M.Com. (Business Management) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Non-profit organisations are a niche sector of the service industry, which is increasing worldwide. This entails more competition for funding and a need for such organisations to adopt a management approach that is more akin to business, in order that the organisation will operate as effectively and efficiently as possible. Unlike business whose goal is to be profitable, the aim of non-profit organisations is to render a service to the community. Therefore, incorporating business principles into the management of the organisation is often in conflict with its aims. Furthermore, while the organisation’s donors want sound management, they want funding to be used for the recipients of the service and not for administration and salaries that help to ensure good governance. This study involved one such non-profit organisation that has been compelled to conform to management criteria as prescribed by the South African, Department of Social Development, in order to continue receiving the annual subsidies for salaries and running costs. This has meant various adjustments to the organisation’s operations including increased administration, the completion of an annual business plan and a change in emphasis to the service delivery. Through increased communication, the interviewees achieved greater consensus as to what business features were important for the effective management of the organisation. In addition, the development of a business model for a non-profit organisation was viewed as relevant, as it could assist in showing the stakeholders how the organisation operates. This would be particularly appropriate to its donors from business, who themselves use and understand such models and would see this development as a further move towards managing the organisation according to business principles.

Launching new products into the market is considered a means of generating growth; however the growth is often short-lived as competitors copy product innovations. Organisations are learning that customers and not products are the most valuable resource and are the source of competitiveness and growth. Consequently, the requirement to change the organisational strategy from product centricity to customer centricity has become a topic of interest. It was identified by numerous authors that to attain customer centricity organisations need to change the design of their entities and related processes by harnessing organisation design competencies. In exploring this topic, a qualitative research approach was adopted. The research was conducted using a two phase approach. The first phase entailed an analysis of published case studies of four companies that have transitioned from a product centric to a customer centric strategy. The companies were from the financial services, electronics, real estate and information technology industries. The second phase of the research entailed conducting semi-structured interviews at a retail bank that was in the process of transitioning from a product centric to a customer centric strategy. Sixteen semi-structured interviews with the key managers across the retail bank were conducted. A central finding of this research was that the transition from a product centric to a customer centric strategy entails the understanding of key enabling factors. These are grouped into 3 categories, namely; technological, customer and organisational factors. Another central finding was the evidence in the changes in the organisation design. Changes in the structure, processes, rewards and measurements as well as people practices were noted. The role of leadership, culture and change management was highlighted. An organisation design capability was also cited as assisting in the transition to a customer centric strategy. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / ccgibs2014 / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / MBA / Unrestricted

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published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Social Sciences

Published Article / Vision 2020 represents the preferred developmental way forward for the Central University of Technology, Free State (CUT). It defines the intention of greatly increasing the involvement of its staff and students in innovation and technology transfer activities, resulting in the CUT having a greater effect on the socioeconomic development of the region. The article describes educational processes that would prepare graduates for such activities, as well as financial and other support measures to assist (prospective) entrepreneurs to convert research outputs into commercially viable products. The potential value to such individuals of participating in formal innovation and incubation activities is also described.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Research in the field of strategy execution ability is limited with most strategic fields referring to execution only as an afterthought. In addition, failure rates in strategy implementation are extremely high. Even when strategy is implemented, organisations still fail to capture most of the value defined in the measures of success. This research assignment investigated current literature on strategy execution factors, models and frameworks to gain an understanding of the thoughts and findings dominant in this field. The common traits within this field were established in order to create focus areas for further research. Therefore, this investigation of the various attributes can be leveraged for strategy execution ability to create insights into their nature and the thinking patterns accompanying them. Many of the already established models and frameworks offer strategy execution as a process with flow. This research focused on the attributes that organisations can use to define strategy execution ability as an organisational competence. The attributes identified are grouped into three processes namely the strategy, people, and operations process. These processes operate in the organisation’s internal as well as external environment each with attributes offering strategy execution ability if managed well. To conclude, this study found that strategy execution ability is created by the combination of attributes that an organisation have at its disposal, specifically set up to enable strategy execution where, when and how it is required.

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / Business / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy