Influence of Organizational Learning on Humanitarian Aid Response in Arid and Semi-Arid Areas in Kenya
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53819/81018102t5211Abstract
The study examined the influence of organizational learning on humanitarian aid response in arid and semi-arid areas in Kenya. The research question specifically focused on understanding the relationship between organizational learning and the effectiveness of humanitarian aid response in these regions. The study used a positivism approach and explanatory research design. The population was 5996 and a sample size of 375 was obtained using the Yamane formula. Structured questionnaires and interview guides were used to collect the data. The study used a stratified random technique to select the respondents. Qualitative data was analyzed using content analysis and presented in prose form. Moreover, SPSS Version 25 was used to organize the quantitative data. The quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and presented in tables and graphs. The results showed that organizational learning is positively and significantly related to humanitarian aid response in the Arid and Semi-Arid areas in Kenya (β=0.583, p=0.000) respectively. The null hypothesis was rejected. Therefore, organizational learning has a significant influence on humanitarian aid response in Arid and Semi-Arid areas in Kenya. The study concludes that organizational learning increases the skills of the employees and this improves the humanitarian aid response. Organizational learning entails the continuous combination, transfer and conversion of different kinds of knowledge in the workforce. Organizational learning stimulates the team members to be submissive to the organization's objectives to maintain the high performance of the projects. The study recommended that the management of the NGOs involved in the humanitarian aid response should focus more on organizational learning. Humanitarian organizations should consider organizational learning key in determining employees' satisfaction. By recognizing the importance of organizational learning in driving employee satisfaction, humanitarian organizations can create a supportive and empowering work environment that fosters continuous growth and development. Organizations should ensure that appropriate information governance, policy and guidelines are developed to provide a framework to bring together all of the requirements, standards and best practices that apply to the handling of organizational learning in the organizations.
Keywords: Organizational learning, humanitarian aid response, arid and semi-arid areas, Kenya
References
Abdilatif, M. H., Onono, J. O., & Mutua, F. K. (2018). Analysis of pastoralists’ perception on challenges and opportunities for sheep and goat production in Northern Kenya. Tropical animal health and production, 50(7), 1701-1710. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-018-1613-8
Ahmad, H., & Halim, H. (2017). Determining sample size for research activities. Selangor Business Review 5(2), 20-34.
Akbar, H., & Tzokas, N. (2013). Charting the organizational knowledge-creation process: an innovation-process perspective. Journal of Marketing Management, 29(13), 1592-1608. https://doi.org/10.1080/0267257X.2013.800895
Arel, B., Beaudoin, C. A., & Cianci, A. M. (2012). The impact of ethical leadership, the internal audit function, and moral intensity on a financial reporting decision. Journal of Business Ethics, 109(3), 351-366. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-1133-1
Bathelt, H., Malmberg, A., & Maskell, P. (2007). Clusters and knowledge: local buzz, global pipelines and the process of knowledge creation. Progress in human geography, 28(1), 31-56. https://doi.org/10.1191/0309132504ph469oa
Boies, K., Lvina, E., & Martens, M. L. (2011). Shared leadership and team performance in a business strategy simulation. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 5(3), 26-31
Carr, W. (2016). Philosophy, methodology and action research. Journal of philosophy of education, 40(4), 421-435. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9752.2006.00517.x
Carson, J. B., Tesluk, P. E., & Marrone, J. A. (2007). Shared leadership in teams: An investigation of antecedent conditions and performance. Academy of management Journal, 50(5), 1217-1234. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2007.20159921
Cawthorne, J. E. (2010). Leading from the middle of the organization: An examination of shared leadership in academic libraries. The journal of academic librarianship, 36(2), 151-157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2010.01.006
Cooper, D. R., & Schindler, P. S. (2014). Business Research Methods. Data Preparation and Description. McGraw-Hill Irwi. Boston
Cooper, G. (2019). The 2018 humanitarian scandals in Oxfam GB and Save the Children UK. In The routledge companion to media and scandal (pp. 342-353). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351173001-35
Cooper, N. M. (2017). Theory leadership from Africa: Examples of trait theory. In Global and culturally diverse leaders and leadership. Emerald Publishing Limited.
