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A case study examined contractor demographics, business characteristics, costs and production information from twenty-three tree-length logging firms in six southern states from 1988 to 1994. Firms were evaluated in regard to the economic efficiency with which they converted inputs - dollars of capital, consumables, labor, overhead and insurance and contract hauling - into outputs - tons of wood delivered to the mill. While the firms exhibited a wide range of efficiency, average annual efficiency of all firms combined seemed to be relatively stable for the time period. Firms delivered between 20,000 and 250,000 tons of wood annually with a median of 61,000 tons. Coastal plain operations tended to be the largest, followed by piedmont, then Appalachian mountain operations. Annual production as a function of annual expenditures showed no obvious economies of scale in operation size. Most contractors increased annual production during the study, five contractors had production levels in the final year of the study that were less than their first year. Efficiency generally improved in firms that increased production gradually through better utilization of existing capacity. Contractors expanding their operations to increase productivity seemed to suffer efficiency losses more often than gains. Those firms that hauled their own wood had higher efficiencies than firms that contracted out trucking. There were no significant efficiency differences between loggers in the three physiographic regions within their respective trucking strategies. Efficiency generally declined as average annual hauling distance increased, however a regression equation explained only 18% of the variation in total economic efficiency. / Master of Science

Submitted in compliance with the requirements for the Masters Degree in Technology: Business Administration, Department of Entrepreneurial Studies and Management, Durban University of Technology, 2009. / The purpose of this study is to identify the influence of customer-supplier relationships through facilitation of credit on the development of Micro enterprises in the Sobonakhona Makhanya Tribal Area of KZN. This study originates from the fact that there are many SMME‟s in South Africa, absorbing about 15 million people (DTI, 1995:7). Even though this sector is providing most of the employment in the country, they still find it difficult to arrange funds to start or expand their businesses. Lending institutions do not want to provide finance for them, and if they do, they do it with reluctance and reservations. As a result, SMME‟s are not able to grow and develop into big businesses. This is a quantitative and exploratory research study which was used to explore, for the first time in Sobonakhona Makhanya Tribal area, the relationship between customer-supplier relationships and accessibility of credit facilities. The study made use of questionnaires to obtain the respondents‟ perceptions on the research questions developed. A questionnaire that consisted of 35 questions was distributed to 50 SMME owners in Adams Mission, Madundube and Umbumbulu (AMU) villages. Cronbach‟s reliability analysis was not applied as it was not appropriate for use with this questionnaire. The research showed that a relationship between customers and suppliers assists SMME‟s to obtain access to credit facilities. Added to this, SMME owners, who had access to credit facilities, experienced positive changes in their businesses. This serves to prove that access to credit is essential for the development of SMME‟s. As a result, recommendations to train and educate SMME owners on how to manage their businesses, how to apply for credit and the requirements needed for applications have been set out.

D.Comm. / The small-business enterprise is becoming evermore important to economies worldwide, even to those of first-world countries. In South Africa, the small-business sector plays an even greater part. Research has shown that computer technology can be implemented in the small-business environment to increase productivity and even to gain a competitive edge over one's competitors. Despite the fact that small-business enterprises stand to derive great benefits from computerisation, many managers lack the necessary expertise to computerise their businesses. Although the necessary expertise may be acquired by engaging consultants, the associated cost often is beyond the financial means of the smallbusiness enterprise. The principal aim of this study, therefore, is to identify mechanisms in terms of which the necessary expertise could be made available to the small-business enterprise at a fair price. The study furthermore proposes a consultation model in terms of which the costs can be shared by enough small-business enterprises so that it would still be affordable to small-business enterprises and financially viable for consultants.

Small businesses represent over 99% of all United States businesses and are engines of economic growth and job creation. In 2018, the Small Business Administration estimated that a total of 30.2 million small businesses employed over 58.9 million workers. Small businesses are known to face significant challenges, and most fail within 5 years of startup. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies that owners of small accounting businesses used to sustain their organizations for longer than 5 years. The population in this study consisted of 5 owners of small accounting businesses in Michigan. The conceptual framework for the study was human capital theory. Data were collected through face-to-face, semistructured interviews and review of documents. The analysis of collected data yielded themes that included market research and competitive analysis, excellent customer service, passion for accounting and arduous work, and retention of skilled and competent employees. The findings of this study may be applied to bringing about positive social change by enhancing small business owners' competence and promoting business growth. Additionally, the use of the results of this study may promote economic activities and sustainability by stimulating job creation and reducing unemployment.

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2018. / Micro-enterprises play a vital role towards the South Africa’s economic growth by contributing towards job creation. Despite the importance of the role of micro-enterprises, micro-enterprises face several challenges such as lack of finance, lack of skilled workers and lack of technological resources. Previous studies indicate that Information Technology has a distinct role in assisting micro-enterprises overcome several challenges. It is further evidenced in the extant literature that cloud computing, provides a low cost entry for enterprises to support several facets of their business operations. In the current era cloud computing requires a constant as well as fast internet connection and the South African government has various interventions to address the infrastructure divide. However, we have a scant understanding of the adoption challenges amongst micro-enterprises to adopt cloud solutions, which to date feature more prominently amongst larger organisations. This research investigated the factors that influence cloud computing adoption in the micro-enterprise sector in Cape Town. This is a city that promotes the contribution of micro-enterprises to their economic activity, and was such an ideal location to investigate cloud computing adoption amongst the micro-enterprise sector. This research provides a rich understanding of the factors that influence micro-enterprises in Cape Town to adopt cloud computing services and proposes guidelines to encourage micro-enterprises in Cape Town to use cloud services to improve their productivity. The researcher uses the UTAUT model as a framework and a qualitative research methodology to investigate the research question. Data for this research study was collected via face to face interviews with semi-structured questions of ten micro-enterprises and an IT expert. The findings showed that the factors influencing the adoption of cloud computing services are performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, lack of training, cost efficiency and reduction of working hours.

