Organizational Sponsorship, Career Management Behaviour, Proactive Personality and Career Success of Managerial Staff in Large Manufacturing Firms in Kenya

Abstract

Organizations today are experiencing major changes within and outside the work environment. This has led to gradual decrease in their support for employees’ career advancement. Despite these changes the urge to remain competitive calls for the need to create a well-motivated, loyal and committed workforce. This can only be realized by facilitating the employees’ career success. The major concern thus lies on whether organizational sponsorship leads to career success of the staff. The main aim of this study therefore was to examine the role of career management behaviour and proactive personality in the relationship between organizational sponsorship and career success of the managerial staff of large manufacturing firms in Kenya. Particularly, the study aimed at establishing the relationship between organizational sponsorship and career success, the effect of career management behaviour on the relationship between organizational sponsorship and career success, the effect of proactive personality on the relationship between organizational sponsorship and career success and the joint effect of organizational sponsorship, career management behaviour and proactive personality on career success. Consequently, hypotheses were formulated with the aim of achieving the set objectives. The study was based on three theories: LMX theory, social cognitive career theory and impression management theory. The study was guided by positivist research paradigm and descriptive cross-sectional research design. Primary data was collected from managerial staff from large scale manufacturing firms in Kenya. The study received a response rate of 79.6%. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. All the measurement items met reliability and validity tests. Hypotheses were tested using linear regression model. The relationships among the predictor variables were tested with subjective career success, objective career success and overall career success. The findings indicated that organizational sponsorship has a statistically significant influence on career success. Secondly, career management behaviour partially mediates the relationship between organizational sponsorship and career success. Thirdly, proactive personality moderates the relationship between organizational sponsorship and career success. Lastly, the joint effect of organizational sponsorship, career management behaviour and proactive personality was greater than the individual effect of each of the predictor variables. The study supports LMX theory which predicts the effect of organizational sponsorship on career success of employees; Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) which proposes that interaction of organizational factors and personality factors leads to achievement of career success; and impression management theory which argues that the choice and use of proper career management behaviour leads to career success. The study recommends that large manufacturing firms in Kenya should enhance their employees’ career success by providing them with sponsorship programmes particularly, training, mentorship, supervisor support and organizational resources. The findings also provide future researchers with a useful conceptual and methodological reference that can be used in the pursuit of further studies particularly in the area of career success and as far as the moderating role of proactive personality is concerned in different contexts other than manufacturing firms. Policy makers in Kenya may also benefit from these findings by advocating for and establishing clear guidelines for organizational sponsorship programmes such as training and development, mentorship, supervisor support, and organizational resources that seem to have a strong effect in improving employees’ career success. This can have a major impact on the performance of manufacturing firms.