3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item The influence of effectuation and technology orientation on firm performance in the renewable energy sector of South Africa(2013-08-28) Heydenrych, James AndrewThis research study analyses a conceptual model investigating the effect of firms’ choice of effectuation or causation processes in strategy formation and firm performance, the effect of firms’ technology orientation in firm performance, and the relationship between effectuation and technology orientation. The study employed a quantitative approach, surveying data from 73 firms in the renewable energy sector of South Africa, using measurement instruments extracted from prior research. By means of multiple regression analysis, the study found that of the effectuation processes, the use of pre-commitments is significantly and positively associated with firm performance. Furthermore, it was found that a pioneering technology orientation is significantly and positively associated with firm performance. The study also found evidence to support the hypothesis that effectuation is closely linked with pioneering. The study contributes to the field of effectuation research by continuing to move the field towards an intermediate phase, by providing valuable insight into the practicalities of the quantitative analysis of effectuation and the problems that arise therein, in particular, issues surrounding measurement aspects. Moreover, by examining performance differentials, this study seeks to increase the relevance of effectuation theory and expand it from a theory of mere description of entrepreneurial behaviour to a theory that identifies performance-enhancing measures. For practitioners and policy makers, this research provides valuable insight into the drivers of entrepreneurial success and the fostering of entrepreneurial activity both in start-ups and existing corporations to spur innovation, productivity, and growth in the economy.Item The impact of compensation practices on intrapreneurial behaviour(2012-11-02) Madu, Ugochukwu ObedAs business environments become more complex, with varying degrees of uncertainty, organizations must become more entrepreneurial in order to identify emerging and new opportunities for sustained superior performance. Several factors can promote/enhance corporate entrepreneurship within organizations. This research study examined the role of compensation practices in the process of elevating employees‘ intrapreneurial behaviour. Drawing on the agency theory, hypotheses relating actual and desired compensation practices to elevated employees‘ intrapreneurial behaviour were empirically examined among different employees from various organizations. The moderating role of department‘s risk control on the relationship between desired compensation practices and elevated intrapreneurial behaviour was also examined. Empirical data were collected from 209 respondents in different organizations via a survey questionnaire. The measures included actual compensation practices, desired compensation practices, actual intrapreneurial behaviour, elevated intrapreneurial behaviour, and department‘s risk control. The main analytical techniques used in this study were t-test for dependent/related groups, canonical correlation and moderation regression analyses. The findings of this study indicated that non-monetary compensation practices were the best predictors of elevated intrapreneurial behaviour and that department‘s risk control did not moderate this relationship. However, it is unknown how the selection of industries will affect this study‘s findings. In addition, desired compensation practices explained only 25% of the variance in elevated intrapreneurial behaviour, suggesting that compensation systems are not enough to elevate employees‘ intrapreneurial behaviour. Compensation systems should be an integral part of an overall entrepreneurial strategy of an organization.Item Corporate entrepreneurship and organisational performance in the information and communications technology industry(2012-09-27) Nkosi, ThokozaniCorporate Entrepreneurship (CE) has long been recognised as a potentially viable means for promoting and sustaining corporate competitiveness (Covin & Miles 1999). Turbulence and rapidly changing knowledge - especially in the Information and Communications Technology sector (ICT) - has forced companies to become more entrepreneurial in order to capitalise on new business opportunities and to create value. The research study was quantitative and data was collected through an online survey, which used closed-ended questionnaires. The questionnaires entail assessing the degree of CE in an organisation in relation to its performance. The analysis had 114 samples of companies in the ICT sector. The study indicated that there is a strong positive association between level of CE and company performance. Companies that sustain their businesses and are able to prosper are likely to have a high level of CE. The most important contribution of this study is the testing of CE theories in the South African context. The ICT managers can contribute to entrenching CE by being the champions in creating the environment that stimulates entrepreneurial behaviour.Item The perceptions of South African Broadcasting Corporation employees about the organisation's turn around strategy.(2012-09-06) Matlala, ClementOrganisational change, particularly turnaround strategies have always been perceived differently, and received with mixed feelings by employees. The primary aim of this research was to explore the perceptions of SABC employees about the organisation’s turnaround strategy. The study employed a qualitative research design and conducted semi-structured interviews with ten employees and four key informants from the SABC’s radio-park in Auckland Park. A thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data that was received from the participants. Employees’ perceptions that emerged from a thematic content analysis of the study were, a need to balance organisation’s needs with the needs of all employees, employees’ concerns about their job security, relationships and communication gaps between management and general employees and employees’ different and vague understanding of the turnaround strategy. The main findings of this study were, SABC employees understood and perceived the turnaround strategy to be a cost cutting mechanism by the organisation to reduce its operational costs, the participants also indicated that they did not participate in any decision making regarding the turnaround strategy. The main conclusion drawn from the study is that the SABC should have allowed its employees to fully participate in the entire process of the turnaround strategy and use the strategy as a learning opportunity for its employees.Item Do employees' perceptions of HR practices in South African firms affect their subsequent turnover destinations?