Theses and Dissertations
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Item Effect Of Corporate Governance Practices On Performance Of State Corporation In The Tourism Industry In Kenya.(KCA University, 2016) Wanjala, Moses W.The main objective of the study was to assess the effect of Corporate Governance practices on performance of State Corporations in the tourism industry in Kenya. It focused on three key areas of the organization governance viz., Board diversity; CEO attributes and audit committee activities as independent variables whereas performance was the dependent variable. Six State Corporations with headquarters in Nairobi formed the target population. The subjects of study were 57 management staff of the six selected SCs, which were chosen based on Census survey since the number was small and manageable. This group was deemed to have needed information that was sought by the researcher since it is involved in planning and executing of organization policies. The management staff also formed the unit of analysis. The study adopted descriptive design and primary data was collected using the questionnaire that was made up of structured, and closed ended questions based on the five point Likert scale where 1 was the lowest (strongly disagree) and 5 being the highest as strongly agree. Before use, the questionnaire was validated through a pilot test on five employees in one of the organizations (KUC) who were not part of the study. The questionnaire was also subjected to Cronbach’s test for reliability. The collection of data involved drop and pick method by the researcher and they were collected after three weeks. After collection, data was cleaned, coded and analyzed with the help of Excel and Stata version 13 software. The analysis was based on descriptive and multiple regression techniques. After the analysis, data was presented in form of charts, tables, percentages and frequencies. The study found out that board diversity, CEO attributes and audit committee activities positively and significantly affected performance in the state corporations in the tourism industry in Kenya,( R- Squared= 53.1%, p<0.05). That signified that 53.1 % of variance in performance was explained by corporate governance practices while 46.9% was attributed to other factors. Further, the study established that individually, board diversity had the highest effect on performance, correlation coefficient (49.4% against audit committee, which posted a coefficient of 32.5%. Therefore, the study rejected the null hypothesis for both board diversity, audit committee, and recommended that the government expedite on diversity in public institutions and empower audit committees for better performance.Item Effect of marketing strategies on performance of small and medium enterprises in Kitengela township, Kajiado county(Kca University, 2016) Sapuro, James T.Small and Medium Enterprises like other large enterprises have increasingly used various marketing strategies in their operation. This study sought to find out the effects of marketing strategies on the business performance of SMEs in Kitengela Township, Kenya. Companies are continually faced with the need to meet the challenges that arises from the ever changing markets and continuous competition that they face nationally, regionally and globally. As a result companies have to develop clearly defined strategies and plans for survival and growth. This research adopted a descriptive research design, with target population of 62 SMEs in Kitengela. Census sampling method was used to select the SMEs, with the sampling size of the study being 186 respondents. Data was collected using questionnaire and analysed by aid of Statistical Package of Social Scientists (SPSS). The findings were summarized using statistical measures of dispersion while data is presented using tables, graphs and frequencies. The study found out that place marketing strategy, promotion marketing strategies, and product marketing strategies have a positive and significant relationship with business performance. It further found out price marketing strategy to have a positive but insignificant relationship with business performance of SMEs. The study thus recommends that SMEs need to pay attention to the 4Ps marketing mix in general and on the place marketing strategy in particular (since it had the largest coefficient) to improve business performance.Item Effect Of Restructuring On Performance Of Small And Medium Enterprises In Ict Sector In Kenya(KCA University, 2013) Nyaga, Daniel K.The main objective of this study was to establish the effect of restructuring on performance of SMEs in ICT sector in Kenya. Specifically, the study examined the three modes of restructuring; Financial restructuring, portfolio restructuring and operational restructuring and the effect of each mode of restructuring to SMEs’ performance using ten key performances namely Sales, Profit margins, cash flow, revenue, Liquidity, overall business profitability, Business Image, efficiency, productivity and staff morale. The study also sought to establish the relationship between restructuring and SMEs’ performance using overall profitability weighted through regression analysis model. In addition, it sought to establish the most common mode restructuring among SMEs. The primary data was collected through self administrated questionnaire to the staff in management of the SMEs in ICT sector. Purposeful sampling was used to target specific staff with the required information; mostly owners and shareholders. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Data reliability was done using Cronbach’s Alpha. Data was analysed using descriptive methods and multiple regression model. The study found that a strong relationship exist between restructuring and performance. Positive performance was observed as a result of restructuring. Portfolio restructuring was found to have greatest and quick effect on performance while operational restructuring had significant effect on performance on long term basis. Financial restructuring was observed as link between the other two modes of restructuring for better performance results. Financial restructuring was found to be the most preferred mode of restructuring. The study also observed that all the three modes of restructuring interacted with each other as indicated.Item Effect Of Employee Diversity On Organization Performance Of Selected State Corporations In Kenya(KCA University, 2016) Wachira, Anne Fredah J.Despite the adoption of the employee diversity legislation by public institutions, the impact of the diversity programs at the organization level still need to be identified since these programs are executed deliberately by human resource managers, and may have varied adaptations and unintended consequences. This study therefore sought to establish the effect of employee diversity on organizational performance of state corporations in Kenya. The study categorised employees diversity under the categories of skills diversity, values diversity and social diversity. The study targeted the employees of selected state corporations using multi-stage sampling technique. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. Primary data was collected via structured questionnaires using the “drop and pick” method. The data was analyzed using both descriptive & inferential statistical measures. Descriptive statistics included: frequencies, percentages, mean scores and standard deviations. Inferential statistics namely; regression, correlation analysis and hypothesis testing were employed to determine the relationship between the independent and dependent variables under study. Employee diversity was found to affect customer satisfaction, market share, employee satisfaction, labour costs and employee performance with the most significant impact being on employee performance. The study found skills category diversity to be the most significant factor that positively affected the performance of the selected state corporations. This was followed by values diversity that had a moderate effect on performance. Social category diversity was found to affect performance positively and was the third most influencing factor. The relationship between employee diversity and organization performance of the selected state corporations was found to be moderated by the external environment, organization management and leadership.Item Effect Of Fund Size On The Financial Performance Of Pension Funds In Kenya(KCA University, 2016) Kigen, Albert K.The performance of pension schemes is imperative as they play a very significant role in the economy of any country. Over the past year pension reforms have been carried out that have brought in different pension schemes with different fund size. The present study thus did attempt to analyze the effect of fund size on the financial performance of pension fund in Kenya. Specifically the study determined the effect of density of contribution, cumulative assets, retirement age, costs and size of membership on the financial performance of pension fund. The study was conducted through the use of a descriptive survey design. The target population for the study comprised all the 1232 registered pension schemes in Kenya as per the Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA, 2014). A sample size of 93 registered pension schemes was selected for the study through purposive sampling. The study used secondary data, which was quantitative in nature and was collected from the annual financial statements of the pension schemes in the custody of the Fund Managers, Scheme Trustees, Scheme Administrators and RBA as filed returns. The data collected was for the period 2011-2015 The quantitative data collected was analyzed by the use of random effect model and correlation analysis. The data was presented though tables, frequencies, charts and graphs. The study found out that administration expenses, investment expenses, pension contribution and accumulated fund assets all have a significant effect on the financial performance of pension fund in Kenya. This was indicated by p-values of 0.04, 0.000, 0.000 and 0.019 respectively. Number of active members and Exit age was determined to have no significant effect on the financial performance of pension funds. This was indicated with p-values of 0.843 and 0.413 respectively. The study concludes that pension contribution, costs and accumulated fund assets significantly affect the financial performance of pension funds. The study thus recommends the need to have more family size pension funds, the need for pension schemes to embrace more cost effective measures and the need for development of new contribution models.Item Causes Of Academic Staff Turnover And Their Effect On Performance Of Selected Universities In Kenya(KCA University, 2014) Agola. Christine A.For universities to run successfully in the current world of business, the higher learning institutions are mandated to adhere to the importance of having intellectual capital strategies in their institution planning that happen to be the academic staff. The purpose of this study was to establish causes of academic staff turnover and their effect on performance of selected universities in Nairobi. The target population was 2857 Academic Staff which comprised of 1,600 from University of Nairobi; 49 from KCA University; 1,000 from Kenyatta University and 208 from Strathmore University. The sample size for this study was 10% of the population that is, 286 which was representative enough to generalize the characteristics observed. Questionnaires were the data collection technique used. Content validity was tested by seeking for expert opinion on the contents of the questionnaire. Construct and face validity were tested through a pilot study by administering 10 academic staff from United States International University and a value of 0.731 was noted which proved the reliability of the data in this study. Data was analysed by using Statistical Packages for the Social Sciences. Descriptive statistics; measures of central tendency (means), percentages and frequency distribution; and inferential statistic techniques; correlation analysis, Analysis of variances, Chi-square and Multiple Regression were used to generate the data. Results from the study show that the four variables are significant in explaining the performance of the selected universities at 95% confidence level. The results of the regression summary show that the fitted model y = 3.679 + 0.117 X 1 + 0.100 X2 + - 0.091X 3 + 0.083X 4 is significant improvement of the previous models at 95% confidence level while the coefficient of determination is 76.43% which explain the change on university performance. Correlation coefficient was statistically significant on the number of students supervised being manageable at 0.003, opportunities for academic staff advancement was statistically significant on at 0.009, statistically significant on caring about the academic staff welfare at 0.002 but there was a statistic insignificance when it comes to the availability of teaching resources at 0.29. When other variables