<p>Abstract</p><p>In order to stay competitive in today’s changing business world, companies need to manage</p><p>the increased complexity as they evolve. To be able to handle this complexity, many companies</p><p>chose to implement an ERP system. Investing in an ERP system is not something that</p><p>is made in a trice but is a large investment which together with today’s low-profit margins in</p><p>companies makes it essential to keep the costs as low as possible. More than half of the total</p><p>cost for an ERP investment is said to be related to costs for the system’s maintenance and</p><p>support. Documentation is one of the factors which affect this cost, and if it is not made satisfactorily</p><p>it is said to result in a considerable increase of the system’s total cost. This is why</p><p>it is important not to overlook the documentation as a part of ERP system development</p><p>project.</p><p>The purpose with this thesis is to investigate the existing documentation routines in ERP</p><p>system development projects at AB Volvo’s subsidiary Volvo IT, in order to find suggestions</p><p>of improvement for future projects. In order to fulfill the purpose of the study, we formed a</p><p>research question with three sub-questions and through a deep analysis of the empirical material</p><p>we presented the answers to these questions as the conclusions of this thesis.</p><p>Our study is based on an inductive research approach using a case study to gain deeper and</p><p>more helpful qualitative knowledge and data. The empirical data was analyzed using the</p><p>template analysis method where we divided the collected data into appropriate categories.</p><p>The knowledge created through this study is of exploratory, normative, predictive and categorical</p><p>nature.</p><p>After having analyzed the results from our case study we found several suggestions of improvements</p><p>for Volvo IT to use in future projects. For other companies involved in ERP</p><p>system development projects of their own, the conclusions of this thesis will work as valuable</p><p>issues to take into consideration for upcoming projects. We have concluded that the</p><p>main reason behind lacking quality of documentation in the development projects is not the</p><p>unawareness of its importance, but the absence of concrete evidence of high quality documentation’s</p><p>positive effects on a system’s total cost. We believe that in order to achieve documentation</p><p>of high quality, there needs to be a change of attitude to documentation as a</p><p>work task and the task itself must be higher prioritized in the projects. Another important</p><p>suggestion is that a control of the conducted documentation’s quality must be done, not only</p><p>a control of the existence of the right kind of documents. We are of the opinion that a company</p><p>should not allocate resources to create a method of documentation before the importance</p><p>of high quality documentation is clarified. Ultimately, we believe that the system development</p><p>process should be focused around the customer, because of the more frequent use</p><p>of custom made solutions and to help the people in the project to set the right level of abstraction</p><p>on the documentation.</p> / <p>Sammanfattning</p><p>För att företag ska kunna behålla sin konkurrenskraft i näringslivet, behöver de hela tiden utvecklas.</p><p>Men med utveckling kommer en ökad komplexitet som måste hanteras på något</p><p>sätt. Många företag väljer då att investera i ett affärssystem (s.k. ERP-system), vilket inte är</p><p>något som görs lättvindigt utan är en ansenlig investering. Detta faktum tillsammans med</p><p>dagens låga vinstmarginaler i företag gör att det är väsentligt att hålla kostnaderna så låga</p><p>som möjligt. Mer än hälften av kostnaderna för ett ERP-system sägs vara relaterat till underhålls-</p><p>och supportverksamhet. En av de faktorer som påverkar denna stora kostnad är dokumentationsaktiviteter,</p><p>vilken ifall de inte är utförd på rätt sätt kan leda till en ansenlig ökning</p><p>av ett systems totala kostnad. Det är därför väldigt viktigt att inte förbise dokumentationen</p><p>som en del av ett ERP-systemutvecklingsprojekt.</p><p>Syftet med vår studie var att undersöka existerande dokumentationsrutiner i ERPsystemutvecklingsprojekt</p><p>hos Volvo AB’s dotterbolag Volvo IT, för att sedan presentera</p><p>förbättringsförslag för framtida projekt i företaget. För att kunna uppfylla syftet med uppsatsen,</p><p>tog vi fram en forskningsfråga med tre följdfrågor och genom en grundlig analys av det</p><p>empiriska materialet kommer vi att presentera svaren på dessa frågor som våra slutsatser.</p><p>Vi har valt att genomföra en fallstudie med en induktiv ansats, för att införskaffa oss djupare</p><p>kunskap och därmed kunna generera ny kunskap inom området. Det empiriska materialet</p><p>analyserades utifrån en given modell där insamlad data delades in i lämpliga kategorier. Kunskapen</p><p>genererad från vår studie är av följande kunskapsform; kategoriell, förklarande, förutsägande</p><p>och normativ.</p><p>Efter att ha analyserat resultatet av vår fallstudie kan vi presentera ett flertal förbättringsförslag</p><p>för Volvo IT’s användning i framtida projekt. För andra företag, involverade i ERPsystemutvecklingsprojekt,</p><p>kan dessa fungera som värdefulla förslag att ta i beaktande. Vi</p><p>kom fram till att den främsta anledningen till bristande dokumentation inte är omedvetenheten</p><p>om dess betydelse, utan avsaknaden av konkreta bevis på dess positiva effekter på ett systems</p><p>totala kostnad. Vi anser att det krävs en attitydförändring kring dokumentation som</p><p>arbetsuppgift för att uppnå dokumentation som är av hög kvalitet och att arbetsuppgiften</p><p>som sådan behöver få högre prioritet i projekten. Ett annat viktigt förbättringsförslag vi fann</p><p>var att en kontroll av den producerade dokumentationens kvalité måste utföras, och inte</p><p>bara en kontroll av att den rätta sortens dokument finns. Vi anser att ett företag inte bör allokera</p><p>resurser till att skapa en metod eller modell över hur man ska dokumentera förrän vikten</p><p>och effekten av hög kvalitetsdokumentation är klargjord. Till sist anser vi att systemutvecklingsprocessen</p><p>bör fokuseras kring den framtida användaren, dels på grund av dagens</p><p>ökade användning av skräddarsydda system men också för att det minskar risken för en oönskad</p><p>effekt på projektets omfattning samt att det ökar kvaliteten på den slutgiltiga dokumentationen.</p>

