Continuous Improvement on Operational Performance of Selected Public Universities in Kenya (original) (raw)
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EuroJournals, Inc/ European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative Sciences, 2012
This study sought to identify satisfaction level of faculties at both public and private universities in Jordan regarding application of continuous improvement of resources (human, financial, technological, and knowledge/information) in their higher education institutions (HEI). Further, the study also sought to identify the effect of continuous improvement of resources on realization of Total Quality (TQ). Participants (N=280) were academic workers at Financial and Administrative Science faculties with different job titles at universities. The questionnaire instrument was used for data collection. Analysis revealed reliability alpha at (.76), and percentages, median, and simple regression were used to test for hypotheses. Major findings included that: 1. There was a strong association between application of the continuous improvement of resources and resultant effect on the satisfaction degree among academic workers at Jordanian universities. 2. The satisfaction level among participants regarding continuous improvement of resources was primarily centered with declining order on physical resources (3.71%), human resources (3.62%), financial resources (3.41%), knowledge resources (2.94), and finally the least affected with continuous improvement the technological resources was placed in the lowest place.
Total Quality Management Practices and Operational Performance of Kenya Revenue Authority
International Journal of Contemporary Aspects in Strategic Management (IJCASM), 2018
In the context of global competition, changing consumer demands and influence of technology, public and private organization are striving to achieve their goals by embracing Total Quality Management practices such as strategic leadership, research and development, employee training, continous improvement and technology integration in the system to enhance their operational perform. However, despite the fact that TQM practices enhance operational performance, it is noted the public organization and more specifically Kenya Revenue Authority is experiencing deteriorating operational performance due to internal and external challenges. Some of the challenges range from inadequate financial resources, employee resistance, poor leadership and lack of appropriate technology. It is on this premise that this study sought to investigate the influence of Total Quality Mangement practices and operational performance of Kenya Revenue Authotity. The first objective of the study was to determine the influence of employee training and operational performance of KRA. The second objective was to establish the influence of continous improvment and operational performance of KRA and the third objective was to determine the influence of system automation and operational performance of KRA. This study adopted descriptive research design to investigate the problem that was under investigation. The target population of the study consisted of 557 employees of Kenya Revenue Authority working at Nairobi Headquarters. Purposive sampling technique was adopted to select the sample size of the study that comprised of 228 employees of Kenya Revenue Authority. Respondents of the study were selected from commissioners, managers, supervisors and officers. The ideal sample size was arrived by using Krejcie and Morgan scientific formula.Both primary and secondary data was used. Primary data was collected self-administered questionnaires with both open-ended and close-ended questions. Secondary data was also sourced from quality assurance reports, Government economic reports, customer satisfactory survey reports, journal articles and related academic research papers. Validity of research was determined by the researcher through seeking opinions of industry experts and Lecturers in the department of Business Administration at Kenyatta University and scholars.Reliability of the research instrument was was determined using Cronbach Alpha coefficient of 0.7. Qualitative data was anayzed using key themes of published content to make deductive arguments about the research findings. Quantitiatve data was analyzed using descriptive statistics such as mean scores, standard devaitions and percentages and inferential statistics such as correlation and multiple regression analysis method to test the statistical relationship between variables of the study. Data presentation was done in form of tables.The study established that there is a positive relationship between employee training, continous improvement and system automation and operational performance of KRA. The study concludes that unless KRA adopts TQM practices such as employee training, continous improvement and system automation in the changing business environment, achieving operational excellence will be a difficult task.The study recommends that KRA top management should embrace technology, create a customer centric culture by providing a conducive working environment that promotes employee creativity, innnovation and motivation thus enhanced operational performance.
Key Factors for a Continuous Improvement Process
Independent Journal of Management & Production, 2013
The goal of this work was to examine the content of continuous improvement processes, taking into account its inclusion in modern organizations´ strategies. Continuous improvement plays an important role in ISO 9000 norms and excellence models. This paper argues that several specific issues must be taken into account in order to reach successful outcomes. This work starts with a literature review on the matter. On this basis we designed a survey of a group of 30 large companies, selected according to their billing, its market share, its membership to quality institutions and the existence of a certified management system. Finally, we compared the development of continuous improvement process in companies with very effective results and with scarce results. Differences that emerged from this comparison enabled us to identify critical factors for achieving a successful improvement process.
