School of Business and Economics
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Welcome to School of Business and Economics collection.This collection contains Journal articles published by faculty affiliated to the school.
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Item Culture Alignment, Firm size and Sustainable Competitive Advantage among Deposit taking Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya(IOSR Journal of Business and Management (IOSR-JBM), 2019-06) Mwenda, Kirigia Paul; Senaji, Thomas; Mwiti, EvansCompetitive advantage refers to a set of capabilities that permanently enable the business to demonstrate better performance than its competitors. Competitive advantage occurs when an organization acquires or develops an attribute or combination of attributes that allows it to outperform its competitors. Sustainable competitive advantage, refers to the long-term benefits of implementing unique values creating products which competitors cannot implement simultaneously, along with the inability to duplicate the benefits of this strategy. With the changing dynamics in the SACCO sector in Kenya, Managers are so much concerned not just in achieving competitive advantage but also sustaining it for long term benefit. This is can be attained through culture alignment. Culture is a shared common way of being, thinking and acting in a collective and coordinated people with reciprocal expectations in a given society. Organizational culture is set of shared values, beliefs and norms that influence the way employees think feel and behave in the organization on a daily basis, it is a firm’s orientation towards its internal stakeholders, which forms the basic rules that guide employees behaviors, developed and shared within an organization.The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between Culture Alignment on Sustainable Competitive Advantage among Deposit taking Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya and the moderating effect of firm size on this relationship. This study was anchored on contingency theory and adopted a correlational research design where data was collected only once from the respondents by use of questionnaires from six hundred and fifty six managers of deposit taking SACCOs in Kenya. Statistical package for social sciences (version 23) was used for data analyses. Multi linear regression was used to establish the relationship between the variables and data was presented through descriptive and inferential statistics and all ethical considerations were made. The study found culture alignment has a great influence on sustainable competitive advantage and also revealed a strong positive relationship between culture alignment (R= 0.591) and sustainable competitive advantage of SACCOs in Kenya and that Sustainable competitive can be attained through culture alignment. Moreover, firm size was found to influence this relationship. The study recommends that SACCOs in Kenya should strategically align their culture in order to sustain their competitive advantage and maintain a good market standing as they meet the needs of their stakeholdersItem Leadership Alignment, Firm size and Sustainable Competitive Advantage among Deposit taking Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya(IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS), 2019-07) Mwenda, Kirigia Paul; Senaji, Thomas; Mwiti, EvansSustainable competitive advantage has been a major topic of interest among managers of both commercial and non-commercial Organizations globally. As the operating environment becomes competitive, managers faced with dwindling performance for their Organisations are concerned not just with achieving competitive advantage but sustaining the same for long term benefit. This is achieved mostly through leadership alignment which is the fit between a firm’s strategy and its internal and external factors. The significance of Leadership alignment in a business context has been devoted to the fit between business competitive strategies and internal factors. Creating a sustainable competitive advantage is the most important goal of any Sacco’s and is the most important single attribute on which each Sacco’s must place its most focus. Strategic leadership is the leader’s ability to anticipate, envision, and maintain flexibility and to empower others to create strategic change as necessary. Strategic leadership is versatile and involves managing through subordinates, and helps organizations to cope with changes that seem to be increasing dramatically in today’s globalized business environment. Strategic leadership demands for the ability to integrate both the inside and outside business environment of the organization, and engage in multifaceted information processing.The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between Leadership Alignment on Sustainability of Competitive Advantage among Deposit taking Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya and the moderating effect of firm size on this relationship. The study was anchored on dynamic capability approach. The study adopted a correlational research design where data was collected only once from the respondents by use of questionnaires from four senior managers in each of the one hundred and sixty four SACCOs involved in this study. Statistical package for social sciences (version 23) was used for data analyses. Multi linear regression was used to establish the relationship between the variables and data was presented through descriptive and inferential statistics and all ethical considerations were made. The study found that leadership alignment influences sustainable competitive advantage and also there was a moderate positive relationship between leadership alignment (R= 0.304) and sustainable competitive advantage of SACCOs in Kenya and that