Submitted in compliance with the requirements for the Masters Degree in Technology: Business Administration, Department of Entrepreneurial Studies and Management, Durban University of Technology, 2009. / The purpose of this study is to identify the influence of customer-supplier relationships through facilitation of credit on the development of Micro enterprises in the Sobonakhona Makhanya Tribal Area of KZN. This study originates from the fact that there are many SMME‟s in South Africa, absorbing about 15 million people (DTI, 1995:7). Even though this sector is providing most of the employment in the country, they still find it difficult to arrange funds to start or expand their businesses. Lending institutions do not want to provide finance for them, and if they do, they do it with reluctance and reservations. As a result, SMME‟s are not able to grow and develop into big businesses. This is a quantitative and exploratory research study which was used to explore, for the first time in Sobonakhona Makhanya Tribal area, the relationship between customer-supplier relationships and accessibility of credit facilities. The study made use of questionnaires to obtain the respondents‟ perceptions on the research questions developed. A questionnaire that consisted of 35 questions was distributed to 50 SMME owners in Adams Mission, Madundube and Umbumbulu (AMU) villages. Cronbach‟s reliability analysis was not applied as it was not appropriate for use with this questionnaire. The research showed that a relationship between customers and suppliers assists SMME‟s to obtain access to credit facilities. Added to this, SMME owners, who had access to credit facilities, experienced positive changes in their businesses. This serves to prove that access to credit is essential for the development of SMME‟s. As a result, recommendations to train and educate SMME owners on how to manage their businesses, how to apply for credit and the requirements needed for applications have been set out.

The research study investigates some of the problems or challenges faced by SMMEs in the Mafikeng and Mmabatho area of the North West province. It strives to find out the extent to which these problems occur and the impact they have on these businesses. The research focuses on a number of major problems considered to be hindering the growth of SMMEs in this area, namely the lack of entrepreneurial management, financial skills, accessing finance and the role played by lack of financial and mentoring support on the success or failure of SMMEs. Some of the significant findings of this study are that the majority of the businesses fail because of lack of access to finance, lack of entrepreneurial skills and lack of mentoring support from the government. The government and banks should make it easier for SMMEs to access finance. The government should act as collateral for SMMEs to secure finance from commercial institutions. The government should involve the private sector in training SMMEs to acquire entrepreneurial skills. This will help SMMEs to run their businesses professionally and therefore become sustainable. This will impact positively to the economic growth, in terms of job creation to the entire province

The research study investigates some of the problems or challenges faced by SMMEs in the Mafikeng and Mmabatho area of the North West province. It strives to find out the extent to which these problems occur and the impact they have on these businesses. The research focuses on a number of major problems considered to be hindering the growth of SMMEs in this area, namely the lack of entrepreneurial management, financial skills, accessing finance and the role played by lack of financial and mentoring support on the success or failure of SMMEs. Some of the significant findings of this study are that the majority of the businesses fail because of lack of access to finance, lack of entrepreneurial skills and lack of mentoring support from the government. The government and banks should make it easer for SMMEs to access finance. The government should act as collateral for SMMEs to secure finance from commercial institutions. The government should involve the private sector in training SMMEs to acquire entrepreneurial skills. This will help SMMEs to run their businesses professionally and therefore become sustainable. This will impact positively to the economic growth, in terms of job creation to the entire province. / (MBA) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2006

Leaders within South African organisations and corporations are faced with challenges such as over-management and under-leadership. While management is about coping with complexity, leadership is about coping with change. In the actual business environment, foremost changes are progressively necessary for business survival and effective competition. In fact, the effective leadership is measured by organisational effectiveness. However, by displaying an effective leadership, leaders are called not only to influence subordinates but also enable them to achieve the organisational goals. Therefore, the effective leadership will not be focused on supremacy but on the organisational achievement. This requires an important and permanent participation and consultation of all team members. The present research study is focused on the analysis of the role of situational leadership in the context of small business management. The main purpose of this research is to examine and to critically evaluate the use of different situational leadership styles in the management of small businesses. This study has sought to review leader obligations and the evolution of these leadership styles in small business management. The study has intended to provide the fundamental empirical evaluation of the role played by situational leadership in small business management. The sample for the present research has been identified from within the Pietermaritzburg Chamber of Business (PCB). A random sample has been drawn from the SMEs within the membership, using standard sampling techniques and methodologies. The population was consisting of small businesses that are members of the PCB. The findings of this research have shown the positive impact that a situational leadership model has in small business management. In fact, small business owners and leaders will be inspired to understand the managerial role of the appropriateness behavioural style in the contextual business situations. Also, the study recommended that owners and leaders of small business should ameliorate leader sovereignty and follower skills, as these often interact in predicting poor follower performance and attitudinal responses. In addition, the present study has provided the tools necessary for small business owners, to guide the improvement and effectiveness of personal leadership. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.