Browsing by Author "Ragui, Mary"

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    Competitive Intelligence Practices and Performance of Equity Bank Limited
    (International Academic Journals, 2018) Sande, Geraldine; Ragui, Mary
    The rapidly changing business climate created by advances in technologies, economic and social changes demands that firms embrace competitive intelligence strategy. The design of competitive intelligence, as a process that monitors all elements of the external environment of an organization is still recent. Commercial banks have thus resulted in making use of various competitive intelligence aspects to ensure performance. The main objective of the study was to investigate the relationship between competitive intelligence practices and performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The specific objectives were to establish how product intelligence practices, markets intelligence practices, technology intelligence practices and strategic intelligence influence performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The research was based on four theories; theory of strategic balancing and theory of network organization all explaining the orientation of a firm in the aspects that are strategically related to competitive intelligence strategies adopted by organizations. This research study applied the descriptive research design. The target population composed of the 191 management staffs employed at Equity Bank head offices in Nairobi. A sample of 25% was selected from within each group in proportions using stratified random sampling technique. This generated a sample of 48 respondents. The study used a survey questionnaire administered using a drop and pick later method. Data collected was purely quantitative and it was analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. The descriptive and inferential statistical tools such as Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 21.0) and MS Excel were used to extract frequencies, percentages, means and other central tendencies. Tables and figures were used to summarize responses for further analysis and facilitate comparison. A multiple regression analysis was conducted to show the strength of the relationship between the variables. The findings indicated that a majority of the commercial banks in Kenya have embraced Competitive intelligence practices and have a functional CI framework. The study concludes that technology, product, market and strategic alliance competitive intelligence practices affect the performance of commercial banks in Kenya.
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    Consumer Attitude and Purchase Intention of Counterfeit Phones among Masters Students in Selected Public Universities in Kenya
    (International Journal of Business Management, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 2024) Muia, Bernard Mulandi; Ragui, Mary
    Persistent increase of consumption of counterfeit goods despite government efforts to curtail it has justified further research to determine any factors that may not have been studied conclusively the studying the progression of the illicit goods consumption. The general objective of this study was to comprehend consumer attitude towards intention to purchase counterfeit mobile phones among masters’ students in Kenya. Specifically, the study focused on effects of materialism attitude, subjective norm attitude and moral intensity attitude on purchase intention of counterfeit mobile phones among masters’ university students in Nairobi. The study was premised on three theories, Theory of Planned Behaviour, the Theory of Reasoned Action, and the Attitude Function Theory. The study adopted descriptive survey design and used purposive sampling to select the four public university campuses to target from the 10 public universities licensed to operate in Nairobi's central business district and subsequently used stratified random sampling to choose the target respondents in the selected campuses. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect primary data for the study. Quantitative data was captured and organized using statistical package for social sciences and analysed using descriptive statistics which was shown using percentages frequencies and standard deviation. Inferential statistics comprising Pearson’s correlation and multiple regression analysis were utilized to demonstrate the relationship between the independent and dependant variables. Content analysis was utilized to analyse qualitative data. Data was presented in the form of graphs and tables for simplicity of interpretation. This study will assist policy makers in coming up with plans to fight counterfeiting. The study found that materialism attitude, subjective norm attitude and moral intensity had a positive significant effect towards purchase intention of counterfeit phones among university students in Kenya. The study concluded that the consumers with a high level of materialism trait would be a very prospective segment for sustainable luxury brands. Subjective norm is a person’s perception of pressure in the social environment that is accepted so that it shows certain behaviour through considerations made by someone. Through moral intensity attitude individuals encounter moral or ethical issues within the personal environments of their daily living. The study recommended that high-materialism consumers should be driven to acquire goods and phones primarily to symbolize and communicate status and success messages to others. In terms of brands, more attention should be paid to consumers’ emotional needs and sensitivity. Organizations should emphasize the importance of moral judgment and attitude in explaining behavioural intentions and ethical behaviour in shaping demand for phones and also other goods.
