Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo / In this study the researcher wanted to disclose the problems undermining the role and effectiveness of IDP for service delivery in the Vhembe District Municipality. The study succeeded in investigating the role and effectiveness of IDP on service delivery in Vhembe District Municipality. The research questions: “is there a role and effectiveness of the Integrated Development Planning in Vhembe District Municipality on service delivery?” and “is there a significant improvement of municipal services since the introduction of the IDP process in the year 2000?” and finally, “Is the IDP of Vhembe District Municipality Linked to the Budget?” were interrogated. The specific objectives of the study which include “investigating how the IDP impacts on service delivery” were outlined. The study also endeavoured to satisfy the second objective by suggesting possible solutions as to how the IDPs could be strengthened to address service delivery constraints and challenges. The research also looked at the historical background of Integrated Development Planning. In doing so, the research looked at the development planning evolution in South Africa. Policy and Legislative Framework governing the formulation and implementation of the IDP in South Africa were also considered. The study strove to outline the problems and other dynamics associated with linkage of the IDP to the budgeting process. Public participation and the role of provincial and national government departments in the IDP were also looked into. Three methods of data collection were identified for use in this study, namely: unstructured interviews, participant observation and documentation. The population for the study comprised the stakeholders for IDP. This was divided into government officials and members of community. Purposive sampling was conducted to each group of the population. The researcher presented data in an explanatory way. The main problem identified on the role and effectiveness of the IDP is its lack of alignment with the budget of the municipality. Recommendations were made at the end of the study.

Thesis (MPA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2014 / The study seeks to determine whether the introduction of Performance Management System (PMS) in Mbombela Local Municipality (MLM), Mpumalanga Province has effects on service delivery. Municipalities tend to focus mainly on complying with legislative requirements of having an Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and PMS other than implementing the IDP and PMS to enhance the delivery of services to the community. The annual performance reports of MLM for the financial year 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 indicates performance targets in which some were achieved while in some cases the municipality failed to achieve. The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) introduced the Performance Management Framework in municipalities with the aim of empowering communities to demand better services and hold municipalities accountable. In this regard a literature review was undertaken. In the literature review, it became evident that communities have displeasure in the delivery of services such as electricity, water, sanitation and roads. Further findings in the study indicate that the introduction PMS in MLM has not led to positive change in the delivery of services. Recommendations made in the study for MLM to enhance service delivery through PMS, include cascading PMS to all employees in MLM, change management and communication strategy. Further issues of alignment and integration of the IDP processes, budget, PMS, monitoring, evaluation and training on the formulation of Key Performance Areas and Key Performance Indicators are recommended.

Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2011 / The poverty and unemployment that face the Greater Tubatse Municipality (GTM) despite being endowed with mineral resources prompted me to undertake a study to unearth possible challenges. This sub-region of the Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality, which is one of the five municipalities, looks better off as compared to other local municipalities within the district. Suffice it to say that it is one of the most poverty stricken, even worse than the Fetakgomo Local Municipality in the west. This local municipality is rich in mineral deposits and is a booming industrial hub of the Limpopo Province. Given the potential the municipality has, it is regrettable to realise that the residents of the municipality are the most poorest and unemployed. Like each and every municipality, GTM has a fully-fledged economic (LED) and land development department under which Local Economic Development falls. This brings confusion as to whether the municipality is facing human or financial constraints in terms of fulfilling its LED role. That brings us to the aim of the study, namely, the intention to investigate the impact service delivery, coupled with infrastructure development, could produce on sustainable LED. Thus, the present researcher decided to consider a qualitative approach/methodology towards this problem as a way to investigate the underlying circumstances that could hinder the realization and flourishing of LED within the municipality. The reason being to collect first-hand information in terms of what is transpiring in the municipality. On one hand there is a lack of the above-mentioned resources, on the other hand, leadership within the municipality should be reviewed. As a recommendation, the GTM should focus on areas that could bring incentives and confidence to the investors by providing sustainable infrastructure, a crime free environment and thus position the municipality as a tourism destination, these are some of the aspects that could grow an LED. The aspect of skills within the municipality, particularly in the area of LED, should be beefed up as part of the recruitment strategy. LED is concerned with the creation of an environment that will engage stakeholders in implementing strategies and programmes.

Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2011 / Planning is central to service delivery especially at the local government level being supported by both national and provincial spheres. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa established three spheres of government which must work together in both vertical and horizontal manner in order to achieve aligned government programmes through integrated planning. Planning at the local government level requires all relevant stakeholders to participate such that all programmes and projects of government are implemented for communities without creating “white elephants” of completed projects which may result in poor community service delivery. It is on this basis that this study evaluated the participation of sector departments in the integrated development planning process of Mopani District Municipality. Sector departments have been selected from various other role players due to the huge impact they have on development initiatives at local level. Government is moving away from uncoordinated planning which results in uncoordinated implementation and causes communities to vandalise infrastructure as they do not benefit from the planned services at the time of completing the project. Thus, these projects become government liabilities with huge financial implications and might be directly linked to the wastage of tax payer‟s money in the main. The objective of this study was to determine how sector departments participate in the IDP process of the Mopani district municipality. To that end, the study determined the impact of sector departments in producing a credible IDP for Mopani district municipality and also analysed the implementation of the IGR (Intergovernmental relations) framework Act. The study exposes the challenges facing municipalities in developing their integrated development plans. The integrated development plan of a municipality serves as a tool for public participation where all stakeholders have to participate in the local planning processes. This study found out that non-submission of sector plans is one of the threats that affect Mopani District Municipality‟s IDP negatively. Failure to submit sector plans by sector departments denies the District Municipality an opportunity to integrate and align programmes and plans respectively as there will be nothing to consider. It is clear that the participation of sector departments is of paramount importance in the development of a Municipal IDP. The absence of sector plans in an IDP is the best recipe for implementing scattered and uncoordinated development without supporting the local economic development nodes of either the district or the local municipalities. The study recommends that the issue of planning must find a proper cluster provincially so that both the Municipal Managers and the Heads of Sector Departments find a way of discussing this matter. For synchronization of plans, all the three spheres of government must cooperate and work together, as municipalities cannot on their own develop the underdeveloped areas without the support of both the national and provincial departments which bring financial aid through their programmes.

