Relationship between Intellectual Stimulation and Succession Management of Employees in the Public Sector in Kenya

Succession management has been a crucial strategic endeavor for monarchies, dictatorships, modern democracies, and governments since human societies and institutions began. The reason for succession management is that people holding different leadership positions will leave the organization at a specific point in time. There could be a lapse where the chosen successor is not well prepared to take over a higher position when necessary. A gap may exist where the designated successor may not be appropriately trained and ready to assume power when needed. The Kenyan Public Sector has been experiencing succession management issues that need to be resolved. The study investigated whether there is a connection between intellectual stimulation and succession management of staff working in the Kenyan public sector. Full Range Leadership theory was used to guide the study. In Kenya, twenty-two ministries represent the public sector hence they formed the basis for the study. Different Public Service Commission reports indicated that the sector is grappling with succession management challenges which affects the quality of service being offered to Kenyan citizens. Using a descriptive research design, the researcher integrated both qualitative and quantitative approaches to collect and analyze data. Out of 597 senior directors and human resource managers who constituted the sampling frame, the researcher purposively chose a sample size of 240. The researcher distributed 240 questionnaires to the respondents to collect data. With the use of an interview guide, the researcher interviewed human resource managers. The descriptive analysis results revealed that the respondents were neutral to the statements regarding intellectual stimulation Correlation analysis was performed to demonstrate the direction and strength of the association between the variables. The results showed that intellectual stimulation has a strong positive relationship with succession management. Analysis of Variance results indicated that intellectual stimulation significantly and positively predicts effective succession management.

Introduction

Organizations must value their resources to thrive in the dynamic and competitive market (Opute, 2010). Employees are one of an organization’s resources. Succession planning is one way businesses show their employees they are valued and cared for. International business trends are dynamic and constantly evolving (Ali & Mehreen, 2019). To continue providing services, especially in the public and nonprofit sectors, organizations must use succession planning to develop and match personnel’s skill sets with the changing environment (Gothard & Austin, 2013).

The demographics of the public sector are changing globally; most workers are growing older, which may result in a scarcity of personnel and a breakdown in the provision of services (Armstrong-Stassen & Templer, 2005). In addition to an aging workforce, fewer people are entering the public sector. According to Fredericksen (2010), the younger generation of government officials does not share the same work traits and motives as the elder generation. The situation’s implications, when combined with government’s failure to prepare for succession through staff promotions and leadership development, include brain drain, lost organizational memory as a result of knowledge transfer not occurring, and eventually failed succession (Kochanowski, 2011).

With a lot of aged employees, personnel shortfalls, skills mismatch, and frequent staff turnover, Kenya’s public service is facing a severe personnel shortage, which has raised serious concerns about succession planning (GOK, 2017; Public Service Commission, 2021). According to a 2016 study conducted in Sub-Saharan Africa by Dewah and Mutula (2016), regimes are beginning to institutionalize and advance knowledge management in the public sector through the use of e-government programs, such as human resource management systems. The goal is to help the public service develop knowledge management strategies, improve efficiency and service delivery, and deal with succession issues.

Research Objective

The study’s main objective was to examine the relationship between the intellectual stimulation dimension and succession management of employees in the public sector in Kenya.

Research Hypothesis

H₀: Intellectual stimulation dimension has no significant relationship with succession management of employees in the public sector in Kenya.

Theoretical and Conceptual Framework

Theoretical Framework

Full Range Leadership Theory

Bass (1985) proposed FRLT to expand on leadership academics’ earlier studies. According to Bass, the three elements that make up the theory are transactional, transformational, and laissez-faire. According to Bass (1985), one or more of the four elements of transformational leadership are used by transformational leaders to attain better outcomes. The first of the transformational leadership components is idealized influence which is the belief that a leader is affable, self-assured, moral, idealistic, and reliable. The leader sets an example for the followers by their behavior. The second element is inspirational motivation, which is defined as leadership that conveys high standards, encourages dedication to a common goal, and inspires followers by projecting optimism. The leader’s ability to articulate and embody a vision is essential to this subscale of transformational leadership. The third element is intellectual stimulation, which involves questioning followers’ and organizations’ presumptions, convictions, and customs as well as encouraging critical thinking and creativity on the issues they encounter and the solutions they come up with. By challenging presumptions, redefining challenges, and taking novel approaches to existing ones, the leader encourages innovation and creativity in their followers. By doing this, the leader fosters creativity and refrains from correcting individual followers’ errors in front of the group. Finally, individualized consideration is characterized by taking into account each follower’s unique needs and creating an environment that encourages personal development. By serving as a coach or mentor, the supervisor takes care of the needs of each follower for success and development. As a result, the leader encourages certain followers, sets expectations for others, sets standards for work for others, and grants autonomy to others with more experience in an effort to foster fresh learning opportunities in a supportive environment. By doing this, the leader creates two-way communication mechanism with the followers, practices active listening, and assigns assignments to help followers advance their abilities. The model suggested two distinct aspects of transactional leadership in addition to these four elements of transformational leadership. Among them are management-by-exception and contingent rewards.

