Talent Management and Performance of Employees Among Teaching Professionals in Public Secondary Learning Institutions in Kiambu County, Kenya

Abstract

Attracting, developing and retaining top performing teaching professionals in public secondary learning institutions is vital. This is because it determines the ability of the learning institution to achieve its overall target and goals. The general objective of the study was to investigate talent management and performance of employees among teaching professionals in public secondary learning institutions in Kiambu County, Kenya. The study’s specific objectives were to determine the extent to which talent attraction strategies affects the performance of employees, to determine the effect of training on employees performance, to establish the effect of talent retention strategies on employees performance and finally to examine how career advancement influences employees performance amongst teaching professionals in public secondary learning institutions in Kiambu County, Kenya. The research utilized equity theory of motivation, Herzberg's motivation/hygiene theory and acquired needs theories. A descriptive research design approach was preferred for this study where the targeted population to be studied was 3617 teaching professionals working in the public secondary learning institutions within the county government of Kiambu. The sampling technique employed was the stratified sampling method to obtain a population sample size of 120 respondents. Primary data used in the study was collected using semi structured questionnaires. The questionnaires were pilot tested where six (6) respondents were used. This study used Cronbach’s coefficient alpha to test reliability, where Cronbach coefficient alpha of not less than 0.7 was adequate and appropriate for evaluation purposes, while validity was tested using face, content and constructs validity. Self-administered questionnaires were used on the respondents of the study through household drop-off survey method. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS while qualitative data was analyzed through content analysis. Results showed that there was a statistically significant positive relationship between talent attraction, training, talent retention, career advancement and employee performance. The study concluded that talent attraction, training, talent retention and career advancement are significant talent management indicators that affect employees performance amongst teaching professionals in public secondary learning institutions in Kiambu County, Kenya. The management of public secondary learning institutions should therefore consider all these indicators for their schools to improve employee productivity, service delivery and achievement of targets.