DECENT JOBS AND DIGITAL GOVERNANCE: A HUMAN-CENTERED HRM ECOSYSTEM IN KAZAKHSTAN'S CIVIL SERVICE

Abstract

Kazakhstan's civil service modernization has placed human-centered governance, digital HRM, and decent jobs at the center of public administration reform. However, empirical evidence on how competencies and workplace resources shape civil servants' satisfaction remains limited in post-Soviet contexts. This study examines whether Human Resource Competency (HRC) and Work Environment Quality (WEQ) affect Civil Servant Satisfaction (CSS) within an ecosystem approach to HRM. The analysis uses anonymous national survey data from 12,562 civil servants in Kazakhstan and applies Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS 4. Reliability and validity diagnostics confirmed strong measurement quality: average variance extracted ranged from 0.678 to 0.820, composite reliability exceeded 0.80 for all constructs, and HTMT values ranged from 0.659 to 0.876. The structural model explained 51.54% of the variance in CSS. HRC had a strong positive and statistically significant effect on CSS (β = 0.587, t = 28.449, p < 0.001, f² = 0.166), while WEQ also had a positive and significant but practically negligible direct effect (β = 0.146, t = 6.513, p < 0.001, f² = 0.010). Predictive relevance was supported by Q²_predict values of 0.387 for SAT1 and 0.414 for SAT2. The findings indicate that competence development is the dominant determinant of satisfaction, whereas workplace quality functions as a secondary organizational resource. Quantitatively, the study links human-centered HRM with quality jobs, equal opportunities, economic productivity, inclusive growth, and sustainable public-sector governance in Kazakhstan. These results clarify the relative explanatory weight of individual and organizational resources in civil service HRM ecosystems.

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