HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND VALUE ALIGNMENT IN TERTIARY INSTITUTION COOPERATIVES IN NIGERIA
Keywords:
Human Resource Management, Cooperatives, Member Commitment, Cooperative Performance and Value Alignment.Abstract
This study examines how participatory human resource management (HRM) practices influence member commitment and cooperative performance in tertiary institution cooperatives in Nigeria, with particular attention to the role of value alignment. Although cooperatives are grounded in democratic member-ownership principles, the increasing adoption of formal HRM systems raises concerns about their compatibility with cooperative values. However, empirical evidence on how participatory HRM practices function within this context remains limited. Drawing on Stakeholder Theory and Humanistic HRM perspectives, the study investigates the effects of participative decision-making, training and cooperative education, reward equity, and value HRM alignment on cooperative outcomes. A cross-sectional survey design was employed, and data were collected from 312 cooperative members across six tertiary institutions using stratified sampling techniques. Data were analyzed using regression and conditional process analysis. The findings indicate that participative decision-making significantly enhances member commitment, while training and cooperative education improve cooperative performance. Reward equity partially explains the relationship between participatory HRM practices and member commitment, and value HRM alignment strengthens the effect of participatory HRM practices on performance. The study contributes to the HRM and cooperative literature by demonstrating that the effectiveness of participatory HRM practices in cooperative enterprises depends on their alignment with cooperative values. It provides practical insights for designing participatory and value-driven HRM systems in tertiary institution cooperatives.
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