Master´s thesis is focused on examination of financial health of travel agency ABC s. r. o. during the years 2008 – 2013 with the usage of elementary methods of financial analysis. The theoretical part of this thesis focuses on the description of basic terms and methodological procedures, which are used for company performance evaluation. Subsequently, these findings are practically applied on the analysing company. According to gained information are presented the proposals that improve a financial position company.

Site selection decisions remains a complex yet crucial process for strong business performance. Despite the extensive number of publications in this field, the emergence of new data collection technique, improved location analytics, and changes in consumers’ preferences call for testing of new models and hypothesis. This study compares traditional site selection indicators (e.g. property size, proximities, competition, and demographic profiles) with novel site-selection indicators (e.g. environmental sustainability performance and socio-demographic characteristics from Tapestry data). By investigating a case study of Starbucks coffee stores in Los Angeles, we argue that environmental sustainability performance and socio-demographic Tapestry segments correlate with business performance indicators of small retail shops in two ways. First, higher sustainability scores result in increased foot traffic, and by extension increased business performance. Second, Tapestry segmentation stands as significant indicator of business performance in site selection modeling – specifically, by demonstrating the significant correlation between socio-demographic consumers’ segments and the number of visitors per location. The output of this study offers an alternative location-driven site selection method, important for businesses and key industry-players in sharpening location-allocation decision-making processes.

Small businesses growth and profitability is a national problem in South Africa (SA) and the Emerging Contractors (ECs) in the construction industry in Gauteng Province are no exception. The SA government expect ECs to become the main players in economic transformation and growth, job creation and income generation. However, ECs fail to live up to the expectations as some are characterised by low performance levels and are at risk of business closure. The purpose of this research is to examine the perceptions of Small Business Executives (SBEs) on determinants of business performance so that a performance model that could guide ECs within the construction business is developed. The researcher used a mixed approach to examine the perceptions of SBEs on determinants of ECs’ performance by applying both qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The population from which the sample was drawn comprised of 1890 urban based ECs registered with CIDB in the construction industry in Gauteng. Systematic random sampling was utilized and a sample size of 501 ECs was used. A structured questionnaire and interview guide were administered as the data collection instruments. A pilot survey was conducted where 2 key informants (SBEs) and 15 respondents (SBEs) were interviewed as representatives of ECs. A survey was used to assess the four hypotheses in the study. Content analysis was used to identify themes that emerged from qualitative data. The analysis of qualitative data demonstrated the perceptions of SBEs that financial factors, manpower, materials, machinery and equipment, project implementation, quality of work, legal and environmental and strategic planning were the main determinants that should be addressed when setting up and running construction businesses to reduce the negative impact on business performance. Based on the perceptions of SBEs, in quantitative, the univariate and multivariate statistical methods were performed to measure the level of significance between and among the performance determinants were tested at 5% confidence interval. Multiple linear regressions carried out based on the perceptions of SBEs identified strategic planning, project implementation and project performance as the most statistically significant factors in predicting the performance of ECs in Gauteng Province. The results from both qualitative and quantitative methods were synthesised and analysed through data transformation, typological development and case study analysis and the perceptions of respondents indicated a strong agreement between the qualitative and quantitative results. Based on multivariate results which were a result of the perceptions of SBEs, a performance prediction model was developed which is the core contribution of the study. The structure of the model, how it is used, its advantages and disadvantages were presented. The model provides a platform upon which ECs could predict performance and this would benefit ECs, clients, community and policymakers. In conclusion, the study established three significant determinants that include strategic planning, project implementation and project performance as highly relevant variables to improve construction business performance. Based on the perceptions of the respondents, the study recommends ECs to acquire and develop financial management skills that would enable them to understand and manage financial requirements that stakeholders such as financial institutions need in the areas of budgeting and cash flow management, bookkeeping knowledge, financial policies and controls and project pricing strategy. On the shortage of skills, the study recommends SBEs to take an initiative role in training employees, motivating and retaining competent workforce. The government need to establish technical colleges for training workers (apprenticeship) in order to equip them with appropriate industry knowledge, skills and experience. Lack of collateral security was widely reported by most SBEs and the study recommends the formation of a sector bank that would support emerging contractor businesses. / Business Management / D.B.L.

