A customer retention framework for the port of Ngqura container commodity
- Authors: Myoli, Chuma
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Customer loyalty -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Customer relations -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Harbors -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Shipping -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- Management
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/14179 , vital:27440
- Description: The maritime sector plays an important role in economies across the globe. Ports in particular are the backbone of the economy of countries endowed with shorelines as they facilitate foreign trade through the importation and exportation of goods to and from their domestic markets. South Africa’s latest addition to its complimentary ports system, the Port of Ngqura, is positioned as a container transshipment hub and a gateway port to Africa with its world-class infrastructure and deep-water container berths at 18 metres, the deepest on the African continent. Ports, whose main mandate is the container commodity, struggle to retain customers as the container industry is a fickle one. As a result, the retention of transshipment container cargo customers remain a challenge for ports. In recent years, ports have to compete more aggressively for their participation in major logistics networks and these days, the ports of the same region are increasingly competing with each other. There are clusters of ports with the same type of supply located within a region competing with other clusters of ports in other regions. The main objective of this study was to propose a customer retention framework for the Port of Ngqura to be used as part of the marketing strategy to possibly retain customers, grow market share and to increase profits. The study focused on the effect of components such as value proposition, customer service quality, customer satisfaction, customer relationship management and customer loyalty on customer retention. After the exercise of testing statistical reliability, the researcher established that the measuring instrument for the component of value proposition was deemed unreliable and therefore, does not necessarily lead to customer retention for the Port of Ngqura. Nunnally (1978) recommends that instruments used in basic research have reliability of 0.70 or higher. The Cronbach Alpha score for the value proposition measuring scale was 0.41, which is below the recommended 0.70. The measuring instruments of the remaining four components of customer service quality, customer satisfaction, customer relationship management and customer loyalty as influencers of customer retention proved to be reliable due to the Cronbach Alpha score being above the recommended 0.70 for all four measuring instruments. In conclusion, this study showed the importance of customer retention and more importantly, how the mentioned reliable four components affect customer retention at the Port of Ngqura. Recommendations were presented by the author on how to integrate the components of customer retention into a retention framework that can contribute to the profitability of the port. The findings of this study led to the recommendation of the need for the Port of Ngqura to firstly, incorporate customer retention into overall marketing strategy and to thus be aggressive as customer relationship building is crucial in retaining customers and growing market share in today’s competitive port environment. Secondly, the port needs to segment its target customers, it is recommended that the target market be well defined, understood and segmented based on industry (shipping line, clearing and forwarding agency, fruit, automotive or wool) and amount of volumes and revenue brought to the Port of Ngqura. Thirdly, leadership involvement as at the strategic level of Transnet Group and Transnet National Ports Authority, executive leaders need to be involved in the implementation of customer retention for marketing of the port as they are the ones that have a high delegation of authority when it comes to decision making. It is also recommended that the measurement of success be clearly defined and linked to the objectives for the implementation of customer retention. The marketers and the Port of Ngqura, using customer relationship strategies, should devise ways of measuring loyalty to the port and the brand, the reputation of the port, service quality and customer satisfaction. Employee training is the most critical recommendation as they must be well trained and equipped to execute their duties, they must be knowledgeable about the maritime industry as well as the business of their customers, fully understand their customers’ needs and have customer empathy. Ports can also improve service quality by focusing on port and terminal efficiency by conducting benchmark studies with high ranked ports like the Port of Singapore as they are known for high levels of efficiency in the market. By improving service quality, the port will improve customer satisfaction and achieve customer loyalty and ultimately, retention.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A leadership transfer framework to improve the retention rate in the private hotel industry
- Authors: Gregersen, Peter Carl
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Corporate culture -- South Africa , Employee retention -- South Africa , Hospitality industry -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/7160 , vital:21284
- Description: The transference of knowledge and the creation of a knowledge vault within operations of the Hospitality sector is the cornerstone to the success of this dynamic contributor to the economy, not only as a skills developer, but also as a collective group of experts that unknowingly build a community of expertise that transfer knowledge amongst themselves within an organisation. Leadership that share knowledge, whether tacit or implied, leads to the development and knowledge growth from members to those who are exposed to the intricacies of decision making and business practices. This leads then to the skills development and retention of the participants who feel nurtured and fulfilled in the employment within the organisation and view themselves as valued members. The finding of this research reveals a correlation between knowledge sharing and the desire for job security that leads to the feeling of being nurtured and finding the employment positive and enjoyable. The transference of knowledge allows the receiver of the knowledge to develop to where the point of the receiver becoming an expert in their chosen field is attained and the collective of the mangers are developed to the level of a community of experts in their various fields. However the academic qualifications of leadership is low, the significance of this highlights the level of networking amongst themselves as paramount to the success of this multi million rand industry.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A proposed model for enterprise resource planning benefits for SMEs
- Authors: De Matos, Paulo
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Small business -- South Africa Enterprise resource planning -- South Africa , Economic development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/14971 , vital:28107
