QUALITY MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE OF SELECTED FOOD AND BEVERAGE MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

The performance of Food and Beverages manufacturing firms is important to the development of the economy and this has been considered by researchers. In Nigeria, the decline in the performance of this sector in terms of competitive advantage has been noticed which could be as a result of a lack of quality management practices such as leadership behaviour, strategic quality planning, supplier quality management, process management and customer focus. The study investigated the effect of quality management practices on the competitive advantage of selected Food and Beverages manufacturing firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. The survey research design was adopted. The population of the study was 14, 591 top, middle and low-level management employees of the selected Food and Beverages manufacturing firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. A sample size of 491 was determined using the research advisor table. A simple random sampling technique was used. A validated questionnaire was used to collect data. Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients for the constructs ranged from 0.866 to 0.954. The response rate was 100%. Data were statistically analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics (multiple and hierarchical regression). Findings revealed that quality management practices had a significant effect on the competitive advantage of Food and Beverages manufacturing firms in Lagos State, (Adj.R2 = 0.117; F (5, 485) = 14.025, p < 0.05). The study concluded that quality management practices affected competitive advantage in Food and Beverages manufacturing firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. The study recommends that Food and Beverages manufacturing firms should encourage the adoption of quality management practices to enhance competitive advantage.  Article visualizations

Factors influencing students’ choice of a federal university: a case study of a Nigerian federal university

The factors affecting students’ choice of higher education is essential for the university’s management. Various research across the world has been carried out to understand how students select their preferred universities for tertiary study; however, there is a shortage of insight from an African perspective. Specifically focusing on a federal university in Nigeria, this study aims to explore factors influencing students’ interest in the school and why they selected it as their study location. A structured questionnaire from 282 undergraduate students based on stratified random sampling was used to understand these choice factors. The study found that personal interest greatly influenced students’ decisions, followed by parental influence, university reputation, university ranking, and fees. The results provide an understanding of students’ choices for universities in a Nigerian context, which is a loose representation of the general influences of students’ choice for study sites on the continent. This would enable stakeholders working in the Nigerian education sector including academics, administrators and practitioners and international collaborators to understand the most effective ways to reach out to prospective students and draw useful lessons for universities' marketing strategies, which could be recommended not only in Nigeria but in Africa at large

Minding the gap: an assessment of the quality of course information available on the websites of African universities

Deciding which university to attend and what course to study are essential choices for prospective students. Given Universities’ websites have been considered a vital source of information for prospective students, this study explores the quality and quantity of information about undergraduate programs available in African Universities. The study adopts the ALARA Model of Information Search on website, a novel methodology, which brings together case study research, stakeholder roleplay and netnography. Taking the role of a prospective student, the research explores the availability, location, accessibility, relatability and actionability (ALARA) of information provided on University websites. The study found that prospective students are short-changed as the Universities are not providing enough information for them to decide. More than 70 per cent of the best Universities in Africa did not provide any information for their prospective students about the programs they intend to study. The study offers both theoretical and managerial implication. It extends knowledge about marketing higher education, understanding student information search. The study also highlights implication for University Managers, Academic staff, Marketing Communication Team, Information and Communications Team and other teams responsible for developing and updating the Universities’ website with current and relevant information about the programs offered by the University

Co-creation of value by universities and prospective students: towards an informed decision-making process

African Universities are making an effort to offer values and enhance the human resources and development of the continent. Also, there are growing demands for higher education places on the continent. This paper offers a theoretical insight into the value delivery systems of the Universities and the factors influencing choice. The chapter is theoretically positioned to recognise the co-creation of value between the University and prospective students. University is delivering value through their teaching, curriculum relevance and development courses. They offer values with regards to education for enhancing human resources of a country and research making impacts in the society. Prospective students engaging with these values through their decision-making process is however essential, presenting a common ground for informed decision making which is anchored on information provided by the Universities and information processing by the students. African Universities must make information readily available to prospective students in order to make an informed decision. This chapter extends theoretical knowledge on value creation, student choice and marketing of higher education. Implications for managers with regards to the value audit, communication and engagement are also presented