| dc.description.abstract | Implementing strategic decisions world over has met varied challenges in both the public
sector and the private sector. Owing to open competition in the global arena, many
organizations have had no choice but to embrace strategic management for survival; the
public sector is not left behind. Emerging developments in the political, economic and
technological spheres have presented various countries with innumerable challenges
which has poised various options of benchmarking, MOUs between governments, change
of policies and regulations, change of management of public institutions, co-operations
between governments, re-writing constitutions or amendments thereof, etc. Changes in
the structure of the economy due to globalization require that public service changes to
align with emerging issues. Demographic, social and cultural changes bring new
demands on delivery of services including health, education and social security.
Over the last fifty years the public sector management has adopted some trendy markettype
reforms aimed at improving their service delivery, more aggressively after the world
war II. The Government of Kenya introduced trendy reforms since 1993 to improve its
service delivery and improve the living standards of its people and upscale its
development. The policies and strategies being adopted have not been applied uniformly
across the public service due to implementation challenges encountered in the various
government institutions.
The Office of the Vice President and Ministry of Home Affairs (OVP&MOHA) which
can be construed as being second in the chain after the Office of the President, has been
able to apply various strategies to improve its service delivery to Kenyans in the same
time frame. This prompted the researcher to carry out the study to determine the
Challenges of implementing strategic decisions for service delivery in the OVP&MOHA.
This research project conducted between February and October, 2012 answered the
following research question, what are the challenges of implementing strategic decisions
for service delivery at the Office of the Vice President and Ministry of Home Affairs?
The study reviewed literature on strategic management in organizations, concept of
strategy, strategic management process, implementation of strategic decisions, strategicdecisions, and challenges of implementing strategic decisions in organizations. The study
was modeled on a case study research design and data collected through face to face
interview method guided by a structured interview guide. The data was analyzed using
content analysis technique and inferences made based on consistency, credibility, and
adequacy of data.
The study findings revealed that financial management policies and procedures,
organizational structure, organizational culture, communication, lack of performance
incentives, lack of commitment and ownership of strategic decisions on the part of the
staff, the twin nature of the ministry as an organization, were a hindrance or impediment
to implementing strategic decisions in the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The researcher recommends involvement of all relevant stakeholders in strategy
formulation and implementation, sourcing for funds from other sources to supplement the
sourcing from the Ministry of Finance, introduce rewards and recognition policy as a
motivator for excellent performers, develop a communication policy and embrace the
quick and modern ICT enabled communication, improve human resource policy,
severance of the Ministry into two separate organizations: the Office of the Vice
President; and the Ministry of Home Affairs; awarding full autonomy or semi autonomy
status to the Gaming Board, remove bureaucracy and award the Kenya Prison Service
full control of their own funds, and strengthening or sectionalizing Performance
Contracting secretariat to take charge and police performance in the Ministry | en |
