Thesis (Ph. D.)--Victoria University (Melbourne, Vic.), 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 314-342).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2005. / Advisor: J. Joseph Cronin, Jr., Florida State University, College of Business, Dept. of Marketing. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Jan. 12, 2006). Document formatted into pages; contains xii, 240 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Com. (Information Systems)) - Rhodes University, 2006.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Kent State University, 2008. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Oct. 22, 2009). Advisor: Marvin Troutt. Keywords: manufacturing; spatial analysis; cluster; input-output; forward linkage; backward linkage; key sector; geostatistics; kriging; Kaldor's laws; spatial autocorrelation. Includes bibliographical references.

M. Phil.

M.B.A. / Competitiveness is defamed as ensuring that the port and transportation system can meet the requirements of its users. For the port to compete successfully for business in both domestic and international markets, it must have the ability to move people and cargo efficiently, reliably, and at a reasonable cost, without infrastructure impediments or congestion delays. Competitiveness is the key aspect that influences the meaningful participation and survival of the South African port system within the global environment. For exporters and importers, competitiveness translate into a demand for intermodal services that provide speedy and efficient movement of cargo through ports and terminal transfer facilities to land side transportation. It also translates into a demand for ready access to the transportation information that is needed by all players within the maritime environment. There is a strong belief and a sense of urgency among some port stakeholders in South Africa, who maintain that there is not enough spending on construction, operations and maintenance for ports. The following capacity issues will influence the future competitiveness of the port system and infrastructure: • Technological advancements in terms of processes and systems; • Hinterland connections; • Infrastructure usage in and around the ports; • Increasing dredging requirements. Thus, there is a need to improve the productivity, throughput capacity and accessibility to meet the expected growth in international trade. The port authority's tariffs in future should be based on the principles of user pays, cost-based tariffs and adequate return on capital employed. The South African port system should remain financially autonomous and not require subsidization from the State.

Purpose: This paper aims to examine, the specific literature related to performance measurement in the service sector. In the process, it also aims to classify and examine innovative approaches and models utilized to measure performance in service operational settings. Based on this investigation, the paper seeks to identify relevant benchmarking implications. Design/methodology/approach: A database of 141 peer-reviewed publications, published between 1981 and early 2008, was utilized for the purpose of this paper. The published works included contributions from both practioners and scholars. Findings: The International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management is found to be the leading journal in terms of contributions to performance measurement in service operational settings. It contributed 25 articles. The bulk of published work appeared in international journals. These contributions were mixed in nature. They included empirical, conceptual, case studies, literatures reviews and interviews. The focus of the articles examined was also mixed. These articles tended to emphasis operational, customer, strategic, supplier, and environmental aspects of service. Research limitations/implications: Based on the findings of this paper, it is concluded that this area of research is in need of more future efforts aimed at solidifying theoretical constructs and practical applications. Practical implications: Findings derived from this investigation have relevant benchmarking implications. In this context, understanding the different approaches to performance measurement as utilized in service organizations is critical to the efforts of these organizations' performance improvement efforts. Originality/value: Understanding the types and scopes of the different approaches and models utilized to measure performance in service operational settings is important in light of the growing significance of the service sector.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to study the environmental and competitive factors in the service organizations and second, to investigate the extent of effective implementation of quality improvement initiatives in different operational settings. Design/methodology/approach - In this paper factor analysis is used to determine the underlying factors associated with the changes in the competitive environment. Proportional measures are used to study the implementation of quality improvement initiatives. Findings - The paper finds that quality improvement initiatives are not implemented uniformly by all the service industries. Organizations implementing quality improvement initiatives face varying degrees of effectiveness. Positive operational and strategic outcomes have been observed by organizations implementing the quality improvement initiatives. Practical implications - The results of this paper show that implementation of different types of quality improvement initiatives has a positive impact on operational and strategic aspects of service organizations. Originality/value - The empirical investigation in this paper shows the practical and theoretical value of issues related to the performance of service organizations.

Thesis(M.B.A.)--University of the Witwatersrand, 1991 / The research investigated the evaluation of common goods and services by white and black consumers, and to determine where similarities and dissimilarities between these two segments existed. A review of the literature on consumer behaviour, with specific reference to decision making models, and a series of in depth interviews enabled the expansion of the Zeithaml (1981) set of constructs by a factor of two. A questionnaire was developed and administered to white and black employees of well known local firms in a variety of industries. Hypothesis testing enabled validation of the expanded set of constructs, and the comparison of white and black evaluative differences, while correspondence ;analysis determined the key evaluative dimensions. Important new dimensions discovered included Convenience, Loyalty and Reception. An invaluable method of clustering was found in the /chi squared trees technique. The results indicated that black consumers are significantly less experienced in the use and evaluation of common services compared to their white counterparts. As a result of this inexperience, a much less sophisticated set of key evaluative constructs are relied upon in the decision process. Both segments appear to be /ciware of generally higher risks associated with services, but are less prone to invest effort in information gathering prior to purchase. The white segment purchases services based on their convenience, whilst the black segment faces equal inconvenience for any purchase. The most significant marketing implications drawn were firstly, the need to appreciate consumer perceptual similarities across, and differences within, goods and services categories. Secondly, marketers need very different strategies for the black segment.