- Description: Small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) play a significant role in global and national economies, both in developed and developing countries, contributing significantly to economic growth and job creation. Yet, SMEs face ongoing survival issues as their limited access to resources often constrains their ability to compete and realise their potential. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are known to be a crucial component in realising benefits for any organisation and are seen as significant contributors to an organisation’s performance. However, only a portion of SMEs report that their value expectations have been met in adopting an ERP system. SMEs require a better understanding of how to extract value from ERP adoption in order to remain competitive. An on-going SME problem is a lack of low-level awareness of the benefits that an ERP system is capable of providing them. The problem is stated as “SMEs do not understand the benefits derived from the adoption of an ERP system”. The purpose of this treatise was to determine a clearer understanding of how ERP systems can be considered a technological innovation that may be exploited by an SME to deliver business value by increasing the performance of the SME and thereby increasing the SME’s competitive advantage. A literature review was conducted on ERP and SMEs which identified benefit models grounded in the theories of Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) and Resource Based View (RBV). DOI explains the benefits derived from ERP use as the technology diffuses throughout the social organisation and RBV measures the business value extracted from ERP adoption and use. A model for ERP benefits for SMEs was proposed based on the extant literature and empirical evaluation on a sample of 107 SYSPRO ERP users in South Africa. The model was statistically assessed as to the relationships between the independent variables of ease of use, collaboration, capabilities, efficiencies, analytics, industry sector and maturity against the dependent variable of ERP business value. The variables of analytics, capabilities and ease of use together explain 68.9% of the variance of ERP business value, while analytics and capabilities explain 53.8%. No significant relationship was found for efficiencies, collaboration, industry or maturity, being a measure of length of years’ experience in ERP use. The results indicate that SMEs perceive analytics to be a valuable determinant of ERP value contributing to the competitiveness of SMEs. The higher the SME focuses on analytics, the greater the organisation’s performance increases due to the enhancement of analytical-based decisions aiding in a better decision-making process. Capabilities are the degree to which an ERP system caters for the functional needs of the SME. This treatise argues that SMEs should pay particular focus on their operational requirements and whether the ERP system is capable of providing them as customisation of the ERP is costly. Organisational personnel utilising ERP must be comfortable utilising it. Perceptions as to an ERP’s complexity and usefulness define the ease-of-use. SMEs should consider the inherent aspects of a given ERP system that support the adoption rate of their personnel of an ERP system. Practically, SMEs should assess the degree of system intuitiveness both during ERP selection and during the adoption lifecycle phases. ERP providers should focus on the provisioning of aspects both in the software and during the implementation of an ERP system at an SME in ensuring the system is intuitive, useful, easy to use, functionally addresses the SME requirements simply and surfaces meaningful analytics in support of decision-making process.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A proposed service quality framework for multi-national supply logistics providers in the South African automotive industry
- Authors: Van Aswegen, Dawid Titus
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Business logistics -- South Africa -- Management , Purchasing -- South Africa -- Management , Automobile industry and trade -- South Africa , Industrial procurement -- South Africa -- Management
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/21307 , vital:29476
- Description: Managing a sustainable service business rests on two critical customer perceptions: Firstly, the perceived sufficiency of the value of the service, and secondly the level of value differentiation between the current service provider other service providers in the market. (DeSarbo, Ebbs, Fong & Snow, 2010; Parasuraman & Grewal, 2000) The direction for this study was prompted by the limited research available around service quality for Supply Logistics within the global automotive industry. The study identified the key factors that logistics service providers need to focus on when aligning their perceptions of service quality to that of their customers. The service gaps between customer and service provider perceptions are uncovered. Particular focus was given to: The definition gaps in service quality, The perceived level of service quality, and The size of service quality differentiation between service providers. The key finding of the study is that service differentiation is influenced by the ability of the Logistics Service Provider (LSP) to deliver a quality of service in line with the level of importance the various elements hold to the customer. The causal relationships offered a step wise understanding of improving the perceptions of customers. This perception forming process is outlined as follows: Firstly, create a common understanding of the definition of service quality and establish the comparative importance of the various elements. Having an understanding of how customers’ value service quality is a critical first step in delivering superior service. A proposed Service Quality Framework for multi-national Supply Logistics providers in the South African automotive industry Secondly, align efforts to achieve in accordance to the level of importance of the service elements. If this is achieved, LSP’s will retain positive differentiation to its competitors irrespective of the actions of those competitors. Lastly, LSP’s need to regularly review if their own perception of the service level (per element) is in line with that of the customer. The study created a service quality framework of 22 different service elements grouped in four service factors. The relative importance of these elements were uncovered. This offered insight for organizing the business around key service elements. Within Supply Logistics the operational-management-tools, engineering-skills, processes-stability and management-structure are typical elements around which customers form their perceptions. The quality of the direct staff holds the key to sustained customer satisfaction, much more so than the commercial arrangements, industry innovations and the prestige of the brand behind the service. This study laid a foundation from which future research can deeper explore the unique slant that geographical, organisational designation or customer brand lines hold on the service quality perception.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A proposed theoretical model for successful implementation of franchising in the South African chicken-based fast food industry
- Authors: Ekosse, Emmanuel Georges Ivo Ekosse
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Franchises (Retail trade) -- South Africa , Fast food restaurants -- South Africa -- Management Chain restaurants -- South Africa -- Management
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15567 , vital:28270
