Text in Afrikaans / Health care has typical challenges and stress factors as employees deal with people in a very personal manner. This exclusively client-centred environment requires special skills from employees if they wish to perform well. In addition to excellent interpersonal and stress management skills, they need to be able to handle their own and patients' emotions well. These skills can be referred to as emotional intelligence competencies. Emotional intelligence is a relatively new concept with many possibilities if applied correctly. This study involves 114 employees, their colleagues and supervisors in two health-care organisations. The 360° Emotional Competency Profiler was used together with the internal performance evaluation scores, and statistical techniques such as t-tests and discriminant analysis were utilized. It was found that certain emotional intelligence dimensions and work performance are related to a certain extent. However, other factors also need to be considered if one wants to make predictions in this regard. / Die gesondheidsorgomgewing het unieke uitdagings en stresfaktore omdat werknemers op 'n baie persoonlike vlak met mense werk. Die uitsluitlik klientgesentreerde omgewing verg spesiale vaardighede indien werknemers goed wil presteer. Buiten uitstekende interpersoonlike- en streshanteringsvaardighede, moet hulle ook in staat wees om hulle eie en huile pasiente se gevoelens te kan hanteer. Hierdie vaardighede kan na verwys word as emosionele intelligensievaardighede. Emosionele intelligensie is 'n relatief nuwe konsep wat baie toepassingsmoontlikhede het indien dit reg aangewend word. Hierdie studie betrek 114 beskikbare werknemers en hulle kollegas en toesighouers in twee gesondheidsorgorganisasies. Die 360° Emotional Competency Profiler is saam met die interne prestasie-beoordelingstellings gebruik en daar is gebruik gemaak van statistiese tegnieke soos f-toetse en diskriminantontleding. Daar is bevind dat sekere emosionele intelligensie dimensies in 'n sekere mate 'n onderlinge verband toon met werksprestasie. Ander faktore moet egter ook in ag geneem word indien mens 'n voorspelling in hierdie verband wil maak. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / MCOM (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Text in Afrikaans / Health care has typical challenges and stress factors as employees deal with people in a very personal manner. This exclusively client-centred environment requires special skills from employees if they wish to perform well. In addition to excellent interpersonal and stress management skills, they need to be able to handle their own and patients' emotions well. These skills can be referred to as emotional intelligence competencies. Emotional intelligence is a relatively new concept with many possibilities if applied correctly. This study involves 114 employees, their colleagues and supervisors in two health-care organisations. The 360° Emotional Competency Profiler was used together with the internal performance evaluation scores, and statistical techniques such as t-tests and discriminant analysis were utilized. It was found that certain emotional intelligence dimensions and work performance are related to a certain extent. However, other factors also need to be considered if one wants to make predictions in this regard. / Die gesondheidsorgomgewing het unieke uitdagings en stresfaktore omdat werknemers op 'n baie persoonlike vlak met mense werk. Die uitsluitlik klientgesentreerde omgewing verg spesiale vaardighede indien werknemers goed wil presteer. Buiten uitstekende interpersoonlike- en streshanteringsvaardighede, moet hulle ook in staat wees om hulle eie en huile pasiente se gevoelens te kan hanteer. Hierdie vaardighede kan na verwys word as emosionele intelligensievaardighede. Emosionele intelligensie is 'n relatief nuwe konsep wat baie toepassingsmoontlikhede het indien dit reg aangewend word. Hierdie studie betrek 114 beskikbare werknemers en hulle kollegas en toesighouers in twee gesondheidsorgorganisasies. Die 360° Emotional Competency Profiler is saam met die interne prestasie-beoordelingstellings gebruik en daar is gebruik gemaak van statistiese tegnieke soos f-toetse en diskriminantontleding. Daar is bevind dat sekere emosionele intelligensie dimensies in 'n sekere mate 'n onderlinge verband toon met werksprestasie. Ander faktore moet egter ook in ag geneem word indien mens 'n voorspelling in hierdie verband wil maak. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / MCOM (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree DOCTOR TECHNOLOGIAE Human Resource Management CAPE PENINSULA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY 2014 / This study sought to gain a better understanding of the recruitment and performance management functions in the import and export industry in Cape Town, South Africa. While many studies have been conducted on recruitment and performance management, there is a paucity of research on these two functions within the industry. Recruitment and performance management are vital human capital and human resource (HR) functions that play a crucial role in guaranteeing an organisation’s ability to achieve its business strategy. Furthermore, studies have shown that in recent years, performance management has become intrinsic to most organisations. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop awareness relating to the importance of the recruitment and performance management functions, among all levels of management. The research comprised five phases of data collection from 151 randomly selected respondents. A questionnaire was developed and distributed to gain insight into how these two functions were executed within the industry under investigation. Thereafter a performance management module was developed and implemented, and the questionnaire was redistributed after six months. The results support the view that the functions of recruitment and performance management are poorly managed within the industry. Furthermore, the intervention of the performance management module indicates that interaction with employees relating to individual performance enhances both their work performance and general awareness of inter-personal and organisational issues. The findings from this research suggest that recruitment and performance management are essential HR practices often overlooked in an environment that is random and extremely demanding. Disregard of these practices, especially performance management, has proved to have a negative impact on employee job performance. It is therefore recommended that organisations follow processes and invest in such programmes, not only to achieve their organisational goals, but also to develop and enhance employee performance. This study has specific and important implications for the import and export industry in Cape Town, substantiating the researcher’s premise that effective recruitment and performance management can improve and facilitate the management of the industry’s employees.

我國近年勞工意識抬頭，受雇者日漸重視自身工作權益，罷工運動頻傳，其中，工會理事表示，過去上對下的單向考評制度並不公平，因此，工會所訴求之員工績效評估方式，不再只是主管打員工的考績，而是雙向評估，亦即，員工亦打主管的考績。會計師事務所為服務型組織，成敗基於人，故衡量成員之績效相當重要。因此，本文以其員工之績效評估為例，探討其適當之績效評估制度為何。本研究以問卷方式蒐集資料，並以我國大專院校之會計系、所學生為受測對象。透過情境設計，結合不同績效評估制度，以了解並推論會計師事務所員工對向上績效評估制度公平程度之認知。本研究之結論有二，第一，會計師事務所員工對績效評估制度公平程度之認知，會受到向上績效評估影響，且在有向上績效評估時，認為績效評估制度比較公平。第二，向上績效評估結果是否納入受評主管之年底績效，會影響員工對績效評估制度公平程度之認知，且當該結果納入績效時，員工認為績效評估制度比較公平。易言之，當向上績效評估結果無法直接影響受評主管之年底績效，員工仍認為事務所之績效評估制度有欠公平。 / Labor consciousness is rising in recent years, and labor are paying more and more attention to their interest. The director of a labor union after one striking activity pointed out that the traditional (top-down) performance evaluation approach is unfair, and requested for a two-way performance evaluation approach, that is, subordinate also evaluate the performance of their supervisor in addition to the traditional way. This research studies the performance evaluation system of accounting firm, for it is a service organization, it’s very important to measures the performance of members, and establishing an appropriate performance evaluation system is an continuing challenge for them. To infer the perception regarding the fairness of performance evaluation of the staff of the accounting firm, the research uses method of questionnaire survey to collect data, a combination of different performance evaluation systems with designed context is embedded in the questionnaire. Students of the department of accounting of universities participate in the experiment. There are two findings. First, the perception of fairness of performance evaluation system by the staff of the accounting firm will be affected by the upward appraisal system. Moreover, the performance evaluation system will be considered fair when there is an upward appraisal system. Second, the staff’s perception of fairness of performance evaluation system will also be affected if the results of upward appraisal system is counted as the performance of the supervisor. Furthermore, the performance evaluation system will be considered fair when the results of upward appraisal system will be counted as the supervisor’s performance. In other words, the performance evaluation system will be considered unfair if the results of upward appraisal system have no direct impact on the supervisor’s performance.

