Contextual Ambidexterity, Dynamic Capabilities and Performance Amongst Chartered Private Universities in Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine how dynamic capabilities moderate the relationship between contextual ambidexterity and performance in Kenya's chartered private universities. Private universities in Kenya face intense financial and competitive pressure, yet little is known about whether contextual ambidexterity predicts institutional performance, or whether dynamic capabilities strengthen this relationship. The study targeted all 243 senior managers across 27 chartered private universities in Kenya, using a census approach at both institutional and respondent levels, of whom 195 responded. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyse the data. The findings revealed that contextual ambidexterity positively and significantly influenced organisational performance (β = 0.357, p < .001). Likewise, dynamic capabilities exerted a significant positive effect on performance (β = 0.346, p < .001). Furthermore, dynamic capabilities significantly enhanced the relationship between contextual ambidexterity and performance (β = 0.168, p = .007). The study concludes that contextual ambidexterity and dynamic capabilities are complementary, rather than competing, predictors of performance among private universities in Kenya, with dynamic capabilities significantly strengthening the contextual ambidexterity-performance relationship. The study recommends that university management cultivate an organisational context of discipline, stretch, support, and trust to sustain ambidextrous behaviour, while strengthening their capacity to sense, seize, and reconfigure resources to convert that behaviour into improved performance.