The Effect of Incentives on the Achievement of Organizational Goals

Abstract

The major aim of the study was to investigate the effect of incentives on the achievement of organizational goals. The study was guided by the following objectives: to align reward practices with both organizational strategic goals and employee values, to establish the main factors that hinder the implementation of a reward management system in an organization that has unclear organization strategic goals and policies and to establish a positive relationship between reward system and job satisfaction. Literature review showed that organizations should view their employees as stakeholders and invest in providing them with incentives as a retention strategy for enhanced performance. Empirical studies done in Malaysia, Kenya and locally showed that organizations should preserve their employees by providing them incentives and continually improve employee retention strategies for enhanced performance. The study adopted pragmatism research philosophy which enabled the use of both qualitative and quantitative methods. An exploratory research design with a sample population of 100 non-academic and 60 academic staff was adopted for the study. The sample size of 160 was drawn from a population of 800 and calculated using Raosoft sample size calculator and convenience sampling was used to distribute questionnaires to employees. The study made use of both primary and secondary data. Primary data was obtained using questionnaires for employees and interview guide for management. Validity and reliability of the questionnaire was tested through a pilot study. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS version 21 and qualitative data was analyzed using grouping of themes. The study revealed that incentives at CUT are not properly distributed as CUT is failing to adequately communicate with employees, deliver incentives as promised resulting in employees lacking trust in the organization. The study concluded that reward management system as an incentive positively enhances the achievement of organizational strategic goals. The study recommends that CUT must have an effective reward system that build job satisfaction and addresses organizational commitment of its employees. The study also recommends that CUT should adequately preserve its employees through the use of various media platforms to communicate with employees, informing them on incentives and motivating them.