Abstract:
The purpose of the study was to analyze the influence of Entrepreneurial Orientation on performance of agricultural co-operatives in Uasin Gishu County. This is due to high level of dormancy among agricultural co-opratives within the county. The study was guided by the following specific objective; to establish the influence of innovativeness on performance of agricultural co-operative societies in Uasin Gishu County, to determine the influence of risk taking on performance of agricultural co-operative societies in Uasin Gishu County, to evaluate the influence of proactiveness on performance of agricultural co-operative societies in Uasin Gishu County, and to examine the influence of competitiveness on performance of agricultural co-operative societies in Uasin Gishu County. The study was also guided by the following theories: Innovation, Resource Based Competitive Advantage, and Situational Leadership theories in discussing the Entrepreneurial Orientation. This study adopted a descriptive research design to understand the influence of Entrepreneurial Orientation on performance of agricultural cooperative societies. The study area was in Uasin Gishu County in Kenya with a target population of 414 staff in 63 registered agricultural co-operative societies. Stratified sampling technique was used to select a sample of 203 respondents. Primary data was collected by use of a questionnaire. Pilot testing was carried out to test the validity and reliability of the instruments. Regression analysis was used for the analysis of the data, where it was then represented in descriptive tables and inferential form for analysis. Relationships between different variables were analyzed using a regression model. The study results failed to despute that innovativeness and risk taking had no significant influence on performance of agricultural co-operatives within Uasin Gishu County. However proactiveness showed significant influence though the coefficient was negative, meaning an inverse relationship where an increase in proactiveness leads to a decrease in performance among agricultural co-operatives. Competitive aggressiveness was significant and has an influence on performance of co-operatives in Uasin Gishu County. Study results show that entrepreneurial orientation is a factor that affect performance though the level of uptake of entrepreneurial orienation is still low among agricultural co-operatives as depicted by Beta values. The study therefore has recommended training of stakeholders on innovativeness, risk taking, proactiveness and competitive aggressiveness for better performance. The The findings from this study would be useful to policy makers for guided interventiopns, researchers, development planners and Uasin Gishu County. This will help towards achievement of entrepreneurship development which is crucial to attainment of Vision 2030.
