STRATEGIC PLANNING TECHNIQUES AND FIRM PERFORMANCE IN EXPORT PROCESSING ZONES IN KENYA

Abstract

The maturity of any field is depended on the benefits reaped from the application of the
techniques applied in that field. Organizations face many challenges in the competitive
world because of internal and external factors together with changing customer
preferences. Use of multiple planning techniques offer insights into the challenges and
present opportunities for survival. While many studies have focused on the variety of
techniques used in strategic management, the link between the techniques and
performance has not been exhaustively discussed. Therefore, this study sought to fill
this knowledge gap by establishing the relationship between strategic planning
techniques and firm performance. A descriptive research design was used for the study
and data was collected from firms operating in Export Processing Zones (EPZs) in
Kenya. Significant and positive relationship was established between strategic planning
techniques with both market performance and internal business process performance.
The study concluded that planning techniques are a key components of strategic
planning process. The study recommended that the policy makers in Export Processing
Zones Authority (EPZA) need to align polices to planning techniques to enhance
sustainability of EPZ firms if they are to succeed in the country’s export strategy. The
management practitioners need to direct effort towards planning techniques to reap
maximum performance benefits. Since this study is limited to operational firms and
used only two planning techniques, the results need to be applied with reservation.
Future research needs to focus on variety of planning techniques for the results to be
generalizable.
Key Words: Export Processing Zones, Porter’s five forces, Planning techniques,
Performance, SWOT.