Abstract:
In order to thrive amidst globalization, corporations and enterprises have to compete with each other
on the global scale. Competition for market share has become turbulent and most likely, only the
most efficient and effective companies will thrive and win out. The Postal Corporation of Kenya is
one such corporation that has been caught out by global and regional competition threatening its
survival. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of porter’s generic strategies in
determining competitive advantage of postal corporation of Kenya courier services. The study was
anchored in the Porter’s generic strategies. The study was undertaken using a descriptive crosssectional
survey
research
design.
The
target
population
comprised
of
forty
five
senior
staff
of
Postal
Corporation
of
Kenya
which
included
one
general
manager,
eleven
departmental
heads
and
thirty
three
branch managers. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data. A Cronbach
coefficient of 0.88 was achieved for the study variables. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics,
which comprised of frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviation. Chi-Square test and
analysis was used to assess the possible association and relationship between strategies adopted by
postal corporation of Kenya and competitiveness in the courier services. The study found Porter’s
generic strategies had association with Competitive advantage of Postal Corporation of Kenya. The
study concluded that Porter’s generic strategies are important strategic determinants of competitive
advantage in the postal corporation of Kenya courier services. The study recommended that Postal
Corporation of Kenya should focus on cost leadership and differentiation in order to enhance
competitiveness in the market as the long term strategies for survival.
