M.Comm. / This short dissertation is concerned with the impact that advertising can have on employee attitudes in an organisation in the services industry. The specific organisation is the Vehicle and Asset Finance Division of Nedbank, which is one of the four largest banks in South Africa. In a review of related literature it is highlighted that advertising can lead to cognitive, affective and behavioural responses in an audience. In turn, behaviour, beliefs and affect can impact, or be impacted by, a person’s attitude. Employees in a service organisation are an important part of service delivery; therefore anything that can impact employee attitudes is of interest to the organisation. A study was conducted in the form of a census of all 717 employees in the division of the bank, using a paper questionnaire as a data collection instrument. A response rate of 49% was achieved, and data collected from respondents was analysed in terms of various theoretical factors and statistically derived factors. A number of secondary research objectives were also considered. Findings of this research indicate that employees of the division do notice the organisation’s advertising and their attitudes and resultant behaviour are affected by it in a number of ways. Some of these include a heightened sense of pride and security about the organisation, as well as increased employee commitment to provide improved customer service. It was also established that there are significant differences in the way that employees with different lengths of service, and employees in different job functions, are impacted by the organisation’s advertising. This study was restricted to a single division of a single bank in South Africa so the results cannot be generalised for other divisions of the bank, other banks, other industries or other countries. This provides an opportunity for future research.

The South African government introduced Affirmative Action in 1998 to redress historical workplace discrimination. The South African moral imperative considers Affirmative Action to be a necessary instrument of change influencing social and economic equality, which impacts on the development of Blacks. Affirmative Action is being researched in academic circles for reasons other than moral concern, which calls for a new breed of scientist to take equitable academic demographics into consideration. The exploratory study in question aimed to identify employees’ perceptions on Affirmative Action within the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Witwatersrand. The survey method was utilized in the study and opinions were elicited from 108 respondents in the Faculty. The results were analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively in order to gain a comprehensive insight into the perceptions. The focus of the study included: profile of the respondents, staffing and standards, employee development and mentorship, attitudes, training and culture. The findings of the investigation indicated that progress achieved by Affirmative Action within the Faculty was generally perceived to be slow. However, there appeared to be no problems related to holistic practices established in support of Affirmative Action. / Prof. W. Backer

M.Comm. / The aim of this study is to evaluate performance management in the public service particularly within the Gauteng Department of Health. The researcher also intends to discover the attitude of employees towards performance management systems. A triangulation approach involving qualitative and quantitative analysis was adopted to ensure the validity of the constructs.

The purpose of this study was to extend research findings on perceived equity into the context of the contingent workforce by examining employees' perceived fairness of a child-care subsidy (i.e., distributive justice perception) in a temporary employment agency. The variables of interest to the study were perceived fairness, comparison other, input importance, organizational responsibility and family-friendliness. The variables were examined on three levels of subsidy status (i.e., subsidy group, parents/no-subsidy group, and nonparents group). A cover letter and a questionnaire regarding perceived fairness of the child-care subsidy were mailed to all employees who had worked for the temporary agency in the last three years. In addition, a stamped self addressed envelope was attached, so respondents could mail the questionnaire directly to the researcher within 2 weeks. Respondents were instructed to anonymously answer the entire questionnaire, and to indicate the degree of their agreement or disagreement with respect to each of the statements in the questionnaire. Findings are based on 64 survey responses, which represented a return rate of 9.5%. The data were analyzed using separate analyses of variance and regression analyses. Results indicated significant differences among parents with subsidy, parents without subsidy and non-parents on their perceived importance of inputs such as level of education, hours per week and "other'' inputs (i.e., client satisfaction and work environment). Specifically, parents without subsidy perceived the level of education and the number of hours worked per week as more important inputs than did either the non-parents and the parents with subsidy. However, non-parents perceived the level of education and the number of hours worked per week as more important inputs than did the parents with subsidy. Furthermore, non-parents and parents without the subsidy perceived "other'' inputs as more important input than did the parents with subsidy. Significant differences were also found between the subsidy group and no-subsidy group and perceived fairness. Specifically, the subsidy group perceived the child care subsidy as more fair than the no-subsidy group (i.e., parents without subsidy and non-parents). A significant interaction of the effect of family-friendliness on the relationship between subsidy status and perceived fairness was also found.

M. Tech. Office Management and Technology / This dissertation was necessitated by the challenges the public and private sectors faced in aligning their organisational values and goals with those of their employees. Professionalism has become a fundamental prerequisite for organisations to succeed. In order to achieve stated organisational goals, elements of professionalism such as trust, commitment, accountability and responsibility, have to be integrated into the daily activities of organisations in order to push forward and achieve their ultimate goals. This research project focused on the professional and unprofessional behaviour of employees in their work environment. Factors that constitute professional behaviour were emphasised, for example acceptable leadership styles, professional trust, responsibility, accountability and commitment. Factors such as nepotism, favouritism, insubordination, alcohol and substance abuse were classified as unprofessional factors in the work environment. Based on the findings, the question arose as to what made employees behave the way they do in the work environments? A significant interdependency and interrelationship were found with respect to openness, people networks, structured systems, orientation and awareness. Organisational governance affects employee behaviour and manifests differently, depending on the interests and perceptions of individual employees.

