Determinants of Competency, Work Behavior and Work Effectiveness of Government Apparatus: A Case Study in Indonesia

Abstract

This study examines the determinant influence of competence: motives, traits, self-concept, knowledge, and skills on work behavior and work effectiveness in government officials. The research was conducted on government officials in the province of South Kalimantan, Indonesia. This research is qualitative in nature, including the population of government apparatus in regencies and municipalities in the South Kalimantan province of Indonesia. The number of respondents in this study was 250 people. The sampling technique used purposive sampling, and Data analysis has been done using Structural Equation Model (SEM). The results showed a significant and positive influence on the determinants of competence, namely motives, traits, self-concept, knowledge, and skills on work behavior and work effectiveness of government officials; the determinant influence of competence showed a direct and indirect effect. This study also shows a mediating effect of work behavior between the determinants of competence (motives, traits, self-concept, knowledge, and skills) on the work effectiveness of government officials. This study's results are expected to provide suggestions to local governments in the South Kalimantan province of Indonesia to conduct performance appraisals for government officials apart from the performance appraisal methods that have been implemented.

1. Introduction

The development of the industrial revolution 4.0 and global competition has a significant impact on every organization, both private and government (public) organizations. Each organization is required to be able to show its best performance in order to survive the increasingly fierce competition and must have a certain advantage (competitive advantage) that differentiates it from other organizations. One of the characteristics of developments in revolution 4.0 is the advancement of technology and digital developments in access to information such as the internet and other digital technologies (Rahmawati et al., 2018). One way to achieve a competitive advantage for any organization is to have superior and reliable human resources and have competence. Human resources have a major role in every organizational activity. Even though it is supported by facilities and infrastructure as well as excessive funding sources, without the support of reliable human resources, the organization’s activities will not be completed properly. Competency-based human resource (HR) development is carried out in order to provide results in accordance with the goals and objectives of the organization with predetermined performance standards. Human resources are a key factor for the success of an organization; human resources are another factor that can support the operations of an organization apart from the equipment they have; and human resources are an organizational asset to provide the best results (Nguyen et al., 2020). Based on current economic developments where increasingly fierce competition demands a balance between quality human resources to be able to serve and increased work results, and an ideal work environment (Nguyen et al., 2019). Employees or human resources are assets that must be maintained because they are the spearhead of the production process (Paais & Pattiruhu, 2020).

Government apparatus is an important component in the management of government activities that require qualified, competent, effective, and efficient experts in carrying out their duties and functions as well as professionalism. Government officials are required to be able to provide optimal services to the community and to become reliable human resources in carrying out their duties as government officials who must be able to carry out a mental revolution that demands a commitment to serve the community in order to create good governance. Competence concerns the authority of each individual to carry out tasks or make decisions according to their role in the organization that is relevant to their expertise, knowledge, and abilities. Competencies possessed by individual employees must be able to support the implementation of organizational strategies and be able to support any changes made by management so that the competencies possessed by individuals can support a team-based work system. This shows that competence is the main key that must be considered with all its needs as the main key. Human resources will determine the success of the implementation of organizational activities. Organizational demands to acquire, develop and maintain quality human resources are increasingly urgent in accordance with the dynamics of the ever-changing environment. So that employee work competence is a work process that provides understanding and ability to employees in carrying out activities so that what is expected by the organization can be adequately achieved in order to improve performance. There is a demand for every organization, especially for public organizations, to be able to make changes or reforms in the bureaucracy as a form of government commitment to providing the best possible service to the community.

The existence of bureaucratic problems will become an obstacle in realizing bureaucratic reform, and this also makes reform in Indonesia still unable to comply with the concept of good governance. The community still assesses that there are delays in convoluted procedures, is slow, or requires additional costs and takes a long time and other things to do when processing something at a government office. This fact should be an important concern for bureaucratic reform in order to make changes following the demands and development of society. Another challenge faced by the bureaucracy is how to be able to carry out activities efficiently and effectively so that the impression appears that the bureaucracy is synonymous with complicated, convoluted performance, has a large structure, does not have definite standards, and there are elements of collusion, corruption, and nepotism (Cordella & Tempini, 2015). The existence of elements from the government apparatus who have work behavior that is not in accordance with the rules, is undisciplined, skips work, often has insignificant conversations with others, plays games during working hours, and so on will bring a negative image in society. Based on the phenomenon of the existence of some employee behavior that is unpleasant to society, of course, it must be changed or reformed to show that government officials must show a positive image as a public service (public). Every individual in the government apparatus must have high integrity, perform productively, be accountable, have a professional attitude, and guard against behavior following the code of ethics and the oath of office for the benefit of the nation and society. The government apparatus is an important factor so that the wheels of government can run well (Nufus, 2018). According to Kim (2019), in his research states that personal and contextual factors can explain individual behavior.

