ROLE OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGERS IN INTEGRATION OF MULTIGENERATIONAL WORKFORCE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF LANDS, COUNTY GOVERNMENT OF NAKURU, KENYA

Abstract

Studies on generational differences have garnered increasing interest among organizations, practitioners and researchers in recent years. There are many reasons for this keen interest, including the need to manage people from several different generations, to better adapt the workplace to a multigenerational workforce, to attract and retain new talent, and to identify the working conditions that will lead to positive attitudes and behaviors among younger workers. The different staff from different generation can be made to work together in harmony for the benefit of the overall organization in terms of goal achievement if human resource managers adopt specific strategies that enhance integration of multigenerational workforce. The purpose of this study therefore was to establish the role of human resource managers in the integration of multigenerational workforce. The study used three theories, namely social exchange theory, social identity theory and theory of work adjustment. The main variables under study were mentoring programs, teambuilding, succession planning and career development. The study employed a descriptive design using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The target population was all 66 employees of the department of lands in the County Government of Nakuru, Kenya. The study used questionnaires to collect primary data. The data collection instrument was pretested to ensure validity and reliability. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences was used to analyze the data and the results obtained were presented using tables. For purposes of analyzing the strength and relationship of the variables, a regression analysis was carried out. The R2 value of 0.6921 implies that 69.2% of the variations in integration of multigenerational workforce can be explained by the variations in independent variables. It was concluded that both mentoring programs and career development had the most influence while succession planning had the least influence on integration of multigenerational workforce. The findings of the study will thus be useful in enhancing integrating existing workforce into teams and hence improved service delivery in the department.