D.Comm. / Accurate, credible and reliable financial reporting is critical for the effective functioning of the world’s capital markets and the protection of the interests of stakeholders, who rely on such information for their decision making. All the well- known corporate collapses of the 21st century have in common fraudulent financial reporting, unscrupulous management practices and the fact that they all had audit committees consisting of well-known and respected people. This state of events highlighted the fact that audit committees should not merely exist as window-dressing, but should be effective in their functioning. Audit committees will thus only be of value if they are properly constituted, are functioning effectively and if their role is clearly understood by all the parties concerned. This study’s research problem was to analyse the effective functioning of audit committees in the modern business environment, and the study aimed to investigate the factors and events that impact on the development, status and effective functioning of audit committees at large listed companies in South Africa. This was done through a comprehensive literature study of the factors impacting on audit committees and the empirical testing thereof at the largest listed companies in South Africa. The study found that audit committees are well established, properly constituted, have the authority and resources to effectively discharge their responsibilities and consist of members who act independently and who have the right mix of appropriate experience, financial literacy and financial expertise amongst their members. The audit committee’s role was found to be generally well understood and supported by the board and the Chief Financial Officers. It was further found that the audit committees are effective in discharging their oversight responsibilities on the board’s behalf, with the only real exception being their effectiveness regarding IT-related aspects. However, audit committee reporting in annual reports was found to be of a poor standard and did not reflect the iii actual workings and effectiveness of the committee. It was also found that the audit committee’s perceived responsibilities are evolving and that audit committee members’ legal liabilities are increasing. The research findings make a valuable contribution to the existing body of knowledge on current audit committee practices and developments. The study also outlines new responsibilities for future audit committees, as well as aspects that should be addressed in future legislation, regulations, corporate governance codes and best practice standards for audit committees.

M.A. (Marketing Communication) / In this study it is argued that the consumer has evolved and grown into a force that is no longer passive, taking the actions of its brands for granted. They ask questions, challenge and are inherently active, a state of being that is accelerated, facilitated and aided by the Internet and social media. This active stakeholder concept is operationally defined as the pressure exerted by informed consumers to hold brands and organisations responsible and accountable for the well-being of society and the environment, beyond the maximisation of profit, and to expect such entities to be responsive to and in dialogue with consumers as stakeholders of brands and organisations. It is questioned, at the same time, to what extent South African brand leaders have stayed current and informed with regard to this new breed of active consumer stakeholder, and whether Corporate Social Responsibility practices are not often used as a smokescreen to ‘greenwash’ actions. The study aimed to address the research problem by linking the key concepts of corporate social responsibility, stakeholder theory, normative stakeholder theory, corporate social responsiveness, stakeholder activism, stakeholder communication and accountability in an attempt to ascertain to what extent the active consumer stakeholder concept has taken root in strategic communication activities of 50 brand leaders in the country, and to develop a measuring instrument for brands to evaluate to what extent they are attuned to the active consumer stakeholder concept. The research methodology made use of reliability tests and cluster analyses, themes were established based on an extensive literature review. Ultimately, the tool was comprised of a series of Likert-type questions, a ranking question and three open-ended questions which added depth to the other elements of the tool. The findings indicate a lack of congruence, within the sphere of South African brand leaders, with regards to the notion of the active consumer stakeholder. However, they also suggest an assimilation, and move to congruence, through a connection between the nuances that exist at both ends of the stakeholder continuum i.e. shareholder theory and stakeholder theory. Doing good will ultimately be equated with making money.

Please read the abstract in the section 00front of this document / Thesis (PhD (Systematic Theology and Christian Ethics))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Dogmatics and Christian Ethics / unrestricted

Research suggests that there is a relationship between religion and business ethics. When looking at the South African society and the statistics that says that 80 percent of the population is Christian but on the other hand we are confronted within this country with increasing incidents of corruption in private companies as well as in public services. Why would that be the case? This study seeks to understand if Christianity or the local church really makes an impact on the lives of its members. The research starts of by looking at behaviour in general and what constitute to good ethical decision-making. In the study on Christian ethics it becomes clear that there is a strong appeal in the Bible on ethical behaviour. The Bible goes as far as to claim that, when in a relationship with the Lord, the followers will show His character in the way they live at home and the way they behave and make ethical decisions at the workplace. This study used focus groups to research the role of the local church in changing behaviour. The study finds that Christianity per se does not change the behaviour of church members. The church members‘ definition of the church largely determines the impact the church will have on their lives. In the study on the Christian ethics it was clear that ethics were seen as something that was formed in communities and not by rules or regulations. It was not a case of people telling others what to do and what not. It was more a case of mentors that helped others to live differently in community with others. The study finds that when the local church is build on relationships and if there is a strong sense of community, the church has a huge impact on the lives of its members. This suggests that the local church should be more focused on strong and intimate relationships and not so much on the church as organisation or institute. This is also important for the businesses that will employ these members because they will make better ethical decisions.

