This dissertation investigates the impact of institutional and governance factors on the performance of 10 selected smallholder agricultural cooperatives (case studies) in KwaZulu- Natal (KZN). All the selected cooperatives were traditionally structured (e.g., one-member, one-vote system). Due to logistical and administrative constraints, the selected smallholder cooperatives were drawn from the EThekwini and UMgungundlovu Districts (the latter comprising of two sub-districts, namely Camperdown and Msunduzi), which incorporate the major cities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Five of the cooperatives grow and market vegetables, three produce and market poultry, one is a beef production cooperative and another operates a bakery. Information from the interviews suggests that members of the selected smallholder cooperatives do not fully understand cooperative principles and have high expectations of potential benefits of being members. Descriptive analysis of the case studies describes total membership of each selected cooperative; average number of management meetings per month; gender and age composition of cooperative members; the characteristics of chairpersons of these cooperatives (e.g., gender, age and education); the initial capital structure of these cooperatives; annual turnover; growth opportunities; and institutional and governance factors influencing the performance of these cooperatives. The results of a cluster analysis suggest that the performance of the selected smallholder cooperatives is influenced by institutional and governance problems. Institutional problems give rise to low levels of equity and debt capital, reliance on government funding, low levels of investment, and subsequent loss of members. Governance problems are strongly linked to the absence of secret ballot, low levels of education, lack of production and management skills training, weak marketing arrangements and consequent low returns to members as patrons or investors. The conclusion is that appropriate institutional arrangements and good governance are important to the performance of enterprises initiated by groups of smallholders. South Africa’s new Cooperatives Act prevents smallholder cooperatives from adopting good institutional arrangements. Alternative ownership structures such as close corporations and private companies offer better institutional arrangements and opportunities for equity-sharing partnerships. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

Since independence, the Namibian education system has experienced a process of transformation from authoritarianism to democratisation. The philosophy underpinning this process is spelt out in the policy, Toward Education for All, with its four major goals being: Access, Equity, Quality and Democracy. Democratisation of education would mean that people would be equally involved in decision‐making processes both at the system and organizational level, so as to contribute collectively to shaping the destiny of education in Namibia. This would mean at the school level of an organization, that teachers are the facilitators of democracy and agents of change in the learning organization environment. To strengthen democracy and empower people’s participation in the decision‐making process, Namibia further adopted a decentralization policy which involved the devolution of power and administrative functions from central government to regional authorities. In the context of this policy framework, schools should take responsibility to introduce and manage change in their organizations. However, evidence suggests that schools have been slow to take up the challenge and that change is largely still initiated by regional officials. This study looks at how organisation development (OD) may play a role in encouraging a mindset where change may be initiated by the organisation itself. OD is a planned change strategy based on normative re‐educative and empirical rational strategies implemented systematically. OD is participant driven, involving a series of activities that move the organization to a preferred future. It focuses on human behaviour and organizational change through staff participation practising a bottom‐up rather than top‐down approach. This study reports on an OD intervention in a rural school east of Rundu, in the Kavango Educational region of Namibia. The study aimed at exploring staff involvement in an OD intervention and probed participants’ perceptions and experiences of the process. The study is an action research case study located within the interpretive and critical paradigms. Observation and semi‐structured interviews were the main data‐collection tools used in the study. In its preliminary investigation the study found that a lack of staff involvement in decisionmaking processes and participation in meetings were the major factors that were perceived to retard the effectiveness of the organization. The study further found that the authoritative style of leadership in the school contributed to the lack of cooperation and participation of staff members. In contrast, the staff responded positively to the OD intervention. Participants embraced OD as a democratic approach to change as it made a meaningful impact on their understanding and conception of organization change. The intervention further empowered participants with new skills and knowledge of initiating change and problem‐solving. Apart from that, the intervention provided a possible short‐term outcome that encouraged participants to adopt and apply OD in the future, without underestimating the difficulties associated with the process.

The study was undertaken to ascertain whether participatory development (PD and) by implication, the Person Centred Approach (PCA) had an impact on change in the communication patterns in the parachute packing section in the SANDF. The study was conducted in a military setting where hierarchical authoritarian structures exist. PCA and PD are used as theoretical frameworks for the study which resulted in changes in the communication patterns at the section. Change occured at two levels viz: Changes in communication amongst the participants which led to teamwork, cooperation and the avoidance of conflict. Changes in communication between management (the Officer Commanding) and the parachute packing section which lead to regular contact with the participants to address their problems. The study further highlighted the importance of learning from the community in order to avoid misinterpretation which could lead to conflict and dissatisfaction / M. A. (Social Science (Mental Health))