Thesis ( M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2015 / This study was undertaken with the purpose of investigating the implementation of performance management in the Mbombela Local Municipality. This is a quantitative case study. The objective is to assess how Performance Management is implemented and used as a developmental tool to ensure and speed up service delivery in the municipality. Purposive and random sampling has been used to collect data and SPSS was applied to analyze data. The research revealed that Performance Management has not been implemented at all levels of employment. The study recommended that Performance Management should be implemented at all levels of employment and feedback should be given to employees promptly in order to improve their performance. In-service training is offered to employees to improve their performance and bring about understanding of their appraisal system. All employees must be motivated, trained and encouraged to share the same norms, values and organization objectives. The Municipal Manager should be the engine in terms of ensuring that Performance Management is implemented throughout the municipality to ensure quick service delivery to the committees

Thesis (MPH.) --University of Limpopo, 2015 / BACKGROUND: There were perceptions that doctors as Medical Superintendents were unable to provide proper financial management of hospitals, thus administrators were appointed to manage hospitals irrespective of qualifications. The aim of the study was to determine how public hospitals are managed in Waterberg district (Limpopo province). METHOD: A cross sectional survey was conducted among 27 hospital managers in the Department of Health Limpopo province, in Waterberg district hospitals. A self -administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22.0, where both descriptive and inferential analysis was conducted. RESULTS: Of the 27 managers, 59.3% were females 40.7% compared to males. 96.3% of managers reported that they did not correctly implement PMDS and polices on RWOP were not applied. There was no statistical difference in management styles, according to gender (p>.05) and managers had a fair working relationship among themselves. CONCLUSION: According to the study, there is a great need to train hospital managers in management skills and other related policies, and giving them support in terms of resources such as: staffing especially health professionals, financial and working resources.

The aim of this study was to identify how Information and Communication Technology (ICT) affects business processes and service delivery within hotels and how ICT interacts with strategic issues confronting hotel managers. The areas of exploration were: 1) the business context of ICT; 2) the main role of ICT in day to day business; 3) ICT's impact on service delivery to hotel guests; and 4) the role of ICT in the future.As the study was exploring the General Managers' (GMs) perceptions, interviewing was selected as the most appropriate data gathering method. The sample covered a range of Auckland hotels which differed according to location, size and quality. Semi-structured interviews were used to facilitate the comparison of data between interviewees. Common themes and concepts were identified which were compared to the demographic characteristics of the hotels as well as previous research detailed in the literature.The contextual issues identified were staff availability and retention, competition (particularly price wars resulting from discounting), and location and infrastructure issues. Only half the GMs interviewed identified benefits from ICT in the day to day operation of their business. All of them described challenges or disadvantages posed by ICT. The impact on service delivery to guests was viewed more positively but there were still misgivings about the potential barriers which ICT created. There was a strong view that staff were of overwhelming importance to service delivery. Finally, envisioning the future, ICT was perceived as having the ability to make a strong contribution to business development but this ability would be constrained by staffing problems. Analyses of the findings suggest that ICT has a dual role of gathering management data and providing guest services, and GMs appear unaware of how this dual role contributes to the challenges posed by ICT. Similarly, there was limited awareness of the interaction between human agents in a business, the organisational structures, and ICT.The business implications of these findings suggest that GMs would benefit from being aware of the roles of ICT and addressing the needs of staff for a clearer understanding of how their role, and the ICT that supports it, fits into their broader operation of the business.This study is the one of first to examine the impact of ICT in New Zealand hotels, and, in particular, how this interacts with the broader social issues, and offers insights into the areas of potential conflict and ways to manage the impacts of ICT in hotels.

This study identifies informal networks as the most accepted method of sharing information. Enhancing service delivery is shown as being a key trigger of coordination while rigid funding approaches are perceived to be a major inhibitor. Organisational type, position, practice approaches and location are shown to influence people's perception of coordination.

<p>As more and more local governments begin to understand that the great promises of e-service delivery are harder than expected to realize, efficient use of ICT-resources have become increasingly important. Since simply providing more e-services is not the solution, the need to understand what constitutes a suitable e-service has arisen. Public services reach beyond the market domain; therefore, the complexities of public value must be dealt with when services are appraised. Furthermore, due to the heterogeneous nature of local government services it is impossible to evaluate all the options in depth; thus, there is a clear need for early-stage appraisal. However, existing methods of appraisal are burdened by intricacy, and associated with high costs. In response, this paper presents a model capable of reducing this intricacy. The model was developed through a participatory design process involving members on both operational and strategic level in the municipality of Skellefteå. The model implements state of the art into the workspace context while taking measures to reduce intricacy such as: incremental filtering, moving high intricacy elements to the end of the process, and exploitation of available data. As a result the organization is enabled to capture not only the low hanging fruit, but also the long tail of services. Furthermore, the improved understanding of e-service delivery has the potential to open up opportunities for new ways of business development and private-public partnerships. Finally, whereas the model presented is highly context-dependent, the implications outlined in this paper are not limited to this narrow scope.</p> / Models for Strategic Business Development in Public Service

Thesis (M.Art. et Scien. (Town and Regional Planning))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.