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Apprentice selection: A systematic literature review from 1990 to 2020

Orientation: Technological innovations and developments in methods of productivity have resulted in an increased demand for technically-oriented artisans. However, the supply of qualified artisans is insufficient to meet the demand.Research purpose: This article is the product of a systematic investigation into the extent and nature of empirical literature related to human resource selection practices used for apprentices.Motivation for the study: The authors noted inadequate research into the selection practices used for apprentices. This investigation was motivated by the need to systematically verify the extent and nature of the empirical literature on apprentice selection, both internationally and nationally.Research design, approach and method: A systematic literature review of published empirical research articles (for the period 1990–2020) in scholarly databases was conducted. The literature was accessed through relevant databases within the business management, human resource management and industrial psychology fields. The literature was restricted to scholarly (i.e., peer reviewed journals), English full textual data. Twelve combinations of two clusters of key words were used in the search function. The first cluster was apprentice, apprenticeship and artisan, with the second cluster being selection, selection process, staffing and recruitment. Four exclusion categories were used to reject literature that were unrelated, dissimilar and unconnected with the purpose of the literature review.Main findings: From the comprehensive review of the literature, 12 articles were found to have content related to the selection of apprentices. Five core themes, with 11 sub-themes, were identified from this literature. A research agenda is proposed with research questions identified for each theme.Practical/managerial implications: This literature review has provided a synthesised summary of the available literature on apprentice selection. Through the provision of a research agenda, this article contributes by providing a foundation for further research in the field.Contribution/value-add: This article adds to the current literature available on apprentice selection practices. This should alert researchers of the need to further explore this area to enhance knowledge and understanding of the best practices employed in the selection of apprentices.

Women-friendly HR management practices and organisational commitment among female professionals: Evidence from Zimbabwe

Orientation: Despite the growing feminisation of the global labour market, discrimination against women in the workplace remains entrenched. Such discrimination of women is largely attributed to human resources management (HRM) policies and management practices which are inherently masculine, designed by men for men.Research purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the influence of human resources management practices on the organisational commitment among female professionals in Zimbabwe.Motivation for the study: Notwithstanding the growing scholarly interest in the factors which can help retain women in the workplaces, there remains a paucity of studies from developing countries on how HRM practices influence female professionals’ organisational commitment in the workplace. Dearth in empirical literature is pronounced in Africa, particularly in a society such as Zimbabwe punctuated by patriarchy and an economy that has been depressed for over two decades.Research design, approach and method: The study adopted a quantitative research approach and employed a cross-sectional survey of 210 female professionals employed in the private and public sectors in Zimbabwe. Structural equation modelling was employed for data analysis using AMOS 25.0.Main findings: The results of the study revealed positive and significant relationships between women-friendly HR management practices and organisational commitment of female employees.Practical/managerial implications: Premised on these findings, the study recommended that it is imperative for HR management to implement non-discriminatory rewards systems, increase family-friendly policies, prioritise continuous training and charter clear progressive career development programs for the female employees.Contribution/value-add: This study provides managers with a better perspective of the predictors of organisational commitment among female professionals in an African context.

Counterfeiting: Exploring mitigation capabilities and resilience in South African pharmaceutical supply chains

Orientation: Pharmaceutical supply chains (SCs) are experiencing a growing emergence of illicit trade of counterfeited products. This threat is amplified because of global distributed SC networks, increased access to the Internet and challenging economic conditions.Research purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore risk mitigation capabilities and SC resilience (SCRES) to reduce the effects of counterfeiting in the South African pharmaceutical industry.Motivation for the study: Developing countries such as South Africa tend to be more vulnerable to counterfeiting, as these countries do not have established responses that are seen in more developed countries, such as SC regulation, track-and-trace technology and enforcement regimes.Research design, approach and method: This study employed a generic qualitative research design. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 12 pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors and retailers in the South African pharmaceutical industry. A thematic analysis approach was followed to analyse the collected data.Main findings: The findings show that the sources of counterfeiting stem from the local and outsourced manufacturing of counterfeited products, presence of unauthorised distributors and importing of counterfeit products. Risk awareness can be enhanced by collaborating with industry members, training members to identify counterfeits and by developing authentication technologies. The industry actively combats counterfeiting by using SCRES enablers including visibility, collaboration, information sharing and by developing an SC risk management culture.Practical/managerial implications: South African pharmaceutical firms have limited resilience. Therefore, managers should develop flexibility, agility, sensing and redundancy as resilience enables firms to combat counterfeiting.Contribution/value-add: This study expands the current literature by identifying the unique sources of counterfeiting and risk mitigation capabilities to combat counterfeiting in pharmaceutical firms in a developing country context.