Thesis (M.S.W.)--University of Hong Kong, 1981.

D. Tech. Fine and Applied Arts / No documented projects exists that can serve as a guide for the establishment of community economic development projects among women in Southern Africa with the aim to economically empower them through the manufacturing of export quality garments in large volumes. The premise for this study was therefore to investigate opportunities that could potentially result in the economic empowerment of women by equipping them with textile-related skills, in a community economic development context, to make apparel that can be exported to first-world countries. The aim of this research was to devise a community empowerment model that would facilitate a participative process that will induce change - from poverty to economic empowerment - through the medium of garment product manufacture and distribution.

As a result of increasing emphasis in global development agendas on the provision of education to create positive and sustainable change in developing countries, the number of youth education development projects in some of the world’s poorest and remote regions has burgeoned. While the benefits these projects can bestow and the success factors behind them have been studied by many past researchers, knowledge of the everyday challenges faced in their management is surprisingly limited, and is mainly only reflective of those projects run by international non-governmental organisations (INGOs), inter-governmental organisations (IGOs) and national governments in developing countries. The intention of this study is to develop an understanding of the challenges faced by community-based non-formal youth education development project managers in developing countries. It questions the richness of existing knowledge in the field of education development project management, showing that more research is needed into smaller project types due to contextual factors that make them dissimilar to the internationally- and governmentally-affiliated projects that are the focus of past research.

No description available.

The purpose of the study was to assess funding and support provided for development projects in Kenya and South Africa. The focus was to identify comparisons and differences in development, funding and national development priorities in both countries. The study was carried out in Kenya and South Africa. Through purposive sampling, six organizations were selected as the units of analysis. Data was collected by means of questionnaires, interviews, national policies and written records. Six major themes emerged from the data collected. They included (a) the purpose and internal structure of the organization (b) programs and projects supported (c) sustainability and continuation (d) internal and external factors affecting the organization (e) conditions (f) the aid-chain. The findings indicated that despite the differences in both countries, poverty remained a national priority. In both countries, factors such as inflation rates, conditions tied to aid and internal and external factor affected the development organizations and their operations. Suggestions were made to development organizations for optimal development. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

Purpose: This study aims to investigate the role of communication and information management in inter-institutional collaboration and review aspects that are crucial for partnerships to function effectively in a multi-stakeholder situation. These aspects include: stakeholders, stakeholder analysis, partnership development and its fundamental values and principles, communication analysis, information and knowledge management and management of conflicts. The study seeks to explore the influence of these aspects for partnership development and sustainability respectively. / Thesis (M.Agric.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, PIetermaritzburg, 2007.