- Description: The purpose of this case study research effort was to develop and propose a theoretical model for the successful implementation of franchising in the South African chicken-based fast food industry. Design/Methodology/Approach - A single case with embedded units of a franchisor and a franchisee was initially adopted, but inaccessibility to respondents resulted in the adaptation of the study into a single holistic case. This is justified as the case serves a revelatory and explanatory purpose (Yin, 1994, p. 44). The case provided insight into the implementation processes of franchising in the South African chicken-based fast food industry; where franchised chicken-based concepts are leading the industry. The inaccessibility to original target respondents considered a limitation in the original research design. The limited contextual knowledge of the transcriber, and inexperience resulted in a sub-par transcript which slightly limited the interpretation of the data. Originality/Value – The case study examines the current implementation of franchising in the South African chicken-based fast food industry; with particular focus on the chicken-based fast food franchise systems which have consistently outperformed other types of fast food franchise systems. The proposed theoretical model can be applied in any industry or geographical location with an adjustment of the model‟s contextual considerations.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A real estate management framework for the public sector in South Africa
- Authors: Moleko, Thabang Vuyani Qaqambile
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Real estate management -- South Africa , Real property -- South Africa Real estate development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/19135 , vital:28776
- Description: Organisations have realised that fixed asset portfolio or real estate portfolio can be the second or third largest operating cost of an organisation. Management has not placed sufficient attention to how to treat real estate as a strategic asset that is part of corporate strategy. This is now called Corporate Real Estate Management (CREM) which is now embraced as a way of incorporating the strategy and management of real estate into the corporate strategy imperatives in the management of all successful organisations with a property portfolio. Property and land are part of the narrative of the painful legacy of apartheid and dispossession in South Africa. The South African government has a sizable property portfolio that should be supporting its strategic and necessary service delivery needs. The state property portfolio has an urgent maintenance backlog and concedes it has performed poor overall management of the portfolio. The rectification of the backlog and the new buildings are required at a significant cost to the taxpayer. The state has to start using CREM in the management of their public sector real estate assets(PSRE). The study seeks to see if public sector organisations have adopted the principles of CREM into their management of PSRE. The study has reviewed the variables of planning, processes, competencies, information, operations and structure around PSRE. These majority of these variables have been shown an influence on the wellbeing of the public-sector property portfolio and the functioning of public sector as a whole.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A sustainability assessment of the Inxuba Yethemba local municipality
- Authors: Van Lingen, Matthew
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/7056 , vital:21213
- Description: The aim of this research was to assess the sustainability of the Inxuba Yethemba local municipality with the goal that policy-makers would use the assessment recommendations to improve their decision-making. The United Nations Indicators for Sustainable Development framework (3rd Edition) was chosen to carry out the assessment because of its indicator selection and methodology for distinguishing which indicators were relevant or irrelevant for the assessment (United Nations, 2007). If an indicator showed that the situation was improving, it was assumed to help with the overall sustainability of the area (Hedayati-Moghadam, Eskandar Seidayi and Nouri, 2014; and United Nations, 2007). The indicators for environmental sustainability showed that the area is on an environmentally sustainable path (Du Toit, 2017; United Nations, 2007). While the indicators for social sustainability showed that the living standards of the population (measured by poverty, housing, and access to electricity amongst others) had increased which is a good indication for social sustainability. The indicators for education and labour productivity showed the opposite (CHDM a, 2012; CHDM a, 2014; United Nations, 2007). The indicators for the economy showed that the economy was not growing which is not a good indication for economic sustainability (CHDM a, 2012; CHDM a, 2014; United Nations, 2007). The recommendation to policy-makers is that developing labour productivity through education and skills training is the most important area to improve, and compiling regular sustainability assessments will improve their decision making. Another recommendation is that, because 65% of the households rely on the social grant (CHDM b, 2014) this cannot be withdrawn in the short term. Furthermore, if inflation were to develop into hyperinflation, the value of the social grants would deteriorate (Market Insight South Africa, 2016). A recommendation to policy makers is that more data collection is needed in order to do proper sustainability assessments. Overall, the municipality cannot be classified as sustainable mainly on account of the poor education system, high levels of unemployed and unskilled labour, and the social, and economic dependence that the municipality has on government spending.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A sustainable franchise venture framework for new franchises in South Africa
- Authors: George, Karen Jean
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Franchises (Retail trade) -- South Africa New business enterprises -- South Africa , New business enterprises -- Management
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/47948 , vital:40455
- Description: This paper proposes a franchise framework to gain better insight into identifying sustainable future franchise business ventures in South Africa. Many studies have confirmed that worldwide franchises offer more sustainable business growth for entrepreneurs and a higher success rate for start-up businesses, yet the problem persists of franchise failures and there are inconclusive reasons for these failures. By developing a franchise framework, the study aimed to contribute to possible solutions of South Africa’s high unemployment, as well as its poor performance in terms of entrepreneurial activity and economic development. The study proposed methods for improving the chances of success with franchise selection for franchisees through developing a franchise framework with specific emphasis on the sustainability of the business. By applying the proposed framework, the prospective franchisee could apply this framework in determining whether a particular franchise would provide a sound investment. Design/Methodology/Approach – A literature study was followed up with a case study research approach. The context was singular, namely the franchise restaurant industry in South Africa. Semi-structured interview questionnaires and recorded interviews were undertaken with embedded multiple units of analyses based on feedback from franchise industry experts, franchisees and a franchisor who owns restaurant franchises. The case study research explored the factors that contributed to the successful franchising business model of selected Spur Corporation Ltd. restaurant franchises, located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Key success factors, which were necessary to maintain and establish a sustainable franchise that has competitive edge over its competitors, were explored in this research.
