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Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since the early 1990’s shortly after Namibia gained independence, the Namibian financial industry has gone through substantial changes. New bank legislation and regulatory requirements were introduced and the market broadened to include blacks who were excluded from the formal banking services. Customers gained more bargaining power, competition intensified, international scrutiny intensified and customers now demand more sophisticated products and quality service. The Namibian banking and financial industry is relatively well developed in terms of service institutions and instruments. Like most developing countries, the financial and banking industry is made up of formal and informal sectors. The formal sector consists of the central bank, commercial banks, development financial institutions (Development Bank of Namibia), insurance companies and the stock exchange, while the informal sector comprises mainly of micro lenders. The Namibian banking industry comprises of four commercial banking groups of which FNB Namibia is the market leader, as can be seen in this paper. The BEE (Black Economic Empowerment) partnership has also enabled FNB to venture into areas that were previously unbanked or under banked. The focus has shifted from urban centres to rural areas. The financial services industry has prospects to grow given the economic, political and environmental stability in Namibia. However, the Namibian economy is not immune to the external forces responsible for the global economic slowdown. This economic slowdown affects food, oil and energy prices, which in turn affect the performance and profitability of FNB Namibia. In addition to this, an entry of two commercial banks (ABSA and PHB Bank) is underway, which will erode FNB’s profits and reduce market share. The purpose of this research was to analyse and assess the alignment of the strategic planning and budgeting process within FNB Namibia. It further intends to establish how best this management model is able to cope with the fast changing environmental and business landscape. The research also explores an alternative strategic planning and budgeting approach that will promise to create and improve shareholder value. The research focuses on the experience of FNB Namibia Holdings Limited, which operates in the banking and financial industry. The FNB Group was traditionally a banking institution with its primary focus on retail banking and asset financing in the higher end of the market. The strategic goals of the Group are based on three pillars, i.e. People, Customer and Efficiencies. The Group seeks to achieve its mandate based on these pillars and through innovation and value adding partnerships. An overview of the banking industry as well as the governing structures of FNB and the entire banking industry is provided. The external and internal business environment has an impact on the operations of FNB, both negative and positive. Therefore an environmental analysis on the basis of the political, economic, social, technological and environmental aspects was done. A detailed historical perspective was provided, which also provided the context of the transformation that took place in the discipline of strategic planning and budgeting. The Beyond Budgeting management model that is based on devolved leadership was explored and recommended as an alternative to the traditional command and control model. The devolved leadership principles empower the frontline managers and allow decision making to be made at customer contact. The move from the traditional strategic planning and budgeting model to Beyond Budgeting will require a systems transformation and not only a change in some part. To understand FNB’s management model, the Biomatrix systems thinking approach is recommended to analyse the underlying processes in accordance with the seven perspectives of organisation, i.e. ethos, environment, aims, structure, process, resources and governance. The analysis of FNB along these seven perspectives will ensure that strengths and weaknesses are identified in the whole system (company) and that the people in the company are well prepared for change. The Balanced Scorecard was also explored and recommended as a tool to improve strategy implementation and a tool to communicate the strategy to the rest of the company. Conclusions were drawn from the research and some recommendations were made for the transformation of the FNB management model and the implementation thereof. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Sedert die vroeë 1990’s en kort nadat Namibië onafhanklikheid verkry het, het die Namibiese finansiële bedryf aansienlike veranderinge beleef. Nuwe bankwetgewing en reguleringsvereistes is ingestel en die mark het breër geword om swart mense in te sluit, nadat hulle voorheen van die formele bankdienste uitgesluit was. Kliënte het groter onderhandelingsmag verkry, mededinging het intensiewer geword, die internasionale soeklig het feller geword en kliënte vereis nou meer gesofistikeerde produkte en gehaltediens. Die Namibiese bank- en finansiële bedryf is relatief goed ontwikkel ten opsigte van diensinstellings en –instrumente. Soos in die meeste ontwikkelende lande bestaan die finansiële en bankindustrie uit formele en informele sektore. Die formele sektor bevat die sentrale bank, handelsbanke, ontwikkelings-finansiële instellings (Ontwikkelingsbank van Namibië), versekeringsmaatskappye en die aandelebeurs, terwyl die informele sektor hoofsaaklik uit mikroleners bestaan. Die Namibiese bankwese omvat vier handelsbankgroepe waarvan FNB Namibia die markleier is, soos uit hierdie navorsing afgelei kan word. Die SEB-vennootskap (Swart Ekonomiese Bemagtiging) het FNB ook in staat gestel om toegang te verkry tot areas waar daar voorheen geen of te min bankbedrywighede was. Die fokus het van stedelike na landelike gebiede verskuif. Die finansiëledienstebedryf het groeivooruitsigte gegewe die ekonomiese, politieke en omgewingstabiliteit in Namibië. Die Namibiese ekonomie is egter nie immuun teen die eksterne magte wat verantwoordelik is vir die wêreldwye ekonomiese verlangsaming nie. Hierdie ekonomiese verlangsaming het ‘n uitwerking op die prys van voedsel, olie en energie, wat op hulle beurt die prestasie en winsgewendheid van FNB Namibia beïnvloed. Daarbenewens word die toetrede van twee ander handelsbanke (ABSA en PHB Bank) verwag, wat FNB se wins verder sal inkort en sy markaandeel sal verminder. Die doel van hierdie navorsing is om te ontleed en te beoordeel of die strategiese beplannings- en die begrotingsproses binne FNB Namibia met mekaar belyn is. Dit het verder ten doel om te bepaal hoe hierdie bestuursmodel die vinnig veranderende omgewings- en sakelandskap ten beste kan hanteer. Die navorsing ondersoek ook ‘n alternatiewe benadering tot strategiese beplanning en begroting met die oog op die skepping en verbetering van aandeelhouerswaarde. Die navorsing fokus op die ondervinding van FNB Namibia Holdings Ltd, wat in die bank- en finansiële nywerheid bedryf word. Die FNB Groep was tradisioneel ‘n bankinstelling met sy primêre fokus op kleinhandelbankwese en batefinansiering in die hoër gedeelte van die mark. Die strategiese doelwitte van die Groep is gebaseer op drie pilare, nl. Mense, Kliënt en Vaardighede. Die Groep wil sy mandaat bereik gebaseer op hierdie pilare en deur innovering en waardetoevoegende vennootskappe. ‘n Oorsig van die bankwese asook die bestuurstrukture van FNB en die totale bankindustrie word voorsien. Die eksterne en interne sakeomgewing het ‘n impak op die bedryf van FNB, beide negatief en positief. Daar is dus ‘n omgewingsontleding op die basis van die politieke, ekonomiese, sosiale, tegnologiese en omgewingsaspekte uitgevoer. ‘n Gedetailleerde historiese perspektief word gegee, wat ook die konteks voorsien vir die transformasie wat plaasgevind het in die dissiplines van strategiese beplanning en begroting. Die Beyond Budgeting-bestuursmodel, gebaseer op die afgewentelde leierskap is ondersoek en word aanbeveel as ‘n alternatief tot die tradisionele bevels- en beheermodel. Die beginsels van afgewentelde leierskap bemagtig die bestuurders in die kantore waar kliënteskakeling plaasvind, om besluite te neem. Die verskuiwing van die tradisionele model van strategiese beplanning en begroting na Beyond Budgeting, vereis ‘n stelseltransformasie en nie net ‘n gedeeltelike verandering nie. Ten einde die FNB se bestuursmodel te begryp, word die Biomatrix-benadering van stelseldenke aanbeveel om die onderliggende prosesse te ontleed ooreenkomstig die sewe perspektiewe van organisasie, naamlik etos, omgewing, doelwitte, strukture, proses, hulpbronne en bestuur. Die ontleding van FNB op grond van hierdie sewe perspektiewe verseker dat die sterk en swak punte in die hele stelsel (maatskappy) geïdentifiseer word en dat die mense in die maatskappy goed voorberei word op verandering. Die Balanced Scorecard is ook ondersoek en word aanbeveel as ‘n instrument om die implementering van strategie te verbeter en die strategie aan die res van die maatskappy te kommunikeer. Gevolgtrekkings is uit die navorsing gemaak en ‘n paar aanbevelings word gedoen vir die transformasie van die FNB-bestuursmodel en die implementering daarvan.

