The thesis itself proceeds according to the following outline. Chapter One is concerned with the neoclassical theory of the labour market. Three particular models are surveyed all of which attempt to explain wage differentials and labour adjustments within a competitive equilibrium framework. The basic model of the labour market which rests upon the marginal productivity theory of labour demand, the utility-maximising approach to labour supply and the competitive theory of market equilibrium is dealt with first.This is followed by an outline of human capital theory which emphasises the crucial role played by education and training in determining individual earnings . Finally, attention is focused on disequilibrium wage models of adjustment which account for wage dispersion in terms of the amount and quality of information available to transactors in the labour market.(Introduction, p. 3-4)

No abstract available. / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / gm2014 / Mercantile Law / Unrestricted

Master of Arts / Department of Economics / Dennis L. Weisman / The primary purpose of this report is to address the potential benefits and drawbacks of competitive electricity generation. A number of countries have introduced various forms of competition into the electric utility industry. The most notable attempt in the United States and the focus of this report took place in California in the late 1990s. This report is divided into two parts. The first covers the history of the electricity industry by reviewing influential policies, cost of service regulation, and concluding with incentive regulation. The second part discusses the potential benefits and drawbacks of a competitive generation sector, through the lens of the California experiment. Government policies have dramatically changed in the last twenty years. Many of these changes were aimed towards increasing competition within the generation sector and have made a competitive generation sector possible. Whether these policies are correct has been the focus of much debate. A competitive generation sector could potentially operate more efficiently than under traditional regulatory regimes. Whether this potential will be realized is in question. This report assesses this question by looking at the events that took place in California. The competitive wholesale markets in California functioned properly for nearly two years before the events of the "California Electricity Crisis" took place. This showed that a competitive wholesale market is possible once certain criteria are met; most importantly adequate competition to reduce a firm's potential to exercise market power. The "Crisis" in California showed what can happen if these criteria are not satisfied. Nevertheless, there is still much optimism about the potential benefits of competitive electricity markets.

Prof. H.E.C. de Bruyn

D.Ing. / It is said that the development of innovative new products is set to become the economic battleground of the twenty-first century. Specifically, the innovative identification, development and subsequent marketing of financial products designed in order to allow organisations to manage their financial risk profiles will assume increased importance as volatility within the global business environment and capital markets increases. The discipline responsible for the development of such financial products, financial engineering, will increase in importance as financial services organisations compete to be the first to satisfy the needs of the market. The ultimate aim of financial engineering, as with any product development process, must be to develop the required product in an optimal manner at a minimised economic life-cycle cost to the organisation. Simultaneously, if correctly applied, the process of financial engineering can be a significant source of competitive advantage to the financial services organisation in an industry characterised by intense competitive pressures and exponentially increasing complexity and volatility. The financial services organisation which is able to successfully combine these two elements will have the capability to position itself as a leader in the identification and development of innovative financial products, a capability critical for success within the financial services industry. The science of engineering has within it a special subset devoted to the optimisation of the process of product development. This discipline, known as system engineering, has been extremely effective in the enhancement of product development processes within a traditional manufacturing environment. Tangible benefits of the application of system engineering include a reduced product development cycle, increased product adherence to client specifications, and a reduction in the economic life-cycle cost of the product. Within this thesis the author suggests that the optimal development of financial products in an increasingly competitive environment requires a two-pronged approach. In the first instance the financial services organisation must choose to develop the product which best promotes the medium to long-term strategic aims of the organisation. This is the concept of strategic fit. In the second instance the financial services organisation must have the capability to develop this product more effectively, and more efficiently, than its competitors. As an implementation mechanism the author develops a Financial Product Development Model based on system engineering principles chosen for their applicability to the process of financial product development. Simultaneously, the author develops a Competitive Strategy Framework, a collection of five strategic elements designed to ensure that the financial product development decision displays a measure of correlation to the strategic aims of the organisation. This Competitive Strategy Framework is implemented within the Financial Product Development Model via the use of a Strategic Circuit Breaker, a concept developed by the author and based on the concept of trading circuit breakers as used on the world's major stock exchanges. The aim of the Financial Product Development Model proposed within this thesis is to enhance the process of financial engineering and in so doing provide the financial services organisation with a means of improving its strategic competitiveness within the financial markets. The proposed Financial Product Development Model is validated via the practical application of the model. The results of this validation indicate that significant benefits may be obtained by correctly implementing the model. In addition the author conducts a limited scope industry survey designed to determine the opinion of financial services professionals to the major concepts underlying the model. The favourable results of this survey indicate that (1) the proposed model is practical and applicable within the financial services industry, and (2) the financial services industry in general is unaware of the importance of the process of product development and the manner in which system engineering can be used to enhance this process. By implication the financial services organisation that is able to differentiate its financial product development process from its competitors stands to achieve a significant competitive advantage.