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- Date Issued: 2017
A talent management framework for the South African renewable energy sector
- Authors: Hare, Brent
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Renewable energy sources -- South Africa -- Personnel management Personnel management -- South Africa , Manpower planning -- South Africa Employee selection -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15912 , vital:28290
- Description: Since the publication of the White Paper on energy Policy of 1998, South Africa has taken off on a new trajectory of sustainability. The South African government have identified that the renewable energy sector will play a critical role in advancing and improving the energy sector. They envisage that the sector will contribute to the development of a green economy and the creation of meaningful employment for all South Africans. With the renewable energy sector of South Africa being dependent on skills, many of which are pertinent for the success of the sector, sufficient skilled workers are required to provide a service to the growing sector. Upon engaging with individuals employed in the sector and embarking on the research it became apparent that there was a lack of a talent management framework for the sector. Talent management represents a means for companies to develop and sustain talent pipelines thereby creating a competitive advantage. Globally executives across the employment spectrum admit that they have challenges in building a strong talent pipeline. The South African Renewable Energy Sector (SARES) is not exempt from this reality, where it has been well documented that South Africa is struggling with a skills shortage. This makes it difficult to grow and develop a fledgling sector. The purpose of this treatise was to evaluate the need for a talent management framework for the South African Renewable Energy Sector. To evaluate this, a literature review was performed on concepts relating to the development of a talent management framework specifically for the sector. These concepts or independent variables were, engineering skills, competence, knowledge worker, policies supporting RE development as well as training and development. The talent management framework relied on ring fencing the study around the knowledge worker, by correlating the definition of an engineer to that of a knowledge worker. The results show that despite the proclamation made by the South African government that South Africa is geared to supply the skills required for SARES. The research found a need for educational institutes to produce more knowledge workers. The results of this research study showed that despite the low positive correlation between the five independent variables, being, engineering skills, competence, knowledge worker, policies supporting RE development they would still provide those responsible for recruitment and talent management with a platform to be able to develop a working talent management strategy. There is a need for the development of a suitable talent management framework, which would allow the sector to manage elements of talent management such as recruitment and retention of knowledge workers. The proposed talent management framework can be used to assist in consolidating the present recruitment practises as well as being used to develop a talent management strategy for the sector.
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- Date Issued: 2017
Airline revenue management performance measurement of South African Airways origin-destination revenue management
- Authors: Githiri, Duncan Wanjau
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Revenue management , Airlines Finance , Performance Measurement , Airlines Rates Mathematical models , South African Airways
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/59188 , vital:27455
- Description: Revenue Management (RM) in the airline industry is the practise of selling fixed capacity as a service over a finite time horizon. The market is characterised by the customers’ willingness to pay different prices for the service. This creates the opportunity to target different customer segments and use price differential to attain the optimal passenger fare mix to maximise revenue. The aim is to maximise revenue and an airline can expect revenue increase of between 3 to 7 percent with the successful implementation of a Revenue Management system. The question of whether the revenue increase can be attributed to the RMS is crucial in determining its level of success and validating the optimisation strategy applied (Rannou and Melli, 2003). South African Airways (SAA) migration from Leg-based optimisation to Origin-Destination (O&D) network based revenue management optimisation created the opportunity for this study to measure and evaluate the RMS performance. Revenue performance measuring tools using inventory systems data to measure RMS performance, ASK (Available Seat Kilometre), RASK (Revenue per Available Seat Kilometre), CASK (Cost per Available Seat Kilometre), RPK (Revenue Passenger Kilometre) and cabin factor yield. The limitations relating to the performance measuring tools utilising inventory system data, is the inability for continuous measurement and the isolation of the impact to revenue due to the RMS on its own. In seeking to gauge the performance of the O&D optimisation, the Revenue Opportunity Model (ROM) is applied. ROM is a post departure measuring tool utilised to continuously measure and isolate the contribution of the RMS on SAA’s O&D network. The revenue opportunity achieved versus the potential revenue was assessed. A revenue comparison of the airlines 2014 and 2015 financial year is performed. The results of the analysis showed the O&D optimisation yielded positive revenue capture on routes that applied the correct optimisation strategy. Recommendations on the optimisation strategy to be applied on routes having average or low revenues captured are presented. The aim is to provide the SAA revenue management department with tangible solutions that would result in increased revenue for the SAA network.
