Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / Budgets are inevitable strategic tools used in the planning of the effective delivery by any organisation. In a sense budgets become the financial interpretation of work, services or products to be produced or services to be delivered by the organisation. In the same vein, government departments have plans and programmes to be implemented, and these programmes are quantified in the form of budgets. The budgeting processes are determined by the strategic imperatives and the type of leadership in an organisation, thereby differing from organisation to organisation. The traditional approach in government budgeting is that the activities to be undertaken start as political decisions which will be cascaded down to the different departments. Though the different department units construct their own budgets, the ultimate budget comes top down more than it comes top up. This research aims to identify the extent of the involvement of budget managers in the budget development process and the possible limiting factors if any. The study goes further to try to understand why there is always a seeming perpetual difference between budgets and deliveries at the end of every year. This empirical research focussed on the ‘budget practitioners’ in the particular department under study with emphasis on how they operate. Questionnaires were used to collect data which was analysed using Excel Spreadsheet and the findings were interpreted. The findings imply a need for extensive training as well as empowerment of the budget practitioners to be able to create congruence between budgets, budgeting processes, project implementation and envisage delivery to the citizens.

Financial liberalization in South Africa was a process that took the form of various legal reforms very a long period of time. This study uses quarterly financial data from 1969 quarter one to 2009 quarter four to analyse this process. The data used was pertinent to the financial liberalization theorem by McKinnon (1973) and Shaw (1973). The examination of the relationships between the various macro economic variables has important implications for effective policy formulation. The empirical analysis is carried out in four phases: the preliminary analysis, the principal component analysis (PCA), the cointegration analysis and pair wise Granger causality tests. The preliminary analysis examines trends over the sample period and reports the on the correlation between the selected variables. The PCA analysis was used to create indexes for financial liberalization, taking into account the phase wise nature of legal reforms. The generated index was representative of the process of financial liberalization from 1969 to 2009. A financial development index was also created using the various traditional measures of financial development and through PCA which investigated interrelationships among the variables according to their common sources of movement. Cointegration analysis is carried out using the Johansen cointegration procedure which investigates whether there is long-run comovement between South African economic growth and the selected macroeconomic variables. Where cointegration is found, Vector Error-Correction Models (VECMs) are estimated in order to examine the short-run adjustments. For robustness, many control variables were added into the model. The results showed that there are positive long run relationships between economic growth and financial liberalization, financial development and a negative relationship with interest rates. The Granger results suggested that the MS hypothesis does not manifest accurately in the South African data. The implications of the results were that financial liberalization has had positive effects on economic growth and thus any impediments to full financial liberalization must be removed albeit with considerations towards employment and local productivity. Financial development also possessed positive long run relationships with economic growth, although results differed based on the financial development proxy used. Thus, financial development must be improved primarily through liberalizing the banking sector and spurring savings.

This study examined the nature and extent of relations between Management of Technology [MOT] and cost management. It explores the roles of competencies and competency measurement in these relations and its associations with company performance. The problem statement asks how the MOT community deals with cost management, whether MOT-based cost management competencies can be isolated and measured, whether a tool for measurement can be created, tested and validated and indeed whether it can be used to assess relations between MOT-based cost management competencies and company performance. To answer these questions, a MOT-based cost management competency index is formulated, consisting of problem statements representing MOT-based cost management insights, knowledge and practices. Designed in the format of a typical research survey, the index is used to source data from sampled companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange [JSE]. Although too small a sample to generalise about the population, sufficient data is collected and processed with statistical software programs. A second set of variables, about financial performance of the responding companies, consists of Asset Turnover [ATO] and Return on Assets Managed [ROAM]. Data for these variables is sourced from their annual financial statements and processed into ATO and ROAM indicators. The combined research data set is used to critically describe statistical qualities of variables such as ATO, ROAM, MOT-based cost management competencies of company executives, their education and exposure to the executive management teams in their respective organizations. The research data is subsequently subjected to correlation analysis, as foundation for hypothesis testing. Among the relationships described by correlation analysis and warranting further examination with regression analysis, are associations between MOT-based cost management competencies and ATO and between Education and MOT-based cost management competencies. The former association is found to be not significant, having the research hypothesis rejected. A significant association between Education and MOT-based cost management competencies is indeed found. Utilizing regression equations yielded by the analyses, the predictive capacity of regression analysis is used to demonstrate results of interventions in those associations postulated in the research hypotheses. The study concludes that it achieved a qualified success in its first objective, which was to formulate a MOT-based cost management competency index, and to demonstrate its application as measurement and management tool on executive managers of JSE-listed companies. The study failed in its second objective, which was to demonstrate a significant association between MOT-based cost management competencies and financial performance of sampled companies. Critical perspectives on the data and the associations tested reveal important shortcomings in the research. These perspectives do though create opportunities for refinement of the MOT-based cost management competency index as measurement and management tool, validation of its status, and indeed demonstration of its business value to the MOT and business community in particular. In closure, the study was meant as a contribution to the discourse on a credo for MOT and the MOT body of knowledge, and it subjects itself to critical analysis by the research community so as to establish whether it succeeded in indeed making such a contribution. / Business Management / M.Tech. (Business Administration)

