ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Assessing the impact of consumer sentiments and online ratings on consumer purchase intention: (a case study of Ghana hospitality industry)

This study delves into the dynamics of consumer sentiment within the Ghanaian hospitality industry, investigating the factors influencing sentiment and its connection to purchase intention. The study extends to the integration of socio-demographic variables to gain a holistic understanding. The project begins by introducing the significance of consumer sentiment and its pivotal role in shaping customer behaviors and industry trends. Methodologically, a quantitative approach was employed, combining a comprehensive literature review with a survey of diverse respondents (176) using a random sampling technique, including event organizers, travelers, residents, and more. The survey captured responses related to hospitality service usage, sentiment factors such as price, brand loyalty, online reviews, product/service quality, and advertisements/promotions, as well as socio-demographics like age, gender, education, and religion. Reliability, factor analysis, correlation analysis, regression modeling, and ANOVA were used to uncover relationships and trends within the data. The study's outcomes are multi-faceted. Findings highlight that various factor significantly influence consumer sentiment in the Ghanaian hospitality industry, notably price, brand loyalty, online reviews, product/service quality, and advertisements/promotions. The positive correlation between these factors and consumer sentiment underscores their vital roles. The results also indicate that consumer sentiment strongly impacts purchase intention, reflecting the pivotal role of sentiment in driving customer decision-making. Interestingly, the integration of socio-demographic variables into the analysis yielded nuanced insights, revealing diverse patterns in how different demographic groups perceive and respond to various sentiment factors. The study offers valuable implications for businesses to tailor their strategies based on socio-demographic characteristics to enhance customer experiences and drive business success. This project contributes to the field by providing a comprehensive exploration of consumer sentiment within the Ghanaian hospitality industry. The integrated analysis of sentiment factors and socio-demographics offers a more nuanced understanding of customer behaviors, which can inform targeted marketing strategies. Overall, this study serves as a foundational resource for businesses seeking to navigate the complex landscape of consumer sentiment in the hospitality industry in Ghana.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of capital structure on profitability of manufacturing industry in Ghana: A case study at selected firms

This research was done to assess the impact of capital structure on profitability of manufacturing industry in Ghana using some selected firms as the case study for a period of eight (8) years: 2005-2012. Fifteen (15) firms were selected from different sub-sectors of the manufacturing industry. Thirteen (13) of them were firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) whilst the other two were from the private sector. Data for the study were obtained from the audited financial statements of the selected firms from the GSE and the individual firms‟ websites or obtained with permission. Return on equity (ROE) or profit after interest and tax was used to representing profitability, whilst capital structure was represented by the natural logarithms of short term debt (STD), long term debt (LTD) and equity (EQ). Panel data regression method, using both the fixed –effects and the random –effects, was used for the data analysis. Descriptive statistics and correlation analysis were also employed in the study. The result shows that STD and LTD were negatively related to profitability but the effect of the LTD was insignificant. whilst EQ was positively related to profitability. This was consistent with previous empirical studies and also with literature. The study recommends that manufacturing firms in Ghana should use equity such as retained earnings to expand their business instead of debt. Where debt has to be taken it is recommended that it has to be a long term debt. For future research, it is recommended that a study should be done by considering increasing the sampled firms to cover other manufacturing sectors; by considering more firms in the private sector and also looking at the effect of total debt on profitability in the manufacturing industries.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of customer service on organizational performance in the banking sector. A case study of Standard chartered bank limited