Change is invariable and continuous, and has become inevitable in almost every sphere of business. The FNB Namibia operates in a highly vibrant competitive environment that is influenced by external and internal change drivers, and has not been resistant to any forces of change. This study was conducted to examine the relationship between corporate culture and organisational change of FNB Namibia. In this study corporate culture is the independent variable while organisational change is the dependent variable under the investigation. The data were collected through the questionnaires distributed to the staff members of the bank. A total of 50 questionnaires were administered, 33 of the questionnaires were correctly completed and returned. The findings showed that there is a relationship between corporate culture and organisational change. The findings also showed that the dominant existing organisational culture at the bank is hierarchy culture. Even though hierarchy culture is found to be the dominant organisational culture of the bank, the findings however, further revealed that the bank has adopted all four types of organisational culture. The study also found that different types of organisational culture have different levels of perceptions towards organisational change. / Business Management / M. Tech. (Business Administration)

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is extremely severe malignant disease with a five-year survival of less than 5%. Currently there is no reliable tool for the diagnosis of PC in its early stages. At the time of clinical symptoms most patients are in an advanced stage of the disease and the treatment does not usually have a significant effect. For these reasons emphasis is gradually shifting to the search for the suitable molecular markers for improvement of the diagnosis and assessment of the survival prognosis with respect to a possibility of surgical treatment. MiRNA represent one of the most promising markers, although, their examination in pancreatic tissue is a complicated process. One of the reasons is the very small amount of the source material coming from a fine needle biopsy. A second cause of problems is the subtle character of the pancreatic tissue resulting in significantly lower yields of molecular genetic analysis when compared to other epithelial tissues. An additional negative factor is heterogeneity of the tissue resulting in disproportionate representation of tumor cells within the sample. A suitable choice of procedures for isolation of nucleic acids (NA) and subsequent analysis including quantification of tumor cells is critical for accurate evaluation of the miRNA levels. This work is...

Change is invariable and continuous, and has become inevitable in almost every sphere of business. The FNB Namibia operates in a highly vibrant competitive environment that is influenced by external and internal change drivers, and has not been resistant to any forces of change. This study was conducted to examine the relationship between corporate culture and organisational change of FNB Namibia. In this study corporate culture is the independent variable while organisational change is the dependent variable under the investigation. The data were collected through the questionnaires distributed to the staff members of the bank. A total of 50 questionnaires were administered, 33 of the questionnaires were correctly completed and returned. The findings showed that there is a relationship between corporate culture and organisational change. The findings also showed that the dominant existing organisational culture at the bank is hierarchy culture. Even though hierarchy culture is found to be the dominant organisational culture of the bank, the findings however, further revealed that the bank has adopted all four types of organisational culture. The study also found that different types of organisational culture have different levels of perceptions towards organisational change. / Business Management / M. Tech. (Business Administration)