So far, the achievement of competence needs to be done objectively, based on the performance of government officials by looking at the performance achievement targets made by the leadership, with evidence of their mastery of the knowledge, skills, values, and work behavior of individual government officials. This is a strategy aimed at increasing efficiency, effectiveness, and responsiveness to improve organizational performance. Competence is needed to deal with rapid environmental changes. The sustainability of an organization can be maintained depending on the organization’s ability to adapt to change. Competence and organizational changes must be carried out following the demands and needs of the environment. The term competency was first introduced by (McClelland (1973) by presenting data that traditional achievement and intelligence scores may not predict job success and those required by profiling the competencies needed to perform a given job effectively and measuring them using various tests. They were further continued with the competence by Klemp (1980), Boyatzis (2009), Emmerling et al. (2012), Lyle and Spencer (1993) who stated that competence is “an underlying characteristic of an individual that is causally related to criterion-referenced effective and/or superior performance in a job or situation.”

With regard to competence, the dimensions of skill and knowledge are two dimensions of competence that are more visible (visible, easy to measure and develop). In contrast, the other dimensions related to a person’s characteristics tend to be more difficult to develop and hidden. This competency is described by (Lyle & Spencer, 1993) as an iceberg model (Iceberg Model). Several studies related to competencies associated with organizational performance, among others, show that competence influences organizational performance as has been done by (McClelland, 1973); (Dainty et al., 2004); (Liu, 2005); (Levenson et al., 2006); (Ryan et al., 2009); Ahadzie et al., 2008). Furthermore, several studies on the influence of competence on leadership (Asree et al., 2010). Competence is a part of the personality that can affect a person’s effectiveness and performance. Competence is also seen as a personality that can influence a person’s effectiveness at work (Setyadi & Sriekaningsih, 2015).

Competence is the key to success for individuals in their career paths (Le et al., 2020). Another factor that must be considered in implementing work is the realization of positive work effectiveness. As a public servant, the government apartment is required to have good work effectiveness from government agencies. In order to achieve positive work effectiveness, it is certainly not an easy endeavor because it is influenced by several factors, including individual behavior, work environment, office layout, work atmosphere, leadership style, and communication both internally and externally and so on. If the work effectiveness is less than optimal, the organizational goals that have been set will also not be achieved adequately. The concept of effectiveness for an organization is an essential concept because it can provide an overview of the success of an organization. Based on organizational theory, it is stated that a goal or the achievement of targets according to the plan is called effective. The concept of effectiveness cannot be separated from an important concept in management, namely the concept of efficiency and effectiveness. Management aims at achieving organizational goals effectively and efficiently, which are used to measure performance or work performance (Performance). The concept of effectiveness is related to an organization achieving its goals. Effective refers to the final goal or doing the right or right job (Do the right things), so that effectiveness is defined as choosing the right goal (Masdar, 2009). The concept of effectiveness is a process in the results approaches by assessing the accuracy of the results in accordance with predetermined expectations or plans. An opinion from Henderson-Stewart states the effectiveness of the part of the performance, which is a performance appraisal with a result-driven approach that is assessed based on the results following expectations or plans (Keban, 2008).

This research was conducted to determine whet competence affects the work effectiveness of government officials in Indonesia. The difference between this study and several previous studies is the competence for government officials and work effectiveness which is part of the performance, in contrast to previous research on competence related to performance.

