A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Management Strategic Marketing 2016 / Context: Annually in South Africa, results of the Sunday Times Top Brands survey are released. Within this study is a ranking “brands that do the most to uplift the community” voted by the public, which is widely quoted by those brands included in the study. If this is the dominant study reporting on a “socially responsible organisation”, the study provides a guideline on how the organisation will be more likely to be thought to be in the top companies “doing the most to uplift communities”. A brief statement of the conceptual framework of the research: This, study employed the recently developed Porter and Kramer (2011) Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) vs. Creating Shared Value (CSV) model as a return on corporate social development programs framework. The study sought to assess whether management in companies that are highly ranked adopt the CSR paradigm constructs (where the value is doing good) or the CSV paradigm constructs (where the value is economic and societal benefits relative to cost) as proposed by the Porter and Kramer (2011) model [Abbreviated abstract. Open document to view full version] / GR2018

Thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of M.Sc. Building (Property Development and Marketing) to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Construction Economics and Management at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017 / Background The perception of inconsistent and uncertain valuations has been the subject of debate worldwide. However, it is a phenomenon that has gone largely ignored in South Africa. The effect of unreliable valuations cannot be overstated, as all lending and investment decisions are based on valuation estimates. Objectives This study seeks to investigate the level of valuation accuracy in South Africa by comparing mortgage valuation estimates done prior to finance of the properties against their actual realised transaction prices. Methods and Results Valuers from four financial institutions as well as from external valuation firms were randomly chosen to participate in a questionnaire and in addition 32,826 properties which were valued and sold between January to December 2016 were also analysed. The valuation estimates and actual transaction prices were collected in an Excel file. While data from the banks and valuers was collected and analysed using Qualtrics. Data was analysed using R software version 3.3.3 to come up with descriptive and inference statistics. The result of the analysis showed that the level of valuation accuracy for the properties in South Africa used in the study is high (2.03%), which shows a very high level of accuracy compared to the adopted benchmark of 10%. The accuracy level across the three provinces in our study namely Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape is 2.23%, 1.93% and 1.58% respectively, indicating that valuation accuracy is higher in Western Cape than Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal Conclusion The study revealed that valuation estimates were good proxies of the market value (actual realised sale prices). Based on the 10% acceptable margin of error benchmark adopted by this study it shows that valuers in South Africa are indeed accurate in as far as estimating residential cost values. Based on the 2.03% level of accuracy obtained in this study, we recommend that valuation stakeholders adopt 5% maximum margin of error between valuation estimates and actual realised prices. / XL2018

Masters in the Field of Environmental Sciences (MSc CW/RR) - GEOL7007 Research Report School of Animal Plants and Environmental Science. Johannesburg 2017. / In recent times increasing emphasis has been placed on the important role that corporations must play in the creation of greener economies. This has given rise to greater corporate environmental disclosure and reporting, and a wealth of research into the link between sustainability reporting and financial and environmental business performance. Notwithstanding this, it has been noted that corporate responses to environmental sustainability issues are highly variable, and very little research has been conducted to determine where businesses focus their environmental sustainability efforts and to what extent they have made measureable progress in this regard. The purpose of this study was to assess and compare the implementation of sustainability initiatives across a variety of fast moving consumer goods companies, including large multinational organisations, privately owned South African and publically traded JSE listed companies. This was achieved through the evaluation and scoring of an environmental self-assessment questionnaire distributed annually over a three year period between 2012 and 2014. In total, the survey, which covered a cross section of business relevant environmental issues, allowed for the profiling of 851 company responses. Scoring of these responses was based on a defined matrix with a grading system of 0 – 6. Results showed that overall, larger companies appear to be making significantly better progress when it comes to tackling environmental issues than their smaller privately owned competitors. Of the product categories investigated, the sustainability performance of liquor suppliers was the best while transport suppliers scored significantly lower than their peers. Publically listed JSE-listed companies and large multinational companies had similar sustainability performance to one another but both these groups performed significantly better than their privately owned South African competitors. Of those supplier Groups surveyed, JSE listed companies were the only business Group who showed significant year-on-year improvement in performance. An evaluation of scores achieved across the different environmental issues covered revealed that suppliers indicated they performed best in the areas of waste minimisation, operational energy mitigation and sustainable product design, while they made least progress when it came to climate change mitigation, sustainability reporting and biodiversity conservation. Results suggest that overall: companies made most progress on environmental issues that offered the greatest potential for increasing revenues or reducing operating costs; large public corporations performed significantly better than privately owned companies when it came to tackling environmental sustainability issues; and despite increasing emphasis being placed on transitioning to more sustainable business models, only one group of suppliers showed a measurable improvement in sustainability performance over the course of the study. / LG2017

