Send your nonperforming MCA Home!

We have formed a habit of complaining about our elected leaders. We hate and love them in equal measure. 

Every five years, at the peak of the campaigns, we forget so fast. We make the same old mistakes and elect bad leaders. Mostly, we recycle them. We then quickly start the grumbling circus for the next 5 years. 

Do you agree that majority of MCAs, MPs, Women reps, Senators and Governors are a major let down? Did we waste the whole day, in long queues to elect such persons?

Yes, I  do agree that most of these leaders have taken Kenyans for a ride.  And yes, I get so afraid that 2018 trumpets are quickly fading. And yes, Kenyans have not learned a lesson.  and YES the cycle will be repeated come 2022.

Indeed,  the voting machinery is at cross roads. Before 2022, you and I will be whirled with propaganda of hatred, ethnicity and intolerance. 

We shall be seduced to believe that our non performers were busy fighting for our interests. They earned heavy allowances, mortgages and car grants because of the burdens of representing us. 

Now, I am almost giving up. How  can I help citizens to stand out, have a say and stop the stinking spectacle of electing awful leaders. these malingerers!

This is Kenya. You may think it is impossible to change some old habits. You might feel so desperate. A used and manipulated  voter. You are not alone!

If you are a patriot, it is time to get out of the box and stamp your authority as the ultimate employer of the more than 2,400 elected leaders.  

It doesn't need to be so hard. You don't need to be a political broker. You don't need to be ethnically correct. You don't need to have loads of money. You don't have to be a sycophant. 

You just need to be crafty, innovative and take action. 

Here in lies your authority to ultimately fire your elected leader in 2018 and beyond. 

1. Ranking of leaders be supported

Let us support initiatives taken by pollsters to rank best performing Governors, Senators, MPs and MCAs. 

It is through such surveys that  Alfred Mutua was ranked as best Governor and Prof John Krop Lonyangapuo of West Pokot was highest ranked Senator in Kenya. Wilberforce Ottichilo of Emuhaya Constituency was ranked the best MP in Kenya. Gladys Wanga of Homabay County was ranked the best performing Womens representative. Vihiga MCAs were ranked the best. 

Thumbs up for Infotrak research & Consulting that developed The County-Trak Index. The main objective of the Index is to ascertain County residents’ assessment on the performance of their County Governments against set Key performance indicators and to develop a Citizens Scorecard on the performance of their County governments.

As a citizen you need to use such surveys to question credibility of your leader. 

2. Take you own initiative and ask what your leader is doing

Under the new constitution, several institutions such as the Auditor's General's office, Controller of Budget have data on performance of leaders, particularly governors. You should take the initiative and question some of the projects mentioned in these reports. 

This is where citizen organizing and participation become handy.   Form a loose youth, women or professional lobby group and seek answers from these leaders. It is important to get support of citizens and communities you represent. 

Leaders are made through such community voluntary contributions. You gain respect and recognition. 

Take the bull by the horns and sound the war drums.

Profile your elected leaders and share their manifestos. Yule anakaa malingerer, face them and demand productivity. 

should such a person not change to being more productive, Soon I will share with you how to approach the removal of a nonperforming elected leader! 

Kakamega County: Bringing the sexy back to Agriculture

Unfavorable weather conditions,cost of inputs and foreign exchange fluctuations are shocks common to the Kenyan agricultural sector. That stated, experts now contend that the stage is set for a new jolt: ‘the greying farmer’. Consider these variables: 

1: Agriculture  directly contributes 24% of Kenya's GDP and 27% of GDP indirectly through linkages with manufacturing, distribution and other service related sectors while 
2: The average age of the Kenyan farmer is 60 years old. Compare that to Brazil which shares a similar small scale holder profile has an average age of 42, while US where large scale farmers dominate, the average age is at 57 years old. 
3: On the contrary, Kenya is a youthful nation with approximately 78 percent of the population under the age of 35.  

Economics aside, it is clear there is an imbalance in these socio-economic variables that should be working together in a transformational growth equation.Based on the budget estimates released by The Treasury in June 2017, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries’ budgeted expenditure for 2017/2018 is approximately 23% of the national government budget. One would then question if the allocation is sufficient to propel the sector forward.  

That aside, of greater interest is the actual expenditure plan and how it will be geared to implement two action points in the Jubilee Government’s 5-point Action Plan ‘strengthening/modernizing agriculture and providing jobs for youth’. The two action points speak directly to the imbalance highlighted. So what is the plague behind agriculture’s low attractiveness index? Why do youth not envision their future as an agripreneurs? 

