List of Titles

Quick View

Composing affect: reflection on configurations of body, sound and technology in contemporary South African performance

- Cilliers, Ilana

Authors: Cilliers, Ilana
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3377 , vital:20478
Description: This thesis engages with experiential performance modes through the lenses of phenomenology and affect theory. Because experiential performance relies per definition on personal, subjective ‘experience’, specific responses cannot be anticipated. However, by attempting to compose ‘affect’, a performance has the potential to ‘move’ an attendant towards response. Deleuze and Guattari define ‘affect’ as “an ability to affect and be affected….a prepersonal intensity corresponding to the passage from one experiential state of the body to another and implying an augmentation or diminution in that body’s capacity to act” (1987: xvi). One current strategy for manifesting affect in performance seems to be the ways in which different configurations of body, sound and technology are employed. The body is the means through which sound is received or ‘experienced’ in the phenomenological sense, but it can also act as a source for sonic material. The body is furthermore the means by which sonic technology is manipulated. It is the complex, reverberating relationships between body, sound and technology, and their potential for eliciting affective transformation, which is the focus of my enquiry. In the first chapter I unpack the roles of the natural phenomena, body and sound, and their complex relationships to affect. The chapter serves as philosophical basis for the rest of the investigation, and draws largely on works by philosophers Susan Kozel, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Brian Massumi, Gille Deleuze and Félix Guatarri and sound theorists Don Ihde, Marshall McLuhan, Brandon LaBelle and Frances Dyson.In the remaining three chapters I discuss current South African theatre works that employ the strategy of placing emphasis on sound, sonic technology, and its relationship to the human body. These works are my own piece herTz (2014), Jaco Bouwer’s pieces Samsa-masjien (2014) and Na-aap (2013), and First Physical Theatre Company’s Everyday Falling (2010). While they range from being plays to physical theatre performances to performative experiments, they all place specific emphasis on sonic devices, drawing attention to sound by revealing microphones, speakers, midi boards, etc. to the attendants, and including the generation and manipulation of sound in the action of the performance.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Hearing things

- Claassen, José

Authors: Claassen, José
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
Identifier: vital:6019 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1021243
Description: William Carlos Williams wrote: "It isn't what the poet says that counts as a work of art, it's what he makes, with such intensity of purpose that it lives with an intrinsic movement of its own to verify its authenticity." I would like to think that my poems only borrow life from my pen, taking on an identity and music of their own with the help of some ‘making’ on my part. My poems embrace a continuum of human experience from the intrapersonal to the societal. Using imagistic and cinematic forms, they preserve the vitality of their sources, from the music of cityscapes, to the texture of emotions, to the narratives of particular characters.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Knowledge and knowers in teaching and learning: an enhanced approach to curriculum alignment

- Clarence, Sherran

Authors: Clarence, Sherran
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: article , text
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/59823 , vital:27655 , http://www.legitimationcodetheory.com/pdf/2016Clarence-c.pdf
Description: John Biggs’ well-known curriculum design approach, constructive alignment, is widely used in higher education in the United Kingdom, Australia and South Africa. Developed with one dominant account of learning through curriculum, this approach has a gap in terms of accounting for other kinds of knowledge building, and associated knower development. This paper proposes a complementary approach that accounts for different kinds of knowledge and knower building. Using Legitimation Code Theory’s concept of Specialisation, the paper argues that accounting for what makes a discipline ‘special’ in terms of its basis for legitimate achievement can enable curriculum writers to align curricula more effectively with that basis in different disciplines. Using a case study approach, this paper shows how this tool can provide lecturers and academic development practitioners with a useful mode of analysing curriculum alignment to more ably account for differential development of disciplinary knowledges and knowers.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Peer tutors as learning and teaching partners: a cumulative approach to building peer tutoring capacity in higher education

- Clarence, Sherran

Authors: Clarence, Sherran
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: article , text
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61335 , vital:28016 , http://cristal.epubs.ac.za/index.php/cristal/article/view/69
Description: Peer tutors in higher education are frequently given vital teaching and learning work to do, but the training or professional development and support opportunities they are offered vary, and more often than not peer tutors are under-supported. In order to create and sustain teaching and learning environments that are better able to facilitate students’ engagement with knowledge and learning, the role of peer tutors needs to be recognised differently, as that of learning and teaching partners to both lecturers and students. Tutors then need to be offered opportunities for more in-depth professional academic development in order to fully realise this role. This paper explores a tutor development programme within a South African writing centre that aimed at offering tutors such ongoing and cumulative opportunities for learning and growth using a balanced approach, which included scholarly research and practice-based training. Using narrative data tutors provided in reflective written reports, the paper explores the kinds of development in tutors’ thinking and action that are possible when training and development is theoretically informed, coherent, and oriented towards improving practice.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

An insight into the profile characteristics and technical batting skill of adolescent cricket players

- Clark, Matthew Edward

Authors: Clark, Matthew Edward
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/2838 , vital:20331
Description: Background: Current traditional cricket practices incorporate the use of a netted-off pitch to provide cricket players the opportunity to hone their skills with bat and ball. The lack of ecological validity of these training environments results in the absence of important task and environmental constraints which influences the manner in which the sport is played. Objectives: The purpose of the current research was two-fold: firstly, it aimed to establish a profile database of adolescent cricket players in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa; and secondly, it aimed to investigate the efficacy of a constraints-led training intervention on skill development in adolescent cricket batsmen. Methods: Study I required 90 participants (u13: n = 40; u15: n = 50) to perform measures pertaining to anthropometric, morphological, flexibility and physical performance characteristics. This included stature, mass, body composition, limb length, flexibility, agility, and power measures. Study II was a case-control study (u15: n = 24), whereby the experimental group (n = 12) was exposed to a constraints-led batting protocol during the course of the cricket season. The objective of the protocol was to encourage the manipulation of the ball around the playing field. Pre- and post-intervention measures were performed using a batting skills test, which assessed batsmen’s capability to manipulate the ball to various areas of the playing field. Results: Study I revealed significant differences (p <0.0001) in stature, mass, limb length and power variables when comparing the u15 age group with the u13 age group. No differences were recorded for agility. The u13 age group had greater linear correlations for the variables of interest compared to the u15 age group. Study II revealed no differences in technical skill between the experimental group and the control (p <0.315).. The tests also revealed that adolescent batsmen favoured hitting deliveries through the extra-cover scoring zone. The third-man and fine-leg scoring zones were least preferred to hit deliveries through. A number of limitations to the study design resulted in the inability to determine the efficacy of a constraints-led batting protocol on skill development in an adolescent batting cohort. Conclusion: The results of study I indicated that the onset of puberty played an important role in the measures and performances between the u13 and u15 age groups. The results of study II indicated that adolescent batsmen are not adept at manipulating the ball around the field. Recommendations are provided for both studies.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

The GULLS project: a comparison of vulnerabilities across selected ocean hotspots and implications for adaptation to global change

- Cochrane, Kevern L, Hobday, Alistair J, Aswani, Shankar, Byfield, Val, Dutra, Leo X, Gasalla, Maria A, Haward, Marcus, Paytan, Adina, Pecl, Gretta T, Popova, Katya, Sainulabdeen, Shyam S, Savage, Candida, Sauer, Warwick H H, van Putten, Ingrid E, Visser, Natascha, TG Team

Authors: Cochrane, Kevern L , Hobday, Alistair J , Aswani, Shankar , Byfield, Val , Dutra, Leo X , Gasalla, Maria A , Haward, Marcus , Paytan, Adina , Pecl, Gretta T , Popova, Katya , Sainulabdeen, Shyam S , Savage, Candida , Sauer, Warwick H H , van Putten, Ingrid E , Visser, Natascha , TG Team
Date: 2016
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/422037 , vital:71906
Description: The GULLS project, `Global learning for local solutions: Reducing vulnerability of marine-dependent coastal communities' has been underway since October 2014. The project has been investigating six regional `hotspots': marine areas experiencing rapid warming. These are south-east Australia, Brazil, India, Solomon Islands, South Africa, and the Mozambique Channel and Madagascar. Rapid warming could be expected to have social, cultural and economic impacts that could affect these countries in different ways and may already be doing so. GULLS has focused on contributing to assessing and reducing the vulnerability of coastal communities and other stakeholders dependent on marine resources and to facilitate adaptation to climate change and variability through an integrated and trans-disciplinary approach. It includes participants from Australia, Brazil, India, Madagascar, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. The research programme has been divided into six inter-linked components: ocean models, biological and ecological sensitivity analyses, system models, social vulnerability, policy mapping, and communication and education. This presentation will provide a brief overview of each of these components and describe the benefits that have resulted from the collaborative and transdisciplinary approach of GULLS. Following the standard vulnerability elements of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity, the vulnerabilities of coastal communities and other stakeholders dependent on marine resources in the five hotspots will be compared using a set of indicators derived and populated from results of the research programme. The implications of similarities and differences between the hotspots for adaptation planning and options will be described.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

A maturity grid-based method for assessing communication in business-IT alignment

- Coertze, Jacques Jacobus

Authors: Coertze, Jacques Jacobus
Date: 2016
Subjects: Business communication , Management information systems
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , DPhil
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/6740 , vital:21139
Description: This thesis reports on the research undertaken to develop a method for organisations to assess human communication between their business and IT personnel as part of business–IT alignment. The research described in this thesis involves (i) a literature review in business–IT alignment and related fields, such as management studies and communication science; (ii) a Delphi study conducted among industry members, practitioners, and academics operating in the IT advisory, auditing and communication disciplines; and (iii) a case study of a public sector organisation in South Africa. By adopting a system-theoretic perspective on communication, this thesis proposes that communication in business–IT alignment can be seen as coordinating behaviour and a series of learning and reflection events, consequently culminating in increased mutual understanding. Various conceptualisations of communication are explored and, together with several industry elicited factors that influence communication in business–IT alignment, are incorporated into a conceptual model informing the assessment method. This research developed, applied, and tested a method whereby organisations can assess the quality of the human communication between their business and IT personnel as part of the business–IT alignment endeavour. The aim of this method is to trigger reflection on communication by considering communication philosophy and practices in business–IT alignment. The method, termed the ‘Business-IT Communication Alignment Maturity Improvement Communication Alignment Maturity Improvement (CAMI) method’, is based on a maturity grid-based approach, which stems originally from process improvement in software development and quality management. This thesis is most closely aligned with the research performed by Maier, Eckert, and Clarkson (2004, 2006), who successfully applied the maturity grid-based approach to investigate, audit and assess communication within the engineering design process. The question addressed in this thesis is whether this approach can be successfully extrapolated to the business–IT alignment context and whether it would yield similar benefits. Furthermore, the issue of whether it would offer a practical method for use in organisations is also addressed. Having applied the CAMI method at a public sector organisation, this thesis proposes that the maturity grid-based approach can indeed be extrapolated to iv the business–IT alignment context, consequently offering a viable and practical method for assessing communication in organisations. In particular, the CAMI method allows organisations to capture both their current and their desired communication situations and to expose discrepancies between the perceptions held by their business and IT personnel. These results form a basis for action planning, strategizing, and, ultimately, interventions for improvement. In conclusion, the thesis discusses further application and extension possibilities for the assessment method.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Boetie is verlore: the reproduction of militarized white masculinities through the lens of Boetie gaan border toe! (1984)

- Coetzee, Joseph

Authors: Coetzee, Joseph
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MFA
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/4245 , vital:20638
Description: My father fought for the South African Defence Force (SADF) from 1983 to 1985. At that time the apartheid regime was involved in extensive military operations in what is now Namibia and Angola. This conflict was aimed at quelling the liberation movements in those countries and, as Gary Baines has noted, supported the United States of America’s Cold War interests (Baines 2007:1). When I was fourteen I found a piece written by my father in which he remembers the first person that he had killed in the aforementioned conflict. This was a child soldier who he compared to me as I was a similar age at the time of his writing. The idea of my father as a killer haunted me. He has carried the trauma of his experiences on the border with him; he has told me how the dead visit him in dreams. On the one hand, these memories, not my own, have been constructed through my interpretation of the events in my father’s stories. On the other hand, homologies may be drawn between his actual experiences and a fantasy representation of the conflict I have encountered, the film Boetie gaan border toe! or Brother goes to the border! (1984). This apartheid propaganda film presents an idealised representation of the conflict from the point of view of the apartheid state. The protagonist of the film, Boetie, is an example of the aspirational and dominant image of militarised masculinity the apartheid state wished young white men to emulate. The racist sexist, patriarchal and materialistic reality created within the film is one I am familiar with. The toys I grew up playing with, television shows, films, advertising and popular culture I consumed, alongside the boys’ school I attended and the University I currently attend are all rooted in and continue to reproduce this reality. I have encountered many similar archetypes to the Boetie character. With this in mind I wish through my art practice to create a work which draws upon my father’s writing and imagery from Boetie gaan border toe! (1984). I have placed these alongside windows into my contemporary context in order to emphasise the continual reproduction of these ideas. In reference to the Boetie film I have decided to create my own film entitled Boetie is verlore or Brother is lost. This is a magic realist documentary film that I have constructed through various interviews and fantasy dream sequences in order to paint a picture of the continual incubation and reproduction of realities similar to that of Boetie. Boetie is a rich white man who is characterised through his material possessions and his compulsive heterosexuality. White women are interchangeable to him whilst blackness in the film is made completely invisible. In South Africa such representations are strongly linked to the question of land and naturalising the white male coloniser’s dominance and privilege.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

A study of lanthanide complexes with di-2-pyridyl ligands

- Coetzee, Louis-Charl Cloete

Authors: Coetzee, Louis-Charl Cloete
Date: 2016
Subjects: Rare earth metals
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MTech
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/4731 , vital:20659
Description: The ligands di(2-pyridyl) ketone (DPK) and cis-1,2 di(2-pyridyl) ethylene (DPE) are N,N,Odonor ligands that can undergo nucleophilic addition and become more flexible for coordination. The reaction between the lanthanide thiocyanate salt and DPK gave rise to seven novel complexes of the general formula [Ln(NCS)3(DPKOH)3], where Ln = La, Ce, Nd, Eu, Tb, Dy and Ho. 1H NMR spectroscopy verified that the ligand underwent nucleophilic addition upon coordination. This was further confirmed using UV-Vis spectroscopy which showed a shift in the absorption bands due to conjugation of electrons within the pyridyl ring upon coordination. UV-Vis spectroscopy was also utilised to test the covalent character of the neodymium and holmium complexes. X-ray diffraction and IR spectroscopy showed that three DPK ligands coordinated bidentately through a pyridinic nitrogen and a hydroxyl oxygen, while three isothiocyanato molecules completed the coordination environment around each metal. Furthermore, X-ray diffraction also revealed that these complexes are isostructural, ninecoordinate and the polyhedron which encloses each ion is of trigonal tricapped prismatic shape with D3h symmetry. Micro-analysis on all the complexes, except lanthanum and holmium confirmed the molecular formulae produced from the crystallographic data of each complex. The reaction between the lanthanide thiocyanate salt and DPE produced poor quality crystals which could not be detected by X-ray diffraction. The lanthanide salts used for this reaction were lanthanum, neodymium, europium, dysprosium and holmium. Upon coordination, conductivity measurements detected the presence of lanthanide ions in each solution. 1H NMR and IR spectroscopic studies showed that the ethylenic moiety of DPE underwent nucleophilic addition upon coordination. UV-Vis spectroscopy further confirmed nucleophilic addition upon coordination due to shifts in absorption bands. IR spectroscopy verified the possibility of a bidentate coordination to each metal through a pyridinic nitrogen and a hydroxyl oxygen as well as a monodentate coordination through isothiocyanato ligands. A micro-analysis on all the complexes provided the molecular formulae that can best fit each complex. The effect of the solvent molecules on the bonding parameters of the lanthanum complex was investigated. An analysis of the results produced from crystallographic data revealed the presence of intermolecular forces which interacted and stabilised the complex.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

The legal consequences of migration of public Further Education and Training college employees to the Department of Higher Education and Training

- Coetzer, Louwrens Stefanus Daniel

Authors: Coetzer, Louwrens Stefanus Daniel
Date: 2016
Subjects: College personnel management -- South Africa , Education, Higher -- South Africa -- Administration , Educational change -- South Africa
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/6983 , vital:21189
Description: Staff, previously employed by Public Technical and Vocation Education and Training (TVET) Colleges, migrated (transferred) to the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) in terms of Section 197 of the Labour Relations Act. This treatise investigates the legal consequences of the migration of the staff from the fifty (50) TVET Colleges to DHET and focuses on the different categories of staff. The conditions of service of all the categories of staff before migration are compared with that after the migration. Meaningful recommendations are made about negotiations that should take place in the respective bargaining chambers in order to ensure a smooth transition that will prevent unnecessary legal consequences in future. The treatise furthermore analyses the legal consequences of staff, employed by temporary employment services to perform outsourced functions at TVET Colleges, who did not migrate to DHET. The legal implications of these members of staff is debated and evaluated. The treatise also discusses the performance management system and the changes from the integrated quality management system of lecturers to the performance management development system of public servants. TVET Colleges absorb the employment costs (as a separate employer) to ensure that there is growth in the Full Time Equivalents of Ministerial programmes, funded by DHET. The treatise makes meaningful recommendations to the new employer (DHET) with regard to the appointment of staff to conduct ministerial programmes and the overtime remuneration of current staff that willingly agree to work overtime but are not fairly remunerated by DHET. The treatise also considers the second phase of the migration process, namely the development of a blueprint organogram and the development of job descriptions for the different functions identified on the organogram. The process should ideally be followed by a restructuring process where staff are placed in identified functions and must be capacitated to perform the functions adequately. This process will ensure alignment of functions in the fifty TVET Colleges. Finally, the treatise notes the issue of workplace discipline at the TVET College and the definition of the workplace. It offers a proposal to the DHET to negotiate with the unions about defining the workplace as this has a legal consequence for attaining the objective of sound labour relations. It make meaningful recommendations about the overlapping regulatory requirements applicable to the TVET College as a legal person and DHET as an employer.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Meat and its meanings: representations of meat-eating in selected works of South African literature

- Coetzer, Theo

Authors: Coetzer, Theo
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3860 , vital:20550
Description: This thesis is situated within the burgeoning field of literary animal studies. Its aim is to analyse critically the way in which animals-as-meat are represented in South African literature. While meat pervades our lives and literature, there exists very little scholarship that considers literary depictions of meat. The thesis suggests that literary texts can offer useful reflections of the cultural environments in which they are immersed and, furthermore, can encourage what J. M. Coetzee calls the ‘sympathetic imagination’ in relation to animals. The dissertation offers close readings of three primary texts, while also drawing on a broader range of local fiction. Chapter 1 discusses Eben Venter’s Trencherman, with a specific focus on Venter’s use of the plaasroman and literary dystopia. Both genres are important to the novel’s ubiquitous depictions of meat, serving to illustrate some of the destructive, and irreversible, excesses associated with traditional Afrikaner culture in South Africa. Meat consumption is not only depicted as being among these harmful excesses, but also comes to represent them collectively. Chapter 2 offers a reading of Zakes Mda’s The Madonna of Excelsior, paying particular attention to its representation of the intersection between the objectification of women’s bodies and the transformation of animals into meat. In my approach to this text, I make use of Carol J. Adams’ notion of the ‘absent referent’. I suggest that while Mda ostensibly considers the subjugation of both women and animals, the novel does not ultimately demonstrate concern for animals in their own right. The final chapter considers the representation of suffering in Damon Galgut’s The Beautiful Screaming of Pigs. I argue that Galgut’s text is alone among the three primary texts in its attention to the animal suffering inextricably linked to meat production. The novel depicts this suffering as being comparable to human suffering, while simultaneously demonstrating humans’ indifference to their animal fellows. The dissertation concludes that while meat is infused with a range of meanings in South African literature, the most obvious and intrinsic one – the fact of animal death and animal suffering – is the one most often ignored.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Population assessment and feeding ecology of brown hyenas (hyaena brunnea) in Mountain Zebra National Park, Eastern Cape, South Africa

