published_or_final_version / Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

M. Tech. Business Administration / The aim of this research is to explore the factors that drives the adoption of cloud computing within a South African information technology user organisation. It also identifies benefits and risks associated with the adopting of cloud computing within an information and communication technology (ICT) from a South African company perspective.

Empirical studies into IT governance have considerably advanced our understanding of the mechanisms and practices used by contemporary organisations to govern their current and future use of IT. However, despite the progress made in identifying the various elements employed by contemporary IT governance arrangements, there has been relatively little research into the formulation of a holistic model of IT governance that integrates the growing collection of parts into a coherent whole. To further advance the concept of IT governance, the Viable Governance Model (VGM) is proposed. The VGM is a theoretical model of IT governance within a corporate setting that is based on the laws and principles of cybernetics as embodied in Stafford Beer's Viable System Model (VSM). Cybernetics, the science of control and communication in biological and artificial systems, establishes a firm theoretical foundation upon which to design a system that directs and controls the IT function in a complex enterprise. The VGM is developed using an approach based on design science. Given the theoretical nature of the artefact that is being designed, the development and evaluation activities are primarily conceptual in nature. That is, the development activity involves the design of a theoretical model of IT governance using theoretical concepts and constructs drawn from several reference disciplines including cybernetics, organisation theory, and complexity theory. The conceptual evaluation of the VGM indicates that the model is sufficiently robust to incorporate many of the empirical findings arising from academic and professional research. The resultant model establishes a "blueprint", or set of design principles, that can be used by IS practitioners to design and implement a system of IT governance that is appropriate to their organisational contingencies. Novel aspects of this research include: the integration of corporate and IT governance; the reinterpretation of the role of the enterprise architecture (EA) within a complex enterprise; the exposition of the relationship between the corporate and divisional IT groups; and the resolution of the centralisation versus decentralisation dilemma that confront designers of IT governance arrangements.

Thesis (MIT(Informatics))-University of Pretoria, 2008. / Abstract in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2015. / This study explores factors contributing to the slow adoption of virtual teams and virtual technology by South African organisations in Cape Town. The study adopted the Technology Organisation and Environment (TOE) framework to examine the influence of technological organisational and environmental contextual factors on organisation’s adoption of virtual teams and virtual technology. Three organisations from different industries in Cape Town were chosen as a case study. Data was collected via qualitative interviews and quantitative questionnaires while content analysis and a statistics package for social sciences were used to analyse and generate results. The results indicated that all three dimensions of the TOE framework significantly either enabled or inhibited organisational adoption of virtual teams and virtual technology. Technological contextual factors such as availability of technology were found to enable adoption while high set-up cost inhibited adoption, and perceived benefit and drawbacks either inhibited or enabled adoption due to the influence of other contextual factors. Organisational contextual factors like available resources and slacks were found to facilitate, whereas organisational competency and formal and informal linking structures impeded adoption. Management commitment, communication process, degree of centralisation, organisation size and technological competency were found to either enable or inhibit technology adoption owing to the influences of other contextual factors. Environmental contextual factors such as competition, government regulation and rapidly growing industries were found to encourage technology adoption. Lack of skilled labour was found to restrain technology adoption while industry characteristics, market structures and technology support infrastructure either enabled or inhibited organisational adoption of virtual teams and virtual technology due to the influence of other contextual factors.

Thesis (MTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2012. / South Africa has a complex financial and retail service industry with high reliance on the use of IT systems to ensure effectiveness and maintainability. Decision making and improved outcomes may be done through an IT aligned enterprise architecture (EA) strategy. EA is a capability that contributes to the support and success of an organisations' IT. Organisations are currently using EA to better align IT and the business strategy which provides a comprehensive v.ew of the IT system. Thus, EA is increasing in organisations yet the measurement and value of EA is limited to organisations and enterprise architects. The discussions of the benefits and value of EA has been discussed for several years, however there are still no consensus about how the benefits and value of EA can be measured. The lack and clear understanding of the benefits and value of EA needs to consider different aspects of IT as well as the shareholders when measuring the benefits and value of EA to an organisation.

Thesis (MTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011. / For almost three decades practitioners, academics, consultants, and research organisations have identified 'attaining alignment between IT and business' (Luttman & Kempaiah, 2007), as a pervasive problem. Despite the wide acceptance of the term "strategic alignment", there was no consensus on how to achieve alignment. The research philosophy was of an interpretive study and an inductive research approach was used. The research strategy was by means of a case study, namely PRASA Western Cape, a business unit of Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA). The time horizon for this research was cross sectional. For the data collection a semi-structured interview, supported by secondary data from the business plan and annual report, was used. The research problem was "PRASA has dysfunctional and fragmented institutional arrangements, resulting in misalignment between business and IT". The primary research question to address this problem was "How can PRASA manage strategic alignment between business and IT?" The aim of this research was to understand why the misalignment between business and IT strategies exists at PRASA. A further aim was to propose a guideline to manage alignment between business and IT strategies with the intention of overcoming the fragmented and dysfunctional institutional arrangements. To address resolving the research problem three theoretical models were used. The strategic alignment model was used to ascertain the strategic perspective of PRASA as well as to identify the external strategic fit and internal functional integration of an organisation. The second model used was the strategic alignment maturity model. This model was used to identify the alignment maturity of the business/IT strategies. The final model used was the balanced scorecard. Alignment is one of the best practices recommended by the balanced scorecard, and it recommends aligning all to the strategy of the company. The reason for using the balanced scorecard was that the company currently uses this tool to manage performance. The research finding concluded that PRASA had the strategic execution alignment perspective - business strategy dictates the IT strategy. The overall strategic alignment maturity of the organisation was found to be in initial process. The balanced scorecard methodology was known by all, yet few knew what the performance measures for the organisation was for the year. The triangulated conclusion was that strategic alignment between business and IT was a problem at PRASA. The recommendation was that the organisation conducts three surveys firstly to identify its strategic choice, secondly to identify the strategic alignment maturity and lastly to do a balanced scorecard best practice survey.