<p>Disertacija se bavi efektima liderstva, LMX i transformacionog liderstva na razliĉite organizacione i poslovne performanse preduzeća u Bosni i Hercegovini. Od poslovnih performansi su kao kljuĉne posmatrane finansijske i performanse uspje&scaron;nosti razvoja novog proizvoda, a kao organizacione performanse posmatrani su: zadovoljstvo poslom, organizaciona posvećenost, organizaciona komunikacija i meĊusobno povjerenje na poslu. Pored toga, u disertaciji su obrazloţeni i neki drugi organizacioni ishodi koji su u uzroĉno-posljediĉnoj vezi sa liderstvom: organizaciono pona&scaron;anje, organizaciona kultura, motivacija i stres. Istraţivaĉki dio disertacije je zasnovan na podacima koji su dobijeni iz dva istovremeno sprovedena istraţivanja. Prvo istraţivanje je obuhvatilo anketiranje N=334 menadţera srednjeg nivoa iz 103 preduzeća u Bosni i Hercegovini. Od metoda statistiĉke obrade podataka kori&scaron;teni su: deskriptivna statistika, korelaciona analiza, regresiona analiza i hijerarhijska regresiona analiza za ispitivanje moderatornog dejstva. Osnovni zakljuĉci ovog istraţivanja su: (1) Lideri u B&amp;H preduzećima imaju visoka oĉekivanja u pogledu performansi, a malo podr&scaron;ke i osjećanja za zaposlene. Kazne su ĉe&scaron;će nego nagrade, LMX je oko prosjeka, distanca moći iznad prosjeka, a organizaciona posvećenost ima nisku prosjeĉnu ocjenu. (2) Zaposleni u B&amp;H preduzećima ne vole visoku distancu moći, preferiraju dobre meĊuljudske odnose, kako sa nadreĊenim tako i sa kolegama. Pored toga, zaposleni visoko cijene nagraĊivanje i strategijske sposobnosti lidera. Insistiranje lidera na visokim performansama, kao i primjena sistema kaţnjavanja, ne daju pozitivne efekte. (3) Zadovoljstvo poslom, zadovoljstvo organizacionom komunikacijom i meĊusobno povjerenje na poslu su oko prosjeka. Zaposleni su vi&scaron;e zadovoljni aspektima posla koji su vezani za socijalne odnose u preduzeću nego postojećim i potencijalnim naknadama. Generalno posmatrano,<br />zadovoljni su organizacionom komunikacijom, naroĉito sa onom koju realizuju sa menadţerima srednjeg nivoa, a meĊusobno povjerenje je ne&scaron;to intenzivnije kada su u pitanju namjere i akcije kolega nego namjere i akcije menadţmenta preduzeća. (4) Vlasniĉka struktura i nacionalno porijeklo preduzeća nisu znaĉajni moderatori posmatranih odnosa. Moderatorni efekat pokazao se samo u malom broju sluĉajeva. (5) Lideri treba da smanje distancu moći, smanje visoka oĉekivanja u smislu performansi, smanje kazne, a da pobolj&scaron;aju svoj odnos sa zaposlenima, da njeguju dobre odnose meĊu zaposlenima, da povećaju nagrade, i da se usavr&scaron;avaju u svojim strate&scaron;kim znanjima, razmi&scaron;ljanjima i akcijama.<br />TakoĊer, da bi disertacija dala sveobuhvatne informacije o efektima liderstva na organizacione i poslovne performanse preduzeća u Bosni i Hercegovini, pored prethodno navedenog istraţivanja menadţera srednjeg nivoa, uraĊeno je i dodatno, uporedno istraţivanje na uzorku od 127 top menadţera u isto toliko preduzeća, po principu jedno preduzeće jedan top menadţer. Uvaţavajući ĉinjenicu da moderno poslovanje nameće liderima potrebu kreiranja i stalnog uvoĊenja promjena u postojeći naĉin poslovanja, &scaron;to u svojoj su&scaron;tini predstavlja transformaciono liderstvo, ovo istraţivanje je imalo za cilj da utvrdi obim i intenzitet efekata transformacionog liderstva vrhunskih menadţera na poslovne performanse B&amp;H preduzeća. Kao poslovne performase posmatrane su finansijske performanse i performanse razvoja novog proizvoda. Rezultati ovog istraţivanja pokazuju da transformaciono liderstvo ima pozitivan uticaj na postizanje visokog nivoa finansijskih performansi i performansi razvoja novog proizvoda. TakoĊer, istraţivanje je pokazalo da lideri i top menadţeri najvi&scaron;eg nivoa u preduzećima u Bosni i Hercegovini imaju veći fokus na zadatke nego na ljude. U tom smislu, preporuka za njih jeste da vi&scaron;e paţnje posvećuju kreiranju i uvoĊenju promjenama u postojeći model poslovanja, na budućnost i dugoroĉne planove, ali i na svoje zaposlene kao glavne nosioce svih poslovnih procesa.</p> / <p>The dissertation deals with the effects of leadership, LMX and transformational leadership on the various organisational and business performance of enterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Of business performance, key financial and success of new product development performance are considered to be key, while as organisational performance we consider: job satisfaction, organisational commitment, organisational communication and mutual trust at work. In addition, the dissertation also explains other organisational outcomes that are in a cause-and-effect relationship with leadership: organisational behaviour, organisational culture, motivation and stress. The research part of the dissertation is based on data obtained from two simultaneously conducted research. The first survey included a survey of N = 334 mid-level managers from 103 enterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The statistical methods used are: descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, regression analysis and hierarchical regression analysis for moderate effect testing. The basic conclusions of this research are: (1) Leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina have high expectations in terms of performance, with little support and feelings for employees. The penalties are more frequent than the rewards, the LMX is around the average, the distance of power above the average, and the organisation&#39;s commitment has a low average grade. (2) Employees in Bosnia and Herzegovina do not like a great distance of power, preferring good interpersonal relationships, both with their superiors and their counterparts. In addition, employees highly value and reward strategic abilities of leaders. Insistence of leaders on high-performance, as well as the application of the punishment system, do not yield positive effects. (3) Job satisfaction, satisfaction with organisational communication and mutual trust in work are around the average. Employees are more satisfied with aspects of work related to social relations in the company<br />than the existing and potential benefits. Generally speaking, they are happy with organisational communication, especially with middle-level managers, and mutual trust is more intense when it comes to the intentions and actions of colleagues than the intentions and actions of enterprise management. (4) Ownership structure and national origin of enterprises are not significant moderators of observed relationships. The moderate effect has only been demonstrated in a small number of cases. (5) Leaders should reduce the distance of power, reduce high performance expectations, reduce punishment, improve their relationship with employees, nurture good relations among employees, increase rewards, and improve their strategic knowledge, thinking and action.<br />Also, in order for the dissertation to provide comprehensive information on the effects of leadership on organisational and business performance of enterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in addition to the aforementioned research of mid-level managers, an additional parallel study was carried out on a sample of 127 top managers in the same companies, on the principle of one company one top manager. Bearing in mind the fact that modern business imposes on leaders the need to create and permanently introduce changes to existing business practises, which in essence represents transformational leadership, this research was intended to determine the scope and intensity of the transformation leadership effects of top managers on business performance of enterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We consider financial performance and performance of new product development as business performance. The results of this research show that transformational leadership has a positive influence on achieving a high level of financial performance and the performance of developing a new product. Also, research has shown that leaders and top managers of the highest level in enterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina have a greater focus on tasks than on people. In this regard, the recommendation to them is to pay more attention to the design and implementation of changes in the existing business model, the future and long-term plans, but also to its employees as the main carriers of all business processes.</p>