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- Date Issued: 2017
Alumni perception of the NMMU computing sciences department
- Authors: Glaum, Arthur Philip Martin
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Consumers -- Research -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Customer services -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Consumer satisfaction -- Education (Higher) Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University -- Alumni and alumnae Universities and colleges -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15644 , vital:28279
- Description: The success of a course offered by a university and the effectiveness of the instructors have commonly been measured by means of student evaluations. The feedback generated is typically used to identify instructors who need additional training, courses that need to be restructured or the need for financial rewards for those who excel. The principal objective of educating students is, knowledge, training and skills they can use and apply after graduating, regardless of the field of study. The perception of the Alumni about the extent of learning and the usefulness of the knowledge is a key measure for universities to assess their success. A service guarantee is defined as a formal promise made to customers about the service they will receive or it is a written promise made by the company through advertising or company literature that it will provide compensation if promises are broken. In order to ensure customer satisfaction in a service offering, the quality of service performance needs to be guaranteed. Many service industries promise a level of service performance, with or without conditions attached. Customer value is a complex concept as it is often interpreted with various meanings depending on the point of view adopted. A definition of customer value is the perceived value that the customer gains when purchasing a product or receiving a service. However, customer value can be used in a variety of contexts. The purpose of this research study is to measure the perception and satisfaction of Alumni of the Department of Computing Sciences and identify areas for improvement by performing a systematic analysis of the determinants of satisfaction. This research is an exploratory, quantitative study consisting of literature- and case-study components used to test proposed hypotheses. The literature study was performed on secondary sources to establish the key concepts related to the topics of Service Guarantee and Marketing, Stakeholder Theory, Customer-perceived Value and Alumni Perceptions. The empirical study consisted of surveys (questionnaires) completed by Alumni of the Department of Computing Sciences. The questionnaire used in this research consisted of questions regarding demographic data and questions regarding perceived perception of the Department of Computing Sciences and influencing factors. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise the data into a more compact form which could simplify the identification of patterns in the data. Inferential statistics were used to verify if conclusions made from the sample data could be inferred onto a larger population. Recommended university and teaching practices based on the statistical analysis of the survey results were identified. A model identified the following factors as having an influence on Alumni Satisfaction with the NMMU Department of Computing Sciences: Customer Satisfaction, Course Contents, Modern Technologies, Academic Staff, Admin. Staff, Departments, University Atmosphere and Perceived Value. The importance of each factor was identified to understand how to improve the Alumni perception. According to the inferential ranking of Alumni Satisfaction that ranks the factors on the average mean values, a factor that should be improved upon is the Alumni Network. Recommended improvements were suggested for the Department of Computing Sciences based on the statistical analysis of the survey results. Two sub-groups were defined by different levels of education and they were found to have different perceptions of the factors that were measured. It was shown that there are small and medium significant differences in only two of the factors of the proposed Alumni satisfaction model, distinguising through different levels of education. The Alumni Satisfaction model developed in this study specified the factors that influence Alumni Satisfaction with the Deptarment of Computing Sciences and the effect that each of these factors has on that satisfaction.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An analysis of government’s facilitation in attracting original equipment manufacturer foreign direct investments in Port Elizabeth
- Authors: Shogole, Nomkhitha Samantha
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Automobile industry and trade -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Investments, Foreign -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Economic development -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/20319 , vital:29260
- Description: The South African automotive industry has experienced significant growth since its first inception in 1995. South Africa’s trade relations with other countries has facilitated the growth of this sector. Government introduced programmes that encouraged growth in the sector, namely the Motor Industry Development Programme (MIDP) and the Automotive Production and Development Programme (APDP). South Africa as the catalyst for development in Africa needs to continuously strive to integrate with other developed countries to and promote Foreign Direct Investments into the continent. The development of the industry requires organic growth to ensure that it remains sustainable. The research problem addressed in this study is to establish the role government plays in ensuring a sustained growth of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the automotive sector. The establishment of this statement is imperative to the growth of automotive investments by multinationals in South Africa. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) are positioned in three of the country’s eleven provinces. The Eastern Cape region has been known to be the automotive-hub of South Africa with a GDP that is driven by the secondary automotive sector consisting of multinational OEM giants such as Volkswagen South Africa (VWSA), General Motors South Africa (GMSA), Ford Motor Company, FAW and Daimler. South African OEMs are required to lobby at the principal companies before a new model can be built in the country. Lobbying involves offering competitive logistics costs to build models in South Africa. Stakeholders led by government are required to actively participate in these negotiations to sustain the industry in the country. One of the ways this can be achieved is through formulation, integration and alignment of strategies between all stakeholders. Stakeholders involve private sector and public sector working together. South Africa has achieved an open-country perception to foreign investors through the APDP. The problem statement was accurately explained and expressed clearly and sub-problems were identified from areas in the main problem that required further analysis. Literature has revealed that South African ports are considered to be the most expensive in the world and that there is a lack of port and rail integrated infrastructure. Providing a complete supply chain for logistics will result in increased FDI for South Africa. The governmental entities’ support will allow the OEMs an opportunity to increase investment in South Africa thus creating employment and adding value to the