With liberalization of the economy in Ghana, and through the financial sector structural adjustment programmes, the challenge has been cast for Banks to deal with customers with high levels of sophistication, education, confidence and their expectations of the service they want to receive. Hence the aim of this study was to assess the impact of customer service on organizational performance in the banking sector using Standard Chartered Bank Limited as case study. The objectives of the study were: to examine the factors that Standard Chartered Bank Limited considers as effective customer service strategy: to ascertain the current state of customer service at Standard Chartered Bank Limited; and to examine the impact of effective customer service on the performance of Standard Chartered Bank Limited. Through an in-depth literature review, the concept of customer service, the quality of customer service and ways of improving customer focus and customer service by banks were ascertained. The study employed the use purposive sampling technique. Data was gathered from answered questionnaires retrieved from respondents. A total of 100 questionnaires were distributed to the staff and customers of standard chartered bank limited, head office, with a response rate of 100%. Data gathered was analyzed using mean score ranking and descriptive analysis. The research design that was used is a simple descriptive survey using questionnaires. The findings revealed that Standard Chartered Bank uses various factors to measure the effectiveness of their services. These include management of complaints, giving feedbacks, assessment of customer loyalty and that the majority of the customers also strongly agreed that the staff of Standard Chartered Bank are very responsive in service delivery and addressing customer challenges and complaints and that the facilities and staff of Standard Chartered Bank have good appearance. This is part of the customer service strategy of the bank. Recommendations were that Standard Chartered Bank Limited must extend it services to rural areas since the rural areas lack certain social amenities, which has increased rural-urban migration placing a load on the amenities in the urban centers.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of communication on stakeholder management: A study of selected project executed by the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly

ABSTRACT Communication is the first principle of stakeholder engagement. Communication with stakeholders help to build an understanding of the PM’s goals and the benefits to the stakeholders help PMs to achieve those goals. Communication with investors and shareholders helps you attract the funding they need for important investments. The consequences of ineffective communication between project team and other stakeholders can be devastating. The aim of research is to assess the impact of communication on stakeholder management with focus on selected project executed by the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly in Ghana. Telephone, legal documents, reports, face to face and e-mails are the main communication channels in stakeholder management. Furthermore, vested interest, stakeholder knowledge and project monitoring are the key factors influencing stakeholders’ communication in project performance. Also, the major barriers to effective communication are found to be; Lack of concreteness of information, Faulty communication tools and Lack of consideration for audience and other stakeholders. The following recommendations were however suggested; the use of faulty communication tools should be highly discouraged and the habit of using good and effective communication tool should be encouraged, audience and stakeholders should be given enough consideration when communicating important message. This will ensure that messages are well circulated and the intended meaning of the message will not be harmed. Also the outcome of the study calls for an improvement of telecommunication since it was ranked as the most preferred medium of communication in this regard.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of exchange rate volatility on economic growth in Ghana

The effects of exchange rate volatility on economic growth have over the years been an issue for both policy makers and academicians on the efficiency of alternative exchange rate policies. Proponents of fixed exchange rate maintain that floating exchange rate is associated with excessive volatility and deviations from equilibrium values. They further argue that excessive volatility and deviations from equilibrium values have reduced economic growth through their effects on trade and investment. In contrast, those in favour of flexible exchange rate argue that exchange rates are mainly driven by other factors, and that changes in factors would require similar, but more abrupt, movements in fixed parities. Also, exchange rate volatility has been found to have adverse effect on economic growth through international trade and investment. It has been found to have negative effects international trade, directly through uncertainty and adjustment costs and indirectly through its effects in allocation of resources and government policies. It can lead to the distortion of the relative prices of domestic resources which will adversely affect investment and production through reduced efficiency.The aim of this study was to look at the impact of exchange rate volatility on economic growth in Ghana using time series data covering the period 1983 – 2010. The standard deviation of the first difference of the logarithm of real exchange rate (VOL) was employed to estimate the real exchange rate volatility and cointegration and error correction models (ECM) were used to determine both the short and long – term relationships. The Cointegration tests suggest: (a) a significant short – term negative relationship between economic growth and exchange rate volatility in Ghana. (b) An insignificant long – term negative relationship between economic growth and exchange rate volatility in Ghana. This is as a result of the timely intervention by government in the exchange rate market by either buying or selling of foreign currencies. All the proxies of labour force, population and human development index showed a positive relationship with growth in Ghana indicating an efficient labour force, population and human development index. The results indicated that human development index with gross domestic investment, technology; exchange rate volatility explains growth in Ghana much better than when human development index is proxied by either labour force or population. Policy makers, researchers and future research may find useful insights from the study.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of emotional intelligence on employee customer service delivery: A case study of banking sector in Ghana

