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Effect of Budget and Budgetary Control on Firms Performance: A Case Study of the East African Portland Cement Company Limited
No full textA Research Project Report Submitted to the Chandaria School of Business in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Masters in Business Administration (MBA)The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of budgetary control system on the performance of the East African Portland Cement Company Limited. Specifically, the study sought to address the following concerns: What are some of the budgetary control systems applicable at the East African Portland Cement Company? Is there a relationship between budgetary control and employee behavior? Finally, yet importantly, what is the effect of budgetary control on firm performance?
Descriptive research design was used to describe the independent variable whereas explanatory research design was used to describe the relationship between the independent and dependent variables in the study. Budgetary control is the independent variable whereas budgetary control types, employee behavior and financial performance were used as the dependent variables. The paper researched on the role of budget and budgetary control on organizational performance: a case study of East African Portland Cement Company. Both primary and secondary data was used in the study. Questionnaires were used to collect primary data whereas secondary data was obtained from the published accounts of East African Portland Cement Company for the period 2012-2016. A total of 45 staff was sampled using the purposive sampling technique, and data obtained was subjected to regression analysis.
The research model used in the study comprised of the independent variable sales turnover and the following dependent variables: budgetary control types, employee behavior and measures of financial performance namely: profit before tax, profit after tax and earnings per share. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the data collected in order to generate descriptive statistics and inferential statistics for the study. Results were presented in form of tables and figures. Relevant recommendations and conclusions were given. Regression analysis was used to describe the extent with which the dependent variables could be explained by the independent variable.
The study examined the effect of sales turnover on budgetary controls. The study established that the two variables had a low positive correlation at 32.3%. Concerning the effect of budgetary control on employee behavior, the study found out that budgetary control had a high correlation with employee behavior at 54.7%. As regards the effect of budgetary control on firm performance, the study established that the link between budgetary control and profit before tax was high at 54.4%. However, it was slightly lower in relation to both profit after tax and earnings per share at 49.1%.
In conclusion, the study established that there was a low positive correlation between budgetary controls and sales turnover. Thus, the various budgetary control types for instance, short-term form of budgetary control, long-term budgeting, flexible budgeting, zero based budgeting, rolling budgeting and activity-based budgeting are responsible for the low positive correlation. It is therefore recommended that there is need to increase the level of sensitization among management and employees of the East African Portland Cement Company on the importance of budgetary controls in enhancing financial performance. The budgetary control process should consider both firm needs and parameters within the firm during planning to achieve better results.
Regarding the effect of budgetary control on employee behavior, the study concluded that the correlation between the two variables was high. It is therefore recommended that the firm should strive to maintain or improve on its employee behavior for instance, employee working relationships, realization of budget, management style, money factor, organizational structure and fulfilment of individual needs.
Finally, about the relationship between budgetary control and firm performance, the study concluded that there was a high positive correlation of 54.4% between budgetary control and firm’s financial performance measured in terms of profit before. However, there was a low positive correlation of 49.1% between budgetary control and both profit after tax and earnings. It is therefore recommended that East African Portland Cement Company should encourage implementation of their budgets as planned. In addition, management is also advised to pay more attention to the budgeting processes since it improves firm performance
Demand Planning On Supply Chain Performance: A Case Study of FMCGs in Kenya
No full textA Research Project Report submitted to Chandaria School of Business in Partial fulfillment of the requirement for the Degree of Master in Business Administration (MBA)The general objective of the study was to find out the contribution of demand planning towards improving supply chain performance. Specifically, the study sought to achieve the following specific objectives; To find out the role of forecasting towards inventory optimization; To find out the role of supplier partnering towards inventory optimization; To find out the role of demand planning towards Supply Chain cost reduction.
The researcher adopted descriptive and explanatory research designs. The target population for this study was Fast Moving Consumer Goods located within Nairobi and Kiambu County. The researcher adopted a stratified sampling technique.The target sample size for this study was 80 individuals holding positions in the target organisations.Primary data was aided by a research assistant using a structured questionnaire.After Data collection,data was first coded into the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Both descriptive statistical techniques and inferential techniques were demployed for analysis. Inferences were drawn using correlation and data was presented in tables, pie and bar charts.
