Date of Award

3-2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Digital Journalism (MADJ)

First Supervisor/Advisor

Rosalind Raddatz

Second Supervisor/Advisor

David Aduda

Department

Graduate School of Media and Communications

Abstract

This study assessed the high-performance work system (HPWS) on the survival of print media in Tanzania. The study was guided by three specific objectives namely; (i) to assess the extent to which the high-performance work system is practised in Mwananchi and Nipashe newsrooms, (ii) to assess the correlation between the high-performance work system and the performance of Mwananchi and Nipashe newspapers, and (iii) to examine challenges of practicing HPWS in Mwananchi and Nipashe newspapers. The study was based on qualitative research approach. This approach was applied for the purpose of getting in-depth information from the sample of 24 respondents from Mwananchi and Nipashe newspapers in Dar es Salaam region. The study found that when an organisation implements some elements of high-performance work system, it motivates the employees and there is a high chance of improving individual productivity and subsequently, organisational performance. This is because workers are valued and in return, they work hard for the company. The study further revealed that Mwananchi newsroom is currently applying most of the elements of HPWS and this reflects on the positive workers relation with management, which in one way or another, may result to better performance of the organisation as compared to other print media organisations in Tanzania. The study suggests that for the print media organisations to perform better, they should implement all the seven elements of HPWS. However, because of the financial constraints, the study recommends that organisations use their internal resources, especially experienced editors to train junior journalists at less or no cost. Even though some media implement some elements of HPWS, the concept is not well known to them. The study concluded that HPWS is very crucial for print media organisations because if all elements are implemented, it helps to cement relationship between workers and management, leading to improved individual productivity and organisation performance. In addition, from this study, the capstone project was developed by using some recommendations which were collected from primary and secondary data. The capstone project which has been simplified can be used by not only print, but also other media organisations to manage their employees.

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