Challenges of Strategy Implementation at Sony Sugar Company in Kenya

Abstract

The success of every organization relies on its capability to successfully turn plans into action. Strategy implementation is important to all firms since it involves analysis of the environment and ensuring that the plan meets the budget as well as time. With the aim of achieving set goals and meeting their plans, firms have to implement policies, plans and their strategies. This requires resources as well as coordinated effort from different players. There are different challenges that are experienced when implementing a strategy as demonstrated by the findings of this study. Well formulated strategies fail at implementation stage. It should be emphasized that while developing a strategy is a typical practice in strategic management, implementing a strategy is a far more difficult task in companies like Sony Sugar Company. The sugar industry in Kenya has been affected by volatile market conditions such as fluctuating sugar prices, changing consumer preferences and regulatory policies. It is true that Sony sugar is among the companies in the sugar industry that have faced various challenges in their strategy implementation process. Sony Sugar has to successfully implement its strategies for survival and continuous growth. A number of studies have been conducted on difficulties of strategy implementation; however, these studies have focused more on other sectors such as tourism and hospitality, education and energy sector. These studies have collectively established that lack of effective strategy implementation can lead to poor performance. The studies have demonstrated that different organizations experiences different challenges to strategy implementation. There is a knowledge gap that exists on the challenges of strategy implementation at Sony Sugar Company. The research was conducted as a case study and targeted middle and senior managers from Sony Sugar Company. Primary data was collected using an interview guide to enhance accuracy. Data was analyzed using content analysis method in developing various themes underlying the topic. This study found out that Sony sugar experienced seven key challenges in its strategy implementation that include inadequate resources, poor communication channels, political interferences, mismatch between organizational culture and its goals, mismatch between strategy & structure, poor leadership & inadequate stakeholder involvement, setting unrealistic goals and low rewarding culture. It was noted and recommended that for Sony sugar to overcome this challenges, it is important to adopt various plans including adoption of clear communication channels, need for effective leadership, establishing a robust monitoring and evaluation framework, providing training and development and fostering an organizational culture that embraces change and innovation. This study suggests that future studies can be done to examine the role of leadership in strategy execution, exploring the impact of organizational culture and employee involvement in the implementation success. Finally, this study also suggests an investigation on the use of technology and innovation in strategy implementation.