Development Practices Adopted by the Ministry of Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs in Kenya

Abstract

Human resource is the most important asset in any organization. Human resources are the think tanks that organize and move other resources to produce goods or offer services. As much as human resources are cherished by the organizations as the biggest and most important contributors to organizational success and performance, they are not permanently owned by organizations and can leave at will. Leadership succession is an enormous problem facing many organizations and unless successful succession management systems are developed and implemented, leadership transition will remain a high strategic risk. This study therefore sought to investigate perceived effectiveness of succession management and career development practices adopted by the Ministry of Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs (the Ministry). This study was anchored on Human Capital Theory and carried out through a descriptive survey. The targeted population was the 772 employees in the Ministry. The research used stratified sampling technique. The data was collected from 154 respondents by use of a questionnaire and was analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics. The findings of this study revealed that most of the practices adopted by the Ministry are effective. However, it was further discovered that the Ministry was not practicing talent management, employee empowerment, and career counselling. The study concluded some practices in the Ministry are moderately effective while strategies need to be put in place to address the practices that are not effective. Therefore, to ensure effectiveness in succession management and career development, the study recommends that the Ministry formulates strategies and policies to ensure all practices are effective.