Effect of supply chain management practices on procurement function performance of county public secondary schools in tharaka nithi county, kenya.

Abstract

Supply chain management practices can boost an organization's overall competitive edge by facilitating timely delivery of high-quality products and services at a competitive cost. Public secondary schools and other organizations have been the target of several efforts to improve supply chain management, yet reports of wasted public cash and substandard products and services persist. Therefore, the researcher sought to establish the effect of supply chain management practices on performance of procurement function in county public secondary schools in Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya. Specifically, the study sought to examine the effect of information sharing, inventory management, tendering process and supply chain personnel competency on procurement function performance in county public secondary schools in Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya. The study also sought to determine the moderating effect of ICT integration on the relationship between supply chain management practices and procurement function performance of county public secondary schools in Tharaka Nithi County. Institutional theory, commitment-trust theory, knowledge-based theory, and transactions-cost economics theory anchored this research. This research used a descriptive cross sectional survey design. The target population was fifty two county public secondary schools in Tharaka Nithi County. The study was a census of all the fifty two county public secondary schools with the target respondents being, 2 procurement committee members and 1 user representative. Making a total of three respondents in each secondary school. Therefore there was a total of 156 target respondents. A questionnaire was used to gather data. The instrument was piloted in five county public secondary schools in Embu County, selected at random in order to assess the questionnaire's validity and reliability. The study obtained a reliability coefficient of above 0.70 for all variables. Tables and graphs showcased the results of the data analysis, which included descriptive and inferential statistics. To determine the importance of each objective at the 5% confidence level, descriptive and inferential statistics were used. The regression results revealed there is a strong relationship between sharing of information and the performance of procurement (regression coefficient was 0.697, P value was 0.000<0.05). The relationship between inventory management and procurement performance is clearly statistically significant (regression coefficient was 0.412, P value was 0.001<0.05). The relationship between supply chain personnel competency and procurement performance is clearly statistically significant (regression coefficient was 0.822, P value was 0.000<0.05). The relationship between tendering procedure and procurement performance was statistically significant (regression coefficient was 0.240, P value of 0.000<0.05). Furthermore, the relationship between procurement function performance and the independent variables (information sharing, inventory management, tendering procedure, and supply chain personnel competency) was moderated by integration to a statistically significant degree. This study will contribute to the understanding of the factors that impact procurement function performance in county secondary schools supply chain management practices, guide regulators in their efforts to improve these practices and inform policymakers about how to improve these strategies.