The Effect of Employee Competence on Employee Performance at the Department of Transportation of Dairi Regency

Abstract

This study examines the effect of employee competence on employee performance at the Department of Transportation of Dairi Regency . The population of this research consisted of 66 employees, all of whom were included as respondents using a census (total sampling) technique. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and simple linear regression analysis. The descriptive results indicate that employee competence (M = 4.72; SD = 0.41) and employee performance (M = 4.85; SD = 0.52) are both categorized at high levels, suggesting that the organization demonstrates strong competency standards and favorable performance outcomes. The regression analysis reveals that employee competence has a significant positive effect on employee performance, with a regression coefficient (B = 1.142), standardized Beta (β = 0.728), and t-value (8.964). These findings imply that every one-unit increase in employee competence contributes to a 1.142-unit increase in employee performance, confirming the substantial role of competence in enhancing work outcomes. The constant value (8.975) indicates that employee performance remains at a positive baseline level even without the influence of competence, although competence significantly strengthens it. The model summary shows a correlation coefficient (R = 0.742) and a coefficient of determination (R² = 0.551), indicating that employee competence explains 55.1% of the variance in employee performance, while the remaining 44.9% is influenced by other factors not examined in this study. These results highlight that employee competence is a critical determinant of employee performance improvement within public sector organizations.