Effect of resource characteristics on sustainable competitiveness in the service sector: a comparative study of public and private universities in Kenya

Abstract

This study sought to assess effect of resource characteristics on sustainable competitiveness in the service industry in Kenya. Studies on university competition have been based on student enrollment; growing demand for accountability and borderless learning. This study focuses on resources characteristics as predictor of sustainable competitiveness. The study compared one private and one public university. The specific objectives of the study were to: compare the level of sustainable competitiveness in public and private universities; compare the resource characteristics in public and private universities in Kenya and to determine the effect of internal resource characteristics (Value, rarity, inimitability and non-substitutability) on sustainable competitiveness while controlling for the age of the university, location and cost of programs. The study was embedded on Resource Based View model (RBV) by Wernerfelt and the Balanced Scorecard theory of Kaplan and Norton. The study applied causal-comparative design. The respondents included staff of both universities in four schools: school of Arts and Social Sciences, School of Education, school of Business/ commerce and school of Law. From the public university the total staff population at the four schools was 250 while those in the private university were 170. Using krejcie and Morgan table, the sample respondents from the public university was 148 and those from the private university was 114 respondents. Independent sample t-test was used to test whether there was any significant difference in sustainable competitiveness and resource characteristics between private and public universities. Further the study used regression analysis to test the hypothesis that resource characteristics have no effect on sustainable competitiveness. The independent sample t-test found out that there was a significant difference in sustainable competitiveness between private and public universities. The public university was more superior in sustainable competitiveness as compared to the private university. All the resource characteristics also showed a significant statistical difference between public and private universities. Results indicated that the public university possed more superior resource characteristics as compared to the private university. The regression results indicated that three resource characteristics had statistical significant effect on sustainable competitiveness. Non-substitutability was found not to significantly predict sustainable competitiveness. The research findings are intended to help university management and CUE to ensure that universities poses resources that are valuable, rare, and inimitable as these are significant predictors of sustainable competitiveness.