CUSTOMER INTEGRATION AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE OF FOOD AND BEVERAGES MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN KENYA

Authors

  • Conrad Ochego Mogaka School of Business and Entrepreneurship, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenya
  • Dr. Sammy Odari School of Business and Entrepreneurship, Jomo Kenyatta University Agriculture and Technology
  • Dr.Wycliffe Arani Faculty of Business and Economics, Multimedia University of Kenya, Kenya.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47604/ijscm.1566

Keywords:

Customer Integration, Competitive Advantage, Early Customer Involvement, Customer Relationship Management, Integrated Problem Solving.

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of customer integration on the competitive advantage of food and beverages manufacturing firms in Kenya.

Methodology: A cross-sectional survey was used in this investigation. Managers from 270 food and beverage production companies in Kenya were targeted as part of the study. A sample size of 146 comprising of supply chain, procurement, operations and finance managers was obtained using two-stage sampling design. Cluster random sampling was utilized in the first stage to find 73 food and beverage production companies. In the second stage, convenience sampling was employed to choose two participants from among the 73 firms that had been chosen. Research questionnaires were used to collect primary data. The drop-and-pick approach, along with emailing the questionnaires, were used to obtain data. The quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed by utilizing descriptive statistics in SPSS version 28. Inferential analysis was carried out, with a focus on correlation as well as regression analysis, and also hypothesis testing. Tables were used to display the findings.

Results: Customer integration and competitive advantage of food and beverage manufacturing enterprises in Kenya had a positive significant association (R =.661, p =.000), according to the data. This meant that consumer integration boosted the competitiveness of Kenyan food and beverage manufacturers. Customer integration and competitive advantage of food and beverage manufacturing enterprises in Kenya were also shown to have a positive and statistically significant association (R =.661, R2 =.379), according to the study. As a result, customer integration accounted for 66.1 percent of the variation in food and beverage manufacturing enterprises' competitive advantage.

Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: While existing theory was validated, the study recommends that managers of food and beverages manufacturing firms should build procedures and policies that link to a superior understanding of the customer in order to meet their expectations. The study also recommends that the food and beverages industry regulators should devise policies that would allow food and beverage manufacturers to integrate with customers and thus help avoid losses that impact the efficiency of these businesses and eventually the economy as a whole. The study suggests that the government takes a more systematic approach to ensuring the growth and development of customer integration in Kenyan food and beverage manufacturing firms in order to maintain a competitive edge. Moreover, empirical research needs to be conducted to establish the effect of customer integration on the competitive advantage of other sub-sectors of manufacturing in the economy.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Al Shurideh, M., Alsharari, N. M., & Al Kurdi, B. (2019). Supply chain integration and customer relationship management in the airline logistics. Theoretical Economics Letters, 9(02), 392.

Ashenbaum, B., & Maltz, A. (2017). Purchasing-logistics integration and supplier performance: An information-processing view. The International Journal of Logistics Management. 28(2), 379-397.

Chen, M., Liu, H., Wei, S., & Gu, J. (2018). Top managers' managerial ties, supply chain integration, and firm performance in China: A social capital perspective. Industrial Marketing Management, 74, 205-214.

Cropanzano, R., Anthony, E. L., Daniels, S. R., & Hall, A. V. (2017). Social exchange theory: A critical review with theoretical remedies. Academy of Management Annals, 11(1), 479-516.

Da Mota Pedrosa, A. (2012). Customer integration during innovation development: An exploratory study in the logistics service industry. Creativity and Innovation Management, 21(3), 263-276.

Da Mota Pedrosa, A. (2012). Customer integration during innovation development: An exploratory study in the logistics service industry. Creativity and Innovation Management, 21(3), 263-276.

Danese, P., & Romano, P. (2011). Supply chain integration and efficiency performance: a study on the interactions between customer and supplier integration. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal. 16(4), 220-230.

Davis-Sramek, B., Hopkins, C. D., Richey, R. G., & Morgan, T. R. (2020). Leveraging supplier relationships for sustainable supply chain management: insights from social exchange theory. International Journal of Logistics Research and Applications, 1-18.

Dwyer, F. R., Schurr, P. H., & Oh, S. (1987). Developing buyer-seller relationships. Journal of marketing, 51(2), 11-27.

Elvers, D., & Song, C. H. (2016). Conceptualizing a framework for customer integration during new product development of chemical companies. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing. 31(4), 488-497.

