The Effect of Organizational Culture and Quality of Work Life on Employee Performance with Employee Engagement as a Mediating Variable

Abstract

Human resources are the most important asset in any organization, especially in public sector institutions responsible for delivering services to society. This study examines the effect of organizational culture and quality of work life on employee performance, with employee engagement as a mediating variable, among civil servants at Dinas Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Kota Malang. The study uses a quantitative explanatory approach and applies Structural Equation Modeling with Partial Least Square (SEM-PLS) through SmartPLS 4. A saturated sampling technique was used, covering all 63 civil servants as respondents. The results show that organizational culture has a positive and significant effect on employee performance and employee engagement. Quality of work life significantly affects employee engagement but does not directly influence employee performance. Employee engagement has a positive and significant effect on employee performance. Employee engagement partially mediates the relationship between organizational culture and employee performance, and fully mediates the relationship between quality of work life and employee performance. These findings confirm that employee engagement is a critical psychological mechanism that connects organizational conditions to performance outcomes in public sector settings.