Effect of strategic agility enablers on corporate performance of unclaimed financial assets authority in Nairobi City County, Kenya

Abstract

Corporate performance measures and evaluates how an entity achieves its objectives, delivers value to its stakeholders, and ultimately succeeds in its mission. Research shows that despite the intentions of establishing state corporations in Kenya, their performance has been unsatisfactory. This project aimed to investigate the effect of strategic agility enablers on the corporate performance of the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority (UFAA) in Nairobi City County, Kenya. The research addresses a significant gap in understanding how strategic agility can enhance organizational performance, especially within the public sector. The primary objective of the study was to examine how strategic agility enablers affect the corporate performance of UFAA. The specific objectives were to assess the impact of organizational culture, adaptive leadership capacity, technological innovations, and strategic partnerships on UFAA's performance. The study was grounded in organizational dynamic capability, organizational agility and innovation diffusion theories. The study utilised an explanatory research method. The target population was 200 participants, with a sample of 60 selected from various management levels through stratified random sampling. Data collection was conducted using structured questionnaires, and data analysis was done quantitatively using descriptive statistics and linear regression analysis. The study found that organizational culture (β=0.205, p<0.002), adaptive leadership (β=0.169, p<0.000), technological innovation (β=0.156, p<0.009), and strategic partnerships (β=0.128, p<0.005) all had positive and significant effects on firm performance. The study concluded that fostering a progressive organizational culture, adaptive leadership, technological innovations, and strategic partnerships positively influences firm performance. Strategic agility enables quick adaptation to environmental changes, fosters organizational learning, and boosts staff commitment. The study showed that 46.3% of UFAA’s performance could be attributed to the combination of the four independent factors investigated, while 53.7% was attributed to other factors not covered in the survey. Organizational culture had the most significant impact on performance, followed by adaptive leadership, strategic partnerships, and technological innovations. Specifically, strategic partnership influenced corporate performance by 22.6%, adaptive leadership by 18.5%, organizational culture by 18.3%, and technological innovations by 10.6%. The study highlighted those collaborative styles and teamwork within the organizational culture significantly influenced performance. Adaptive leadership, including trust-building, inspiring others, strategic thinking, and long-term planning, was crucial in moderating performance. UFAA utilized internet banking, digitalized processes, business intelligence technology, and flexible databases to a moderate extent regarding technological innovations. Various forms of strategic partnerships; outreach, brand, product, financial, and technology were adopted to different extents, influencing performance accordingly. The study recommended that UFAA enhance collections from holding institutions and increase public awareness to boost the reunification rate of unclaimed financial assets. Emphasizing organizational culture and investing in ongoing technological innovations were advised to streamline processes, improve service delivery, ensure regulatory compliance, and enhance financial performance. This strategic approach, focusing on agility enablers, was suggested to be crucial for UFAA's sustained success in the management of unclaimed financial assets.