Project Leadership and Performance of Smallholder Dairy Projects in Migori County, Kenya
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Date
2023-11
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Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
The smallholder dairy farming system is one of the main sources of income for most
mixed crop and livestock farmers involved in agriculture in Kenya. While smallholder
dairy farmers are transitioning to market oriented dairy production, they continue to
face challenges of low productivity combined with limited labour inputs. Therefore,
this study sought to investigate the influence of project leadership on performance of
smallholder dairy projects in Migori County, Kenya. The study specifically examined
the influence of project planning, project communication, project coordination and
project control on performance of smallholder dairy projects in Migori County,
Kenya. The human capital theory, goal setting theory and control theory was used to
guide the study. Descriptive research design was used in the study. The study targeted
5 smallholder dairy projects in Migori County, Kenya. The respondents were 75
employees from the County’s ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Water
Development. This study used a census method whereby all the 75 respondents were
selected. The study collected data using a questionnaire. Questionnaires were piloted
to 8 respondents including 2 project managers and 6 Project Team members from the
Ministry of Public Works and Devolution. The validity of research instrument was
measured using content validity. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient test was used to test
reliability. Descriptive statistics like mean and standard deviation was used to analyze
quantitative data. Inferential statistics like correlation analysis and regression analysis
was used to examine the relationship between variables and how much they influence
one another. The study found that project planning, project communication, project
coordination and project control had a positive significant influence on performance
of smallholder dairy projects in Migori County, Kenya. The study concludes that
project planning helps in laying out timelines, establishing the budget, setting
milestones, assessing risks, and solidifying tasks and assigning them to team
members. A good communication is an important component in project management,
allowing projects to progress smoothly and on time. Project coordination enables the
project managers to communicate areas of importance and priority which helps the
project managers and the project team members to complete their tasks successfully.
Project control leads to reduced project costs through ability to make timely decisions
using key performance indicators, increased project predictability for cost and
completion date. The study recommends that the organization should first start by
identifying stakeholders involved in the project who will affect or be affected by the
project and things are likely to be much smoother during the project planning process.
The project managers should set project goals and be realistic about them and decide
which team members, executives, stakeholders, and clients to involve and to what
extent. Project managers should be able to balance the overall organizational vision
with the project objective and the strengths plus what is required of project team
members. The project managers should align projects with portfolio/organization
goals and objectives and integrate the budgeting process into project activities to
calculate costs accurately and to understand when and why variances occur.