Employee Engagement and Employee Retention in Faith-Based Organizations in Kenya: A Case of AIC Kijabe Mission Hospital
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53819/81018102t5437Abstract
Hospitals in Kenya have been experiencing a low level of employee retention. Kijabe Mission Hospital faces low employee retention, a challenge that has weakened its performance. In the recent past, Kijabe has been losing many of its employees and hence the need to seek for solution to the high turnover rates. This research examines how employee engagement influences retention at AIC Kijabe Mission Hospital. It focuses on employee development, supervisor support, organizational communication, and rewards as key factors. The work is grounded in Vroom’s expectancy theory, with support from organizational support, discourse-based, and reasoned action theories. Using a descriptive design, the study targeted 859 permanent staff, drawing a sample of 272. Data were collected through structured questionnaires, yielding quantitative results. The questionnaire was pretested on 13 staff at PCEA Kikuyu Hospital to assess validity and reliability. The supervisor confirmed content validity, and internal consistency was measured with Cronbach’s Alpha at 0.7. Data were gathered through self‑administered questionnaires at the workplace, collected after completion, then cleaned, coded, and analyzed using SPSS and Excel. Data were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential methods, with findings shown in tables, charts, and discussions. Ethical standards were observed throughout data collection and respondent handling. Results indicate that employee development, supervisor support, communication, and reward systems all influence retention at AIC Kijabe Mission Hospital. Of these, reward and recognition proved most influential, followed by development, supervisor support, and communication. The study will be significant to the management of AIC Kijabe Mission Hospital and other organizations that can gain insight on how to retain its employees. Organizations will gain insight on association between employee engagement and their retention besides increasing literature on the subject matter.
Keywords: Employee Engagement, Employee Retention, Faith-Based Organizations, Kenya
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