Performance measurement in higher education is examined during this study, in particular university performance indicators are reviewed and discussed. The conclusion is made that appropriate input and output indicators require some form of combination in order to allow practical consideration to be made. The technique of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is reviewed and found to have a number of conceptual drawbacks. The model is considerably developed within the thesis, primarily by the introduction of weight restrictions on the variables. Taken as a whole the developments, coined the DEAPMAS process, create a technique which can be used to assess cost effectiveness rather than simply efficiency. Data for two examples of subject areas, defined by recognised accounting units, are applied to the program as inter-university comparison was felt to be impractical at institutional level; due to differing subject mixes. A considerable computer implementation of the developed theory was written and utilised to provide results over a number of data runs for the examples. It was concluded that the results obtained represented a considerable improvement over separate consideration of numerous performance indicators.

International social movement coalitions are a promising instrument to address systemic problems in a globalizing world. This thesis explores the issue of maintenance of these coalitions by examining the factors that have facilitated or inhibited the maintenance of the Hemispheric Social Alliance as an example. This thesis is based on a qualitative case study; data includes some content analysis but mostly consists of direct interviews. The main finding is that factors such as resources, internal relationships, external conditions and management all affect the maintenance of an international social movement coalition. The thesis argues for increased links between social work and social movement coalitions, and offers insights for social work policy, research and practice.

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Despite the substantial amount of work undertaken on internationalization to-date, most has placed little emphasis on the temporal processes and dynamics of internationalization in shaping firm internationalization histories. This is reflected in several problem areas in theories and research regarding internationalization including accelerated internationalization, full and partial de-internationalization and use of multiple modes of entry at a point in time. This study addressed an important question: what factors and processes affect the way a firm???s pattern of internationalization changes over time? Although mainstream theories of internationalization and recent advances that link internationalization and entrepreneurship assume the importance of ???opportunity???, there is a paucity of research that that places ???opportunity??? as the core process in internationalization. By embracing time as a key dimension, this study reconceptualized internationalization as an entrepreneurial process: as the process of opportunity discovery, evaluation and exploitation in international markets. The research was undertaken in two phases. Phase 1 included a literature review covering the internationalization and entrepreneurship research streams. The discovery-evaluation-exploitation framework from entrepreneurship was used to identify relevant factors and explore eight case studies. By drawing on results from the exploratory research, an initial conceptual model and a set of propositions were developed. In Phase 2, fifteen case studies were theoretically sampled from a pool of small and medium enterprises from the knowledge and non-knowledge based industries in Australia. The data collection and analysis followed a process, event-driven approach to case study research involving the mapping of key sequences of events as well as within and cross case analysis. The results clarified the nature and pattern of opportunity discovery, evaluation and exploitation, and a number of factors that influence this process: the role of prior knowledge, network ties, serendipity, absorptive capacity, bricolage, the nature of uncertainty, feedback mechanisms and effectual versus causal reasoning. The findings also suggest the evolutionary process of firm development and internationalization and show that born globals may be a classification error. The results indicate that full and partial de-internationalization as well as the use of multiple modes of entry are influenced by the interconnectedness of opportunities across the founding, domestic and international context over time; the role of Knightian uncertainty which can push or pull the patterns in many directions and how firms rely on effectual reasoning. The results provide a better understanding of the basic mechanisms of internationalization. The academic contributions of this thesis include the extension of Jones and Coviello???s (2005) model and previous models by developing a dynamic, process model of internationalization that is capable of addressing the temporal and dynamic gaps in internationalization; the integration and reconciliation of extant theories of internationalization by understanding the role of mode of reasoning; and the establishment of ???opportunity-firm??? nexus as a suitable unit of analysis in internationalization and international entrepreneurship research. Finally, the managerial contributions include guidance for firms and entrepreneurs in terms of dealing with uncertainty and complexity in international markets using the appropriate mode of reasoning (i.e. effectual, non-predictive approach vs. causal, predictive approach) in the right context and circumstances.

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No description available.

M.Comm. / Many aspects of the success, or lack of success, of a business can be accurately measured. Revenues, profit and loss, return on assets, share price, price equity ratios, market share, customer satisfaction and many more aspects can be measured and often managed. Apart from the measurable something else is needed: a successful organisational culture. The culture of an organisation is often easier to experience than to describe. The objectives of this study are find a workable definition for culture, tools to measure the culture of groups and leadership skills needed to manage or change the culture of organisations. Various definitions of organisational culture and culture measuring tools are studied. The most promising definition of culture and measuring tools are put to the test in a case study to forni an opinion of the usefulness of such tools for management. Results of this study indicate that the concept culture, as described in the double s cube model, is a very useful tool for managers. It provides a quick and easy entry point to the culture management of an organization. Firstly, the tools that are available to measure culture provide results that could be used to position a company in the double s cube model. Secondly, the results of the culture measurement could be used to formulate and decide on the best course of action when it is necessary to change culture. Culture management is done by manipulating the sociability and solidarity levels in an organisation and by ensuring positive contribution of these elements to business successes. The clear leadership guidelines to achieve this manipulation could be very useful for managers. By using the concept of culture, managers could establish competitive advantages for their businesses. Culture management could be the secret key to open a situation whereby it is possible to improve business performance and at the same time create an environment where people are happy to achieve these goals.