Creswell, J. W. (2014). A concise introduction to mixed methods research. SAGE publications.
Creswell, J. W., & Clark, V. L. P. (2017). Designing and conducting mixed methods research. Sage publications. California
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2017). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Sage publications
Drescher, M. A., Korsgaard, M. A., Welpe, I. M., Picot, A., & Wigand, R. T. (2014). The dynamics of shared leadership: Building trust and enhancing performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 99(5), 771. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036474
Flamholtz, E. G., & Randle, Y. (2014). Implications of organizational life cycles for corporate culture and climate. The Oxford handbook of organizational climate and culture, 235-256.
Freiman, J. A., Chalmers, T. C., Smith, H. A., & Kuebler, R. R. (2019). The importance of beta, the type II error, and sample size in the design and interpretation of the randomized controlled trial: survey of two sets of “negative” trials. In Medical uses of statistics (pp. 357-389). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9780429187445-19
Galli, B. J. (2019). A shared leadership approach to transformational leadership theory: Analysis of research methods and philosophies. In Scholarly Ethics and Publishing: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice (pp. 751-790). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-8057-7.ch038
Gittell, J. H., & Suchmann, A. L. (2013). An overview of relational coordination adapted from ‘New Directions for Relational Coordination Theory’. Oxford handbook of positive organizational scholarship.
Hendra, R., & Hill, A. (2019). Rethinking response rates: new evidence of little relationship between survey response rates and nonresponse bias. Evaluation review, 43(5), 307-330. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193841X18807719
Hite, J. M. (2005). Evolutionary processes and paths of relationally embedded network ties in emerging entrepreneurial firms. Entrepreneurship theory and practice, 29(1), 113-144. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2005.00072.x
Hoch, J. E., & Dulebohn, J. H. (2017). Team personality composition, emergent leadership and shared leadership in virtual teams: A theoretical framework. Human Resource Management Review, 27(4), 678-693. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2016.12.012
Holzer, A., Kocher, B., Bendahan, S., & Gillet, D. (2020). Gamifying knowledge sharing in humanitarian organisations: a design science Journey. European Journal of Information Systems, 29(2), 153-171. https://doi.org/10.1080/0960085X.2020.1718009
Islam, M. N., Furuoka, F., & Idris, A. (2020). The impact of trust in leadership on organizational transformation. Global Business and Organizational Excellence, 39(4), 25-34. https://doi.org/10.1002/joe.22001
Jhuthi, B. (2015). Determinants of implementation of non-governmental projects in Kenya: a case of World Vision Osiligi Ipa in Kajiado County (Doctoral dissertation, University of Nairobi).
Kazadi, K., Lievens, A., & Mahr, D. (2016). Stakeholder co-creation during the innovation process: Identifying capabilities for knowledge creation among multiple. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2015.05.009
Mathieu, J. E., Kukenberger, M. R., & Reilly, G. (2015). Modeling reciprocal team cohesion–performance relationships, as impacted by shared leadership and members’ competence. Journal of Applied Psychology, 100(3), 713. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038898
Mazuze, J., & Turner, G. (2020, October). Knowledge Transfer Framework for Managing Knowledge in Relief Organisations. In 17th International Conference on Intellectual Capital, Knowledge Management & Organisational Learning ICICKM 2020 (p. 291).
Mohamud, A. M. (2018). Management of Effects of Drought by Pastoralists of El-wak, Mandera County of Kenya (Doctoral dissertation, University of Nairobi).
Mohd, S., Fathi, M., & Harun, A. (2018). Humanitarian aid distribution framework for natural disaster management. Int Arch Photogrammetry Remote Sensing Spatial Inform Sci, 42(3), W4. https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-3-W4-343-2018
Mwangi, P. M., & Anaya, S. (2020). Logistical Factors Influencing Disaster Responsiveness Of Humanitarian Organizations In Kenya (Case Of Kenya Red Cross Society). International Journal of Supply Chain Management, 5(1), 1-20.
