Determination of strategic positioning of newly chartered public Universities in Kenya:the case of Laikipia University

Abstract

A major pre - occupation of universities in Kenya today is how to achieve sustainable competitive advantage in a comp lex and challenging context of the higher education sector. Universities need to strategically re - position themselves to attract and retain students, win research grants and make optimal use of their resources by striving to be efficient and effective, and engaging in continuous improvement to ensure their survival and sustainability. The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that influence d strategic positioning of the newly chartered public universities in Kenya, with specific reference to La ikipia University in Laikipia County, to survive the current competitive and operational issues t hey face, and become profitable and viable institutions in the university training services value chain in the long - term. A descriptive survey design entailing stratified random sampling was used, with the sampling frame comprising the University‟s employees whose opinions w ere sought. T he formula of Israel (1992) was adopted to determine the sample size of the survey respondents. The employees were categorised into three strata of senior management, teaching and non - teaching staff , and support staff. Q uantitative and qualitative data was collected by use of both structured and unstructured sets of pretested questionnaires, and analyzed with the aid of the SPSS ( Version 17.0) computer software. Firstly, descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, means , modes, medians and standard deviations) was used to analyze quantitative data. Secondly, Pearson correlation analyses were computed to determine the signific ance of the findings and the strengths of relationships between variables. The results are presented in the form of tabular summaries and discussed. Further, content analysis of written materials drawn from personal expressions by the survey respondents wa s used to analyze qualitative data. The results showed that senior management support was crucial for execution of strategic objectives of the University, especially in response to environmental factors like competition from other universities. Further, em ployee capacity was necessary in strategic positioning of the University, and needs to be enhanced through acquisition of requisite knoweldge and skills by employees , for instance, through on - job training and external capacity building programs. The Univer sity‟s capacity for development was deemed to be unlimited in the dimensions of policy, infrastructure, student numbers, more campuses and income generating units, but this requires to be realized. Additionally, government support was found to be insuffici ent in the University and its role in enhancing strategic positioning of the University was seen to be auxillary and un sustainable. Consequently, the University should design strategies for resource mobilization to complement capitation from the government . In conclusion, t his study provide s information on positioning strategies Laikipia University w ould need to employ to achieve sustainable competitive advantage among universities in Kenya. This would assist current and future scholars in the field of stra tegic management, university managers and policy makers to understand the positioning strategies that add value to the strategic intent of academic institutions in the face of intense competition. The findings on Laikipia University can be generalized acro ss the whole sector in the country.