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Theses and dissertations (Management Sciences)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://ir-dev.dut.ac.za/handle/10321/14

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Start date: 2000End date: 2009

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 102
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    An exploratory investigation of the relationship between the achievement of ISO 9000 quality standards and the level of customer service provided by manufacturing companies in the Durban area
    (2002) Ganachaud, Luci; Mason, Roger Bruce
    During the past 20 years, marketing in industrialized countries has evolved towards Relationship Marketing placing more attention on customer loyalty. To achieve this new objective, increased interest has been placed on delivering quality customer service. In parallel, the notion of quality has evolved toward total quality, now considering every aspect in the company. Following this evolution, new quality tools have been developed, such as the ISO 9000 standards.
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    A study investigating the use of computer aided design (CAD) in the clothing sector to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the eThekweni area
    (2003) Patel, Fathima Bibi; Chetty, Rajendra P.
    Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) systems have contributed significantly towards the quality and efficiency levels at large clothing companies. The disadvantages that SME's entrepreneurs face through the lack of access to new technology and technological skills affect their productivity and competitiveness.
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    The fostering of entrepreneurship at secondary schools in the north Durban region
    (2003) Narain, Nalinee; Sookrah, R.
    The Department of Education has, since 1998, introduced entrepreneurship education in government schools, for the first time. One of the overall developmental outcomes of the curriculum, of which there are five, is to develop entrepreneurial capacities. Economic and Management Sciences, one of the eight learning areas, encourages learners to develop basic skills and knowledge needed to manage their lives and their environments effectively; to understand the basics of the economy and how it works, and develop basic entrepreneurship, financial management and planning skills to operate effectively in the economy
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    The South African managed healthcare system and the general practitioner
    (2000) Govender, Krishnavelli Marla; Raap, Peter John
    Managed care is defined by Chetty (1999: 1) as "the practice of evidence based medicine with an approach to managing both the quality and cost of medical care". Managed care was introduced into South Africa in the last decade due to increasing cost of healthcare. All forms of managed care represent attempts to control costs by modifying the behaviour of general practitioners.
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    Safety and operational risks at a selected chemical company
    (2007) Nayager, Dan; Govender, Jeevarathnam Parthasarathy
    Unsafe incidents are a regular occurrence in the chemical industries, which have resulted, in some cases in the catastrophic destruction to the environment and loss of life. Major global organizations have shut down after experiencing fatal unsafe incidents as in the case of Union Carbide. This organization was closed after the Bhopal incident in India, in 1984, which claimed the lives of a-bout three thousand residents (see appendix d). In this study, the safety and operational risks at a selected chemical company in Durban are researched. This study looks at the huge number of unsafe incidents in a three year period, from (2003) to year (2005), that occurred at this organization. The objective of this study is to identify the variables that contribute to the high number of unsafe incidents within the organisation. The study will focus on the relationship between staff perceptions and management's assumptions of these contributory variables. The sub-objectives of the study are: o To ascertain staff perceptions of the contributors to the incidents and unsafe working conditions; o To determine if management is accurate in their assumptions of the causes for the incidents; and o To determine relationships between staff perceptions and actual causes of the incidents. The contributors were themed in the study in the following manner: o Behaviour and attitude; e Communications; e Plant and equipment; e Training and development; o Planning and workload; o Safety aspects; and e Other related aspects. Implementing the recommendations made will assist in reducing the number of unsafe incidents and make the organization a safer place for all stakeholders.
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    TSAMs' perception of service quality at DuPont
    (2007) Naidoo, K. Silas; Raap, Peter John
    Organizations in the service sector had to make a radical shift in their strategy to embrace customer-centered philosophies in order to maintain a sustainable business. Without realignment to the new demands and with ever increasing pressures, a superlative customer service cannot be achieved. Companies are increasingly placing greater emphasis on customer satisfaction. Customers are becoming more and more sophisticated due to globalization. Customers are no more buying a product alone, but an accompanying service satisfaction. There appears to be a huge gap between perceived and expected service levels. A concerted effort should be made to either narrow or eliminate this gap. DuPont Performance Coatings is a major supplier of coatings to the automotive industry. It was, therefore, necessary to measure Toyota South Africa Manufacturing's perception of service quality provided by DuPont Performance Coatings. Once the levels of customer satisfaction within Toyota South Africa Manufacturing are measured, it could be used as a basis for recommendations towards improving the service levels of DuPont Performance Coatings. The study involves the use of the SERVQUAL instrument in order to ascertain any actual or perceived gaps between customer expectations and perceptions of the service offered. The study also determines how the management of service improvement can become more logical and integrated with respect to the prioritized service quality dimensions and their strategy to decrease service quality gaps. On behalf of DuPont Performance Coatings, the research objectives were, firstly, to identify Toyota South Africa Manufacturing's expectations in terms of quality services provided; secondly, to ascertain the perceptions of Toyota South Africa Manufacturing towards the service provided by DuPont Performance Coatings; thirdly, to measure the gaps between the expectations and perceptions by Toyota South Africa Manufacturing, using the SERVQUAL score, and, finally to calculate and measure the score of the five SERVQUAL dimensions. The researcher has opted for a census because the entire population that deals with DuPont Performance Coatings is relevant. Each member of the population was classified in certain biographical variables. Eighty respondents were surveyed, using the SERVQUAL questionnaire, and the data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. The study showed that Toyota South Africa Manufacturing's expectations of service quality exceeded their perceptions on the five service quality dimensions used in the SERVQUAL questionnaire. The smallest dimension gap score proved to be tangibles, while the largest gap score in the study proved to be reliability, followed by assurance.
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    A longitudinal study of customers perceptions of their confidence in, and satisfaction with, the South African Sugar Association Cane Testing Service division
    (2004) Naidoo, Gonaseelan; Mason, Roger Bruce
    Customer satisfaction is a critical component of a business' competitive strategy. The Cane Testing Service (CTS) division of the South African Sugar Association is operating in a deregulated market environment and thus has to ensure that customers are always satisfied with the quality of service received from CTS. This study aimed to establish the change in customer satisfaction levels between 1998 and 2003. The study set out to determine customer satisfaction levels with specific customer groupings of combined millers and growers, millers-only and growers-only of all fourteen Mill Group Boards. The study investigated customer satisfaction levels for each of the sixteen service characteristics for the fourteen Mill Group Boards. Regular measurement of customer satisfaction allows CTS to continuously improve the levels of customer satisfaction and thereby minimise the threat to CTS of competitors entering the sugar industry laboratory services market. Customer satisfaction levels were determined by conducting a longitudinal, quantitative survey on one hundred and sixty-eight miller and grower members of all Mill Group Boards using the CTS developed questionnaire, containing CTS and customer verified service attributes. I I I The 2003 study shows a statistically significant improvement in customer satisfaction levels with CTS service delivery across all customer groupings in comparison with the 1998 customer satisfaction levels. The specific Mill Group Board analyses shows an improvement in customer satisfaction levels for twelve of the fourteen boards. Specific strategies are to be developed for those boards and service attributes that did not show an improvement. It is recommended that CTS customer surveys be conducted every three years and the Balanced Scorecard management tool be used to monitor the effectiveness of customer improvement strategy implementation. It is proposed that future research consider benchmarking CTS service delivery against other similar service providers and that focus groups be employed to obtain feedback from key customers.
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    A study of entrepreneurship in the Bangladesh area of Chatsworth
    (2003) Ahmed, Desmond; Chetty, Rajendra P.
    This study focused on a feasibility analysis of establishing entrepreneurs in the Bangladesh area of Chatsworth. Ute purpose of the research was to investigate strategies that would enable the development and promotion of entrepreneurship in the area, The researcher has noted from experience, living in an area contiguous to Bangladesh, that there is a serious shortcoming with regard to-entrepreneurial skills among people in depressed communities. The researcher needed to consider strategies of empowering them to earn a decent living. This research project looked at the Bangladesh area, which is indeed a very poor region in Chatsworth. Moreover, -the statement of purpose was to examine theoretical constructs related to entrepreneurship which would enable and empower depressed communities to become economically self-sufficient. In addition, the key objective of the study was to undertake an empirical investigation in the area of Bangladesh to determine the needs of the community with respect to development of entrepreneurship and to make recommendations for the economic upliftment of the community. The findings suggest that the people in the Bangladesh area want to embrace entrepreneurship. However, their main concerns are accessto finance, education and training. The existing small businesses in the area need financial assistance to grow and the people who want to start businesses need to have access to affordable finance. The present Government policy is to encourage the development of entrepreneurship both at community level and in educational provision.
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    The impact of amalgamation on human resources practice in eThekwini municipality
    (2008) Madondo, Siphiwe E.; Garbharran, Hari Lall
    The amalgamation of municipalities came into effect as a legislative requirement brought about a number of challenges for the local government. One such major challenge relates to the impact that these amalgamations will have on human resource practices of the various municipalities. Literature study reveals that during any merger or amalgamation, less attention is paid to the human element of a merger until the merger is almost complete. This lack of attention impacts negatively on the merger results. Like other municipalities, Ethekwini Municipality is a product of this legislative requirement. It was formed as a result of the amalgamation of different municipal entities that had different human resource practices. The problem facing eThekwini Municipality is the misalignment of human resources policies and their effect on the working environment. This study looks at the impact of this amalgamation on the human resources practices of the eThekwini Municipality. The sub-objectives of the study are: to ascertain employees' perceptions of amalgamation; to determine whether employees believe that the human resources' matters are handled in a manner that will bring about stability and equity in the workplace; and to establish whether different perceptions exist between employees of the former Durban Metro Central and those of the erstwhile entities. A stratified random probability sample of 150 employees was selected. The sample was drawn from 5 former entities that now form eThekwini Municipality, namely: Inner-west, Outer-west, Metro Central, North and South Operational entities. Using face-to-face interviews, employees were asked to complete a questionnaire. The results of the research revealed that there was generally a positive perception of the amalgamation process amongst employees. The study also revealed that different perceptions exist between the employees of the former entities and those of Metro central It is recommended that, during a merger, management should have detailed work plans. The plans should detail how the organization will deal with the structure of the organization, its people, culture, technology and processes. Secondly, management should consider a total reward system as opposed to total cost package.
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    Critical factors for service quality in the intercity bus transport industry
    (2008) Pan, Qi; Govender, Jeevarathnam Parthasarathy
    South Africa will host the Soccer World Cup in 2010. About 2.7 million local spectators and 400,000 visitors need to be transferred to and from the 1() host cities in 43 days . .This is a huge challenge to the intercity bus transport ihdustry, because the current transport system may not meet the demand for one of the world's largest sporting event. The purpose of this study is to identify the current barriers to good service quality in the intercity bus transport industry. It focuses on the measurement of service quality and I communication. In this research, the literature survey defined the service quality 'gap' in this industry, identified the role of effective communication. in the service delivery system, measured the variables affecting current service delivery using the SERVQUAL instrument, and prioritized the importance of the factors influencing service delivery in this industry. A questionnaire with 25 questions was designed to coUect data. This study used convenience sampling to select 400 passengers as a sample, viz. 348 South Africans and 52 foreigners at the Durban bus station, since Durban is one of the ten host cities of the 2010 FIFAWorld Cup. The data was analysed using SPSS. The results of this research pointed to the importance of external communication in the industry. Specific recommendations are made to improve the productivity, reduce vacancy rate and maximize the benefits to this industry in 2010 and beyond.