Telecommuting and Academic Staff Performance in Private Chartered Universities in Nairobi County, Kenya

In higher education, telecommuting has become increasingly significant as a flexible work arrangement that gives academic staff members more freedom to handle administrative, research, and teaching responsibilities. This study examined the relationship between telecommuting and academic staff performance in selected private chartered universities in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study adopted a descriptive correlational research design. The target population comprised 1,033 academic staff from five private chartered universities. A stratified random sample of 288 respondents was selected using the Yamane formula, and 202 valid responses were obtained, giving a response rate of 70.1%. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression analysis with the aid of SPSS and Stata. Regression results confirmed that telecommuting is a significant predictor of academic staff performance (β = 0.248, R2 = 0.5706, p < 0.001). Correlation analysis revealed a strong positive association between telecommuting and academic staff performance (r = 0.642, p < 0.001). The study concludes that effective telecommuting enhances research productivity, teaching efficacy, and job satisfaction, although its benefits remain constrained by work-life balance challenges, inconsistent policies, and inadequate ICT infrastructure. The study recommends that universities should strengthen digital infrastructure, standardize telecommuting policies, and provide digital and psychosocial support. National regulatory organizations such as the Ministry of Education and the Commission for University Education (CUE) should also develop explicit frameworks to promote sustainable telecommuting in higher education. Keywords: Telecommuting; Academic Staff Performance; Flexible Work Arrangements; Private Chartered Universities, ICT