Effects of strategic change on performance of deposit taking savings and credit cooperative societies (saccos) in Nairobi County
Abstract
Change is an alteration of a company’s strategy, organisation or culture as a result of changes
in its environment. Static competitive environment has been replaced by an increasingly
dynamic uncertain environment thus organizational flexibility is getting more and more
attention, which is the most important factor to acquire the future competitive advantage.
While much has been written in the recent years about the concept of change management
and competitive advantage, few organizations today truly have an effective, repeatable,
project-level change management process and yet it is one of the most critical success factors
for the organization. The operating environment is characterized by constant changes that destabilize
the strategic balance between it and the organizations operating in that environment
causing dis- equilibrium. This necessitates strategic responses by firms in the form of change
so as to maintain the equilibrium. It is commonly accepted that the business environment
encompassing features of the legal, regulatory, financial, and institutional system of a
country has an impact on the performance of firms. As barriers to doing business appear to
vary widely across the different sectors, it has also been asserted that the business
environment will affect aggregate performance. The need for companies to understand and
adjust to the new conditions grows daily because changes in the environment can lead to
failure of both existing and new products and, ultimately lead to the loss of value or collapse
of firms. The study’s objective was to identify the effect of Strategic change on performance
of deposit taking Saccos in Nairobi County. Consequently, the researcher adopted descriptive
survey method research design as this type of study research describes existing phenomena
by asking individuals about their perception, attitudes, behaviour or values and enables
collection of data from a sizeable population in a highly economical way. The study used a
census of the entire 45 deposit taking Savings and Credit Cooperatives in Nairobi County to
identify the respondents used in the research. It utilised primary data which was collected
using structured questionnaires administered the Chief Executive Officers of the 45 deposit
taking Saccos in Nairobi County. The data gathered was analysed using descriptive statistics.
It was then analyzed using Statistical Package for social scientists (SPSS) and the findings
presented using tables. The results were then presented systematically in line with the
literature reviewed and where applicable appropriate tables were used. Findings of the study
indicated that the main strategic change practices adopted by deposit taking Saccos in
Nairobi County were training of staff, training of board of directors and increase in number
of branches which in turn led to an improvement in Return on assets, capital adequacy, asset
quality and liquidity, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction and improved productivity
of the Saccos. Based on the study’s conclusions, the researcher consequently recommended
that proper communication needs be instituted in the various Saccos to ensure that all
members of staff are pulling in the same direction and that they understand their roles and
obligations. There is also need to train staff members to equip them with new skills and
competencies to better take up challenges that come with the change management process.
Citation
A Research Project Submitted In Partial Fulfillment Of The Requirement For The Award Of The Degree Of Master Of Business Administration School Of Business, University Of NairobiPublisher
University of Nairobi School of Business