LEADERSHIP SUPPORT, SUPERVISORY CULTURE, AND THE CHALLENGES OF INSTITUTIONALISING HYBRID WORK IN NIGERIA'S PUBLIC SERVICE: A STUDY OF THE NATIONAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (NITDA)

Abstract

The adoption of remote and hybrid work has accelerated across public sector organisations since the COVID-19 pandemic, presenting new opportunities and challenges for digital governance and public service delivery. However, the formal adoption of hybrid work policies does not necessarily translate into their effective institutionalisation. This study examined the role of leadership support, supervisory culture, policy communication, and institutional barriers in shaping the institutionalisation of hybrid work at the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Nigeria. Anchored in institutional theory, the study employed a quantitative cross-sectional survey design. Data were collected from a purposively selected stratified sample of 173 employees at the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) headquarters in Abuja using a structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. The findings indicate that leadership support for hybrid work is generally strong, with leadership modelling recording the highest mean score (x̄ = 4.02), while policy awareness was also relatively high (x̄ = 3.89). Nevertheless, presence-oriented supervision remains evident (reverse-coded x̄ = 2.82), indicating that traditional supervisory practices continue to influence the implementation of hybrid work. Directors, who occupy a pivotal role in translating policy into operational practice, recorded the lowest policy confidence score (x̄ = 3.62), compared with middle management (x̄ = 3.98) and junior staff (x̄ = 4.01), suggesting communication and implementation gaps at the departmental level. The study further identified presence bias, managerial distrust, digital literacy gaps, inconsistent leadership communication, inadequate infrastructure, and the absence of detailed operational guidelines as the principal barriers to effective hybrid work implementation. Although employees generally perceive hybrid work as sustainable, differences in digital readiness between junior and longer-serving staff highlight the need for continuous capacity development. The study concludes that hybrid work at NITDA has achieved formal organisational legitimacy but remains only partially institutionalised because deeply embedded supervisory norms and organisational practices continue to constrain its full implementation. The study recommends the development of a comprehensive hybrid work operational framework, strengthened leadership communication, results-based performance management, continuous digital capacity-building, and targeted supervisory training to support the long-term institutionalisation of hybrid work within Nigeria's public service.