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Papers by Daniel Auka

African Journal of Marketing Management, Oct 31, 2012

Service firms have increasingly recognized the role of customer loyalty in the creation and maint... more Service firms have increasingly recognized the role of customer loyalty in the creation and maintenance of competitive advantage. Customer loyalty positively influences firm performance. Keeping loyal customers is beneficial to organizational performance despite there being little agreement as the determinants of customer loyalty in commercial banks. Therefore, this paper examines the extent to which service quality, perceived value and satisfaction influence customer loyalty in commercial banks. To achieve this, data were collected using a questionnaire from 381 respondents who were selected through stratified random and systematic sampling procedures. Data analysis was done through Pearson correlation and regression. The findings revealed that there was a positive and significant relationship between service quality, customer satisfaction and customer value, and customer loyalty. This study also found that service quality, customer value and satisfaction are critical success factors that influence the competitiveness of an organization. It is therefore recommended that banks should adopt the model consisting of the three constructs to create and maintain customer loyalty so as to improve performance and create competitive advantage.

Tourism growth is important for any organization that would want to remain competitive in the tou... more Tourism growth is important for any organization that would want to remain competitive in the tourism industry as this will in the longrun enable the organization to attain its objectives to the fullest. Organizations dealing with tourists have realized the importance of tourism growth and have implemented some tourism policies to be strategic in the industry. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of selected tourism policies on the growth of the tourism industry by focusing on Lake Nakuru National Park. The park has a Tourism department whose goal is to ensure that the Tourism growth is achieved in the most effective and efficient manner. The park has established Tourism policies within its department; however, from reports generated from the park’s Tourism information system, the park still experiences decreased growth in Tourism. The policies selected; marketing and promotion, product development and diversification, community participation, governance and gover...

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN MANAGEMENT, 2018

This study's main aim is to establish the influence of selected factors on the marketing of pyret... more This study's main aim is to establish the influence of selected factors on the marketing of pyrethrum products from small holder farmers in Kisii County, Kenya. It examines the influence of quality related factors, Competition related factors, farmers' cooperative societies and infrastructure related factors on marketing of pyrethrum. To achieve this purpose data was collected from 274 pyrethrum farmers proportionately picked from 12 farmers' cooperative societies in 3 pyrethrum growing constituencies in Kisii County, Kenya. The results indicate that there is a positive significant influence of the selected factors on the marketing of pyrethrum products by smallholder farmers. The findings further showed that quality related factors, competition related factors, farmers' cooperative societies and infrastructure related factors jointly have a positive significant influence on marketing of pyrethrum from smallholder farmers in Kisii County. The study recommended enhancing competitiveness through support of county and National governments, and that scholars replicate the study in other pyrethrum growing counties to enhance understanding of factors that influence marketing of pyrethrum in Kenya.

International Journal of Research in Commerce, IT and Management, 2016

should be in fully italicized text, ranging between 150 to 300 words. The abstract must be inform... more should be in fully italicized text, ranging between 150 to 300 words. The abstract must be informative and explain the background, aims, methods, results & conclusion in a SINGLE PARA. Abbreviations must be mentioned in full. 6. KEYWORDS: Abstract must be followed by a list of keywords, subject to the maximum of five. These should be arranged in alphabetic order separated by commas and full stop at the end. All words of the keywords, including the first one should be in small letters, except special words e.g. name of the Countries, abbreviations. 7. JEL CODE: Provide the appropriate Journal of Economic Literature Classification System code (s). JEL codes are available at www.aeaweb.org/econlit/jelCodes.php, however, mentioning JEL Code is not mandatory. 8. MANUSCRIPT: Manuscript must be in BRITISH ENGLISH prepared on a standard A4 size PORTRAIT SETTING PAPER. It should be free from any errors i.e. grammatical, spelling or punctuation. It must be thoroughly edited at your end. 9. HEADINGS: All the headings must be bold-faced, aligned left and fully capitalised. Leave a blank line before each heading. 10. SUB-HEADINGS: All the sub-headings must be bold-faced, aligned left and fully capitalised.

international journal of research in computer application & management, 2013

must be informative and explain the background, aims, methods, results & conclusion in a single p... more must be informative and explain the background, aims, methods, results & conclusion in a single para. Abbreviations must be mentioned in full.

