Influence of information and communication technology on performance of aviation industry - a case of Kenya Airways LTD

Abstract

The aim of this study is to ascertain the influence of information and communication technology on the performance of the aviation industry in Kenya with the case of Kenya Airways -Kenya office. Specifically the study seeks; to study the influence of comunication networks on the performance of an airline, to establish the influence of mobile phone technology on the performance of an airline, to investigate the influence of handheld devices and iPads on the performance of an airline and to study the influence of Internet applications on the performance of an airline. The study will adopt a descriptive survey design. The population will comprise all Kenya Airways staff in Nairobi office. A sample of 244 employees will be randomly selected for the study. Purposive sampling will be used to select Nairobi office as the study site. The study will rely on data collected through a questionnaire structured to meet the objectives of the study. The questions will be both open ended and closed ended. The process of data analysis will involve data clean up and explanation. Responses in the questionnaires will be tabulated, coded and processed by use of a computer Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 17.0 programme to analyze the data. The responses from the open-ended questions will be listed to obtain proportions appropriately. The study is significant as it would provide the management of the airline, in this case Kenya Airways, information that they can leverage on to improve on the performance of the airline. It will also add to the knowledge required to assist policy makers and regulatory bodies make decisions that would change the way operations are carried out. The study findings showed that information and communication technology which includes communication networks, mobile phone technology, handheld devices such as iPads and Internet and computer applications influence the performance of the aviation to a large extent by assisting to improve on faster passenger handling and increased revenue generated from improved access to information. The recommendations show that the company should align itself to using ICT at a strategic level and to these strategies are cascaded to all levels of the hierarchy.