D.Cur. / During the last decade there has been a surge of interest in quality issues in education. This is largely due to spiralling costs of education and political demands for accountability in public institutions. In South Africa, higher education institutions are now required by law (Higher Education Act No. 101 of 1997 and the South African Qualifications Act No. 58 of 1995) to introduce quality management in an attempt to assure quality ofboth the programmes and the education providers. The Nursing Colleges in Gauteng provide nursing education to nearly 2000 nurses and, as such, make the major contribution to providing for the quality of the health care services. The colleges therefore have a double reason for introducing quality improvement measures, which start with a system for monitoring the quality of the colleges. In this study a quality audit system has been developed to address this need. There is no comprehensive internal audit system, which allows for quantitative measurement and acts as an empowerment strategy for institutional quality improvement in the nursing colleges in South Africa. The following research questions are relevant: • what should an auditing system for nursing colleges comprise? • what are the indicators of quality in a nursing college? • is the auditing system trustworthy? The overall aim of the study was to develop an audit system for the nursing colleges in Gauteng. This aim was supported by the following objectives: Phase one: to conduct a value clarification of quality within the nursing colleges in Gauteng, as perceived by the internal and external customers. Phase two: to explore and describe a conceptual framework for a quality audit system for nursing colleges in Gauteng. Phase three: a. to develop a quality audit system for the nursing colleges in Gauteng b. To pilot the audit system in one nursing college in Gauteng. A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual design was conducted within the nursing colleges of Gauteng in order to develop a contextual framework and a quality audit system for the nursing colleges. The content validity was tested by means of quantitative methods. The audit system that was developed included a tool for auditing the quality of nursing colleges as a means to identifY conformance to standards, criteria and indicators and to improve the quality of the structure, processes and results ofthe organization. The standards were developed on the basis of a value clarification of internal and external customers. Clusters ofindicators were developed for each of the standards. The value of this study is that a comprehensive audit system has been developed which empowers the staffand students ofthe college to improve the quality ofthe college. The same system can be used for purposes of accreditation, as an accountability mechanism and for institutional recognition.

D.Phil. (Engineering Management) / Process improvement is essential for an organisation to remain competitive in the global market. Regardless of the type of products or service being rendered, such improvement is essential for remaining profitable and staying at the top of one’s industry market. The Lean Six Sigma (LSS) methodology is a preferred methodology for continuously improving business processes, thereby improving profitability and increasing market share. Higher education institutions are increasingly being placed under pressure to improve throughput and to ensure that that their institutions are sustainable. This focus on higher education inefficiencies has resulted in institutions looking for new ways to improve processes which will lead to increases in throughput. In this study, a LSS framework has been developed and applied for improving engineering education processes...

M.Comm. (Financial Management) / Our planet is getting smaller and older because the population is growing by the second and our resources and means of sustaining life are getting depleted. Companies need to rethink their strategy and business models to do no harm to the environment and society. The board of directors, as custodians of corporate governance, are responsible to direct their corporations towards sustainability performance. This has implications for the manner in which the board act and organise themselves. This study explores whether the board characteristics of sustainability performing companies differs from non-performing companies in terms of the gender; ethnicity; age; affiliation and the background of the directors at specified points in time namely 2004, 2007 and 2010 and how these board characteristics evolved over the specified period. The results should contribute to obtaining an understanding of how boards in South Africa are organising themselves in practice to enhance the sustainability performance of their companies. A comparative analysis using cross sectional data found that companies embracing sustainability performance have significantly more directors with non-traditional backgrounds on their board. A trend analysis using longitudinal data found that sustainability performing as well as nonperforming companies is becoming more diverse. Findings from this study provides practical guidance to companies wishing to integrate sustainability into their governance structures in that companies should consider recruiting directors with non-traditional backgrounds.