Study project (MAcc)--Stellenbosch University, 2001. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The most basic principle of agency theory is that an individual will always serve his own interest best. According to Eisenhardt (1989) agency theory describes individuals as rational, risk averse en motivated by egotism. Agency theory also deals with the conflict that exists between different parties in an organization due to people's egoism. This self-interest can lead to goal incongruence if a person is placed in an environment where he has to serve somebody else's interest. Ownership and management vested in the same party until about 130 years ago. These roles were however separated with the development of the modem organization. The principal or owner is now represented by the shareholder and management serves as the agent. The principal thus appoints the agent to serve and manage his interest in the organization optimally. The principal's goal is the maximising of his shareholders' wealth. The agent's goal to carry out his task with the minimum effort and or to obtain maximum benefit for himself. It is thus clear that the goals of the principal and agent might often differ and this will give rise to goal Incongruence. This goal incongruence may give rise to some managerial actions which will be detrimental to optimal value of the company. The agency conflict, which is caused by man's self interest, manifests in the modem organization in a number of ways. These are referred to agency problems in this assignment. Agency problems are found both on a micro- and macroeconomical level. Agency cost is the sum of the difference between the real and optimal value of the company, the monitoring costs of the principal and the bonding costs of the agent. This cost is to the disadvantage of the principal and might even be to the disadvantage of the agent. It is thus essential that agency conflict and agency costs are reduced to a minimum. A number of measures are taken to address the agency problems and to reduce their negative effect on the organization. None of these measures will be efficient enough ifused in isolation. An optimal combination of solutions will depend on the company's specific circumstances. An empirical study was conducted to determine to what extent the agency problems manifest during the demutualisation of a big insurance business. The measures taken to address these problems were also investigated as well as the extent to which these were successful. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die basiese aanname van agentskapsteorie is dat die individu sy selfbelang altyd eerste sal stel. Volgens Eisenhardt (1989) beskryf agentskapsteorie individue as rasioneel, risikoongeneigd en gemotiveer deur selfbelang. Agentskapsteorie handel verder oor die konflik wat tussen die verskillende belanghebbende partye binne 'n organisasie as gevolg van persone se selfbelang ontstaan. Hierdie selfbelang van die mens kan lei tot doelwitinkongruensie, indien die persoon in 'n omgewing geplaas word waar daar van hom verwag word om 'n ander se belange te dien. Eienaarskap en bestuur was tot ongeveer 130 jaar gelede gevestig in dieselfde party. Met die totstandkoming van die moderne onderneming, is hierdie rolle egter geskei. Die prinsipaal of eienaar word nou verteenwoordig deur die aandeelhouer en die bestuur dien as die agent. Die prinsipaal stel dus die agent aan om na sy belang in die onderneming om te sien en dit optimaal te bestuur. Die prinsipaal se doel is die maksimering van sy aandeelhouerswelvaart. Die agent poog om sy taak met minimale inspanning te voltooi en of uitsonderlike voordeel vir homself te behaal. Dit is duidelik dat die prinsipaal en agent se doelwitte meermale sal verskil en doelwitinkongruensie ontstaan dus. Hierdie doelwitinkongruensie word vergestalt in sekere aksies wat bestuur soms neem en wat daartoe lei dat die optimale waarde van die firma nie bereik word nie. Die agentskapskonflik wat as gevolg van die partye se selfbelang ontstaan manifesteer in die moderne onderneming op 'n verskeidenheid van wyses, wat in hierdie werkstuk as agenskapsprobleme gedefinieer word. Agentskapsprobleme kom op 'n mikro- sowel as op 'n makro-ekonomiese vlak voor. Die verskil tussen die werklike en optimale waarde van die organisasie, plus die prinsipaal se moniteringskoste en die agent se gebondenheidskoste, verteenwoordig agentskapskoste. Hierdie koste strek tot die nadeel van die eienaars en meermale ook tot die nadeel van die bestuur. Dit is dus noodsaaklik dat agentskapskonflik en die gepaardgaande agentskapskoste tot 'n minimum beperk word. Daar word van 'n verskeidenheid van maatreëls gebruik gemaak ten einde die agenskapsprobleme aan te spreek en hul negatiewe impak op die onderneming te versag. Nie een van hierdie oplossings kan in isolasie gebruik gemaak word nie en afhangend van die onderneming se spesifieke omstandighede, sal daar hoogstens 'n optimale kombinasie van oplossings ontwikkel kan word. Daar is vervolgens in hierdie werkstuk 'n empiriese ondersoek uitgevoer ten einde te bepaal in hoe 'n mate die agenskapsprobleme tydens die demutualisering van 'n groot versekeringsonderneming manifesteer. Die neem van regstellende stappe om hierdie probleem aan te spreek is ondersoek, sowel as die mate waartoe hierdie maatreëls suksesvol was al dan nie.

