Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems)--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2007 / E-commerce, as one of the applications of the Internet, has been considered as a possible channel for small businesses to be benefIted. However, due to their nature, it is challenging to involve e-commerce in small businesses; some new risks arise that typically are not adequately addressed in SMMEs' (Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises) established risk management programs. Therefore, to obtain the benefits from e-commerce adoption, SMME owner/managers need to identify and manage these risks. Identifying SMME owner/managers' perceptions of e-commerce related risks, and how they manage them is crucial for ascertaining the factors that affect the successful small business e-commerce adoption, as their perceptions influence their decision-making process. This research identified South African SMME owner/managers' perceptions of e-commerce related risks, and their effects on e-commerce and SMMEs' development. The investigation was conducted by using a quantitative research methodology, drawing on the data obtained from a sample of 50 questionnaires, and the 17 interviews out of the 50, by using qualitative research methodology to achieve the research objectives. The SMME owner/managers' perceptions imply that they are unaware of e-commerce related risks, they lack risk management attention to and skills in e-commerce related risks and their businesses, which can affect the development of e-commerce adoption and SMMEs. The perceptions also exhibited the SMME owner/managers' attitudes to risk-taking; the research provides a platform for SMMEs to understand their risk management performance. On the other hand, the perceptions reflect the orientations of developing SMMEs' e-commerce adoption such as: how to provide SMMEs with a better understanding of obtaining the benefits from e-commerce adoption? How to help SMMEs to manage e-commerce related risks? In conclusion, this research study proposed a model to assist SMMEs to understand e-commerce related risks in order to obtain the maximum benefits of e-commerce adoption.

Dissertation submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master Technologiae: Quality in the Faculty of Engineering at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology / Beginning in the United States in December 2007, and with much greater intensity since September 2008, much of the industrialised world is being subjected to an economic downturn, which manifests in unemployment, small-business lending, and in particular, the closing of small business enterprises, etc. Customer satisfaction, quality and retention are global issues that affect all organisations, no matter whether they are large or small, profit or non-profit, global or local. In a globally changing landscape characterised by continuous structural changes and enhanced competitive pressures, the role of small business in society has become even more important as providers of employment opportunities and key players for the well-being of local and regional communities. Under the current global worldwide economic crisis, small business is considered to be a major force behind the South Africa‟s economy. Regarding the implementation of quality, probably the most serious constraints a small firm has is that the manager is almost constantly under time pressure, usually dealing with the urgent staff and operational matters.Especially in very small companies, the manager usually has to cope with to all issues irrespective of their nature, in addition to day to day duties such as record keeper, inventory management and scheduling. Ironically, it is this type of small business that needs quality solutions because quality strategies do not from the basis of the traditional small business enterprises, thus impacting on the successful management of the business environment.

No abstract available / Business Management and Entr / M. Tech. (Business Administration)

Thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of M.Sc. (Building) in Property Development to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Architecture and Planning at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017 / The lack of entrepreneurship is an obstacle to economic development. In South Africa (SA), disciplines are taught in a context that is enterprise-based, with no emphasis on the need to impart business start-up skills within specific disciplines. A culture of entrepreneurship is lacking, resulting in low records of entrepreneurship incidents in SA. The challenges and/or benefits of integrating entrepreneurship education within the South African real estate (RE) course and its effects on graduates’ entrepreneurial intent, is not well understood. The purpose of the research is to investigate whether the introduction of entrepreneurship education within the RE discipline would encourage graduates to become entrepreneurial in the practice of real estates. A mixed methodology approach has been used in this research. Primary and secondary research data has been made available in the form of questionnaire surveys of graduates and course directors/lecturers from the University of the Witwatersrand and other international universities that have entrepreneurship education embedded within their real estate programmes, as will be selected by the researcher. The research has found that both pedagogical strategies of course work and applying experiential learning teaching methods would be required to effectively integrate entrepreneurship education within a real estate programme in a manner that would stimulate graduates to be entrepreneurial in the practice of real estate, although it was not known whether the graduates would actually start businesses and when they intended to do so. It was also found that those students whose studies took place in real estate programmes that had entrepreneurship education embedded in them were more commercially aware. The integration of entrepreneurship education also resulted in an improvement of graduate self-esteem and confidence. Graduates were endowed with adequate professional, interpersonal, technical and business skills. The research, however, found the majority of real estate courses lacked in teaching graduates to be more versatile. The courses largely lacked in the provision of industry exposure and were inadequate in teaching graduates how to market themselves and their real estate businesses. According to the findings on the individual entrepreneurship test, graduates that studied entrepreneurship-based real estate courses had a higher probability of starting a business. / MT2018

