Social enterprises and organizational learning in South Africa

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boris Urban ◽  
Elena Gaffurini
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Organizational Learning ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Emerging Market ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Social Enterprises ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between different dimensions of organizational learning capabilities (OLC) and levels of social innovation in social enterprises. Design/methodology/approach The empirical strategy adopted is a cross-sectional study based on primary survey data. Following a survey of social enterprises in South Africa, statistically analysis is conducted using regression analyses to test the study hypotheses. Findings The findings show that the OLC dimensions of knowledge conversion, risk management, organizational dialogue and participative decision-making all have a significant and positive relationship with social innovation. Research limitations/implications In many emerging economies, the notion of organizational learning appears to have considerable potential relevance, particularly as African countries are moving toward knowledge-based economies. By focusing on OLC, it is anticipated that social enterprises can configure and leverage the different factors in ways that enable them to overcome the constraints of the complex and unpredictable environments and increase their levels of social innovation. Originality/value The paper provides a pioneering empirical investigation into the impact that OLC has on levels of social innovation, in an under-researched emerging market context.

Impact investing in South Africa: managing tensions between financial returns and social impact

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 397-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eunivicia Matlhogonolo Mogapi ◽  
Margaret Mary Sutherland ◽  
Anthony Wilson-Prangley
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Emerging Market ◽  
Financial Returns ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Financial Return ◽  
Impact Investing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Impact investment is an emergent field worldwide and it can play an especially important role in Africa. The aim of this study was to examine how impact investors in South Africa manage the tensions between financial returns and social impact. Design/methodology/approach The research was based on 15 semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders in the impact investment community in South Africa to understand the related challenges, trade-offs and tensions. Findings There are two opposing views expressed as to whether the tensions between financial return and social impact result in trade-offs. It is proposed that impact investors embrace this duality and seek to approach it through a contingency and a paradox view. The tensions can be approached by focussing on values alignment, contracting processes, engaged leadership and sector identification. The authors integrate the findings into a proposed framework for effective tension management in an impact investment portfolio. Research limitations/implications This study was limited to selected South African interviewees. It would be valuable to extend the study to other African countries. Practical implications The issue of values alignment between investors, fund managers and investee firms is an important finding for practice. As is the four-part iterative framework for sensing the operating environment, defining impact, organising internally and defining the investment approach. Originality/value This study contributes empirical evidence to scholarship around organisational tensions, especially work in hybrid organisations. It affirms the value of a nuanced application of paradox theory. It examines these tensions through the lived experience of impact investing professionals in an emerging market context.

Do ambient conditions in offices impact learning?

Facilities ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 291-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aneetha Rao Kasuganti
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Learning ◽  
Situated Learning ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Ambient Conditions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Physical Environments ◽  
Knowledge Intensive ◽  
Office Environments ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between satisfaction with ambient conditions and perceptions of situated learning in knowledge-intensive organizations. The paper argues that satisfaction with ambient conditions facilitates situated learning in open office environments. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional study was conducted on 117 professionals from IT and consultancy companies. Hierarchical linear regression was used to analyze the impact of satisfaction with ambient conditions on perceptions of situated learning. Findings Learning that occurs in everyday activities on the job is enhanced by satisfying ambient conditions in the physical environments of open offices. Originality/value The paper contributes to literature on organizational learning by examining aspects of the physical environment as antecedents of organizational learning, thereby providing insights for design and management of office environments to maximize employee outcomes.

Fashion designers' attitude-behaviour inconsistencies towards a sustainable business model: a neutralisation theory perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asphat Muposhi ◽  
Brighton Nyagadza ◽  
Chengedzai Mafini
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Emerging Market ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Sustainable Fashion ◽  
Fashion Designers

PurposeFashion designers in South Africa remain ambivalent in embracing sustainable fashion. This study examines the role of neutralisation techniques on attitude towards sustainable fashion. The study was conducted in South Africa, an emerging market known for water scarcity and pollution emanating from the textile industry.Design/methodology/approachA structured questionnaire was used to collect cross-sectional data from a sample of 590 fashion designers using a web-based online survey. Study constructs were drawn from the neutralisation theory and theory of planned behaviour.FindingsStandard multiple regression analysis results identified denial of injury, appeal to higher loyalties and external locus of control as the major rationalisation techniques influencing South African designers' negative attitudes towards sustainable fashion.Research limitations/implicationsResearch was conducted in South Africa where the concept of sustainable fashion is still at developmental stages. The generalisation of the study findings may be enhanced by extending the study to other markets with a fully developed market for sustainable fashion.Practical implicationsThe study results underscore the necessity of reducing social, structural and institutional barriers associated with the adoption of sustainable fashion. This study provides input towards efforts to develop attitude change strategies to stimulate designers to embrace sustainable fashion.Originality/valueThe research study contributes to theory, practice and future research.

Foundational competencies for enhancing work engagement in SMEs Malaysia

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 165-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aliyu Yelwa Haruna ◽  
Govindan Marthandan
Keyword(s):  
Work Engagement ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Positive Role ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Additional Support ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study aims to examine the impact of foundational competencies on work engagement in the context of the Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) service sector. Design/methodology/approach This is a cross-sectional study conducted in Malaysia, and data were gathered via a survey on 312 employees representing SMEs service sectors. Partial least squares techniques were used in testing the hypothesized linkages. Findings The findings indicated that foundational competencies have a significant positive effect on work engagement. Research limitations/implications Considering the research approach, generalizing the findings of this study must be done with caution. Longitudinal data are recommended, as these could provide additional support to the results. Further studies can as well extend the framework by testing whether job resources play a positive role in enhancing the relationship between foundational competencies and work engagement in Malaysia. Practical implications The findings suggest that foundational competencies positively relate to work engagement. Therefore, training and coaching sessions could be organized by managers/policy makers to enhance these competencies, which will strengthen work engagement and career development of the employee; it may specifically be very helpful for fresh graduates whose careers would have just started. Originality/value To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first attempt to examine the effect of American Society of Training and Development foundational competencies on work engagement in SMEs in Malaysia.

Interest rate liberalization and economic growth nexus: does corruption matter?

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulhadi Aliyara Haruna ◽  
Abu Sufian Abu Bakar
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Interest Rate ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Interest Rate Liberalization ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to examine the impact of interest rate liberalization on economic growth and the relevance of corruption in the five selected sub-Saharan African countries. Design/methodology/approach The study used the modified version of Driscoll and Kraay’s model by Hoechle, which solved the effects of cross-sectional dependence and heteroscedasticity. Findings The findings reveal a positive impact of the index on economic growth, and it was found that foreign direct investment (FDI) and credit to private sector by banks (CPSB) all stimulate economic growth. The interaction terms of corruption with FDI and CPSB indicate negative effects that show how corruption erodes the benefits of liberalization. Finally, the paper recommends the pursuit of appropriate policies with the sole aim of eradicating corruption and providing a conducive environment for business. Originality/value The paper developed a composite domestic financial liberalization index to capture the timing and essential dimensions of the reform process. The study investigates the effect of interest rate liberalization on economic growth and the relevance of corruption. Most of the recent and past studies only examined the impact of interest rate reforms on growth without investigating the relevance of corruption.

scholarly journals Women's birth beliefs and associated factors in an obstetrics clinic in the Southeastern Anatolian Region of Turkey

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 345-351
Author(s):  
Figen Alp Yilmaz ◽  
Yeter Durgun Ozan
Keyword(s):  
Associated Factors ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
University Hospital ◽  
Healthcare Personnel ◽  
Delivery Mode ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Pregnancy And Delivery ◽  
Consultation Services ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe impact of birth beliefs on pregnancy and delivery are universally recognized, but the factors that affect birth beliefs vary across regions depending on individual and cultural characteristics. This study aimed to determine women's birth beliefs and examine their associated factors.Design/methodology/approachThis cross-sectional study was conducted with 548 primiparas in the obstetrics clinic of a university hospital located in the Southeastern Anatolian Region of Turkey from February to June 2019. Descriptive characteristics, form and the Birth Beliefs Scale were used in data collection. To analyze the data, descriptive statistics, T-tests and ANOVA analyses were used.FindingsIt was determined that factors such as age group, income level, any problems during pregnancy and preferred delivery mode statistically affected women's birth beliefs.Originality/valueBased on the findings from this study, healthcare personnel should provide training and consultation services to pregnant women starting from the prenatal period to help ensure a positive labor experience.

