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In his study, the impact of preferential procurement on Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs') was evaluated. Most developing countries, including South Africa are characterised by a rapidly growing population, high unemployment rate and poverty. To redress the situation, the South African government, both at National and Provincial level has shown an interest in the development and sustainability of SMMEs' There is a dire need for the redistribution of income and opportunities to the historically disadvantaged individuals. The South African economy is not labour absorbing because of the inherited capital-intensive structure of the economy. The South African SMME sector is far from homogenous and would require a fine tuned set of interventions rather than the generic assistance currently provided. Only a few dynamic SMMEs' show a potential to contribute to rapid employment creation whilst survivalist activities constitute the vast majority of South African SMMEs' (Kesper, 2000). It is also important for government to know the value of SMMEs', especially in the creation of employment and the impact that preferential procurement has on the SMME sector within the Molopo Region of the North West Province. This study should serve as an informative reference to the North West Province and other relevant stakeholders, seeking greater insight into the effect that preferential procurement has on SMMEs' within the Molopo Region. In order to obtain a meaningful insight on the data collected, two sets of questionnaires were developed. The questionnaires were structured so as to get the views of : The management of the Department of Finance. Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises. The tabular and graphical representations indicate the responses from the management of the Department of Finance and the owners of SMMEs' within the Molopo Region. Personal interviews were also carried out in order to obtain a meaningful insight into the research. However, there were some research limitations to the study as indicated hereunder: On going changes of government rules and regulations. The continuous revision of government programmes. Restructuring within government departments. The results of the study reflect that SMMEs' do generate employment and the management of the Department of Finance are fully aware of the impact that preferential procurement has on the SMME sector within the Molopo Region, with respect to job creation, empowerment and sustainability of the SMMEs'. The need for a fully integrated and up to date database cannot be over emphasised. By contributing to the development of the country's economy, SMMEs' will facilitate a greater and more equitable distribution of wealth. It will also assist in reducing the gap between small and big businesses, allowing businesses to meet the challenge of a global competitive economy. / (MBA) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2004

Thesis (MTech(Business Administration))--Cape Technikon, Cape Town, 1998 / The importance of small and medium businesses, (SMB's), and specifically the important role that they perfonn in a country's national economy, have long been realized. In South Africa, the emphasis being placed on promoting small businesses in the government's GEAR strategy is an indication of how important small and medium businesses are regarded, even at national government level. Statistical evidence underlining the valuable contribution ofSME's is frequently quoted in the literature. The following statistics are an indication of the contribution of SME's to the South African economy: • in 1991 there were approximately 800 000 formal businesses in South Africa of which approximately 700 000 or 85% could be classified as 5MB's; • their estimated contribution to the GDP at that stage was in the region of30%; • in 1991 SME's employed more than 2.4 million people (2.7 million people in 1994) which represented about 17% ofthe economically active population of 14.3 million at that stage; • "informal" Small Enterprises in 1991 was thought to be employing about 4.4 million additional people. If the high rate of insolvency's amongst SME's, relative to larger businesses in the economy are to be taken as a guideline, it is clear that the financial risks involved in managing, owning and/or investing in a small to medium sized business are relatively high. With the above being a stated filct, the question was asked as to what can be done to make this important sector ofthe economy more effective. A great deal ofresearch was done in the past as to what actually causes 5MB's to go bankrupt. Problem factors ranging from a lack of funding, high interest rates, hostile labour relations and inflation to unsupportive governments were named in various studies as primary reasons for the failure of these businesses. Previous research has also found that the use ofstrategic management as a management tool in smaller businesses, such as 5MB's, is being neglected by the managers/owners ofSME's.

Regardless of the level of development achieved by the respective economies, women play a pivotal role in agriculture and in rural development in most countries. Evidently there are serious constraints which militate against the promotion of an effective role for women in development in those societies which were bound by age-old traditions and beliefs. Patriarchal modes and practices motivated by cultures and/or interpretations of religious sanctions and illiteracy hinder women’s freedom to opt for various choices to assert greater mobility in social interactions. Resulting from these situations, women’s contribution to agriculture and other sectors in the economy remain concealed and unaccounted for in monitoring economic performance measurement. Consequently, they are generally invisible in plans and programmes. They were, in fact, discriminated against by stereotypes which restrict them to a reproductive role and denied access to resources which could eventually enhance their social and economic contribution to the society.

Regardless of the level of development achieved by the respective economies, women play a pivotal role in agriculture and in rural development in most countries. Evidently there are serious constraints which militate against the promotion of an effective role for women in development in those societies which were bound by age-old traditions and beliefs. Patriarchal modes and practices motivated by cultures and/or interpretations of religious sanctions and illiteracy hinder women’s freedom to opt for various choices to assert greater mobility in social interactions. Resulting from these situations, women’s contribution to agriculture and other sectors in the economy remain concealed and unaccounted for in monitoring economic performance measurement. Consequently, they are generally invisible in plans and programmes. They were, in fact, discriminated against by stereotypes which restrict them to a reproductive role and denied access to resources which could eventually enhance their social and economic contribution to the society.

