The study examined the effects of social media usage on employee performance at higher education loan board. The study adopted the descriptive research design. The population of the study included all the employees of HELB countrywide (285). The sample for this study was 57. The questionnaire was administered online via google forms. The study used descriptive and inferential statistics including means, frequencies and association and correlation with aid of SPSS. The study also used reliability test to ascertain that the instrument used are reliable. The study found that there was no association between most of the social media use aspects in this study and the employees’ performance. The employees agreed with the use of social media to post work related content to customers or share their expertise in specific areas. However, they disagreed with the use of social media to organize their work files or sharing information on organization policies and objectives. They also agreed that they use social media to like follow and share content posted by others, take a break from work, make friend within the organization and organize events with co-workers. The findings showed a strong association between better performance and using social media to break from work, make friend and organizing events with co-workers. The study concluded that the effects of social media on HELB employees’ performance is significant in terms of time they spent on social media handling work or socio-related activities. The study recorded a positive effect of social media in the performance of the HELB employees. But with a relatively high percentage of respondents who were neutral-did not know or want to agree ,disagree with any of the study statements. It thus recommends that HELB should conduct social media awareness to its employees as many of them are already spending significant amount of time on SM during working hours but are neutral about SM effects to their performance. Key words: Social Media, Employee performance, Facebook and Twitter.

Background: The prevalence of infertility in Kenya is one of the highest in Africa; it is an important aspect of reproductive health. At Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), over 30% of gynecological consultations are related to infertility, which attests to its burden in the country. However, the effect of infertility on the quality of life (QoL) of women and the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) are poorly documented. Objective: To evaluate the QoL and prevalence of IPV among women with infertility versus well women attending clinic at KNH. Methods: A comparative cross sectional study of women seeking treatment for infertility and well women attending clinic at KNH was conducted in 2020. One hundred and twenty two (122) infertile and 122 well women were recruited from infertility, gynecological outpatient clinics, and well woman clinic (clinic 66) and a structured questionnaire was used to collect primary data. The questionnaire was in three sections. The first recorded the socio demographic characteristics of infertile and well women while the second and third section consisted of a World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument, Short Form (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire for evaluating the quality of life and WAST Screen for Intimate Partner Violence. Questionnaires were administered via telephone interviews, in a secluded area of KNH, scored following the directions of World Health Organization and analyzed using statistical package for social scientists (SPSS) version 24. Summary statistics of independent variables were computed and visualized in tables. Mann-Whitney test was used to compare QoL scores and Chi-square test to compare prevalence of intimate partner violence. P value <0.05 was significant. Results: Two hundred and forty four patients (50% infertile and 50% well women) qualified. Infertile women were older (35.02±6.71 years) than well women (32.90±5.94 years) had fewer viable pregnancies (mean=0.58±0.80) compared to well women (mean=2.10±.94), P=0.000, and had significantly more miscarriages (mean=0.66±1.08) than well women (mean=0.12±0.60) (P=0.000). The differences in education level, religion, employment, employment of spouses, the main financier, and the monthly income of infertile compared to well women were not statistically significant.. The mean quality of life scores for infertile women compared to well women were statistically significantly lower in physical domain (10.69±3.21 versus 16.18±4.02), psychological domain (8.61±3.85 versus 15.67±4.54), and social domain (8.65±4.11 versus 15.53±4.59). The mean scores for the environmental domain was lower among infertile women (9.41±3.43) compared to well women (11.28±5.02) but the difference was not statistically significant (P<0.11). The prevalence of intimate partner violence was 27.5%, and 3.516 fold (95% CI=1.94-6.30) statistically significantly higher among infertile women compared to well women (P<0.01). Conclusion: Infertility was associated with lower scores for physical, psychological and social quality of life domain scores. Intimate partner violence was predominant in infertile women.

Employee performance is crucial to organizational success. Globally, two-thirds of employees (67%) are demotivated, this means they put in the time at work, but also minimal effort. Further, 8% of the global workforce are actively demotivated, this means they are openly resentful of their company while at work and that their workplace needs are not being met. The purpose of the study was to determine how employee benefits at Kenya's Britam Insurance Company affected workers' performance company. The employees at Britam Company were targeted. According to the human resource manager, the company has 424 employees in the different departments in the organization. Hence, the study population was 424 employees from accounting, marketing, human resource, customer service, information technology, underwriting and legal departments. The Yamane formula was used to determine the study sample size. 206 employees were randomly chosen from the sample. In this investigation, primary data were utilized. Data collected in the field was edited, cleaned, and coded. The SPSS version 23.0 and an excel spreadsheet were used to examine the data. The descriptive statistics frequencies, percentages, averages, and standard deviation were used to analyze the quantitative data. Visual representations of the data were created using tables, graphs, and pie charts. Regression analysis was employed by the Britam Insurance Company in Kenya to determine how employee benefits affected performance. The data were presented in tables. The study found a positive and significant relationship between employee incentives at Kenya's Britam Insurance Company and job performance. . Therefore, an increase in employee perks would result in better work output for Kenya's Britam Insurance Company. Based on the findings, the study recommends that the management of Britam insurance company should continue extending employee retirement plan to enhance their productivity. The management of Britam insurance company should ensure housing allowance plans are continuously implemented to help employees have decent homes.