International Review of Management and Business Research, 2015

(ProQuest: ... denotes formulae omitted.)IntroductionGlobalization has resulted in fierce competi... more (ProQuest: ... denotes formulae omitted.)IntroductionGlobalization has resulted in fierce competition internally and externally to many organizations. Given the intense competition and constantly changing market conditions, business performance has become a crucial issue among scholars and practitioners. Consequently, both scholars and business practitioners have been interested in identifying the antecedents of business performance. Mission and vision, environmental scanning and formality of strategic planning are among the factors that have been recognized in the extant literature as predictors of business performance (Bart and Hupfer, 2004; Forbes and Seena, 2006). The researchers demonstrate why it is crucial for businesses to scan their environment inorder to formulate the correct strategies. They also advise SME's to have a mission and vision statement to give direction to the business and to have a formal strategic plan as it guides the strategy implementation process. Therefor these factors are regarded as success factors in achieving competitive advantage (Bart and Hupfer, 2004; Kantrabutra, 2010).Pearce and Robinson (2011),assert that from a resource based view strategic planning can result in strategic change which may increase strategy-environment fit, hence can become a source of sustained competitive advantage especially when strategic planning system improves flow of products and services between manufacturers and users.Although small and medium size enterprises typically employ a major share of an economy's total employees, formal plans and cost controls are often only provided on a regular basis and planning instruments are usually only used by a small number of individuals and developed rather intuitively (Brinkmann, 2002). These shortcomings point towards the importance of examining the value of strategic planning for SME's in detail.Strategic planning is concerned with the setting of long term organizational goals, the development and implementation of plans to achieve these goals and the allocation or diversion of resources necessary for realizing these goals (Stonehouse& Pemberton 2002). In practical sense, strategic planning is about competitive advantage. The purpose of strategic planning is to enable a business to gain as efficiently as possible, a sustainable edge over its competitors.Research has consistently shown that most small and medium sized enterprises do not engage in strategic planning (Berman et al,(1997); Orser et al, (2000); Sandberg et al, (2003). This is at odds with much of the strategy literature that dictates that enterprises must actively plan for the future to compete effectively and survive (Ennis 1998). Accordingly, SME owner-managers have been accused of being strategically myopic and lacking the long term vision as to where their company is headed(Mazzarol, 2004). The concern is that by neglecting strategic management and planning, SMEs may not achieve their full performance and growth potentials, and their survival could be placed at risk (Berry 1998).Strategic planning is more likely in to be, in those enterprises that are innovative, that have more newly patented products and that employ new processes and management technologies and that achieve international growth (Upton et al, 2001).With respect to performance, strategic planning and management are more common in better performing SMEs. SMEs that engage in strategic planning, compared to those that don't, are more likely to be th ose that achieve higher sales growth, higher returns on assets, higher margins on profit and higher employee growth (Bracker et al, 1988).Literature ReviewStrategic PlanningStrategic planning is the process of developing and maintaining consistency between the organization's objectives and resources and its changing opportunities (Robson 1994). Strategic planning is a management tool, used to help the organization to focus its energy, to ensure that the members of the organization are working towards the same goals, to assess and adjust the organization's direction in response to a changing environment. …

Background Supply chain strategies play the role of helping firms achieve efficiency and effectiv... more Background Supply chain strategies play the role of helping firms achieve efficiency and effectiveness in their operations. The le-agile supply chin strategy combines both lean and agile supply chain concepts. The study focused on the effect of supply chain management practices on operational performance and the mediating effect of le-agile supply chain strategy on the relationship between supply chain management practices and operational performance. Previous studies have been carried out in Asia, America, and Europe, while studies carried out on Kenyan manufacturing firms are scanty. This study seeks to bridge this gap. Methodology A cross-sectional survey was adopted and data was collected between November 2019 and February 2020. Stratified random sampling was used to select a sample of 154 out of 410 large manufacturing firms in Kenya. The data was cleaned coded and analyzed with the aid of the Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS). Mediated regression analysis was per...