scholarly journals Resiliency and mental health of school teachers in Okinawa

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Ratanasiripong ◽  
Takashi China ◽  
Nop T Ratanasiripong ◽  
Shiho Toyama
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Demographic Data ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Teaching Profession ◽  
Regression Analyses ◽  
School Teachers ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the mental health issues among teachers globally and to investigate the significant factors that specifically impact the mental health of school teachers in Okinawa, Japan.Design/methodology/approachThis cross-sectional study examined depression, anxiety, stress, self-esteem and resiliency among 174 teachers from seven schools in Okinawa, Japan. The study questionnaire consisted of four parts, including demographic data, Depression, Anxiety, and Stress scale (DASS-42), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE), and Connor-Davidson Resiliency Scale (CD-RISC). Multiple regression analyses were performed to identify predictors of mental health variables.FindingsOf the 174 teachers, 111 were females (64%) and 60 were males (35%). Average age of participants was 41.65 (SD = 10.07). Average number of years being a teacher was 15.50 (SD = 9.88). There was a significant gender difference in the level of self-esteem. Significant differences in anxiety were found among varying grade levels taught. Regression analyses indicated that resiliency and self-esteem significantly predicted depression, anxiety and stress among school teachers in Okinawa.Originality/valueThis is the first study among school teachers in Okinawa that examined the impact of resiliency and self-esteem on their mental health. To reduce psychological distress common within the teaching profession, social and environmental support should be provided within the school to better foster the successful promotion of teacher resiliency and self-esteem.

Economic impact of data localization in five selected African countries

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 337-357
Author(s):  
Mona Farid Badran
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
General Equilibrium ◽  
Computable General Equilibrium ◽  
Research Paper ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

Purpose The purpose of this study is to quantify the impact of laws and regulations that govern the cross-border flow of data on the economies of five selected African countries, namely, Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, Kenya and Mauritius. Moreover, this study addresses the state of cloud computing in Africa. Finally, policy recommendations are provided in this respect. Design/methodology/approach To reach accurate finding the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) data was used, and then the computable general equilibrium (CGE) was computed to estimate the total cost on the economy. Using the three data regulations linkages indexes (DRLs), the increased administrative cost effect was analyzed on five to six major economic sectors in the target countries. This was followed by estimating the loss in sector-wide total factor productivity (TFP) (for the five to six shortlisted sectors). Using this data, the computable general equilibrium model (CGE) was computed, in order to estimate the economy-wide impact. Based on these findings, a set of recommendations were offered to the policy maker, reflecting the obtained results and conclusions and their implications on drafting data-related policies. Findings The obtained data indexes reveal that Mauritius is the country with the most laws and regulations governing the cross border flow of data, followed by South Africa Egypt to a lesser extent and finally Morocco and Kenya both showing an obvious lack of data regulations. The small value of the estimated elasticity of the selected countries compared to the value of the estimated elasticity in the EU-0.347 shows that the impact of data localization is less in the selected African countries than in the other set of EU countries examined in the research paper. This is because the former has smaller economies with fewer linkages to the global economy and are less reliant on sectors that are heavy users of data. Thus, the overall impact of data localization was not as profound on TFP as is the case in advanced economies. This research paper arrives at the conclusion that fighting the trend of data localization is crucial. In fact, data localization hinders the necessary and essential role of global trade in realizing economic development. Specifically, this is evident in the increase in production costs as reflected in the increase of the prices of goods, which would lead to a decline in incomes. Originality/value Global studies looked at the impact of data localization on the EU, as well as China, India, Korea and Vietnam, providing some data on Asia Pacific. However, no study has ever been conducted on the Middle East and Africa. This study aims to fill this gap. The approach of this study is to capture the extent of data localization mandates encoded in the laws of each of the selected five African countries showing how these mandates govern their cross-border data flow and, in turn, affect their economies. Furthermore, the policy recommendations section of this research paper makes a contribution to the existing literature.