Globally organisations face unacceptable levels of fatalities that translate into financial losses and bad publicity, which can be attributed to the inadequate employee engagement in decision making in daily work activities. This study explores the participative role of employees in the management of occupational health and safety (OHS), and investigates the impact of employee participation on the decision making processes that create a safe workplace. The joint labour-management committees encourage employee participation that improves the injury and disease prevention programs. Four participative approaches exist in the decision making processes, namely Directed Participation, Involvement, Pro-active Participation and Ownership, that are interrelated and integrated with the decision making process. When employees are required to abide by set guidelines and procedures, Directed Participation is appropriate. This has been observed to occur with little or no input from employees, whilst the application of legislation requires the process of involvement where critical decisions are made outside the domain of the employee. The pro-active participation process entails the sharing, consulting and making of joint decisions, which is most suitable in the Safety Health and Environmental committees, ensuring the process of Ownership empowers employees to champion the OHS activities. In OHS management there are instances when numerous participative approaches are utilised simultaneously to make decisions. All employees, both blue collar workers and management have a positive influence in creating a safe workplace, with the likelihood of older and experienced employees participating more than their younger counterparts in the decision making processes within the various OHS forums. Also, the more employees assume full responsibility for their health and safety, the greater is their influence to find solutions to the safety challenges. Additionally, making joint decisions to create a safe workplace will, in turn, encourage employees to participate more. The use of the participative approaches results in an improvement in the iii decision making processes within S.H.E. committees and OHS management processes, thereby making a positive contribution. More research is recommended to explore the relationships between employee participation in decision making and the compliance to OHS legislation, employee training, the safety culture and the influence of trade unions. / Business Management / DBL

Un nouveau mouvement social est né en Argentine en 2001, dans un contexte de crise socio-économique sans précédent dans l’histoire du pays :le mouvement des entreprises récupérées par les travailleurs. <p>La récupération des entreprises s’est développée comme une alternative à leur fermeture :les travailleurs occupent l’entreprise et relancent la production et la vente de produits. Ce mouvement surgit dans un moment historique de luttes sociales où le rapport de forces est favorable aux travailleurs, permettant le développement de pratiques en dehors du cadre déterminé par la loi. Or, la production et la commercialisation des produits ne sont pas durables sans l’obtention d’une autorisation légale. Les travailleurs s’organiseront et développeront diverses stratégies pour leur reconnaissance juridique et politique. <p>En dépit de l’abondante production scientifique concernant les entreprises récupérées, beaucoup d’éléments restent à examiner. La plupart des recherches se sont centrées sur deux questions majeures :l’analyse des résultats de la lutte des travailleurs, c’est-à-dire les pratiques sociales et économiques développées dans le processus productif ;et l’étude sur les stratégies politiques, souvent réduites aux actions juridiques, entamées par les travailleurs afin de récupérer l’entreprise. Mais force est de constater qu’il n’existe pas de recherches spécifiques sur le processus de lutte, de formation et de dissolution des organisations des entreprises récupérées. Dans ce sens, le mouvement des entreprises récupérées est souvent présenté comme étant un mouvement uniforme. Certes, des recherches s’intéressent aux rapports sociaux et politiques contenus dans le processus de lutte des travailleurs, mais il s’agit d’études de cas centrées sur l’analyse de certaines entreprises récupérées. L’ambition de la présente thèse est de pallier l’absence d’étude sur le processus de formation et développement du mouvement des entreprises récupérées. Elle cherche à relier l’expérience des travailleurs et celle du mouvement. Ces expériences se déroulent dans un moment historique essentiel d’institutionnalisation des organisations sociales nées durant un cycle de révolte. Notre étude cherche à déceler le processus par lequel certaines organisations du mouvement des entreprises récupérées ont participé à ces transformations (tandis que d’autres furent exclues des négociations) ainsi que l’impact de cette ouverture politique sur le mouvement des entreprises récupérées. Pour cela, nous analysons les influences réciproques sur la construction de ce mouvement :les formes de gestion, d’organisation et les relations de travail au sein des entreprises récupérées ;les trajectoires de lutte et les diverses organisations qui en résultent, en relation permanente avec l’évolution des réalités économiques, politiques et sociales spécifiques à chaque période envisagée. À cette fin, nous avons procédé à une étude extensive et intensive. L’intérêt de combiner ces approches répond à l’objectif général de cerner les rapports complexes et dynamiques qui lient ces deux niveaux d’analyse dans le processus de construction d’un acteur social. Étant donné que les analyses extensives existant avant 2010, étaient insuffisantes pour répondre à bon nombre des questions posées par cette thèse, nous avons élaboré notre propre analyse statistique. Cette démarche nous permet d’appréhender le phénomène dans son ampleur, mais elle n’est pas pertinente pour comprendre en profondeur les pratiques concrètes des travailleurs et de leurs organisations. En revanche, l’analyse qualitative, dépourvue d’une approche extensive, risque de nous enfermer sur l’étude des situations particulières sans comprendre le processus global. Ces deux démarches sont donc complémentaires. Dans ce sens, nous avons interviewé des dirigeants des diverses organisations des entreprises récupérées, des avocats et enfin des travailleurs de six entreprises récupérées. Dans trois d’entre elles, nous avons réalisé une enquête de terrain. Ces entreprises récupérées sont Brukman, Zanón et la Clinique Junín. <p> / Doctorat en sciences sociales, Orientation sociologie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

