Chege, Godfrey Hinga2025-03-062025-03-062024-02https://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/29721A Research Project Submitted to the School of Business, Economics and Tourism in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Award of the Degree of Master of Business Administration (Strategic Management) of Kenyatta University, February 2024. Supervisor Linda KimencuDue to subpar performance, county governments in Kenya delivered fewer services, as indicated by data from the World Bank. According to the report from the controller, Kiambu county recorded a relative decrease in the timely and quality delivery of services, reduced citizen participation in project/program prioritization, and ineffective use of county revenues in the financial year 2017/2018 to 2020/2021. Value-based leadership practices played a key role in the majority of the best-performing counties in Kenya. Despite the significance of value-based leadership, its effect on the performance of county governments was not clear due to a scarcity of empirical literature. The research aimed to determine how the performance of the County Government of Kiambu was affected by value-based leadership. The study's specific goals were to establish the impact of innovative leadership strategies, employee inclusivity, and leadership communication strategies on the performance of the County Government of Kiambu, Kenya. Stewardship theory, agency theory, and stakeholders theory served as the study's guiding principles. Cross-sectional survey designs that were both explanatory and descriptive were employed. A sample of 80 respondents was used. To achieve a representative sample, the study used stratified random sampling for the counties. The study's data collection made use of both closed-ended and open-ended questionnaires. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Descriptive statistics included mean, frequencies, and standard deviation. Inferential statistics included regression and correlation analysis. The inferential analysis was interpreted using a 0.05 significance level. To ensure further data analysis triangulation, various statistical methods were applied, including factor analysis as well as descriptive analysis. The study used regression models for testing the association amongst the variables of the study. The study found that there were generally positive perceptions with some variability, particularly in the board's allowance for employees to attend duties without prejudice. High mean scores across various aspects, indicating a positive perception of innovative leadership practices within the organization. Generally positive perceptions with some variability, particularly in the respect and support for the responsibilities of every stakeholder. High mean scores with low standard deviations, suggesting a generally positive perception of leadership communication within the county. The findings reveal a generally positive perception across various aspects of leadership within the organization. While respondents believe in fair treatment, there's room for improvement in the board's communication. The positive perceptions of consensus orientation, innovative leadership, inclusiveness, and leadership communication contribute to a favorable organizational climate. The following recommendations were suggested; strengthen board communication and implement training programs on consensus orientation and fair treatment, encourage continuous innovation initiatives, provide training for employees on innovative platforms, develop stakeholder engagement programs, provide continuous communication training for leaders and establish regular feedback mechanisms.enThesis