Process improvement as a driver of employee development: a study of SMEs in southwest region of Nigeria

The poor performance and inefficiency of small and medium-sized businesses have been a great concern among scholars and experts; SMEs have increasingly adopted systematic approaches to streamline operations while fostering workforce growth. Hence, this paper aims to investigate process improvement as a driver of employee development: a study of SMEs in the southwest region of Nigeria. Specifically, it examined the effect of training and program workshops, mentorship and coaching, and career advancement opportunities on employee development. Descriptive survey research design was adopted with a population of 253, the total number of selected registered electrical and electronics stores across the six southwestern states of Nigeria (Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti). 155 sample sizes were administered a structured questionnaire. Data collected was analyzed using PLS-SEM. The study findings indicate that process improvement positively impacts employee development within electronic SMEs, as shown by the statistical result that training and program workshops have the strongest effect on employees, followed by career advancement opportunities and mentorship and coaching. It concluded that process improvement is significantly vital for driving employee development in selected electrical and electronics SME stores in the southwest region of Nigeria. It is therefore strongly recommended that to increase the employee development of electronic SMEs, their managers should focus on developing unique and appealing career advancement opportunity strategies, training and program workshops, and mentorship and coaching to ensure strong process improvement that helps achieve employee development.