Thesis (PhD (Economics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2008. / The primary financial objective of a firm is the maximisation of its shareholders’ value. A problem faced by the shareholders of a firm is that it is difficult to determine the effect of management decisions on the future share returns of the firm. Furthermore, it may be necessary to implement certain monitoring costs to ensure that management is focused on achieving this objective. A firm would, therefore, benefit from being able to identify those financial performance measures that are able to link the financial performance of the firm to its share returns. Implementing such a financial performance measure in the valuation and reward systems of a firm should ensure that management is aligned with the objective of shareholder value maximisation, and rewarded for achieving it. A large number of traditional financial performance measures have been developed. These measures are often criticised for excluding a firm’s cost of capital, and are considered inappropriate to be used when evaluating value creation. Furthermore, it is argued that these measures are based on accounting information, which could be distorted by Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP). Studies investigating the relationship between these measures and share returns also provide conflicting results. As a result of the perceived limitations of traditional measures, value based financial performance measures were developed. The major difference between the traditional and value based measures is that the value based measures include a firm’s cost of capital in their calculation. They also attempt to remove some of the accounting distortions resulting from GAAP. Proponents of the value based measures present these measures as a major improvement over the traditional financial performance measures and report high levels of correlation between the measures and share returns. A number of studies containing contradictory results have been published. On the basis of these conflicting results it is not clear whether the value based measures are able to outperform the traditional financial performance measures in explaining share returns. The primary objectives of this study are thus to: • Determine the relationship between the traditional measures earnings before extraordinary items (EBEI) and cash from operations (CFO), and shareholder value creation; • Investigate the value based measures residual income (RI), economic value added (EVA), cash value added (CVA) and cash flow return on investments (CFROI), and to determine their relationship with the creation of shareholder value; • Evaluate the incremental information content of the value based measures above the traditional measures. The information content of the traditional measures and the value based measures are evaluated by employing an approach developed by Biddle, Bowen and Wallace (1997). The first phase of this approach entails the evaluation of the relative information content of the various measures in order to determine which measure explains the largest portion of a firm’s market-adjusted share returns. The second phase consists of an evaluation of the incremental information content of the components of a measure in order to determine whether the inclusion of an additional component contributes statistically significant additional information beyond that contained in the other components. The study is conducted for South African industrial firms listed on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange for the period 1991 to 2005. The data required to calculate the measures investigated in the study are obtained from the McGregor BFA database. This database contains annual standardised financial statements for listed and delisted South African firms. It also contains EVA, cost of capital and invested capital amounts for those firms listed at the end of the research period. Including only these listed firms in the research sample would expose the study to a survivorship bias. Hence these values are estimated for those firms that delisted during the period under review by employing a similar approach to the one used in the database. The resulting sample consists of 364 firms providing 3181 complete observations. Since different information is required to calculate the various measures included in the study, different samples are compiled from this initial sample and included in the tests conducted to evaluate the information content of the measures. The results of this study indicate that the value based measures are not able to outperform EBEI in the majority of the relative information content tests. Furthermore, the measures EVA, CVA and CFROI are also not able to outperform the relatively simple value based measure RI. The results from the incremental information content tests indicate that although some of the components of the value based measures provide statistically significant incremental information content, the level of significance for these relatively complex adjustments is generally low. Based on these results, the claims made by the proponents of the value based measures cannot be supported. Furthermore, if a firm intends to incorporate its cost of capital in its financial performance measures, the measure RI provides most of the benefits contained in the other more complex value based measures.

