Corporate governance has been heavily criticised because of failures of companies across the globe. In response to these failures, legislative and regulatory changes have been introduced. However, sceptics argue that compliance to these legislative and regulatory acts is costly and time consuming, contributing to overregulation. Furthermore, these measures lack business value and there is no guarantee that adherence to these measures can be enforced. This thesis presents an argument for the better utilisation of electronic means and specifically Business Process Management Systems (BPMSs) in support of corporate governance. Orlikowski’s theory of “Technologies-in-Practice” is applied as theoretical underpinning to guide the research process. This thesis follows an interpretive research paradigm approach to gain insight and understanding of how the King principles for governance, can be inscribed into BPMSs and their components to improve corporate governance in South Africa. The theory of Orlikowski supports the structuration perspective of the research phenomenon. During this study, data was collected from a BPMS vendor company and seven South African BPMS user companies. After following a process of triangulation, the research findings were used to propose a theoretical framework that explains the utilisation of BPMSs in support of corporate governance in South Africa. Finally, a theoretical framework, reviewed by experts from the domains of corporate governance and business process management, is presented. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / gm2014 / Informatics / unrestricted

Strategic management is crucial for organizational success in today's volatile business environment, and yet, underutilized within agricultural businesses. The agricultural industry is facing rapid change with the introduction of new GM technologies, such as CRISPR-Cas9, and following regulations. Although these technologies have the potential to provide farmers with improved crops containing desired traits, excessive regulations and obstacles hinder its implementation in European agricultural practices. If the upcoming decision regarding CRISPR-Cas9 allows the technology to not be treated under GMO regulations, European agriculture is faced with a major opportunity. However, as procedures are unexplored, organizations are left unprepared.   This study investigates the optimal strategic planning approach for Swedish agricultural businesses wanting to efficiently implement new technologies and adjust to regulatory changes. The research is based on a qualitative study that incorporates deductive methodology. It follows a multiple case study research design with eight semi-structured interviews from six Swedish and American case companies as the primary data collection method. By taking inspiration from experienced companies’ planning strategies and including European values, Swedish agricultural companies wanting to implement CRISPR-Cas9 can efficiently navigate changes within the industry while maintaining a competitive advantage. A simple model combining parts from short- and long-term planning frameworks with communication and value creation can guide companies entering the upcoming field.

Cis-regulatory changes in e.g. promoters or enhancers that affect the expression of a linked focal gene have long been thought to be important for adaptation. In this thesis, I investigate the selective importance and genomic correlates of cis-regulatory variation and divergence in the genus Capsella, using massively parallel sequencing data. This genus provides an opportunity to investigate cis-regulatory changes in response to polyploidization and mating system shifts, as it harbors three diploid species, the outcrosser Capsella grandiflora and the selfers Capsella orientalis and Capsella rubella, as well as the tetraploid Capsella bursa-pastoris. We first identify cis-regulatory changes associated with adaptive floral evolution in connection with the recent switch to self-fertilization in C. rubella and show that cis-regulatory changes between C. rubella and its outcrossing close relative C. grandiflora are associated with differences in transposable element content. Second, we show that variation in positive and purifying selection is important for the distribution of cis-regulatory variation across the genome of C. grandiflora. Interestingly, the presence of polymorphic transposable elements is strongly associated with cis-regulatory variation in C. grandiflora. Third, we show that the tetraploid C. bursa-pastoris is of hybrid origin and investigate the contribution of both parental species to gene expression. We show that gene expression in the tetraploid is partly explained by cis-regulatory divergence between the parental species. Nonetheless, within C. bursa-pastoris there is a great deal of variation in homeolog expression. In summary, this thesis explores the role of cis-regulatory changes for adaptive morphological changes in connection to a shift in mating system, the role of cis-regulatory divergence between progenitor species for an allopolyploid as well as the impact of positive and purifying selection on cis-regulatory variation within a species.