Influence of Strategic Leadership and Knowledge Management on the Relationship Between Technological Innovation and Competitive Advantage: Evidence From Large Telecommunication Firms in Kenya

Abstract

With reference to significant telecommunication enterprises in Kenya, the study intended to determine the impact of strategic leadership and knowledge management on the connection between competitiveness and technological advancement. Four theories, including technological networks Porter's sustainable competitive advantage model, theory of innovation, knowledge-based view, and dynamic capability theory as well as previous empirical investigations driven by specific aims, drove the study. The study used a descriptive cross-sectional survey design and utilized the positivist philosophy. A census was performed to determine the target population, which included all 83 significant licensed telecoms service providers in Kenya. The questionnaire was distributed via a variety of tactics, as determined by the respondents. The tools were administered later, but when respondents desired alternative ways of communication, such as email, the investigator arranged and shared the instruments in soft copy with them. Through a pilot study and following data gathering procedures, pretests were conducted to assess instrument validity and internal consistency. The data was then analyzed using both expressive and statistical computations. Statistical techniques comprised statistical tests, which were used to evaluate the presented hypotheses. descriptive analytics comprised frequencies, percentages, averages, and standard deviations. The findings show that technical innovation has a large and beneficial impact on competitive advantage. It was also discovered that leadership that is strategic has a favorable and considerable impact on the connection between technological advancement and competitiveness. Knowledge management was also found to exhibit a full mediating effect on the connections between advancement that is technological and competitiveness. Strategic leadership has a higher impact on competitive advantage than both technological innovation and knowledge management, according to the findings. The study's main disadvantage was its reliance on respondents' desire to participate and limited time available, which made it vulnerable to non-response. To solve this, the researcher used the "drop and pick" method, in which respondents were given adequate time with the questionnaires and were permitted to respond at their leisure before the researcher collected the completed questionnaires. In the telecommunications industry and beyond, the study has significant ramifications for policy model, practice of strategic management, and theory insinuations. The study would benefit the government of Kenya at the policy level by ensuring that policymakers and regulatory authorities in the telecommunications sector come up with coherent policies that encourage knowledge management, strategic leadership, and technological advancement as a strategy for increasing competitive advantage. Managers should consider making innovations a formalized processby establishing the necessary direction and controls to allow for the advent of value creation and innovation for long-term competitive advantage. The implications of the study's findings expanded and reinforced the theories that informed the study.