| dc.description.abstract | In order to survive and remain profitable in the competitive environment, it becomes necessary for the threatened companies to be aggressive in their search and development
of response strategies that provide competitive advantage as they step up defensive strategies to protect their competitive advantages held. Water Resources Management Authority being a state corporation and a non-profit, service oriented corporate body charged with the responsibility of providing leadership in the management of water resources countrywide, has encountered several challenges in its work following the rapid changes in the operating environment.
This study sought to investigate the competitive strategies in response to challenges of external environment by water resources management authority in Kenya. The study adopted a case study research design. The study used primary data that collected using an interview guide. The interview guide enabled the researcher to collect qualitative data. The study targeted 10 top managers at the Authority for data collection. The collected data was analyzed using content analysis and presented in prose format.
The challenges faced by the Authority included inadequate funding which had caused low levels of sensitization resulting to minimal revenue collection; lack of clarity on the position of the Authority which created some level of confusion in clearly understanding the channels of discussing issues related to the Authority, Conflicting legislation affecting land use which brought about soil erosion and water pollution. To improve its competitiveness, the Authority needed to emphasis more on corporate social responsibility and create working relationships with corporate organizations that can sponsor the Authority in its efforts to protect the water catchments.
The billing system was manual and not updated which led to a lot of time being taken to deliver to bills because it was delivered physically/ manually and not electronically. The study recommends that the Authority should strive to reduce its operating expenses by eliminating unnecessary costs. This may be achieved through outsourcing of some services which do not core functions of the Authority. This may include outsourcing transportation services, meter reading and information system management. The study also recommends that the Authority invests in a billing system and creates accountability by separating the staff handling billing, abstracts, and invoicing. This would bring about accountability and high levels of corporate governance. | en_US |
