Strategies towards Business Continuity for Construction Industry in Kenya during and after COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The onset of the novel COVID-19 pandemic declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019 has brought wide-ranging detrimental impacts on the construction industry. The industry has experienced delays in the delivery of materials, high cost of materials, suspension of activities, termination of contracts, and workforce implications among others. This array of impacts cannot be ignored by the construction industry stakeholders as they require prompt countermeasures. These repercussions necessitated the aim of this study which is to assess strategies for business continuity for the construction industry during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. This study was guided by three research questions: 1 ) What is the level of resilience of contractors’ businesses during the pandemic? 2 ) What survival measures did contractors in Kenya consider to avert the impacts of the pandemic? 3 ) What recovery strategies can be adopted to enhance contractors’ business in post COVID-19 environment and similar occurrences? A mixed-method cross-sectional research design was employed to collect both quantitative and qualitative information. An interview schedule that contained both open-ended and close-ended questions was used to collect data from 245 contractors in Kenya sampled using simple random sampling. Simple random sampling was used because the contractors were considered knowledgeable about the topic under study and therefore had an equal chance of selection to participate in the study. Descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation, and frequencies were used to interpret the findings from quantitative analysis, while qualitative data analysis was conducted using word frequency query and text search query. Further, the output was displayed using tables and charts. From the findings, it was ascertained that the level of resilience of contractors’ businesses was very low during the pandemic. The highly rated survival measures were: redistribution of workloads, cross-training of employees, working in shifts, multiple sources of revenue, and automation of tasks. The study also established that post-COVID-19 recovery measures should include: risk assessment, preparation of action plans, accessibility to health insurance, and securing of inventory of materials. In addition, the study asserted that interest should also be directed towards innovation and creativity, resilience in decision-making, networking, flexibility and diversification, management, and improved access to resources and productivity. The paper’s findings form an important background by uncovering vital evidence on COVID-19 survival and recovery measures.