Effects of knowledge management on the competitive advantage of millers in Kenya: a case of Unga limited

Abstract

The milling sector in Kenya has been plagued by very many challenges and problems. Whereas some of the problems can be linked to factors that are not of the making of the millers, some problems can be directly linked to the sectors inability to modernize by not only investing in technological infrastructure, but also by ensuring that the technology is used in conjunction with other organizational capabilities with the aim of building core competencies for the sector. Unga Limited's market share and performance have been declining over time. It has become common to find several of their products missing from retail outlets. One other aspect that rings negative has been its chronic problem of high levels of employee turnover. Such turnover results in a loss of much needed intellectual capital, especially in the form of tacit knowledge. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of knowledge management enablers on the competitive advantage of the milling sector. A descriptive study was applied in this study. The population of interest was all the salaried employees of Unga Limited, who number 287 employees with 40 employees at management level and 247 junior staff. Stratified proportionate random sampling technique was used to select the sample. Primary data was collected through the use of structured questionnaires. The researcher analyzed the quantitative data using descriptive statistics in the form of the statistical package for social science (SPSS V.17.0). The qualitative data was analyzed using content analysis. In addition, the researcher conducted a multiple regression analysis so as to determine the effects of each of the four variables on competitive advantage. The information was presented by the use of tables and graphs. The study found that Unga Limited recognizes the need to become directly involved in the management of the new technology in the face of rapid change, but it does not know how Information technology encompasses the information that businesses' create and use as well as a wide spectrum of increasingly convergent and linked technologies that process the information. The study concludes that a good organizational culture is important in order to succeed in managing knowledge. The study recommends that for successful knowledge management implementation, the visible leadership commitment of top management must be sustained throughout the knowledge management effort.