Critical managerial skills in the accommodation sector: The voice of the industry

Dynamic labour structures within the tourism industry require employees to be adept and prepared for industry demands to deliver quality products. In South Africa, the role of tertiary institutions is to equip future tourism employees with these abilities; however, employers feel that graduates cannot fulfil industry’s demand, which creates challenges for students and tertiary institutions. As such, this research aimed to determine the managerial skills required by the accommodation sector in South Africa. The study’s findings reflect industry role players’ viewpoints regarding new graduates and their employability and may be utilised to improve current tourism management qualifications at tertiary education institutions

Unexpected survival of sharptooth catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822) during acute rotenone toxicity trials will complicate management of invasions

The sharptooth catfish Clarias gariepinus is an emerging global invader for which control strategies might include the use of piscicides such as rotenone. Experimental exposure demonstrated that C. gariepinus was less susceptible to rotenone than most other fish species, with unexpected survival observed at rotenone concentrations of 87.5 and 100 lg L-1. C. gariepinus were also observed exhibiting avoidance behaviour to rotenone treated water and were found to be capable of recovering from rotenone exposure. As such, effective eradication might not be attainable even at a dose exceeding 100 lg L-1 with exposures of longer than 24 h. This exposure scenario may pose an unacceptable risk to non-target fauna and highlights the difficulty associated with managing current and future invasions

The Effectiveness of the Marketing Mix for Guesthouses.

Marketing is a core management function for any business, but smaller tourism businesses seem to underestimate the value of effective marketing and handle marketing in a more informal and unstructured manner. This can decrease their effectiveness in attracting tourists and influence the success of their businesses. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between marketing effectiveness and the application of the marketing mix by guesthouses in the Vaal Region. This was done using a structured questionnaire for which 451 were completed and used in the statistical analysis. Descriptive (frequency tables, factor analyses) and inferential (Spearman rankorder correlations) statistics were performed to determine the relationship in question. The results revealed five independent marketing mix factors with high levels of internal consistency, namely product (most important factor), place, price, promotion: advertising and promotion: direct contact. In the case of marketing effectiveness, two factors were identified, namely quality control (most important factor) and quantity control. Significant positive relationships were found between the adapted marketing mix and marketing effectiveness factors, with the strongest correlations found between price and quantity control as well as quality control. Smaller businesses such as guesthouses should take the adapted marketing mix factors seriously if they wish to be successful in their business and, if they lack skills and knowledge in this regard, it is worthwhile to improve their current knowledge or ask a marketing expert to assist in this process. It was clear that smaller businesses such as guesthouses should not underestimate the value of well-planned marketing efforts that are based on the marketing mix

The ethicolegal framework relevant to human faecal microbiota transplants in South Africa: Part 2. Human stool as tissue?

Faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been shown to be an effective treatment for recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection. The purpose of this article, the second of a series of three articles, is to explore the legal framework governing human FMT in South Africa (SA). FMT involves different modes of administration that require different regulatory considerations. The focus of this article is to explore the legal classification of human stool as tissue in terms of the National Health Act 61 of 2003, as well as the regulation of human stool banks as tissue banks. The article concludes with specific recommendations aimed at improving the current regulatory vacuum relating to the regulation of FMT in SA

What do festinos at a national arts festival regard as value for money?

This research attempts to provide guidelines for the management of the Klein Karoo National Arts Festival by determining factors and identifying the determinants of value for money for this unique tourism product. A survey was conducted during the duration of the festival that was held from 31 March 2012 to 7 April 2012. Seven hundred questionnaires were distributed while 600 completed questionnaires were returned. Statistical analysis consisted of three stages: descriptive statistics to analyse the socio-demographic profile of respondents; after which a factor analysis, focusing on factors influencing value for money perceptions, and a regression analysis were performed. Four factors were identified: experience, amenities, quality and price and event attributes. Of these, it was found that event attributes is the premier factor contributing to value for money at a festival. This study could add to the body of knowledge regarding the travel behaviour of visitors as well as pinpointing what festival attendees perceive as value for money. Consequently, this article can be used to assist managers in providing value for money and in obtaining a competitive advantage in the industry by revising management structures and marketing campaigns

The ethicolegal framework relevant to human faecal microbiota transplants in South Africa: Part 1. A legal vacuum

The legal regulation of faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) in South Africa (SA) is currently unclear. The purpose of this article, the first of three in a series, is to explore the nature, role and clinical application of FMT in SA in order to determine, from a legal perspective, the appropriate regulatory pathways governing FMT as a procedure that may combine approaches for the treatment of drugs, human tissue for transplantation, or clinical treatment as part of the practice of medicine. FMT has been shown to be a novel, safe and effective treatment for recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI). Stool banks are instrumental in enabling access to FMT for patients and clinicians and help to catalyse research in the microbiome. However, the regulatory landscape in SA remains unclear. Microbial therapies such as FMT are necessary, especially in a time of rising microbiome-associated inflammatory diseases and increasing resistance to traditional antibiotics. FMT is now considered as part of the standard of care for recurrent CDI overseas, but is currently only being used for research purposes in a minority of clinical cases of CDI in SA. This article, which lays the foundation for consideration of this question in three parts, suggests that the relevant regulatory system would depend on the categorisation of human stool as tissue, the exact composition of the FMT, how it is administered to patients, and the relevant levels of manipulation of the stool for FMT-derived products

Managing visitors’ dining and retail experiences in South African national parks

In the light of the issue of declining government funding of South African National Parks (SANParks), as well as the negative influence of the poor service levels in shops, restaurants and eating facilities in these parks on visitor spending, SANParks needs to improve the retail and dining experiences at these facilities. This research attempts to provide guidelines for SANParks management in addressing these issues, by determining visitors’ retail and dining preferences and the relationship between these constructs. Quantitative research was conducted in 2011 using a web-based survey on the SANParks’ official website for two months (1st October – 30th November). This method resulted in obtaining 5 464 usable responses for the study. Factor analyses identified three relevant dining experience factors: Quality, Variety and value and Nature ambience and four retail experience factors: Goods and services, Pricing (consisting of two separate constructs: Expensive shops and Pay more inside Park) and Quality. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this was the first time that research was conducted with regard to addressing visitors’ retail and dining preferences at any South African national park, thereby contributing significantly to literature regarding visitor experiences in a nature-based context

Microbial diversity and community structure in Fynbos soil

The Fynbos biome in South Africa is renowned for its high plant diversity and the conservation of this area is particularly important for the region. This is especially true in the case of endangered vegetation types on the lowlands such as Sand Fynbos, of which only small fragments remain. The question is thus whether the diversity of the aboveground flora is mirrored in the below-ground microbial communities. In order to determine the relationship of the above- and below-ground communities, the soil community composition of both fungal and bacterial groups in Sand Fynbos was characterized over space and time. A molecular approach was used based on the isolation of total soil genomic DNA and automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis of bacterial and fungal communities. Soil from four different sites was compared to resolve the microbial diversity of eubacterial and fungal groups on a local (alpha diversity) scale as well as a landscape scale (beta diversity). The community structures from different sites were compared and found to exhibit strong spatial patterns which remained stable over time. The plant community data were compared with the fungal and the bacterial communities. We concluded that the microbial communities in the Sand Fynbos are highly diverse and closely linked to the above-ground floral communities.Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biolog

Partial denture teaching programmes presented to undergraduate students at Dental Schools in the Republic of South Africa

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