GDP of South Africa. The South African component manufacturer’s sector has grown intensively creating sustainable jobs for South Africans. The industry is structured in such a way that there is a multiplier-effect reaction to macro-economic conditions. A comprehensive literature review was executed to understand the nature and extent of the global automotive industry, the South African automotive industry, the regions that host OEMs, the Motor Industry Development Programme and the Automotive Production and Development Programme. A primary research instrument was constructed, in the form of a questionnaire, to test themes which were highlighted in the literature review which can influence the sector’s competitive advantage. A questionnaire was distributed with the assistance of industry representatives in the Transport and Logistics sector. There was consensus on many issues regarding the current structure of the South African automotive industry. Specifically, the importance of rail, efficiencies, prices and value-added services needed in the industry to attract FDIs as well as the readiness of the Port of Port Elizabeth with regards to being positioned as an automotive-hub for Sub-Saharan Africa.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An analysis of organisational culture in a restaurant in Grahamstown, South Africa
- Authors: Kamona, Oabona Bonnie
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Corporate culture -- Case studies , Corporate culture -- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Case studies , Restaurants-- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Management , Saints Bistro (Makhanda, South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/8178 , vital:21363
- Description: This study investigates organisational culture and shared values that currently exist at Saint’s Bistro in Grahamstown along with the desired organisational culture and desired values. In particular it explores possible discrepancies between the two using the reliable and valid Competing Values Framework (CVF) and its matched scale, the Organisational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) and the Shared Values Survey. McDonald and Gandz (1992: 64-67) discovered 24 shared values that correlate with modern business and where each value ties in with one of the four quadrants of the CVF. The researcher found a study conducted by Burchell and Saele (2011: 512) which is a cultural study based on the CVF working in conjunction with shared values survey to analyse a situation and it presented an improved means of investigating culture and values related facets within an organisation. The aim of this study is to examine the existing culture and subsequently make recommendations that can create alignment between what is currently experienced and what is desired in the organisation, if it is found that misalignment exists. This research presents a study using a paper based survey conducted in a restaurant in Grahamstown, South Africa. The results are based on the use of the OCAI in conjunction with organisational shared values profiles. The study revealed that there is no significant gap between the current organisational culture and the desired organisational culture within the organisation. Due to these findings, the research established that a structured strategy for maintaining the organisational culture should be developed in order to sustain the existing organisational culture that can be used when recruiting and on-boarding new employees in the future. The research is significant in that it highlighted a link between the competing values framework and the shared values survey and this will contribute to the effective analysis of organisational culture in future culture research.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An analysis of the effect that integrated reporting has had on the description of the strategy and strategic planning process in the banking sector in South Africa
- Authors: Musuwo, Getrude Tafadzwa
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/40990 , vital:25045
- Description: The study was carried out in order to analyse the effect which the requirement for integrated reporting has had on the description of strategy and strategic planning processes of three South African Banks during the three-year period between 2012 and 2014. The study was conducted in three Johannesburg Stock Exchange listed Banks namely Barclays Bank, Capitec Bank and Standard Bank and focused on their integrated reports for 2012 to 2014. The objectives of the study were to analyse the change in the scope of the depth of reporting on strategy, analyse the evolution of the strategic planning process, compare and contrast the banks’ nature, scope and depth of reporting and establish how the requirement for integrated reporting has impacted on the strategic planning processes in the banks. The study was carried out as a content analysis of the integrated reports of the three banks. The sample for the study consisted for the 9 integrated reports issued by the three banks in the period from 2012 to 2014. There was an increasing trend in the prominence of reporting on strategy by the C.E.Os and chairmen of the companies in the integrated reports. All the companies exhibited an increase in the depth of their reporting on strategy in their overall integrated reports. There is a general increase in the depth of reporting on value creation in the integrated reports. From discussing their business models to some extent in 2012 and 2013, all integrated reports reported on strategy to a large extent in 2014. The study concluded that the scope and depth of reporting on strategy was growing. The study also concluded that strategic planning processes had been transformed due to the requirement for integrated reporting. It was also concluded that Standard Bank had the greatest focus on strategy. Further studies may focus beyond strategy and explore the extent to which companies are implementing non-financial measures in their integrated reporting.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An assessment of industrial development zones in growing SMMEs: the East London industrial development zone case
- Authors: Tinta, Akhona Nelisa
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Small business -- South Africa -- East London -- Growth Economic development -- South Africa -- East London , Industrial development projects -- South Africa -- East London Business enterprises
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/21427 , vital:29516
- Description: The small, medium and micro enterprises sector in South Africa is critical in addressing poverty, job creation and social instability inherited by the democratic government. The transformation of the economy has seen various pieces of legislation being enacted in order to promote a favourable environment for the growth of the SMME sector. As such, instruments such as the Industrial Development Zones were put in place to facilitate investment, create jobs and promote exports with one of the main objectives to grow the SMME sector. In this study, the case of the East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ) in supporting the growth of the SMME sector in economic growth and addressing socio-economic challenges was analysed. The exploratory qualitative research methodology was used in the study. Structured questionnaires and a semi-structured interview guide were used to collect data from the 49 identified participants and an Executive Management representative from the ELIDZ in order to present the data obtained precisely. The study recommends that an integrated model of SMME growth by the private and public sector be developed in ensuring that there are clear expectations on the determinants of growth for the sector. In addition, the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality must have in place a consolidated database of SMMEs in order for the private and public institutions to elect the SMMEs which can be participants in their SMME development programmes.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An evaluation into the organisational culture at a selected South African state owned enterprise
