Environmental Factors and Human Resource Management in Local Government Administration in Nigeria

Abstract

Human resource management is the mobilisation of available human resource in the organization to achieve the organizational goals. Human resource management activities are not devoid of challenges in any organization, including Local Government Councils in Nigeria; hence, this study identified such challenges as environmental factors and classified it as internal and external environmental factors affecting human resource management in Nigerian Local Governments. These factors were identified on account of the observed irregularities in human resource management policies and practice in the Local Government service. This study therefore aims at examining the environmental factors affecting human resource management in Nigerian local governments between 2010-2018. Data were collected from observations, interviews and  documented facts on the subject matter, while system theory was used to explain the interdependence of the various departments and its effects on human resource management in the Councils. The study findings identified poor capacity building and orientation, activities of trade unions, administrative policies and politics, capacity of the Council leadership, among others as internal factors; and political, social, legal, physical, etc., as part of the external environmental factors affecting human resource management in Nigerian Local Governments. The study concluded that the internal and external factors have significant effects on the human resource management and productivity of the Local Governments in Nigeria. This study further made some recommendations on strategies to achieve effective human resource management in Nigerian Local Governments.

Keywords: Staff development, Local Government, environmental factors, human resource management, organizational productivity.