From the findings the study found out that majority of the respondents indicated that supply chains in their organizations perform forecasting and of the respondents who indicated that their organizations’ supply chain perform forecasting majority indicated the forecasting duration between 6-12 months. Concerning supplier collaboration, the findings found that partnering among supply chain players enhanced the reliability of their supply chain by ensuring that suppliers remained in stock of the required items. To enhance this reliability, the supply chain partners need to continuously engage in early supplier involvement and Collaborative Planning Forecasting and Replenishment activities. Further, the study found out that Electronic data interchange, Collaborative Planning Forecasting and Replenishment, Early Supplier Involvement and Supplier development influenced the reliability of the supply chain to a large extent.
In terms of demand planning, the study found out that demand planning plays a critical role in the reduction of the overall costs of a supply chain by enabling better visibility of supply chain costs, reducing mismatch of processes along the supply chain and reducing uncertainties along the supply chain.
To improve supply chain performance, organizations need to incorporate forecasting to reduce inventory holding and enhance inventory optimization and should incorporate Sales Inventory and Operations Planning to enhance accuracy in forecasts and inventory holding. Concerning supplier collaboration, organizations should pursue partnering and early supplier involvement to increase supply chain reliability. In addition, organizations should participate in Collaborative Planning and Forecasting, Supplier development and Electronic Data Interchange to further enhance the reliability of their supply chains. Finally, to reduce and improve visibility of supply chain costs, organizations should embrace demand planning from which they are likely to also reduce mismatch of processes and clear uncertainties along the supply chain. Another study which considers the economic background of respondents should be carried out to corroborate the results of this study.
The study concludes that supply chains in their organizations perform forecasting and that forecasting leads to a reduction in inventory holding in the organizations; that there is a direct link between inventory forecasting and inventory; that Sales Inventory and Operations Planning accurately guides the inventory quantities to carry at a given time and that Sales Inventory and that Operations Planning improves the accuracy of forecasts generated.
The study recommends forecasting in inventory since forecasting is the epicenter of all Supply Chain Management activities which triggers all other activities both within and outside the organization. Forecasting is the key driving factor in planning and decision making in SCM as well as enterprise level and that companies that companies that perform exceptionally well rely on true numerical value of forecasting to make decisions in capacity building, resource allocation, expansion, process scheduling among others
Factors Influencing The Implementation Of Results Based Management In The United Nations Agencies In Nairobi.
No full textA Research Project Report Submitted to the Chandaria School of Business in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Masters in Business Administration (MBA)The purpose of the study was to establish the factors influencing the implementation of Results Based Management in the United Nations Agencies in Nairobi. The study was guided by three research questions: The first question examined the effect of organization culture on the implementation of results based management. The second question examined the effect of organization leadership on the implementation of results based management and the third question investigated the effect of organization resources on the implementation of results based management.
The study adopted a descriptive study design and a questionnaire was used as the research instrument. This was used as the data collected was of quantitative nature. The target population was drawn from five UN Agencies in Nairobi, Gigiri complex consisting of 5 senior level managers, 10 middle level managers, 18, supervisors and 62 general staff. The study used stratified random sampling due to the heterogeneous nature of the target population. A sample of 77 was selected and 64 responded giving a response rate of 84%. A specifically designed structured questionnaire was the tool used to collect primary data for this study. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics including percentages and frequencies for easier interpretation. Pearson correlation and regression analysis were then used to show how the independent variables influence the dependent variables. Thereafter, the data further analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Software. The findings were presented using figures and tables.
The study findings revealed that organization culture, organization leadership and organization resources have an influence on the implementation of Results Based Management (RBM). However, only organization culture and organization resources have a significant influence on the implementation of RBM. The findings show that organization culture has a high influence on the implementation of RBM. In addition, when organization culture is combined with organization resources, the resultant effect has a higher positive influence on the implementation of RBM. Organization leadership was found to have an insignificant influence on the implementation of RBM.
The study found out that a strong organization culture with a clear focus on results is essential for the effective implementation of RBM. Findings revealed that roles and responsibilities should be defined clearly and the managers granted autonomy and accountability for the results. In addition, cross project learning where the use of lessons learned from previous project implementation activities should also be incorporated. Information flow is critical where managers should be kept informed on implementation data and reporting of results should be done in a consistent and standardized manner.