Green Supply Chain Management has gained prominence amongst many entities in the recent past as organizations, governments and consumer behavior are now focusing on giving more relevance to environmental issues. As such this has led many organizations to go green in their operations so as to conserve the environment as well as promote ethical behavior in entities. The study sought to investigate the influence of green supply chain management practices on operational performance of Public Universities in Kenya. Three objectives guided the study namely; (i) to ascertain the level of adoption of green supply chain management practices, (ii) to determine the correlation between green supply chain management practices and operational performance and (iii) to determine the challenges faced in the implementation of green supply chain management practices by the Public Universities in Kenya. The study adopted Descriptive research design. The population was made up of all the 32 accredited public universities in Kenya as listed by the Commission for University Education. Primary data was used which was acquired through the use of questionnaires. Drop and pick later as well as use of electronic mails were the mode of administering the questionnaires. Descriptive statistics was used in analyzing objective (i) and (iii) which were measured using Means and Standard Deviations. Regression analysis was used in analyzing objective (ii). On the first objective, it was established that green purchasing, green distribution and supplier integration were adopted to a large extent while eco design and packaging was adopted to a medium extent by the Public Universities in Kenya. on objective (ii) the findings indicate that green supply chain management practices (green purchasing, green distribution, supplier integration and eco design and packaging) has a positive and significant relationship on operational performance (cost, quality and reliability) of Public Universities in Kenya as observed by their respective p values which was lower than five percent. Objective (iii) established that lack of clear statutory regulations, lack of resources for investing in human capital and new technologies, insufficient skilled labor and top management insubordination among the key challenges of implementing GSCMP. It is recommended that green purchasing, green distribution, supplier integration to be adopted to a very large extent with eco design and packaging being adopted to a large extent as it was found to have been adopted to a moderate extent by the Public Universities in Kenya. Future studies should focus on green supply chain management practices which have not been covered by this study as well as carry out the study using another context like in the private sector

Strategy implementation is the key to any strategic management. Strategy implementation converts laid down strategies into actions. The study’s purpose was to assert the effect of strategy implementation on organizational performance at the Office of the Auditor General (OAG). The study was guided by the Agency Theory, supported by System Theory and Resource Based View Theory. Case study design was adopted in the methodology. At the data collection stage, the study used an interview guide which involved an in-depth interview with the top managers. To analyze the research data, the study used content analysis. From the results, the top management, head of departments and head of committees were the personnel involved in strategy implementation. They assigned responsibilities and resources for the process of strategy implementation at the OAG. The results further indicated that implementation of strategies was carried out by the staff through activities and duties assigned to them by the management. From the study, the low level of employees’ involvement has had adverse effect on the process of strategy implementation. As such, there is need for close and in-depth involvement of the staff in the process of strategy implementation. The study further established that the management should ensure proper communication on strategy implementation. From the results, the OAG faces a number of challenges in the process of strategy implementation including; inadequate ICT infrastructure, inadequate funds, poor structures, lack of skills for implementation, lack of training among others. The research recommends inter-agency collaborations to ensure quality audits, trainings, adequate allocation of funds for implementation and entrenching proper communication of the strategies to the staff by the top management. The findings indicated a significant positive influence on organizational performance, citing quality of audits, profitability, customer retention, public image, timeliness in audit reports delivery due to the implementation of strategies. Further research needs to be done on the role of strategy implementation on performance and use a larger sample size to get better and wider application of the findings. In addition, the factors that are considered in strategy implementation need further and in-depth research. The study’s key limitation was tied to its subjective nature inherent of a case study and hence detailed responses could not be established. The study was also based on strategy implementation alone and hence findings are limited in scope.

