Strategic Planning Practices By Dairy Farmers In Elgeyo Marakwet County In Kenya

Abstract

Strategic planning is a management process aimed at creating and executing long term strategies and goals which may also extend to the control mechanisms that guide the implementation of strategies. The concept of strategy refers to the scope and direction of an organization over the long term. This makes it an invaluable necessity to organizations and without it, they lose purpose and direction. Mission and vision statements aid organizations in developing valuable and sustainable objectives and core values that reflect their intent and core values. The strategic planning process, on the other hand, enables organizations to match their capabilities and limited resources to the environment. As such strategic planning establishes an organization’s long term direction and coupled with its mission and vision, the organization looks into the future with a proactive posture. The dairy industry has had an upward trajectory since it was introduced in the country and has gone through rigorous changes in the production, processing and marketing sectors. This has thus increased the competition in the industry with major players coming up. Strategic planning has gone a long way to enable the industry’s organizations in growth and to maneuver the complexities in the industry. This study sought to identify the various strategic planning practices by dairy farmers in Elgeyo Marakwet County, Kenya. The target population was all dairy farmers in Elgeyo Marakwet County that produce over 100 liters of milk in a day. The researcher sampled 40 dairy farmers operating in the county in 2017. The study obtained a total of 30 completed questionnaires that represented a 75% response rate. The primary data collected was through a semi structured questionnaire that targeted farm owners or farm managers of the various farms visited. This was on the assumption that the farm owners or managers were responsible for the strategy formulation and implementation processes in the farms. The questionnaire was administered through drop and pick-later method and one on one interview to the target population. The data was coded and entered into Statistical Software for Social Science (SPSS) and a descriptive analysis ran. Measures of central tendency were applied on the data and findings, conclusions and recommendations were summarized in the study. The data was presented using frequency tables, and percentages.