Small businesses growth and profitability is a national problem in South Africa (SA) and the Emerging Contractors (ECs) in the construction industry in Gauteng Province are no exception. The SA government expect ECs to become the main players in economic transformation and growth, job creation and income generation. However, ECs fail to live up to the expectations as some are characterised by low performance levels and are at risk of business closure. The purpose of this research is to examine the perceptions of Small Business Executives (SBEs) on determinants of business performance so that a performance model that could guide ECs within the construction business is developed. The researcher used a mixed approach to examine the perceptions of SBEs on determinants of ECs’ performance by applying both qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The population from which the sample was drawn comprised of 1890 urban based ECs registered with CIDB in the construction industry in Gauteng. Systematic random sampling was utilized and a sample size of 501 ECs was used. A structured questionnaire and interview guide were administered as the data collection instruments. A pilot survey was conducted where 2 key informants (SBEs) and 15 respondents (SBEs) were interviewed as representatives of ECs. A survey was used to assess the four hypotheses in the study. Content analysis was used to identify themes that emerged from qualitative data. The analysis of qualitative data demonstrated the perceptions of SBEs that financial factors, manpower, materials, machinery and equipment, project implementation, quality of work, legal and environmental and strategic planning were the main determinants that should be addressed when setting up and running construction businesses to reduce the negative impact on business performance. Based on the perceptions of SBEs, in quantitative, the univariate and multivariate statistical methods were performed to measure the level of significance between and among the performance determinants were tested at 5% confidence interval. Multiple linear regressions carried out based on the perceptions of SBEs identified strategic planning, project implementation and project performance as the most statistically significant factors in predicting the performance of ECs in Gauteng Province. The results from both qualitative and quantitative methods were synthesised and analysed through data transformation, typological development and case study analysis and the perceptions of respondents indicated a strong agreement between the qualitative and quantitative results. Based on multivariate results which were a result of the perceptions of SBEs, a performance prediction model was developed which is the core contribution of the study. The structure of the model, how it is used, its advantages and disadvantages were presented. The model provides a platform upon which ECs could predict performance and this would benefit ECs, clients, community and policymakers. In conclusion, the study established three significant determinants that include strategic planning, project implementation and project performance as highly relevant variables to improve construction business performance. Based on the perceptions of the respondents, the study recommends ECs to acquire and develop financial management skills that would enable them to understand and manage financial requirements that stakeholders such as financial institutions need in the areas of budgeting and cash flow management, bookkeeping knowledge, financial policies and controls and project pricing strategy. On the shortage of skills, the study recommends SBEs to take an initiative role in training employees, motivating and retaining competent workforce. The government need to establish technical colleges for training workers (apprenticeship) in order to equip them with appropriate industry knowledge, skills and experience. Lack of collateral security was widely reported by most SBEs and the study recommends the formation of a sector bank that would support emerging contractor businesses. / Business Management / D.B.L.

