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The ability to create and implement sustainable business operations has become increasingly important for chemical firms to keep up with ever-growing consumer demands for sustainability. This thesis is an exploratory investigation designed to examine the strategies and decisions made by top management of select chemical firms while dealing with consumer pressures for sustainable products and processes. The implementation of specific structures and processes were studied to measure the extent chemical firms have taken for sustainable operations. These measures of the strategic processes of the firms studies include corporate vision, mission, and goals, sustainability structure, product offerings, supply chain management, reporting, and external recognition. The literature is in agreement that chemical firms and consumer preferences have each significantly shifted towards sustainability in the past two decades. This study seeks to look at the development of key sustainability indicators and the role consumer pressures had in development of more sustainable operations. The indicators were analyzed through qualitative case studies of three chemical firms, each representing a different sector of the chemical industry’s value chain, DowDuPont, Eastman Chemical Company, and Procter & Gamble. The results of the case studies are expected to indicate that consumer preferences have pressured chemical firms to implement sustainable processes into their strategic management operations. The results could be used for further research and quantitative analysis.

The focus of this research is on New Public Management and the implementation of public policy with specific reference to the policy on performance indicators and the management of further education in Scotland. The thesis considers the body of literature on public policy implementation and the current state of knowledge of performance indicators and their use in public management in general and in further education in Scotland in particular. Scottish further education faced radical change in the period from 1990 and part of the change was the introduction by Government of prescribed performance indicators. This research examines the public policy-action relationship by considering the implementation of this policy with particular reference to the differences associated with the relationships between performance governance, performance management and consumerism. The empirical elements of this thesis comprise a study of stakeholder perception of the purpose and utility of performance indicators. From this empirical work conclusions are derived which relate to the main beneficiaries of performance indicators and the extent to which public policy is best understood from a `top-down' or a 'bottom-up' perspective. The thesis concludes that neither of these perspectives is sufficient but both are necessary. The recognition of multiple stakeholder interest leads to a conclusion that implementation can only be examined by considering all stakeholder perceptions of the outputs and outcomes of the public policy on performance indicators in Scottish further education. Performance indicators are themselves a good reflection of the way in which NPM is evolving within public services.

In the water utility sector, traditional asset management focusses on the maintenance and provision of physical assets (infrastructure) that allow water companies to deliver their services, meet their customers’ expectations and achieve their economic objectives. Nevertheless, the serviceability of the sector heavily depends on natural elements (e.g. rain, land). The importance of Natural Capital (i.e. the natural systems and their deriving ecosystem services) has been at the core of policy recommendations which have shaped regulatory changes in the water sector of England and Wales. Water companies are now required to explicitly account for and report their inter-dependencies on the natural environment and adopt systems-oriented approaches in their Asset Management Programmes (AMPs). These reforms will enable the sector to become resilient to the environmental and societal challenges faced at urban and rural contexts. Responding to the regulatory demands, the research introduces a novel and structured approach for integrating natural capital in the asset management portfolio of the water industry. The work is built on a transdisciplinary research framework and demonstrates that a new scale needs to be considered for the implementation of Holistic Asset Management: the water basin or catchment. A Catchment Metabolism modelling schema was created, grounded on the principles of Integrated Catchment Management and ecosystems services. The schema is based on the robust synthesis of concepts, tools and methods from a spectrum of disciplines. These include Industrial Ecology, Water Accounting, Environmental Regional Input-Output Analysis, hydrology, software engineering and functional modelling. Catchment Metabolism introduces a holistic perspective in asset management and expands its scope. The schema enables the conceptualisation, modelling and management of catchments as complex asset systems. It, thus, forms the ground for structured collaboration among experts for integrated water resources planning and decision-making. The schema allows for the design and implementation of catchment-based strategies and the assessment of their environmental performance. An industrial case study for a pilot catchment system (Poole Harbour Catchment) is used to demonstrate the application of the Catchment Metabolism. Alternative strategies for nitrogen pollution mitigation are assessed. The application of winter cover crops across the catchment appears to be the optimum strategy. The case study demonstrates the practical and modular implementation of the schema, reveals its methodological strengths and limitations and evaluates its applicability in the asset management planning and decision-making of the water sector.

Organisational commitment has been suggested as a function of the degree of integration and congruence of individual and organisational goals and values. The more employees can satisfy their needs through work, the more they will be committed to an organisation. The organisational conditions that influence such need satisfaction are generally known as quality of worklife (QWL). The purpose of the study was to examine the relative importance and perceived presence of factors associated with QWL, their relationships with organisational commitment (OC), and demographic patterns of their relationships for nonsupervisory employees in Malaysia. Underlying questions explored were the crosscultural universality of theories of QWL and OC and their utility for management policy and action. The research instrument employed was a survey questionnaire in the Malaysian language based on Western models of QWL and OC and using Likert scaling. Usable responses were obtained from 672 employees in 671 organisations. Statistical analysis was carried out using factor analysis, t-test, analysis of variance and multiple regressions. The Western model and measures of affective, normative and continuance commitment were generally supported, but two sub-factors emerged for continuance commitment relating to cost of leaving and lack of alternatives. The collectivist nature of Malaysian culture emerged as an important determinant of QWL and, in turn, OC. The most important QWL factors were workplace integration, work environmenta nd supervision. The first two of these were perceived as those most present. Different demographic relationships emerged between affective, normative and continuance commitment and QWL. Indicators for changing management policies and action to improve QWL and hence OC among non-supervisory employees in Malaysia concern work environment, workplace integration and the social relevance of work. The equity of pay and benefits, though itself an unimportant QWL factor, was also related to affective commitment.