sustainable competitive advantage is achieved through leadership alignment. Moreover, firm size was found to influence this relationship. The study recommends that SACCOs in Kenya should strategically align their leadership well in order to sustain their competitive advantage and remain relevant in meeting the needs of their customers.Item EFFECT OF BANCASSURANCE ON PERFORMANCE OF INSURANCE COMPANIES IN KENYA(International Academic Journal of Human Resource and Business Administration (IAJHRBA), 2019-09) Njeru, Jane Njoki; Mbebe, James; Munga, JaneThe most significant changes in the economic services segment have been growth of bancassurance which denotes supply of insurance products through effective process of banking channels. With the liberalization of the assurance sector and opposition is tougher than ever before, companies are increasingly trying to come out with better innovations to stay in front. Most insurance firms in Kenya have established bancassurance to be an attractive and often gainful commendation to their core business. There is great prospect for expansion and increase of bancassurance in Kenya; however, bancassurance in Kenya is pretty low. The main objective of this study was to establish the effect of bancassurance on performance of insurance companies in Kenya. This study sought to achieve the following objectives; to establish the effect of products or services type on performance of insurance companies in Kenya; to assess the effect of administration-economies of scale on performance of insurance companies in Kenya; to examine how customer lifecycle management of scale affect performance of insurance companies in Kenya and to determine the effect of sales promotion tool on performance of insurance companies in Kenya. This study was anchored on innovation theory, modern portfolio theory and the dynamic capabilities theory. A descriptive survey research design was applied in this study. The study intended to target 506 management staff who were drawn from the 55 listed insurance companies in Kenya. This study intended to collect data from all the 112 management staff of insurance companies in Kenya. The study used stratified random sampling technique to select the respondents for the sample size. Primary data was obtained using self-administered questionnaires. The study instruments were distributed among the targeted respondents using various points of reference like the managers of departments. Data analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) computer software. The qualitative data was coded thematically and then analyzed statistically. Content analysis was used for data that is qualitative nature or aspect of the data collected from the open ended questions. The information was displayed by use of tables, graphs and in prose-form. The study revealed that products or services type affect performance of insurance companies in Kenya greatly. The study further showed that performance of Insurance companies in Kenya is boosted by enhanced value and distribution channel optimization very greatly. The study found that the customers trust and convenience enhanced the performance of Insurance companies in Kenya very greatly. The study found that sales promotion tool affected performance of insurance companies in Kenya greatly. The study concluded that Products or Services Type had the greatest effect on the performance of insurance companies in Kenya, followed by Customer Lifecycle Management, then Sales Promotion Tool and finally Administration- Economies of Scale had the least effect. The study recommends that the insurance companies should ensure that customer- orientation through understanding the market and directing the resources of the company towards achieving the desires and the needs of the customers and measuring the ability to provide a value for the customer. The study further recommends that insurance companies’ managers should weigh carefully their marketing promotion strategies and align them to their objectives adapting a suitable mix of the promotion tools.Item MORTGAGE RATES IN KENYA:(International Academic Journal of Economics and Finance (IAJEF), 2016-05) Kigomo, JuliaThe mortgage market in Kenya is relatively small compared to international standards having only 15,803 loans. The growth rate has been low since 2006 though with a steady growth of 14% annually but still the growth is below 50%, therefore the loan portfolio remains small. In terms of mortgage debt to GDP ratios, Kenya’s ratio is low by international standards. the mortgage debt to GDP ratio is around 50% in Europe and over 70% in US. Kenya’s mortgage debt compared to its GDP is better than its East African neighbors, Tanzania and Uganda at just under 2.5% this is an indication that there is still a room to grow for East African countries and more so Kenya which has low mortgage uptake. While the mortgage markets in the United States and Europe have been studied extensively by academics and other researchers around the world, markets outside the U.S. and Europe generally gain much less attention. Particularly, the structure and other institutional aspects of the mortgage markets outside the U.S. and Europe attain a very attention. This study intended to establish the factors behind the low mortgage uptake. The study had the following specific objectives: to determine the influence of mortgage interest rates on the uptake of mortgages; to establish the effect of incomes on the uptake of mortgages; to identify the effect of credit risks of borrowers on the uptake of mortgages, and; to establish the effect of availability of mortgage financiers on the uptake of mortgages. The study design was descriptive survey. This involved surveying various respondents to find out the factors which contributed to uptake of mortgages. In this study, the population was