3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions

Permanent URI for this communityhttps://wiredspace.wits.ac.za/handle/10539/45

Browse

Subject: search.filters.subject.Change management

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Effective blended learning in a higher education pathway programme in South Africa.
    (2015-05-25) Cloete, Roy
    Physical and electronic resources, tools and environments are increasingly being integrated within mainstream higher education. As institutions seize the potential of technology enablement, blended learning formats have become popular. For the blended learning format to positively impact the quality of education in the institution its effective integration into existing practice is crucial. The Monash South Africa Foundation Programme, a division of Monash University that provides an alternative pathway into higher education, has its focus firmly on delivering quality academic development yet must successfully navigate the challenges of implementing blended learning as part of an institution wide strategic plan for academic excellence. The purpose of this study was to investigate how the perceptions and attitudes of a teacher in the programme towards blended learning echoed the strategic plan of the institution to use the blended learning approach. A qualitative single case study was developed around one teacher, framed by the context of the institution’s strategic education plan and the programme environment, in order to develop a rich narrative of his experience. Multiple methods of data collection were used to allow for results to be triangulated. The study showed that this teacher’s perceptions and attitudes reflected a positive disposition towards the implementation of blended learning but that the perceived barriers placed the individual’s potential of achieving the institutional goals for incorporating blended learning at risk. The need for effective change management and staff that would champion the innovation was identified. An accumulative narrative of teacher experiences was advocated to develop theories to support further effective blended learning in the programme and the institution and thus enable the institution’s strategic goals of achieving academic excellence at ground level.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Practitioners' experiences of organisational design, development and change management implementation.
    (2014-09-17) Ismail, Nazeehah
    Organisational design, development and change management is about dealing with the effectiveness and efficiency of organisations. Organisational design, development and change management practitioners use systematic strategies and approaches to improve the productivity of organisations and the well-being of individuals. In order to do this, the organisational design, development and change management practitioner must be able to manage customers, competition, change, relationships and processes. There is a need to understand the impacts of successful organisational design, development and change management implementations as they influence the success of an organisation. The aim of this study is to explore practitioners’ knowledge and experiences of organisational design, development and change management implementation. The objectives included explorations of practitioners’ experiences working on organisational design, development and change management implementations. The study is qualitative, exploratory research. Data was collected by means of face-to-face interviews guided by a semi structured interview schedule. Participants’ were practitioners working in the field of organisational design, development and change management. The study used non-probability (non-random) purposive, snowball sampling. The data was analysed using thematic content analysis to identify themes and sub themes in the data. The findings indicate what organisational design, development and change management involves, what the benefits are and the successes and challenges practitioners have encountered during implementation. The macroeconomic environment in which organisations operate is ever changing and in order to keep up, organisations need to call on experienced practitioners to assist in managing the change. The implications of the results will assist the industry as well as organisations to understand the value organisational design, development and change management implementations in enabling business strategies and driving organizations to achieve its business objective thus promoting and growing the discipline and practice.These insights will also contribute to the discipline and the availability of such data will assist future practitioners to be more effective in their roles.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    To explore the relationship between organisational restructuring and organisational culture at MES.
    (2014-09-11) Mangolela, Kgomotso Faith
    Rising global competition, the influence of advances in information technology and the financial status of companies are some of the imperatives that force organisations to restructure. In South Africa, the situation is even more compelling, with the recent economic situation of the country that requires companies to implement certain restructuring programmes designed to encourage sustainability organisation. These changes, however, do affect organisations and employees. It becomes critical that organisations implement it carefully, if they are to survive. This research has attempted to explore the relationship between organisational restructuring and the organisational culture at MES. A qualitative research approach was used for this study; a non-probability sampling namely purposive sampling was used for the purpose of this study. The main findings have presented that the organisational restructuring processes at MES have influenced positive organisational culture within the organisa-tion. Communication, interactions and relationships have increased amongst the employees since the organisational restructuring at MES. The research study hopes to influence the policy making processes regarding change and restructuring within MES. The study would contribute towards Occupational Social Work literature on organisational restructuring, organisational culture and Change Management.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Facilitating the development of self-directed learning skills in information systems students.
    (2013-01-07) Benvenuti, Susan Ann
    Accelerating technological and social innovation drives the need for graduates ready for self-directed lifelong learning. Self-directed learning (SDL) projects are now an integral part of many formal undergraduate programs across the disciplines. A Personal Development Portfolio (PDP) based on Grow’s Iterative Staged Self-directed Learning Model was introduced into a second year Information Systems course to raise awareness of the need for SDL and enable students to drive their own learning. The study evaluates the success of the PDP in preparing graduates as self-directed lifelong learners. Students’ reflective writing and learning journals, together with submitted portfolio work was taken as evidence of success and difficulties. Resistance often accompanies the changes introduced by SDL. This research therefore also explores the potential for business change management principles in mediating change to the educational environment. Student engagement with SDL was found to be accomplished with mixed success; most students demonstrated initial resistance, while many developed into focused reflective learners over time. While students were able to define appropriate learning goals and reflect on progress and achievement, mixed ability in specifying resources, strategies and validation to support their learning was found. Creating change readiness through messaging, cooperative SDL and using adapted change management models were of use in refining the SDL process.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Educational leadership and the management of change in higher education : implication of module-based teaching and learning at National University of Rwanda.
    (2012-02-10) Nkurikiyumukiza, Phocas
    On the assumption that leadership involves individuals with distinct qualities who take much ingenuity, energy and skills to trigger greater capacity in the organization for moving people towards organizational vision and goal achievement, the aim of this study is to identify and describe the leadership shown by managers and lecturers for the successful implementation of academic programme change at National University of Rwanda. That includes investigating the improvement of academic practice in the higher education institution while implementing change, i.e. introduction of the Module-Based Teaching and Learning (MBTL) methodology which is a new approach to schooling, as well as defining an appropriate leadership style needed for the management of this implementation. The research was carried out at National University of Rwanda as a case study and supported by the aid of interviews with faculty managers and lecturers as they are the main developers and users of teaching and learning programmes. Next, data collected were complemented by means of textual analysis. The findings revealed that the MBTL introduced at NUR as an innovation in academic practice was a top-down decision made by the policy makers without consultation with academic staffs and implemented without adequate preparation whereas they are the main actors in the implementation. Coupled with the change in the language of instruction from French to English and the lack of educational material required by the MBTL approach, the situation had an unenthusiastic impact on the engagement of NUR academics for accurate successful implementation. The overall conclusion is that inadequate management of the introduction of an educational change programme leads to misadoption and reluctance at best and resistance by the implementers at worst.
Copyright Ownership Is Guided By The University's

Intellectual Property policy

Students submitting a Thesis or Dissertation must be aware of current copyright issues. Both for the protection of your original work as well as the protection of another's copyrighted work, you should follow all current copyright law.