Perceived Influence of Quality Assurance Strategies on Staff Productivity in Public Universities in Rivers State

Abstract

This study investigated perceived influence of quality assurance strategies on staff productivity in public universities in Rivers State. Three research questions were answered while corresponding null hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance to guide the study. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design. The population of the study consisted of 11,750 staff of all public universities in Rivers State. The sample size of the study was 525 staff, which is 30% of the entire population. The instrument for data collection was a self-structured questionnaire titled, “Influence of Quality Assurance Strategies on Staff Productivity Questionnaire” (IQASSPQ) which was designed after modified 4-point rating scale with numerical values of Very High Extent (VHE) = 4 points, High Extent (HE) = 3 points, Low Extent (LE) = 2 points and Very Low Extent (VLE) = 1 point respectively. The instrument was validated by experts and tested for reliability. A reliability coefficient of 0.82 was established through Cronbach Alpha. Data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation statistics to answer research question while the null hypothesis formulated was tested using z-test. The study found that staff appraisal, performance supervision and performance monitoring influence staff productivity to a high extent in public universities in Rivers State. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among others that school administrators should appraise their staff performance by utilizing targets, accomplishments, organization goals, time management and efficiency for performance measure purposes and the appraisal process as these would lead to an increase in employee’s productivity. Supervision of staff’s performance in tasks delivery should be improved upon through regular upgrade of staff’s knowledge via training, seminars, and workshops attendance.