2. Literature Review and Hypothesis

2.1. Literature Review

The concept of competence was first introduced by (McClelland, 1973) which defines competence as a personal trait or habit that leads to more effective job performance. Furthermore, Klemp (1980) defines competence as a characteristic that underlies someone who produces effective or superior performance in work. Boyatzis (2009) defines competence as the basic characteristics of a person who produces effective and/or superior performance in a job. Lyle and Spencer (1993) describe competence in two competency dimensions that are more visible (visible, easy to measure and develop) while other dimensions, which are related to a person’s personal characteristics, tend to be difficult to develop and hidden. This competency is described by Lyle and Spencer (1993) as an iceberg model (Figure 1).

Figure 1: The Iceberg Model

Competence is “a personal trait or set of habits that lead to more effective or superior job performance,” in other words, “abilities that add obvious economic value to one’s efforts at work” (McClelland, 1973). Competence, which consists of knowledge, skills, and attitude, must be observed and measured (Dessler, 2017). The concept of competence includes visible and invisible competencies because these visible competencies are, in fact, only something that almost everyone can learn, so they are only categorized as “threshold competencies” or prerequisite competencies. Competencies that are not visible are “differentiating competencies” or competencies that differentiate between people who perform better than others consisting of self-concept, traits, and motives.

Lyle and Spencer (1993) suggests the notion of competence as a basic characteristic of an individual which is causally related to criterion-referenced effective and/or very high performance in a job or situation. 5 (five) characteristics of competence known as the Iceberg Model are as follows: a) Motives, are things that a person constantly thinks about or wants consistently so that he acts as per that. Motive moves direct and chooses behavior towards actions or goals and others. The motive is the driving force within a person to carry out certain activities in order to achieve a certain goal. b) Nature or character (traits) are characteristics that make people behave or respond to something in a certain way. Traits are physical characteristics and consistent responses to certain situations or information. c) Self-concept (self-concept) is the attitude, values, or self-image that a person has. Self-confidence is a person’s belief that he can act effectively in any situation is part of one’s self-concept. d) Knowledge (knowledge) is information that a person has in a particular field. According to information and learning outcomes, knowledge is a complex competency, and e) Skills are to carry out specific physical or mental tasks. Cognitive or mental skills competencies include thinking analytically (processing knowledge and data, determining cause and effect, organizing data, and planning things) and thinking conceptually (recognizing patterns in complex data).

Human resource competencies are built from the substance of knowledge, skills, experience, attitudes, and work skills (Mcber, 1996); classify competencies into Technical or Functional (knowledge, attitudes, skills) related to technology or functional skills needed to perform the role), Managerial (knowledge, attitudes, skills) needed to plan, organize, mobilize. Moreover, (make use of various resources); Human (knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed to motivate, utilize, and develop human resources); and Conceptual (the ability to visualize the invisible, think at an abstract level, and use thinking to plan future business). Organize competencies into three main categories, namely Core competencies (Prahalad, 1994) form the basis for strategic direction, and Core competencies refer to behavioral elements that are important for all employees to have, These leadership / managerial competencies involve competencies associated with leading organizations and people, functional competencies are job-specific skills needed to perform a specific job or profession role (Özçelik & Ferman, 2006).

Work behavior is a part that plays a very important role in working life. Work behavior is the actions and attitudes shown by the people who work. Work behavior is how people in the work environment can actualize themselves through work attitudes (Robbins & Coulter, 2009). Indicators of work behavior, namely: a) Ability in social relations (Cooperatives - social skills), which relies on social abilities to work together with workers to achieve a common goal. b) Quality of work (Work quality) Workers must demonstrate good quality work in order to be recognized and appreciated. C). Work habits are associated with positive and negative behavior at work. D). Self-control (Personal presentation) In the workplace, you must be able to control yourself and show a professional personality at work.