The public is regularly shocked by revelations of new business scandals. Nearly every sector of society is tainted by incidents of unethical behaviour. In this regard, the South African financial services industry has attracted a lot of attention, as some of the biggest scandals in recent years have occurred in this industry. With the world economy still experiencing the effects of the global recession, the last thing that institutions in the financial arena must do is engage in unethical behaviour. Immoral behaviour could damage a company's repution and lead to further financial losses. The purpose of this study was thus two-fold: firstly, to investigae the factors that influence unethical decision-making and behaviour in the local life insurance sector, and secondly to evaluate how business ethics are institutionalised at a sample of life insurance companies.

The purpose of this research project was to establish in what way Christian entrepreneurs, in this case owner-managers of small and medium-sized enterprises, drew on their Christian faith – as an identity-creating construct – in the day-to-day running of their businesses. Religion was identified as one of the significant contributing elements that form part of individuals’ underlying values that are used to make numerous value-based decisions. Because SME owner-managers that adhere to the Christian faith constitute a fairly large segment of society in the Western World, a study of this nature can be regarded as a worthwhile undertaking that provides valuable insights related to how and to what extent this particular group of economic actors merge religious convictions with business operations. The research was set up in such a way that SME owner-managers in South Africa, who were self-proclaimed Christians and broadly defined as members of the Protestant tradition, constituted the sample participants. The methodology regarded as most suitable was a qualitative, grounded-theory approach whereby interviews were conducted along the lines of a semi-structured interview schedule. An openended exploratory strategy was adopted that allowed respondents to convey their thoughts and ideas pertaining to the research phenomenon from their personal perspectives. A number of conceptual and linguistic frames offered by the respondents – that gave language to the way they rationalised their faith in the context of managing their businesses – were recorded. A total of sixteen major themes and an additional eight sub-themes emerged from the data. The themes recorded and analysed were: faith, grace, calling, stewardship, kingdom, holiness, discipleship, discernment, love, relationship, anointing, inseparable dimensions of life, the Christian life journey, money, cultural perspectives and biblical principles, including the centrality of the Bible, integrity and honesty, sowing and reaping, humility, forgiveness, power of the tongue, importance of prayer and the centrality of Christ. The research findings revealed that a correct understanding of the Christian identity as well as a correct application thereof is crucial in successfully incorporating Christian ideals in the market. Full integration of the Christian identity plus an internalisation of God’s purposes and principles create an inner sense of direction that is less focused on external moral guidelines and codes of conduct – the phrase living from the inside out’ seems appropriately fitting to describe a group of economic actors who pursue their business careers with a sense of calling coupled with a belief that their commercial whereabouts are distinctively linked to a transcendent objective. In addition, general business administration guidelines, where the issue of religious affiliation per se is of no particular consequence, allow for the integration of the value concepts uncovered through the study by way of the corporate governance framework as contained in the King III report – particularly with reference to business practice interventions related to the formulation and implementation of core organisational values and moral codes.

The objective of this dissertation is appraisal of the current status of Accenture's CSR initiatives. The theoretical part provides information that is essential for understanding CSR concept; it defines business ethics, a stakeholder theory and the triple bottom line of CSR. Furthermore, it provides a comprehensive view of the history and evolution of CSR and presents possibilities of measuring of CSR. Practical part is focused on Accenture's local and global CSR activities which are evaluated by using theoretical base from the first part of the dissertation. Part of the dissertation's appraisal includes a survey among Accenture's employees. Its results offer possible improvements to the Accenture's CSR strategy.

The aim of this study was to assess whether a relationship existed between an employee’s attitude toward business ethics and the variables of age, race, gender, level of education, position, tenure and place of work within the South African Motor Industry. The study was conducted using a well-known research instrument, the Attitude Toward Business Ethics Questionnaire (ATBEQ), in order to be able to compare the results with previous studies. The study did not find significant evidence to suggest that the above-mentioned demographic variables were related to an employee’s attitude toward business ethics barring for a few of the measured variables from the questionnaire. In its findings, the study did not support most of the previous studies that have been done in the field of attitude toward business ethics. The suggested area for future research is to include a demographic of culture and upbringing to assess the relationship between that variable and attitude toward business ethics. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / zkgibs2015 / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / Unrestricted

The objective of this study was to assess whether, and how, the attitudes towards business ethics of South African business students have changed between the early 1990s and 2010. The research was conducted as a cohort study utilising the same instrument, the Attitudes towards Business Ethics Questionnaire (ATBEQ). This study compared the results of the survey of the MBA alumni of the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), to the published results from a similar study at Rhodes University from the early 1990s. The study found a significant change in attitudes, with a trend towards stronger opinions, on business ethics and espoused values. A factor analysis of the responses showed eleven factors although it was less able to explain the variation in the attitudes than the previous study. A significant change in the rankings of variables also indicated a shift in priorities. These results indicated a shift towards a teleological moral philosophy as well as utilitarian motives. This shows a clear trend towards compliance-based ethics which can be explained by the proliferation of business legislation and regulation in the wake of recent corporate governance failures and the subsequent global financial crisis. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

This study was conducted to determine the relationship between managers' ethical positions and their intended behavior.