Business intelligence and competitive advantage in insurance firms in Kenya

Abstract

The study focused on how business Intelligence helps firms sustain and develop distinct competitive advantages by using the entire organization and its networks to develop actionable insights about the environment that is the customers, competitor, regulators, technology and many other stakeholders. Due to the current environmental changes in the market, there is a need for a study to be carried out to investigate what extent does business intelligence practices plays in achieving competitive advantage in the insurance sector. The study sought to establish the relationship between business intelligence application and competitive advantage in insurance firms in Kenya. This research employed descriptive survey design. The population of the study consisted of 43 listed insurance companies in Kenya. Primary data was collected using questionnaires. The respondents were information technology (IT) managers, marketing managers, customer service, finance managers and sales and marketing in the insurance firms. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data because this study was modelled on a descriptive framework. Mean scores of the like scale was used to determine impact of competitive strategies employed by firms. In addition, the researcher conducted a multiple regression analysis. The findings were presented using tables and charts. The study also found that the various business intelligences have been used for competitive advantage by the insurance firms in Kenya. There are various challenges encountered by insurance firms in Kenya while using business intelligence for competitive advantage. The study also found that the use of business intelligence in various applications in the organization contributed to competitive advantage for the organizations. The study recommends that it is critical for insurance firms to set clear Business Intelligence (BI) objectives which must be aligned to firms‟ objectives. The objectives and the mission of the Business Intelligence together with the alignment to business objectives should form the Business Intelligence (BI) strategy. People roles should then be established at the very onset of the project. The study recommends that there should be more awareness on the use and Business Intelligence (BI) systems in the insurance firms in Kenya. There is need for the insurance firms in Kenya to explore what other ways they can leverage more on these systems.