Several criteria can be used to assess or measure effectiveness, namely, (1) adaptability, (2) productivity, (3) job satisfaction, (4) profitability, and (5) search and use of human resources. However, in its use, not all of these criteria can be used according to Steers (1983), simultaneously, but it is also possible to apply to an organization if there are demands for the accuracy of the measurement and assessment of the intended effectiveness (Steers, 1983). Based on the five criteria mentioned above, the effectiveness of work in public services after becoming a regional apparatus, the criteria used are adaptability, productivity, and job satisfaction. The reason is that the organization is oriented towards services, not for profit, and is in the scope of public/government organizations. Organizational effectiveness is “. . . the extent to which an organization as a social system, given certain resources and mean, fulfill its objectives without incapacitating its means and resources and without placing strain upon its members.” Organizational effectiveness is the degree to which the organization succeeds in making optimal use of existing resources to achieve its goals or objectives while avoiding the minimum possible tension between its members’ Organizational effectiveness can be evaluated by looking at two things, namely (1) target achievement and (2) organizational implementation process, which is reflected in organizational behavior (Hutapea, 2008). Both the achievement of goals and the process of implementing the organization has an equally important role for the organization because the achievement of targets that are not accompanied by a good implementation process will result in efforts to achieve goals not last long. In other words, inadequate organizational processes will reduce the level of efficiency, which results in decreased target achievement in the next period. Organizational effectiveness in achieving organizational goals and effectiveness is the key to the success of an organization (Stoner, 1982).

2.2. Hypotheses

Based on the results of several previous studies related to competence and performance, work behavior (McClelland, 1973); Dainty et al. (2004); (Liu, 2005); Levenson et al., 2006); (Ryan et al., 2009); (Ahadzie et al., 2008), a research hypothesis is proposed. The hypothesis developed in this study are:

H1: Motives have a significant and positive effect on work behavior.

H2: Nature has a significant and positive effect on work behavior.

H3: Self-concept has a significant and positive effect on work behavior.

H4: Knowledge has a significant and positive effect on work behavior.

H5: Skills have a significant and positive effect on work behavior.

H6: Work behavior has a significant and positive effect on work effectiveness.

3. Research Methods

This research was conducted on government officials who work in local government agencies in districts and municipalities in the province of South Kalimantan, with purposive sampling to obtain a total number of respondents as many as 250 government officials. The criteria for sampling used are government officials who already have structural positions. The research model is as shown in Figure 2 below:

Figure 2: Research Model

Data analysis uses the AMOS Structural Equation Model (SEM) to see the effect of competence on work effectiveness for government employees.

4. Results and Discussion

Based on the SEM assumption test, it shows that the results of the validity and reliability tests with confirmatory factor analysis show the Loading Factor is more than 0.50 (> 0.50) and the Probability value is less than 0.50 (α < 0.50), so it can be concluded that all variables are significantly related to the construct (all indicators are valid). Construct Reliability (CR) shows the numbers 0.854, 0.761, 0.795, 0.799, 0.926, 0.812, and 0.729 are above the recommended value, which is at least 0.6–0.70, so that all indicators or variables are reliable. The results of the assumption test requirements for the model in SEM have been met, namely normality, outliers, and the absence of multicollinearity. Evaluation of normality of the data used the criteria critical ratio skewness value of ±1.96 at a significance level of 0.05. The outlier evaluation can be seen from the value of the Mahalanobis distance. The criteria are based on the Chi-squares value on the degree of freedom of the number of indicators at the significance level of p < 0.05. Multicollinearity is seen from the determinant of the sample covariance matrix. A determinant value that is very small or close to zero indicates multicollinearity or singularity, so it can be said that the data cannot be used in research. Table 1 shows to assess the feasibility of a model based on criteria.

Table 1: Goodness of Fit Index

Based on the eight criteria for the suitability of the model used to assess the suitability of a model, the overall criteria are good, so it can be said that the suitability of the model is good and acceptable, which means the model is suitable with the data. Table 2 shows the results of the direct influence of competence on work effectiveness.

Table 2: Direct Effect

Based on these results, it can be concluded that competence directly affects work behavior and working behavior and directly affects job effectiveness. Table 3 shows the indirect effect of competence on work effectiveness.

Table 3: Indirect Effect

Based on these results, it can be concluded that determinants of competencies indirectly influence job effectiveness. Based on the indirect influence results, the determinants of competence on work effectiveness can indicate that there is an indication of work behavior mediation. The results of the proposed hypothesis test show that all hypotheses (H1–H6) are acceptable (see Table 4); namely, the determinants of competence have a significant and positive influence on work behavior and work effectiveness.