In light of the increase of Hispanic Immigrants (i.e 1st, 2nd, 3rd generation) in the U.S. workforce and the impact that the quality of the leader-member exchange has on the organization's success, this study investigated the quality of the relationship that emerges between hispanic subordinates and Anglo-American leaders (i.e who are most representative of the U.S. dominant culture).

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / In order to help individuals feel more engaged within work organizations and more satisfied with their jobs, employers have started to administer stay interviews within organizations, with the end goal being to retain organizational members. Stay interviews have become a proactive solution to the retention problem and have been seen as an alternative to the exit interview. This study proposes that through the use of stay interviews, organizational members will feel more engaged, satisfied, and committed to an organization, which will ultimately result in the retention of organizational members.

The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between the perceived leadership style, employee participation, and positive psychology functioning. Such functioning includes a sense of coherence, engagement in work and avoiding burnout. The Leader Behavior Descriptive Questionnaire, the Employee Participation Survey, the Orientation to Life Questionnaire the Utrecht Work Engagement Survey and Maslash Burnout Inventory General Survey were applied to a sample of 200 permanent employees of the manufacturing. The results indicate significant relationships between all the variables and the way in which employee participation is predicted by perceived leadership style, sense of coherence, and work engagement. Significant differences were found between perceived leadership style and educational levels, and functional department; employee participation and educational level, and functional department; sense of coherence and educational level; work engagement and age, and educational level; burnout and age, and educational level.The study has contributed valuable new knowledge that may be used to inform human resources practitioners and psychologist in the development and coaching of leaders and employees in manufacturing companies. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M. Admin (Industrial & Organisational Psychology)

Summaries in Afrikaans and English / Die tradisionele benadering tot bestuur het die Suid-Afrikaanse korrektiewe sisteem sedert sy ontstaan gedomineer. Die vraag wat ontstaan, is of daar enige praktiese, werkbare altematiewe is, veral omdat die huidige strategiese ingesteldheid, argitektuur en menslike hulpbronne onder verdenking is. Hierdie navorsing bevestig die vermoede dat 'n nuwe benadering tot strategie, struktuur, kultuur, bestuursfilosofie, werkspraktyke en mense te voorskyn kom en dat dit alleenlik gemobiliseer kan word deur organisasievernuwing. 'n Penologiese sisteem wat 'n deelnemende bestuursbenadering aanvaar, sal as 'n wereldleier geklassifiseer word. / The traditional approach to management has dominated the South African correctional system since its conception. The question arises whether there are any practical workable alternatives, especially as the present strategic intent, architecture and human resources are under suspicion. This research confirms the supposition that a new approach to strategy, structure, culture, management philosophy, work methods and people is emerging and that this approach can be enabled only by organisational renewal. A penological system that adopts a participative management approach would be classified as a world leader. / Penology / M.A. (Penology)

The primary purpose of this research was to investigate the extent to which rural schools understand and perceive the concept of participative management. The concept of participative management has been viewed as an ideal style of leadership and management for school development purposes. In South Africa’s case, it is an educational policy which is expected to reign in all school management bodies. Many theorists envisaged participative management as enhancing active involvement of relevant stakeholders and it has been advocated by many scholars who believe it is the best leadership style in implementing democratic values to education, particularly South African rural education, which is still in a transitional stage. As an interpretive orientated study, this research had an interest in understanding the research participants’ subjective experiences as well as their general perception of participative management. As case-study-driven research, it sought to investigate their understanding of the concept in their natural setting. This included various meanings they aligned with and attached to participative management, their attitudes, their interpretations and feelings towards it. The study employed a focus group data gathering technique in collecting data. The findings of this study suggest that participative management has been embraced by rural school management to a certain extent. There are potentially positive aspects that have been brought by participative management to the school, namely, shared vision, common goals, shared decision-making and general involvement of relevant stakeholders. However, the study has depicted a lack of ethical values on the side of some stakeholders and this hinders the smooth implementation of participative management. The study has also revealed that there are challenges facing rural schools in terms of parental involvement in school governance. Challenges such as lack of commitment to the school, illiteracy among adults and communication breakdown between the school and its parents are still rife in rural schools. Besides these challenges, the blood of participative management is flowing steadily in the veins of the rural school communities.