ware held constant, an additional opportunity for staff advancement increases the performance of university by 0.1, a unit increase in the number of academic staff not sponsored for training and development reduces the performance of university by 0.091, a unit increase in the measure of academic staff teaching resources increases the performance of university by 0.083 and a unit increase in the number of students supervised increases the performance of the university by 0.117. Suggestion is given that further research may be carried out on causes of academic staff turnover and their effect on performance of selected universities in Nairobi and to point out predictor variables not indicated in this study.Item Effect Of The Value Network On The Performance Of Commercial Banks In Kenya(KCA University, 2016) Njogu, Kawira P.Globalisation and advances in information technology have created a complex, dynamic economic landscape with a shift from a focus on tangibles to intangibles thus creating the intangible - service and information - economy: A networked economy characterized by partnerships amongst firms. As a result, the Commercial Banking sector in Kenya has progressed from a regulatory and strategic perspective as banks have built Value Networks in order to counter increasing competition thus constantly innovating products and services; and increasing market segments towards growth. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the Value Network on the performance of Commercial Banks in Kenya. Independent variables examined included scale, growth in alliances, R&D expenditure and training. A sample of 15 Commercial Banks was drawn from the target population of 43 Commercial Bank headquarters located in Nairobi and studied over five years from 2010 to 2014. Data was collected from audited financial statements. Data analysis included descriptive and inferential statistics. The former employed frequency distributions, measures of central tendency and exploratory data analysis using growth pattern graphs and overlain growth plots. The results indicated an upward trend in all variables across the period and the presence of random effects. Panel descriptive analysis was also conducted which revealed the between and within differences. The Jarque Bera test for Normality indicated that data was not normal. Consequently Logarithm transformation of all variables, excluding R&D intensity, was employed to achieve Normality. R&D intensity was not transformed because it is a ratio. Inferential statistics entailed the use of correlation and panel regression analysis. No multicollinearity was present because all independent variables registered a correlation coefficient of less than 0.8. Prior to regression panel data diagnostic tests were run. They confirmed: The appropriateness of random effects regression for analysis (Breusch-Pagan LM test), absence of heteroskedasticity (modified Wald test), presence of time effects (time fixed effects test) and serial correlation (Wooldridge-Drukker test). Therefore, the FGLS two way random effects regression model was employed in the study (random effects model was also clarified by the Hausman test). The findings indicated that scale, growth in alliances and training had a positive significant relationship whilst R&D expenditure had a negative significant relationship with Commercial Bank performance. The study suggested various recommendations: On scale: Bank managers are advised to increase adoption of NPS and TCF metrics. Secondly, on growth in strategic alliances: As banks establish more strategic alliances management should apply Epstein’s five measures of success to ensure well structured management. Thirdly, on R&D expenditure: Policy makers should shift the approach to R&D financial reporting: Capitalize R&D’s Development component and seek sectoral reforms on this through regulators such as the Central Bank of Kenya and Kenya Banker’s Association. Finally, on training: Managers are encouraged to incorporate more of the Value Network’s systems thinking as they invest further in training. Suggested areas for further study include comparative analysis amongst different industry sectors and countries, investigation on other firm level factors such as customer loyalty and macroeconomic factors as the determinants of Commercial Banks’ performance in Kenya, study on the effect of R&D on firm performance in the longer term and the threshold effect of R&D investment on optimal performance.Item Effect Of Mobile Phone Banking On Performance Of Commercial Banks In Kenya(2016) Abong'o, Donna A.Globalization is making the financial world more interconnected and organizations are continuously coming up with financial products that are very innovative. The world has also been taken by storm through financial interconnectivity and information technology which has now engulfed data transfer across all spheres putting the command in the hands of individuals through mobile handsets. This has gone to change the way business is done bringing with it speed, efficiency and effectiveness which transmits into economic growth and development. Various initiatives use the mobile phone to provide financial services to those without access to traditional banks everywhere in the world. Mobile banking services give a high potential to expand financial services particularly payment services to the poor. The services also provide a cost effective and convenient way to access bank accounts. The general objective of my study was to investigate the effect of mobile phone banking on performance of Commercial banks in Kenya. The population of my study was the 43 Commercial banks operating in Kenya as at 31st December 2014 with the sample being 10 in number. The sample size was 200 respondents. Descriptive research method was employed. To determine the reliability of the tools employed, the Cronbach’s alpha test was conducted. To determine the linear relationship between all the study variables, Spearman’s Rank Correlation Coefficient was used. Tests to determine violation of OLS assumptions were carried out. Results presented in the regression model summary indicated that the R squared for the regression was 0.458.The ANOVA indicated that F value was 29.532 and was significant at 95% confidence level. Results showed that storage of monies for safe keeping and transfer of monies from one owner to another were not a significant predictor of performance of banks. However, exchange of forms of money through mobile banking and investment of monies had a significant effect on performance of