Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment in a Digitally Transforming South African Higher Education Institution

Higher education institutions in South Africa have changed after the COVID-19 epidemic. The global pandemic significantly disrupted academic operations, affecting employee morale, working conditions, and institutional loyalty. In the post-COVID-19 era, South African higher education institutions are in the process of digital transformation, which imposes a critical need to understand employees’ perceptions of their changing roles, satisfaction and commitment levels. This study investigated the relationship between job satisfaction and organizational commitment among academic employees at a digitally transforming higher education institution. Data was collected from 67 academic employees using a standardized self-administered questionnaire, the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) to measure academic employees’ job satisfaction and the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ) to measure academic employees’ organizational commitment. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlations were used to analyse collected data. The findings show that there is a positive relationship between job satisfaction and organizational commitment. The study recommends devising mechanisms that would contribute towards enhancing employee satisfaction to increase organizational commitment during the digital transformation process. The study recommends further research into the employees’ perceptions and experiences in higher education settings during the digital era.