AN EVALUATION OF TALENT MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AS A BOOSTER OF EMPLOYEES' PERFORMANCE IN MANUFACTURING COMPANIES IN ACCRA, GHANA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

In today's competitive business landscape, marked by globalization and intense competition, organizations are under mounting pressure to surpass previous performance benchmarks. The cultivation and retention of knowledge and skilled individuals have emerged as pivotal strategies to enhance organizational agility in response to market dynamics and bolster competitiveness (Bryan, 2019). This entails the crucial and intricate task of effectively harnessing employees' skills and attributes to optimize performance. Moreover, in the manufacturing sector, employees fulfill critical roles such as record-keeping, transaction management, and customer service, all of which directly contribute to the company's profitability. Consequently, there's a pressing need to nurture and develop talented employees to meet the escalating demands of the market.

Conceptually, talent management entails the methodical recruitment, assessment, development, engagement, retention, and deployment of individuals who hold significant value for a company, either due to their potential for future growth or their current pivotal roles within the organization (Vance, 2019). Similarly, it encompasses the entirety of how a company manages its human resources, spanning from recruitment procedures, employee placement, job evaluations, training and career advancement, to employee departure, all aimed at achieving the company's overarching goals (Lewis, 2018). In essence, talent management involves strategically leveraging human capital to enhance business efficacy and enable companies to realize their objectives. This encompasses activities related to attracting, retaining, nurturing, rewarding, and optimizing individual performance, aligned with strategic workforce planning (Cascio, 2016). For a talent management strategy to yield fruitful outcomes, it must harmonize closely with the overall business strategy. In this context, talent refers to individuals whose contributions significantly influence organizational performance, either presently or potentially (Zikmund, 2020).

Nevertheless, Karuri (2018) contends that talent management profoundly influences employee engagement, with research suggesting that talent management practices greatly impact employee outcomes, thus profoundly affecting organizational success. Furthermore, studies by Bhatnagar (2018) indicate that employee workload correlates with their level of attachment to the organization; higher workload often implies stronger employee attachment. The identification of talented individuals empowers organizations to strategically invest in their professional development, encompassing decisions regarding training, learning, succession planning, performance management, and more (Phillips, 2021). Thus, talent management streamlines resource allocation for individual growth and development.

Additionally, a robust talent management culture significantly shapes employees' perceptions of their organization as a workplace. Positive perceptions of talent management practices foster greater confidence among employees in the organization's future prospects.Therefore, a survey will be conducted to evaluate talent management practices as a booster of employees' performance in Manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

In today's manufacturing landscape, there's a noticeable surge in workforce mobility, evolving demographics, global interconnectivity, an aging worker population, shorter product life cycles, and technological advancements. The significance of effective talent management within operational frameworks cannot be overstressed. With the imperatives of globalization, manufacturing companies are increasingly realizing the necessity to identify, attract, and harness skilled individuals from diverse industrial backgrounds. As highlighted by McDonnell et al. (2018), talent management holds particular importance for multinational manufacturing enterprises. Consequently, as noted by Scullion and Collings (2018), talent management serves as a pivotal avenue for nurturing and engaging adept employees who can make substantial contributions to organizations, both locally and internationally.

In recent times, manufacturing companies have encountered employee attrition to other sectors, despite endeavors to cultivate a supportive work environment through robust governance, leadership, and management. Moreover, there's a noticeable stagnation among employees with limited opportunities for career progression, leading to reduced commitment levels and fostering dissatisfaction among the workforce. These challenges spawn a myriad of issues within the targeted manufacturing entities, including diminished morale, voluntary departures, negative work attitudes, and high turnover rates among top personnel. This adversely impacts employee morale, skill retention, loyalty, and overall contentment, thereby reducing their willingness to exert maximum effort, consequently affecting the company's overall performance.

However, despite the implementation of enhanced employee reward systems and other human resource management practices, organizations continue to grapple with departures. This prompts inquiries into the effectiveness of talent management strategies in retaining staff and enhancing their performance, notwithstanding the Human Resource Department's adoption of best practices in this domain. Hence, it is in the light of these that the study seeks to evaluate talent management practices as a booster of employees' performance in manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana.

1.3  Objectives of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to evaluate talent management practices as a booster of employees' performance in manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana. Specifically, the study will;

Find out whether a significant relationship exist between talent management and employee performance.

Identify the talent management methods adopted among manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana.

Find out the impact of talent management and employee performance in the manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana.

1.4 Research Questions

The following questions have been prepared for the study:

Is there a significant relationship between talent management and employee performance?

What are the talent management methods adopted among manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana?

What is the impact of talent management on employee performance in the manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana?

1.5  Research Hypothesis

H0: There is no significant impact of talent management on the performance of the employee.

Ha: There is a significant impact of talent management on the performance of the employee.

1.6  Significance of the Study 

The findings will assist organizational management in formulating policies to enhance talent among individual employees, groups, and the organization as a whole. Additionally, other organizations can benefit from the results of this study, particularly in today's talent and knowledge-driven economy, where talent output is crucial. Moreover, this study will also contribute to promoting fair labor practices and regulating basic employment conditions. It will address issues such as working hours, employee leave entitlements, and other essential rights that should be upheld for employees. 

Further more, subsequent researchers will use it as a literature review. This means that other students who may decide to conduct studies in this area will have the opportunity to use this study as available literature that can be subjected to critical review. Invariably, the result of the study contributes immensely to the body of academic knowledge with regard to the impact of talent management on the performance of the employee: A case study of selected banks in Douala, Cameroon.

1.7 Scope of the study 

The scope of this study is boarded on the evaluation of talent management practices as a booster of employees' performance in manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana. Empirically, this study will find out whether a significant relationship exist between talent management and employee performance, identify the talent management methods adopted among manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana and find out the impact of talent management and employee performance in the manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana.

Geographically, the study will be delimited to employees of some selected manufacturing companies in Accra, Ghana.

1.8 Limitation of the study

In the course of carrying out this study, the researcher experienced some constraints, which included time constraints, financial constraints, language barriers, and the attitude of the respondents. In addition, there was the element of researcher bias. Here, the researcher possessed some biases that may have been reflected in the way the data was collected, the type of people interviewed or sampled, and how the data gathered was interpreted thereafter. The potential for all this to influence the findings and conclusions could not be downplayed. 

More so, the findings of this study are limited to the sample population in the study area, hence they may not be suitable for use in comparison to other schools, local governments, states, and other countries in the world.

 1.9 Definition of Terms

Talent Management: is a systematic strategic effort planned by the company to use a set of human resource management practices that include employee acquisition and evaluation, learning and development, performance management, and compensation to attract, retain, develop and motivate employees.

Employee Performance: is a dimension to measure the success of an organization in which an organization must be able to create high employee performance in order to maintain survival and a sustainable competitive advantage. 

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