What Factors Influence the Adoption of Workplace Policies in African Organisations?: An Exploratory Study of Private Sector Companies' Adoption of Workplace Policies in Malawi

Abstract

Given the dearth of research on management innovation in Africa, this paper explores the factors influencing the adoption of workplace policies in African companies. The paper used a random sample of 152 private sector companies in Malawi to investigate the factors influencing the adoption of HIV/AIDS workplace policies. The hierarchical regression results indicate that organisational factors are the better predictors of the adoption of HIV/AIDS workplace policies in Malawi. Specifically, top management support and organisational size have been found to be the main predictors. However, the study also found significant correlations between the adoption of HIV/AIDS workplace policies and institutional factors. One of the main implications of the findings is that organisational factors might provide improved explanatory power in predicting the adoption of HIV/AIDS workplace policies in African companies.

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