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    Consumer Attitude and Purchase Intention of Counterfeit Phones Among Master’s Students in Selected Public Universities in Kenya
    (2024-01) Muia, Bernard Mulandi; Ragui, Mary
    Persistent increase of consumption of counterfeit goods despite government efforts to curtail it has justified further research to determine any factors that may not have been studied conclusively the studying the progression of the illicit goods consumption. The general objective of this study was to comprehend consumer attitude towards intention to purchase counterfeit mobile phones among masters’ students in Kenya. Specifically, the study focused on effects of materialism attitude, subjective norm attitude and moral intensity attitude on purchase intention of counterfeit mobile phones among masters’ university students in Nairobi. The study was premised on three theories, Theory of Planned Behaviour, the Theory of Reasoned Action, and the Attitude Function Theory. The study adopted descriptive survey design and used purposive sampling to select the four public university campuses to target from the 10 public universities licensed to operate in Nairobi's central business district and subsequently used stratified random sampling to choose the target respondents in the selected campuses. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect primary data for the study. Quantitative data was captured and organized using statistical package for social sciences and analysed using descriptive statistics which was shown using percentages frequencies and standard deviation. Inferential statistics comprising Pearson’s correlation and multiple regression analysis were utilized to demonstrate the relationship between the independent and dependant variables. Content analysis was utilized to analyse qualitative data. Data was presented in the form of graphs and tables for simplicity of interpretation. This study will assist policy makers in coming up with plans to fight counterfeiting. The study found that materialism attitude, subjective norm attitude and moral intensity had a positive significant effect towards purchase intention of counterfeit phones among university students in Kenya. The study concluded that the consumers with a high level of materialism trait would be a very prospective segment for sustainable luxury brands. Subjective norm is a person’s perception of pressure in the social environment that is accepted so that it shows certain behaviour through considerations made by someone. Through moral intensity attitude individuals encounter moral or ethical issues within the personal environments of their daily living. The study recommended that high-materialism consumers should be driven to acquire goods and phones primarily to symbolize and communicate status and success messages to others. In terms of brands, more attention should be paid to consumers’ emotional needs and sensitivity. Organizations should emphasize the importance of moral judgment and attitude in explaining behavioural intentions and ethical behaviour in shaping demand for phones and also other goods.
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    Effect of value chain on competitive advantage in the insurance industry in Kenya.
    (International Academic Journal of Human Resource and Business Administration, 2020) Ngunjiri, Jane Nyambura; Ragui, Mary
    The underlying objective1 of the present study was to analyze the effects1 of the value chain on organization competitive advantage with focus to insurance industry in Kenya. An analysis of value1 chain1 is helpful to a firm1 in the identification of bottlenecks. For easy survival in the market, companies have to have a competitive advantage over others. Like any other service industry, insurance industry functions in a lean, crowded and significantly very competitive industry. The fear of the new businesses that enters the industry is not only high but also unavoidable in the long run, the product offered in the market are not differentiated while all industry participants have a direct through way to the channels of distributions. The ordinary insurance consumer is significantly price sensitive because of the accessibility of the perfect product and service alternatives in the market and inadequate purchasing power possessed by the potential clients. Additionally, information communication technology application which is vital in this sector is underutilized thus low innovation rate in the sectors. Human capital that is required to fill this gap is severely depressing within the market however they are significant for the operation, marketing and sales services unit. This leaves the consumers with only option to buy available products to the known companies in the sector causing the organization that is less competitive to perform dismally due tom lack of competitiveness. This1 study aimed to find1 out the1 effect of value chain on the competitive advantages of the insurance industry in Kenya. This research was based on the Resource-Based Theory, Competitive Advantage. The study focused on four variables, that is, marketing, operations, innovations and human resource management. Descriptive research design was utilized for the research. A total of 55 insurance companies these companies are licensed by Insurance Regulation Authority. The census sampling techniques was utilized in this research since the number of the companies targeted were small and manageable, 2 respondents were targeted in each company. Primary1 data1 was adopted in this research where questionnaire1 was utilized to collect the data. 1Descriptive statistics1 was emphasized to therefore analyze1 the data. To test the 1relationship between1 the dependent1 and independent1 variable, inferential statistic was utilized to establish the relationship. Quantitative1 data was1 presented using tables1 and figures. It was1 confirmed that organization competitive advantage and innovation, human resource management, marketing and operation have a positive relationship. The independents variables researched, represent 83.4% to the firm competitiveness as represented by the R2. Study also found that operation contributes most to organization competitive advantage followed by innovation then marketing while human resource management added less to organization competitive advantage. Study recommends that any institution that aims to be market leader in the market should consider innovation as part of its operation.