- Authors: Ngubane, Nombulelo
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Corporate culture -- South Africa Government business enterprises -- South Africa , Government corporations -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/48035 , vital:40465
- Description: The purpose of this research was to evaluate and to develop a theoretical model for a sustainable organisational culture within the South African Post Office (SAPO) RSA. The goal of this study research was to evaluate the organisational culture within the SA Post Office, to develop a theoretical model of the sustainable organisational culture through literature review and analysis of the respondents‟ survey questionnaires. In addition, the study sought to investigate the perceived success of organisational transformation for sustainable organisational culture by examining the key factors that are believed impact sustainable organisational culture. Based on the above, to determine how SAPO measures up to the requirements for a sustainable organisational culture. This study research provides useful insight into the factors that contribute to a sustainable organisational culture for the South African Post Office. This research looks into the current organisational culture at SAPO.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An evaluation of clinical governance within a private radiology organisation in Durban KwaZulu-Natal
- Authors: Wedderburn-Maxwell, Morgan Keir
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/40884 , vital:25036
- Description: South African health care organisations are required to adhere to the National Health Act, 61 of 2003 which contains the national core standards. Clinical governance is a key domain within the national core standards and is directly involved with a health care organisation’s ability to deliver quality care services. It can be described as a framework that ensures doctors and health care employees collaborate to provide superior quality health care services and create clinical accountability. The aim of this research was to evaluate the role of clinical governance within a private radiology organisation in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). The goals of this research was to identify and explore the challenges that are associated with clinical governance within a private health care organisation in Durban, KZN. Furthermore, to evaluate the importance and implications of clinical governance for a private radiology organisation in Durban, KZN. The objectives of this research was to investigate how the private radiology organisation is managing clinical governance and to identify whether there is a common understanding of the concept among its members. The research adopted a qualitative approach where semi-structured interviews were conducted to obtain the data that enabled the goals and objectives of this research to be attained. The results indicated that clinical governance is a key factor to the private radiology organisations long-term sustainability. Clinical governance is vital for health care organisations to deliver quality health care services. The private radiology organisation places a significant emphasis among its members to deliver superior quality health care services. As a result, the organisation utilises the key elements within the clinical governance framework to continuously increase the quality of care that it provides and abide to the legally binding standards. The results support the notion that there is a need for the clarity of the definition, roles and responsibilities of clinical governance. The findings of this research suggest that further research is required to identify the contribution that clinical governance makes to improving the quality of care within South African health care organisations. Furthermore, research identifying employees’ perceptions of clinical governance within the private health care sector in South Africa is recommended.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An evaluation of how ABSA retail branch management experience change at ABSA Eastern Cape
- Authors: Ramjee, Keeran
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Banks and banking -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Leadership , Leadership -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Financial services industry -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Organizational change -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Management
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/19949 , vital:29011
- Description: Organisational leaders often assume that change (large or small) is straightforward and the approach to solve the problems is done rationally and logically. Thereafter a strategy is developed and a plan is implemented to make the improvement a reality. It comes as a shock to organisational leadership that those improvement plans, initially envisioned, do not deliver on expectations. As mentioned in The effective change managers’ handbook (Smith, et al., 2014), a greater shock awaits organisational leadership that after convincing colleagues of the necessity for the change to solution and the need to resolve the issue, in reality, it does not always work or achieve the desired outcomes. Improvement plans are often met with resistance by various stakeholders within the organisation. As a result, these improvement plans are abandoned and the organisation is relegated to business as usual. Literature reviewed in the field of organisational change management reveals a failure rate of 70% to 80% when it comes to the implementation of change initiatives and more so where change initiatives have a low expected return on value. Organisational change and organisational change management literature is constantly evolving as variable criteria and measures are researched, revealing deeper insight and impact on organisations. Therefore, according to literature, a greater knowledge of organisational change management within a global context would provide relevance and richness in the manner in which organisations go about implementing change initiatives. The key challenges and management issue at hand are to explore, understand and comprehend the variables that influence the branch manager’s positive reaction to change. This will guide organisational leadership and improve the success rate of change initiatives implemented in the organisation.For Absa to maintain a competitive advantage and ensure sustainability, a comprehensive understanding of the variables that influence the branch managers’ positive reaction to change is an imperative for Absa’s organisational leadership. Organisational change and organisational change management have all the key elements for the implementation of change within organisations. If executed effectively, this would result in a positive reaction by employees when change initiatives are introduced into the organisation. By studying past experiences and outcomes from empirical studies on organisational change and organisational change management, it was possible to draw lessons and experience about the discipline of organisational change management and factors influencing effective implementation