Tabel 4: Hypothesis Test

The results showed that there was an influence of competence on work behavior and work effectiveness. The study results indicate that the motive provides a positive direction coefficient value and has a significant effect on work behavior. The motive is the driving force within a person to carry out certain activities in order to achieve a certain goal. The motive is a factor that encourages a government apparatus to show its ability to behave appropriately. Data analysis results show that the motive for government officials is the desire to produce good work performance in every job they do (achievement orientation) and make the best possible effort to do the assigned task to become a good achievement following organizational expectations. The theoretical basis of the motive for producing work performance is the Need for Achievement Theory (N-Ach) from (McClelland, 1973) which states that one of the motivations for someone to want to act is the need for achievement (need-achievement). This research supports the Theory of Two Factors of Intrinsic Motivation and Extrinsic Motivation, which can lead to work motivation for a person, which will also affect his behavior. Furthermore, government officials can also innovate and be creative at work. This research also supports the opinion on the importance of public organizations to pay attention to aspects that exist in each individual, such as the level of education, work experience, and competencies, so that they can increase the individual’s ability to innovate and be brave in risk (Muafi et al., 2017) Then the government apparatus is also required to commit to work. This research is in line with research conducted on the importance of organizational commitment for the individual where he works, fully responsible and acting in accordance with what the organization expects (Susanto et al., 2020).

This study indicates that traits provide a positive coefficient value and have a significant effect on work behavior. Traits are traits that make people behave or how someone responds to something in a certain way. The nature that always wants to provide services to others to feel satisfied with the service (Customer Service Orientation) for government officials has shown by their behavior that wants to provide good service to others and tries to be satisfied with the service. As part of an organization that provides services to other people or society, of course, it is required to be able to show good behavior such as being friendly, sympathetic. So, other people will feel happy and satisfied with the service according to their expectations. Government officials have an understanding of the conditions of the organization in which they work. This understanding includes the vision and mission, goals, objectives to be achieved so that they will be able to act or behave following the organization’s conditions.

This study is in line with the opinion of Boyatzis (2009) and Emmerling et al. (2012) regarding competence as a social behavior approach (social intelligence competencies), namely the existence of social awareness of how to relate to others, feelings, needs, and concerns for others. The results of this study indicate that self-concept provides a positive coefficient value and has a significant effect on work behavior. Self-concept is a person’s belief that he or she can act effectively in any situation is part of the self-concept of a government apparatus. The indicator used to measure the self-concept of government officials is trying to control emotions in every situation in the workplace to prevent negative things that are detrimental to carrying out work (self-control). If government officials are able to control their emotions in carrying out work, they will show their behavior in working calmly, not easily panic if things happen unexpectedly. able to do every job with their own abilities well (self-confidence). Then government officials who have high self-confidence in doing a given task or job will show their behavior in working with confidence that they do not feel afraid, do not feel worried, are not anxious or anxious, and are able to adjust themselves in doing work effectively in each work according to the situation (flexibility). at work, it will show its behavior calmly, not anxiously, not being anxious even though the conditions are not pleasant or there are things that are unexpected. For example, there is a change of new leadership, changes in rules, but is able to quickly adjust to these changes This study is in line with of Boyatzis (2009) and Emmerling et al. (2012), who also argue that another part of emotional competence that can be demonstrated by a person is his ability to self-management by adapting (adaptability) and being flexible (flexibility) in the face of change. Bandura’s theory that self-efficacy is a form of self-evaluation that can determine individual behavior. The existence of self-efficacy, which cognitively will show the ability in the expected self-control behavior. (Li, 2020).

The results of this study indicate that knowledge provides a positive coefficient value and has a significant effect on work behavior. Knowledge is the main component of competence which is easy to obtain and easy to identify. Knowledge is an integral part of one’s competence which describes mastery in a particular field. The indicator used to measure the knowledge needed for government officials is the ability to understand conditions in detail and think systematically (analytical thinking). This means that one must be able to see conditions in the workplace carefully, in detail, and be able to think or analyze properly to determine what to do in connection with one’s job. Then, conceptual knowledge of the work carried out (conceptual thinking) relating to basic and general knowledge, the theory of a discipline, and other insights related to the field of work. Technical knowledge about managerial resources management in both human and non-human organizations, as well as being able to properly manage the existing resources in the organization efficiently and effectively. Existing resources in the workplace are used as well as possible to support the implementation of work. The results of this study support the opinion of Boyatzis (2009) and Emmerling et al. (2012), which states that another part of competence is cognitive abilities related to abilities in the field of knowledge.

