Supply Chain Management Practices and Competitiveness of Government Agencies in the Kenya Energy Sector
Abstract
This study was carried out to determine the effect of supply chain management practices
on competitiveness in Kenyan energy sector. The study sought to establish the supply
Chain management practices adopted by Government agencies in the Kenyan energy
sector, To determine the impact of the SCM practices on performance of agencies and to
determine the challenges faced by the agencies in the Kenyan energy sectors in the
implementation of the SCM practices. The research design used was descriptive design.
Data was collected using a questionnaire that was administered through “drop- and -picklater” method and analyzed using SPSS (version 22). Mean and standard deviation were
used to analyze objective one and objective three whereas regression analysis was used to
analyze the effect of supply chain management practices and competitiveness. The
findings were presented in tables. It is clear that there is a significant relationship
between supply chain management practices and competitiveness explained by the eight
independent variables strategic supplier partnership, customer relationship, level of
information sharing, quality of information, extent of outsourcing, lean practices, green
supply chain management and postponement. The study only focused on the energy
sector. Study concluded that the adoption of SCM practices improves the organizational
performance and hence competitiveness. Therefore, the researcher recommended SCM
practices need to be embraced to help the management team appreciates the direct impact
of these practices. Adoption of flexible SCM practices through appropriate research will
help efficiently and effectively meet the business diverse yet drastic changing needs as
well as address challenges arising from a dynamic global business environment. The
study recommended that; similar studies should be done in other sector of the Kenyan
economy for comparison purposes and to allow for generalization of findings on the
SCM practices in Kenya.
Publisher
University of Nairobi