For effective implementation of RBM, the study found out that senior management should take the lead in the implementation of RBM. The organization leaders should emphasize on the achievement of results rather than focus on inputs and processes. The findings also established that management should prioritize staff training on RBM. In addition, the organization management should have guidance materials on results based management and institutionalize new policies and procedures to support RBM. The study findings also revealed that management should communicate the demands of RBM to all staff and management should have a dedicated drive to improve staff capacity on RBM.
The study findings show that the organization should invest significant resources on monitoring & evaluation and data management. Furthermore, the organization should set a side resources for RBM capacity development. The study also found out that the organization should route resources towards a results friendly information system.
The study concludes that the United Nations` Agencies should pay close attention to organization culture and organization resources while implementing Results Based Management during implementation of the ongoing projects and the future pipeline projects.
The study recommends that the United Nations Agencies should strive to promote a results oriented culture, foster strong leadership in RBM and invest significant resources towards RBM capacity development. Sufficient resources should also be channeled towards RBM support systems (monitoring and evaluation and data management systems). For effective implementation of RBM, particular emphasis should be laid on organization culture and organization resources and less emphasis on organization leadership
CTW - 15 June 2018
No full textA Campus Weekly Magazine by the Marketing and Communications Department of USIU- Afric
Does climate affect people's culture?
No full textA Newspaper article by Scott Bellows, an Assistant Professor in the Chandaria School of Business at USIU-AfricaWhy do some groups of people behave differently than other groups? What drives the variance between our ethnic communities?
Colonialists often arrogantly and incorrectly ascribed culture differences around the world to the superiority or inferiority of racial brain capacities. No region felt the brunt of racial stereotypes in colonial times with lingering unconscious biases more than sub-Saharan Africa. Ironically, caucasians and Asians have traces of primitive Neanderthal DNA through ancient comingling while black sub-Saharan Africans hold no trace of Neanderthal DNA and live in the epicenter of human evolution of superior brain function that originated right here in sub-Saharan Africa. So, for this and many other scientific reasons, anti-African brain capacity biases are rubbish.
Modern sociologists have pondered instead that climatic effects may partially explain observable culture differences across nations, regions, and clusters. Prolific social psychologist Geert Hofstede and later Robert House and his co-researchers made firm associations between climate, rainfall, humidity, and cultural behaviour and opinions.
Business Talk takes a detour this week from its education in Kenya mini-series to bring readers the results of breaking research conducted by the United States International University of Africa and Durham University in cooperation with USAID and Global Communities just released in the Co-operative University of Kenya’s African Journal for Co-operative Development and Technology
Factors Affecting Strategy Implementation in Service Oriented Organizations: A Case Study of G4S Kenya Limited
No full textA Research Project Report Submitted to the Chandaria School of Business in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement for the Degree of Masters in Business Administration (MBA)The general objective of this study was to determine the factors affecting strategy implementation in service oriented organizations illustrated by a case study of G4S Kenya Limited. The study was guided by the following research questions: How does leadership styles affect strategy implementation at G4S Kenya Limited? How does organizational culture affect strategy implementation at G4S Kenya Limited? And how does organizational structure affect strategy implementation at G4S Kenya Limited?
The study population comprised of eight (8) top management staff, sixty two (62) middle management staff and four hundred and twenty eight (428) lower level management staff. A stratified random sampling technique was used to draw a sample of 150 respondents form the population. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondents. Frequency distributions, percentages and means were used in descriptive statistical analysis while correlation was used for inferential statistical analysis. Regression was used to test the different hypotheses. The statistical program for social sciences (SPSS) was used as a tool for statistical analysis.
The findings of the study on leadership styles and strategy implementation revealed that most respondents (85.4%) believe leadership style has a significant impact on strategy implementation in G4S Kenya Limited. The findings of the study on organizational culture and strategy implementation showed that most respondents (82.6%) agree that organizational culture has a great impact on strategy implementation in G4S Kenya Limited. The findings of the study on organizational structure and strategy implementation revealed that majority of the respondents (81.6%) agreed that organizational structure has an impact on strategy implementation.