Thesis (MTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / Consumer trust is a core element for any e-commerce website. This study aimed to explore attributes of business-to-consumers (B2C) e-commerce websites that can communicate and engender trust from the users’ perspective using user-centred design. E-commerce websites are known to have features such as security certificates and encryption methods to ensure trust, but this requires technical knowhow to understand. The technologies used to develop websites have improved so far, but it has little effect on improving the trust of the users of e-commerce mostly in developing countries (Africa in particular). E-commerce users do not realise that these features have been put in place for the trustworthiness of the websites which contributes to their reluctance to conduct business transactions online, thus reducing their buying intentions. There is a need to design e-commerce websites to communicate/ convey trust from the users’ perspective. The study explored various sources of data to obtain insight and understanding of the research problem—user-centred design (UCD) group activity with users, interviews with developers, and secondary prior literature. Using UCD as the main methodology, an intensive UCD workshop activity with a group of eight e-commerce users was carried out. Furthermore, to obtain the view of experts (developers) on what is currently done to engender trust in B2C e-commerce websites, interviews with four respondents were also carried out. These interviews were intended to reduce any prejudice or bias and to obtain a clearer understanding of the phenomenon being studied. The findings from the study revealed six main attributes to engender trust, namely aesthetics design, security and information privacy, functionality design, trustworthiness based on content, development process, and vendor attributes. Proposed guidelines for each of the attributes were outlined. The findings from the users showed that those who were acquainted with the e-commerce technologies were those whose backgrounds are computer and technology related. Most users focused on aesthetics design, functionality, and security of their privacy and private details. Less emphasis was placed on the technology behind the e-commerce websites. Users use their aesthetic and cognitive value in their judgement for trust. The findings from the research were further validated using the Domestication of Technology Theory (DTT), which resulted in the development of a user-centred e-commerce trust model.

Thesis (MTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / Software often requires patches to be installed post-implementation for a variety of reasons. Organisations and individuals, however, do not always promptly install these patches as and when they are released. This study investigated the reasons for the delay or hesitation, identified the challenges, and proposed a model that could assist organisations in overcoming the identified challenges. The research investigated the extent to which the integration of software patch management and enterprise data security is an important management responsibility, by reviewing relevant documents and interviewing key role players currently involved in the patch management process. The current challenges and complexities involved in patch management at an enterprise level could place organisations at risk by compromising their enterprise-data security. This research primarily sought to identify the challenges causing the management of software patches to be complex, and further attempted to establish how organisations currently implement patch management. The aim of the study was to explore the complexities of software patch management in order to enhance enterprise data security within organisations. A single case study was used, and data were obtained from primary sources and literature. The study considered both technological and human factors, and found that both factors play an equally important role with regard to the successful implementation of a patch management program within an organisation.

Thesis (MTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / The balance between the dependency on Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and reducing costs has led to an increase in ICT outsourcing in many organisations. ICT outsourcing has benefits, but organisations have limited knowledge on information security and risks when outsourcing these functions. A lack of information security knowledge or a poor organisational risk culture carries the risk of project failure and security breaches. It is unclear how to manage information risks through the usage of ICT infrastructure risk management when outsourcing ICT projects, and this exposes organisations to ICT security risks. The aim of the study is to explore how a selected transport organisation can manage information risks through the usage of infrastructure risk management when outsourcing ICT projects. Two primary research questions are posed namely, “what information risks does the ICT department manage when outsourcing ICT projects?”, and “how can the ICT department protect their information through the usage of infrastructure risk management against ICT security threats when outsourcing ICT?” To answer these two questions, a study was conducted at a transport organisation in South Africa. A subjective ontological and interpretivist epistemological stance has been adopted and an inductive research approach was followed. The research strategy was a case study. Data for this study was gathered through interviews (17 in total) using semi-structured questionnaires. Data collected were transcribed, summarised, and categorised to provide a clear understanding of the data. For this study, forty findings and eight themes were identified. The themes are ICT outsourcing, information risks, costs, ICT vendor dependency, vendor access and management, risk management, user awareness, and frameworks. Guidelines are proposed, comprising six primary components. The results point to gaps that need to be addressed to ensure that information is protected when outsourcing ICT projects. Measures need to be put in place and communication has to be improved among operating divisions. The findings lead to questions such as, ““how does business create an ICT security culture to ensure that information is protected at all times”, and “does vendor access management really get the necessary attention it requires?” Further studies on human behaviour towards ICT security is needed to ensure the protection of organisations against security risks.