No description available.

The impact that organizations have on the environment is a growing concern for organisations, governments and ordinary citizens alike. The Global focus on environmental protection programmes has led to initiatives such as the Kyoto Protocol, and Conference of the Parties (COP) which attempt to develop policies and rules for practical and effective implementation of environmental protection programmes for countries and organisations alike. Deloitte is no exception to this as their commitment towards the environment in the Deloitte policy statement reflects a commitment to responsible behavior towards the environment. The concern, however, is the consistency of the implementation of the policy throughout the organization. The aim of this study was to understand the behavior and practices of staff in relation to the green office policies at the Woodlands and the Durban offices of Deloitte. An empirical study using a quantitative data collection approach was conducted. A random sample was used and 489 staff members participated in the study. In terms of sample size 6 tables, these results can be generalized to all non-management employees of Deloitte. Data was collected using an online questionnaire. The salient results showed that the Durban respondents were more au fait with the green policies of the company than the Woodlands respondents. It was evident that the younger staff had very little time to read the greening reports and as such were not entirely aware of the practices within the company. It was recommended that in order to ensure the awareness and participation of all employees in greening efforts that Deloitte should re-induct existing employees emphasizing the green policies. The policies and reports should be communicated in a format and media which appeals to younger employees. Competitions, incentives and rewards should be introduced in order to spread the awareness and change in green behaviour. Whilst the study was limited to two offices only, the recommendations of this study could be implemented in all the South African offices of Deloitte. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

Aiming to better understand how empowering leadership affects employees' innovative performance, this research examines this relationship by reviewing the existing leadership and innovation literature, then theorizing and testing the extent to which employees' entrepreneurial orientation mediates it. This research also proposes that the effect of empowering leadership on followers' entrepreneurial orientation will vary according to the presence of different moderating variables. Hence, the moderating effects of the employees' value of openness in the relationship between empowering leadership and employees' entrepreneurial orientation are examined. Similarly, the effects of the employees' creative self-efficacy in the relationship between employees' entrepreneurial orientation and their own innovative performance are explored. In the study, supervisor-employee matched data from seven factories across three provinces in China were collected. The results of the data analysis supported the association between empowering leadership and employees' innovative performance, as well as the mediating effect of employees' entrepreneurial orientation. The moderating effect of employees' creative self-efficacy was also supported. However, the moderating role of the value of openness was not significant. These findings enable us to better understand the mechanism by which an empowering leader influences employees' innovative performance. It also explains how this process of influencing is subject to employees' various individual characteristics.

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Technology: Business Administration in the Faculty of Business Management at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. / Modern human resource management suggests that organisations that have succeeded in the business arena have done so through good people management practices and employees who display productive behaviour above and beyond their formal job descriptions. General thought behind job satisfaction supports that happy employees are inclined to be more productive, creative and committed to their jobs, all of which are essential to achieving an organisation’s bottom line. Organisational citizenship behaviour is another factor that is regarded as important for achieving organisational effectiveness. There has been some disagreement regarding the nature of the relationship between job satisfaction (JS) and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB). Some studies have shown that OCB is as a result of JS. Following these studies, this research paper focuses on the extent to which JS influences OCB among a sample of employees within a Western Cape government office. Employees at the government office (N =105), selected through convenience sampling, were surveyed regarding their level of JS and their readiness to display OCB. Quantitative data was collected through a paper-based survey, using validated standardised questionnaires to measure both JS and OCB. The results show that respondents reported moderate levels of JS and OCB. Through the study it was established that there is a significant relationship between JS and OCB. Furthermore, the JS dimensions of ‘internal work motivation’ and ‘growth satisfaction’ explained 25% of the variance in OCB. This research investigated the relationship between OCB and JS in a South African context, providing insight into their relationship in a public sector organisation. In terms of practical significance, exploring the relationship between JS and OCB can provide insight for management and guidance for human resource practices, which can assist in improving JS and therefore the success of a business.

M.Comm. / The global environment is changing drastically and companies need to respond to this change in order to survive. The concept of shared services has seen its boom in the market as one of the measures to adapt to the ever changing global environment. With the strengthening of the global economy, corporations implement shared services to enhance their competitive advantage. Shared services are implemented for various reasons inclusive of quality, cost, time and economies of scale. The result is changes in processes, technology and culture / people. Change is not easy. People resist as it impacts on culture i.e. the way they currently operate. The introduction of shared services is no different. The changes it leads to create a sense of discomfort thereby leading to resistance. It is, thus, of critical importance to manage the transition of people from the current to the future culture. It has been evident that the softer side of change (people) is the most neglected area when managing change. The study focuses on change management to transform people’s attitudes and behaviours from a functional culture to a service oriented culture. The researcher identified this transition as not successful when introducing shared services, and this forms the research problem. The study is qualitative and exploratory in design with the aim of identifying change management tools and techniques in the implementation of shared services. Various tools have been identified with communication being the most critical tool in managing change. The conclusion drawn is that focus should not only be on the technical areas of change, but involve people as well. No change can be successful without the involvement of the people that are expected to implement it, no matter how sophisticated the processes or technology is.