Public organisations account for their performance by making annual reports available to the public. While such increased emphasis on performance leads to a greater awareness of annual reports, it also raises the question of whether performance information is relevant and effective for accountability purposes. This qualitative study uses the Critical Realism approach to assess the contribution of performance reports in making municipalities more responsible; and their managers accountable for achieved and failed service delivery targets. Content and thematic analyses are applied to the collected data following case studies on the metropolitan cities of Ekurhuleni, Johannesburg, and Tshwane in Gauteng, South Africa. The findings are that despite poor quality issues in reports, there is no link between performance and accountability. In other words, while performance reports have the capacity to correctly provide actual performance data, they are not used to hold public managers to account. Generally, politicians from underdeveloped countries are elected based on popularity rather than ability, hence they are reluctant to utilise performance reports, instead they tend to keep those public managers who look after their interest despite failures. Therefore, lack of consequences, complex governance systems, and passive citizenry, create a safe zone for both councillors and public managers to remain unaccountable. Further studies are recommended on empowering communities and accountability of councillors to citizens. / Business Management / M. Phil (Accounting Sciences)

The pursuit of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) requires a transformative approach to energy systems, focusing on cleaner, reliable, and affordable energy services. This pursuit of achieving the SDG 7 goal of universal access to affordable and clean energy, can have numerous positive and negative implications on all other SDGs and their targets. This thesis project explores and addresses these interlinkages between SDGs and energy projects, highlighting the synergies and trade-offs of energy projects to contribute to achieving the SDGs. In this project, we propose a methodology and framework to facilitate the integration of the SDGs into the energy project planning and implementation phase. This framework is implemented into a tool called SDGs-PROPEL (Sustainable Development Goals - PROject Performance Evaluationand Learnings) that is tailor-made to help energy practitioners identify potential trade-offs and synergies, and develop strategies to maximize positive impacts and minimize negative ones by prioritizing the SDGs that are relevant to their projects. The proposed methodology also takes into consideration the growing importance of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reporting, ensuring that energy projects align with sustainable practices and societal expectations. Three case studies - one Wind energy projectand two district heating projects, all in France, are utilized to test the SDGs-PROPEL tool. It also incorporates feedback from technology experts working in District Heating and Cooling(DHC) and wind energy in energy companies and academia. The tool was also tested by studentsat the master’s level at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. The proposed methodology in the SDGs-PROPEL tool can be used by any energy practitioner for building a robust testing process for their tools and, in turn, help address some of the challenges of integrating SDGs with energy projects by providing a structured approach to incorporating the SDGs into theplanning and implementation phase of the energy projects. In conclusion, this paper emphasizes the significance of incorporating the SDGs into energy projects as a means to drive sustainable development. By enabling companies to assess the environmental, social, and economic impacts of their energy initiatives, this integration plays a crucial role in addressing critical global issues like climate change, poverty reduction, and energy access. / Strävan efter hållbara utvecklingsmål (SDG) kräver ett transformativt förhållningssätt till energisystem, med fokus på renare, pålitliga och överkomliga energitjänster. Denna strävan efter att uppnå SDG 7-målet om universell tillgång till hållbar energi, kan ha många positiva och negativa konsekvenser för alla andra SDG och deras mål. Detta avhandlingsprojekt utforskar och tar upp dessa kopplingar mellan SDG och energiprojekt, och belyser synergierna och avvägningarna mellan energiprojekt för att bidra till att uppnå SDGs. I det här projektet föreslår vi en metod och ett ramverk för att underlätta integrationen av SDGs i energiprojektets planering och genomförandefas. Detta ramverk är implementerat i ett verktyg som kallas SDGs-PROPEL (Sustainable Development Goals - PROject Performance Evaluation and Learnings) som är skräddarsytt för att hjälpa energiutövare att identifiera potentiella avvägningar och synergier, och utveckla strategier för att maximera positiva effekter och minimera negativa. genom att prioritera de SDG som är relevanta för deras projekt. Den föreslagna metoden tar också hänsyn till den växande betydelsen av miljö-, social- och styrelserapportering (ESG), vilket säkerställer att energiprojekt överensstämmer med hållbar praxis och samhälleliga förväntningar. Tre fallstudier - ett vindenergiprojekt och två fjärrvärmeprojekt, alla i Frankrike, används för att testa SDGs-PROPEL-verktyget. Den innehåller också feedback från teknikexperter som arbetar med DHC och vindenergi i energiföretag och akademi. Verktyget testades även av studenter på masternivå vid Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan. Den föreslagna metoden i SDGs-PROPEL-verktyget kan användas av alla energiutövare för att bygga en robust testprocess för sina verktyg och i sin tur hjälpa till att hantera några av utmaningarna med att integrera SDGs med energiprojekt genom att tillhandahålla ett strukturerat tillvägagångssätt för att införliva SDGs in i planerings- och genomförandefasen av energiprojekten. Sammanfattningsvis betonar detta dokument betydelsen av att införliva SDGs i energiprojekt som ett sätt att driva hållbar utveckling. Genom att göra det möjligt för företag att bedöma de miljömässiga, sociala och ekonomiska effekterna av sina energiinitiativ, spelar denna integration en avgörande roll för att ta itu med kritiska globala frågor som klimatförändringar, fattigdomsminskning och tillgång till energi.