The leader of a contingent reward system utilizes this behavior to decide what has to be done. and to set up incentives for followers who complete the tasks. The leader and followers engage in an active or passive corrective transaction through management by exception. The leader in the active example keeps an eye out for deviations from norms and errors in followers’ assignments, and when necessary, corrects them. In the passive instance, the leader does not take remedial action until standards are broken and mistakes are made.

Lastly, the laissez-faire leadership style, which represents the avoidance or lack of leadership, is included in the model. By definition, this leadership style is the most passive and ineffectual. According to Bass (1985), laissez-faire leadership is a non-transactional style in which the leader does not make judgments, delays actions, disregards the need to lead, and does not exercise authority. The relationship between the intellectual stimulation dimension of transformational leadership and succession management of Kenyan public sector personnel will be measured and explained using this theory.

Developing Your Leadership Pipeline Model

This article’s main goal is to match leadership development with succession management. There should be more to succession planning than just updating a list of potential leaders once a year. It must make sure that there is a strong pool of potential staff who are ready to take on more challenging leadership positions. Five recommendations for creating an effective succession management system (succession management and leadership development) are provided by the authors. The first rule is to focus on the progression of staff. The authors explained that the goal of succession management should be to foster growth rather than compile a roster of high-potential workers. The second rule is to determine the crucial locations. The HR managers should identify and concentrate on the positions that are critical to the organization’s long-term viability.

The third rule is transparency. Human Resource managers should make People aware of their precise position in the succession system rather than being kept in the dark. The fourth rule is to measure progress regularly. Rather than adopting a replacement mindset, HR managers should consider applicants’ continuous development for pivotal positions.

The fifth rule is to maintain flexibility. It is necessary to improve and modify succession plans in response to input from participants and line executives. All things considered, a culture that values integrity and taking chances is necessary for successful succession management.

Conceptual Framework

Fig. 1 is the conceptual framework.

Fig. 1. Conceptual framework.

Literature Review

Intellectual Stimulation

Transformational leaders encourage their people to be innovative and come up with new ideas for themselves and the business. According to Bass and Riggio (2006), intellectual stimulation involves questioning followers’ beliefs, their understanding of issues they encounter, and the solutions they come up with. In order to operate in a transformational leadership role, a leader must be concerned with giving individuals reasons and means to alter their perspectives on technical issues, interpersonal issues, and even their attitudes and values that have grown over the course of their lives. Intellectual stimulation requires leaders to be wiser in problem-solving and be more creative (Ahmadet al., 2017). A leader who practices this leadership style encourages employees to think rationally.

In this way employees become creative and freer-thinkers along with the empowerment to provide the ideas and solutions in decision-making. The intellectual stimulation concept in transformational leadership scale has a significant human relations with the additional efforts invested by the employees (Bass & Riggio, 2006). In terms of intellectual stimulation, transformational leadership has proven to enhance empowerment, high efficacy and improve employee engagement toward tasks and successful succession planning (Sunet al., 2012). Previous studies also claimed that this type of leadership style has a positive connection with a succession planning program (Ahmadet al., 2017).

Otienoet al. (2019) investigated how intellectual stimulation affected worker engagement in Kenyan parastatals involved in the energy industry. Additionally, the study aimed to ascertain how employee motivation can moderate the association between intellectual stimulation and employee engagement. Transformational Leadership Theory guided the study. The 10 parastatals in Kenya’s energy industry, which had 315 middle-level managers, were the focus of the study. The positivist research philosophy was used in this study. 315 middle-level managers were surveyed using structured questionnaires. A correlational study method was used to ascertain the relationship between variables. According to the study’s findings, there is a positive and significant relationship between employee engagement and intellectual stimulation. Additionally, employee motivation positively and significantly moderated the relationship.