- Comley, Jessica

Authors: Comley, Jessica
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/2862 , vital:20336
Description: The development of many small (<400 km2), enclosed game reserves in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa over the past 25 years has contributed greatly to the conservation of large carnivores. However, the brown hyena (Hyaena brunnea) is one of the least studied large carnivores in South Africa. Nevertheless, the reintroduction of this species (n=3 in 2008) into Mountain Zebra National Park (MZNP) provided the perfect opportunity to broaden our understanding of the role that this carnivore plays in an enclosed system. Camera trap data was collected for just over a year from April 2014 to April 2015 and brown hyena density estimates were calculated using spatially explicit capture-recapture analysis. Left-side images of brown hyenas were used in the analysis and 12 individuals were positively identified. The best model to estimate brown hyena density included a road covariate and estimated brown hyena density to be 6-10 individuals/100 km2 (an absolute abundance of between 12 and 21 individuals), which is higher than densities calculated for brown hyenas in other arid, open systems. In, addition, brown hyena scat samples were collected over a five year period from April 2011 to June 2015 and standard techniques for scat analysis were used to identify prey items. Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) and lion (Panthera leo) kill site data were used to investigate the impacts of these species on the diet of brown hyenas. Before the release of lions brown hyenas predominantly scavenged on medium-sized mammals, which was what the cheetahs mainly killed. However, after the release of the lions, brown hyenas predominantly scavenged on large mammals, which was what the lions primarily killed. The results from my study indicate that brown hyenas are most likely reaching high densities in enclosed systems, due to increased scavenging opportunities provided by other large predators. The rapid increase of brown hyena densities from small founder populations in enclosed reserves could result in inbreeding. Therefore, in order to successfully conserve brown hyenas and other large carnivores in South Africa, continual post-release monitoring and possible implementation of meta-population management schemes is required.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Building communities through re-blocking in the city of Cape Town

- Connacher, Jayde

Authors: Connacher, Jayde
Date: 2016
Subjects: Squatter settlements -- South Africa -- Cape Town , Housing -- South Africa -- Cape Town
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/3499 , vital:20436
Description: This study uses the re-blocking policy adopted by the City of Cape Town to explore an alternative approach to the housing backlog crisis in South Africa. The two re-blocking projects examined in Mshini Wam and Kuku Town illustrate the benefits of re-blocking and the challenges that were overcome in both of these informal settlements. This study is descriptive in nature and explores the challenges that informal settlements present not only for their inhabitants, but also the impact these challenges have on the city itself. The re-blocking policy is explored as a potential approach to addressing these issues and how the in situ upgrading approach to informal settlements is an improved and sustainable approach for South Africa. Key findings suggest that the Re-blocking Policy can potentially address the challenges that informal settlements present and it could serve as a sustainable housing model for improving service delivery to informal settlements.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

The development of a recommended digital marketing strategy for Pan Macmillan, South Africa

- Conradie, Tessa Jane

Authors: Conradie, Tessa Jane
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
Identifier: vital:865 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1021247
Description: This research attempts to create a recommended digital marketing strategy for Pan Macmillan, South Africa. As a result of the advance of technology and the increase of connectivity, digital marketing is becoming a highly important tool with regards to competitive advantage, differentiation and the overall marketing of a company and its product or service (Barwise and Farley, 2005, p. 68). Digital marketing is, in South Africa specifically, a relatively new concept (Sandmann, 2014, p. 1). If South African companies are able to efficiently utilise the gap in the market, they will ensure a significant competitive advantage (Sandmann, 2013, p. 1). In order to accomplish this successfully a digital marketing strategy must be created and adopted to ensure a full understanding of the requirements of effective digital marketing. This research focusses on understanding digital marketing requirements in relation to a South African book publisher and how those requirements can be met by the publisher through the development of a digital marketing strategy. The literature has been reviewed and previous research indicates that an established framework is needed to guide the development of a digital marketing strategy. The framework used in this research is the RACE framework (Chaffey and Bosomworth, 2013, p. 14) which is used in conjunction to the SOSTAC planning system (Chaffey and Bosomworth, 2014, p. 11) and the 7 steps to digital marketing strategy creation (Chaffey and Bosomworth, 2014, p. 2). The literature suggests that a combination of the established traditional marketing strategy of a company and current digital marketing practices and tools is the most practical with regards to the development of a successful digital marketing strategy, implementation and evaluation. In order to understand the current marketing strategy and practices of Pan Macmillan, interviews with the Marketing Manager of the company were conducted as well as an analysis of marketing documents relating to Pan Macmillan’s current marketing actions. Results of the interviews and documentation analysis showed that Pan Macmillan had many elements digital marketing but no decisive digital marketing strategy. Using the selected frameworks and information gathered on the company’s marketing practices, digital marketing goals were established and a digital marketing strategy was created. The goals of the research were reached as a recommended digital marketing strategy was developed for Pan Macmillan based on the assessment made, using RACE, SOSTAC and the 7 steps to digital marketing creation, of the company’s current practices, challenges and opportunities with regards to digital marketing.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Risk analysis and management systems in South African construction project management practices

