METHODOLOGY ON FACTORS AFFECTING EMPLOYEES’ VOLUNTARY
TURNOVER: A CASE OF DELOITTE & TOUCHE KENYA
Research Design
This study adopted a Cross-sectional descriptive research design. The design was preferred as
it allows the researcher to describe the population through a standardized data from a sizeable
population at a point in time.
Target population
Target population refers to an entire group of individuals having common observable
characteristics (Mugenda, 2008). As shown in Table 3.1, this study primarily targeted all 501
current professional employees at Deloitte & Touche Kenya (Nairobi Branch) as reported in
Deloitte & Touche Report, 2016).
Table 3.1 Study Population
D N of employee P
Audit 155 30.94%
Tax 53 10.58%
Risk Advisory 60 11.98%
Corporate finance 20 3.99%
Business Process solution 80 8.98%
Consulting 80 15.97%
Internal client service 88 17.56%
Total 501 100%
Sample size and Sampling Procedures
Convenience sampling was used to select the sample size based on respondents’ availability
and willingness to participate in the study. This allowed the research to sample from each
department at the organization. According to Mugenda (2008), 10% to 50% of the target
population is sufficient. The study targeted a sample size of 16% (80) of the all the 501
employees at Deloitte & Touche Kenya (Nairobi Branch) taking cognizance of the proportion
of employees in each department. The targeted sample size was informed by resource and
time limitations. However, after fieldwork the study achieved 81% success in response rate
by the end of data collection period. According to Mugenda and Mugenda (2003) and also
Kothari (2004) a response rate of above 50% is adequate for a descriptive study. Babbie
(2004) also asserted that return rates of above 50% are acceptable to analyze and publish,
60% is good, 70% is very good while above 80% is excellent. The final actual sample size
was 65 across the six departments. The actual distribution is shown in Table .3.2.
Table Sample Size
D F P
Audit 44 68%
Tax 1 2%
Risk Advisory 3 5%
Business Process
solution
2 3%
Consulting 6 9%
Internal client service 9 13%
Total 65 100%
Most of the employees sampled (31%) were Managers, 31% were Supervisors, and 20% were
Associates. General employees comprised of 8% similar to those that held other positions.
This is shown in Figure 3.1.
Figure 3.1 Job Position of Respondent
Data Collection Method
This study collected both primary date and secondary literature. According to Kothari (2008),
primary data refers to information that a researcher gathers from the field. Primary data was
obtained through survey of sampled respondents at Deloitte & Touche Kenya. Primary data
was obtained through a self-administered structured questionnaire. Secondary literature was
collected through desk review of relevant literature on determinants of employee voluntary
turnover. Sources of secondary literature included journal articles, books, website articles,
and unpublished theses.
Data Processing and Analysis
Completed questionnaires were checked for completion and accuracy. Data entry was
performed in excel, coded and imported into SPSS. The variables were defined in SPSS and
cleaned before analysis. Both descriptive and inferential statistics was utilized. Descriptive
statistics analyzed included frequencies, cross tabulation and measures of central tendencies
such as mode and median. In addition, Chi square tests of independence were performed at to
establish the association between employee attributes and employee voluntary turnover. This
non parametric measure was considered appropriate due to nominal and ordinal scales used in
the study and due to the small sample size. Alpha value of 0.05 or less was used to test
statistical significance. Phi and Cramer statistics was used to establish the strength of
association between nominal independent variables such as gender while Kendall’s tau-b
statistics was used to test strength of association between ordinal independent variables such
as education, age and tenure in the position. Pearson Chi square value was used where Chi
square assumptions were not violated and Likelihood Ratio values read when the Chi square
assumptions were violated in more than two by two tables.
Research Quality
Validity is the degree to which the test measures what it is supposed to measure. The
questionnaire should be in line with the definition used in the research. When a measure is
reliable and valid the results can be correctly utilized and understood (Elstak, 2013). Validity
refers to the extent to which an instrument measures what is supposed to measure, data need
not only to be reliable but also true and accurate. If a measurement is valid, it is also reliable
(Mugenda & Mugenda, 2003).
This study used both construct validity and content validity. For construct validity, the
questionnaire is divided into several sections to ensure that each section assessed information
for a specific objective, and also ensured that the same closely ties to the conceptual
framework for this study. To ensure content validity, the questionnaires were subjected to
thorough examination by two randomly selected employees at Deloitte. They were asked to
evaluate the statements in the questionnaire for relevance and whether they were meaningful,
clear and polite. On the basis of the evaluation, the instruments were adjusted appropriately
before subjecting it to the final data collection exercise. Their review comments were used to
ensure that content validity was enhanced.
Reliability refers to the consistence, stability, or dependability of the data. Whenever an
investigator measures a variable, he or she wants to be sure that the measurement provides
dependable and consistent results (Cooper & Schindler, 2003). Reliability in research is
influenced by the degree of error. As random error increases, reliability decreases (Mugenda,
2003). In order for results to be usable in further research steps they must be reliable and
valid.
The questionnaire was pretested before data collection. The test items were subjected to
overall reliability analysis of internal consistency. This was measured using Cronbach alpha
as a coefficient of internal consistency. Internal consistency measures the correlations
between different items on the same test (or the same subscale on a larger test) and whether
several items that propose to measure the same general construct produce similar scores.
O’brien (2007) provide the following rules of thumb: >0.9 – Excellent, >0.8 – Good, >0.7 –
Acceptable, >0.6 – Questionable, >0.5 – Poor and <0.5 – Unacceptable. The acceptable value
of 0.7 was used as a cut–off of reliability for this study as shown in Table 3.3.
Table Reliability Statistics
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's Alpha N of Items
.704 25
Ethical Issues in Research
The researcher adhered to required ethical standards required to conduct research with human
subjects. The research sought approval from the university to proceed with field data
collection. At the field level, the research sought the consent of the respondents before the
questionnaires were completed. The Research further reminded the respondents that their
participation in the study is voluntary and it is their right not to respond to any question and
to even decline participation. The researcher further assured the respondents that all
responses and their identity will remain confidential and will be used solely for the purpose
of this study. The research was also guided by academic and ethical honesty through proper
acknowledgement of sources of information referred to.
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