Thesis:

Resource planning and performance of power distribution projects by Kenya power within Nairobi city county

Kenya Power has faced difficulties carrying out distribution projects in Nairobi City County, including the last-minute relocation of a proposed substation site due to land availability and the suspension of a substation due to objections from nearby landowners. The incidents brought to light Kenya Power's power distribution projects inside Nairobi City County's performance concerns. A thorough resource planning exercise before project implementation is a realistic strategy to solve this problem. However, there were limited empirical investigations documenting the influence of resource planning on the performance of power distribution projects in the local context. This study sought to establish resource planning influence on the performance of power distribution projects by Kenya Power within Nairobi City County. The specific objectives were to determine the influence of resource capacity on the performance of power distribution projects by Kenya Power within Nairobi City County; to establish the effect of resource allocation on the performance of power distribution projects by Kenya Power within Nairobi City County and to determine the influence of teamwork management on performance of power distribution projects by Kenya Power within Nairobi City County. The study variables were anchored in Resource-Based View (RBV) theory, the general systems theory, and the star team model. Investigation method used Descriptive survey design. Actual phenomenon information about the identification of the impact of resource planning on the effectiveness of electricity distribution projects in Nairobi County was sought. Target population comprised of 162 personnel, working for Kenya Power in Nairobi County. Krejcie and Morgan (1970) method was utilized to calculate the 114 sample size. The study adopted a stratified random sampling recognizing non-homogeneity of the sample population. Questionnaires were used to collect primary data. A pilot test was done before the main study involving 11 respondents using Cronbach value of 0.7 as the instrument reliability threshold. The questionnaires were administered through drop and pick method, the data collected analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics done using SPSS and MS Excel. Tables and figures were used to summarize responses for further analysis and to facilitate comparison. A multiple regression model was finally applied to link the independent variables to the dependent variable. The response rate was 79% representing 93 respondents who correctly filled and returned questionnaires of the total sample of 114. The study indicated that there was a highly significant relationship (with t static p-value between 0.01590 < 0.05) between resource capacity and performance of power distribution projects. There existed a highly significant relationship (with t static p-value between 0.0034< 0.05) between teamwork management and the performance of power distribution projects. There is less significant relationship (with t static p-value between 0.062> 0.05) between resource capacity and performance of power distribution being beneficial to Kenya Power as verifiable proof why some projects are not completed by the anticipated performance requirements. Finally, the conclusions of this research study do provide recommendations that are more realistic and advantageous to project managers in determining the best project performance enhancing course other researchers acting as source or secondary information.