banks. The main recommendations were that apart from KCB and Equity, the other commercial banks in Kenya should come up with products and services similar to CBA’S Mshwari and that local commercial banks in Kenya should diversify their investments before technology pushes them out of business. A future researcher can conduct a research with the aim of determining the effects of mobile payments on other business organizations.Item Effect Of Financing Sources On Performance Of Real Estate Sector In Nairobi County, Kenya(Kca University, 2018) Kamau, Samuel G.Real estate sector has gained a lot of interest from investors with the perceived high returns. Kenyan government has on the other hand recently capped interest rates on loans. Considering that most investors relied on mortgage financing to invest in real estate sector, the investors have to consider other sources of financing. Venture capital financing on the other hand has left some investors shortchanged by the venture capitalists. This study sought to establish the impact of financing sources on real estate sector’s performance in Nairobi County, Kenya. The specific objectives were: to investigate the effect of mortgage financing on the performance of the real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya; to determine the effect of venture capital financing on the performance of the real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya and to determine the effect of equity financing on the performance of real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study reviewed theories relevant to financing sources and performance namely; pecking order theory, trade off theory and agency theory. Descriptive research design was adopted. The study population was 64 real estate developers registered with Kenya Property Developers Association in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study conducted a census of all 64 real estate developers. The study used primary data. Questionnaires were utilized to collect data. Data was analyzed by multiple linear regressions and presented in form of frequency tables and charts and proper inferences made towards the same. The study found out that performance of real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya was significantly affected by mortgage financing which was statistically significant with a p value of 0.001.The relationship between venture capital financing and performance of real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya was positive, however, the relationship was statistically insignificant with a p value of 0.526.The study also found out that even though the relationship between equity financing and performance of real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya was positive, the relationship was statistically insignificant with a p value of 0.472. The study concluded that performance of real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya was significantly affected by mortgage financing which was statistically significant. The study also concluded that venture capital financing insignificantly influenced performance of real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study further concluded that the relationship between equity financing and performance of real estate sector in Nairobi County, Kenya was statistically insignificant. The research recommends that in order for the investors to maximize returns on their real estate investments, they should adopt strategies such as increasing mortgage financing up to an optimal point since it has the highest returns as compared to other financing sources. The research further recommends that to reduce risks associated with venture capital financing, investors should undertake some mitigation steps like assessing and evaluating potential investment targets regarding risk and return. Similarly, the research recommends that real estate companies should consider raising equity through private placements as opposed to public placements.Item Effect Of Tax Administration Reforms On Tax Collection At The Kenya Revenue Authority(KCA University, 2019) Mwidadi, Hassan M.This study aimed at evaluating the effect of tax administration reforms on tax collection at the Kenya Revenue Authority. Specifically, the study determined the effect of internal processes reforms, taxpayer segmentation reforms, staff welfare reforms and tax audit reforms on tax collection in Kenya. Kenya’s tax regime experienced several failures in their attempt to raise the level of taxes leading to many unsuccessful tax reforms as proposed by World Bank as well as the Kenya government. However, the studies did not point out tax administration reforms as key to improved tax performance. Therefore, a gap exists in this field of study that can be filled through a Kenyan study. The researcher therefore wanted to establish the effect of tax administration reforms on tax collection at the Kenya Revenue Authority. The study was anchored on Wagner’s law of increasing state activity theory which advocates for increased public expenditure for economic growth. However, this will not be possible without funds. Therefore, the government must raise enough revenues to support the public expenditures. Wagner’s law of increasing state activity was also supported by Peacock and Wiseman theory of public expenditure as well as Clark’s critical limit hypothesis. These theories also advocate for increased taxation to finance the public expenditure. Similarly, both Lindhal’s and Pigou’s models of taxation were inculcated as both try arguing for the limits of state activity as well as tax burden seeking an equilibrium for expenditure versus revenue collection. In order to achieve the study objectives, the researcher adopted a descriptive research design. A sample of 128KRA staff was selected using stratified sampling technique. Data was collected using structured questionnaire through a drop-and-pick method. The data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis with the help of Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS, ver.20). The findings from the study were that internal processes reforms and taxpayer segmentation reforms had a negative effect on tax collection at the Kenya Revenue Authority while staff welfare reforms and tax audits reforms had a significant and strong positive effect on tax collection at the Kenya Revenue Authority. The study recommends for further research in this field and advice government policy makers to investigate on why tax reforms have not achieved the intended purposes in Kenya.