Rewards and Staff Retention in the Radio Industry in Uganda: A Case Study of Mega FM.

Abstract

OKIDI DAVID (2008-M102-20067) Rewards and Staff Retention in the Radio Industry in Uganda: A Case Study of Mega FM The problem of staff retention in the radio industry in Uganda has become acute with the ever-increasing numbers of radio stations. Since the liberalisation of broadcasting in 1993 in the country, there are over 200 licensed radio stations. The rapid growth of the industry coupled with the stiff competition has created shortage of skilled manpower. This has made headhunting become a major source of staff recruitment by new entrants, hence, fueling the problem. The purpose of the study is to determine the degree to which rewards influence staff retention in the radio industry in Uganda. The hypotheses of the study are: intrinsic rewards do not affect staff retention, and extrinsic rewards affect staff retention. This helped to establish the relationship between rewards and retention. The research design used in the study is a case study approach. This is because the research studied one radio station and generalised the findings instead of studying many radio stations. Lack of time and the big number of radio stations justified the choice for this design. The major variables are rewards which are the independent variable and staff retention the dependent variable. Study findings were that the majority of the employees were satisfied with their job that is why they were still on the job with Mega FM. The study also revealed that the majority of the employees of the radio station were retained on their job by intrinsic rewards as opposed to extrinsic rewards. These intrinsic rewards include their achievement, the importance of their work and sense of belonging to the organisation. Good relationship with supervisors and good team work with workmates were, however, rated highly among the extrinsic rewards that have kept them on the job. Most of the extrinsic rewards were not regarded by the employees as motivating them to stay on the job. Based on the findings the study recommends that effective reward system should be put in place so that the staff can get both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards, since there is a close relationship between the two. This is confirmed in Maslow‟s theory of motivation that a fulfilment of one need leads to an emergence of a new need. Likewise rewards for employees should be designed on this basis. Key words: Reward, Retention, Radio, Liberalisation