No abstract available / Business Management and Entr / M. Tech. (Business Administration)

Thesis (MTech (Internal Auditing))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010 / Developing countries face the great challenge of balancing growth with equity and justice. Growth, in all its fairness, should translate into equitable opportunity for all, but as is observed, the distributional effect of growth often does not filter down to the majority of the socially and economically disadvantaged communities. It is imperative in these situations to embark on a process of developmental change to improve the quality of life of the majority of the disadvantaged community. South Africa used this strategy to endeavour to encounter or reverse the political history of the country, by encouraging entrepreneurs of previously disadvantaged racial groups through the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to open small businesses. The South African Government believes that the development, growth and sustainability of the Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise (SMME) sector will help the country to decrease the high unemployment rate, and lead the country as a whole to a sustainable economical development. Research has shown that this aim can no longer be achieved by only facilitating access to finance to entrepreneurs. They argue that some management strategies such as risk management should be introduced, understood and applied by small business owners, in order for their businesses to go beyond their actual estimated survival period referred as 3 to 5 years maximum. This research provides background to which risk management techniques are applied within the ambit of small enterprises. The data were collected from eighty eight companies drawn from a possible of 150 small enterprises found in the Cape Metropole. The analysis of data of those who responded has shown that very few SMME owners, managers, entrepreneurs or key designated employees make use of risk management tools and techniques within their businesses, to achieve growth and sustainability. However, the majority agreed to the high importance of risk management in the success of a business enterprise.

This dissertation summarises an analysis and assessment of the application of Quality Management Systems (QMS) by Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs), in the Engineering Manufacturing Sector of the greater Cape Town Metropolitan area. An outline of the existing hypothesis derived from previous international SMME studies related to the adoption of QMS by SMME’s, the management’s understanding of quality principles, the potential business benefits of QMS and the reasons for implementing Quality Management systems are given as background to the study. The dissertation includes a discussion of literature on the state of QMS in SMMEs, in particular, recent international research literature hypothesising that SMME management lack essential QMS knowledge and that, in general, most SMME’s do not have a QMS and that SMMEs only implement a QMS as a result of contractual pressures / requirements. Also reported are the results and findings of a survey conducted to test the validity of the existing hypotheses amongst a representative sample of Engineering Manufacturing SMMEs registered with the Cape Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the Western Cape. Results of the survey indicate that almost 90 percent, of the companies surveyed had some type of Quality management System, the only two companies that reported not having a QMS, were companies classified as “Micro”, in terms of the National Small business Act. Analysis of the response to the survey concludes that, in general, more than 80 percent of Engineering SMMEs in the Manufacturing Sector have adopted a QMS based on ISO 9001 and that, on average, their management have a medium to high level of understanding of QMS and the associated business benefits. It is also apparent from survey responses, that companies classified as “Micro” in terms of the Small Business Act of 1996, do not see the need for a formal QM system as the owners of these companies consider them too small for a formal QMS. Instead they take direct ownership of their service and product quality in the face of the customer.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Technology: Business Information System In the Faculty of Business At the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2013 / The South African manufacturing industry landscape has changed due to the pressures of globalisation and liberalisation of trade policy regimes. The structural shift of this industry has led to a global market in which many small businesses in the manufacturing sector find it difficult to compete with competitors for example, in Asian countries. Companies are required to improve their competitiveness by using various strategies such as e-commerce. However, these strategies are changing economics, markets, industry structure, products and services, the flow of products and services, consumer segmentation, consumer values, consumer behaviour and labour markets. An e-commerce strategy could assist small businesses in emerging markets to streamline their business processes in their respective sectors and industries, thus enabling them to enhance their business activities. Yet, literature reveals that most SMMEs do not take full advantage of e-commerce applications in their business activities. A qualitative approach using a case study methodology is used for this research. The researcher adopted models such as the Technology-Organisational-Environmental model, a value proposition model and a key assets model to collect and analyse evidence to propose guidelines for e-commerce initiatives in the selected environment. The findings indicate that SMMEs could improve their performance by establishing formal strategies and structures to increase their worth. This is done by creating e-commerce strategies to fit their organisational goals and objectives. Furthermore, manufacturing SMMEs need appropriate online platforms to transact and build strong relationships with suppliers, customers and partners. In addition, it is essential for SMMEs to establish and monitor quality standards in their e-commerce activities. It was found that the key assets needed by SMMEs in the manufacturing sector could impact their ability to sustain their business activities. Finally, manufacturing SMMEs need to deliver targeted and contextual marketing messages to help influence potential decision makers. This research contributes to the field of e-commerce by providing guidelines which manufacturing SMMEs could use as a starting point, to understand and improve their current e-commerce strategies and sustain their business growth.

