The Influence of Competency and Employee Engagement on Employee Performance: The Role of Job Satisfaction Mediation at the Karangasem Regency Youth and Sports Education Office

Abstract

Employee performance is an important indicator of the success of a public organization, which is influenced by competence, employee engagement, and job satisfaction. This study aims to examine the influence of competence and employee engagement on employee performance, both directly and through job satisfaction as an intervening variable, at the Karangasem Regency Education, Youth and Sports Office. The study used an explanatory research type quantitative approach with a cross sectional design, involving all 52 employees as respondents through saturated sampling techniques. Data were collected using a five-point Likert scale questionnaire, then analyzed with path analysis and the Sobel test to test the effects of mediation. The results of the study show that competence and employee engagement have a positive and significant effect on job satisfaction and employee performance directly. Job satisfaction has also been proven to significantly improve employee performance. However, job satisfaction has not been proven to be able to mediate the influence of competence and employee engagement on employee performance, because  the Z value  on the Sobel test is below the critical threshold of 1.98. These findings indicate that direct influence is more dominant than indirect pathways in the context of local government agencies. This study recommends strengthening aspects of nature, vigor, compensation, and work effectiveness to support the continuous improvement of employee performance.