Browsing by Author "Murithi, William"

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    Beyond Survival: How Black and Asian-Led Social Enterprises are Responding and Adapting to the UK Cost-of-Living Crisis
    (Elsevier, 2024-09-27) Kah, Sally; Murithi, William; Ogunmokun, Olapeju Comfort; Osei-Nimo, Samuel; Munawar, Mawish
    This report provides comprehensive evidence of the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on businesses, individuals, and society, focusing on social enterprises led by Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) individuals in the United Kingdom. It focuses on the innovative strategies adopted for economic crisis whilst acknowledging the barriers facing BME social entrepreneurs, including increased business costs, difficulties with financial planning, and the potential threat of business death. We use a qualitative research design and interviews as the data collection medium to provide evidence of BME-led social enterprises’ response to the cost-of-living crisis and their adaptation strategies. Fourteen founders and directors were interviewed between March 2023 and January 2024. The social enterprises are predominantly micro and small operating in England, tackling various economic and social issues. The analysis of the interviews suggests five main categories of resilience strategies: strategic business planning, working from home, asset optimisation, fuel voucher schemes, and grant diversification. Our findings provide ten practical recommendations for social enterprise decision-makers, funding institutions, and government bodies, which are divided into two parts. Recommendations for social enterprise decision-makers are: 1) financial planning, 2) operational efficiency, 3) diversification of income streams, 4) flexible work arrangements and 5) community engagement. Recommendations for funding institutions and government bodies: 6) flexible funding models, 7) long-term support, 8) collaborative initiatives, 9) capacity-building programmes and 10) policy support and advocacy. Investing in flexible funding and sustainable collaboration between social enterprises and relevant stakeholders, such as social investors, can empower social enterprises to develop resources and capabilities fit for crisis response.
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    The business models of tech hubs in Africa: implications for viability and sustainability
    (Taylor & Francis, 2021-06-16) Kolade, Oluwaseun; Atiase, Victor; Murithi, William; Mwila, Natasha
    The paper draws from two case studies of tech hubs in Nigeria and Kenya to investigate the importance of business models to the hubs’ viability and sustainability as economic and social agents. Adopting the triple-layered business model of economic, social and environmental value creation, the study finds that the advanced, and growing, technological capabilities of the hubs are not matched with enough attention on innovative business models that can enable them to better capture value, expand the domestic markets, and compete at the international stage. We argue that a triple-layered orientation can be a win-win, integrated and mutually reinforcing model in which the hubs’ social and environmental impact can enable them to better capture economic value through the development and deployment of advanced technological capabilities and innovative business models
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    The Interaction Between Family Businesses and Institutional Environment in Africa: An Exploration of Contextual Issues
    (Palgrave Macmillan, 2021) Murithi, William; Woldesenbet, K.
    Family businesses in Africa play a vital role in creation of socio-economic wealth as they operate at the intersection of social orders such as the family, the market, community, the state and corporates as well as formal and informal institutions. Family businesses are required to manage the expectations of these social orders and institutions. Although some family business researchers’ attempts to use an institutional perspective to examine the effects of institutional environment on family businesses, less is known about how they influence changes in the institutional environments and the nature of the effects of such interactions, within developing economies such as in Africa. Additionally, institutional voids, have substantial impacts on the way in which family businesses behave and operate in Africa. This chapter addresses these important gaps by advancing theoretically-and contextually- driven propositions to guide future research on the links between family, family businesses, and the institutional environments in Africa.
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    A Practical Approach to Conducting Systematic Inquiry in Social Entrepreneurship Research
    (SAGE, 2023-03-21) Kah, Sally; Murithi, William
    Explanatory research design is used to examine how or why a phenomenon occurs. It is used to understand a given topic and predict future themes in a subject area. This design can be used for both primary and secondary research that adopt either quantitative or qualitative methodology. The characteristics of explanatory research design allows insights into the studied phenomenon. In this case study, we provide insight into four key areas: selection of research design, sources of data collection, data analysis and practicalities of conducting secondary research. In the first part, we explain why we adopted a systematic literature review of articles as the source of data. The research discussed in this case study is on social entrepreneurship from an understudied context. Then we discussed the criteria for selecting the articles, the databases searched and how we organised the data using a synthesis matrix. This was followed by how we analysed the articles, the forms of analysis undertaken, and how this addressed our research questions. Although the design was suitable for the research, working together as a team was a critical part of the research outcome. We provide our complementary skills and how we dealt with some challenges, such as the exit of a data analyst mid-research process. Finally, we propose using DADA steps-Define, Assess, Design, Analyse- to conduct secondary research. These steps apply to all forms of secondary research but are specific to our learning experiences from a systematic inquiry.
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    Tuskys Supermarket: The good, The Bad, The Ugly in the Kago Family Business
    (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2024-07-01) Murithi, William; Kah, Sally
    The case discusses the rise and fall of the Kago family as founders and owners of Tuskys (formerly known as Tusker Mattresses) a business that started as a small retail store selling mattresses in Rongai, and later diversified to groceries and other consumer goods, on the outskirts of Nakuru Town located in the Rift Valley in East Africa. The supermarket chain was started by Mzee Kago, and later joined by his five sons, who helped grow the business to a leading retail store in Kenya and beyond. The exit of Mzee Kago in the early 2000s, and his passing on in 2002 dealt a blow to the family. However, the business seemed to be chatting and in good hands, as Sitivio took the reins of the family business. For the next decade, Tuskys enjoyed a growth period that rivaled their competitor Nakumatt supermarket, which was the leading retail chain both in assets and market reach. However, trouble started in 2012 when one of the siblings Yosefu, Director of Sales and Marketing, accused his brothers Sitivo, the managing director and Gachiwe, of financial mismanagement and fraud. Yosefu alleged that the two siblings had siphoned over KES 1.64 billion ($20.88 million) and transferred to subsidiaries and privately owned businesses without the knowledge of the directors. These accusations did not go well with Mr Sitivo, and when his brother failed to withdraw a case he had filed seeking the courts and criminal investigation departments (CID) to investigate the allegation, he punched him in the face. The battles for control among the siblings went full throttle after this incident. Any efforts to reconcile the siblings failed. Several attempts were made to rescue the leading retailer but the capital injection in the form of merchandise from the suppliers and efforts to bring investors failed. At the press conference, Mr Sitivo admitted that the Kago family has contributed to some of the woes that have faced the supermarket chains. But the question is, will the siblings be able to bury the hatchet to save the family business?