Technological Initiatives on Operational Performance of Public Universities in Kenya
The International Journal of Humanities & Social Studies, 2020
Technological Initiatives on Operational Performance of Public Universities in Kenya 1. Introduction In the contemporary business environment, organizations are striving to enhance operational efficiency and effectiveness by embracing different strategies (Efendioglu & Karabulut, 2010). Technological initiatives adopted by organizations are not only intended to achieve its short-term and long-term objectives but also to enable the organization navigate in the unpredictable business environment (Agboola, 2011).Operational performance is described as the extent to which an organization can eliminate wastage, reduce cycle time, enhance service efficiency and effectiveness, conform to regulations and manage its resources such as people, information, technology and raw materials in a leaner practice (Nicolaou & Bhattacharya, 2014; Nicol, 2013). Technological initiatives are viewed to be a function of operational performance (Nakhumwa 2013). Managers in organizations can promote the technological culture among workers by encouraging workers to make independent decisions, allocating workers more challenging tasks and encouraging employees to consult or work as a team to achieve organizational goals (Abu & Tareq, 2016). Subsequently, Arif (2018) and (Karuhanga, 2015) attested that technology in any systems can be promoted by equipping employees with new skills and knowledge in order to perform their duties in a more efficient and effective manner. For any organization to be globally competitive, prior investment in infrastructure and human capital are inevitable. Diversification, identification of new market opportunities and adoption of new techniques and processes in production are technological practices that enhance operational performance of organization(Karuhanga, 2015).For any company to attain its global ambitions technology is inevitable (Okotoh, 2015). Individual and systemic challenges experienced when introducing new technologies in any system can be managed by effectively equipping employees with ICT skills and at the same time educating workers the value of technology in the system (Kabagambe, Ogutu & Munyoki, 2012). Inability of organizations to implement new policies, expand market share and maximize profits is attributed with challenges of technology from one organization to another (Aduda & Kingoo, 2012). Further, Nakhumwa (2013) acknowledged that, poor service delivery, decreased market share and failure of the organization to change operational models are all aspects that reflect the inability of managers to articulate benefits associated with technology.Embracing appropriate technology in any systems not only enhances procurement, financial, logistics and marketing functions but also overall customer experience (Raineri, 2011. Ability of organizations to maximize profits, increase volume of sales,
Effect of Organisational Change on Performance in Kenyan Chartered Universities: A Sector Comparison
European Journal of Business and Management, 2019
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.
Adoption of Operational Improvement Initiatives : Survey Results
2016
This paper presents results from a survey on awareness, implementation, perceived effectiveness, and potential future adoption of seven operational improvement initiatives based on Malaysia context. Seven improvement initiatives being studied include: Lean, Organizational Assessment based on Business Excellence Model, Quality Management System, Improvement Team, Outsourcing, Business Continuity Management and Six Sigma. This study was conducted due to lack of existing studies on current status of awareness, implementation, effectiveness, and future adoption of improvement initiatives in Malaysia. Questionnaires were distributed to 107 practitioners, managers, executives, consultants and/or academicians who have been involved in the selection and/or implementation of improvement initiatives, which resulted in a response rate of 37.4%. Subsequently, the data were analyzed using the IBM SPSS software package. The findings of study indicated that Quality Management System has been the m...
Journal of the New Economy, 2021
The purpose of the present study is to identify the impact of the continuous improvement application in achieving organizational excellence in Algerian enterprises and companies by studying the case of Elsewedy Cables, to achieve the objectives of the study, a questionnaire was designed and distributed through a sample of 78 executives from the Elsewedy Cables Company; then we used statistical software specific to the social sciences (SPSS) to analyze the questionnaire data The study made it clear that the respondents showed a high level of awareness in terms of continuous improvement and organizational excellence concepts, the study also concluded that there is a statistically significant impact of applying continuous improvement on achieving the organizational excellence and its different dimensions.
Influence of Management Support on Sustainable Performance of Kenyan Public Universities
The International Journal of Business & Management, 2020
Influence of Management Support on Sustainable Performance of Kenyan Public Universities 1. Introduction Sustainable output is one of the terms with a very broad meaning, because everyone has the right interpretation and lets the context look after the term. Over a certain period of time, sustainable output may usually be considered by activities (Illmer, 2011). In the field of transparency and strategic planning, reliable performance metrics are important. Quality assessment is the quantification and quality evaluation method as a tool used to assess efficiency and effectiveness of action (Wong, 2013). The concept of sustainable development is significant, but it poses some challenges. Between them, at the beginning of a business initiative like ISO 9001 certification, it is relatively easy to encourage and enjoy, but Curry and Kadasah (2) have observed that maintaining dedication and motivation is more than often a problem in terms of time. Bateman (2005) defined sustainability as not a binary term, but rather a number of states that has only two states, which are both sustainable and non-sustainable. Bateman and David's (2002) sustainability model represents the multiplicity of the countries that categorize sustainability. Despite high standards of sustainability in some industries, other businesses have difficulties with maintaining their long-term process improvement strategies, leading to lower standards of sustainability (Bateman, 2005). The discrepancies experienced by companies in supporting a common ISO 9001 system do not appear to be definitively solved. It remains largely unanswered in the words of Taylor and Wright (2003).' The calculation of ISO standard quality for public universities results cannot be separated from growth rates. The accredited organizations of ISO 9001 are growing faster and the organizational output is not accountable to production, according to Terlaak & Kings (2006). This study was conducted in private sector manufacturing facilities in North America and explored whether certification according to ISO 9001 standards could have a competitive advantage and effect on institutional development. Management engagement is very necessary if quality management strategies are successfully implemented in an organization. Pheny & Teo (2003) also observed that ISO 9001 must be communicated to the organization as a whole in
Critical success factors of continuous improvement in the public sector
The TQM Magazine, 2007
Purpose -To determine the critical success factors (CSFs) for continuous improvement projects in the public sector. Design/methodology/approach -Theoretical paper based on a literature review. Findings -It would appear that there are factors that are important in manufacturing organisations that do not figure in service/public sector organisations and vice versa. Research limitations/implications -As few papers were identified, further research must be carried out into the CSFs to see if the differences between manufacturing, service and public sector organisations are substantiated. Practical implications -This work identifies aspects that must be in place for the successful implementation of a continuous improvement project and should be used by those wishing to initiate a project within their organisation. Originality/value -This paper highlights the similarities and differences between manufacturing, service and public sector organisations.