This research is in line with the opinion that competence (knowledge, skills, experience, work attitudes, and skills) is positive and has a significant effect on performance But contrary to research which states that the competencies related to human resource development (social competence, leadership competence, problem-solving) do not contribute significantly to performance because they are more concerned with technology transfer for extension workers in Malaysia (Tiraieyari et al., 2010). The results of this study indicate that skills provide a positive coefficient value and have a significant effect on working behavior—skills as a person’s ability to carry out tasks physically and mentally. Skills possessed by government officials. The indicator used to measure the skills needed for government officials is to provide direction to other people in accordance with the position of power they have so that they are better at work (Directiveness and Use of Positional Power). This means being able to direct others to carry out their work according to their power properly, friendly so that other people will feel happy doing it. The skill to understand other people’s feelings, by responding well, becoming a good listener if there are colleagues who have problems, especially those related to them. This means that government officials can understand other people and want to be good listeners if someone has problems at work. As a form of empathy for others, sharing what other people experience is caring for others. There is a harmonious relationship between members of the organization.

Furthermore, the skills to be able to influence others so that they are willing to provide support for the ideas presented (Impact or Influence) if they can influence other people to want to support the ideas or ideas they convey, both formally and informally. By showing good optimistic behavior and remaining humble, every idea conveyed, especially those related to developing thoughts and initiatives towards work, can be accepted by others. Skills can get more information for work purposes (Information Seeking) related to job execution. Information obtained from all sources such as the internet, print media, and external parties can support the job’s completion properly. This study’s results are in accordance with the opinion of Boyatzis (2009) regarding social intelligence Aguinis and Kraiger (2009), which states that increasing skills will have a positive effect on behavior or performance at work. This study also expands the research results on social competence for good nurses by providing advice and understanding others and adapting socially to problems, including expressing their emotions appropriately (Chairina et al., 2019). The results of this study prove that behavior has a significant effect on the work effectiveness of government officials.

5. Conclusion

This study shows that competence influences work behavior and work effectiveness, but increasing work effectiveness in government officials has a significant effect. This means that government officials’ competence (motives, characteristics, self-concept, and knowledge) is owned by government officials if it is improved but only has a negligible effect on work effectiveness. This could be because the respondents in this study are operational personnel who are responsible for implementing policies or decisions made taken by its leaders so that they do not have more authority to carry out actions that have been determined by the leadership. For operational personnel, especially for government officials, every activity carried out must be adjusted to the expenditure budget in each government agency. So that in carrying out their work, they only focus on completing their tasks according to the predetermined targets. Then, the results of this study also indicate an indirect effect of competence on work effectiveness. This can indicate an intervening role between competence and work effectively to provide an opportunity for further research to clarify the intervening variables.

The results of this research are expected and will contribute to the development of science, especially human resource management and contribute to other parties concerned. The results of this study can provide additional references for the development of science in the field of human resource management, namely in measuring government officials not only by relying on knowledge and skills but also paying attention to the personality attributes inherent in individuals such as motives, characteristics, and concepts. Self-Performance as the result of an activity or job cannot be separated from the behavior shown by the individual as a person directly involved in the activity or job. Government officials are expected to have good work behavior while doing work, and this is closely related to their competencies based on their motives, characteristics, self-concept, knowledge, and skills. Competence contains a deep and inherent part of a person’s personality with predictable behavior in various job situations and tasks. The results of this study are expected to contribute to related parties, including the leadership of organizations or agencies, unit or division leaders, and other parties involved in performance appraisals for employees or employees. Aspects in a performance appraisal measure competence according to job duties, work goals, expected achievements, and behavior. Performance appraisals are used to tell employees how far they are performing and the rewards they will get. Performance appraisal also aims to evaluate and provide feedback to employees that will develop individual employees and the organization’s effectiveness. The results of this study are expected to contribute to local governments in conducting performance appraisals for government officials in the regions to assess performance by looking at aspects of individual characteristics (motives, characteristics and self-concept) and aspects of knowledge skills. This research is also expected to be continued by other researchers to deepen the concept of competence, work behavior, both from supporting theories and more specific empirical studies so that it can be used in general by every organization both in the public and private sectors.