INNOVATIVE PRACTICES AND PERFORMANCE OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS IN KIBRA, KENYA
Abstract
This study aimed to examine the influence of innovative practices employed by women entrepreneurs and how these impact on the performance of their businesses in Kibra, Kenya. Specifically, the study sought to determine the influence of product, technological, market innovations and process innovations on the performance of women enterprises. The study was informed by four key theories which were diffusion of innovation theory, competency-based theory, and resource-based theory and the technology acceptance theory. The study will adopt a descriptive research design to collect and analyze the research data. The target population was the 116 registered women businesses in Kibra where the women managers or owners in these firms were the units of observation. A census was adopted where all the registered businesses were surveyed. A structured questionnaire was used and was administered through drop and pick method. The collected data was analyzed through quantitative approach (descriptive and inferential statics) and qualitative approach (content analysis). For the quantitative approach, the quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS software. The descriptive statics that were captured included the percentages; frequencies, means, standard deviations and Z-scores. Inferential statistics on the other hand were used to explain the statistical relationship between variables. The main inferential statistics used included ANOVA, R-Square (R2), regression coefficients and P-values. Content analysis will be used for qualitative data collected through open-ended questions. The regression results showed that independent variables had significant value less than 0.05 implying that they are all significant. From the results, it showed that holding all factors constant at zero, the change in performance of women enterprises would be 1.858. Further, the regression results showed that a unit change in technological innovation, on average, would lead to 0.304-unit change in performance. Further, regression results showed that a unit change in process innovation, on average, would lead to 0.131-unit change in performance. A unit change in product innovation, on average, would lead to 0.121-unit change in organizational performance and a unit change in market innovation, on average, would lead to 0.104-unit change in performance. The study recommends that product innovation should be encouraged as it can lead to enhanced quality control measures, reduced errors, and improved consistency in output. It also recommends that women businesses should harness knowledge, expertise, and resources to develop innovative solutions that solve problems, improve efficiency, drive progress, and deliver value.
Keywords: Market Innovation, Process Innovation, Product Innovation, Technological Innovation, Revenue enhancement.
CITATION: Wagura, F. M., Juma, D. (2025). Innovative practices and performance of women entrepreneurs in Kibra, Kenya. The Strategic Journal of Business & Change Management, 12 (2), 1143 – 1165. http://dx.doi.org/10.61426/sjbcm.v12i2.3256
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.61426/sjbcm.v12i2.3256
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