A research report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Psychology by Coursework and Research Report in the field of Organisational Psychology in the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 15 March 2017. / Organisations are increasingly moving towards the integration of “social, environmental and economic considerations into their business practices and structures” (Asemah Okpanachi, & Edegoh, 2013, p.45). This is due to the fact that organisations have been put under immense pressure by various stakeholders to assume ethical identities and improve the quality of life of both employees and the broader community through incorporating some form of corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities within their organisations (Peterson, 2004). Equally important is the retention of high quality and experienced employees in organisations, as this not only saves production time and costs but also saves the organisation costs associated with the hiring and training of replacement staff ((Bothma & Roodt, 2013). It is well established in the literature that employees infer judgments about certain activities that their organisations partake in and these judgments consequently influence employee behavior (Rupp, Ganapathi, Aguilera, & Williams, 2006). Considering the importance of both CSR and the prevention of voluntary turnover intentions, it seemed essential to explore how these constructs relate in the organisational context. As such, this study aimed to explore the nature of the relationships between the three dimensions of CSR (philanthropic, environmental, and internal) and voluntary turnover intentions in a sample of South African employees. Moreover it has been suggested that other mechanisms might have an influence on this relationship (Dawley, Houghton, & Bucklew, 2010). Subsequently, this study also sought to explore whether perceived organisational support and organisational commitment mediated the relationships between the different forms of corporate social responsibility and voluntary turnover intentions. A quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional, correlational research design was used in the present study. The total sample consisted of 106 employees from various South African organisations and positions. Participants who volunteered and consented to be part of the study were asked to complete a self-constructed demographic questionnaire, Pitt and Siemer’s (2012) External and Internal Corporate Social Responsibility Scales, Eisenberger et al.’s (1986) Perceived Organisational Support Scale, Mowday and Steers’ (1979) Organisational Commitment Questionnaire, and Kantor’s (2013) Voluntary Turnover Intention Scale. / XL2018

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Management in Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation Johannesburg, 2017 / This research report is based on the motivations for ecological responsiveness as identified by Bansal and Roth (2000). It considers the resultant actions of different motivations for ecological responsiveness (ER), and their ability to moderate the relationship between ER and Intrapreneurship in South Africa. The study adopted a deductive positivist paradigm that assumed an ecocentric approach to management and organisational research. A quantitative, cross-sectional research design was employed and the use of both primary data collection from surveys and secondary data collection from websites and annual reports were utilised in order to determine the existence of relationships between the variables of ecological responsiveness and intrapreneurship, and the moderating variables of legitimation, competitiveness and ecological responsibility. Multiple regression analysis was used to statistically test the relationship between the independent variable of ecological responsiveness and the dependent variable of intrapreneurship, as well as the moderating effect of the variables listed above. The population of this study was employees with management/supervisory positions within financial institutions of South Africa. It was required that these organisations were listed and had accessible or publically available annual reports in order for content analysis to be conducted. The final sample consisted of 210 management level employees who were in the majority employed at 3 different large, listed, South African banks. This study found support for hypothesized relationships between ecological responsiveness and intrapreneurship, as well as the positive moderating effect of the motive of ecological responsibility on this relationship. Results pertaining to the moderating effect of legitimation and competitive motives were not supported. In addition, the study found support for the proposed relationship between an organisations ecological qualitative content analysis (QCA) score and the level of ecological responsibility perception in the organisation. The general findings contribute to research in the field of motivations for environmental corporate social responsibility (ECSR) and the resulting actions. / MT2017

A Research Report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Masters of Management in Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation / This research investigates perceptions of the SMME community in Johannesburg, Gauteng, on the impact of the Preferential Procurement Policy (PPP) Framework Act (Act No. 5 of 2000) as a Supplier Diversity (SD) tool. The research questions discussed are: 1) Are SMMEs directly benefitting from government as a result of PPP? 2) Are SMMEs indirectly benefitting through the private sector as a result of PPP? 3) How can PPP be improved? and 4) What are the problems with the implementation of PPP? The Osiba Research (2011) found that there was minimal impact from government programs in supporting and improving the majority of black-owned SMMEs and integrating them into the mainstream economy. It was further found that the major shortcomings were not due to insufficient or inaccurate policy, but the government’s inability to implement and support the very programs they designed. Other factors that work against SD in South Africa are corruption and nepotism which have led to lack of transparency in the awarding of tenders (Lodge T, 1998). Weak policy coordination and implementation, funding constraints and the fact that policy benefits were leveraged almost exclusively by medium-sized enterprises, which were often white owned, meant that previously disadvantaged people continue to be economically marginalized (Rogerson, 2013). Another setback is that of set-asides. Government has not been practicing its own policy through public procurement and as a result the private sector has showed little commitment to these set-asides. This is partly because the National Treasury holds that set-asides will inflate the cost of procurement (Timm, 2011). This is a qualitative study and as such an interpretivist research approach was used. Enterprises included in the sample were selected using the City of Johannesburg’s Supplier Database, which is the City’s official database that contains the list of accredited prospective suppliers of different goods and services that are required by the City. The results of this research suggests that while there have been links to increased economic growth and rebalancing of socio-economic inequalities as a result of PPP, there are still major problems to overcome such as lack of transparency in awarding tenders, beneficiaries of government business employing non South African citizens/permanent residents, despondency on set-asides, fronting, lack of access to funding, lack of information and lack of commitment to PPP by large corporates. The study concludes with recommendations on policy, how the problem of rationalisation might be overcome, as well as how closer cooperation between SMMEs, government and large corporates can enhance PPP. Recommendations on potential future research are also made. / MT2016

