BOARD APPOINTMENT PROCESSES AND THEIR IMPACT ON CORPORATE PERFORMANCE OF PUBLIC ENTITIES IN ZIMBABWE

BOARD APPOINTMENT PROCESSES AND THEIR IMPACT ON CORPORATE PERFORMANCE OF PUBLIC ENTITIES IN ZIMBABWE

GARIKAI MANYERUKE

OBERT SIFILE

TINASHE RUVINGA

The purpose of the study was to determine the effectiveness of appointment systems for public entity boards in Zimbabwe in enhancing meritocracy, given the contribution of the parastatals
to the national economy. Most public entities in Zimbabwe have been drowned in scandals, which have left them underperforming and recording losses over the years. The AgencyTheory, Upper Echelon Theory and Political Theory informed the study. The study adopted a pragmatist research philosophy, a mixed research paradigm and a cross-sectional survey research design. The target population of the study comprised permanent secretaries and board
members from the 107 public entities in Zimbabwe. A sample size of 261 participants was used for collecting quantitative data, and 25 participants were used for collecting qualitative data. Stratified sampling and purposive sampling techniques were employed to sample participants for quantitative and qualitative data respectively. Semi-structured questionnaires and in-depth
personal interview guides were used to collect and generate data from participants. Cronbach’s alpha (α) was used to determine the reliability of the questionnaire. The data was analysed using SPSS Version 25 and AMOS Version 21. The study concluded that the Corporate Governance Unit was the most appropriate institution to be designated as the appointing authority for state entity boards. The appointing authority needs to be granted the full mandate
of establishing nomination committees that conduct board selection processes for all public entities. The study also concluded that government policies moderated the relationship between
meritocracy in the appointment of public entity boards and organisational performance. The study recommended that the government should avoid the frequent state interference and violations of statutory provisions in the board appointment process. Further studies could focus on the effectiveness of a boards appointment system in the private sector in Zimbabwe

ZJBEM

2025