Access to land is a major constraint. Even with land leasing mechanism, some youth are excluded by land owners who prefer more experienced farmers. Land banks - designated land for agriculture with the government, the private sector or a public private partnership putting in place infrastructure, irrigation systems, auxillary and extension services, could be a solution. 

A road trip across the country cements the fact that Kenya has vast tracts of idle land.  Agri-research institutes can map out crop suitability at Ward level. Much closer home, the Governor of Kakamega County, Hon. Wycliffe Oparanya  recently welcomed agriculture investors to his county and promised "a friendly environment"; food for thought. 

There is no unequivocal evidence for or against the low returns issue. Kenya’s agriculture sector is currently a tale of mixed fortunes with cases of frustrated farmers uprooting crops in desperation while other ‘agri-preneurs’ enjoy high returns from their investments.

I strongly believe this disparity arises from lack of adoption of innovations and technologies as well as the lack of information. Our ancestors tilled the earth with ox ploughs and hoes. All valid methods, but we have moved to the 21st century of Play-stations. The need to practice controlled-environment agriculture should be everyday's preaching. Greenhouse farming is lucrative with good tidings; this also applies to open field sprinkler irrigation, drip irrigation and large scale farrow irrigation. 

Our farming techniques need to evolve to attract better returns and youth participation. Further, our farmers need information to encourage adoption, more so in the current changing environment. The vision of innovation, mechanization, and technology propagation needs to consider the reality on the ground and that is where the high capital variable comes into play. Taking into consideration that most Kenyan farmers are small scale holders, it may not make economic sense to invest in some of the mechanization technologies available.

Access to mechanisation and innovations is critical, young farmer or not. What avenues is the Government crafting to ensure access? Farm equipment pooling facilities may provide access and reduce the high capital demand. Historically, agriculture has been perceived as ‘hard and dirty’ work. 

In today’s world as highlighted by our very own Kakamega County Think Tanks' marketing quote, “image is not everything, it is the only thing”. Though an extreme statement, it captures the need to re-brand the sector’s image. 
Agriculture is more than toiling in the fields; with innovation, there are some awe inspiring farming technologies like hydroponics. 
Further, agriculture extends into agro-processing and agro-technology. After all, value addition and agro-enabling businesses are required to infuse innovation and higher revenues into the sector. 

We are not relegating our youth to primary production; we are coxing them to venture into the whole spectrum of the agri value chain. We hear of banking, business awards and the likes, where are the agriculture awards to motivate players into the sector; best agriculture innovation, best agri-business. 
Bring the pomp and funk into this space! In summary, we have 40 per cent of the population out of work (even higher among the youth). We are not yet food sufficient, relying on imports to cover the deficit. We have a population growing by close to a million people a year. 

Even as we diversify to cushion our vulnerable economy, we cannot afford to ignore this sector that has the potential to reduce poverty, youth unemployment and boost our economic growth. Youth are integral stakeholders, with innovative and risk-taking attributes they are best placed to act as transformative agents and reshape the sector.  

Dear national and Local government representative, as you draft your expenditure plans for the sector, consider how you can make agriculture appeal to generation X.

Artificial intelligence replacing traditional classrooms

At college or the university level, much of classroom instruction is provided by a lecturer standing in front of a group of students and delivering a monologue, while the students dutifully record essential parts of the information presented.

Research and personal experience indicate that very little of the information delivered by the instructor is retained by the student when the student plays a passive role. Computer technology offers some hope of changing traditional classroom instructional techniques.

The college instructor of the future will certainly have more technology, available for use in the classroom. However, the decision to utilize instructional technology should be based on sound principles.

Our human values, needs, or problems often determine what questions scientists investigate and what problems #engineers tackle. Meanwhile the technologies that are the products of science and engineering influence society and change human culture (just think of the impacts of cars and cell phones!).

With technological advancements and trends, boring lecturers and long lecture classes will be a thing of the past. Think of it this way, IT gurus developing software that teaches you a whole syllabus, at your convenience and with practical demonstrations.

The market has a handful of simulation software that is quickly substituting the need for classroom lectures. One such software is DemosCAD.

This software is a simulation of #AutoCAD from #Autodesk. It teaches engineering students how to use AutoCAD. Based on feedback from engineering students that have used this software, this is the next big thing in the engineering world.

DemosCAD has also been used by industry professionals in architecture, mechanical and electrical engineering among others to improve their skill of design using AutoCAD.

The amazing bit about #DemosCAD is that you can access the software anywhere by just clicking a tool! So whether you are in traffic or stuck in one of those long bank queues, just click a tool and carry on with your lessons.

This is the next facade of artificial intelligence. Thank you #TeamSkyTOP

Cyber-security is not rocket science

Cyber-attacks are on the rise and hackers are targeting more than just big businesses. Small businesses are at risk, too, and companies of all sizes are woefully ill-prepared to fight off on-line threats.

