Innovative Management Practices on the Growth of Building Construction Firms in Machakos County, Kenya

Abstract

Building construction firms in Kenya contribute immensely to the country’s economic growth. Despite their importance to the economy, the firms have been facing a myriad of challenges, including inadequate adoption of innovation management practices, resulting in a decline in firm growth. This study sought to interrogate the role of Innovation practices that influence the growth of building construction firms in Machakos County, Kenya.  The Focus of the study was to examine how technological, product, and process innovation management practices influence the growth of building construction firms in Machakos County. The importance of this study is that the findings will assist building construction firms in Machakos County and Kenya in general in identifying, acknowledging, and implementing appropriate innovation management practices to spur firm growth. Findings from the study will also enrich the body of knowledge in strategic management for use by other scholars in reviewing similar research in Kenya and elsewhere. The study was premised on Schumpeter's theory of Innovation and the resource-based view Theory. A descriptive study design was employed, and a cluster sampling method was used to achieve a sample size of 237 firms. From each cluster, a sample size to represent all the members in the specific clusters was selected using the formula n = N / 1 + N (α) ². A closed-ended structured questionnaire was used. The questionnaire response rate was 81% which was an acceptable threshold. Findings showed that innovative management practices have a significant positive correlation with the firm growth of building construction firms in Machakos County. In conclusion, the study affirmed that innovative management practices had a strong and significant role in the Firm Growth of building construction firms in Machakos County.