robert

As it appeared in the Daily Nation on February 13th, 2018 How would you describe your organizational culture? I often pose this question to company executives and to entrepreneurs. Many are hard-pressed to describe their culture. Others describe it in an amorphous way. However, the few that have been intentional about their desired culture, describe it with ease, and live it daily. Smart company executives and entrepreneurs know that organizational culture is within their control. They also recognize that culture gives them the much-needed sustainable competitive advantage. With this knowledge, they do not leave culture to chance they build it and they sustain it! An organizational culture resides in the hearts and souls of its leadership and the staff. Culture is intangible but it is seen in the set of shared beliefs, in how the leadership behaves, in how work gets done, in how staff communicate with one another and with customers. Culture is lived in…

As it appeared in the Daily Nation on November 28th, 2017 A few years back, one of the media houses would broadcast price comparisons of a few basic commodities between the four large retail chains. The four large retailers then were Nakumatt, Uchumi, Tusky and Naivas. Ever since, the retail space in Kenya has undergone tremendously change. We have not only seen the decline of Nakumatt and Uchumi but we have seen a major expansion of other local retail chains such as Chandarana, Quickmart, Magunas among others. Small single store neighbourhood retailers have also sprouted within the residential areas. We have also witnessed the entry into the Kenyan market of two major global retail chains Carrefour and Game. Since the price comparisons by the media house ceased, the question is who among all these retailers has maintained the lowest price? Does any of the retailers have a low cost low prices strategy? Do the single store…

Businesses keep evolving. This is evident across all sectors and retailers have not been left behind. For example, retail stores as we know them today did not exist in the past and are unlikely to exist in the future. Globally, the retail sector continues to advance. It is a sector that is expected to have a bright future given its important role in the life of every human being. In Kenya, the retail sector has made major milestones. Unfortunately, the sector has also failed to live up to expectations. We have witnessed the leading retailers come down crumbling. Will there be a new dawn for the retail sector in Kenya? Here are key trends that are influencing the retail globally and which will play a key role in determining the future of retail in Kenya. Smaller Neighbourhood Stores When mega stores were introduced, they were a big hit. Customers could shop for everything needed under one…

As it appeared in the Daily Nation on September 12th, 2017 Customers’ expectations keep rising. Customers continue to be choosier, more demanding and less loyal. Organizations hoping to survive in the marketplace have no choice but to also raise their standards. Every year for the last two and a half decades, organizations from across the globe have come together in one accord to commemorate the customer service week. The week marked every first week of October falls on October 2nd to 6th this year. In the past, many organizations have used this week to create awareness internally about the need to focus more on customers. Others have held celebrations in honour of staff and customers. Once again, many organizations have put in place customer service week plans for this year. The vibrant Customer Experience Community in Kenya has been instrumental in raising customer experience standards. Their enthusiasm has been greatly felt during past customer service week…

As it appeared in the Daily Nation on September 5th, 2017 The last time I was on the Mai-Mahiu Maasai-Mara road, one of the main attractions was the plastic bags. It was heart-rending to witness such sights. The areas around the urban areas along the road were most affected. All over and especially in our urban centers, the plastic bags menace is a major threat to our environment. They have particularly been blamed for blocking drainages resulting to flooding. Since the plastic ban took effect a week ago, it has not been business as usual. Those most affected by the plastic ban are the manufacturers, the retailers and their customers. Over time, plastic bags have become the preferred form of packaging. We have overused them as packing material on anything and everything. Looking back less than two decades ago, we used to survive on paper packaging. We seem to have forgotten that experience. Without plastic bags,…

As it appeared in the Daily Nation on July 25th, 2017 Many of us might have a story to tell about a toxic workplace experience. It is easy for us to recognize a work environment where toxicity is customary. A toxic work environment is one characterized by infighting, blame games, witch-hunting, sabotage, drama, negativity, hostility, burnout, incompetent managers, micro-management, poor communication or no communication at all, lack of transparency and anything else toxic. It is quite unfortunate that there are a number of such workplaces all around us. Is yours a toxic work environment? Having worked in several organizations and interacted with hundreds, it has been evident that many of our organizations are struggling with toxicity yet they are doing nothing about it. Toxicity at the workplace is unhealthy and it is harmful. I believe that such an environment drains out energy from the best employees and dampens their spirit, it lowers overall productivity and it…

As it appeared in the Daily Nation on June 20th, 2017 I have met hundreds of Kenyans that have gone through business school both locally and abroad. Many at undergraduate level and others at masters’ levels. I have also been a student and a teacher in business schools. Studied in three and taught in one. The question that has been going through my mind lately is - Are business school steering customer focus? In addition, do our business school graduates recognize that customer focus is vital for business success? If they do, why do we still have many gaps in the overall customer experience in most businesses? I have sat through many job interviews as a panelist. I have interviewed students with varied education backgrounds. Some are graduates in engineering, others in education, economics, and arts and others are graduates in a variety of business studies. In most of these interviews, I am keen to find…