This study was undertaken to find out what problems the Administrative Operations Division was encountering in the absence of a job description plan. Many employees in the division were not aware of their actual job functions. They have only been giver a class description of their jobs by the Bureau of Personnel, which is not the actual job functions. They have only been given a class description of their jobs by the Bureau of Personnel, which is not the actual description that they are entitled to from the division in which they are employed. A class description is a stigmatization of general duties performed by employees assigned to that class. A detailed job description is a listing of the specific and everyday duties of an employee assigned to that poison The study found that this is indeed a problem in the Administrative Operations Division. This paper recommends that the problem be corrected by developing detailed job descriptions for each employee in the division, and specific recommendations are made toward that end.

Blockbuster and Netflix are two firms in the home video rental market that experienced vastly different outcomes. Netflix vastly increased its firm value while Blockbuster lost its dominant market position and slid into bankruptcy. This paper examines the strategies pursued by Blockbuster and Netflix and the impact these strategies had on firm value. This paper finds that on average Blockbuster’s strategies did not have a significant impact on its firm value while Netflix’s strategies increased its firm value. Specifically, Netflix’s strategies in the areas of service improvement and promotional activity created the most value. The strategies each firm pursued in product line expansion provided value for Blockbuster but reduced value for Netflix.

Ever since the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, the quest for 'sustainability' has gained increased prominence on the business landscape. The King Report on Corporate Governance has further heightened awareness of social and environmental considerations which had previously been overlooked, thus broadening the business agenda beyond meeting the needs of owners and shareholders. Within the South African context, transformation imperatives have placed additional obligations on our businesses, requiring a change in corporate attitudes and business practices. Thus, in today's business climate, where companies compete globally for customers as well as talent, where reputation is as important as financial outcome, and where social and environmental risks have become key business dynamics, companies are increasingly being called to account, by a broader range of stakeholders, across a far wider spectrum of activities and operations. The dissertation reflects on the complexity of developing an inclusive and participatory approach to understanding the dimensions of sustainability and developing a sustainable development agenda for IlIovo Sugar Sezela business. The study presents an opportunity to apply systems thinking to consider the various perspectives and worldviews of the participating stakeholders, and to promote democratic decision-making in formulating possibilities. In this regard, it is imperative that the inquiry involves the use of methodologies appropriate to the structure and nature of the organisation, and that the outcome of the inquiry involves a 'product' that is owned by the organisation. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.

This thesis is concerned with analytical and technical capability in using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and spatial analysis as relevant to the policy challenge of urban fringe management, taking as a case study the Seoul Metropolitan Region Perimeter. The primary purpose of this study is to analyse land use change using the tools of GIS and Spatial Analysis as a spatial decision support system for the task of managing the fragmented development of the urban fringe caused by the policy changes introduced by the Korean government in 1994. The case study analysed in this research shows whether GIS and spatial analysis can be applied to manage and monitor land use change in the urban fringe area at a very detailed level using municipal parcel data which occupies about 80% of administrative affairs, especially at the local government level in Korea. The major determinants of land use change in the study area have been investigated in an attempt to enhance the knowledge of how to provide decision support information for local government in Korea using GIS and spatial analysis. The results of the analysis represent the distribution of land use change from 1994 to 1998, the distribution of parcels with more than 50% of their neighbours in urban use and the transition probability of land use within a GIS, etc. The analysis using GIS and spatial analysis proved to be effective ones when providing the information base for modelling land use change in the urban fringe of the Seoul Metropolitan Region in Korea, to enable informed decisions to be made about land management policies in such areas. The lesson which could be drawn from this study is that a GIS and spatial analysis capacity is quite useful for local government to understand where and why land use change is concentrated, how the pattern of land use has changed, and which areas are susceptible to land use change. This study represented the results of analysis as a map, showed the significant patterns of land use change in the study area, displayed the relationship between neighbouring land use and the pattern of land use change, and suggested the transition probability of land use in the urban fringe in the future. Better understanding of the results may enhance the capability of local government to predict future land use change dynamics and devise more effective land use management strategies. This study brings a new approach to understanding the evolution of development patterns using the methods of combining spatial statistical analysis techniques with GIS application at site level.

The concept of resilience is increasingly applied to policy-making. However, despite its widespread use, resilience remains poorly defined, open to multiple interpretations, and challenging to translate into practical policy instruments. Three particularly problematic aspects of resilience concern its rigid conceptualisation of adaptation and learning, its de-politicised interpretation of participatory decision-making, and the ill-defined role and relevance of social vulnerability indicators. My research analyses these three aspects within the context of flood risk management in the UK, which is uniquely suited to studying the practicability of a cross-disciplinary concept like resilience, because it connects issues of natural resource management, social planning, and disaster management. First, I analyse two case studies of experimental pilot projects in natural flood management. Through studying project reports, and interviewing stakeholders involved in project implementation, I determine whether the theorised learning-by-doing method in resilience is reflected in experiences from real experimental projects. Secondly, I use one of these case studies to map out the political structure of local participatory bodies in flood management, and also conduct a small survey of local community groups. The purpose of this second study is to determine if collaborative methods can indeed lead to a knowledge-driven policy process as envisioned in resilience literature. Lastly, I use statistical analysis to compare a traditional flood management model and a socio-economic model. The aim of the statistical modelling is to determine whether socio-economic factors are indeed useful for informing flooding policy, and whether they offer new insights not already being used in modern flood management. I find that resilience gives insufficient consideration to the importance of political constraints and economic trade-offs in policy-making, and that evidence for the usefulness of socio-economic factors is inconclusive. Future work could focus on further refining the statistical modelling to pinpoint empirically verifiable indicators of resilience.