Namagembe, S. (2020). Enhancing service delivery in humanitarian relief chains: the role of relational capital. Journal of Humanitarian Logistics and Supply Chain Management, 4(3), 37-45. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHLSCM-06-2019-0038
Nienke Beintema & Gert-Jan Stads (2020). Investing in Sub-Saharan African Agricultural Research: Recent Trends, International Food Policy Research Institute, 2020 Africa Conference Brief 8, 2004, http://www.asti.cgiar.org/pdf/ib24.pdf.
Nonaka, I., & Toyama, R. (2015). The knowledge-creating theory revisited: knowledge creation as a synthesizing process. In The essentials of knowledge management (pp. 95-110). Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137552105_4
Nyambura, C. W., Rambo, C. M., & Nyonje, R. O. (2019). Influence Of Humanitarian Logistics And Implementation Of Humanitarian Aid Projects In Ngos Based In Nairobi, Kenya. European Journal of Research and Reflection in Management Sciences 7(3), 23-29
Omolo, N. A. & Mose, T. (2019). Determinants of employee performance in humanitarian international NGOs based in Kenya. International Academic Journal of Human Resource and Business Administration, 3(7), 57-82
Ongonge, J. (2017). Relationship between strategic planning and organization’s performance in Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs): a case of ActionAid, Kenya (Doctoral dissertation, University of Nairobi).
Rush, M. C., Thomas, J. C., & Lord, R. G. (1977). Implicit leadership theory: A potential threat to the internal validity of leader behavior questionnaires. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 20(1), 93-110. https://doi.org/10.1016/0030-5073(77)90046-0
Safarpour, H., Fooladlou, S., Safi-Keykaleh, M., Mousavipour, S., Pirani, D., Sahebi, A., ... & Dehghani, A. (2020). Challenges and barriers of humanitarian aid response in 2017 Kermanshah earthquake: a qualitative study. BMC public health, 20(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-08722-5
Sala, S. M., Otieno, D. J., Nzuma, J., & Mureithi, S. M. (2020). Determinants of pastoralists’ participation in commercial fodder markets for livelihood resilience in drylands of northern Kenya: Case of Isiolo. Pastoralism, 10(1), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13570-020-00166-1
Sant, E. (2019). Democratic education: A theoretical review (2006–2017). Review of Educational Research, 89(5), 655-696. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654319862493
Seno, S. D. (2017). Relating Empathy with Disaster Risk in Donor-Provided Post-Typhoon Durian Mass Housing Programs. Dimensi. Journal of Architecture and Built Environment), 44(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.9744/dimensi.44.1.1-14
Stephenson, M. O. (2017). The theory and practice of international humanitarian relief coordination. In Palgrave Handbook of Inter-organizational Relations in World Politics (pp. 485-502). Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-36039-7_23
Sullivan, P. S. (2017). The Relationship of self-awareness to leadership effectiveness for experienced leaders.
Volmink, J., & van der Elst, L. (2017). The evolving role of 21st century education NGOs in South Africa: Challenges and opportunities. South Africa: National Education Collaboration Trust, 1-8.
Wang, D., Waldman, D. A., & Zhang, Z. (2014). A meta-analysis of shared leadership and team effectiveness. Journal of applied psychology, 99(2), 181. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0034531
Wanja, P. (2017). Factors Influencing the Performance of Projects in Ngos Funded by Wfp in Kenya: a Case of Action Against Hunger (Doctoral dissertation, University of Nairobi).
Yahaya, B. I., & Yakubu, B. I. (2019). Measuring Aid Effectiveness: An Analysis of Beneficiary Perspectives. UDS International Journal of Development, 2(2), 96-113.
Yousif, N. B. A., Grondys, K., Gad, S., Elsayed, W. (2020). Knowledge management in NGOs (NGOs). Journal of Management Public, 3(5), 90-108. https://doi.org/10.24818/amp/2020.35-06
Zhu, J., Liao, Z., Yam, K. C., & Johnson, R. E. (2018). Shared leadership: A state‐of‐the‐art review and future research agenda. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 39(7), 834-852. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2296