Strategic Responses Adopted By Bata Shoe Kenya Plc To Changes In The External Environment

Abstract

The external environment is increasingly turbulent calling on all organizations to continuously re-think and re-focus their strategies, aligning each strategy to the macro-environment. Every organization is an open system with critical interaction with the environment. The aim of the study was to establish the strategic responses adopted by Bata Shoe Kenya Plc to changes in the external environment. The study adopted a case study design with primary data being used. The researcher collected data by use of an interview guide which was administered through face-to-face interviews during scheduled onsite visits. The respondents included the Managing Director and seven Departmental Heads, being selected through purposive sampling technique. This group was critical to the study having a role to play in strategically responding to macro-environmental changes. The collected data was scrutinized through thematic analysis. The results revealed that Bata Kenya faces political-legal, economic, social-cultural, technological, industry-level, competitor and physical environmental changes. To counter the macro-environmental changes, the findings showed that Bata Kenya has put in place various strategic responses. These are- modernization, diversification, innovation, market positioning, market segmentation, partnership, total quality management, vertical integration, outsourcing, marketing and advertising, frugality, training and restructuring strategies. The study made significant contributions to theory, policy and strategic management practice. On the theoretical front, there was a deviation from the philosophy that the external environment is non-controllable as modern organizations are powerful tools in the society with an ability to influence the direction of the macro-environment. The study offered helpful information to various administrative bodies with a stake in the footwear manufacturing business. This enables a better understanding of the challenges and opportunities faced for enactment of improvement measures. Industrialization policymakers can for instance identify and address gaps such as exportation of high quality leather, creating scarcity in the domestic market as well as increased competition driven by footwear importation. Finance policymakers can make better budgetary decisions to support footwear manufacturing businesses in Kenya. On strategic management practice, the study can be of value to the management of Bata Kenya and footwear manufacturing businesses in Kenya at large. The findings can enable them assess the adequacy of major response strategies. The research was limited to Bata Shoe Kenya Plc and in terms of the period it covered, being the past five years. The study concluded that Bata Shoe Kenya Plc deploys a combination of strategies to counter challenges emanating from the external environment. In doing so, the company adopts a proactive stance by forecasting the macro-environmental changes and deploying precautionary measures. This helps the organization overcome many challenges faced in strategic response and exert influence on the macro-environment. The study suggests to future researchers to consider conducting a comparative study of the strategic responses adopted by formal footwear manufacturers in Kenya versus the informal footwear manufacturers to changes in the external environment.