Many banks in Ghana have been faced with customer litigations and customer base reduction leading to business failures, customer corporate disputes and sometimes closures by regulatory authorities. Efforts by bank managers to improve on customer service has led to the enactment of different policies. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, two sets of questionnaires were administered to 100 employees and 100 customers operating within the Accra and Tema Metropolis with focus on five banks using convenience sampling techniques. It was generally observed that customers prefer to deal with employees who have a higher level of emotional intelligence compared to employees who have a lower level of emotional intelligence. The findings further show that a higher level of employee emotional intelligence has a positive effect on customer service irrespective of the location of the bank. A Majority of the banks were however not aware or had little knowledge about emotional intelligence as a tool for superior customer service. The study concluded that banks that had benefited from higher employee emotional intelligence did not only increase their customer base but their employees also acquired an added advantage if employee training was accompanied with monitoring, technical skills and expertise, access to management, counseling and education and a reputation for improving emotional intelligence. The study recommends that banks need to recognize the potential advantages of seeking out and hiring employees with higher levels of emotional intelligence. Also bank managers can train employees to acquire high emotional intelligence skills. Moreover managers must be involved in mentoring subordinates to acquire and use these emotional intelligence skills to solve customer service-related problems. Government and policy makers should play a dual role as both facilitators and educators in encouraging educational institutions and business organizations to train students and employees to be emotionally intelligent in order to promote employee emotional intelligence. Following from the conclusions and recommendation a more detailed research on emotional intelligence involving other non-financial organizations from the private and public sectors is highly recommended.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of human capital development on effective work performance at selected departments in the College of Arts and Social Sciences (Knust).

There has been considerable interest in the effect of human capital development on employee and organizational performance. Specifically the study sought to identify the impact of Human Capital Development (HCD) on employee engagement and work performance using the College of Arts and Social Sciences as a case study. The study was descriptive and involved a sample size of 120 staff selected across the various departments of the College of Arts and Social Sciences. Data was basically primary, and was gathered with the aid of questionnaires. Data was analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The study found that the various departments under the college have effective systems for communicating training and development programmes. Key measures for human capital development in the college included training, mentoring, and shadowing. Specific findings under these measures included the observation that staff are generally aided by supervisors in their goal setting and consequently have been able to develop skills for solving problems through facilitating trainings delivered through coaching. Again there is effective use of mentoring and as a result most staff have been able to develop their potentials by following expert advice from their supervisors. Consequently, staff have generally been able to develop skills and experience through continuous training. Most staff however felt that training programmes are not regular, and as a result have not seen noticeable improvement in employee engagement as a result of regular reinforced training. Findings suggested that most staff believe their skill at work has improved as a result of employing new learning methods. A linear regression run on the effect of HCD on work performance shows that there is a considerable effect. In delivery of HCD it was recommended that there is the need for the various departments vi under the College of Arts and Social Sciences to work towards improving the timing of human capital development programmes. Again, it was recommended that there is the need for improvement in the methods of human capital development delivery. This will require adequate investment in technology for delivery of training, including e-learning platforms to facilitate the training process.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of Human Resource Development on the performance of Small and Medium Scale Businesses: case study of selected SME’S in the Kumasi Metropolis

The role and importance of SME’s in Ghana economy has been the subject for increased attention particularly in the 1990’s up to date. SME’s have been known to be the backbone and industrial hob for development in nation building. What then is the development agenda for its short, medium and long term goals in enhancing the business growth survival and development. This study investigated the impact of Human Resource Development of selected SME’s in Kumasi Metropolis.The study therefore sought to assess howHuman Resource Development activities and practices have been used to the benefit of SME`s. The researcher used in-depth interview technique in gathering the data. The respondents were required to respond to different sets of questions posed by the researcher to solicit for the appropriate responses. The findings revealed that majority of the SME`s do not haveHuman Resource Development policies and programmes that would ensure their growth and survival. Again, managers of the SME`s run a one-man-show, where the owner or manager takes all the major decisions concerning the business. As such, the owner decides at his or her own will, as to when and who to have training and development. The study therefore, recommends that training and development programmes such as short and regular courses, workshops and other advanced learning courses are needed for the different categories of business within the SME`s sector.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of Information Technology (IT) investment on business profitability (Case study of selected commercial banks in Ghana)