Sharma (2016) studied how intellectual stimulation affected the inventiveness of engineers in India’s automotive industry. The study’s objective was to investigate the dependence of components of the invention on intellectual stimulation. Using structured questionnaire data was collected from a sample of 169 engineers in the automotive industry. Multiple regression analysis was used for data analysis. The results indicated a clear and positive relation between intellectual stimulation and creativity of engineers working in the automotive sector.

Ngaitheet al. (2016) investigated the impact of intellectual stimulation and individual consideration on staff performance in Kenyan state-owned firms. The study sought to investigate the impact of Intellectual Stimulation on the performance of employees in Kenyan State-Owned Enterprises. The study sought to answer the following research questions: Does intellectual stimulation affect team performance in Kenyan SOEs? The researchers based their research on the transformational leadership paradigm. The study employed Positivism research philosophy, and a descriptive research design. Out of the target population of 275 senior managers, a sample of 163 senior managers was chosen using a stratified random selection technique. Data was gathered from SOE top management team members using a standardized questionnaire. The study used correlation analysis to establish the relationship between staff performance and intellectual stimulation, a chi-square test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), and a multiple linear regression model to test the hypotheses. According to the study, intellectual stimulation was positively and significantly related to staff performance.

A study on the effect of intellectual stimulation on academic achievement was conducted by Prabha and Sumathi in 2022 with particular reference to MBA colleges in Tamil Nadu. The study’s focus was to analyze the stimulus of intellectual stimulation on academic performance in Tamil Nadu MBA colleges. The researchers used an investigation research design to carry out their analysis. A questionnaire was administered to 142 respondents to collect data. The findings of the study reported that there is a correlation between intellectual stimulation and inventive academic conduct.

Succession Management

“No Surprises” ought to be the slogan of the majority of HR managers. However, the surprises are inevitable. A key employee’s announcement that he/she is leaving the company with immediate effect could be one of those unpleasant surprises that causes a great deal of chaos. This person was not only designated as having “high potential,” meaning they may be prepared for a senior leadership job, but they were also assigned to a more responsibility upper-level post. Their departure could have a cascading impact, leaving leadership voids along that succession line. Surprises are inevitable, but how the HR department is equipped to handle them is what really counts (Day, 2007). The cornerstone of effectively managing workforce surprises is succession management.

Part of an organization’s ability to survive in a highly competitive global economy is its ability to find and train successors for important roles. Succession management is the process of identifying a successor or successors for key positions and preparing them for greater organizational responsibility through job assignments and other developmental activities. (Rothwell, 2005). This definition’s section on preparing people for greater responsibility overlaps with what is commonly referred to as leadership development, which involves increasing a person’s ability to function effectively in leadership roles and procedures (Hirsh, 2000). In the event of an unexpected resignation, for example, a dormant succession system cannot be reactivated because it takes time to have an effective succession management system.

The development process shouldn’t begin when there is an unexpected leadership vacancy. It’s too late because it may take months or even years for appropriate growth. Succession management is the process of identifying potential successors, developing them (CIPD, 2020) and directing them at all administrative levels. The ultimate objective of succession management is to create a pipeline or pool of prepared leaders at all organizational levels not just a list of potential applicants to fill vacancies in critical positions and roles when they arise. Succession management is systematic and comprehensive since it is connected to deliberate development initiatives aimed at successors (Rothwell, 2010). Succession management aids in maintaining continuity in the leadership pipeline (CIPD, 2020) as well as fostering a deeper capacity for performance and leadership.

For succession management to be effective, there must be a clear connection between the organization’s key strategies and its talent values. After a successful link, a comprehensive assessment of the organization’s talent pool and development needs is carried out. There are important considerations that must be addressed before beginning a succession management process. Some of these considerations are the HR managers to ask such as; what is the crucial position in the organization? What qualities make someone a high-potential employee? How should important jobs be filled inside the company? What proportion of available posts ought to be filled by internal candidates? What proportion of important roles ought to have at least one designated successor?

How can employees with great potential be ready for advancement? In the process of developing high-potential employees and selected successors? What are the roles and duties of HR and employees? In the succession management plan, how significant are the career goals and objectives of individuals employees? To what extent should HR communicate openly and transparently with those who have been identified as high-potential and designated successors? Knowledgeable responses to these queries serve as the cornerstone of the organizational framework that houses the succession management system.

Succession management offers benefits to organizations in that it helps manage unforeseen staffing surprises related to abrupt departures in critical roles (Banoet al., 2022). It does not take too much time to identify the key positions within the organization and the selection of a potential successor to fill the vacancy. Effective succession management cannot be achieved if there is no commitment of the leaders. It takes leaders to provide the kinds of developmental experiences needed to prepare potential successors for more responsible positions.

