Employees Empowerment and Organizational Performance: A Case of Nyeri Catholic Secretariat

Abstract

Nyeri Catholic Secretariat is a key stakeholder in Nyeri County where it has established schools, hospitals, colleges, commercial farming, press, social development projects among other projects. Through different departments, NCS has equipped the Catholic Archdiocese of Nyeri in its mission of evangelization, social development, health provision and financial development. NCS employs hundreds of workers making it a top employer, a key service provider and a business partner to many organizations. NCS has traditionally been applying bureaucratic and hierarchical management style which is increasingly becoming unviable in the contemporary business set up. A people friendly, participative management style where employees have authority to decide is preferred for competitiveness and survival of organizations. This study examined the contribution of the practice of staff empowerment on the overall performance of an organization with a specific reference to Nyeri Catholic Secretariat (NCS). The study was guided by Bowen and Lawler (1995) conceptualization of empowerment as a product of power, information, knowledge and reward. This study was guided by the following research questions: how does delegation of authority affect organizational performance? How does information dissemination affect organizational performance? What influence does knowledge sharing have on organizational performance? What influence does employee reward have on organizational performance? Employee commitment is taken as a moderating variable. A case study research design was used in the study. The target population comprised of 810 employees from the various departments of NCS which include educational, health, pastoral, hospitality, social, communication, security, agricultural and pastoral industries departments. The sample size was 270 employees from the total target population. Both stratified sampling design and simple random sampling procedures were used to arrive at the sample size. Questionnaire was chosen for data collection. The collected data was analyzed quantitatively whereby descriptive statistics including percentages, tables and charts were used to summarize the data. The following key findings were made: delegation of authority enhances mutual trust between management and non-managerial staff, buildsloyalty, sense of belonging and it quickens decision making process.Information is power and it should be effectively shared to equip every worker with sufficient information to enable him or her decide and execute a given mandate in line with strategic goals. Sharing of work related information enhances operational efficiency, improves team work and coordination. Sufficient knowledge should be shared with the workers to ensure they have the requisite mental and psychological capacity that match with their particular assignments and responsibilities. Good outcomes and behavior, innovation, sense of responsibility and other positive values should be rewarded. Sharing power, information, knowledge and rewarding effectively could boost employees' morale and commitment for improved organizational performance.

keywords: Delegation, dissemination, knowledge sharing, reward,organizational performance.