Examining the Link Between Employee Voice Mechanisms and Organisational Innovation in the Nigerian Banking Sector: A Mixed-Methods Study

This mixed-methods study examines the relationship between employee voice mechanisms and organisational innovation in Nigerian commercial banks, drawing data from six banks spanning Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. The ability of employees to safely express ideas, concerns, and improvement suggestions is theorized to be a critical antecedent of organisational innovation, yet this linkage has received insufficient empirical attention in Nigeria's financial services research. A sequential explanatory mixed-methods design was employed, with quantitative surveys administered to 240 bank employees followed by qualitative focus groups with 30 senior HR practitioners. Regression analysis was used for quantitative data, and thematic analysis was applied to qualitative data. Morrison's Employee Voice Theory and Amabile's Componential Theory of Creativity provide the theoretical framing. Quantitative findings show a statistically significant positive relationship between perceived effectiveness of voice mechanisms and departmental innovation scores. Qualitative analysis reveals that anonymous digital idea submission platforms generate higher-quality innovation proposals than face-to-face suggestion schemes, primarily due to reduced fear of managerial backlash. The study identifies a critical research gap in the literature: the absence of empirical studies examining which specific voice mechanism designs are most effective in high-power-distance organizational cultures like those prevalent in Nigerian banking. Recommendations include mandatory employee voice platform adoption, innovation champion roles within HR departments, and periodic voice audit reporting to bank boards. This study makes an original methodological and empirical contribution to HRM and innovation management in Nigeria. Keywords: employee voice, organisational innovation, banking sector, mixed methods, Nigeria