Dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology: Quality in the Faculty of Engineering at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology / The clothing industry in South Africa is historically well established and caters from basic and low cost products to high-fashion tailormade garments. In 1995, the top five retail chains (Edgars, Wooltru, Pepkor, Foschini and OK) accounted for 58 percent of clothing retail sales. Research on quality management has shown that quality management programmes are not effectively utilised within small clothing manufacturing firms in the Western Cape, The result of this - poor goods and services - has been highlighted. This leads to useful insight into critical aspects pertaining to customer satisfaction and quality service delivery.The research problem researched within the ambit of this dissertation reads as follows: “Quality management programmes are not effectively utilised within small clothing manufacturing firms in the Western Cape, resulting in poor goods and services being produced”. The primary research objectives of this study are the following:  To identify key drivers underpinning complaints in small clothing manufacturing firms in the Western Cape, in terms of service delivery.  To identify the benefits of using quality management tools and techniques, used currently by small clothing manufacturing firms.  To determine if small clothing manufacturing firms have a strategic focus on the quality of a product that they produce.  To identify a mechanism that can be deployed to promote the application of a quality management system.  To identify the benefits of implementing quality management systems within a small clothing manufacturing firm.Reciprocally, the research question, which forms the crux of the research, reads as follows: “What mechanisms can be deployed to promote the application of quality management systems in the Western Cape, thus leading to an improvement of goods and services?”The application of quality management tools and techniques, such as statistical quality control and quality function deployment, has been researched in the small clothing manufacturing sector. The research leads to an improvement in the current state pertaining to quality management programmes not being effectively utilised within small clothing manufacturing firms. Mechanisms to be deployed to promote the application of quality management systems will also be identified, possible solutions found to customer complaints and problem areas addressed. In addition, the research leads to improved quality of goods and services being produced resulting in satisfied customers.

No / Organisational learning is often presented as one way in which firms may respond to increasingly competitive market conditions by managing their knowledge assets in more effective ways. Although theoretically and conceptually plausible, there is limited empirical evidence, particularly from smaller firms, in support of this view. This study aims to provide some evidence that links organisational learning and performance. Extant theory suggests that organisational learning may range from a passive orientation (working within a current paradigm) to an active orientation (questioning a current paradigm) at both the individual and the collective levels. This study examines the learning orientations of 300 smaller manufacturing and service firms in terms of an active¿passive learning construct. The results suggest that higher-growth manufacturing firms have a more active learning orientation. These firms make greater use of knowledge assets than do their lower growth counterparts, and this may have important implications for the management of learning in smaller manufacturing firms.

Working capital optimization, as an act of balancing liquidity and profitability, presents significant challenges when small businesses lack managerial expertise and access to affordable capital and credit facilities. To remain successful through efficient utilization of working capital, small business leaders need to understand the association between working capital management (WCM), working capital policy (WCP), and business profitability (PFT). Anchored in the cash conversion cycle theory, the purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship between WCM, WCP, and PFT. The study employed a retrospective secondary analysis of financial data from 2004 to 2013 from a random sample of 176 publicly traded small U.S. manufacturing companies. The regression results incorporating 3 models were significant in predicting profitability in terms of gross operating profit (GOP), return on asset (ROA), and Tobin's q (TBQ). The regression results showed that WCM and WCP were significant predictors of GOP, F (5, 170) = 8.580, p < .000, R2 = .201; ROA, F (5, 170) = 4.079, p < .002, R2 = .107; and TBQ, F (5, 170) = 6.231, p < .000, R2 = .155. The overall result confirmed that WCM and WCP predicted PFT significantly (p < .05). Small business leaders may incorporate working capital optimization practices into overall corporate strategy, thereby aligning working capital needs with the changing business requirements. The implications for positive social change included the potential to provide small business leaders with knowledge of WCM and WCP as drivers of PFT. Profitable businesses may provide employees and communities with better jobs; stock ownership; and development infrastructures such as road, healthcare, and educational facilities.