M.A. / The aim of the study was to explore motivational profiles and competitive anxiety in secondary school athletes who spend at least eight hours or more on sport during a week. The study included 267 adolescent athletes in secondary school ranging from grade 8 to grade 12, with a mean age of 15.52 (SD = 1.49). These athletes were asked to volunteer for the study in various schools in Johannesburg and Pretoria, South Africa. The sample comprised 189 boys and 78 girls who participated in a variety of sports. They were asked to complete a biographical questionnaire, The Task and Ego Sport Questionnaire (Nicholls, 1989) and the Sport Competitive Anxiety Test (Martens, 1982). The results indicated that the participants had a high task orientation as opposed to a moderate ego orientation in sport. Most of the participants had a moderate level of competitive sport anxiety. Two distinct motivational profiles emerged from the results: High Task/High Ego and High Task/Low Ego. No significant differences were found between gender and age groups with regards to motivational profiles and anxiety levels. A correlation was found between task orientation and ego orientation, but not between motivational profiles and anxiety.

The purpose of the study is to ascertain the meaning and ambit of section 12(2)(g) of the Competition Act 89 of 1998. The main question that the study will focus on is in which instances a firm can be said to control another firm by having the ability to materially influence the policy of that firm in a manner comparable to a person who, in the ordinary commercial practice, can exercise an element of control referred to in section 12. The study will look at: <ul> (a) the South African competition law and policy; (b) the Competition Act and its application; (c) merger definition and regulations; (d) the concept of control and definition of control; and (e) the scope of application of 12(2)(g) of the Competition Act.</ul> Copyright / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Mercantile Law / unrestricted

In this thesis, I describe three experimental studies that investigate the hotly debated role of competition in structuring communities in unproductive habitats. The studies were done in a boreal forest understory plant community in the southwestern Yukon. The first study was a traditional neighbour removal experiment. Ten of the most common species were transplanted as seedlings into transects with and without neighbours in a factorial design with two levels of water addition and two levels of fertilizer addition. The presence of neighbours increased survival and biomass of 6 species indicating a facilitative effect of neighbouring plants. The second study used the Community Density Series (CDS) methodology. The first of these was a 10-speciesexperimental community established from seed and grown in sandboxes at 6 densities with 2 watering levels and 2 fertilizer levels in a factorial design. At the community level, density dependence was observed at all life stages, but was not consistently competitive or facilitative - both emergence and final per plant shoot mass were density dependent, while survival to the end of the season was inversely density dependent. The effect of water was positive at seed emergence whereas fertilizer negatively affected survival. Species specific responses were also dependent on life stage. The final study was a 4-year CDS in the field using 9 common understory species at 6 densities and 3 fertilizer levels. Density negatively affected the community every year except for the first with competition being important at all densities above x1/8th the average community density. Constant final yield was reached in plots above the naturalx1 density for the last two years of the study. Responses to density were species-specific and 7 species declined with increasing density. No facilitative effects were observed. These studies demonstrate that density dependence is important in structuring this unproductive boreal understory habitat. The CDS approach allows us to quantify both the intensity and importance of plant competition at the community and species levels and to determine whether the importance of these biotic interactions depend on abiotic factors. The results clearly show that species-specific responses to biotic interactions are not necessarily the same as community level responses and if we are to understand community structure, it is necessary to use appropriate methodologies. / Science, Faculty of / Botany, Department of / Graduate

Spatial competition, in the context of industry-wide changes in retailing formats and strategies, is addressed in this dissertation from a theoretical modelling perspective. Chapter2 develops a normative individual choice model to explore how "power retailers" affect grocery shopping behaviour, and, consequently, market share. Power retailers are very large retail outlets that compete primarily on price, and are known variously as warehouse clubs, category killers, and superstores. The model shows that consideration of consumer stockpiling can lead to an "increasing returns" nonlinear response of market share to price reductions, and that the effect is not noticeable when competitors have small price differences. The model also differentiates between perishable and nonperishable goods, and shows that this may drive planned multistore shopping. Chapter 3 starts with the observation that competent management in many sectors of retailing, including grocery retailing, requires an ability to respond quickly and effectively to unexpected adversity. This dynamic is included in an oligopolistic spatial interaction model, and the system is shown to evolve to a novel and robust stochastic steady state known as self-organized criticality (SOC). One characteristic of the SOC state is that it allows small exogenous shocks to produce large responses at a rate greater than would be expected if the law of large numbers applied. This work represents the first known investigation of SOC in a marketing setting. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

The task of my thesis on the topic of "Strategic Analysis of the Enterprise" was based on the analysis of external and internal environment in the firm PROFIL NÁBYTEK, a.s. The goal of this analysis is proposal some advisable strategies for future development of the company. Object of the company is a joinery and business activity. This thesis exploits theoretical knowledges of the special literature. This work deals with terms of strategic management, strategy, process of strategical planning and several types of basic strategies. After a studying of special literature I shortly described the company and then I gave an attention to the mission, an analysis of external and internal environment, enterprise objectives, proposal and analysis of convenient strategies, which should lead to consolidate and strengthen the competitive position of companies examined in the market. Total appreciation and strategy suggestions I made by the help of SWOT Analysis. The thesis gives us more information that may be the basis for further important decision-making and planning development of firm PROFIL NÁBYTEK, a.s.