Measures by the South African integrated marketing communications and design industry (IMCD) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree Master of Art and Design (Communication Design) In the Department of Visual Communication Faculty of Arts and Design, Tshwane University of Technology.The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a dramatic shift in how consumers spent their time and money, impacting where, when, and how goods and services would be provided in the future. This dramatic shift would affect how the Integrated Marketing Communications and Design (IMCD) industry would respond, considering its role in promoting economic recovery and growth after the pandemic. The study focused on the South African IMCD industry and investigated areas affected by the pandemic and the industry's response to the pandemic. A qualitative, case-based approach, using semi-structured questions, identified and analysed the IMCDs' response and enabled inferred perspectives and recommendations. A thematic framework and interpretive approach guided the methodology. The population comprised 45 organisations from the Association for Communication and Advertising in South Africa (ACA), with head offices in Johannesburg or Pretoria. Of the 45 organisations approached, 15 companies participated. Assistants contacted each member and conducted and recorded the interviews. A transcription was made of the recordings. Participants received copies of the transcriptions for validation. A manual analysis of the transcripts, assisted by ATLAS.ti, allowed for the collation and theming of the data. The study identified five areas impacted by the lockdown and five measures that members took in response to these impacts. The IMCD industry was inadequately prepared for the pandemic, and management styles had to be re-evaluated by being more altruistic and acknowledging human capital's vital role in business sustainability. The IMCD also recognised the need for flexible, innovative, and honest leadership in its approach to clients, staff, and suppliers, as well as reevaluating business offerings and employee skill sets. Organisations in the IMCD industry with global networks benefitted through more collaboration and resource sharing across their international offices. Online and digitally orientated organisations before and during the pandemic performed better than IMCD organisations that relied on human contact with target markets such as eventing, hospitality, tourism, and beverages. The IMCD industry’s response was to become hybrid in their engagements with employees and externally with their clients, acknowledging the need to maintain agency culture by expecting staff to come into the office a few days a week whilst using the balance of the time to work from home. Accelerating to a deeper tech-integrated operational environment meant exploring existing software and using new digital tools to improve productivity and employee accountability. The COVID-19 pandemic provided an opportunity for industry growth and the repositioning and retooling of methods, processes, and service offerings. Furthermore, the pandemic could be viewed as a litmus test for organisational sustainability, forcing organisations to close or adapt

A critical examination of the socio-onomastic controversy of Sepedi and Sesotho sa Leboa/ Northern Sotho language names and the role and effectiveness of the Commission for Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities.

The article examines the failure to take action and implement effective measures in resolving the socio-onomastic controversy surrounding the Sepedi and Northern Sotho/Sesotho sa Leboa language names, while evaluating the effectiveness of the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL Commission) as a Chapter 9 institution in the matter. The research was conducted at five South African universities where the language is offered as a module. Employing a qualitative approach, the study primarily uses content analysis of data from constitutional documents and minutes from the Parliamentary Joint Constitution Review Committee. In addition, self-administered questionnaires and face-to-face interviews were employed to supplement the content analysis as qualitative. A purposeful sampling technique was used to select 267 participants, including students, lecturers, language authorities and experts from the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, as well as its provincial departments in Limpopo and Gauteng provinces. The article establishes that the lack of intervention by the CRL Commission exacerbates non-compliance issues as far as dual use of these names is concerned. It further argues that the lack of compliance not only undermines linguistic rights, but also disregards South Africa’s constitutional democracy, which should be safeguarded. Practical and decisive measures, rooted in constitutional principles, are recommended to resolve the matter effectively

Embodied frictional artistic encounters: The use of creativity and embodied learning as transformative and healing space/s.

Offered as conversations with elmarie costandius as reflection on practice, this article discusses the use of creative learning processes as transformative and healing space/s, and further proposes that these activation spaces be named embodied frictional artistic encounters. the construct of embodied frictional artistic encounters includes three vital participants, the artist (as creative act) as the facilitator of the immersive experience together with the spect-actor, within a designated intra-active environment. Collectively these participants collaborate to activate the artistic encounters towards a transformative and healing outcome. These communal shared intra-active space/s are heightened through affect, resonance, and wit(h)nessing, where the frictional element pertains to awakening states of doubt to alter perspective forming towards empathy. This article intends to encapsulate creative embodied learning within embodied frictional artistic encounters (celFAE/CELfae) and offer this as a dynamic means to classify such activations that serve to foster change and healing

Perceptions of the stereotypical Clicks online advertisement among female consumers.