This study attempted to discover the role of internal auditors in the professional development of audit committee members, leading to enhanced performance, through the provision of induction programmes and professional development opportunities to committee members, with due regard for the principles of good governance and international best practices. A secondary aim of this study was to propose methods to improve the relationship between the internal audit activity and audit committees in providing additional support to its members. The audit committee's needs and requirements were assessed by using the audit committee charter as the basis in identifying the responsibilities of the committee and the professional development needs of committee members in an organisation. It was found that a framework for the induction and professional development of audit committee members would be most useful to internal auditors to assist audit committees to meet their requirements and improve their performance. / Auditing / M. Com.

The study focuses on an overview of the performance management and the development system in the Department of Correctional Services with special focus on Limpopo province, Mpumalanga province and Northwest province (which is referred to as Limpopo region in this research). The main research question was "what does the current performance management development system in the Department of Correctional Services in the Limpopo region look like?" The relevant literature was consulted and in order to gain a clear view and understanding of performance management in general. The overview focuses on the general concept of performance management so as to understand it, its origin, purpose, benefits, advantages and disadvantages. The second part focuses on the performance management system in the general Public Service. This was done in order to establish whether there is any alignment between general performance management and what is being implemented in the Public Service. It was established that there is no difference between the general concept of performance management and what is being implemented in the Public Service in general. The main focus is on the policy used in the Public Service. The last part deals with the research question and focuses on the Department of Correctional Services in particular in the previously demarcated region. The Performance Management and Development System Policy was used to determine if there is any alignment between the general performance management, performance management in the Public Service and what is being implemented in the Department of Correctional Services. The findings show that there is no difference between the Performance Management and Development System being applied in the different areas. Several minor challenges were picked up, based on the findings of the internal audit on performance management, and relevant recommendations are provided. In general, based on the findings and percentage of compliance, the research shows that the Performance Management and Development System is being effectively implemented in the Limpopo region of the Department of Correctional Services. / Public Administration & Management / M. Tech. (Public Administration and Management)

The interconnection of molecular machines with different functionalities to form molecular communication systems can increase the number of design possibilities and overcome the limited reliability of the individual molecular machines. Artificial information exchange using molecular signals would also expand the capabilities of single engineered cell populations by providing them a way to cooperate across heterogeneous cell populations for the applications of synthetic biology and lab-on-a-chip systems. The realization of molecular communication systems necessitates analysis and design of the communication channel, where the information carrying molecular signal is transported from the transmitter to the receiver. In this thesis, significant progress towards the use of microfluidic channels to interconnect molecular transmitter and receiver pairs is presented. System-theoretic analysis of the microfluidic channels are performed, and a finite-impulse response filter is designed using microfluidic channels. The spectral density of the propagation noise is studied and the additive white Gaussian noise channel model is developed. Memory due to inter-diffusion of the transmitted molecular signals is also modeled. Furthermore, the interference modeling is performed for multiple transmitters and its impact on the communication capacity is shown. Finally, the efficient sampling of the signal transduction by engineered bacterial receivers connected to a microfluidic channel is investigated for the detection of the pulse-amplitude modulated molecular signals. This work lays the foundation for molecular communication over microfluidic channels that will enable interconnection of engineered molecular machines.