Prior studies have established connections between the four transformational leadership traits (individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, inspiration motivation, and idealized influence) and succession management mostly in other countries like Malaysia (Ahmad, 2018; Ahmad & Saad, 2019; Njiru, 2022; Ahmadet al., 2017). According to the Controller of Budget, there have been gaps in succession management throughout the Kenyan public service (GOK, 2019; PSC Report, 2021). Based on this contextual gaps and the reports of recurrent succession management challenges, this study will be carried out to assess whether intellectual stimulation and succession management are related in Kenya’s public sector in Kenya.

Research Methodology

Research Design

A mixed-research design was used in this investigation. In order to better comprehend the research goal, researchers use a mixed methodologies research design, which combines qualitative and quantitative data gathering and analysis techniques. The 22 ministries in Kenya were the study’s target population (Organization of Government Gazette notice Nov, 2023).

Research Philosophy

A research philosophy is a viewpoint on the collection, analysis, and use of data (Gallierset al., 2012). The scientific method of positivism is founded on the idea that research should be conducted empirically. Within its paradigm, many concepts, such as hypotheses and objectives, can be developed and tested. Based on previously seen and explained realities and their interrelationships, predictions can be formulated. According to Saunderset al. (2016), positivism involves the researcher focusing on facts rather than feelings. The investigation was directed by positivism.

Target Population

The study targeted 597 heads of state departments and human resource managers working in twenty-two ministries in Kenya. The study opted for the ministries that represent the public sector because of the critical role that they play in supporting the day-to-day running of the government and implementation of Kenya Vision 2030, which is a long-term development blueprint plan (Kenya Vision 2030). The ministries are also experiencing recurrent succession management challenges which if not resolved they will affect the quality of service delivered (PSC Report, 2021).

Sample Size

Using Yamane’s (1967) formula, the researcher selected a sample size of 240 respondents from a target population of 597 as shown in the results of Table I. Purposive sampling was used in the study to select 240 state departmental heads and human resource managers in Kenyan ministries. According to Saunderset al. (2016), participants were chosen based on their professional background and experience in leadership roles and human resource management.

Table I. Sample Size

S/NO	Category	Population	Sample size
1	Ministry of foreign and diaspora affairs	68	27
2	Ministry of interior and national admin	45	18
3	Ministry for defense	6	2
4	The national treasury and economic planning	88	36
5	Ministry of public service, performance and delivery management	40	16
6	Ministry of roads and transport	48	19
7	Ministry of lands, public works, housing and urban development	7	3
8	Ministry of information, communication and the digital economy	14	6
9	Ministry of health	57	23
10	Ministry of education	66	27
11	Ministry of agriculture and livestock development	31	13
12	Ministry of investment, trade and industry	21	8
13	Ministry of co-operatives and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMES) development	6	2
14	Ministry of youth affairs, creative economy and sports	14	6
15	Ministry of environment, climate change and forestry	7	3
16	Ministry of tourism and wildlife	3	2
17	Ministry of gender, culture, the arts & heritage	14	6
18	Ministry of water, sanitation and irrigation	13	5
19	Ministry of energy and petroleum	9	4
20	Ministry of labour and social protection	28	11
21	Ministry of East African community, the ASAL & regional Dvpt	16	6
22	Ministry of mining, blue economy and maritime affairs	8	3
	Total	597	240

Results And Discussion

Response Rate

According to the Table II results, the study’s planned sample size was 240 respondents, of whom 202 completed and returned the questionnaires, yielding an 84.58% response rate. A 50% response rate is sufficient for reporting and analysis (Mugenda & Mugenda, 2003).

Table II. Response Rate Results

Questionnaire	Frequency	Percentage
Returned	203	84.58
Un-returned	37	15.42
Total	240	100

Reliability of Research Instrument

The internal consistency of the research tools was assessed using the Cronbach alpha coefficient test. The alpha coefficient of intellectual stimulation loaded at 0.908 and succession management loaded at 0.936 (Table III). All of the variables’ Cronbach alpha values were higher than the acceptable reliability coefficient of 0.70. This suggests that the measurement tools were sufficiently dependable. These results are consistent with the general rule that an instrument has ordinary reliability if its coefficient is 0.60, and high reliability if its coefficient is 0.70 or higher (Sekaran & Bougie, 2016). Based on the analysis’s findings, every item on the scale was approved and taken into account for the research.

