Influence of procurement process on performance of public institutions in Kenya

Abstract

Procurement process remains fundamentally central to the success of procurement function and to the performance of any organization, private or public. Previous studies have been conducted on the subject matter of procurement function. However, no study has focused on supplier qualification screening on procurement processes with the variables inherent in it and focusing on screening, competitive bidding and evaluation. Public Institutions has been inefficient and ineffective to the extent of late delivery of materials. This has led to public outcry within public institutions on the slow pace of projects implementation that leads to loss of value for money and increase of associated risks which can be mitigated if the right procurement procedures are adhered to. Despite the documented procurement processes, the performance of public institutions to the expected standard has been questionable. This study explored the influence of procurement process on performance of public institutions. The study was based on a conceptual framework that showed the relationship between independent variables such as supplier qualification screening, competitive bidding, supplier evaluation and dependent variable which is performance. The study was pegged on the Agency theory which is the relationship between two parties whereby one party [principal] delegates work to another party [the Agent], who represents the principal in transaction with a third party. The study adopted a case study design and targeted a population of 130 staff of Vihiga County government from which a simple saturated sampling was used to select all the 120 respondents to be included in the study. A questionnaire was used to collect data which was then analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The data was presented in tables and figures. The findings revealed that there was low performance of public institutions (M=3.49, SD=.53). On objective one, the study revealed that there was no significant influence of supplier screening on performance with r=0.131(p< 0.01), for objective two, competitive bidding had a significant relationship with performance and explained 7.1% significant change in performance, with r=0.410 (p< 0.01) finally, it was revealed that supplier evaluation did not as well have a significant influence on performance with r=0.161 (p< 0.01). The study concluded that only competitive bidding had a significant influence on performance of county government, whereas supplier screening and supplier evaluation did not influence performance. The study therefore recommended that more effort be put on supplier screening and evaluation and be aligned with performance for effectiveness while competitive bidding be improved to ensure it has a more positive impact on performance. This study may help the government to formulate policies that will entrench procurement procedures in the law. It may also help organizations to ensure that late delivery is minimized, value for money is guaranteed and any associated risks are mitigated among other and thus efficiency and effectiveness is ensured.