Formaldehyde-based adhesives have been reported to be detrimental to health. Petrochemical-based adhesives are non-renewable, limited and costly. Therefore, the improvement of environmental-friendly adhesive from natural agricultural products has awakened noteworthy attention. A novel adhesive for wood application was successfully prepared with enhanced shear strength and water resistance. The Fourier transmform infrared spectra showed the surface functionalities of the functionalized carbon nanotubes (FCNTs) and soy protein isolate nanocomposite adhesive. The attachment of carboxylic functional group on the surface of the carbon nanotubes (CNTs) after purification contributed to the effective dispersion of the CNTs in the nanocomposite adhesive. Hence, enhanced properties of FCNTs were successfully transferred into the SPI/CNTs nanocomposite adhesive. These unique functionalities on FCNTs however, improved the mechanical properties of the adhesive. The shear strength and water resistance of SPI/FCNTs was higher than that of the SPI/CNTs. SEM images showed the homogenous dispersion of CNTs in the SPI/CNTs nanocomposite adhesive. The carbon nanotubes were distributed uniformly in the soy protein adhesive with no noticeable clusters at relatively reduced fractions of CNTs as shown in the SEM images, which resulted into better adhesion on wood surface. Mechanical (shear) mixing and ultrasonication with 30 minutes of shear mixing both showed an improved dispersion of CNTs in the soy protein matrix. However, ultrasonication method of dispersion showed higher tensile shear strength and water resistance than in mechanical (shear) mixing method. Thermogravimetric analysis of the samples also showed that the CNTs incorporated increases the thermal stability of the nanocomposite adhesive at higher loading fraction. Incorporation of CNTs into soy protein isolate adhesive improved both the shear strength and water resistance of the adhesive prepared at a relatively reduced concentration of 0.3%.The result showed that tensile shear strength of SPI/FCNTs adhesive was 0.8 MPa and 7.25MPa at dry and wet state respectively, while SPI/CNTs adhesive had 6.91 MPa and 5.48MPa at dry and wet state respectively. There was over 100% increase in shear strength both at dry and wet state compared to the pure SPI adhesive. The 19% decrease in value of the new adhesive developed compared to the minimum value of ≥10MPa of European standard for interior wood application may be attributed to the presence of metallic particles remaining after purification of CNTs. The presence of metallic particles will prevent the proper penetration of the adhesive into the wood substrate. The type of wood used in this study as well as the processing parameters could also result into lower value compared to the value of European standard. Therefore, optimization of the processing parameter as well as the conversion of carboxylic acid group on the surface of the CNTs into acyl chloride group may be employed in future investigation. However, the preparation of new nanocomposite adhesive from soy protein isolate will replace the formaldehyde and petrochemical adhesive in the market and be of useful application in the wood industry. / Civil and Chemical Engineering / M. Tech. (Chemical Engineering)