Comparative impact of Kaizen and standard business training on firms and workers

Last registered on August 09, 2024
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Comparative impact of Kaizen and standard business training on firms and workers
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0014115
Initial registration date
August 02, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
August 06, 2024, 3:47 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
August 09, 2024, 7:09 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country
Tanzania, United Republic of
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Yuki Higuchi
Affiliation
Sophia University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Edwin Mhede
PI Affiliation
NMB Bank Tanzania
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Francisco Mugizi
PI Affiliation
University of Dar es Salaam
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Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2024-09-01
End date
2026-12-31
Keywords
Firms & Productivity
Additional Keywords
Kaizen, business training, SMEs
JEL code(s)
L2, M1, O1
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
As the impact of standard business training is not large, an alternative is needed to boost the productivity of small and medium enterprises in developing countries. One of the alternative approaches is the bottom-up and participatory Kaizen. A recent review of business training by VoxDev (Training Entrepreneurs: Issue 3, published in 2023) hints at the effectiveness of the Kaizen approach. In this study, we conduct a 2x2 RCT to examine the relative impact of the two approaches and their complementarity. By collecting data from managers and workers, we will evaluate impacts on firms as well as on their workers since the participatory Kaizen approach is expected to have an impact on the working environment and workers' retention and satisfaction.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Higuchi, Yuki, Edwin Mhede and Francisco Mugizi. 2024. "Comparative impact of Kaizen and standard business training on firms and workers." AEA RCT Registry. August 09. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.14115-1.2
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We will provide training on Kaizen and standard business training. Each training has classroom and on-site modules and lasts for about three months. The target is registered firms with 2 to 99 full-time workers in various sectors.
Intervention Start Date
2025-02-01
Intervention End Date
2026-07-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Adopted management practices, business performance, and workers' self-reported evaluation.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
We will conduct a 2x2 RCT.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization done in the office by a computer
Randomization Unit
Firm
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
170 firms.
Sample size: planned number of observations
170 firms x several rounds of data collection.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
30 firms will receive the Kaizen training, 30 firms will receive the standard business training, and 30 firms will receive both.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH)
IRB Approval Date
2024-07-30
IRB Approval Number
N/A
Analysis Plan