Retaining Leadership Talent in the African Public Sector: An Assessment of the HR Challenge

Abstract

This paper reports on a project designed to identify the extent to which and in what ways retaining talented leaders and aspiring leaders in the African public sector is a problem and the underlying reasons for any leadership talent retention problem. A qualitative research methodology is adopted, specifically a constructivist Grounded Theory Research Method (GTRM) approach. Data were collected through thirty-nine semi-structured interviews with public sector HR professionals from 14 African countries. The research found that talent retention of leaders in public sector organizations in Africa is a challenge and a concern. Interviewees reported a wide range of underlying reasons for the problem citing both internal and external barriers such as low prioritization of talent management, corruption, lack of funding and a skilled labor shortage. The study has advanced our knowledge on talent retention of leaders in the ever-changing and increasingly dynamic public sector. The paper highlights a number of potential future research opportunities. The study is limited by the sample size and a single-perspective of only the views of HR managers. There are potentially significant practical implications for those who design, implement and manage talent retention initiatives and for those who manage human resources more generally. The study provides public sector practitioners with helpful information to better address talent retention challenges. The authors contend that this is the first empirical, multi-country study of talent retention for leaders in the public sector in Africa