The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of ambiguity on success of public infrastructural megaprojects in Kenya. The need for this study arose from the thesis that ambiguity is a key cause of complexity that results in infrastructural megaprojects being delivered over budget, behind schedule, with benefit shortfalls, over and over again. The study was designed as multiple-method research based on virtual constructionist ontology recognizing that complexity is the mid-point between order and disorder. A cross-sectional census survey of completed public infrastructural megaprojects was conducted using two interlinked questionnaires. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics while qualitative data was analyzed using expert judgment, scenario mapping and retrospective sense-making. The projects surveyed majorly utilized fixed price contracts with the outcome of increased delivery within budget than within schedule. The results showed that ambiguity had significant negative influence on process and overall success of public infrastructural megaprojects but had no significant relationship with product and organizational success. Projects in which the client assumed responsibility for cost and schedule risk had higher chances of meeting both cost and schedule objectives. In order to manage the negative effects of ambiguity, we recommend a new perspective to contract design of public infrastructural megaprojects based on complexity science, blending both outcome and behavior-based contracts. Such contracts should ensure that, in the face of ambiguity, the contractors are able to act in the best interest of their clients and that the clients have access to quality Project Management Information Systems.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to establish how operational risk management strategies lead to growth of MFI sector in Kenya.Methodology: The study adopted a correlation survey research design. The population of this study was fifty seven (57) MFIs. The sampling frame was the list of MFIs provided in the AMFI website www.amfikenya.com. A sample of thirteen (17) MFIs was selected using the random sampling approach. A questionnaire and an interview schedule were the main data collection tools. Qualitative data was analyzed using content analysis whereas the quantitative data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) where descriptive and regression analysis were conducted to determine the relationship between enterprise risk management strategies and growth of MFIs.Findings: Findings revealed that the MFI had adequate policies and procedures to manage its operational risks and the MFI had an operations manual. The findings also indicated that the MFIs have adhered to written policies and procedures to manage operational risks in the financial operations area, procurement area, treasury area, and financial management area. Results further indicated that the MFI had effective internal control systems for detecting fraud or other significant operational risks. Finally the study findings indicated that MFI’s internal audit functions ensured effective use of resources, accurate financial reporting, and ample random spot checks of MFI branches, clients, and staff. The regression results indicated that there was a positive relationship between operational risk management strategies and MFI growth.Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommends that the MFIs to continue practicing effective operational risk management practices such as internal control framework comprising of policies and procedures. MFIs need to uphold the existence and accessibility of operational manuals. It is suggested that adherence to written policies and procedures is positive strategy and it should be emphasized.  The internal audit functions for effective use of resources and accurate financial reporting needs to be emphasized as it had a positive effect on growth. The MFIs should also benchmark their technology with that of banks to reduce human error, to produce timely and relevant data. It is recommended that implementation of know your client (KYC) requirements should be enhanced as it has an effect on growth.

This study set out to investigate the influence of intensity of participation in subcontract offering on the performance of manufacturing micro and small enterprises (MSEs) in Kenya. The study used an exploratory research design targeting a population of 2450 MSEs from Kamukunji 'JuaKali' Association, Nairobi Kenya. A random sample of 180 firms returned 175 (97.2%) valid responses. Survey data was collected with a semistructured questionnaire through face-to-face interviews. A pilot test on 20 firms helped to improve the instrument while the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) method extracted the factors with reliability cut-off value of 0.70. Factors loadings that were less than 0.40 were discarded. Descriptive statistics presented the responses in means and standard deviations. To sharpen inferences, ordinal regression analysis was performed using the Polytomous Universal Model (PLUM) of SPSS for Windows 19 location-scale model. Response frequencies of firm performance, ordered in 5-part Likert-type categories, were positively skewed, thus,the negative log-log link function was used. Model fitting information provided log likelihood ratio tests for the null hypothesis that the independent variable was statistically equal to zero. The study found that the intensity of participation in subcontract offering influences firm performance, positively and significantly.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate how financial risk management strategies lead to growth of MFI sector in Kenya.Methodology: The study adopted a correlation survey research design. The population of this study was fifty seven (57) MFIs. The sampling frame was the list of MFIs provided in the AMFI website www.amfikenya.com. A sample of thirteen (17) MFIs was selected using the random sampling approach. A questionnaire and an interview schedule were the main data collection tools. Qualitative data was analyzed using content analysis whereas the quantitative data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) where descriptive and regression analysis were conducted to determine the relationship between enterprise risk management strategies and growth of MFIs.Findings: The findings indicated that MFIs had effective financial risk management strategies such as effective credit risk management practices, liquidity risk management practices, interest risk management practices and price risk management practices. In particular, MFIs took into consideration the conditions, characters, capacity, collateral and capital of borrowers. Strict debt collection practices were widely adopted by MFIs. In addition, the concept of Know Your Customer (KYC) policy, seem to have been adopted by MFIs. The relationship between financial risk management strategies and growth was positive and significant. It also shown that sources of funds for MFIs include external sources and internal sources and the most frequently used source of funds are bank loans. The use of banks loans may present various risk exposures to MFIs, the most significant being interest rate risk. However, the ability of MFIs to source funds from various sources indicates that MFIs can apply the pecking order by first exploiting internal sources of funds since they present a lower financial risks and then move on to external sources. However, despite the financial risk exposure accompanied by leverage from external sources, MFIs may also benefit as they may experience higher growth driven by the leverage. It was also found that MFIs had put in place a number of good practices that had emerged to promote responsible and inclusive lending. These include loan size limits, standardized (simple) loan terms, zero tolerance on delinquency, group-based lending. This finding implies that MFIs have put in place effective credit risk management policies which are part of an overall financial risk management strategy. The existence of effective financial risk management practices may have influenced the growth of MFIsUnique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommends that the MFIs to continue practicing effective financial management practices as this would improve the growth of MFIs.

The aim of this study was to determine whether reward systems influence talent management in public universities in Kenya. Literature has revealed that on one hand talent management has taken a slow pace or has lacked in institutions of higher education compared to the private sector on the other hand studies have established that reward systems in public institutions do not match the private sector. The sample was n=249 from public universities in Kenya. Factor analysis revealed a determinant of 0.144; Bartlett's test was significant p<0.05 with KMO value of 0.759. Factor analysis revealed one item with a loading value below 0.4 as recommended by Pallant, ( 2005); hence this item was eliminated in the analysis; all other remaining components were retained for analysis. The data had a Cronbach's alpha of 0.764; hence the 8 items extracted were determined to be reliable. Data analysis revealed a strong positive relationship (r (249) = 0.529, p-value < 0.05) indicating a significant linear relationship between reward systems and talent management.