customers who had taken or was in the process of taking a mortgage from one of the Kenyan mortgage lenders. The sampling technique employed was snowballing which started with a few mortgage borrowers who introduced others. The primary data was collected by means of self-administered questionnaire. The collected data from the questionnaires was analyzed using descriptive statistics for quantitative data and content analysis for qualitative data. Presentation of the analyzed data was in form of tables and graphs. The findings from the study indicate that income levels had the greatest effect on uptake of mortgages followed by interest rates and other mortgage costs. The third most important factor affecting uptake of mortgage was unavailability of credit data and high credit risks. The least important factor affecting mortgage uptake was availability of mortgage facilities and institutions. From the findings of the study, the following recommendations are made. First, low cost housing should be developed to cater to those who cannot afford current mortgages. Mortgagees should also lower mortgage costs to incorporate more customers into the bracket of those who can afford. The study also recommends the mortgagees and the credit risk bureau to improve risk management and efficiency in their operations. Lastly, it is recommended that the players in the market including CMA, NSE and the various stakeholders should develop a secondary mortgage market.Item Mortgage rates in Kenya: Implications for homeownership.(International Academic Journal of Economics and Finance (IAJEF), 2016-05) Kigomo, JuliaThe mortgage market in Kenya is relatively small compared to international standards having only 15,803 loans. The growth rate has been low since 2006 though with a steady growth of 14% annually but still the growth is below 50%, therefore the loan portfolio remains small. In terms of mortgage debt to GDP ratios, Kenya’s ratio is low by international standards. the mortgage debt to GDP ratio is around 50% in Europe and over 70% in US. Kenya’s mortgage debt compared to its GDP is better than its East African neighbors, Tanzania and Uganda at just under 2.5% this is an indication that there is still a room to grow for East African countries and more so Kenya which has low mortgage uptake. While the mortgage markets in the United States and Europe have been studied extensively by academics and other researchers around the world, markets outside the U.S. and Europe generally gain much less attention. Particularly, the structure and other institutional aspects of the mortgage markets outside the U.S. and Europe attain a very attention. This study intended to establish the factors behind the low mortgage uptake. The study had the following specific objectives: to determine the influence of mortgage interest rates on the uptake of mortgages; to establish the effect of incomes on the uptake of mortgages; to identify the effect of credit risks of borrowers on the uptake of mortgages, and; to establish the effect of availability of mortgage financiers on the uptake of mortgages. The study design was descriptive survey. This involved surveying various respondents to find out the factors which contributed to uptake of mortgages. In this study, the population was customers who had taken or was in the process of taking a mortgage from one of the Kenyan mortgage lenders. The sampling technique employed was snowballing which started with a few mortgage borrowers who introduced others. The primary data was collected by means of self-administered questionnaire. The collected data from the questionnaires was analyzed using descriptive statistics for quantitative data and content analysis for qualitative data. Presentation of the analyzed data was in form of tables and graphs. The findings from the study indicate that income levels had the greatest effect on uptake of mortgages followed by interest rates and other mortgage costs. The third most important factor affecting uptake of mortgage was unavailability of credit data and high credit risks. The least important factor affecting mortgage uptake was availability of mortgage facilities and institutions. From the findings of the study, the following recommendations are made. First, low cost housing should be developed to cater to those who cannot afford current mortgages. Mortgagees should also lower mortgage costs to incorporate more customers into the bracket of those who can afford. The study also recommends the mortgagees and the credit risk bureau to improve risk management and efficiency in their operations. Lastly, it is recommended that the players in the market including CMA, NSE and the various stakeholders should develop a secondary mortgage market.Item Analyzing the Course of Turmoil in Kenya’S Retail Sector(THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BUSINESS & MANAGEMENT, 2018-08) Chesula, Osman Wechuli; Nkobe, Kenyoru DennisPurpose - The retail sector in Kenya is one of the main drivers of the Economy. This paper sought to empirically analyze the factors leading to the collapse of some of the major Supermarket chains and also to understand why some of them are struggling to operate. Design/methodology/approach -The conceptual paper is based on the critical analysis of important data from internal and external industry publications, published interviews, and Regulatory Authorities reports. Findings –It was evident that mismanagement and competition especially from online shopping are some of the main factors that have affected the retail chain sector. Supplier’s failure to facilitate continuous stocking and scrupulous employees has also contributed significantly to the failure of the retail chain sector in Kenya. Originality/value – This paper is the first to propose and provide a comprehensive insight into understanding the reasons