Value of Time Drives Operational Costs of Road Freight Transport Operators (RFTO): A Case Study in Zimbabwe

From a business viewpoint, freight transportation is a necessity in the globalized world we live in. Companies are becoming more dependent on goods from various different locations worldwide and the demand for coordinated transportation is increasing. The aim of the study was to ascertain if Road Freight Transport Sector in Zimbabwe respected the value of time aspect in their operations. Value of time is a sound principle that strategically propels the business into the future. Literature highly recommends the value of time concept for business success as a key to customer satisfaction and an international best practice. This was a quantitative study of the road freight transport sector across Zimbabwe with a population of 1256 registered companies and a randomly picked sample size of 384. A total of 384 questionnaires were distributed and 291 were retrieved, giving a response rate of 75.6%. The study findings indicate that value positively influence firm competitiveness. This implies that travel time and reliability influences company’s reputation, profitability, customer satisfaction and market share. Several empirical studies have reached similar findings (Chi, King-lok, Steven, 2012; Song et al, Gitae, 2017) that value of time has positive impact on firm competitiveness. Study also found that all the registered companies that took part in the research confirmed that the value of time phenomenon was alien to their business practices as they worked on assumptions. They also indicated a loss of business due to customer complaints. The study recommends policy formulation for companies that emphasizes standard operating procedures and good time management for firms to be competitive. The study results and interpretation show that value of time positively influences firm competitiveness. Results imply that if firms in the road freight sector conduct regulars servicing of their fleet, train their employees, plan routes properly, respond to their customers and manage risks there can remain competitive

Mediation Role of Organizational Culture on Transport Costing

The culture of an organization is influenced as the organization faces and learns how to cope with external and internal encounters. Those principles are maintained as the organization's way of doing business offers an effective adaptation to environmental problems and maintains success. The study sought to ascertain the importance of organizational culture in road freight transport sector in Zimbabwe. The road freight sector has been characterized by unprofessional behaviour and incompetent management. Organizational culture is key to defining the uniqueness of an organization, brand, philosophy, and how it relates to business ethics and all other stakeholders. Globally organizational culture has been given great eminence and priority as strategy followed culture in business performance. This was a quantitative study of road freight transport sector across Zimbabwe with a population of 1256 registered companies and a randomly picked sample size of 384 registered road freight companies out of 1256 companies from which data were collected. A total of 384 questionnaires were distributed and 291 were retrieved giving a response rate of 75.6%. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data. Reliability was checked using Cronbach’s alpha (?). Before conducting structural equation modelling, data were validated using exploratory factor analysis, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. SPSS® version 21 and AMOS® version 21 were used to analyse the data. The findings showed that organizational culture can help to mediate the relationship between transportation costs and firm competitiveness. The findings suggest that organizational culture has a significant impact on the relationship between transportation costs and firm competitiveness. The study also found out that all the registered companies that took part in the research confirmed that the value of time phenomenon was alien to their business organisational culture practices as they worked on assumptions. They also indicated loss of business due to customer complaints. The study recommends policy formulation for companies that emphasizes standard operating procedures and good time management as organisational culture for firms to be competitive

Urban Land-use and Traffic Congestion: Mapping the Interaction

The interaction between transport, land-uses and travel patterns produce diverse transportation problems in urban cities with traffic congestion as the most visible manifestation. Traffic congestion is a frequent phenomenon in most cities around the globe. This paper reviews the interaction between land-use traffic congestion through published literature. The objective of this study is to encourage and provide researchers with future research directions in land-use and traffic congestion. For this purpose, a systematic review was performed analysing 45 articles from the year 2010 to 2020 using a descriptive approach. Subsequently, the results of the study show that although the interaction between land-use and traffic congestion has gained currency in developed countries far less is known on this subject in developing parts of the world, though new evidence is steadily accumulating. Consequently, limitations of this work are presented, opportunities are identified for future lines of research. Finally, the conclusion confirms the need for further research addressing the methodological concerns

Development of a Destination Image Recovery Model for Enhancing the Performance of the Tourism Sector in the Developing World

This chapter is based on a doctoral thesis on the development of a destination image (DI) recovery model for enhancing the performance of the tourism sector in Zimbabwe. The study was prompted by the failure of African destinations to develop DI image recovery models. A pragmatist paradigm, a convergent parallel mixed methodology research approach and a cross sectional survey were adopted. A sample of three hundred and nineteen comprising international tourists, service providers and key informants was used. A structured, semi-structured questionnaire and semi-structured interview guide were used respectively. Quantitative data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and AMOS version 25 while qualitative data was analyzed using NVivo version 12. Tests were conducted using descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the multiple independent variables. The major findings were that price, ancillary services and amenities significantly influenced affective image while ancillary services significantly influenced destination performance. The study recommended that the Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry trains tourism stakeholders including the host community in order to achieve sustainable destination image recovery

An evaluation of impact of co-operative societies on poverty alleviation among the urban poor in Harare, Zimbabwe during the period 2008-2010

