Nowadays, post-90s employees are becoming the main cohort within organizations in China. They are considered to have strong self-awareness, weak collective consciousness, and low work motivation, making it difficult for managers to improve their job performance. After reviewing the relevant literature, we found that person-organization (PO) value fit is positively related to job performance, but there is a limitation in explaining the psychological characteristics of post-90s employees. This study aims to explore the mechanism that how PO value fit impacts the job performance of post-90s employees in China. From the view of self-determination theory (SDT), we selected happiness as a mediating variable and love of money (LOM) as a moderating variable. Based on valid data collected from 919 employees from all walks of life in China, we utilized both linear regression analysis and a bootstrapping approach to verify our propositions. The results revealed a positive relationship between PO value fit and job performance through happiness. The moderated mediation analysis further indicated that the mediated path bonding happiness with job performance was weaker for post-90s employees with higher levels of LOM. The present study offers a nuanced interpretation of how PO value fit affects the job performance of post-90s employees in China and contributes to providing suggestions for improving the sustainability of organizations.