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    Environmental Factors and Performance of Commercial Banks in Kenya
    (IJCAB Publishing Group, 2019) Thumbi, Grace Wambui; Ragui, Mary
    The performance of commercial banks in Kenya determines the financial position of the nation. This performance, over the past period, has not been inspiring and various reforms have been put in place in to increase it. Yet, performance of commercial banks on average has been erratic. The business environment in which the commercial banks function is turbulent, and it is through understanding the environmental forces, that they can improve their performance. The study’s general objective involved finding out the impact of environment factors on Commercial bank’s Performance. Specifically, the study focused on the following objectives; to find out the influence of the organizational resources on the performance of the commercial banks in Kenya; to determine how organizational structure influences the performance of commercial banks in Kenya; to establish the influence of competition on the performance of the commercial banks in Kenya; and to establish the moderating effect of government policies on the influence of environmental factors on performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The contingency theory, resource based view and the theory of competitive advantage informed this study. The research employed a descriptive research design. The population of this study comprised of the 43 commercial banks operating in Kenya. The study targeted the head office of each of the commercial banks and the respondents were the marketing managers. A pilot study was conducted using customer experience executives of four commercial banks. The study conducted a census of the 43 head marketing managers of the financial Institutions in Kenya. The study used structured questionnaires to collect data. The study used face, content and construct validity and reliability was measured using the Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient. Analyzing of data was done through descriptive and inferential statistics using the SPSS software. The findings were presented using charts, tables, and graphs. The study concludes that organizational resources had significant influence on performance with and without government policies. Organizational structure had a great impact on commercial banks performance. Competition had significant influence on performance of commercial banks with or without the moderating influence of government policies. The government policy had significant moderating influence in the relationship between environmental factors and performance of commercial banks. The research recommends that the top management team of all commercial banks operating in Kenya should improve on their organizational resources by ensuring adequate number of employees is in place in various departments and functions. The management of all firms in the financial sector in Kenya should improve on their structures by engaging subordinate staff in decision making on daily operations of the firm. The management team of all commercial banks should come up with better strategies of remaining competitive in the industry in view of other industry participants with similar product offering like other banks, microfinance institutions and SACCOs. The Central Bank of Kenya should increase its supervisory and monitoring role among commercial banks to positively influence their performance. There is need for strong market intelligence to collect information on products and services of competitors for constant improvement and thus performance among commercial banks.
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    Green Economy Strategies Adoption on Financial Performance of Bamburi Cement Company, Kenya
    (International Academic Journals, 2017) Okeyo, Erick Otieno; Ragui, Mary
    Successful green practices helps firms to achieve greater efficiency, establish and strengthen their core competencies, enhance their green image, all of these may eventually combine to contribute to firm profitability. Environmental sustainability in any given production is very important and this study sought to ascertain the effects of green economy strategies adoption on financial performance of Bamburi Cement Manufacturing Company, Kenya. The specific objectives were; to find out whether land rehabilitation affects financial performance of Bamburi Cement Manufacturing Company in Kenya, to determine the effect of waste management on financial performance of Bamburi Cement company, to establish the influence of emission reduction on financial performance of Bamburi Cement Company, and to find out the effects of alternative fuel measures on financial performance of Bamburi Cement Company. The study has five chapters whereby the first chapter establishes the background of the study, statement of the problem, research objectives, research questions, the significance of the study, along with its scope. The second chapter on its part offers a comprehensive review of the existing literature, pertaining to the main research topic. The theories given prominence in the study include the green economic theory and resource based view. Consequently, the research gap between the present studies and prior studies is established in depth. This chapter ends with a conceptual framework, which provides a clear outline of both the independent and the dependent variables. Chapter three provides a critical analysis of the proposed methodology, in which the descriptive research design is chosen as the most suitable research design. The study used stratified sampling method as the main sampling technique in which the population of Bamburi Cement Manufacturing Company was divided into small groups (segments). Subsequently, the study used both primary and secondary data whereby primary data was collected using a structured questionnaire that was administered to the respondents while secondary data regarding Return on Equity (ROE), Return on Assets, and Net Income was obtained from published financial reports of the company. Chapter four entails the research findings and chapter five gives the summary of the study, conclusion and recommendation. The study found out that Bamburi Cement Manufacturing Company, Kenya had moderately adopted green economy strategies. It was concluded that the management of the company had partially implemented the adoption of green economy strategies and therefore the study recommended to them to put in place measures to ensure full implementation of the same. Data was analyzed through the use of Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) and presented by graphs, pie charts, and frequency tables.