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree, Master of Management Strategic Communication in the Department of Integrated Communication, Faculty of Humanities, at the Tshwane University of Technology.Background: The psychological impact of advertising on women's self-perceptions has been a topic of discussion and investigation for a long time. Femvertising campaigns that aim to promote body positivity have drawn a lot of notice and praise. Despite the promising potential of femvertising, some traditional advertising, which often portrays femininity in idealized and stereotypical ways, is still associated with negative psychological effects like increased body dissatisfaction and self-objectification. Objectives: Therefore, the search aimed to investigate the perceptions of female consumers on the 2020 stereotypical TRESemmé Shampoo advertisement message on the CLICKS online advertisement. Method: The study was qualitative in nature and a case study design was followed. Focus group interviews were used to collect data from 36 purposively selected female consumers. Thematic analysis was used to analyse data. Results: The findings of the study demonstrated that the CLICKS stereotypical online advertisement's context did not satisfy the Black female consumers. Additionally, the results showed that the advertisement was linked to racism by the female consumers. Because Black women's hair was perceived as unmanageable because of its natural appearance, the female consumers further connected the advertisement to stereotyping

Effect of corporate diversity and corporate size on equity value during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The effect of firm size and diversity strategy on equity value during COVID-19 is examined in this study. This objective was pursued following the quantitative approach and controlling for corporate entities’ marketing expenses, age, and leverage. Data from the top 100 companies prospering in the pandemic, listed by the Financial Times, was quantified. Using a purposive sampling technique, we drew a sample of 74 global companies and collected secondary data from the financial years 2019 to 2021. Diversity did not significantly impact equity value, but firm size did (p < 0.05). The research contributes new insights to business resources management and corporate diversity literature and provides recommendations for lawmakers regarding diversity and inclusion policies in the workplace. Moreover, this study is an eye-opener to those involved in planning for equity value generations to consider business environments seriously. To improve the flexibility of individual firms in times of crisis, tailored solutions are required (Dejardin et al., 2023). Practical results from the research emphasise the necessity of size-specific policies and diversity alignment to increase firm resilience

Assessment of workplace violence and its effects on employee performance in the Department of Military veterans.

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree, Master of Management Sciences in Human Resources Management in the Department of People Management and Development, Faculty of Management Sciences at the Tshwane University of Technology.Violence against Department of Military Veterans’ employees has become a widespread phenomenon that significantly impacts the employees’ performance. Workplace violence has garnered significant interest from South African researchers, sociologists, and human resource professionals. Thus, it is imperative that government departments acknowledge this violent epidemic and work to end such actions. As a result, the research investigates the types of workplace violence at the DMV. As most of the research to date has been qualitative, this study aimed to investigate participant experiences using a quantitative, descriptive research design and approach. Also, as part of the study, a convenience sample was employed to gather information via self-report questionnaires. The literature review was conducted better to define workplace violence and employee performance and its dimensions. This empirical study, therefore, explored the relationship between workplace violence and employee performance. A further intention of the study was to determine the significant differences in demographic groups between workplace violence and employee performance. Additionally, the study aimed to offer recommendations for improvement to ensure a favourable workplace setting that improves employee well-being and performance to abate workplace violence. The research findings found that employees encounter a variety of forms or types of violence. The impact of workplace violence within the department was attested to by the employees who had either witnessed or experienced it in the previous 12 months. The results show that 73.60% of the participants have either been intimidated or seen intimidation occur. Specifically, 73.08% of respondents experienced bullying and victimisation 63.16% of the time, and 58.27% of the participants reported having encountered verbal abuse at work. The best interventions to eradicate workplace violence for all department employees were identified. These interventions will hopefully decrease the tolerance for such inappropriate behaviour. By providing staff training, employees will be safer and happier in their work, providing better service to the public and, thus, increasing performance

Optimization of topological reconfiguration by transmission line switching for damping inter-area oscillations in power systems.