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2018. / South Africa for more than three decades has been described as the economic capital of Africa because of its level of industrialization, production, interactions and business transactions with other companies locally, nationally, regionally and globally. This situation goes hand in hand with the continual emergence in South Africa of business organizations, notably major international groups or their subsidiaries, other foreign or national large corporations, as well as small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The SME sector has significantly emerged in industries such as retail and manufacturing that produce a wide variety of consumer goods and related services. They produce services and goods that are destined for both local and international consumption. Similarly, they are also sourcing goods and services from local or international suppliers. Consequently, SMEs are involved in a complex supply chain management challenges and are exposed to the chain’s intense logistics activities. The main objective of this study was to determine how outsourcing can improve effectively the logistics performance of wine producing SMEs in the manufacturing sector. The findings from the interviews conducted with 16 personnel responsible for logistics performance from selected small and medium wine producers in Constantia, Stellenbosch, and Paarl, offer support for the assumption that outsourcing is a key to logistics performance in SMEs. The general outcome of the study suggests that logistics performance of SMEs is dependent on their ability to manage outsourcing of logistics services. Thus, knowing beforehand the “what for” of outsourcing is very important determinant for driving logistics performance, especially defining, assessing and measuring the performance objectives the SMEs expect from outsourcing and choosing logistics partners that can meet these objectives.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management specialising in Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation, Johannesburg, 2016 / Purpose Social investors are driven to sustainable investing for many different reasons: impact investors are concerned about the environment, social impact on the communities, as well as the sustainability and growth of their funds. Measuring that social impact can assist these organisations and fund managers to prove to their investors that their initiatives are benefiting the communities in which they operate. Measuring impact also helps social enterprises to evaluate their needs, aspirations, resources and incentives for their customers. It leads to improvement in performance, which often leads to job creation, survival and growth. This research evaluated and discussed impact investing industry in South Africa and focused on the effects or outcomes of the selected four major measurement metrics, namely: social impact, innovativeness, replicability and sustainability – for the fund managers. These measurement metrics were evaluated to ascertain if they would result in organisational performance/growth. Design, methodology and approach This is a survey based empirical study with 159 respondents who are players in the impact investing industries. A descriptive quantitative method was used to address the proposed relationships between measuring metrics and growth of the organisations. The instrument was checked for validity and for reliability: the variables were operationalised and measured against multi-dimensional scales. Analyses for the proposed relationships were measured using multiple regression and correlation analysis. Findings Results showed that impact organisations tend to grow more when they are transparent and accountable for their endeavours. Investors will increase funding to the fund managers who show in their reports how their objectives have been achieved. The study selected only four measurement metrics and tested how they affect growth of an organisation through increased funding. The results show that ii two metrics (social impact and sustainability) had a positive relationship with the growth of the organisation, meaning that the more the organisations report on the impact they are making in communities and the more they show how self-sustainable they are, the more the organisations showed signs of growth. The results also showed that when social organisations are innovative, they are able to replicate their projects into more communities. Research limitations and implications Main implications of this research are that fund managers will source more funds to grow their initiatives if they show transparency and accountability. If they report on how much social impact they are causing, how their initiatives have been innovative, how replicable they are and how self-sustaining the initiatives are, then impact investors will consider increasing their funding, resulting in growth. Contribution of study Impact investing industry is still new and requires more research to be conducted, especially in the South African context. Previous research has concentrated on definitions and on how to measure impact but not many have zoomed into the measurement metrics and analysed what they mean to the fund managers as well as to the investors. This research was conducted in order to cover that research gap. / GR2018

Thesis (M. Dev.) -- University of Limpopo, 2005 / Refer to document

Thesis (MBA) -- University of Limpopo (turfloop Campus), 2011 / This study investigates and analyses the situational analysis of SMMEs in the Maruleng Local Municipality in the Limpopo Province. It serves to identify the underlying factors that influence the sustainability of SMMEs in the municipality. In order to gain an understanding on what factors influences the sustainability of SMMEs, a literature study and site analysis was employed as research method. Data were collected using a literature review and empirical investigation. The literature review provided a conceptual framework which included the background of SMMEs, the policies and procedures available for SMME development and promotion, the government intervention for SMME development as well as private sector support available for SMMEs. The empirical investigation was used to determine the situation of SMMEs in the local municipality. Using a questionnaire designed according to a quantitative approach, a random sampling method was used to select a sample of 60 SMMEs out of a total of 331 SMMEs in Maruleng municipality. Respondents were requested to complete the questionnaires. The important findings were discussed at length to determine the research objectives that resulted in the conclusion of this research. Based on the analysis of data, conclusion and recommendations were formulated.