A study of the managers perceptions of strategy and structure at the Nairobi Bottlers Company Limited

Abstract

The changing global environment has led to more competition, increased product choice, increased customer demand, lower prices, product innovations and information technology. Efficient organizations establish mechanisms that complement their market strategy, but inefficient organizations struggle with these structural and process mechanisms. What executives perceive influence their actions. These actions affect the nature and performance of their organizations. Thus, what executives perceive is of interest to all the stakeholders in the organization. The study was modeled on a case study design whereby qualitative data was collected focusing on the managers perception of strategy and structure at Nairobi Bottlers Limited. Information was collected on the managers’ perception of strategy and structure. Primary data was collected using structured interview guides with questions sent to all departmental heads at Nairobi Bottlers Company Limited. Content analysis was used considering the qualitative nature of the data collected through in-depth personal interviews. Based on the findings it may be concluded that Nairobi Bottlers Limited has proper and well-defined administrative structures. The administrative structures used by the company include; human resources, procurement, supply chain, sales and marketing and finance. It can also be concluded that the current administrative structure enhances affective communication and feed back systems. The managers’ perception of the strategy and structure was quite positive even though most of them felt that feedback should be enhanced for communication to be effective. These revealed some of the major challenges to implementation and adoption of strategy and structure at Nairobi Bottlers. Based on the findings of this study it can be strongly recommended that Resistance to change by the employees may be addressed by involving every employee in decision-making process regardless of their positions. In so doing they will feel more responsible to bring change and embrace new ideas. The challenge of inadequate expertise may be addressed through continuous training to sharpen their management skills. Role conflict may also be dealt with by defining the roles of each and every employee before bringing them on board.