(2011-10-31) Bussio, Stacy KatherineEmployee turnover is an ongoing issue in organisations because it has long been thought to detriment overall organisational efficiency and performance (Lee, Gerhart, Weller & Trevor, 2008; Takeuchi, Chen & Lepak, 2009; Trevor, 2001). Managers are only able to observe and control some aspects or influencers of turnover (Dalton, Todor & Krackhardt, 1982). Placing voluntary turnover drivers in context with human resource (HR) practices might provide a means through which managers can understand the less visible aspects of turnover. HR practices may assist managers to reduce the controllable (evident) and less observable drivers of voluntary turnover. March and Simon (1958), the seminal employee turnover theorists, suggest that the voluntary turnover decision has two competing aspects – desirability of the current job and desirability of alternatives. The perceived utility an employee garners from the current job might define the desirability of the current job. The more desirable the current job, the greater satisfaction and lower the likelihood of a quit. The potential utility the individual deems available from perceived alternative opportunities might define the desirability of alternatives. If the potential utility of an alternative outweighs the utility garnered by the current job, a quit seems more likely (March & Simon, 1958). Generally, mainstream voluntary turnover research has placed emphasis on understanding turnover antecedents in the current organisation - the aspects that lower the perceived utility garnered by the current job (Kirschenbaum & Weisberg, 2002). However, considerably less research has focused on the alternative that draws the employee away from their current job (Kirschenbaum & Weisberg, 2002). The alternative to which the individual moves is the turnover destination. The turnover destination contributes towards the withdrawal process because the person perceived the alternative as more desirable than the current job, increasing the likelihood of a quit. Observing organisational performance may provide an important means through which to examine the effect turnover destinations may have on withdrawal. Strategic human resource management (SHRM) and similar organisational development fields hold a particular view on organisational performance. SHRM theorists have paid particular attention to the implementation of high-performance human resource (HR) practices in organisations. Predominantly, extensive research has been conducted on the effect highiii performance HR practices might have on organisational performance and retention. SHRM theorists suggest that a combination (system) of high-performance HR practices correctly implemented in the firm, and aligned with organisational strategy, should bring about improved organisational performance and employee retention (Arthur, 1994; Carmeli & Schaubroeck, 2005; Combs, Liu, Hall & Ketchen, 2006; Shaw, Gupta & Delery, 2005; Subramony, 2009; Youndt, Snell, Dean & Lepak, 1996; Wood, 1999). The field of turnover destination research highlights the role of turnover destinations in the voluntary turnover process. Specifically, turnover destination theorists postulate that antecedents present in the current firm affect the quit decision by influencing the intensity of the desire to leave, and the perception of alternative opportunities shapes the choice of turnover destination (Kirschenbaum & Mano-Negrin, 1999; Kirschenbaum & Weisberg, 2002). Research in the field focuses on the influence turnover destinations might have on turnover intentions, moving away from the traditional focus of internal organisational antecedents and personal factors (Kirschenbaum & Weisberg, 2002). The relationship between high-performance HR practices and turnover destinations has not been extensively tested empirically, with few known studies in existence (for example: Fields, Dingman, Roman & Blum, 2005). Therefore, there is opportunity for greater research in the field. The developing South African economy is a suitable environment in which to measure whether high-performance HR practices affect turnover destinations at the individual-level, as no known research has been conducted. The South African economy is said to be suffering from the mass emigration of highly skilled individuals, who mostly move to developed countries with less prominent societal issues and less restrictive labour policies, amongst other reasons (Kerr-Phillips & Thomas, 2009; McDonald & Crush, 2002). A key interest for this research is the role experience of highperformance HR practices might play in emigration of South African white-collar workers. The study explores the relationship between high-performance HR practices and turnover destinations by measuring met expectations and turnover intentions. The objective of the empirical study is to establish whether experience of high-performance HR practices in the current job affect the likelihood of particular turnover destinations. A quantitative study, using a two-part time-separated survey, was conducted on white-collar workers from three South African provinces, including Gauteng, Kwa-Zulu iv Natal and the Western Cape. The first part of the survey measured respondents’ perceptions of the levels of actual high-performance HR practice provision in the current organisation. In addition, respondent expectations about the adequate level of the practices (that should