Impact of knowledge sharing, learning adaptability and organizational commitment on absorptive capacity in pharmaceutical firms based in Pakistan

2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Rafique ◽  
Shafqat Hameed ◽  
Mujtaba Hassan Agha
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Commitment ◽  
Absorptive Capacity ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Knowledge Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
Pharmaceutical Firms ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Absorptive capacity being an emerging field of research has been studied in different perspectives both in technological aspects and soft issues. Although an original study of absorptive capacity placed employees as playing pivoting role in the development of absorptive capacity (Cohen and Levinthal, 1990), unfortunately, there are limited studies on behavior of employees toward this emerging construct. This study aims to explore the impact of employees’ behavior in the development of absorptive capacity. Specifically, impact of knowledge sharing, learning adaptability and organizational commitment on absorptive capacity has been evaluated in this study. Design/methodology/approach This cross-sectional study was conducted at the pharmaceutical firms of Pakistan. The data were collected through random sampling from middle managers as a unit of analysis of this study. The rationale of the unit of analysis is that the maximum information is handled/accessed by the middle managers in the perspective of Pakistan. The data were collected from 170 respondents on a five-point Likert scale with the response rate of 66.7 per cent. Data were collected from different genders and different age groups with different qualification levels. Findings All independent variables showed significant positive correlations with overall absorptive capacity (ACAP). At the same time, different relationships of all independent variables were found in different ways with different significant levels. The results showed that different strategies may be adopted to manage the external knowledge for competition in turbulent environment. For example, organizational commitment may be incorporated at strategy formulation only, whereas the Adaptability at both routine and strategy formulation stage. As all independent variables showed no correlation with Acquisition it is concluded that Acquisition is purely a routine function, and instead of coordination, the routine processes must be emphasized. Research limitations/implications This study focused on the data from the middle managers of the pharmaceutical firms only. The results may not be generalized to the sectors. Another limitation is that the respondents of the study were middle managers. It was made intentional to see the impact of management aspects other than organizational mechanisms, as discussed by Cohen and Levinthal (1990) and Jansen et al. (2005) in their studies. The results on the basis of the data collected from other entities of the organization may differ. This is a cross-sectional study, and a longitudinal study may give different results. Practical implications Absorptive capacity has the capability to absorb new knowledge and plays an important role in the development of organizational processes to compete in the turbulent environment. It is dependent not only on technological infrastructure but also on the employees’ behaviors and attitudes. This study gives insights about the knowledge process activities and employment of human resource at each phase of absorptive capacity in relation to their behaviors toward knowledge process. Social implications Development of organizational process with knowledge management plays an important role in the capacity building, which ultimately enhances social paradigm of activities. Originality/value Pharmaceutical companies in Pakistan acquire technologies from foreign countries and have very limited research and development of their own. As technology is upgraded by the foreign companies as a continuous improvement process, local firms of Pakistan are required to absorb the new knowledge with the same pace. The study highlights importance of human capital in the development of this capability.

Comparing health status, disability, and access to care in older and younger inmates in the New South Wales corrections system

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-161
Author(s):  
Courtney Field ◽  
Vicki Archer
Keyword(s):  
Access To Care ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Aging Prisoners ◽  
Older Inmates ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to compare the rates of chronic illness, disability and access to care between older and younger inmates who took part in a large epidemiological study in New South Wales, Australia. Design/methodology/approach Data are presented from a cross-sectional study based on a sample of inmates from correctional sites in NSW. The inclusion of results here was guided by the literature with regard to their relevance to older people, and older inmates in particular. Findings Results indicate that a higher proportion of older inmates suffer a range of chronic illnesses, with prevalence often many times higher than that of younger inmates. Older inmates are more likely to be classified as disabled and have a disability which impacts their mobility. Older inmates also reported accessing medical services in prison more recently than younger inmates and were more likely to have seen both nurses and general practitioners. Practical implications Older inmates appear to be considerably more resource intensive than younger inmates. The increasing proportion of inmates who are classified as older thus poses a pressing challenge to those working in the carceral space and, in particular, those responsible for providing healthcare to incarcerated people. Originality/value The impact of aging prisoners on resource demand has yet to be effectively measured. This study provides an important first step towards that goal.

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