Leadership Model for Enhancing Employee Retention: A Case of Kwekwe City Council

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to provide an effective leadership model to Kwekwe City Council, a local government in Zimbabwe, in order to solve the extremely high employee turnover rate problem. The study analysed the connection between leadership styles and employee retention. A positivist-dominant sequential mixed-methods approach was used. A stratified random sample of 257 individuals from managerial, supervisory, and non-managerial levels (out of a total population of 770) were given a structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and hypothesis testing (paired samples t-test) were used to examine quantitative data using SPSS® version 29. The quantitative results were enhanced and given meaning by the qualitative information gleaned from exit interviews. High turnover and dysfunctional retention—the retention of underperforming employees—were found to be strongly influenced by the prevalent autocratic and bureaucratic leadership philosophies. The approach that was found to have the greatest beneficial influence on promoting functional employee retention was transformational leadership. Effective leadership can be built upon a favorable framework for good governance, which is provided by the Public Entities Corporate Governance Act and the Urban Councils Act. According to the findings, Kwekwe City Council and other local authorities should prioritize leadership development programs that emphasize transformational leadership principles. It is advised that policies be consciously changed to adopt this leadership approach in order to lower turnover costs, enhance service quality, and create a more stable and motivated staff. By empirically defining a particular leadership model to counteract high staff turnover within the particular setting of a Zimbabwean local government, this study fills a critical gap in the literature. It goes beyond proving a connection to offer a workable, fact-based approach to human resource management in the public sector.

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