Entrepreneurial Orientation and Performance of Commercial Banks in Kenya

Abstract

Entrepreneurial orientation has been conceptualized as the process and decision making activities used by entrepreneurs that leads to entry and support of business activities. Entrepreneurial orientation is often tested based on the following factors; risk taking, innovativeness, pro-activeness, and competitive energy and autonomy. Several studies have made clear that entrepreneurship could actually foster organizational growth. Several explanations have been made for the positive relationship between Entrepreneurship and organizational growth. This study sought to establish the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The research took the form of a descriptive sample survey and targeted head of the department of business development and or head of research and development at the head office of all commercial banks in Kenya. The data was collected by the use of a questionnaire and analyzed used SPSS and presented using graphs and tables to depict the trends. One of the major findings of the study was that many of the respondents agreed that the banks‟ profits increased by the activities of entrepreneurial orientation. Additionally, there was a drop in the number of non-performing loans in the banks as a result of the entrepreneurial orientation activities undertaken by the banks. Another major finding is that a lot of the respondents attribute the success in their banks to the level of implementation of entrepreneurial orientation strategies in their products, services, and as well as their processes and procedures. The study also recommends that banks should create enabling environment for the employees to be innovative in their operations in order to take its competitive advantage through creation of innovative services (financial) leading to increased financial performance and growth of the sector