Abstract:
Every Organization’s profitability and survival is determined by the performance and productivity of its employees. Sales productivity is usually at the centre of every service organization’s profitability, hence the need to understand those factors that are likely to affect productivity of sales personnel. The objectives of this study were founded in the Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory whereby the researcher investigated how certain motivational factors affect productivity of Direct Sales Personnel in Commercial Banks in Kenya. The study answered the questions; what was the influence of employee morale on productivity?, To what extent does employee satisfaction improve productivity?, How does employee engagement affect organizational productivity?, And what was the impact of employee morale, satisfaction and engagement on productivity? The target population included all Direct sales personnel employed by the four leading commercial banks located in Nakuru town namely; Kenya Commercial bank, Barclays bank, Standard Chartered bank and Cooperative bank. The study conducted a census survey including all the 263 direct sales personnel from these banks as the number was not too big to necessitate sampling. Judgement sampling was used to determine the banks that will fairly represent the banking industry in Kenya. Data was collected using structured questionnaires, which were administered through a “drop and pick later” method where the response rate was 81%. The collected data was analysed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis. This included means, percentages and proportions. The statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) was used as a software tool for data entry and management, statistical analysis and presentation. The study found that satisfaction, engagement and morale were found to influence motivation of direct sales personnel by a greater percentage (86%) than productivity of direct sales personnel where 72% of productivity was attributed to these factors. The study also revealed 72% of productivity was attributed to motivation. It was also found that direct sales personnel had a high turnover rate where 51% worked for less than 1 year. The regression results of this study were significant and had the correct sign concurring with theory, previous studies and expectation of the researcher. The study recommended that the Kenyan Commercial Banks should ensure they pay better salaries and give resources and rewards to direct sales personnel to improve the performance of the direct sales personnel where the companies will reduce the high direct sales personnel turnover hence increase motivation and productivity.