The findings from this study showed that leadership style, organizational culture and organizational structure had a great impact on strategy implementation. Therefore there is need for G4S Kenya Limited to put emphasis on these factors during formulation of strategy and most importantly during strategy implementation
Interstate Dissonance A Damper to Regional Integration: A Case Study of East African Community
No full textThesis Submitted to the School of Humanities and Social Science in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for Master’s Degree in International RelationsThe study has five objectives which are to identify the political, economic, social, cultural and technological barriers to the East African Community Integration. The study constitutes a literature review of research conducted on interstate dissonance that are a damper to regional integration. The study also provides a synopsis of, not only the findings made in the literature reviewed but also the methodology employed to unearth the respective findings. The study uses secondary data to answer the research questions in the analysis. Functionalism, neo-functionalism and realism have been used to consider the logic of integration. Each theoretical approach strains a diverse set of aspects in enlightening nation states ‘actions and the practices of integration. Some of the challenges to regional integration identified include; multiple memberships, non-trade barriers, challenge of online platforms which dealers use to report their grievances, challenge of making member states integrate regional treaties into national strategies, the issue of supranational entity, lack of support to the private sector, conflicts within states, poor infrastructure, corruption and poor governance, unharmonized presidential electro system, inefficient implementation of agreements and rapid increase in population. To curb these problems, the study recommends that, more effort is required in refining regional infrastructure, all the organs and foundations of the EAC will require to be transformed as set out in article 9 of the treaty, the EAC can see ways on how to harmonize the dominant domestic tax systems, laws and measures so as to decrease alterations and trafficking as well as presenting some level of expectedness in business transactions
Effectiveness Of Premarital Counselling Programs On Marital Stability Among Selected Couples In Nairobi County
No full textA thesis report submitted to the School of Humanities and Social Science in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the Masters of Arts in Counselling Psychology (M.A. Counselling Psy)This study investigated the effectiveness of premarital counseling on marital stability among couples in Nairobi County. The study adopted a quantitative descriptive research design. The sample consisted of 105 married persons from Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA), Milimani South Presbytery. The participants were married for ten years and below. The study utilized the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale (RDAS) to determine the level of marital distress as a measure of marital stability. The results were analyzed using mean scores and standard deviation and ANOVA for the research questions. Results indicated that there was a significant difference in marital satisfaction between the couples who received different counts of premarital counseling sessions. It showed that premarital counseling had a significant effect on marital satisfaction. Based on the findings, the implications for premarital counseling include initiating a program that will ensure premarital counseling is done six months before the wedding and the sessions done are between eighteen and twenty. Premarital counseling should focus more on communication, finance management and personality development in order to improve overall marital stability
The Legitimacy Questions of Regional Institutions and Their Impact on Service Delivery: The Case of the East African Legislative Assembly, 2005 - 2015
No full textA Thesis Submitted to the School of Humanities and Social Sciences (SHSS) in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Master of Arts in International RelationsThe East African Legislative Assembly (hereinafter referred to as ―Assembly‖), an organ of the East African Community (hereinafter referred to as ―Community‖) is central to the unification of the members states of the Community – one of its service delivery. This is based on its representative function which ideally should help to not only create awareness of the Community but also connect the people of the Community through the outreach activities.
The specific objectives of this study include focusing on the institutional provisions of the Assembly; the procedures followed by the Assembly in performing its legislative functions and the extent of EAC citizens‘ involvement in law creation through the Assembly between 2005 and 2015. Theory of institutionalism will be used to explain the evolution and performance of the Assembly.
Considering the envisioned political federation, the legitimacy of the Assembly is critical. The legitimacy questions arise from the lack of popular consent in the election of Assembly representatives, lack of a uniform electoral process within the member states, and the weakness in the treaty in providing for ordinary citizens participation in the integration process.
Institutions such as the East African Civil Society Organizations' Forum and the East African Business Council have the potential to encourage citizen participation but the modalities of their participation need to be made clear. In addition, the treaty needs to equip these institutions with a greater mandate in participating in integration efforts apart from the observer status given to them. The need to involve citizens in the integration process is vital and can be enhanced when the citizens are able to see that the benefits of the integration outweigh the losses. Conversely, the EAC citizens need to get rid of the ignorant and apathetic attitude that limits their involvement