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Lean philosophy is based on the continuous quest to improve the organisation‟s processes by creating a culture and operating principles which eliminate all non value adding activities within organisation„s processes. Manufacturing firms consider the adoption of the Lean tools as basic requirements for achieving World Class operational excellence or Best Practice. For some time, lean has been used by the manufacturing organizations. Most organizations understand that lean will help them survive global competition and stay in business. The objective of this study is to investigate how lean manufacturing tools can be used to improve efficiency and enhance the embedding of a continuous improvement culture in the South African Revenue Service Enforcement Audit Port Elizabeth. The activities that took place in Enforcement Audit Port Elizabeth from September 2010 until 31 October 2011 were observed. During the study, an introductory presentation by the researcher was made to Regional Enforcement Management and staff in general, the presentation was to introduce the study highlighting different Lean tools. Thereafter the Port Elizabeth audit staff members were engaged formally, using surveys to assess their underlying mindset and behaviour as well as informally, using unstructured interviews to solicit more information on activities taking place and the reasoning behind certain actions. The results of the survey and observations are analysed and interpreted.

Despite the extensive research undertaken in the subject area of services marketing, much is still unknown to service providers of specific services in terms of service delivery concepts. This study attempts to address this limitation. The study revolves around the customer relationship management and service quality of banks. Service firms, including banks, are vitally important to the economy of any country, as they contribute to its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employment rate. However, to survive in a complex, competitive business environment, service firms are required to focus on their clients’ needs. Specifically, banks can focus on their relationships with clients and levels of service quality. In order to establish the influence of selected variables on the customer relationship management (CRM) of banks and the influence of CRM on the service quality of banks, an empirical investigation was conducted. The aim of this study was to quantify significant relationships among selected variables; therefore the positivistic research paradigm was used. The sample consisted of banking clients in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan area. The sample size was 290, with a response rate of 91.03%. The empirical investigation revealed that significant positive relationships exist between both the knowledgeability, and attitude, of bank employees and a bank’s CRM. These relationships imply that more extensive knowledgeability of bank employees and bank employees with more positive attitudes lead to improved, maintained relationships between a bank and its clients. In addition, the empirical investigation revealed that CRM positively influences the service quality of banks. This relationship implies that if a bank successfully maintains relationships with its clients, the bank’s level of perceived service quality would increase. Additionally, the empirical investigation has shown the relationship between a banking client’s age and the CRM of a bank. The higher the age of a banking client, the more that client considers the CRM of a bank to be important. There exists a relationship between a banking client’s education level and the perceived service quality of a bank. If a banking clients’ education level increases, the importance of their bank’s service quality decreases and, conversely, a banking client with a lower level of education regards the service quality level of a bank as more important than higher qualified clients. The study indicated that strategies to improve, specifically, the knowledgeability and attitude of bank employees can and should be implemented by banks in ways to positively influence their CRM and ultimately their service quality. In effect, this will increase client satisfaction and ensure client loyalty to the bank. Ultimately, this will contribute to the bank’s success, which will ensure economic stability and prosperity for a country.

This investigation attempts to examine the influences of validation on pharmaceutical processes especially at a new manufacturing facility that has to meet international requirements, and fulfil a cost effective business strategy. At Aspen Pharmacare, a pharmaceutical organisation, there are two manufacturing facilities situated adjacent to each other, one new and one old. The new facility creates ideal opportunities to supply products to local and international markets. The investigation compares legal requirements from local and international regulatory authorities. Validation and qualification practices as well as the problems encountered during the different phases are discussed. Particular attention is given to the validation approach at the new Aspen facility. Problems and proposed solutions relating to the design review, installation, operational, and performance qualification are discussed. Validation of analytical methods for cleaning analysis, cleaning validation of equipment, and optimisation of some tablet manufacturing processes are described. Statistical evaluations of analytical results are included to find the optimum conditions for integrating new personnel with new processes and equipment. A business model reviews the cost of non-conformances of the enalapril maleate 10 mg tablets manufactured at the two manufacturing facilities. Finally the dissertation proves that validation is not only a regulatory requirement but that it also provides benefits such as adding value to the business, and ultimately reducing the cost of medicines.

