Organizational Design and Operational Performance of Community-Based Organizations in Kajiado North Sub-County, Kenya

Abstract

Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) operating in Kajiado North Sub-County, Kenya play an important role in supporting local development efforts, especially in poverty alleviation, water resource management, and women’s empowerment initiatives. However, persistent organizational challenges, including weak governance structures, unclear role definitions, centralized decision-making, and poor coordination, affect their operational performance. This study examined the influence of organizational design on the operational performance of CBOs in Kajiado North Sub-County, focusing on four specific objectives: to assess the influence of governance structure; evaluate the influence of role definition; determine the influence of decision-making processes; and examine the influence of coordination mechanisms on operational performance. The study was anchored on Contingency Theory and further informed by Role Theory and Rational Decision-Making Theory. The study adopted a descriptive-explanatory design using a convergent mixed-methods approach. The study targeted 31 registered and active CBOs, from which 124 respondents were identified for the quantitative component, while key informants were selected for the qualitative component. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and Key Informant Interviews (KIIs). Of the 93 questionnaires administered, 84 were completed, representing a response rate of 90.3%, while 22 of the 31 planned KIIs were conducted, representing a response rate of 71.0%. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis, while qualitative data were analyzed thematically and used to complement and clarify the quantitative findings through triangulation. The regression model explained 48.02% of the variance in operational performance (R² = 0.4802). Governance structure had a statistically significant positive relationship with operational performance (β = 0.250, p = 0.036), while role definition also had a statistically significant positive relationship, although with a relatively smaller effect (β = 0.150, p = 0.035). Decision-making processes had the strongest standardized coefficient (β = 0.318, p = 0.005), followed by coordination mechanisms (β = 0.308, p = 0.019). The findings indicate that the four organizational design dimensions were positively associated with operational performance, with decision-making processes and coordination mechanisms demonstrating the strongest contributions. The study contributes context-specific empirical evidence on the relationship between organizational design and operational performance among CBOs in a rural, semi-arid and pastoralist setting. Practically, the findings underscore the need for CBOs to strengthen governance systems, clarify roles, improve decision-making processes, and institutionalize effective coordination mechanisms to enhance operational performance.