ENTREPRENEURIAL DETERMINANTS AFFECTING THE GROWTH OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN THE MOTOR VEHICLE INDUSTRY IN NAIROBI COUNTY, KENYA

Purpose: The current study sought to establish the entrepreneurial determinants affecting the growth of small and medium enterprises in the motor vehicle industry in Nairobi county, Kenya. The study specifically aimed at assessing how entrepreneurial innovativeness, Service Quality, Entrepreneurial Competency and business operational policies determines the growth of SMEs in motor vehicle industry in Nairobi County, Kenya. Methodology: The study was anchored on Schumpeter’s Innovation Theory, Commitment Trust Theory, Competency Theory and Policy Theory. A descriptive research design was adopted and the target population comprised of SMEs operating within Central Business District in Nairobi County. A total of 245SMEs were targeted and the unit of observation comprised of owners, managers and supervisors of the enterprises. A census approach was adopted where all the targeted enterprises were involved in the study. Questionnaires were used for collecting data both qualitative and quantitative data. The study conducted a pilot on 12 small enterprises in Kiambu County before collecting data for the main study to assess the reliability and validity of the questionnaires. Data was analyzed using both Microsoft excel and SPSS tools. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used. The study findings were presented in form of tables and figures for easier interpretation. Findings: The study concludes that the entrepreneurial innovativeness level has a positive and significant influence on the growth of SMEs in motor vehicle industry in Nairobi County, Kenya. In addition, the study concludes that the service quality has a positive and significant influence on the growth of SMEs in motor vehicle industry in Nairobi County, Kenya. Further, the study concludes that the entrepreneurial competency has a positive and significant influence on the growth of SMEs in motor vehicle industry in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study also concludes that the business operational policies have a positive and significant influence on the growth of SMEs in motor vehicle industry in Nairobi County, Kenya. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: From the results, the study recommends that the management of SMEs in the motor vehicle industry should enhance their ability to introduce new product, new services and ability to capture market niche of products and services. In addition, that the management of SMEs in the motor vehicle industry should be more focused on ensuring quality services are provided to their customers.