The Effectiveness of Strategies of Service Delivery by Private Security Firms in Crime Prevention in Nairobi County, Kenya

The security of any nation is key for the achievement of social, economic and political objectives. Given these critical aspects of the security, no country across the globe can be able to satisfy the security need without having a support from other participants such as community and partnering with private security firms. With special requirement and level of training that PSFs offer to their personnel, partnership of police and PSFs in crime detection and prevention is key in provision of security across the Country. This study sought to examine the effectiveness of strategies of service delivery by private security firms in crime prevention in Nairobi County, Kenya. “This study was modeled by resource-based view theory that offered a discernment on what options are present to the private security firms in addressing the diverse challenges emanating from the ineffective strategic decisions in service delivery. A descriptive survey research design employing mixed methods approach in data collection was utilized to undertake the study. The target population constituted managers, supervisors, clients, and private security guards drawn from a sorted group of private security firms in Nairobi County. A multistage sampling approach employing clustering, proportionate random sampling and purposive sampling were used to obtain a sample size of 90 respondents. Questionnaire and interview guides were the main tools of data collection. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and presented in tables and charts. Qualitative data was presented in quotes and analyzed thematically. The findings of the data showed that guarding and collaboration strategies were the main strategies used by the PSFs. Based on the findings, the study recommended the implementation of government policy and legislation on collaboration between security agencies and PSFs for effective service delivery, implementation of an oversight control agency to check on professionalism and the adoption of modern and innovative technology by PSFs for effective crime prevention.