of change initiatives resulting in a greater degree of success. The study may be of significance to other organisations across industries looking at improving the success rate in terms of implementing change initiatives within the managerial level of an organisation. Factors that come to the fore are creativity in influencing leadership behaviour, due diligence about investment opportunities, return on change initiatives, etc. These need to be explored in order for the organisation to achieve the objectives of remaining competitive and ensuring the sustainability of the organisation. Therefore creative strategies and thinking of ways to circumvent challenges in organisational change and organisational change management needs to be employed. The following independent variables were tested: training, effective communication, employee inclusion, trust, decreasing fear of the unknown and finally, decreasing fear of failure. Results revealed from the quantitative research that trust and decreasing fear of the unknown are essential factors influencing branch managers’ positive reaction to change though the importance of the other independent variables tested must not be considered to be of lesser importance. This study therefore concluded that utilisation of the framework, with emphasis on trust and decreasing fear of the unknown will result in the positive reaction by Absa branch managers to change and this will ultimately influence the success rate of change initiatives implemented. Recommendations were also made for future research studies that can contribute to organisational change and change management literature with emphasis on positive reaction to change, as well as the improvement and success rate of change initiatives implemented within organisations.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An exploration of employee readiness for change at Walter Sisulu University
- Authors: Mpepo, Bulelwa N
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Walter Sisulu University for Technology & Science -- Employees -- Attitudes , Education, Higher -- South Africa -- Case studies , Educational change -- South Africa -- Case studies , Organizational change -- South Africa -- Case studies , Programme and qualification mix
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/4455 , vital:20673
- Description: Higher education institutions are faced with pressure to change to meet academic as well as socio-economic needs. These changes are often aimed at achieving financial viability, increased institutional efficiency, and solving problems of fragmentation in the university. Universities can change in their structure, operations, systems, or and in the use or adoption of technology. The effective implementation and management of these requisite changes is the key challenge to organisations facing change. Walter Sisulu University, a comprehensive university in the Eastern Cape, has formulated a strategy to turn the university around. Included in the strategy is a project on the academic enterprise. The level of readiness for change is viewed to be a determining factor in making any change successful. Since readiness is not automatic, there is a need to prepare individuals to have a positive attitude towards the change and to embrace the proposed change initiative. This study is informed by the quest to know what will encourage and prepare employees for the implementation of the new Programme and Qualification Mix (PQM) at the University. The study therefore sought as its main purpose to explore factors influencing individual readiness for change in the PQM at Walter Sisulu University. A qualitative approach was adopted in the study. Models of change readiness were reviewed to identify themes that would be used to explore the levels of readiness amongst university academic employees who were to implement the new Programme and Qualification Mix. Documents were analysed to understand the change in PQM and face-to-face, semi-structured interviews held to solicit the views of academic employees regarding enablers or inhibiters of their readiness. Results highlighted the poor preparation of academic employees at Walter Sisulu University to support and implement the change. Key concerns of employees included dissatisfaction with the inadequate and inappropriate communication strategies, uncertainty about the suitability of the changed PQM, doubt regarding leadership support for change, as well as the perceived risk of the change. However, the main enablers were the comprehension by WSU employees of the need for a new PQM to address the poor alignment with university vision and HEQSF requirements, an appreciation of the lack of social relevance of the programmes, and confidence that they have the requisite skills and qualifications. The perceived benefits for the institution provided the needed spur for embracing the new PQM.
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- Date Issued: 2017
An investigation of the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and financial performance of companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in South Africa
- Authors: Soko, Leon Lenny Kudzaishe
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/7078 , vital:21215
- Description: The purpose of this study is to investigate whether there is an association between CSR and financial performance in South African companies which are listed on the FTSE/JSE SRI Index. Specifically, whether there is a difference in financial performance of companies that perform CSR activities, and those that do not. If so, which direction does this association have? The selection process of companies used in this study will now be explained step-bystep. The JSE SRI Index results show that there were 80 successful constituents as of February 2015 (JSE, 2015). These 80 companies are listed alphabetically in Appendix A, while the top 100 companies as ranked by Turnover are linked in Appendix B. Of these 100 companies, 67 were constituents of the JSE SRI Index continuously in 2015 and are shown in Appendix C. This leaves 33 companies in the top 100 which are not listed on the JSE SRI Index. Companies that were listed on the JSE SRI Index were assumed to be ‘good’ companies as the listing requirements included the performance of numerous CSR activities such as Employee development, environmental sustainability practices and stakeholder engagement. The financial performance of these 67 companies was compared to the financial performance of the 33 companies that were not listed on the JSE SRI Index which were included in the population sample of one hundred companies. Financial performance was measured using the ratios: Return on Assets and Return on Equity. The data analysis process used in this study was as follows: 1. The ratios for each company were obtained from the iNET (BFA) database, and annual and integrated reports for the period 2011 - 2015 (Appendix D;E;F). 2. The ratios for Non-SRI and SRI companies were then compared for each of the three ratios using a T-Test. The purpose of the T-Test was to show whether there is a difference in the ratios between SRI and Non-SRI companies on a year to year basis. The direction of the difference was shown by whether the SRI ratio was higher than or lower than the Non-SRI ratio. The results of this study do not seem to support any of the CSR theories, as the study concluded that there is no significant difference between the financial performance of companies that perform CSR activities and those that do not. This means that investing in CSR activities does not have a significant effect on the financial performance of a company.
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- Date Issued: 2017