Porter‟s generic competitive strategies have been hypothesized by many researchers to have an inf... more Porter‟s generic competitive strategies have been hypothesized by many researchers to have an influence on customer satisfaction. Amidst stiff competition, it is important that appropriate strategies are used to ensure this aim is achieved. This study was set to determine the effect of Porter‟s Generic Competitive Strategies on Customer Satisfaction within commercial banks in Nakuru Municipality. To accomplish this task, the study objectives were: to determine the effect of Porter‟s generic competitive strategies on customer satisfaction within Nakuru Municipality ; to determine the effect of differentiation strategy on customer satisfaction; to determine the effect of cost leadership strategy on customer satisfaction; to establish the effect of focus strategy on customer satisfaction and to determine the composite effect of differentiation strategies, cost leadership strategies and focus strategies on customer satisfaction in commercial banks within Nakuru Municipality . This study...

Organizations, both large and small, are faced with uncertain business conditions, competitive ma... more Organizations, both large and small, are faced with uncertain business conditions, competitive market environments and rapid technological changes. Organizations are struggling to survive and are focusing on ways to improve their performance. The main objective of this study was to examine the effects of retrenchment practices on performance of surviving employees in state corporations of Nakuru County. It examined the relationship between workforce reduction, cost cutting, communication, support, counselling and procedural justice and employee performance. To achieve this, data was collected from a sample of 253 survivors from the selected state corporations. The results indicated that retrenchment practices significantly influences employee performance. The findings reinforce the need for management to embrace due process during the retrenchment practice in order to achieve organizational goal.

International Journal of Innovation and Applied Studies, 2015

Employees' job satisfaction is an old concept in industrial relations and is influenced by a ... more Employees' job satisfaction is an old concept in industrial relations and is influenced by a number of factors. Since the promulgation of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, some of the government functions which used to be under the central government have since been devolved to the county governments. These functions include the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Water, Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Public works and roads among others. Employees working in these ministries, among others, had their functions devolved to the county governments. The deployment to the counties had adverse effects among employees as exemplified by strikes of the employees of the Ministry of Health. The main objective of this study was to assess the effect of selected job motivational factors on civil servants' job satisfaction within government devolved functions in Nakuru County. The target population was 1912 employees working in the devolved functions. The sample size of the study was 320...

The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which strategic marketing and technologic... more The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which strategic marketing and technological innovations influence the growth of retail banks in Kenya. Knowledge of innovation in the banking sector is key in today’s competitive environment is key for strategic decision making. Marketing and technological innovation practices lead to growth in commercial banks. The study was carried out on 26 commercial banks purposively selected in Nakuru county. Data were collected from branch managers using structured questionnaires. Correlation and regression were used to analyse data on the relationship between innovations and the growth of banks. The results indicated that innovations significantly influence the growth of retail banks. This finding reinforces the bank’s need to invest in innovative practices in order to improve their performance.

The main objective of the study was to determine the influence of advertising on consumer purchas... more The main objective of the study was to determine the influence of advertising on consumer purchase decision of sport betting among students in university campuses in Nakuru town. A sample of 367 students was selected to assess the influence of various elements of advertising on consumer purchase decision. Regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses. The study revealed a significant relationship between advertising and consumer purchase decision and can be effectively used by marketers to influence consumers to buy their product/services.

The primary aim of this study is to examine the factors that influence Sacco members in Kenya to ... more The primary aim of this study is to examine the factors that influence Sacco members in Kenya to seek financial products from other financial service providers. The study investigated the factors that make Sacco members to seek the services of other financial service providers. Saccos are saving and credit cooperatives societies. Saccos are quasi financial institutions that mobilize savings, provide loans as well as other products to their members. To achieve this objective, the study employed the survey involving a sample of 100 Sacco members drawn from 18,833 members of the 44 Saccos operating within Central Rift Valley Region of the cooperative society. Stratified Random sampling was used to select respondents and a questionnaire was used to collect data from Sacco members. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Hypotheses were tested using correlation analysis and regression analysis. Correlation analysis tested the relationship between the in...

