| dc.description.abstract | The telecommunication industry plays a significant role in the growth of economies all
over the world and is seen as the next frontier in the creation of wealth and economic
wealth. The objective of this study was to determine the strategic responses adopted by
Zain Kenya towards external environment and determine environmental changes facing
Zain Kenya.
The study is a case based and utilizes both primary and secondary data collected from the
Zain's staff and documents respectively. The study targeted senior managers in the in the
various departments and heads of departments to undertake feasibility studies. The
primary data was collected using a structured questionnaire that was administered to the
target respondent. The data was analyzed using statistical package for social scientist
with the help of descriptive statistics and content analysis.
The research revealed that Zain surveys external environment to help make business
decisions. All the factors were found to be highly considered when making plan and
decisions except for social and cultural trends. Zain managers make arrangements to
mitigate the consequences of the challenges •c.aused by economic environment
It was found that strategies adopted by Zain Kenya are reactive and that Zain highly
considers the factors before engaging in responses to the external environment. Tendency
to centralize decisions to top management is used as the mode of making critical
decisions in responding to external environment.
The Chief executive OfficerlManaging Director was found to be the champion of
identification and implementation of responses to external environment. 76% of the
respondents said the business have been turbulent in the last 5 years, 19% said it has been
irregular while 5% said it has been relatively stable. When the respondents were asked to
state the extent to which the approach to business has impacted on the performance, 67%
v
said greater extent, 19% said on average, 10% said to small impact while 5% said to no
impact
Challenges encountered in the pursuit of the growth strategy were mentioned as: stiff
competition and unfair pricing tactics from one dominant player, huge initial capital
requirement, frequent change of shareholders and the Chief executivelManaging
Director, rapid technological changes, political turmoil, lack of consumer acceptance of
the product and services offering, legislation changes, price wars in the industry and
frequent staff lay offs affecting productivity and staff motivation.
The findings have implications for the company and policy makers in the
telecommunication industry. | en |
