Information and Communication Technology Challenges and Sustainable Competitive Advantage of Commercial Banks in Kenya

Abstract

The Kenyan banking industry has experienced tremendous growth in the past decade, which has led to increased competition as the banks strive to gain and retain their market share according to the Central Bank of Kenya’s 2015 Annual report. Rapid advancement in ICT has had a profound effect on the banking industry and the wider financial sector. This study was aimed at determining the ICT challenges and strategies adopted to sustain competitive advantage in Kenyan commercial banks. The study adopted a descriptive survey of all commercial banks in Kenya. The population of the study comprised of the 43 licenced commercial banks. The data collection tool used to collect the primary data was the questionnaire, which was administered to the respondents though both electronic means and the drop and pick methods. Descriptive statistics was used to analyse the data because this study was modelled on a descriptive framework. The study concluded that ICT as much as being a mandatory factor of production, still offered a big degree of leverage towards the achievement of sustainable competitive advantage. Most of the respondents agreed that ICT made a great contribution to reduce operational costs, engage with more customers, and reach more customers through other channels made possible by the adoption of ICT. The study recommends that studies be conducted on the role of human capital in harnessing the optimum benefit of ICT solutions in the banking sector. This would aid in determining the influence employees have on the amount of benefit harnessed by adopting ICT in their respective organizations and achieving competitive advantage.