- Cook, Iain Murray

Authors: Cook, Iain Murray
Date: 2016
Subjects: Construction projects -- Management , Construction industry -- Risk management , Project management -- South Africa
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/3469 , vital:20433
Description: Risk management (RM) should be seen as one of the most important functions in the South African built environment. Without the effective management of the risks associated with the industry, the noble vision of a sector that is efficient, profitable, and sustainable cannot be achieved. By embracing tried and tested policies that successfully mitigate risk, industry stakeholders will achieve many project successes, and will outlast any competitors that choose to ignore, or are ignorant of the fact, that the negative impact risk has on projects is inversely proportional to the level of RM employed. Construction Project Management (CPM) practices, realising that there are excellent business opportunities across South Africa’s borders, and faced with a competitive South African market, are engaging with developers and government entities involved in cross border projects in the hope of securing these potentially lucrative African projects. With this move into Africa comes increased uncertainty and risk for these CPM practices, and other project stakeholders. Similarly, CPM practices that have made the strategic decision to remain operational only within South Africa’s borders, are faced with a competitive and complex built environment and industry, made increasingly challenging by a weakening economy, exacerbated by industrial strikes, infrastructure deficiencies and a decrease in industry skill levels. This study reports on Project Managers’ (PMs’) perceptions of project failures and inefficiencies resulting from inadequate RM on projects, including the RM methodologies currently being employed. The study focused on perceptions of PMs who operate within South Africa’s borders, PMs that operate across border into other African countries, as well as PMs who operate exclusively within South Africa’s built environment framework. A study was undertaken incorporating qualitative methodologies via a normative survey. The survey was split into three main phases. Phase one employed the use of a pilot survey executed with the objective of further investigating the main sub-problems to gain more insight into the related issues and challenges. For the pilot survey, PMs were selected based on their engagement in CPM activities within South Africa as well as across South Africa’s borders into other African countries. Phase two of the main survey, with the sample stratum being the Association of Construction Project Managers (ACPM), was aimed at PMs within the ACPM who have engaged, or are engaging, in CPM activities both within South Africa’s borders as well as across South Africa’s borders into other African countries. Phase 3 of the main survey, with the sample stratum being the ACPM, was aimed at PMs within the ACPM who have engaged, or are engaging, in CPM activities within South Africa’s borders only and have not engaged in cross border activities. Survey findings identified the commercial sector and value of the projects undertaken by the practices, the level of risk associated with different client typologies, the link between inadequate RM and project inefficiency and failure, and the importance of RM on projects. Findings also identified that RM methodologies are employed by CPM practices, and that CPM practices generally endeavour to create a culture of risk awareness amongst employees. Further findings indicated that CPM practices may not always understand the risks associated with new industry sectors, regions or countries that they are considering operating within, and that that there is room for improvement regarding the effectiveness of current RM systems. Survey findings also indicated that risk is not always transferred to the correct project stakeholder most suited to managing the risk, and CPM practices are not always able to accurately quantify the costs associated with project risk. Furthermore, it was identified that CPM practices do not always undertaken risk assessments (RAs) at the correct project stage resulting in inadequate risk contingencies allowances, regular risk reviews are not always undertaken for projects, project pre-mortems are seen as valuable tools by CPM practices as a method to reduce future risk, and project post-mortems relative to ‘lessons learnt’ are not always undertaken. Conclusions outline the link between effective RM, project inefficiencies and project failure, as well as the increase or decrease in risk relative to ineffective or effective use of risk identification and management methodologies for time, cost, and quality factors respectively. Conclusions also outline the fact that although CPM practices generally understand the link between RM and project success, they are not always able to fully comprehend the risks associated with new industry sectors, regions or cross border countries. This indicates that without the adequate identification of risk, the RM process or steps that follow the qualitative risk identification process will have little or no value. This is indicative of the requirement for professional associations to consolidate risk data for industry activities with the aim of improving the level of RM industry wide. Recommendations highlight the importance of the compiling of sector specific risk registers, compiled by the South African Council for the Project and Construction Management Professions (SACPCMP) with registered member input, made available to all PMs via the SACPCMPs online database. Further recommendations include: the engendering, by senior management of CPM practices; a healthy ‘risk aware’ culture, by promoting RM practices aligned with best practice methodologies; the implementation of well balanced and formal RM systems throughout the CPM practice, with the aim of achieving effective RM without overburdening PMs with unnecessary documentation or ‘paperwork’; the attendance of risk conferences and workshops by all CPM practices, aimed at specifically identifying challenges that exist with RM and methods that can be employed to improve the status quo; the attendance of formal risk training courses, by all CPM practices, aimed at improving the knowledge base of PMs relative to effective RM, and the appointment of risk professionals, driven by the monetary value and risk levels of the project, to undertake the RM process and unburden PMs from the task, allowing PMs to concentrate on the other project knowledge areas.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Entomopathogenic fungi as control agents of Thaumatotibia leucotreta in citrus orchards: field efficacy and persistence

