dc.description.abstract | This study sought to examine the influence of competitive strategies on performance of
private schools in Mavoko District of Machakos County, Kenya. These were necessitated
by the desire to establish whether schools are applying competitive strategies in their
efforts to improve their overall performance. Further, we sought to draw a correlation
between good performance and adoption of competitive strategies among private schools
in the District. Thus the study sought to determine the influence of competitive strategies
on performance of private schools in Mavoko District of Machakos County, Kenya. The
research adopted a descriptive survey design. This was suitable in this study as it helped
the researcher establish the existing conditions at the private schools. It further allowed
identification of the various competitive strategies the schools were applying in their
efforts to improve performance. The population of the study was the 8 boarding schools,
15 day schools and 11 mixed day and boarding schools within the study area. The study
took a census of the whole population. A pilot study was carried out on a different set of
respondents to better plan for the research. The test-retest procedure was used for testing
reliability and it yielded favorable results to warrant reliance on the data collected and its
findings. Qualitative and quantitative data was obtained through questionnaires. This was
further analyzed and presented through narratives, tables and graphs. The study revealed
that the schools adopted cost leadership strategy and this affects their performance. The
researcher was of the opinion that cost leadership leads to increased productivity,
innovative ability and it aids in enhancement of service quality. The study also
discovered some element of differentiation and focus strategies which also affect
performance. | en_US |