Organizational culture according to Sheins theory (1991) has three levels of culture which is artifacts, values, assumptions and beliefs. The Job Demand-Control (Support) model by Karaskey was used to explain occupational stress. Job Demand-Control (Support) theory puts forward that the relationship between job control and psychological demands in the work environment results to job strain. The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between organizational culture and occupational stress among Cooperative bank staff of Kenya in Nairobi. The current organizational culture at the bank is a customer centric financial institution that is based on the assessment of individual and their resources. The study’s objectives were to investigate the relationship between organizational culture and behavioral stress, to examine the relationship between organizational culture and physical stress and to assess the relationship between organizational culture and psychological stress. The research design adopted was mixed method design which included both quantitative and qualitative approach. The target population was 1020 employees at Co-operative Bank of Kenya. The primary data was collected from a sample of 204 participants. Purposive sampling and stratified random sampling were used to select the respondents. The data was collected through questionnaires and focus group discussions. The data was analyzed with help of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Both descriptive and inferential statistics that is Pearson’s correlation and simple linear regression were used to infer the sample results to data. The data was coded, analyzed and presented through narrations. The study revealed that there is a strong and positive relationship between the organizational culture and behavioral stress among Cooperative Bank staff of Kenya in Nairobi (r=0.768; p=0.000<0.05). The study revealed that there is a strong and positive relationship between the organizational culture and physical stress among Cooperative Bank staff of Kenya in Nairobi (r=0.794; p=0.000<0.05). The study found a significant and favorable correlation between organizational culture and psychological stress among Kenyan Co-operative Bank employees in Nairobi (r=0.833; p=0.000<0.05). The study’s conclusion indicated that organizational culture had a substantial impact on the behavioral stress, physical stress and psychological stress experienced by Co-operative Bank of Kenya employees in Nairobi. According to the study recommendations management at the Co-operative Bank of Kenya and other commercial banks in Kenya should work to adopt an organizational culture that has the highest levels of employee engagement and the lowest levels of stress. The study revealed that there is a strong and favorable correlation amid the organizational culture and psychological stress among Cooperative Bank staff of Kenya in Nairobi (r=0.833; p=0.000<0.05). The conclusion of the study was that corporate culture have a major impact on behavioral stress, physical stress and psychological stress among Cooperative Bank staff of Kenya in Nairobi. The study recommends that management at cooperative bank of Kenya and other commercial banks in Kenya should make efforts to shift towards organizational culture which has the highest engagement levels and lowest stress levels of employees. Keywords: Organizational culture, Occupational stress, behavioral stress, physical stress, psychological stress, Invisible Organizational culture, Visible Organizational Culture.

The current set of 17 interconnected Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) puts poverty eradication as its top objective by 2030 because it continues to be one of the multidimensionalcomplex issues in the 21st-century world. Less-developed and developing countries, in particular, confront poverty laboriously and have developed several policy initiatives over time aiming to lower its effects. Poverty rate in Somalia is widespread, deep, and has persisted over a long-time. The economy of Somalia is recuperating from civil war and decades of conflict and still faces many threats that contribute to its high poverty level. Considering that, this paper aimed to assess the main national determinants of household poverty in Somalia and why some households are not poor or poor, while others live in extreme poverty. The study employed a logit and an ordered logit models in the analysis of the 2017/18 Somali High-Frequency Survey wave 2 (SHFS-W2) data. From the logit model, the paper found that household poverty in Somalia is more pronounced in households; headed by illiterate-females, do not have at least one economically active household member, lack electricity and public transport, do not receive remittances, drink water from public taps and/or an unprotected well/spring, live far away from a health center, and use an open pit latrine toilet facility. From the findings of all categories of the ordered logit model, the study concluded that some of the characteristics found to significantly lower household poverty include literacy of the household head, small household size, access to public transport, having electricity and at least one economically active household member, main sources of income from agriculture and small family business, receiving remittances, drinking from a piped water tap, living near a health center, and having a toilet facility with a sewer system. This study recommends strategies that promote female education, connect more households to electricity, avail clean drinking water taps, basic health, and road infrastructure to remote households that are in deepest states of poverty. Finally, the study urges investments in the agricultural sector and making access of financial and other resources inclusive for small businesses.