- Coombes, Candice A, Hill, Martin P, Moore, Sean D, Dames, Joanna F

Authors: Coombes, Candice A , Hill, Martin P , Moore, Sean D , Dames, Joanna F
Date: 2016
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/417956 , vital:71497 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-016-9756-x"
Description: Entomopathogenic fungal isolates Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin (Hypocreales: Cordycipitaceae) strain G Ar 17 B3 and Metarhizium anisopliae (Metchnikoff) Sorokin (Hypocreales: Clavicipitaceae) strain FCM Ar 23 B3 have been identified as effective control agents of the important citrus pest Thaumatotibia leucotreta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) wandering fifth instars under laboratory conditions. This study is the first report on the ability of these isolates to persist and reduce T. leucotreta infestation in commercial citrus orchards in South Africa. A reduction in pest infestation of between 28 and 82 % upon trial completion was reported. Both isolates were recovered from soil samples collected five months post-application with high host density and moderate to high soil moisture favouring recovery. Low soil moisture negatively influenced the persistence of both isolates and the control efficiency of B. bassiana. These results provide evidence and support for the future use of these isolates against T. leucotreta thus warranting further investigation.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Quick View

Field evaluation of the use of select entomopathogenic fungal isolates as microbial control agents of the soil-dwelling life stages of a key South African citrus pest, Thaumatotibia leucotreta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)

- Coombes, Candice Anne

Authors: Coombes, Candice Anne
Date: 2016
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/507 , vital:19965
Description: The control of false codling moth (FCM), Thaumatotibia leucotreta (Meyrick, 1912) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), in citrus orchards is strongly reliant on the use of integrated pest management as key export markets impose stringent chemical restrictions on exported fruit and have a strict no entry policy towards this phytosanitary pest. Most current, registered control methods target the above-ground life stages of FCM, not the soil-dwelling life stages. As such, entomopathogenic fungi which are ubiquitous, percutaneously infective soil-borne microbes that have been used successfully as control agents worldwide, present ideal candidates as additional control agents. Following an initial identification of 62 fungal entomopathogens isolated from soil collected from citrus orchards in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, further laboratory research has highlighted three isolates as having the greatest control potential against FCM subterranean life stages: Metarhizium anisopliae G 11 3 L6 (Ma1), M. anisopliae FCM Ar 23 B3 (Ma2) and Beauveria bassiana G Ar 17 B3 (Bb1). These isolates are capable of causing above 80% laboratory-induced mycosis of FCM fifth instars. Whether this level of efficacy was obtainable under sub-optimal and fluctuating field conditions was unknown. Thus, this thesis aimed to address the following issues with regards to the three most laboratory-virulent fungal isolates: field efficacy, field persistence, optimal application rate, application timing, environmental dependency, compatibility with fungicides and the use of different wetting agents to promote field efficacy. Following fungal application to one hectare treatment blocks in the field, FCM infestation within fruit was reduced by 28.3% to 81.7%. Isolate Bb1 performed best under moderate to high soil moisture whilst Ma2 was more effective under low soil moisture conditions. All isolates, with the exception of Ma2 at one site, were recorded in the soil five months post-application. None of the wetting agents tested were found to be highly toxic to fungal germination and similar physical suspension characteristics were observed. Fungicide toxicity varied amongst isolates and test conditions. However, only Dithane (a.i. mancozeb) was considered incompatible with isolate Ma2. The implication of these results and the way forward is discussed. This study is the first report of the field efficacy of three laboratory-virulent fungal isolates applied to the soil of conventional citrus orchards against FCM soil-dwelling life stages. As such, it provides a foundation on which future research can build to ensure the development and commercialisation of a cost-effective and consistently reliable product.
Full Text:
Date Issued: 2016

Showing items 141 - 160 of 1123