The role of entrepreneurial orientation on the performance of Real Estate firms in Nairobi

Abstract

The study sought to evaluate the part entrepreneurship orientation is facilitating in the performance of real estate companies in Nairobi. The theoretical foundation was based on two key entrepreneurship theories that is, the Schumpeter’s Innovation theory of entrepreneurship and the dynamic capability theory. This study adopted a descriptive design. This study’s target population is real estate firms in Nairobi, Kenya. Using data from the Kenya Property Developers Association (KPDA), 94 companies formed the study population. Since the population is small but adequate for a research study, a census study was done; this eliminated any potential bias since the study covers the entire population Primary data collection involved the development and administration of self-administered questionnaires. The analysis of the quantitative information was aided by SPSS software (v 22.0). The primary data from the research instrument was statistically analyzed. The data was first be analyzed with the help of descriptive statistics and the findings were presented in form of percentages (distribution) and counts (frequencies). The inferential statistics selected for the study was multiple linear regression analysis models which sought to model the association between the variables in the model. The study likewise, used the beta coefficients and p values to establish magnitude and direction of the connection between the variables. Specifically, the analysis used the following coefficients: correlation, level of significance, and coefficient of determination. Findings were presented in form of tables and figures. The findings indicated a coefficient of determination, (R square) of 0.71. This shows that innovativeness, autonomy, proactiveness, risk taking and competitive aggressiveness of the entrepreneur explain 71% of the firm performance of real estate companies in Nairobi. The regression results revealed that innovativeness (β=0.358, p=0.000), autonomy (β=0.131, p=0.022), proactiveness (β=0.284, p=0.002), risk taking (β=0.116, p=0.032) and competitive aggressiveness (β=0.402, p=0.000) are positive and significantly related to firm performance. The study concludes that the use of entrepreneurship orientation plays a pivotal role in facilitating the performance of real estate companies in Nairobi. Based on the theoretical backdrops of the Schumpeter’s Innovation Theory and the dynamic capability (DC) theory, good and better performance that trickles down to the successive unforeseeable future requires the entrepreneur to adopt over and above the normal and usual capabilities in the market. Innovativeness is therefore, paramount where the firm develops new ways of business operations to provide products and services that can compete aggressively in the market. The study further, recommends that real estate firms need to adopt1 new1 technologies1 for1 cultivation1 of1 organizational1capabilities.