The understanding of the linkage between stock returns, volatility and trading volume is paramount since it provides insights into the financial markets’ micro-structure. The available literature reveals insufficient studies into modeling this correlation and most empirical studies have largely focused on developed markets than on emerging markets. GARCH model and its extensions have been utilized to model this relationship and to reproduce stylized features of financial time series. However, the model does not adequately describe the persistence of the financial markets’ volatility. A model that can permit GARCH parameters to shift across regimes according to a Markov chain process is considered the solution to this problem, thus an attempt of this study is to put forward a regime-switching framework for modeling asset returns dynamics. The aim is to probe the dynamic correlation between stock returns, volatility and trade volume of both emerging and developed markets. In addition, the consequence of adding trade volume to the conditional variance equation of GARCH on volatility persistence is investigated. GARCH and regime-switching (RS) models are utilized to explore the link between stock returns, volatility and trade volume. The RS model is able to capture the structural changes in the variance process across regimes and its use extended to pricing European call options. The model is adapted to include GARCH effects and further implemented to pricing European call options. The estimated call options are compared with the corresponding Black-Scholes(B-S)’ model estimates to establish the model with the best fit. The results reveal well-known features such as volatility clustering, heavy tails, leverage effects and a leptokurtic distribution. The developed markets are described with high volatility clustering and persistence compared with the emerging market and the volatility persistence is observed to decrease as the data changes frequency from daily to weekly. Furthermore, the volatility persistence is observed to dwindle after trade volume is included into the conditional variance equation of GARCH model. However, as the data frequency shifts from daily to weekly, mixed results emerge. The stock returns and volatility from the developed markets have a negative correlation, but the correlation in emerging market is positive. In addition, all the stock returns indices are characterized by regime shifts with heterogeneous conditional volatility, volatility clustering and varying responses to past negative returns. Furthermore, the volatility process stays longer in the high volatility regime of the developed markets before switching to regime 2 compared to the duration of stay in the same regime of the emerging markets. Finally, RS-GARCH model presents the best results when fitted to long-dated options data as compared to RS and B-S models whereas B-S model presents the best fit for short-dated options. v

Many insurance firms have failed as a result of fraud. Insurance firms face the possibility of fraud from both their internal and external settings. Fraud presents both policyholders and insurance companies with significant and costly challenges. Insurance fraud causes a company high settlement costs and losses eventually affecting their performance. This research aimed to assess how fraud mitigation practices affect the financiallperformance of insuranceecompanies in Kenya. This study was founded on the FraudTTriangle Theory,FFraud Diamond Theory and theeFraud Management Life Cycle Theory. A descriptive research design was adopted and a target of all the 56 licensed insurance firms in Kenya. A census of the 56 licensed insurance firms in Kenya was applied. Both secondary and primary methods were used in data collection. The respondents were the claims manager in each of the insurance firms. The completed questionnaires were sorted, edited and coded for easy inputting in the computer system for analysis. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were employed in the data analysis. The study found that fraud mitigation practices affect the financial performance of insurance companies in Kenya. Fraud prevention, fraud detection and fraud response practice have positive and significant effects on the financialpperformance of insurance companies in Kenya. The organisations perform fraud risk assessments on a regular basis. Human resource departments do thorough pre-employment screening, and organisations have robust anti-fraud procedures in place. There are internal and external audits that detect any fraud. The businesses have fraud detection systems in place, and firm resources are counted on a regular basis. Employees who are accused of or related to fraud risk disciplinary action. The organisations have developed risk response plans and carry out fraud investigations. To help the government comprehend the scope of the issue, the Insurance Regulatory Authorityyshould create regulations mandating all insurance providers to gather and submit statistics on fraud. The insurance firms should ensure that they provide adequate training to their employees on fraud management. The insurance firms should have harsh penalties and disciplinary actions for any employee linked to fraud since such employees could be a major loophole in the fraud mitigation process. The insurance companies should also place a primary emphasis on the prevention of fraud through the use of cutting-edge technology and rely on the aid of specialized vendors to assist them in achieving this goal.

As a result of the challenges posed by e-commerce and the "last mile," logistics management has become an increasingly essential issue for professionals in the relevant industry. The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the logistics management practices employed by fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers in Nairobi County, as well as the impact those practices have on the manufacturers' operational performance. The study was hinged on resource based view theory, institution theory and unified theory of logistics and was guided by a descriptive research strategy. A sample size of 255 respondents from different strata of fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers in Nairobi County was administered with questionnaires for quantitative data. Data was analysed through descriptive statistics of mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentages, while multiple regression analysis was used to analyse the relationship between the variables. The study found that logistic practices used by the fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers in Nairobi County fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers in Nairobi County were order Process management, inventory management practices, transportation practices, information flow practices, warehousing practices and packaging practices. All these practices were found to be statistically and significantly related with the operational performances of these firms at (p<0.05). Additionally, the study identified the following challenges faced by fast moving manufacturing businesses when applying logistics management practices: the risk of service interruption, the high cost of product transportation across the country, and the limited holding capacity for FMCGMs at Mombasa port. Likewise, the study revealed that the primary challenges faced by fast-moving manufacturing companies when implementing logistics management practices were the following: poor road conditions for product movement, insufficient storage capacity to cope up with future customer demand across the firm's service network. The study recommended that Kenya Ports Authority management should act swiftly to expand product storage capacity at the Mombasa port to boost the operational performance of fast-moving industrial enterprises. Fast-moving manufacturing firms in Kenya should implement an integrated ICT-controlled system in their logistic operations as this will enable clear monitoring and administration of logistical activities, hence increasing the firm's total efficiency