The International Journal of Business & Management, 2019

1. Introduction Arguably, universities are the engines of economic growth and play a crucial role... more 1. Introduction Arguably, universities are the engines of economic growth and play a crucial role in the education system (Militaru, 20102). Universities are research centers, the academic members generate new knowledge and use it in research activities and disseminate it through teaching activities. Universities are integral to creating a skilled workforce, encouraging innovation, and ultimately increasing prospects for growth in most economies (Navarro et al., 2017). The university community also participates in many service activities. Thus, the missions of universities in general are in teaching, research and service. Quality of education service is linked to research and scholarship (Militaru, 20102). Globally, Universities face a constantly changing education market characterized by unpredictability and strong competition. They must identify the best solutions to improve their performance. In addition to market challenges, African universities continue to suffer insufficient funding which means that higher education institutions of Africa are currently not capable of responding to the immediate skill needs or supporting sustained productivity-led growth in the medium term (Chuks, 2017). Similarly, universities in Kenya are operating in highly competitive environment locally and globally and this calls for management styles that enhance institutional performance (Ng'ethe, 2012). Despite the tough market conditions that universities are operating in, the right top leadership style might improve the performance of universities to a large extent (Yang, 2014, Raimonda and Modesta, 2016). Strategic leadership which is a modern type of leadership produces higher organizational performance in organizations and indicated that strategic leadership has been adopted in the leadership of institutions of higher learning in the world over. Mathooko and Ogutu (2014) established that universities in Kenya practice strategic leadership as they have adopted different strategies at the various levels of management. But unfortunately, no past study in Kenya links strategic leadership with performance of well-established

European Journal of Business and Management, 2019

There are varying levels of performance in Kenya Universities as indicated in their rankings desp... more There are varying levels of performance in Kenya Universities as indicated in their rankings despite all of them deploying various strategic positions. Organizational change, despite its popular impact across various industries is yet to be linked with the performance of Kenyan universities. This is a gap that prompted commencement of this study on establishing the effect of organizational change on organizational performance in Kenyan chartered universities among the 48 chartered universities as at September 2017.The objectives of this study were compare organizational change and performance in public and private universities and to determine the effect of organizational change on the performance of Kenyan universities. The study used purposive sampling procedure to select 43 public and private chartered universities in Kenya. Questionnaires were administered to 43 vice chancellors and 103 deputy vice chancellors of the selected universities. A pilot study was carried out from three (3) public and two (2) private chartered universities that did not take part in the study. Pilot testing was done to determine the validity of the instrument while Cronbach internal consistency was used to determine reliability of the instrument respectively. The study used descriptive research design t-test, Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis. In aggregate terms, the results revealed that organizational change has a significant, positive influence on the performance of the universities. Private universities in Kenya have a stronger strategic orientation and better technologies than public universities. However, public universities have better organisational communication than the private universities. Further regression on the individual aspects of organizational change revealed that strategic orientation, an aspect of organizational change, was the most important change tool to facilitate the organizational performance of the Kenyan universities. Thus it is imperative for universities to tailor their strategic orientation to the needs of the market to stand a chance of not only survival but proper performance.

International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 2016

European Journal of Business and Management, 2017

This study proposes the research framework that entrepreneurship education affects entrepreneuria... more This study proposes the research framework that entrepreneurship education affects entrepreneurial intention through the mediating mechanisms of attitudes. The study adopted the Baron and Kenny (1986) approach to analyze the hypothesis. The respondents comprised 265 students taking engineering courses at diploma level in Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions in Kenya. A total of 239 valid questionnaires, representing 90% of the sample, were analyzed. The results revealed that attitudes partially mediate the effect of entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention among engineering students in Kenya. This study finding contributes to knowledge by addressing the gaps in previous studies regarding the direct effect of entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention. Second, by reporting partial mediation of attitudes on the relationship between entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial intention, the research proposes the need for more studi...

Journal of economics and sustainable development, 2017

This study proposes that entrepreneurship education affects entrepreneurial intention through the... more This study proposes that entrepreneurship education affects entrepreneurial intention through the moderating role of personality traits. The study adopted the hierarchical regression analysis to examine the hypothesis. The study population comprised 265 students taking engineering courses at diploma level in Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions in Kenya. A total of 239 valid questionnaires, representing 90% of the sample, were fully filled in and analyzed. The results revealed that personality traits moderate the effect of entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention. This study contributes to knowledge by addressing research gaps in previous studies regarding the direct effect of entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention. Second, by reporting moderating role of personality traits on the relationship between entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial intention, the research proposes the need to align entrepreneurship education cur...