The Role of Technology as a Key Driver to Smes Competitiveness – A Case of Smes in Nairobi County

Author(s)

DR. JOHNESTER ALI MWANGULU ,

Download Full PDF Pages: 131-136 | Views: 1132 | Downloads: 380 | DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.3473855

Volume 6 - November 2017 (11)

Abstract

For decades now, Information Technology has helped deliver or facilitate several business benefits, including improved decision-making, flexibility, and productivity; internal operations efficiency; enhanced information management; lower cost business transactions; improved supply chain management and greater interconnections with business partners. However, it is the rapid pace and evolution of technological advances witnessed in more recent years that have helped “level the playing field” for SMEs. Such advances have resulted in unprecedented business opportunities. These advances in IT have resulted in the development of business models that are fundamentally different – traditional brick-and-mortar industries are being dominated, or completely replaced, by models that are essentially software-based, and physical boundaries are disappearing with more and more business data being transmitted and shared over the Internet. SME importance in a knowledge-based economy has been highly appreciated and acknowledged. Moreover, in the present economy, Micro and Small Enterprises are facing tremendous challenges and threats to survive in a competitive environment Information, and Communications Technology in the recent past has brought both challenges and opportunities to Small and Medium Sized organizations. The study seeks to analyze the role of Technology as a key driver for SMEs growth in Kenya. The researcher will use cross-sectional survey. The target population is 200 Small and Medium Enterprises in Nairobi County with a specific focus on SMEs in the central business district. Descriptive statistics will be used, and data were collected using both closed and open-ended questionnaires. The findings of this established that Technology plays a key role in creating competitiveness in SMEs which have strongly embraced and recommends that the Kenya Government should encourage the use of Technology in all their operations. This study identified Technology as a critical driver of the Vision 2030, a sustainable goal of economic transformation

Keywords

Technology, Small and Medium Enterprises, Nairobi County and Information Communications Technology 

References

  1. Alila, O., & Ove, P. (2011). Negotiating social space: East African micro enterprises. African World Press.
  2. Barua, A. (2011). Information Technologies and business value: An analytic and empirical investigation. Information Systems Research, 6(1), 3–23.
  1. Green, N. (2011). Personas of E-commerce adoption in small businesses in New Zealand. Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations, 4(3), 17–45.
  1. Hanna, N. K. (2010). Enabling enterprise transformation. Business and grassroots innovation for the knowledge economy. New York: Springer.
  1. Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (2006). Developing a marketing framework for Micro and Small Enterprises in Kenya. Nairobi: KIPPRA.
  1. Kirby, D., & Turner, M. (2012). IT and the small retail business. International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, 21(7), 20–27.
  1. Koul, Y. (2012). Case Study Research: Design and Methods (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
  1. Kozak, R. (2011). Small and Medium Forest Enterprises: Instruments of change in the developing world. The University of British Columbia.
  2. Mingaine, L. (2013). Challenges encountered by Principals during the implementation of ICT in public secondary schools, Kenya. Journal of Sociological Research, 4(2) 1–19.
  3. Muraya, P. (2006). Urban Planning and Small-Scale Enterprises in Nairobi Kenya. Habitat International, 30(1),127–143.
  4. Mutwiri, I., & Mingaine, L. (2014). The value addition on bananas in Kenya: Strategies to benefit producers and satisfy consumers. The International Journal’s Research Journal of Economics and Business Studies, 3(5),106–117.
  5. Onyango, R., Ongus, W., Awuor, F., & Nyamboga, C. (2014). Impacts of adoption and use of mobile phone technology on the performance of Micro and Small enterprises in Kisii municipality Kenya. World Journal of Computer Application and Technology, 2(2), 34–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.13189/wjcat.2014.020202
  6. Orodho, A. (2008). Research Methods. Nairobi: Kenyatta University, Institute of Open Learning.
  7. Parker, O. (2010). Exploring the Usage and Impact of “Transformational” Mobile Financial Services: The Case of M-PESA in Kenya. Journal of Eastern African Studies, 3(3), 509–525.
  8. Paul, D., & Pascale, D. (2013). Information Technology and Economic Development: An Introduction to the Research Issues. Research Paper. Los Angeles, CA: Sage.
  9. Ritchie, B. & Bridley, C. (2005). ICT adoption by SMEs: Implications for relationships and management. New Technology, Work and Employment, 2003
  10. Ritchie, B., & Brindley, C. (2010). ICT adoption by MSEs: Implications for relationships and management. NewTechnology, Work and Employment, 20(3), 205–217.
  11. Sakai, K. (2012). Enhancing Manufacturing Performance with ERP Systems. Information Systems Management,17(3), 1–13.www.ccsenet.org/ijbm International Journal of Business and Management Vol. 9, No. 8; 2014 190
  12. Schleberger, E. (1998). Report of Regional meeting of the working group: Entrepreneurship development and training. Available at: wwwfes.de/fulltext.buer Accessed on 03-12-2012
  13. Thiam, I. (2009). Unlocking the potential of Small and Medium size Enterprises in West Africa: A path for reform and action. Master thesis, Russian Friendship University.
  14. Thong, J., & Yap, C. (2011). CEO characteristics, organizational characteristics and information technology adoption in small business. International Journal of Management Science, 23(4), 429–442.

Cite this Article: