A Study Of Employee Perceptions About Performance Appraisal At Transnet Engineering, South Africa

Transnet Engineering is a division of Transnet, which is a key South African state owned enterprise that is responsible for providing railroad, freight and logistics services to South African and international business enterprises. Transnet Engineering is located at Koedoespoort, just outside Pretoria, South Africa. This manuscript is a result of data gathered from 198 employees of Transnet Engineering as part of an attempt made by the company to describe and quantify the perception held by employees of Transnet Engineering on the degree to which the performance of appraisal system used by the company for performance appraisal was suitable enough for its intended purpose. The perception of employees was measured by using a benchmark defined by Pichler (2012) in which similar measurements were made under near-identical circumstances. All measurements were taken based on a standardised, validated and pre-tested instrument. Pearson’s two-by-two chi-squared tests of associations, discriminant analysis and logit regression were used for analyses. The study found that about 63% of participants were happy with the performance appraisal system used by the company, whereas about 37% of participants held a negative perception. The results confirmed that the perception of employees about the performance appraisal system used at Transnet Engineering was affected by the perception of employees on fairness, and the assessment of performance of employees based on key performance indicators. Findings obtained from the study are quite relevant and valuable to all other South African state owned enterprises

Business Ethics And The Repayment Of Loans In Small Enterprises

The capacity of small business enterprises to pay back loan money to microfinance agencies is a key determinant of long-term profitability in microfinance agencies (Mayer, Caruso & Salovey, 2016). Ethiopian entrepreneurs who conduct business in South Africa rely heavily on start-up capital raised from social capital schemes (Haile, 2015). The purpose of research was to determine factors that affect the repayment of loan money obtained from social capital schemes. The study points out necessary and sufficient conditions for the repayment of loans. The research found that 84% of the migrant entrepreneurs managed to pay back their loans in time, whereas about 16% of them failed to do the same. By the standards of Mayer et al. (2016), about 71% of respondents had adequate emotional intelligence. By the standards of Sahoo and Lenka (2016), about 72% of migrant entrepreneurs possessed adequate entrepreneurial skills. One key finding of study was that the repayment of loan money to social capital schemes was dependent upon awareness about the relative importance of adhering to business ethics principals, emotional intelligence, and the profitability of businesses. The study shows that the prompt repayment of loan money to social capital schemes, the acknowledgement of business ethics principles, and the possession of adequate emotional intelligence are key attributes of profitable businesses

Analysis Of The Perception Of Small Businesses On The Quality Of Routine Municipal Services InThe City Of Tshwane, South Africa

A survey was conducted (2012 to 2014) in the City of Tshwane in order to assess and evaluate determinants of adequate municipal services that are routinely provided to operators of start-up business enterprises. Data used in the report come from 1, 058 small businesses. The aim of research was to assess and evaluate the relationship between the quality of services and sustained viability in small business enterprises. The study was conducted against the background of a high failure rate among newly established small businesses in the City of Tshwane. The study found that about 40% of the 1, 058 businesses in the study failed or were not profitable at the end of the 3-year study period. The study showed that there was a significant association between positive perception of business operators on the quality of municipal services provided to them and viability of businesses. The percentage of viable business enterprises that were satisfied with the quality of services provided to them was 87%. The percentage of non-viable business enterprises that were satisfied with the quality of services provided to them was only 13%. Profitability in business enterprises was significantly affected by lack of capacity for fulfilling the business and entrepreneurial needs of newly established businesses [Hazard Ratio = 3.58; P=0.000; 95% C. I. = (1.45, 5.46)], inappropriate policy [Hazard Ratio = 3.19; P=0.000; 95% C. I. = (1.39, 5.28)], and lack of tailor made training programmes directed at newly established small businesses [Hazard Ratio = 2.89; P=0.000; 95% C. I. = (1.24, 4.77)]. In-depth interviews conducted with business operators led to similar findings.  

The Strategic Benefits Of Rehabilitation Of The Prison Population Of The City Of Tshwane

There are 158, 111 prisoners in South Africa. This figure includes pre-trial detainees or remand prisoners. Foreign prisoners account for about 7.5% of the South African prison population. There are 243 prison facilities in South Africa. The official capacity of South African prisons is 119, 134. There is a severe shortage of prison facilities in South Africa. Several studies have shown the need for rehabilitation programmes based on international best practice. A survey was conducted by collecting data from 408 residents of the City of Tshwane in South Africa in order to identify factors that affect the perception of people living in the City about the rehabilitation of prison inmates back into society. Multivariate methods of data analyses were used for data analyses. The results showed that 83.33% of respondents support the rehabilitation of South African prison inmates, whereas the remaining 16.67% do not support the rehabilitation of South African prison inmates. The results identified 3 influential factors. These 3 factors were the gender of respondents, the ages of respondents and the level of education of respondents

Factors That Affect The Nonpayment Of Municipal Services In Madibeng, Mamelodi And Soshanguve Townships Of South Africa

The study was conducted in Madibeng, Mamelodi and Soshanguve townships of South Africa in order to assess and evaluate the main reasons for the non-payment of municipal services by members of the community. The study was conducted based on a stratified random sample of size 428 households. Statistical data analyses were performed by using methods such as ordered logistic regression analysis and Bayesian analyses. The results showed that 22% of households in Madibeng, 54% of households in Mamelodi and 78% of households in Soshanguve were willing to pay for municipal services that were provided to them by their local municipalities. Reluctance to pay for municipal services was significantly influenced by employment status, level of formal education and race group.&nbsp

Factors That Affect Sustained Profitability In The Textile Industry Of Tshwane

The textile industry of the City of Tshwane has been overwhelmed by cheap imports from countries such as China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, South Korea and Vietnam. Although support is provided to black entrepreneurs in the textile industry of Tshwane by institutions such as the South African National Department of Trade and Industry and the South African Small Enterprise Development Agency, local textile businesses are unable to compete favourably with foreign manufacturers, importers and distributors. The textile industry is a key contributor to the South African GDP and employs about 5% of the South African workforce. One of the key priorities of the City of Tshwane is to transform the textile industry of Tshwane so that it provides sustainable livelihood and career opportunities to black indigenous South Africans. A descriptive, cross-sectional study design was used for collecting data from a stratified random sample of size 250 textile businesses operating in the five geographical zones of Tshwane.  One of the aims of the study was to assess the veracity of the theory proposed by Bansal and DesJardine (2014) in which the authors have argued that changing global circumstances would compel local industries to adapt to global changes at local level as a means of sustained survival. Data analysis was performed by using Structural Equations Modelling (SEM). The results showed that sustained viability in textile businesses was significantly influenced by the degree of entrepreneurial skills, the ability to secure loan needed for operation, and the ability to order merchandise in bulk on credit from suppliers, in a decreasing order of strength. About 32% of business operators had adequate entrepreneurial skills based on the composite index developed by Ács, Szerb and Autio (2011). A repeat of the same study as a 5-yearlong study is recommended in order to estimate theoretically reliable predictors such as hazard ratios for factors that are known to affect viability in the local textile industry

Women Entrepreneurship in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises: The Case of Ethiopia

This research article examines factors that influence the long-term survival and viability of a random sample of 500 micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) located in five geographical regions of Ethiopia based on a 6-year long follow-up study. The objective of the study is to identify key predictors of long term survival and viability in small businesses and enterprises in Ethiopia, and to find out if small businesses and enterprises operated by male entrepreneurs perform better than those operated by female entrepreneurs in Ethiopia. Data was gathered on key determinants of survival such as access to finance, managerial skills, level of education, level of technical skills, ability to convert profit back into investment, etc. between 1996 and 2001. Econometric methods such as Kaplan-Meier survival probability curves and the Cox proportional hazards model were used for data analysis. 221 of the 500 businesses in the study (44%) were operated or owned by women. 110 of the 500 businesses in the study (22%) had failed at the end of the study period. The majority of businesses that failed were operated by women (78%). Female-headed firms that ceased operation had an average lifetime of 3.2 years, while male-headed firms that ceased operation had an average lifetime of 3.9 years. Businesses that failed were characterized by inability in obtaining loans from formal money lending institutions such as commercial banks (61%), inability to convert part of profit back into investment (46%), poor managerial skills (54%), shortage of technical skills (49%), and low level of education (55%). Based on hazard ratios estimated from Cox regression, businesses operated by women were 2.52 times more likely to fail in comparison with businesses operated by men

Relationship between National Culture and Development

Culture, as it is defined and well understood, differentiates one group from the other; in more general form, one country from the other. Culture then influences the behaviour and how we think in our everyday lives but so far culture of any group can only be measured in terms of a collection of cultural dimensions. This has made it difficult to establish whether there is any relationship between culture and any other social factors. In this study we derived national culture index from the four (4) Hofstede cultural dimensions (power (equality versus inequality), collectivism (versus individualism), uncertainty avoidance (versus uncertainty tolerance), masculinity (versus femininity)) using geo-mean formula. We then investigated whether there is any relationship between national culture index and national development index. In doing this we endeavoured to answer the question “Is There Really a Relationship Between Culture and Development?†posed by Mbakogu (2004:38). The data used for our experiments for Hofstede’s dimensions of national culture values were retrieved from Hofstede website that has an open licence for academic researchers. Data for human development national index were retrieved from UNDP website (Letter of consent was obtained from UNDP officials). The Pearson correlation coefficient was calculated (r=0.083, p=0.502>0.05), which indicated that there is very negligible positive relationship between cultural index values and the development index values. Since the value of p is greater than the significance level of 0.05, we concluded that there is inconclusive evidence about the significance of the association established between National Culture Index and National Development Index. Since we currently have a national culture index, researchers can now talk about culture as a homogeneous unit. Researchers may use the national culture index to investigate relationship between culture and any other social factors. In future we intend to use other cultural dimensions proposed by other researchers to present a national culture index.&nbsp

Developmental obstacles adversely affecting emerging contractors in the construction industry of Limpopo province

This study attempts to identify and quantify factors that adversely affect the growth and development of emerging contractors in the construction industry of Limpopo Province in South Africa. The study is based on a stratified random sample of 229 emerging contractors who operate in the construction industry of Limpopo Province. The degree of entrepreneurial skills in emerging contractors was assessed by using a composite index defined by Beck and Demirguc-Kunt (2012). Quantitative and qualitative research methods were used for data collection and analysis. The study found that 139 of the 229 emerging contractors selected for the study (60.70%) lacked entrepreneurial skills by the standards of Beck and Demirguc-Kunt (2012), whereas 90 of them (40.18%) had adequate entrepreneurial skills by the same standards. The study also showed that 141 of the 229 emerging contractors in the study (61.57%) lacked basic skills in construction engineering. More than half of the contractors in the study had disadvantaged backgrounds in terms of technical and entrepreneurial skills as well as capital and access to finance. The study found that 122 of the 229 emerging contractors (53.28%) were viable financially while the remaining 107 emerging contractors (46.72%) were not viable financially. Results obtained from the study showed that viability in emerging contractors was significantly influenced by barriers such as lack of construction engineering skills, lack of entrepreneurial skills, lack of access to finance, inability to network with well-established contractors, inability to draw up business plans, and delay in payment for services rendered, in a decreasing order of strength. Keywords: construction industry, emerging contractors, Limpopo Province. JEL Classification: C5, M2