Intentional grid topology change is sometimes used in power system operations to control voltages, improve the net transfer capacities, and even to boost system reliability. As a consequence of topological change by transmission line switching, the power system may be subjected to inter-area oscillations which could impair system integrity in terms of small signal instability. This study has employed quadratic eigenvalue analysis to confirm that topological reconfiguration through transmission line switching can be used to control system voltages especially during high voltage regimes. It has further confirmed that topological reconfiguration when implemented without consideration of system stability, results in inter-area oscillations or in worst cases, in actual instability. This work has therefore proposed a method which uses multi-objective particle swarm optimization algorithm to optimize implementation of topological reconfiguration during voltage control to avoid inter-area oscillatory instability. In this proposed method, the optimization algorithm specifies which lines are to be switched off but at the same time improves small signal stability in the whole network. The proposed method has been tested in the IEEE 30-bus, IEEE 39-bus, and IEEE 68-bus models. The results indicate that when an optimized transmission switching is implemented, small signal stability is improved alongside voltage control and can save power system operators from relying on intuition which is prone to human errors as they make operational decisions

‘Mind the gap’: artificial intelligence and journalism training in Southern African journalism schools.

This article examines journalism schools (J-schools) responses to the Artificial Intelligence (AI) ‘disruption’. It critically provides an exploratory examination of how J-Schools in Southern Africa are responding to the AI wave in their journalism curriculums. We answer the question: How are Southern African J-Schools responding to AI in their curriculums? Using a disruptive innovation theoretical lens and through documentary review of university teaching initiatives and accredited journalism curriculums, augmented by in-depth interviews, we demonstrate that AI has opened up new horizons for journalism training in multidimensional ways. However, this has brought challenges, including covert forms of resistance to AI integration by some Journalism educators. Furthermore, resource constraints and the obduracy of J-schools’ curriculums also contribute to the slow introduction of AI in J-schools. We argue that lack of clarity on what AI is and what can be taught about AI within J-Schools, as well as fear of the unknown has led to a trust deficit among journalism instructors. We further argue that with better training and exposure, journalism educators in Southern Africa can leverage AI technologies to strengthen journalism training

Evaluation of the microstructural, mechanical, cribological, and corrosion properties of zinc‑based composites reinforced silica beach sand particulates.

In this study, the characterization of mechanical, tribological, and corrosion behavior of silica sand-reinforced zinc (Zn) alloy composites was carried out. The zinc alloy matrix composites were developed at 0- and 10-wt% SiO2 sand particulates reinforcement using stir-casting technique. Microstructural examination, mechanical, tribological, and corrosion behavior evaluation of the composites were conducted using scanning electron microscope/optical microscope, nanoindentation test, tribometer device, and potentiodynamic tester, respectively. Results obtained from the microstructural analysis revealed that the SiO2 particulates were well dispersed into the zinc-based alloy matrix. The addition of SiO2 sand particles into the Zn alloy matrix improved its hardness and elastic modulus by approximately 48.4% and 16.2%, respectively. Additionally, the wear test and corrosion test revealed that the wear rate and corrosion rate of the composites decreased with the SiO2 sand particles incorporation, which indicates SiO2 sand reinforcement efficiency on improving the wear resistance and corrosion resistance of the Zn-based alloy materials and a guide for a better control of their wear and corrosion. These findings suggest the potential usability of SiO2 sand particle-reinforced Zn-based alloy composite materials for specific mechanical load-bearing, friction, and corrosion control applications

A four-wing chaotic attractor and its circuit implementation.

The Electro-chemical Society 247th ECS Meeting, Montreal, Canada, May 18-22 ,2025.By introducing a state feedback control to a proposed four-dimensional chaotic system, an extremely complex four-wing chaotic attractor is derived having larger positive Lyapunov Exponent (LE) than other chaotic systems. Spectral analysis shows that the system in the four-wing chaotic mode has very broad frequency bandwidth, verifying its random nature, and indicating the prospect for engineering applications such as secure communications. Finally, an analog circuit, implementing the new four-wing chaotic system, is presented