NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 13 – Kenyan businesses operating with a business strategy are making over Sh100 million yearly turnover.
This is according to the 2021 Strategy Pulse report by WYLDE International which indicates that businesses with higher annual revenues had a business strategy plan, with 67 percent of high revenue businesses relying a great deal on their strategic plans for the daily decision making.
The survey was carried out on 126 SMEs across 15 sectors whose business life cycles ranged from below a year to over 10 years. A combined 34 percent of SMEs surveyed were below two years while 13 percent were more than 10 years. The majority of the businesses, i.e. 65 percent were in the bracket of below Sh2 million revenue.
The survey findings showed that organizations with a turnover of 100 million and above carry out regular Strategy reviews. Due to the changing dynamics in the market, SMEs are being encouraged to review their strategies much more frequently and to use strategy to affect their day-to-day decision-making.
Based on the results of the survey, the Director of Strategy at WYLDE International Kiriinya Kithinji gave recommendations to the SME sector stating that “The lack of strategy is itself a strategy. Is your strategy working for you?” asks Kithinji. “Lack of clarity will cost you and drag you down.” Take advantage of external strategy experts who have experience and objectivity to help you develop and effectively execute your strategy,” says Kithinji.
On his part, Country Manager at Business Partners International, Mike Muthengi says running a business without strategy is like driving a car without a dashboard.
“You have no signals; it can go off any moment and you won’t know what is wrong. Therefore, write down a one-page strategy that you can refer to often, not just when your business gets into trouble. Having a good business strategy is not a threat to your finances but a growth plan that is a must-have when seeking funding,” Muthengi added.
Sharon Mbugua, Founding Director at Amethyst Consulting who conducted the survey explained, “The report results revealed that over 30 percent of businesses do not have a strategic plan, and for those that do, over 70 percent involve team members in their strategic planning process.”
Achieving business and sales growth remained a key area of focus during and before the Covid-19 pandemic at a prevalence of 11 percent of all respondents surveyed. “The biggest takeout from the study, however, was that most businesses that had an existing strategic plan reported that their plans were very useful in helping them to remain resilient in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
This confirms the fact that having a properly crafted strategic plan not only provides clear roadmaps for SMEs to achieve business growth but also helps SMEs that apply their strategic plans to guide their day-to-day decisions to remain resilient during times of crisis.
WYLDE International is an innovative management consulting firm specializing in strategy development for SMEs.