Table III. Overall Reliability Analysis

Variable	Alpha coefficient	No of items	Decision
Intellectual stimulation	0.908	9	Reliable
Succession management	0.936	9	Reliable

Descriptive Findings

Descriptive Findings for Intellectual Stimulation

The purpose of the study was to investigate the connection between intellectual stimulation and succession management for Kenyan public sector workers. The study utilized nine items to examine the relationship between IS and SM. The descriptive results in Table IV generated a mean score of 3.3005 indicating that respondents were mostly indifferent to the statements regarding intellectual stimulation. The standard deviation of 0.880 indicates that the respondents’ answers were less varied. The respondents were asked to indicate scenarios when their leader supported their efforts. Most of them indicated that the leaders provided opportunities for them to enhance their skills, others could identify a problem in the work area and solve it, and other leaders allowed directors to invite their colleagues from another state department to give some insights on how to work better. Others were allowed and supported to introduce new processes in their work area, others organized for in-house training to enhance staff skills.

Table IV. Descriptive Results for Intellectual Stimulation

Statement (IS)	SD	D	N	A	SA	Mean	SD
My leader allows employees to bring new ideas to the work	17(8.4)	26(12.8)	43(21.2)	81(39.9)	36(17.7)	3.458	1.170
My leader accepts work that has been done in different ways	23(11.3)	30(14.8)	48(23.6)	77(37.9)	25(12.3)	3.251	1.190
My leader takes staff to other organizations to see how they work to learn new ideas	58(28.6)	43(21.2)	48(23.6)	37(18.2)	17(8.4)	2.567	1.301
My leader allows staff to identify an existing problem in my workstation	25(12.3)	38(18.7)	50(24.6)	67(33.0)	23(11.3)	3.123	1.206
My leader provides staff with the required work tools to solve a problem	14(6.9)	37(18.2)	50(24.6)	77(37.9)	25(12.3)	3.305	1.115
My leader allows staff space to solve problems that they encounter during their work	13(6.4)	23(11.3)	60(29.6)	89(43.8)	18(8.9)	3.374	1.014
My leader allows employees space to handle issues that arise in my work	11(5.4)	25(12.3)	51(25.1)	95(46.8)	21(10.3)	3.443	1.015
My leader takes staff for short courses to improve on skills needed to work	18(8.9)	25(12.3)	35(17.2)	74(36.5)	51(25.1)	3.567	1.239
My leader allows employees to share information with colleagues	14(6.9)	23(11.3)	33(16.3)	90(4.3)	43(21.2)	3.616	1.143
Average						3.3005	0.880

Descriptive Results for Succession Management

The goal of the study was to determine how Kenyan public sector employees will be managed in succession. The views of the succession management statements are shown in Table V. Responses to the succession management statements were neutral, with a mean score of 3.005. The standard deviation of 1.014 suggests that there was less variation in the responses of the respondents. Themes from the interviews support these findings by pointing out how crucial succession management is in Kenyan ministries.

Table V. Descriptive Results for Succession Management

Statements (SM)	DS = 1	D = 2	N = 3	A = 4	SA = 5	MEAN	SD
There is an adequate number of potential candidates who have been identified to occupy managerial positions	37(18.2)	37(18.2)	50(24.6)	59(29.1)	20(9.9)	2.941	1.265
Some viable internal candidates have been identified for future managerial positions	35(17.2)	33(16.3)	55(27.1)	62(30.5)	18(8.9)	2.975	1.233
Vacant leadership positions are easily filled from the pool of potentially identified candidates in the ministry	47(23.2)	43(21.2)	43(21.2)	55(27.1)	15(7.4)	2.744	1.283
Senior managers usually develop highly qualified capable staff to fill vacant leadership positions	32(15.8)	24(11.8)	50(24.6)	78(38.4)	19(9.4)	3.137	1.223
There is an effective leadership development program that helps identify the critical training and development needs for potential future leaders	36(17.7)	39(19.2)	42(20.7)	68(33.5)	18(8.9)	2.965	1.264
Leadership development activities are often undertaken to develop internal candidates for future managerial positions	34(16.7)	42(20.7)	49(24.1)	59(29.1)	19(9.4)	2.936	1.243
Senior managers provide career advancement opportunities to the employees in the ministry	29(14.3)	38(18.7)	45(22.2)	66(32.5)	23(11.3)	3.094	1.260
Senior managers provide employees with the necessary support they need to develop their careers	26(12.8)	31(15.3)	50(24.6)	74(36.5)	22(10.8)	3.172	1.200
Senior managers promote employees internally to achieve greater seniority and broaden their management skills.	31(15.3)	37(18.2)	39(19.2)	76(37.4)	20(9.9)	3.084	1.250
Average						3.005	1.014