This study examined the nature and extent of relations between Management of Technology [MOT] and cost management. It explores the roles of competencies and competency measurement in these relations and its associations with company performance. The problem statement asks how the MOT community deals with cost management, whether MOT-based cost management competencies can be isolated and measured, whether a tool for measurement can be created, tested and validated and indeed whether it can be used to assess relations between MOT-based cost management competencies and company performance. To answer these questions, a MOT-based cost management competency index is formulated, consisting of problem statements representing MOT-based cost management insights, knowledge and practices. Designed in the format of a typical research survey, the index is used to source data from sampled companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange [JSE]. Although too small a sample to generalise about the population, sufficient data is collected and processed with statistical software programs. A second set of variables, about financial performance of the responding companies, consists of Asset Turnover [ATO] and Return on Assets Managed [ROAM]. Data for these variables is sourced from their annual financial statements and processed into ATO and ROAM indicators. The combined research data set is used to critically describe statistical qualities of variables such as ATO, ROAM, MOT-based cost management competencies of company executives, their education and exposure to the executive management teams in their respective organizations. The research data is subsequently subjected to correlation analysis, as foundation for hypothesis testing. Among the relationships described by correlation analysis and warranting further examination with regression analysis, are associations between MOT-based cost management competencies and ATO and between Education and MOT-based cost management competencies. The former association is found to be not significant, having the research hypothesis rejected. A significant association between Education and MOT-based cost management competencies is indeed found. Utilizing regression equations yielded by the analyses, the predictive capacity of regression analysis is used to demonstrate results of interventions in those associations postulated in the research hypotheses. The study concludes that it achieved a qualified success in its first objective, which was to formulate a MOT-based cost management competency index, and to demonstrate its application as measurement and management tool on executive managers of JSE-listed companies. The study failed in its second objective, which was to demonstrate a significant association between MOT-based cost management competencies and financial performance of sampled companies. Critical perspectives on the data and the associations tested reveal important shortcomings in the research. These perspectives do though create opportunities for refinement of the MOT-based cost management competency index as measurement and management tool, validation of its status, and indeed demonstration of its business value to the MOT and business community in particular. In closure, the study was meant as a contribution to the discourse on a credo for MOT and the MOT body of knowledge, and it subjects itself to critical analysis by the research community so as to establish whether it succeeded in indeed making such a contribution. / Business Management / M.Tech. (Business Administration)

