Entrepreneurial Elements and Performance of Small and Medium Tea Farming Enterprises in Murang’a County, Kenya
Abstract
Performance is a critical indicator of organizational success, encompassing the effectiveness of organizational processes, systems, and human resources. Entrepreneurship has been recognized as a key driver of organizational performance by enhancing competitiveness, innovation, and business sustainability. Despite Murang'a County generating approximately KES 17.8 billion in smallholder tea earnings in 2024, the performance and long-term sustainability of small and medium tea farming enterprises remain inconsistent, with entrepreneurial attributes such as creativity, innovation, risk-taking, and networking receiving limited scholarly attention in this context. This study therefore examined the relationship between entrepreneurial elements, creativity, innovation, risk-taking propensity, and entrepreneurial networking, and the performance of small and medium tea farming enterprises in Murang'a County, Kenya. The study was guided by the Entrepreneurial Creativity Theory, Schumpeterian Theory of Innovation, Knight's Theory of Risk, and Stakeholder Theory. A descriptive research design was adopted, and primary data were collected using structured questionnaires administered to 341 respondents selected through simple random sampling from 2,300 registered tea farming enterprises. Entrepreneurs, farm managers, and land administrators served as units of observation. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 28, employing descriptive statistics, frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations, alongside Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression analysis. The findings revealed that creativity had the strongest positive and significant correlation with performance (r = 0.561, p = 0.000), followed by entrepreneurial networking (r = 0.378, p = 0.000), innovation (r = 0.312, p = 0.001), and risk-taking propensity (r = 0.258, p = 0.004). The refined multiple regression model demonstrated that all four entrepreneurial elements jointly and significantly explained 74.0% of variance in enterprise performance (R² = 0.740, F = 53.05, p = 0.000), with entrepreneurial networking emerging as the strongest predictor (β = 0.317), followed by risk-taking propensity (β = 0.306), innovation (β = 0.228), and creativity (β = 0.222). The study concludes that creativity, innovation, risk-taking propensity, and entrepreneurial networking are significant determinants of tea farming enterprise performance in Murang'a County. The study recommends that farmers adopt modern farming technologies, embrace calculated risk-taking supported by structured risk management, strengthen stakeholder networks through cooperatives and digital platforms, and pursue product innovation and market diversification to enhance productivity, profitability, and long-term enterprise sustainability.
Keywords: Entrepreneurial Elements, Performance, Small and Medium, Tea Farming Enterprises, Murang’a County, Kenya
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