M.Tech. (Operations Management) / The research is about the application of lean manufacturing tool known as manufacturing kaizen in order to improve a work process at . The company is based in Kempton Park, South Africa, used as a case study to evaluate the benefit of manufacturing kaizen at a specific industrial concern. The research demonstrated how manufacturing kaizen when used appropriately can help APSAP PTY LTD to eliminate waste, have better inventory control, short process cycle times, and better overall financial and operational procedures. The goal was to reduce the identified waste using manufacturing kaizen tool. Waste reduction eventually reduced the cycle time of the work process. The primary objective of the thesis was to study and analyze the cylinder preparation process in APSAP PTY LTD. The process activities were captured, then analyzed using the process map. The secondary objective was to identify waste in the process. Major businesses in South Africa have been trying to adopt new business initiatives in order to stay competitive. One way to increase this is to apply proper manufacturing strategy and use of lean manufacturing or continuous improvement tools to achieve business objective which is to stay competitive and to increase profit. The research addresses the application of a lean manufacturing tool called manufacturing kaizen. Manufacturing kaizen refers to a technique used for improving a work process by the eliminating waste within that process in the organization. It is one of the improvement tools that focus on cost reduction by eliminating non-value added activities. Kaizen achieves the elimination of waste by empowering people with tools and a process to uncover improvement opportunities and make change. Participants are key aspect in implementing the manufacturing kaizen event, since they are the people directly involved. Identifying the key people that will be used in the manufacturing kaizen event is very crucial for the success of the event. Any changes or improvements of the process will have direct impact to the people. It is important that people who are directly affected by change become part of the process and feel empowered. Kaizen understands waste to be any activity that is not value adding from the perspective of the customer. The research unpacks manufacturing Kaizen and looks into its qualitative nature and its application within a working environment and how it influence productivity. It also investigates how this tool can be applied in a process or chemical industry and the benefits it can provide to an organization. The initial step in the approach was to outline data collected and examining techniques used to collect the data. The researcher carried out direct observation as he was physically present, and personally monitored what was taking place. The results show that labor productivity can be improved over time after the introduction of manufacturing kaizen. It concludes that with the introduction of manufacturing kaizen, transformation at workplace can be established leading to productivity improvement within an organization. The research has shown that with the proper use of manufacturing kaizen , waste reduction can be achieved.

This research was based on the premise that psychological research on risk-taking behaviour has emphasized a one-dimensional model of instrumentality and cognitive functioning derived from male experience. The central research question "How do women experience risk-taking?" was investigated by analyzing definitions and examples of personal risk described by 44 women, and by comparing relationships between subgroups assigned by occupation and by sex-role orientation. The findings indicated that women experienced risk-taking that spanned both dimensions of affiliation (connection to others) and instrumentality (attainment of personal goals). A new definition of risk-taking was proposed that incorporated elements of uncertainty, emotional involvement, loss, and a process of change. Women in traditional occupations described a similar number of affiliative and instrumental risks, while women in non-traditional occupations emphasized instrumental risks. It was observed that the opportunity and demand for risk-taking appeared related to social context and work activity. Significant differences were also found between women in traditional and non-traditional occupations with respect to sex-role orientation (from the Bern Sex-Role Inventory), employment status, income level, and number of children. No differences were found between sub-groups designated by occupation and by sex-role orientation with respect to estimates of risk-taking tendency from a self-estimate scale and the Choice Dilemmas Questionnaire. The results supported a critique of the Choice Dilemmas Questionnaire, citing an emphasis on instrumental and hypothetical risk-taking. Participants also reported that the CDQ was not relevant to their lives. The feminist approach encouraged active participation and evaluation by the women in the study. As a result, participants reported an increased understanding of themselves and of the process of risk-taking. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

Three issues were examined in this study: (1) the extent to which psychological challenge or stress elicits changes in the breathing patterns of normal subjects; (2) whether breathing pattern changes covary with cardiovascular arousal; and (3) whether individuals identified as being potentially at-risk for developing hypertension respond to mental challenge tasks with breathing pattern and cardiovascular changes that are reliably different from those of lower risk individuals. Subjects were 100 healthy young men divided into reactor quintiles on the basis of their heart rate (HR) changes to a 1-minute cold pressor test. Those in the upper quintile were designated as being at-risk for developing hypertension. Their cardiovascular and respiratory changes to two counterbalanced versions of a 5-minute mental arithmetic test (Easy & Hard) were compared with those of the third and fifth quintile subjects. Marked individual differences were evident in the direction and extent of breathing changes. Overall, the rate, amplitude, variability, and predominant mode of breathing increased substantially over resting levels in response to the math tasks. Only breathing rate and variability reliably covaried with task difficulty. Little correspondence was found between breathing changes and cardiovascular arousal. The data did indicate a trend for breathing to shift towards greater ribcage dominance as task difficulty increased. This was especially true for the at-risk group and least true for the low reactor quintile. The expected group differences in cardiovascular reactivity were not found however, implying that the HR reactivity to cold stimulation is not a good predictor of reactivity to acute mental challenge or stress. Overall, the results suggest that breathing patterns change in response to psychological stress but are not clearly associated with cardiovascular arousal. The attempt to identify subgroups of aberrant breathers on the basis of HR reactivity also yielded equivocal results. / Arts, Faculty of / Psychology, Department of / Graduate