Much debate has been raging in development discourse about the role of the state in development economics. Neo liberal theorists call for the state to remove itself from the process and leave markets to determine the direction of economic development. The challenge to this theory was reinforced by the success of the East Asian counties in encouraging economic development through a process which involved extensive state intervention. The process of globalisation has added a new dimension to this debate where states are increasingly feeling the need to take steps to protect their economies from the negative impacts of globalisation and take other steps so that the positive rewards can be reaped. The debate of this interaction between the state and economic forces is evident on all levels of governance, from the national to the local. Theorists such as Stone, Molotch, Logan and Stoker have researched this question on the local level in cities in the United States. They found that there is extensive interaction between political and economic bodies for the economic development of urban spaces. Specifically, these two major groups are represented by an elite grouping of individuals who play an important role in the planning and implementing of development initiatives. This study attempts to examine this relationship of the economic elite and political elite in the city of Durban. This is particularly relevant in the context of the critical need for economic development in the city and the mandate that the city is given by national legislation to promote such development. The study furthermore examines the extent to which the role players in this interaction are part of the post-Apartheid 'new' elite, or if the interactive process is still dominated by the 'old' white elite. The interactions were found to be limited to a 'project' basis which did not reflect a coalition in terms of the sharing of strategic decision making and planning. Furthermore, this process is dominated by the traditional white, corporate elite, although non-white individuals do have key roles in this process. There is however, a stark absence of a new non-white elite in the city who could emerge as an important force in encouraging development initiatives which will contribute to the economic development of the city. However, projects are been implemented that are being driven by individuals who are members of a economic or political elite grouping. These projects are based on a trickle down approach where the growth is presumed to filter down and positively affect the poorer members of Durban. There is a real possibility however, as various theorist have warned, that such projects currently being implemented by the elite in the city, might have limited positive benefits for the poor in the city , and could in fact have long term detrimental implications. / Thesis (M.Dev. Studies)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

The promotion of Local Economic Development (LED) increasingly involves the allocation of grant finance for project implementation. This finance is often provided on condition that the grant recipient commits a certain level of co-funding to the project. These co-funding requirements are essentially a risk-sharing mechanism used to avert the agency problems, namely adverse selection and moral hazard, which occur in the relationship between the funding programme and the grant beneficiaries. The purpose of this study is to examine whether these requirements are effective at achieving this aim and to determine their impact on the LED outcomes of various types of projects. This is undertaken through the comparative analysis of projects funded through the Gijima KwaZulu-Natal Local Competitiveness Fund Implementation Programme (LCFI), which provided grant funding for projects implemented by the private sector, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and local government. The findings indicate that co-funding has a positive impact on internally co-funded private sector projects and in this scenario is necessary to achieve optimal outcomes. Inversely, co-funding has a detrimental impact on projects implemented by non-profit groups in that it requires the attraction of funding from additional organisations whose finance conditions may not align to those of the principal donor. Finally, co-funding is ineffective when provided by government for the implementation of community projects due to the lack of risk it assumes. These findings have implications for the design of LED grant programmes and support the assertion that grant programme should be designed to efficiently reflect the objectives and risk preferences of the institutions they support. / Thesis (M.Dev.Studies)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

This research is an evaluation of labour-based methods and techniques that are used in rural road construction and maintenance. The study places emphasis on the Zibambele rural road maintenance programme in Umbumbulu, which is based on a lengthmen (male or female) system. The research is an attempt to determine how strategies such as Zibambele can be used for the social and economic upliftment of impoverished rural areas as well as contribute to adequate road access for rural communities to address the legacy of apartheid, with special reference to the empowerment of women-headed households. Rural road networks in South Africa are underdeveloped and characterised by its poor state, lack of maintenance and lack of provision, thereby having little impact on the lives of the rural poor Black population. It is evident in the study that development and maintenance of physical infrastructure are keys to rapid economic growth and poverty reduction. The study examined the impacts of labour-based rural road maintenance on accessibility and poverty alleviation in the Umbumbulu community through the use of quantitative methods (specifically a questionnaire survey) and qualitative methods (specifically focus group discussions, ranking exercises, mental mapping and venn/ chapatti diagrams). The_findings of the study indicated that the Zibambele poverty alleviation and rural road maintenance programme impacted positively on the livelihoods of many women-headed households by providing an income, facilitating skills development, and improving their social environment. It was also determined that through the introduction of new programmes such as Zibambele, the transport infrastructure within a community and the quality of life immediately improves, thus alleviating many affects of poverty / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.