Determinants of Change Management on Performance of the Hospitality Industry in Kenya: A Case Study of Hotels in Laikipia County, Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to establish the determinants of change management on performance of the hospitality industry in Kenya. The study was guided by the following specific research questions; how does organizational culture affect performance of organizations in the hospitality industry? how does organizational policy affect performance of organizations in the hospitality industry? and how does management support affect performance of organizations in the hospitality industry? This study adopted a descriptive research design. The population for this study comprised of 210 senior management employees from the 22 (four- and five-star) hotels. Stratified random sampling technique was utilized to select respondents. Yamane (1967) formula was used to determine the sample size for the study which was 138 respondents. The primary data was collected using structured questionnaires which were piloted using 10 respondents. Collected data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Measures of central tendencies including percentages, means, and standard deviation were used during analysis. Inferential analysis was also used in the study. Correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship between the various causative factors of performance of hotels. Linear regressions analysis including model summary, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and regression coefficients were used to observe how each of the independent variables (organizational culture, organizational policy and management support) affect performance of organizations in the hospitality industry. Final analysed data was presented using figures and tables. The study showed that organizational norms at the hotels make it easier to manage employees within their teams, and so there existed a strong positive and statistically significant relationship between organizational culture and performance (r (103) = 0.787, p0.05). Regression analysis showed that there was a significant linear association between organizational culture and performance and that organizational culture variable accounted for approximately 62% of the variability in the performance. (F (1,103) = 164.742, p.05). The intercept between organizational culture and performance improves by = 0.657, p0.01, according to the findings. This suggests that if the hotel industry's organizational culture improves by just one unit, performance will improve by 65.7 percent. The study revealed that hotels in Laikipia County recognized the need of building an organizational policy framework for their success, and that organizational policy was related to performance (r (103) = 0.867, p0.05). There was a strong linear association variation between organizational policy and performance (F (1,102) =304.826, p.05), and organizational policy accounted for 75.1% of the performance variance. The relationship between organizational policy and performance improves by = 0.641, p0.01, according to the findings. This suggests that if the hotel industry's organizational policy improves by a single unit, performance will improve by 64.1 percent. The study found that a manager's direct involvement in the affairs of hotels was crucial to the industry's performance, and that management support was also significant (r (103) = 0.802, p0.05). There was a strong linear connection variation between management support and performance (F (1,103) = 182.257, p.05), and management support accounted for 64.3% of the performance variance. The intercept between management support and performance improves by = 0. 0.727, p0.01, according to the findings. This suggests that if hotel management support increases by only one unit, performance will improve by 59.4 percent. The study concludes that most hotels in Laikipia County have a culture that is shaped by external forces and has a favorable impact on performance. The hotel sector has formal mechanisms in place that helps to reduce uncertainty and anxiety. Managers understand the hotel's organizational culture, so they know when and how to encourage staff by establishing an environment where people like and appreciate their work, according to the study. The study recommends that the hotel industry's executive and management in Laikipia County to ensure that good organizational culture is created and instilled in their personnel as guiding principles. Organizational policies should be institutionalized by management since they assist the hotel maintain a level of accountability to both internal and external stakeholders. The hotel business in Laikipia County should encourage the implementation of change management, according to the study, because it improves organizational performance. A similar study should be conducted for all employees to analyze the determinants of change management on performance across the spectrum of enterprises, according to the study.