A prestudy by the author of the assistance available to small business owners in South Africa revealed that although much assistance is available, many small businesses still fail. The question that arose was whether small business owners are receiving the proper assistance in respect of the right functional areas of the business, for the appropriate duration, at the right stage of the business life cycle and by the right people. Taking all these issues into account, the main purpose of this study was to determine what types of business interventions have the greatest impact on the success of entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprise owners. The literature study includes the history of small business development in South Africa and the interventions that have taken place in this and other countries. It also provides a definition of a successful small business and the generic business needs of small business owners. The sample used in this study was drawn from the members of the Confederation of Employers of South Africa (Cofesa). The research findings of this study are reliable for the SME owners who are members of Cofesa. The Cofesa group is not representative with regards to demographics, location, economic sectors or qualifications of South African SMEs. The following are some of the findings of the study of successful small business owners: * They generally make use of assistance in the areas of finance, marketing and human resources. * Most of them make use of assistance on a continuous basis during all the stages of the business life cycle, suggesting the way forward for aspirant business owners who should start making use of assistance even before starting their businesses. * Consultants or business specialists are mainly used for assistance. * More than two-thirds of the business owners thought that their businesses were more successful after they had received assistance. * The assistance was neither the cause of failure nor was it the main cause of their success. Assistance is a contributing factor to success but not the main reason for it. The success of a SME will depend mainly on other factors such as type of product, product quality and marketing. Assistance, however, proves vital and should first be provided for the areas as identified by the respondents in this study (mainly finance, marketing and human resources). / Business Management / D. Com.

A prestudy by the author of the assistance available to small business owners in South Africa revealed that although much assistance is available, many small businesses still fail. The question that arose was whether small business owners are receiving the proper assistance in respect of the right functional areas of the business, for the appropriate duration, at the right stage of the business life cycle and by the right people. Taking all these issues into account, the main purpose of this study was to determine what types of business interventions have the greatest impact on the success of entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprise owners. The literature study includes the history of small business development in South Africa and the interventions that have taken place in this and other countries. It also provides a definition of a successful small business and the generic business needs of small business owners. The sample used in this study was drawn from the members of the Confederation of Employers of South Africa (Cofesa). The research findings of this study are reliable for the SME owners who are members of Cofesa. The Cofesa group is not representative with regards to demographics, location, economic sectors or qualifications of South African SMEs. The following are some of the findings of the study of successful small business owners: * They generally make use of assistance in the areas of finance, marketing and human resources. * Most of them make use of assistance on a continuous basis during all the stages of the business life cycle, suggesting the way forward for aspirant business owners who should start making use of assistance even before starting their businesses. * Consultants or business specialists are mainly used for assistance. * More than two-thirds of the business owners thought that their businesses were more successful after they had received assistance. * The assistance was neither the cause of failure nor was it the main cause of their success. Assistance is a contributing factor to success but not the main reason for it. The success of a SME will depend mainly on other factors such as type of product, product quality and marketing. Assistance, however, proves vital and should first be provided for the areas as identified by the respondents in this study (mainly finance, marketing and human resources). / Business Management / D. Com.