M.Ing. / This dissertation will aim to indicate a methodology on how to manage fast tracked projects efficiently and effectively. Initially, some conventional project management methods will be investigated. By using practical knowledge obtained from working on fast track projects and data collected, alternative approaches to conventional project management techniques will be investigated and identified. An attempt will be made to derive an accurate as possible methodology and technique for managing fast track projects. Projects and project management are utilised not only in the engineering industry, but are used extensively in Banking, Advertising and numerous other areas of the economy. In most instances, the primary goal of a project is to create a system or process that will generate revenue for a company or person. This is especially true for engineering related projects, where an Engineering, Procurement, Construction Management (EPCM) company does the project for and on behalf of a separate entity or client, generating revenue for both the client and the EPCM Company. With this in mind, the economical truth “higher risk generates higher income” must be acknowledged. Project management is the tool used to manage these risks so as to ensure the highest possible income and profit margin, without taking unacceptably high risks. The project management methodology implemented must define the level of acceptable risk and must be able to identify advances in available technology, building methods, etc. so as to ensure as high as possible risk hence ensuring the highest possible revenue. In recent years these advances were so great that it initiated a complete methodology shift in the project management process, hence the term fast track projects. As a closing note one should never assume that fast track project management is an escape code for being reckless in approaching projects. If the methods are applied correctly, it can and will lead to a successful project. What should be understood from the onset is that there is a definite limit on how quickly a project can be done. This limit must be acknowledged by all seeing that going beyond this limit is reckless and will result in a disastrous project. This term is also known as a project’s terminal velocity.

M.Cur. / The nursing service manager is responsible and accountable for ensuring quality health care in a nursing service. The principle of liability requires a formal quality improvement programme in the nursing service according to which a specific level of quality nursing can be maintained. It is therefore clearly evident that a quality improvement programme, objectively maintain and evaluate the quality of a service. Opportunities for improvement are identified, and a mechanism is provided for taking remedial steps to bring about and maintain improvement, The abovementioned is of utmost importance and implies a constant commitment to health care service of a high quality. The overall objective of this study is to formulate and describe guidelines for a quality improvement programme for the nursing service of a referral hospital in the Gauteng Province. This study is an explorative, descriptive, qualitative and contextual research aiming to investigate the perceptions of quality in nursing/midwifery which will facilitate the exploration and description of a value clarification on quality, by the chief professional nurses, senior professional nurses, administrative personnel and patients within the nursing service of the referral hospital in the Gauteng Province. Focus group interviews, naive sketches and interviews as methods of data gathering was conducted. A simple random sampling method was used. A total number of three focus group interviews were conducted: one with seven chief professional nurses, one with fourteen senior professional nurses and one with twelve administrative personnel using tape recordings with the written consent of the participants. Naive sketches were obtained from the same groups. An expert psychiatric nurse, with a master's degree in the field and whose daily activities involved interviewing of the psychiatric nursing students and psychiatric patients, conducted the focus group interviews. The researcher conducted thirty individual patient interviews. Trustworthiness in this research was done according to Guba's model (!!! Krefting, 1991:214-222). Data analysis was done according to Tesch's (1990, in Creswell, 1994:155) protocol. An external coder with expertise in the field of coding in qualitative data was utilised to analyse and categorize the data. The researcher and the independent coder had consensus discussions for the formulation of the main categories and sub categories. Consensus discussions were also conducted with the study leader. The results were quantified based on the number of respondents whose perception on quality had reference to the same categories. The structured coding was based on the principles of quality: structure, process and outcome. A description of the conceptual framework was developed from the data analysis and a literature study. This framework with its content and criteria serves as scientific and theoretical basis of the quality improvement programme and are based on the values/value clarification on quality of the different roleplayers in the nursing service. Fifteen belief statements/values were described from the value clarification. The guidelines for the quality improvement programme of the nursing service in the referral hospital were described, based on the eight steps of the quality assurance model of Laing and Nish (Booyens, 1998: 576). A description of values is the first step and from these values on quality in the nursing service, the formulation of management standards was deduced in conjunction with the conceptual framework and the nursing/midwifery practice standards of the Nursing Department of RAU. Lastly the evaluation, limitations, recommendations and conclusion of the study were done.

M.B.A. / The aim of this study is to investigate the factors that affect the service quality delivery implementation, benchmarking Translux and Greyhound, using the SERVQUAL model. 4 1.3 Objectives The study has the following objectives: 1.3.1 to determine the different customer-orientated approaches; 1.3.2 to investigate insights into the concept of marketing studies that support customer orientation; 1.3.3 to ascertain how to implement a customer-orientated approach in the industry; and 1.3.4 to determine the gaps between Translux and Greyhound service delivery and customer expectations. An assumption of the study is that the adoption of a customer-orientated philosophy will mean that the company has embraced the implications of the philosophy