retain them in their current jobs) were measured. The second part of the survey measured respondents’ intentions to move into a predefined set of turnover destinations. The final sample of 386 participants was used to analyse the impact of interactions between actual and adequate high-performance HR practices on a variety of turnover destinations, using polynomial regression analysis and response surface methodology. Overall, the results showed that a system of high-performance HR practices exert a weak to moderate influence on the predefined turnover destinations. Generally, South Africans with lower expectations about high-performance HR practice provision appear less likely to leave a job when the employer places greater emphasis on the practices. However, the likelihood of internal transfer and moving into a different organisation increases for individuals who possess higher expectations about high-performance HR practice provision, and have experienced higher levels of actual provision. The findings also show that, for the most part, the likelihood of emigration increases in employees with lower actual provision of high-performance HR practices, largely contradicting expectations about emigration. The increase in the likelihood of internal transfers and moves to external organisations, despite higher actual high-performance HR practice provision, might point towards over-provision of the practices, or the possibility of continuance commitment in South African employees. The findings suggest that, rather than higher emphasis of highperformance HR practices providing a means for emigration, broader external societal conditions may be motivating the emigration of skilled South Africans. As the results showed that a set of high-performance HR practices may exert a weak to moderate influence on turnover destination selection, there are recommendations for managers and future research. Implications for managers include promoting the implementation of a set of high-performance HR practices in the organisation. Researchers in the turnover destinations field should endeavour to measure actual turnover, rather than intentions in future studies.Item The utility of employee flows as a driver of marketing productivity.(2009-03-24T09:39:13Z) Lee, Gregory JohnThe movement or flow of employees into, around and out of organisations (‘employee flow’) has long been a central issue in human resource management and industrial psychology. This is especially so for the specific element of employee turnover, but also applies to staffing and internal talent development. Employee flow is especially salient in a South African context characterised by scarce skills. The voluminous literature on employee flow has tended to view each element such as recruitment or turnover separately, and has generally focused on internal outcomes (e.g. commitment or satisfaction). This thesis attempts to add two crucial features, namely EF as a whole system (i.e. inflows, intraorganisation flows and outflows of staff in conjunction), and customer-based outcomes. Something of a synthesis is thus sought between EF and ideas of marketing productivity. Marketing productivity has been proposed as one of the most important foci of the marketing discipline (Rust, Ambler, Carpenter, Kumar, & Srivastava, 2004; Sheth & Sisodia, 2002). It refers to links between marketing and organisational performance or value. Models such as the ‘service profit chain’ (Heskett, Sasser & Schlesinger, 1997) identify the antecedents of marketing productivity to be internal organisation characteristics such as staff satisfaction or loyalty. This thesis seeks to expand such models in the context of a system of EFs. Advanced decision theoretic utility theories of EF (e.g. Boudreau & Berger, 1985) allow for the complete, integrated value of employee movements over time to be modelled. Such a model is constructed and links to marketing metrics, notably service perceptions, investigated. Organisational value arising via the outcomes for customers are further investigated. Thus increased value of employee movements is proposed to generate organisational value, mediated by improved customer equity (e.g. Gelade & Young, 2005). An empirical, survey-based study was conducted to assess the model. EF was assessed in business-to-business relationships from the perspective of the customer using conceptions of decision theoretic utility analysis, and both intermediate and outcome-based customer perceptions of service quality used as dependent variables. Moderation effects from frequency of interaction and integration of the customer into the supply chain were also tested, as well as controls for characteristics of the transaction, organisation and industry. Results suggest that EF does significantly affect various stages of service quality provision, notably ‘potential quality’, which it appears mediates links to other aspects of service provision, especially final service outcomes. In addition, EF was also found to affect outcomes through the intermediate relational element of 'soft process quality', possibly highlighting the importance of relationship management and soft skills in B2B relationships. Employee outflows in particular showed evidence of relatively strong effects, possibly highlighting the ongoing salience of turnover, in particular effective identification and management of functional versus dysfunctional turnover instead of a sole focus on retention. Results were significantly stronger for service industries than others (presumably as service is the outcome), and when there were relatively few supplier contact staff (perhaps due to social networking, bonding, exchange or emotional contagion). This thesis adds substantially to the methodologies underlying service profit chain models. It explicitly included new constructs (EF utility). Contextually, it was the first proper test of this model in South Africa. Theoretical contributions arose from new inter-disciplinary syntheses of utility models, finally linking employee and customer utilities to the organisation. Ultimately, practical significance may arise for managerial models, estimating and justifying human resource interventions.