Human Resource Management Practices and Faculty Performance in Private Universities in Kenya

Private universities in Kenya face persistent challenges in sustaining high faculty performance, particularly due to high turnover, inadequate HR strategies, and limited adoption of innovative management systems. These issues significantly hinder their ability to deliver quality education and compete effectively with public institutions. In response, the study investigated the influence of human resource management (HRM) practices, specifically, employee involvement, talent management, and human resource information systems, on the performance of full-time faculty in private universities in Kenya. It was hypothesized that human resource management practices have no significant influence on employee performance in private universities in Kenya. Guided by Human Capital Theory, Hierarchy of Needs Theory, and Goal-Setting Theory, the research adopted a positivist philosophy and employed a descriptive cross-sectional survey design. The target population comprised 3,171 full-time academic staff from 36 private universities, from which a stratified random sample of 399 was drawn. Data was collected using structured questionnaires, yielding 221 valid responses (55.4% response rate). Data was analyzed using SPSS Version 20, and simple linear regression was applied to test the hypothesis. The results indicated a statistically significant and positive relationship between the bundled HRM practices and faculty performance (R² = 0.262, β = 0.512, p < 0.05). These findings imply that bundling HRM practices creates a synergistic effect that enhances full-time faculty output in teaching, research, and student supervision. The study underscores the need for private universities to adopt bundled HRM practices (employee involvement, talent management, and human resource information systems) to improve full-time faculty performance and staff retention. This study bundle of HRM practices, applied systematically, can enhance superior employee performance in private universities in Kenya. The study findings reveal that HRMPs were moderately practiced in their respective institutions. Some private universities had adopted these practices well, while others had not, pointing to inconsistencies in HRMP implementation across institutions. Further research is recommended in public universities and other sectors to validate the model across different organizational contexts.