Abstract:
The local and global success of organizations is largely determined by the ability to employ talented
people (best performers) and implement talent management processes encompassing the talent identification,
selection, recruitment, retention, development and deployment of talented people with required skills. The
purpose of this thesis was to investigate the influence of talent management on organizational growth of private
hospitals in Nyeri County. The specific objective of the study was to investigate the influence of talent
identification, talent nurturing, cultural diversity and workplace environment on organizational growth of
private hospitals in Nyeri County. The study analyzed the literature review, theoretical framework as well as
empirical studies by other authors from which the conceptual framework was built. The study was set to be
informed by resource based theory and brand equity theory. The population of this study was 454 respondents,
covering nurses, pharmacists, lab technicians, radiographers, accountants, physiotherapists, secretaries, and
cleaners in 6 private hospitals in Nyeri County. The study used purposive sampling method to select the sample
size of 208 comprising of 67 nurses, 21 pharmacists, 27 lab technicians, 9 radiographers, 20 accountants, 11
physiotherapists, 21 secretaries and 31 cleaners. A sampling frame was constructed from each stratum from
which a sample was selected. Questionnaires were used for collection of primary data. A pilot test was done to
pretest the questionnaires to ensure the internal consistency of the instruments by computing Cronbach’s alpha
to determine the reliability of the instrument. Pilot test of this study gave a Cronbach's Alpha coefficient of
0.902. The study achieved a response rate of 94%. Data analysis was conducted to generate descriptive and
inferential statistics. The findings of the study revealed that talent nurturing and workplace environment had
positive and significant effect on organizational growth of private hospitals in Kenya in Nyeri County at 5%
significance level while talent identification and cultural diversity had positive but insignificant effect on
organizational growth of private hospitals in Kenya in Nyeri County. Further, competence, change catalysts,
strategic thinking benchmarking with other hospitals, interactions with other employees of other hospitals,
training and development and effective communication were factors which were found to have greater extent on
talent management in private hospitals in Nyeri County. The findings therefore conclude that talent
identification was important in organizational growth because in order to effectively nurture and manage talent,
organizations first need to be able to identify the right talent and provide a conducive work environment. The
study recommends that private hospitals in Nyeri County should have elaborate nurturing programmes that
include employee engagement to promote a high retention rate of talents. In addition, private hospitals in Nyeri
County should enhance motivation of staff by enhancing working conditions so as to create a conducive
environment for talent utilization. The study further recommends that future researchers should focus on
challenges private hospitals encounter when implementing talent management processes.