Work-life balance, job satisfaction and turnover intention amongst information technology employees

Abstract

Talent retention is of particular concern in the information technology (IT) sector owing to globalisation, the skills shortage and rapidly advancing technology. Employee turnover has signifi cant costs and negative consequences for organisations. The objective of this study was to explore the association between employees’ experiences of work-life balance (as measured by the Survey Work-Home Interaction- Nijmegen), job satisfaction (as measured by the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire) and their turnover intention (as measured by the Turnover Intention Scale). A random sample of 79 permanently employed salaried employees in a South African IT company participated in the study. The participants were represented by predominantly white and married people between the ages of 26 and 45 and people with more than 10 years’ tenure. Regression analysis showed that experiences of negative work-home interaction and positive work-home interaction signifi cantly predicted job satisfaction and turnover intention. Job satisfaction also signifi cantly predicted turnover intention. However, no interaction effect was observed between overall work-life balance and job satisfaction in predicting turnover intention. White employees had signifi cantly stronger experiences of job satisfaction and negative home-work interface, while black employees had signifi cantly stronger positive experiences of home-work interface and lower levels of job satisfaction. White and black employees, marital status and tenure groups differed signifi cantly regarding their job satisfaction. Talent retention strategies should consider the relationships between work-life balance, job satisfaction and turnover intention.

Key words: Knowledge workers, IT employees, work-life balance, job satisfaction, turnover intention, talent management, talent retention