Before brushing off the need for cyber-security, consider this: Over 80 percent of data breaches are avoidable without the need to employ expensive countermeasures to combat them.

Unfortunately, many organizations are still not getting the message about the steps they can take to prevent data breaches

Businesses of all sizes can take measures to safeguard their information from prying eyes. Here are some cost-effective ways to protect your small business from cyber-attacks.

Install a firewall. Just as a real firewall keeps an inferno in one room from spreading to the rest of the building, a computer firewall blocks unwanted information and people from entering a business' computer system from the Internet. Once the firewall is in place and working, never turn it off of any computer in the business.

Set up an Access Control List.  This will allow your system administrator to  control which employee have which level of access to the computer system or certain parts of the computer system and whether they can log in remotely or only from the office.

Change the default passwords for the company's point of sale system. Vulnerability is businesses failing to change the system control panel (C-Panel) password credentials from the manufacturer's default setting to a custom password for the company. This is more like leaving the back door open while securing the front door.

Establish security roles and responsibilities. Identify which employees need to have access to the business information and set up responsibilities for those employees. It is recommended that the business sets a period of time an employee must be in the role before access rights are granted.

Establish policies for Internet and social media usage. If your business wants to limit the use of the Internet and social media to break time, make sure the employees know the policy.

Use a Web-filtering system. These programs can block harmful sites as well as sites that may be inappropriate for viewing during company time.

Use Internet security programs on each computer. The programs work in addition to the firewall to help block malicious software from attacking the computer and compromising data.

Be wary of peer-to-peer sites. If your company uses peer-to-peer sharing, be cautious of the security of such connections and learn what the peer site's safeguards are.

Keep the most critical data offline. Organize your business' data and keep the most critical information—such as customers' personal information—offline.

Get cybercrime insurance. This kind of policy covers the liability of the company in the case of a cyberattack or a data breach. Some policies cover direct loss, legal liability and consequential loss from security breaches. Some insurance carriers also offer network security risk assessments to determine your company's exposure risk to attack.

Just customer care? No! It is customer experience that matters

Customer experience is about how customers perceive their interaction with your business each time they come in contact with your brand. It is about how they consciously and subconsciously feel about their experience with each of your various touchpoints as they go through the customer journey. This perception has a great influence in their behavior, driving them to become your loyal customers, which translates into better return on investment.

Customer experience is key to the success of your business. Studies have shown that customers opt for superior customer experience over low prices or high quality products. That is why it is crucial to shape a customer-centric strategy that improves your whole processes, whether in-store, out-of-store, online, direct or indirect. Customer experience should be at the core of all the components of your organization, be it products, services, processes, or employees. You have to make sure that your customers are completely satisfied with each of these components in order to differentiate yourself amongst the fierce competition and to stand out.

A good customer experience is directly linked to your customers’ willingness to be loyal fans to your brand, make new purchases, and spread good word-of-mouth about your brand, which draws in more potential customers to your business. It’s as simple as that.

Let us have a look at some of the main reasons why customer experience has become so important for businesses today.

Happy Customers

For a lasting retention of customers and easy acquisition of new ones, you need to make sure that your customers are always happy with your service, whatever touchpoint they reach you through.  Therefore you need to create a favorable customer experience across all your touchpoints and channels to make sure that a positive experience is delivered to your customers through the whole customer journey, ensuring that they stick to your brand. Statistics have shown that most revenues come from repeat customers. Offering a valuable and unique customer experience to your customers that far exceeds their expectations is a guaranteed way to build permanent customer loyalty.

Differentiation

In a world that is crowded with competitors, differentiating your business is a must. Offering your customers a personalized and exceptional customer experience gives you that sustainable competitive advantage you are looking for.

Maximized return on investment

Nowadays customers are giving more and more attention to customer experience. They are willing to pay more in order to get a better service, which manifests in more gains.

Better churn management

With the vast alternatives available, it is crucial to offer your customers a memorable customer experience that prevents from customer churn to competitors. A good customer churn management policy leads to customer retention and growth.

Word-of-mouth marketing

Whenever people want to try a new brand, they often seek recommendations and referrals from relatives and friends. They might even read online reviews about your business in order to make an enlightened decision. This is where the role of word-of-mouth advertising comes. Your current customers are free of charge and valuable advertisers for your business. Word of mouth marketing is a powerful tool which you should utilize to your advantage.

Personally, I have experienced both extremes and I can confess that Business Continuity is greatly determined by the impression a business leaves on the customers.

Customer satisfaction and experience starts well before the sale. Time to review and restructure is now.