Analysis of Academic Perception of Talent Management Practices in Higher Educational Institutions

Abstract

This study examined academics’ perceptions of talent management practices across higher educational institutions in Delta State, Nigeria. Guided by the objective of comparing perceptions in a federal university, a state polytechnic, and a state college of education, the study focused on four talent management dimensions: acquisition, development, retention, and succession planning. The population for the doctoral thesis from which this article is derived comprised 2,749 staff, with a Krejcie and Morgan formula sample of 349. For the present paper, a purposive subsample of 95 academics was drawn (Federal University 46; State Polytechnic, 31; State College of Education, 18). Data were collected through a structured questionnaire comprising Section A (biodata) and Section B (items structured on a 5-point Likert scale). Content validity was ensured through expert review in Human Resource Management and prior studies, while reliability was confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha, with all four constructs surpassing the 0.70 threshold. Descriptive statistics (percentages, means, and standard deviations) were applied, while inferential analysis was conducted using one-way ANOVA at a 5% level of significance. Where significant differences occurred, Tukey post-hoc tests were performed. Findings revealed notable differences across institutions: the federal university reported stronger acquisition and retention practices, the state college of education excelled in succession planning, while the polytechnic lagged across most dimensions. Talent development showed no significant variation. The study concludes that institutional type and ownership shape talent management practices, recommends tailored improvements across institutions, and contributes comparative evidence to human resource management research in Nigeria’s higher education sector.