for struggling and collapse of the major players in the retail chain industry. The paper also proposes scientific research to statistically explain the effect of each variable on the retail chains.Item EFFECT OF INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL ON FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY OF SAVINGS AND CREDIT COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES IN KENYA(International Academic Journal of Economics and Finance, 2019-09) Farah, Abdirizak Ali; Mbebe, James Nzili; Muyoka, BarbaraThe business environment within which the SACCOs operate has been very volatile. The increasing importance of intellectual capital as the main assets for organizations in the changing knowledgebased economy, where IC played an important role in the existence and continuity of those organizations, in addition to locating it between competitors. The study determined the effect of intellectual capital disclosure on financial sustainability of savings and credit cooperative societies in Kenya. The study specifically established the effect of human capital, structural capital, relational capital and customer capital on financial sustainability of Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya. This study was hinged on stakeholder theory, legitimacy theory, resource-based theory, human capital theory and constraint induced financial innovation theory. The study adopted descriptive research design. The study target population was the management staff in the SACCOs in Kenya. Nassiuma (2000) formula was used to obtain the desired sample size of 315 for the study with the population of 1737. Stratified proportionate random sampling technique was used to select the respondents. The primary research data was collected from the management staff working at Saccos in Kenya. In this study drop and pick method is preferred for questionnaire administration so as to give respondents enough time to give well thought out responses. Data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 25.0). All the questionnaires received were referenced and items in the questionnaire were coded to facilitate data entry. After data cleaning which entailed checking for errors in entry, descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean score and standard deviation were estimated for all the quantitative variables. Inferential analysis was also done using correlation and regression analysis (multiple regression analysis). Finally, information was presented inform of tables and graphs. Relational capital was found to affect financial sustainability of Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya very greatly. The study established that integrated communication systems and operations automation affect financial sustainability of Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya to a great extent. The study found that employee’s competence and qualifications affect financial sustainability of Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya to a great extent. The study found that customer capital influences financial sustainability of Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies in Kenya greatly. The study concluded that customer capital had the greatest effect on financial sustainability of SACCOs in Kenya, followed by relational capital, then human capital while structural capital had the least effect on financial sustainability of SACCOs in Kenya. The study recommends that managers should therefore seek to understand their clients’ background, discover their priorities, know their tastes and likes to ensure they serve them well thus creating a long-term business relationship with them, culminating in the SACCOs financial sustainability. Also, SACCOs should take part in corporate social responsibility activities as a way of relational capital initiative which will create goodwill and thereby spurring the firm’s performance.Item NUTURING TACIT KNOWLEDGE THROUGH A KNOWLEDGE CENTERED CULTURE FOR ORGANIZATIONAL AGILITY(International Journal of Management and Applied Science, 2017-11) RIBUTHI, JANE NJOKiOrganizations are battling with unending demand for improved and quality service delivery from her customers. This requires new approaches a knowledge culture that facilitates sharing of tacit knowledge among all the stakeholders. Service delivery has been one of the major focus areas of organizational transformation and public sector reforms in Kenyan Government. Service delivery has been one of the major focus areas of organizational transformation and public sector reforms in Kenyan Government. Competition among the players pushes the organizations to come up with strategies of becoming and remaining agile. Organizations are realizing the importance of knowledge centered culture to enable them share knowledge efficiently and effectively as knowledge that is not well managed and shared corrodes easily. The concern of this paper is that existing tacit knowledge may be lost if not tapped. Failure of tapping into tacit knowledge affects organizational agility negatively. How to retain or tap tacit knowledge remains an area of interest to researchers. This paper foresees an urgent need of coming up with the most effective mechanisms for tapping tacit knowledge within the organization.Item Relationship between Financial Structure and Financial Performance of Listed Firms in Nairobi Securities Exchange in Kenya(International Journal Of Advanced Research in Engineering& Management (IJAREM, 2018) Ngure, Erastus G; Mutea, Fredrick; Muema, WilsonFirms have alternative ways of raising their funds. Corporate financing decisions made by the management leads to a financial structure and improper financing behaviour and decisions can lead to corporate failure. A quagmire exists in the mind of stakeholders and researchers as to whether there