Youth entrepreneurship is one of the solutions to reducing unemployment. The purpose of the study was to analyse youth entrepreneurship business performance in the Capricorn District Municipality in Limpopo Province. An entrepreneurship development model focusing on internal factors (entrepreneurial orientation) and external factors (supportive and cooperative environments), was adapted to establish whether they are related to youth business performance. The business environmental factors, such as business location, crime, and corruption were also tested as to whether they are related to youth business performance. The research used a census survey and primary data was obtained through questionnaires. The respondents for this study were 26 youth entrepreneurship business units in CDM, in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics. The findings reveal that youth businesses have shown negative performance in terms of the employment in the CDM, which results in employing fewer than five employees. / Business Management / M. Tech.

The work deals with the diagnostic of the business performance for the period 2005 - 2010, were used traditional and modern indicators for evaluation, composite indices and models of bankruptcy and financial standing. At the conclusion of the work were objective evaluation of overall performance results obtained compared with average values in the diagnostic system using financial indicators INFA objective evaluation.

Youth unemployment is one of the key global challenges facing the world today. Statistically, the global youth unemployment rate is 13.1%. Youth entrepreneurship is viewed as a possible solution to youth unemployment. Interestingly, the world has adopted entrepreneurship as a strategic approach to facilitate economic participation among the youth. Youth entrepreneurship has gained importance in recent years in many countries, as a way of fostering employment opportunities, boosting economic competitiveness, and promoting local and regional development. Youth involvement in entrepreneurship assists in boosting their confidence, achieving economic independence, and alleviating poverty. Some researchers describe entrepreneurial orientation as innovativeness, pro-activeness, risk taking, and competitive aggressiveness. Other researchers see entrepreneurial orientation as being pushed or pulled into entrepreneurship. In this study, push and pull factors to become entrepreneurs were used to determine the entrepreneurial orientation of the respondents. The objectives of the study were to investigate whether there is a relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and the business performance of youth entrepreneurs in the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality. A descriptive research design within a quantitative research approach was adopted using online surveys and physical administration of questionnaires. The study used a census method to sample 555 youth entrepreneurs in the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality. A low response rate was achieved as only 96 respondents fully completed the questionnaires, which were used in the analysis. The collected data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences. The findings of this study revealed that push factors had a significant influence on the business performance of youth businesses in the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality; whereas there was no statistical evidence to suggest that pull factors predicted the business performance of youth businesses in the study area. The research found that entrepreneurship among young individuals is essential to enhancing young people’s economic development. The study discovered that most TMM youths were pulled in to starting their own businesses. The research also suggested that, EO could encourage TMM youth entrepreneurs to continue to become innovative, take- risk, be pro-active and competive aggressive in the businesses. / Business Management / M.A (Business Management)

The master’s thesis deals with the design of a management information system, which is represented by a set of dashboards and reports. The main purpose of the system is to provide technological and information support to the management of company in terms of managing strategic goals and business performance. The information obtained by analyzing the company and its surroundings are subsequently used for draft creation. The thesis draft contains a project plan for the design and implementation of the system, the design of the system itself - its content and technical aspects, furthermore, we also deal with the implementation of the system and the management of this change.

The thesis deals with the market orientation of high-tech companies based in the city of Brno. It measures the effects of market orientation on business performance, analyzes the relations between market orientation and business performance for chosen companies and evaluates logical structure of the questionnaire used for marketing research. Based on the results of the research the thesis contains solution proposals addressed to the given companies, points out their weaknesses and follows with the proposals for the structure of the questionnaire and its future application for researching market orientation of the companies.