The Influence of HRM Practices and LMX on the Academic Staff Performance: The Role of Work Engagement and Personality as a Mediator

Academic staff members are the main assets to Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) since
education is their core business. The job performance of the academic staff members that
meets the aspirations and goals set by the HEIs is of utmost importance. The objectives of
this study are to examine the direct relationship between human resources management
(HRM) practices, leader-member exchange (LMX), work engagement, personality and job
performance. The study also examined the role of work engagement and personality as a
mediator. This study investigated these relationships in the context of private HEIs in
Malaysia. In this study, the unit of analysis is the individual academic staff, and a
quantitative approach is employed by collecting data using a stratified sampling technique
through on an online survey. A cross-sectional design was used that involved 260
Malaysian academic staff who worked at Islamic university colleges in Malaysia that
participated in SETARA 2019 and achieved tier four and tier three. The data was analysed
using the Structural Equation Modelling techniques using Amos version 22 software. Out
of the 12 hypotheses tested, seven hypotheses were supported. LMX and personality were
found to have a significant relationship with job performance but not with HRM practices
and work engagement. In addition, the study also found that personality partially mediated
the relationship between LMX and job performance. Reinforcing LMX and personality are
suggested to encourage job performance among academic staff.