exists an optimal financial structure that maximizes shareholders’ wealth. Thus when making financing choices there is need to consider evaluating the effect of the available financing alternatives on the firm’s financial performance. The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between financial structure and financial performance of listed firms in Kenya,by determining the effect of internal financing, equity financing, short term debt and long term debt on financial performance. Descriptive and historical research design was adopted. The study was a census, featuring all the listed companies that were operational from the year 2009 to 2016. Primary data collected by questionnaires and secondary data obtained from NSE handbooks and published financial statements of the firms listed in the NSE were utilized. Descriptive statistics and multiple linear regressions were used to analyze the data which was presented in form of tables and charts. It was revealed that the mean internal financing of the companies listed at the NSE had consistently increased from 5.346 billion shillings in the year 2009 to 14.7 billion shillings in the year 2016. However, the study did not establish a significant relationship between internal financing and financial performance of listed firms in Kenya. A statistically significant relationship between equity financing and financial performance of listed firms in the NSE was established. The relationship between short term debt financing and financial performance of listed firms in Kenya was not significant. The mean long term debt financing for the firms listed at NSE had greatly increased from 3.367 billion shillings in 2009 to 15.587 billion shillings in 2016. The relationship between long term debt financing and financial performance of listed firms in the NSE was found to be statistically significant. It was concluded that two out of the four financial structure components included in the study were significantly associated with financial performance of listed firms in the Nairobi Securities Exchange in Kenya. A firm that utilizes equity finance is able to excel financially since the equity holders are the residual claimants and they have to ensure that resources are allocated efficiently to be able to maximize shareholders wealth. Affordable long term debt assists a firm to access productive technologies that it would not have otherwise achieved using internal financing. It was recommended that the board of directors of the listed firms should always give priority to funding options with no compulsory returns to avoid financial distress associated with difficulties in meeting financial obligations. Besides, the management of the listed firms should always perform accurate forecasting on projects they intend to venture into, against the cost of debt and taking into consideration the payback period, in the event they want to source for long term external funding. Since the study focused on firms listed in the NSE, it is suggested that the study be extended to other firms and institutions not listed to assess whether different findings may be reached regarding relationship between financial structure and financial performance.Item Determinants of Gender Disparities in the Recruitment of Executive Officers: A Case in Kisii County Government, Kenya(International Academic Journal of Human Resource and Business Administration (IAJHRBA), 2019-10-22) Kwamboka Momanyi, Rael; Kirimi, . Eunice; Mbebe, JamesThis study intends to study the factors causing gender disparity in executive positions in KCG. To achieve this, the study will be guided by two objectives which include; establishing how political factors affect gender disparity at KCG and investigating ways in which regional balance affect recruitment of various genders of executive officers at KCG. The theory was hinged on the Social Gender Theory and Structural Functional theory. The case study research design was adopted. The study targeted staff who entailed the 119-top echelon of staff in the County. The sample size to be studied is census of 119 respondents who make up 100% of the target population for efficient questionnaire administration. Primary data was collected using one structured questionnaire. Primary data collected from the field was captured from the filled questionnaires, cleaned, coded with unique numbers, entered into the Microsoft excel worksheets and transferred to the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) program. After data cleaning which entails checking for errors in entry, descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean score and standard deviation was estimated for all the quantitative variables. The qualitative data from the open-ended questions was analyzed using conceptual content analysis to analyze the secondary data collected from Kisii County annual reports, the Kisii County Integrated Development Plan 2013-2017, the Kisii County Website, books, journals, magazines and media reports and presented in prose. Inferential data analysis was done using Pearson moment correlation and multiple regression analysis. The information was presented in tables. The study found that there is discrimination in terms of gender recruitment since it depends on whom you know politically. The study further found that the gender disparity of work is given by chance and men have to give a convincing demonstration of incompetency to be actually judged incompetent. The study recommended that political factors should be embraced with appointment policies of executive officers in recruitment of county government. The study also recommended that there is need to embrace on the communal beliefs and social constructs that women cannot lead in leadership positions more likely to be hired when they have applied through computerized application process.