Effect of Workplace Diversity Practices on Organizational Performance, Moderated by Process Innovation
Abstract
Publicly quoted companies in Kenya face persistent underperformance despite Capital Markets Authority requirements for qualified senior management. The study examined how process innovation moderates the relationship between workplace diversity practices and organizational performance. The study was guided by dynamic capabilities theory and adopted a pragmatic philosophical orientation. A quantitative cross-sectional survey design was employed. The target population comprised 150 senior management respondents from 56 operational publicly quoted companies on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, Kenya. The study selected three senior management respondents from the human resource, strategy, and finance functions in each company for questionnaires. Data collection involved structured questionnaires on a five-point Likert scale, with ethical clearance obtained. Pretesting confirmed validity (factor loadings >0.4) and reliability (Cronbach's alpha >0.7). Quantitative analysis used SPSS version 30, employing descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings revealed a positive, significant relationship between process innovation and performance, with the strongest moderating effect on organizational diversity practices. The study concludes that process innovation significantly enhances the impact of workplace diversity on performance and recommends structured innovation frameworks leveraging diverse perspectives to improve workflows, systems, and processes.
Keywords: Process innovation, workplace diversity practices, organizational performance, publicly quoted companies, Nairobi Securities Exchange, Kenya, Dynamic Capabilities Theory
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