Supplier Relationship Management and Procurement Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Nairobi City County, Kenya

Abstract: Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are central to Kenya's economy but fragile, with most business closures occurring within the first years of operation, and weaknesses in procurement and supplier management are a recurring explanation. This study examined the effect of four supplier relationship management (SRM) practices, namely supplier collaboration, information exchange, strategic supplier segmentation and trust-based relationship management, on the procurement performance of SMEs in Nairobi City County, anchored on resource dependency theory, commitment–trust theory and institutional theory. A descriptive design was adopted; a stratified random sample of 96 SMEs was drawn from a frame of 2,300 registered enterprises in manufacturing, retail, services and construction, and 82 usable questionnaires were returned (85.4 per cent). Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression. All four practices were reported as widely adopted (M = 3.95 to 4.00 on a five-point scale), while procurement performance was rated only moderate (M = 3.04), with timeliness of deliveries and quality of supplies weakest. In the regression model, information exchange carried the largest effect (B = 0.433, β = .496, p < .001), followed by strategic supplier segmentation (B = 0.341, β = .276, p < .001) and supplier collaboration (B = 0.187, β = .194, p < .001); trust-based relationship management was positive but not significant at the 5 per cent level (B = 0.057, p = .054). The gap between high reported adoption and moderate performance is the study's central observation: the lowest-rated item in every SRM construct is the one that demands data or formal follow-through, which suggests that these firms have adopted the form of SRM more fully than its operational core. The study recommends that SMEs prioritise structured information sharing, particularly of demand forecasts, and convert supplier segmentation into differentiated resource allocation, treating trust as the foundation on which these practices operate rather than as a substitute for them. Because the reported model-fit statistics are internally inconsistent, coefficient magnitudes should be read as indicative pending re-estimation. Keywords: supplier relationship management; procurement performance; information exchange; supplier segmentation; supplier collaboration; trust; SMEs; Kenya. Title: Supplier Relationship Management and Procurement Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Nairobi City County, Kenya Author: Mary Nduta Ngugi, Perris Chege International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online) Vol. 14, Issue 4, October 2026 - December 2026 Page No: 112-121 Research Publish Journals Website: www.researchpublish.com Published Date: 14-October-2026 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23367928 Paper Download Link (Source) https://www.researchpublish.com/papers/supplier-relationship-management-and-procurement-performance-of-small-and-medium-enterprises-in-nairobi-city-county-kenya