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    Organizational Agility and Organizational Performance of Commercial Banks in Nairobi City County, Kenya
    (The Strategic Journal of Business and Change Management, 2024) John, Eunice Kagendi; Ragui, Mary
    The business environment globally is dynamic, exerting strong influences on institutions. Strategic management has over time been characterized with variations as a result of the dynamics of organizational management. As such, it remains vital for organizations to have direct or indirect adjustment as regards to those changes posing as threats to their performance as well as survival in Kenya, the commercial banks are responsible for providing transaction services such as withdrawals and deposits, investment options and loan services to the citizens. Due to globalization and evolving technologies, banking institutions in Kenya have been faced with declining performances, increased inflation, competition and new prudential regulations. Various studies have been carried out at different geographical areas, using different methodology and different indicators. This research aims to investigate the influence of organizational agility on the efficiency of commercial banking in Kenya. Specifically, it seeks to explore the effects of innovation agility, information technology agility, and human resource agility on the organizational efficiency of Kenyan commercial banks. The study draws support from institutional, learning organization, and contingency theories. The research design employed was descriptive, and primary data were gathered through the distribution of questionnaires. The target population included 43 commercial banks operating in Kenya, with a proportional stratified sampling technique applied to three tiers. Purposive sampling was used for seven departments, and random sampling was applied to senior managers, IT managers, and HR managers. A pilot test ensured the validity and reliability of the questionnaire, incorporating content validity and Cronbach's Alpha internal consistency test. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) facilitated the analysis of data, employing multiple regression analysis and descriptive statistics. The results, presented in tables, indicated that the three-agility metrics—Innovation Agility, Information Technology Agility, and Human Resource Agility— could collectively predict approximately 86.8% of the variance in overall performance. Notably, Information Technology Agility demonstrated a statistically significant positive impact on organizational performance with a coefficient of 0.244. Human Resource Agility had the most substantial positive impact, reflected in a coefficient of 0.509. However, while Innovation Agility exhibited a positive coefficient with performance (0.210), it did not attain statistical significance.
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    The Influence of Blue Ocean Strategies on Organizational Performance of the Three and Four-Star Rated Hotels in Naivasha Sub-County, Kenya
    (AJOEI, 2024-06) Ndolo, Danson Maangi; Ragui, Mary
    Background of the study: Blue Ocean Strategies represent innovative and value-centric approaches designed to carve out unexplored market spaces, shifting the emphasis from competition to innovation. Nevertheless, the impact of these strategies on the performance of three and four-star hotels in Naivasha Sub-County remains uncertain, prompting the initiation of this study. Objective of the study: The primary goal is to assess how the adoption of blue ocean strategy influences the organizational performance of star-rated hotels in Naivasha, Kenya. Specifically, the study aims to examine the effects of low-cost strategy and value innovation strategy on the organizational performance of these hotels. Methodology: The Resource-Based View theory and the Beach theory will serve as the theoretical framework for this study, conducted through a descriptive survey design. Thirty-eight three and four-star rated hotels in Naivasha, Kenya, constitute the target population. The study used a census due to the relatively low target population size. A pilot study was executed among 3 to 4-star rated hotels in Kisumu sub-county, chosen for their similar operational environment. The questionnaire's validity was determined by a supervisor and two strategic management experts, while reliability was established through Cronbach Alpha Coefficients, interpreted at a 0.7 level, based on the pilot study outcomes. The study involved 76 respondents, with each hotel selecting two managers who were knowledgeable about blue ocean strategies and their influence on organization's performance. Primary data was gathered through the use of a questionnaire. The study used descriptive and regression analysis to analyze the data. Results and Findings: The results, showcased in tables and figures, indicated that low-cost strategy (p<0.05) and value innovation strategy (p<0.05), have a positive and significant effect on the firms’ performance of the 3 and 4-star rated hotels in Naivasha Sub-County, Kenya. Conclusion and Recommendation: As a result, the study concludes that blue ocean strategies are substantial predictors of organizational performance. The study recommends that senior managers working with the three and four star rated hotels in Naivasha sub sub-county should ensure there is prudent and optimal utilization of resources to harness superior performance. The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) managers working with these hotels should invest in emerging technologies to increase operating efficiency and reduce costs hence better organizational performance. The study further recommended that operational managers working with the three and four star rated hotels in Naivasha sub sub-county should actively redesign the systems and processes that are conducted on a daily basis for increased flexibility and agility hence better organizational performance of their hotels.