Inferential Results

Correlation Analysis Findings

The Pearson Correlation Coefficient test was employed to show the direction and strength of the relationship between the two variables. The calculations of the Pearson Correlation Coefficient in Table VI unveiled a strong and positive correlation between succession management and intellectual stimulation as denoted by the correlation coefficient (r = 0.604, p < 0.05). The findings suggest that leaders’ ability to challenge subordinates to search for current and creative ways of working, promoting critical thinking and problem-solving can be linked to effective succession management.

Table VI. Pearson Product-Moment Correlation between IS and SM

		Succession management	Intellectual stimulation
Succession management	Pearson correlation	1
	Sig. (2-tailed)
	N	203
Intellectual stimulation centred	Pearson correlation	0.604**	1
	Sig. (2-tailed)	0.000
	N	203	203

Findings for Regression Analysis between Intellectual Stimulation and Succession Management

The R square value (R² = 0.365) shown in Table VII suggests that 36.5% of the variation in succession management of employees is explained by variation in intellectual stimulation dimension.

Table VII. The Model Summary Results for Intellectual Stimulation and Succession Management

Model summary
Model	R	R square	Adjusted R square	Std. error of the estimate	Change statistics					Durbin-Watson
					R square change	F change	df1	df2	Sig. F change
1	0.604a	0.365	0.362	7.29026	0.365	115.490	1	201	0.000	1.687

ANOVA Results for Intellectual Stimulation and Succession Management

The study sought to further assess whether intellectual stimulation has a significant relationship with succession management. As shown in Table VIII, the regression analysis yielded compelling results, indicating a significant relationship between succession management and intellectual stimulation (F (1, 201) = 115.490, p < 0.001). This aligns with the results of Ahmad (2018) in the Malaysian public sector, where intellectual stimulation had a positive relationship with succession management in the Malaysian public sector.

Table VIII. ANOVA Results for Intellectual Stimulation and Succession Management

Model		Sum of squares	df	Mean square	F	Sig.
1	Regression	6138.041	1	6138.041	115.490	0.000b
	Residual	10682.717	201	53.148
	Total	16820.759	202

Regression Coefficients Results for Intellectual Stimulation and Succession Management

An in-depth analysis in Table IX of the regression coefficients revealed a significant and positive relationship between intellectual stimulation dimension and succession management (β = 0.696, t = 10.747, p < 0.001). This suggests that each unit increase in intellectual stimulation corresponds to a 0.696-unit increase in succession management of employees in the public sector in Kenya. Consistent with Ahmad’s (2018) and Ahmad and Saad (2019) findings, this positive association underscores the crucial role of intellectual stimulation in fostering succession management of employees.

Table IX. Regression Coefficients Results for Intellectual Stimulation and Succession Management

Model		Unstandardized coefficients		Standardized coefficients	t	Sig.
		B	Std. error	Beta
1	(Constant)	6.358	1.991		3.194	0.002
	INTELLECTUAL_STIMULATION	0.696	0.065	0.604	10.747	0.000

Discussion of Findings

Examining the connection between intellectual stimulation and employee succession management in Kenya’s public sector was the primary goal of the study. Intellectual stimulation refers to the capacity of leaders to push followers to look for innovative and modern methods of operation. It also comprises the leaders’ endeavors to foster critical thinking and problem-solving skills to improve the organization from where they started. Intellectual stimulation was positively and significantly correlated with succession management, according to regression analysis. The F-test results showed that intellectual stimulation and succession management are positively and significantly correlated. The null hypothesis was rejected. It stated that there is no significant correlation between intellectual stimulation and succession management among Kenyan public sector personnel.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Based on the findings, the study concluded that intellectual stimulation predicts succession management of employees working in the public sector in Kenya. The results revealed that the leaders allow employees to share information with colleagues, and they take staff members for short courses. The researcher noted that the ministries have developed systems on how work should be done, hence coming up with a new or creative way of doing work is limited. The researcher concludes that the leaders should challenge employees to come up with better ways of doing their job, think critically and be allowed to identify and solve problems in their work stations. The leaders should also propel employees to think critically and challenge them to be creative. They also can allow employees to identify problems in their work area and solve them.