Strategic Management Practices and Effectiveness of Selected Manufacturing Companies in Oyo State, Nigeria

This study examined the effectiveness of strategic management practices in selected manufacturing companies. The 249 manufacturing companies as registered with the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Ibadan, formed the population of the study. A sample of 152 companies was randomly selected. The survey research design was used and data was collected through questionnaires and structured interviews. Data collected was analysed using descriptive and regression analysis. Four hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 degree level of significance. The test of hypothesis 1 confirmed a positive relationship between firm strategic management practices and firms’ financial process effectiveness (R = 0.522). The analysis of variances showed that strategic management practices had a significant effect on the firm financial process (F= 18.619, p < 0.05). Test of hypothesis 2 showed a positive relationship between strategic management practices and firms’ customer effectiveness (R = 522), and the ANOVA confirmed that strategic management practices had a significant effect on firms’ customer effectiveness (F = 16.617, p< 0.05). Test of hypothesis 3 showed a positive relationship between strategic management practices and firms’ internal process effectiveness (R= 0.502), the ANOVA showed that strategic management practices had a significant effect on firms’ internal process effectiveness (F = 16.619, p < 0.05). Lastly, a test of hypothesis 4 showed a positive relationship between strategic management practices and the firms’ learning/innovation effectiveness (R = 0.558), while the ANOVA indicated that strategic management practices had a significant effect on firms’ learning/innovation process (F = 18.819, p < 0.05). The study concluded that strategic management practices had positive and significant effects on the financial, customer, internal process and learning/innovation perspectives of the manufacturing firms. Consequently, managers of manufacturing firms are advised to adopt strategic management practices in order to boost the firms’ performance