In 2012, only 50% of Irish small firms survived in business for more than 5 years. The purpose of this qualitative, explorative case study was to explore strategies some Irish small firm owners use to succeed in business beyond 5 years. The case population consisted of 3 small business owners operating in Lucan, County Dublin, Ireland who had been managing a profitable small business venture beyond 5 years from beginning operations. The conceptual framework was the competitive theory of entrepreneurial orientation. Data collection included semistructured interviews with the 3 participants, which also involved member checking and triangulation with business documents to strengthen credibility and trustworthiness of interpretations. Three broad themes emerged after completing a 5-stage qualitative data analysis: an embedded and consistent entrepreneurial attitude, internal management of firm-specific dynamics, and management of external elements affecting the business' operating environment. The firms' owners developed schemes to counter the effects of consumers' lower purchasing power from economic downturns by enabling customers to purchase products through flexible financing arrangements. The findings of this study may contribute to positive social change by informing the efforts of small business owners to sustain their operations beyond the first 5 years. Increasing the rate of business success can lead to employment of more people, better standards of living for employees, and concomitant benefits for their communities.

The major aims of this research are to explore and analyse the different factors affecting the adoption of Electronic Marketing (E-Marketing) by industrial and trading small business enterprises (SBEs); to explore the different forms, implementation levels and tools of E-Marketing used by these SBE and to investigate the relationship between E-Marketing adoption and industrial and trading SBEs marketing performance. It aims to develop a theoretical model that can help to understand and interpret these relationships and seeks to evaluate the potential of E-Marketing for SBEs in developed countries (UK) and developing countries (Egypt). This work builds on previous research in the fields of E-marketing and SBEs and adds to the relatively limited empirical research that has been conducted on E-Marketing in a small business context. This research develops and validates a conceptual model based on systematic and in-depth analysis of the literature in the field as well as the results of two exploratory studies conducted in Egypt and UK. It utilises a post-positivist research philosophy with a triangulation approach, in which quantitative and qualitative data is collected based on survey strategy through questionnaires, focus group and semi-structured interviews to address different levels of the study. Even though triangulation requires a commitment to greater amounts of effort, time and funds, it has the advantage of removing the bias that is often associated with the use of a single technique. This research finds that E-Marketing adoption by SBEs is significantly affected by their perception of E-Marketing relative advantage (usefulness), ease of use, compatibility as well as the SBE internal factors such as owner skills and support, available resources, organisational culture, type of products, international orientation and SBE size. On the other hand, the SBE internal factors have a positive direct impact on Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT) related factors such as perceived ease of use, perceived relative advantage and perceived compatibility. These findings indicate that Internet Marketing and E-Mail Marketing are the most commonly used E-Marketing tools and that E-Marketing adoption has a strong positive impact on current and future marketing performance of SBEs. In terms of contribution to knowledge, this study provides an insight for entrepreneurs, policy makers, practitioners, researchers, and educators by providing a clearer view and deep understanding of the issues related to E-Marketing adoption and practices by small business enterprises as opposed to large companies. It addresses some research gaps in the field, particularly in terms of the impact of E-Marketing on marketing performance. The research model has been tested by a major survey of UK SBEs with a response rate of 32%, and has been robustly tested for reliability and validity. Moreover, the exploratory survey in Egypt indicated that there is another rich seam for investigation in terms of E-Marketing in developing countries. Overall the theory in the field of E-Marketing is still in its infancy stage and is not yet well established. This study can be considered as a step towards theory building in the field of E-marketing and has brought to light a number of concepts for the practice of E-Marketing by SBEs.

Thesis (DTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, 2007 / The expansion of the Internet and increased use of Web-based technologies over the last decade have led to the development of many new online business applications. The expanded global business world, commonly termed the new economy, has propelled networking to form new relationships. : Traditional relationships between businesses and their customers on the one side, and between businesses and their supply chains on the other side are being challenged. In addition, new distribution channels using the Internet have emerged enabling businesses to reach a much wider audience than using traditional brick-and mortar models. However, commercial entities do query the maturity of the Internet and Web-based technologies at times and are often concerned to what extent this can add value to their businesses. There are unanswered questions such as how important are customer relations, what products or services should ideally be used and what are the security, fraud and trust issues pertaining to e-commerce adoption. Furthermore, some uncertainties have emerged that may have an impact on the success of e-comrnerce initiatives for example, bandwidth limitations, customer loyalty and legal requirements. Over time existing business models have been adapted while new models have emerged for online business.

The site is situated on the north eastern edge of Pretoria CBD. Major road networks created an island of lost space at a very important gateway into the city. The concept for the project is to create meaningful architeture in a city environment, through the play of colour and light. With Plascon as the major client, a light industrial paint factory is proposed, with an area specifically allocated for small business enterprises (SBE). The existing building n the site, would be refurbished and converted into offices for the SBE's, while also serving as the main entrance to the site. Artists studio space is provided with exhibition areas, as well as studios/shops for informal trading. A Plascon Concept shop is also proposed, where people can purchase pait and other products, with the opportunity of concept simulations so they can make informed choices when buying paint products. The alternative healing properties of colour is explored through therapy rooms, as well as colour/light boxes. Walkways through the site provide the opportunity for pedestrians to cross the site, while viewing the paint production process. Copyright 2007, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Basson, R 2007, Canvas - colour production hub, MArch(Prof) dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-11212007-205438 / > C72/eo / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Architecture / unrestricted

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