This study was to provide empirical evidence on how investment in Information technology impact on business profitability using GLS regression model. (Clark, J.A. 1986; Ko, M., & Bryson, K. M., 2002). It was done by testing the significance of the choice variables (loans, deposit, expenditure on information technology and Bank of Ghana prime rate) on business profit. The rationale behind this work was to contribute and possibly put an end to the on-going debate on the exact impact of IT investment on firms’ profitability. The methodology focused on using financial ratios such as return on assets, return on equity, profit margin to assess business performance (Dehning & Richardson, 2002; Li & Johnson; 2002) The study uses panel dataset from the five commercial banks over a period of nine years from 2006 to 2014. The study found out that expenditure on information technology has no direct significant influence on profitability of the commercial banks. The study therefore recommends that commercial banks in Ghana should take a second look at continuous investment in information technology, as it may not necessarily give them the profit they are through thick and thin looking for directly.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of information technology (IT) investment on business profitability (case study of selected commercial banks in Ghana)

ABSTRACT This study was to provide empirical evidence on how investment in Information technology impact on business profitability using GLS regression model. (Clark, J.A. 1986; Ko, M., & Bryson, K. M., 2002). It was done by testing the significance of the choice variables (loans, deposit, expenditure on information technology and Bank of Ghana prime rate) on business profit. The rationale behind this work was to contribute and possibly put an end to the on-going debate on the exact impact of IT investment on firms’ profitability. The methodology focused on using financial ratios such as return on assets, return on equity, profit margin to assess business performance (Dehning & Richardson, 2002; Li & Johnson; 2002) The study uses panel dataset from the five commercial banks over a period of nine years from 2006 to 2014. The study found out that expenditure on information technology has no direct significant influence on profitability of the commercial banks. The study therefore recommends that commercial banks in Ghana should take a second look at continuous investment in information technology, as it may not necessarily give them the profit they are through thick and thin looking for directly.

Source: KNUST
Assessing the impact of interest rate fluctuations on borrowings a case study of TF Financial Services Limited.

Interest rate is recognized as a major indicator in terms of borrowing in the financial sector of every economy. The aim of the study was to access the impact of interest rate fluctuations on borrowings, using TF Financial Services Limited (A subsidiary of the Teachers Fund) as a Case Study. In achieving the aim of the study, the following objectives were espoused: To investigate effect of interest rate fluctuations on borrowing; to determine the loan monitoring mechanisms of lending institutions.; to determine the challenges of borrowers and lenders due to fluctuations in interest rate and to determine the perceive causes of interest rate fluctuations in Ghana. The selected respondents were the employees of the Company. Thirty-two respondents were selected to represent the sampling size for the population of ninety-five employees of the company. In selecting the respondents, both purposive and convenient sampling was used. Data from interview and questionnaire were used together with the financial records of the Company for the data analysis. The study found out that, clients who patronize the services of the company are not pleased with the fluctuations of the interest rate on borrowings. Again, the study has also indicated that clients are not able to pay promptly their outstanding amount in times of a higher interest rate as compared to when the interest rate is lower. The study further revealed that, the company uses varied forms of monitoring mechanisms such as a reduced charges and fees to encourage clients to pay their outstanding obligations to the company. The research indicated that ineffectiveness of loan monitoring mechanisms affects the company’s operations which thus limit its business potentials. It is also perceived that competition in the market especially among the financial institutions and the extent of the development of the financial sector usually makes it possible for the interest rate to fluctuate within the market.

Source: KNUST