Flynn, B. B., Huo, B., & Zhao, X. (2010). The impact of supply chain integration on performance: A contingency and configuration approach. Journal of operations management, 28(1), 58-71.

Guan, W., & Rehme, J. (2012). Vertical integration in supply chains: driving forces and consequences for a manufacturer's downstream integration. Supply chain management: An international Journal. 17(2), 187-201.

He, Y., Lai, K. K., Sun, H., & Chen, Y. (2014). The impact of supplier integration on customer integration and new product performance: the mediating role of manufacturing flexibility under trust theory. International Journal of Production Economics, 147, 260-270.

Huo, B. (2012). The impact of supply chain integration on company performance: an organizational capability perspective. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal. 17(6), 596-610.

Iriandini, A. P. (2015). Pengaruh customer relationship management (CRM) terhadap kepuasan pelanggan dan loyalitas pelanggan (Survey pada Pelanggan PT. Gemilang Libra Logistics, Kota Surabaya). Jurnal Administrasi Bisnis, 23(2)

Kothari, C. (2017). research methodology methods and techniques by CR Kothari. Published by New Age International (P) Ltd., Publishers, 91.

Lee, H. Y., Seo, Y. J., & Dinwoodie, J. (2016). Supply chain integration and logistics performance: the role of supply chain dynamism. The International Journal of Logistics Management. 27(3), 668-685.

Li, S., Ragu-Nathan, B., Ragu-Nathan, T. S., & Rao, S. S. (2006). The impact of supply chain management practices on competitive advantage and organizational performance. Omega, 34(2), 107-124.

Lii, P., & Kuo, F. I. (2016). Innovation-oriented supply chain integration for combined competitiveness and firm performance. International Journal of Production Economics, 174, 142-155.

Liu, C. L., & Lee, M. Y. (2018). Integration, supply chain resilience, and service performance in third-party logistics providers. The International Journal of Logistics Management. 29(1), 5-21.

Madhani, P. M. (2011). Marketing and supply chain management integration: strategic implications for enhancing customer value proposition. International Journal of Electronic Customer Relationship Management, 5(2), 153-170.

Mandal, S. (2016). Towards an integrated logistics capabilities model of supply chain flexibility: a social exchange perspective. Romanian Economic and Business Review, 11(3), 44.

Misund, B. (2016). Vertical integration and value-relevance: Empirical evidence from oil and gas producers. Cogent Economics & Finance, 4(1), 1264107.

Nammir, D. S. S., Marane, B. M., & Ali, A. M. (2012). Determine the role of customer engagement on relationship quality and relationship performance. European Journal of Business and Management, 4(11), 27-36.

Nassiuma, D. K. (2000). Survey sampling. Theory and methods, 10(1), 59-63.

Njagi, J. M., & Muli, S. M. (2020). Influence of Supply Chain Integration Practices on the Performance of Manufacturing Firms in Kenya a Case of Kenya Breweries Limited. International Journal of Business and Social Research, 10(1), 35-57.

Song, W., Ming, X., & Xu, Z. (2013). Risk evaluation of customer integration in new product development under uncertainty. Computers & Industrial Engineering, 65(3), 402-412.

St. John, J., Visinescu, L. L., Guynes, C. S., & Prybutok, V. R. (2016). Information and communication technology offshoring logistics success: A social exchange perspective. Information Systems Management, 33(3), 212-230.

Yu, W., Jacobs, M. A., Salisbury, W. D., & Enns, H. (2013). The effects of supply chain integration on customer satisfaction and financial performance: An organizational learning perspective. International Journal of Production Economics, 146(1), 346-358.

Zhao, L., Huo, B., Sun, L., & Zhao, X. (2013). The impact of supply chain risk on supply chain integration and company performance: a global investigation. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 18(2), 115-131.

Zogaj, S., & Bretschneider, U. (2012). Customer integration in new product development: a literature review concerning the appropriateness of different customer integration methods to attain customer knowledge. Available at SSRN 2485240.

Downloads

Published

2022-07-07

How to Cite

Mogaka, C. ., Odari, S. ., & Arani, W. (2022). CUSTOMER INTEGRATION AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE OF FOOD AND BEVERAGES MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN KENYA. International Journal of Supply Chain Management, 7(1), 45 – 55. https://doi.org/10.47604/ijscm.1566

Issue

Section

Articles