Our aim was to determine whether personality and ability measures can predict job performance of call centre operators in a South African communications company. The predictors were personality variables measured by the Customer Contact Styles Questionnaire, Basic Checking and Audio Checking ability tests. These measures were completed by 140 operators. Supervisors completed the Customer Contact Competency Inventory for the operators as a measure of job performance. Additional criterion data were utilised by obtaining performance statistics regarding call handling time and quality of responding. Correlations and multiple regression analyses revealed statistically significant small to medium effect size correlations between the predictors and criteria.

Orientation: Reward has links to employee attraction and retention and as such has a role to play in managing talent. However, despite a range of research, there is still lack of clarity on employee preferences relating to reward.Research purpose: The purpose of the research was to recommend and appraise a theoretical model of the relationship between occupational culture dimensions and reward preferences of specific occupational groups in the South African context.Motivation for the study: The motivation for this study was to address the gap that exists with reward preferences and occupational culture with a view to identifying and gaining insight into individual preferences.Research design, approach and method: A structural equation modelling approach was adopted in exploring the proposed relationships. A South African Information, Communication, and Technology (ICT) organisation served as the population, and a web-based survey assisted in gathering study data (n = 1362).Main findings: The findings provided support for the relationship between occupational culture dimensions and certain reward preferences. In particular, statistically significant results were obtained with the inclusion of the Environment, Team, and Time occupational culture dimensions as independent variables.Practical implications and value-add: The study provides workable input to organisations and reward professionals in the design of their reward strategies and programmes.Keywords: compensation; employee preferences; occupational culture; remuneration; reward preferences