participation in talent management implementation does not improve employees’ productivity.

Hypothesis III

3. Adopted talent management programs and techniques do not improve employee productivity.

1.6 SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The study is particularly based on human resource management and is limited to (5) five public sector business organization in Delta State of Nigeria. Namely; Delta State Water Board, State Environmental Protection Agency, Delta State University, Delta State Broadcasting Services and Delta State Rural Electrification Board.

1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study will be of great benefit to both private and the public sector, as the study will go a long way to expose them on the importance of talent management in improving their performance and to be able to deliver their services to customers effectively and efficiently.

The knowledge gained would be of great value to individual workers, business organizations and the government on how best to manage the human resources in achieving strategic and competitive advantage, through proper alignment of talents in organization to achieve effective performance.