EMPLOYEE PARTICIPATION IN DECISION-MAKING AND ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE: A STUDY OF FREEDOM GROUP OF COMPANIES, IKPESHI, AKOKO EDO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, EDO STATE

Abstract

The study sought to determine the influence of employee participation in decision-making on organizational performance in Freedom Group of Companies, Ikpeshi, Akoko Edo Local Government Area of Edo State. The study was prompted by the realization of the importance of employee participation as one of the ways through which organizations can increase their productivity, commitment, communication, and the implementation of decisions. The research adopted a descriptive survey research approach. The target population for this study consisted of 355 employees of Freedom Group of Company. A sample size of 188 respondents was selected using the Taro Yamane formula. The data was collected using a structured questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis. The hypotheses were tested using a 5% level of significance. It was found out that the participation of the employees in decision making was found to have a very positive influence on organizational performance. In particular, it was found out that involvement, consultation, information dissemination and delegating of authority were among the dimensions which significantly influenced organizational performance. The result obtained from regression analysis proved that all the four dimensions of employee participation explained a considerable amount of variance in organizational performance. The study concluded that employee participation was an important management activity through which organizations can take advantage of the employees’ knowledge, communication, commitment, and productivity. It was recommended that Freedom Group of Company should strengthen employee involvement, effective consultation process, information dissemination and delegate authority to employees to improve organizational performance.