The aim of this study was to establish the influence of the Tourism Educational Qualification levels (TEQL) on Contextual Job Performance Behavior (CJPB) among employees in tour firms in Nairobi, Kenya. Studies have confirmed that besides formal job requirements for core- competencies, other forms of behaviors are also critical for the competitiveness of the tourism industry. This is due to the globalization of businesses, technological innovation, and the ever-evolving needs of the 21st century tourist among others. However, few studies have given attention to the correlation between educational qualifications and contextual performance behavior. Data was quantitively gathered from one hundred and thirty-one (131) supervisors, who rated three (3) randomly selected employees from the following levels of qualification: a bachelor’s degree holder; a diploma holder; & a certificate holder, on their CJPB. Both descriptive and inferential data analysis was conducted to assess the extent to which TEQL influences CJPB. The research findings showed that TEQL explained 59.1% of the total variations in the CJPB (R²= 59.1%). The regression coefficient output showed that TEQLs positively and scientifically influenced CJPB (β=0.769, p=0.001). The implication of these findings confirms that transitioning from a lower level of tourism educational qualification to a higher level improves an employee’s contextual job performance behavior by 0.587 units. It is for this reason that investing in developing tourism professionals has benefits for both employers and employees. This study recommends that tourism educators embed contextual skills in tourism programs in order to produce graduates not only with core competencies and business acumen, but also with humanistic values to cope with emerging trends.
Keywords: Tourism Industry, contextual job performance, tour operations, tourism educational qualification level