Thesis (MEd)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / Includes bibliography / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Prior to 1994, the school principal in conjunction with the Department of Education used to be responsible for the control and management of school finances. With the establishment of the South African Schools Act 84 of 1996, however, the liability in respect of finance has changed dramatically as self-management took effect in schools. With the Minister of Education’s announcement of no-fee schools in poor communities (quintiles 1–3) in 2006, parents’ obligation to pay school fees fell away. Together with the aforementioned policy and decentralisation, through which power, control and management have shifted from the national to the local level, schools have started to bear a heavier financial burden as well. However, principals and governing body members have often not been trained to cope with this. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of the no-fees policy on the financial control and management of rural schools in the West Coast-Winelands education district (circuits 1, 2 and 3). The data for the research were firstly gathered by means of a literature review, after which an exploratory study was conducted in 20 rural no-fee schools in the abovementioned education district by way of questionnaires. The school principals and chairpersons of school governing bodies each received a questionnaire. They were afforded two weeks to complete it. The researcher personally analysed the data, based on which certain findings and recommendations are made at the end of the study. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Voor 1994 was die skoolhoof in samewerking met die Departement verantwoordelik vir die beheer en bestuur van skoolfinansies. Met die instelling van die Suid-Afrikaanse Skolewet 84 van 1996 het die aanspreeklikheid ten opsigte van finansies egter drasties verander, deurdat selfbestuur by skole in werking gestel is. Met die Minister van Onderwys se aankondiging in 2006 van geenskoolfondsskole in arm gemeenskappe (kwintiel 1–3), het ouers se verpligting om skoolgeld te betaal verval. Tesame met voormelde beleid en desentralisasie, waardeur mag, bestuur en beheer vanaf nasionale na plaaslike vlak verskuif is, het skole nou ʼn groter finansiёle las begin dra. Tog is skoolhoofde en beheerliggaamlede dikwels nie opgelei om hierdie finansiёle las te dra nie. Die doel van hierdie studie was om die invloed van die geenskoolfondsbeleid op die finansiёle beheer en bestuur van landelike skole in die Weskus-Wynland-onderwysdistrik (kring 1, 2 en 3) te bepaal. Die data vir die navorsing is eerstens by wyse van ʼn literatuuroorsig ingesamel, waarna ʼn ondersoekende studie deur middel van vraelyste by 20 landelike geenskoolfondsskole in bogenoemde onderwysdistrik onderneem is. Skoolhoofde en beheerliggaamvoorsitters van die skole het elk ʼn vraelys ontvang. Hulle is twee weke gegun om die vraelyste te voltooi. Die navorser het persoonlik die data ontleed, op grond waarvan bepaalde bevindings en aanbevelings aan die einde van die studie gedoen word.

<p>Local government is arguably the most significant sphere of government to lay citizens, as it is the point of contact of citizens with their government. Local government enables a direct link between the general public and the basic services that they are entitled to by means of their constitutional and legislatively entrenched rights. It is the only sphere of government that allows and encourages face-to-face engagement between citizens and their governors, providing the necessary platform for interaction, contact and communication. It is imperative therefore that this tier of government operate optimally and competently, as it represents a reflection of the operation of government wholly. Research unfortunately illustrates that public perceptions of local government are negative, with levels of trust in local government being substantially lower than those in provincial and national governments. The responsibility for failure to perform would lie squarely on the shoulders of those individuals leading any institution. The leading incumbents driving a municipality are the political and administrative heads, i.e. executive mayor and municipal manager.</p>

<p>Local government is arguably the most significant sphere of government to lay citizens, as it is the point of contact of citizens with their government. Local government enables a direct link between the general public and the basic services that they are entitled to by means of their constitutional and legislatively entrenched rights. It is the only sphere of government that allows and encourages face-to-face engagement between citizens and their governors, providing the necessary platform for interaction, contact and communication. It is imperative therefore that this tier of government operate optimally and competently, as it represents a reflection of the operation of government wholly. Research unfortunately illustrates that public perceptions of local government are negative, with levels of trust in local government being substantially lower than those in provincial and national governments. The responsibility for failure to perform would lie squarely on the shoulders of those individuals leading any institution. The leading incumbents driving a municipality are the political and administrative heads, i.e. executive mayor and municipal manager.</p>

Magister Legum - LLM / Local government is arguably the most significant sphere of government to lay citizens, as it is the point of contact of citizens with their government. Local government enables a direct link between the general public and the basic services that they are entitled to by means of their constitutional and legislatively entrenched rights. It is the only sphere of government that allows and encourages face-to-face engagement between citizens and their governors, providing the necessary platform for interaction, contact and communication. It is imperative therefore that this tier of government operate optimally and competently, as it represents a reflection of the operation of government wholly. Research unfortunately illustrates that public perceptions of local government are negative, with levels of trust in local government being substantially lower than those in provincial and national governments. The responsibility for failure to perform would lie squarely on the shoulders of those individuals leading any institution. The leading incumbents driving a municipality are the political and administrative heads, i.e. executive mayor and municipal manager. / South Africa