The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of co-operative societies on poverty alleviation among the urban poor in Zimbabwe with particular reference to consumer co-operative societies in areas of agriculture, housing and micro- finance. The co-operative sector plays an important role in poverty alleviation since many unemployed people have turned to co-operative activities as a way of earning a lawful and decent living during a period in which Zimbabwe generally suffered immense impoverishment in the midst of the national economic meltdown that was characterised by hyper-inflation, de-industrialisation and mass unemployment. The period of study was as from January 2008 to August 2010. This period is significant in that many co-operative societies were formed with the following broad objectives: (a) economic power and through this power; (b) control of socio-economic institution, to eliminate exploitation of man by man to make the people of Zimbabwe self reliant; (c) skills management, goods and services and establish in themselves a sense of confidence, initiative and high development aspirations; (d) to provide an opportunity to develop the community; and a (e) collective way of living that provides a sound base for socialism and national solidarity ix In this study, two hundred and seventy four respondents were used as research subjects. This consisted of one hundred and sixty respondents from housing, twenty four from micro- finance, and eighty eight from agricultural co-operative societies which covered dairy, poultry and fishing co-operative societies. This also included the Registrar of Co-operatives and the Harare City Council Co-operative officer. The research instruments that were used for the purpose of this research study were questionnaires, field visits, interviews and observations. Use was also made of secondary data that was obtained from the offices of Registrar of Co-operatives and the Town clerk of the Harare City Council as well as from the various co-operative societies that constitute the research study’s sample. The key factors that account for the failure of co-operative societies included the lack of adequate funding, lack of relevant knowledge and experience about co-operative activities, conflict among co-operative society members, failure to follow co-operative principles, mixing politics with co-operative activities and lack of education and training. The study also found out that the key to the success of any co-operative venture includes some of the following factors: Proper application of co-operative principles, the provision of co-operative education to both the membership and management of co-operative societies and proper keeping of institutional records. Most important of which include membership, financial and asset registers. x The study recommends that the government should give adequate administrative and financial support to co-operative societies since they have a potential of alleviating poverty if properly managed. It is also further recommended that research be done in order to enhance the strategic management of co-operative societies since empirical evidence tends to suggest that they are a viable tool for broad –based participatory and democratic sustainable livelihoods development. The study also recommended further studies to be carried out on the applicability of cooperative principles in all environments since some co-operative societies that have followed these principles especially in the developed countries have proved to be suitable instruments for poverty alleviation

Challenges facing procurement professionals in developing economies: Unlocking value through professional international purchasing

Background: Until recently, procurement was seen as a necessity only. In fact, in many developing economies the profession is still being treated as a ‘back-office’ function. However, not much has been done to explore and address challenges facing procurement professionals in developing economies. Objectives: The purpose of this article was to examine the critical role played by the procurement function in business and to reveal the challenges faced by procurement professionals in developing economies as well as to suggest solutions to these challenges. Method: A sequential literary analysis was used, complemented by cross-country qualitative data gathered from one hundred diverse procurement practitioners from Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. These were primarily participants in a series of procurement workshops run by the researchers from January to June 2014. Results: Findings suggested that limited recognition, increasing unethical behaviour, poor supplier service delivery, poor regulatory environment, varying supplier standards and poor corporate governance are the main challenges faced by the procurement profession in these countries. Conclusion: The study’s findings imply that there is limited understanding regarding the role procurement plays in both government and non-government institutions in developing economies. The article suggests solutions which procurement professionals and organisations can implement in order to unlock the potential value in the procurement function

Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices (SSCMPS) and environmental performance: A systematic review

The study sought to determine the influence of Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices (SSCMPS) on environmental performance. The study undertook a systematic review and content analysis in order to derive valid insights on the relationship between the study variables. As such, the study reviewed 140 academic/journal articles published in the period 2012 to 2022, obtained from different databases. ABI/INFORMs (ProQuest), ScienceDirect, SCOPUS and Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) were the principal databases used. The results demonstrate that there is considerable evidence that SSCMPs positively affect environmental performance. A sizeable number of scholars focus on sustainable supply chain management and environmental sustainability, and little focus were given to operational performance and social. Future studies should examine social performance and operational performance as mediating variables. Furthermore, more industry-orientated studies should apply robust methodologies such as mixed methods and include mediating and moderating variables to unpack the relationship between SSCMPs and environmental performance

How time value affects the performance of road freight transport operators in Zimbabwe

Purpose: The primary purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the Road Freight Transport Sector in Zimbabwe considers the value of time in their operations and how this affects their competitiveness. Methodology: This quantitative study involves a survey of 384 randomly selected companies from a population of 1256 registered road freight companies in Zimbabwe. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS. Results: The study found that all the registered companies that participated in the research confirmed that the value of time phenomenon was alien to their business practices as they worked on assumptions. They also indicated a loss of business due to customer complaints. Theoretical Contribution: This paper contributes to the field by highlighting the importance of considering the value of time in business operations, particularly in the road freight transport sector. It provides empirical evidence supporting the theory that the value of time can significantly impact a firm’s competitiveness. Practical Implications: The findings of this study have practical implications for companies in the road freight transport sector. The study recommends policy formulation for companies emphasizing standard operating procedures and good time management to enhance competitiveness. This could lead to improved customer satisfaction and business success