South African Generation Y students’ intention towards ecopreneurship

Orientation: It has been argued that the solution to the deteriorating state of the natural environment should not simply be one of regulation but rather of innovation. As such, entrepreneurship or, more specifically, ecopreneurship has been identified as a possible solution.Research purpose: This study’s primary objective was to determine Generation Y students’ intention towards becoming ecopreneurs within the context of South Africa.Motivation of study: Research regarding ecopreneurship is still scarce within academic literature both globally and in South Africa. This study aims to address this research gap.Research design, approach and method: A quantitative research approach was followed using a descriptive, cross-sectional research design. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 522 students across three Higher Education Institutions in South Africa. The statistical analysis used to analyse the collected data included exploratory factor analysis, descriptive analysis, and correlation analysis.Main findings: This study’s findings indicate that university students belonging to the Generation Y cohort in South Africa display positive intentions towards becoming ecopreneurs. The students’ intentions were, however, lower than their reported knowledge and concern for the environment. All constructs used yielded positive results, albeit to varying degrees and a positive correlation between them were noted.Practical/managerial implications: Generation Y university students in South Africa display positive intentions towards becoming ecopreneurs. Thus, support to assist them in starting such ventures should be prioritised by incubation programmes and governments funding opportunities.Contribution/value-add: This study contributes to the existing literature on entrepreneurship, ecopreneurship, environmentalism and Generation Y students in the South African context.

The association between ownership concentration and payout behaviour: Evidence from South Africa

Orientation: The study investigated the association between ownership concentration and different payout methods of selected companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in South Africa for the financial reporting periods 2012 to 2019.Research purpose: The research objective was to investigate whether payout behaviour differed when low and high ownership concentration was compared.Motivation for the study: An understanding of the association between ownership concentration and payout policies is an important corporate governance aspect that could reveal the agency conflict between majority and minority shareholders. No previous South African empirical study has considered testing or investigating the two opposing agency-based hypotheses, namely the monitoring and rent extraction hypotheses, with reference to different payout methods.Research design, approach, and method: An empirical research design was followed, which is descriptive in nature. Descriptive statistics and a mixed-model analysis of variance were employed to describe the different payout methods – that is ordinary dividends, special dividends, capital distributions, additional shares, general share repurchases, and specific share repurchases – employed by companies listed on the JSE based on a distinction between low and high ownership concentration.Main findings: High ownership concentration was found to be associated with statistically significant lower ordinary dividends and capital distributions in support of the rent extraction hypothesis. Rent extraction highlights the agency conflict between majority and minority shareholders.Practical/managerial implications: Findings of the present study revealed agency conflicts that may be informative to those charged with corporate governance to help them resolve agency conflict.Contribution/value-add: This study is the first to consider the association between ownership concentration and payout behaviour in South Africa subsequent to the introduction of the dividends tax regime in 2012. The descriptive evidence submitted can serve as a basis for further explanatory research relating to ownership concentration and payout behaviour of companies.

The intention of South Africans to engage in collaborative consumption: The case of Uber

Orientation: The idea of collaborative consumption is developing among consumers, where underutilised or excess resources, skills and money are shared among peers for compensation. Collaborative consumption involves sharing, and as such, Uber, an app-based transport service enables those with spare vehicle capacity to provide a fee-based transport solution.Research purpose: This study investigates the intention to use this service in a South African context, specifically through the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) because of the suitability of these models in this context. Differences between regular and seldom users are also examined.Motivation for the study: With the widespread use of Uber in South Africa, understanding the factors contributing to the intention to use Uber requires examination.Research design, approach and method: Data were collected using a quantitative survey among panel respondents of South Africans, using electronic data collection. The research instrument comprised pre-existing items measured on a 6-point Likert scale. A total of 367 usable responses were received. Data analysis included testing for differences in means (t-test, Satterthwaite-Welch t-test, Anova F-test, Welch F-test) as well as regression analysis (by means of multiple regressions and two-stage least squares).Main findings: The findings indicate that South Africans intend to use the service largely due to their positive attitude towards the service, the perceived usefulness (PU) of the app and perceived behavioural (PB) control associated with the service. The value of the app has been highlighted in this research, and the importance of its functioning is evident.Practical/managerial implications: The importance of providing a positive service experience impacts the intention to use the service in the future. This emphasises the importance of the service itself and the functioning of the app.Contribution/value-add: Understanding the intention to use this service enables further development of this app and associated services.

Placemaking and visitors’ reviews of the Golden Mile of Durban

Orientation: Placemaking is a proclivity of cities to change space into place through zoning, naming and development into attractive, people-friendly landscapes where diverse, harmonious and sometimes contradicting amenities are coalesced to attract people.Research purpose: To establish the perceptions of the visitors on appeal, experience and safety of the Golden Mile of Durban.Motivation for the study: The study was motivated by availability of online reviews that remained unanalysed and did not aid decision-making.Research design, approach and method: Data were collected from 287 reviews sampled from the Golden Mile website. Qualitative analysis was performed on the data and categorised according to appeal, experience and safety associated with the Golden Mile.Main findings: The study found that placemaking is always work in progress as destinations strive for competitiveness and to avoid obsoletion. An overwhelming majority of visitors rated the Golden Mile as good to excellent on appeal, experience and safety. Some criticised the place as unsafe with a number of dilapidated buildings spoiling its appeal.Practical/managerial implications: Planners and tourism developers should factor the grass root approach to placemaking by increasing security and urging property owners to revamp their buildings, thus keeping with the image of the place.Contribution/value-add: The article emphasises the significance and value added by online visitors’ reviews in placemaking.

Formal financial institutions financing of immigrant small and medium enterprises in South Africa

Orientation: Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) owned by immigrants in developing economies, such as South Africa, tend to trust formal financial institutions (FFIs) for financial support.Research purpose: Even though immigrant SMEs create opportunities that have important implications for the South African economy; less than 5% of them can access credit from FFIs. This study, therefore, explores the accessibility of credit from FFIs to immigrant SMEs from a supply-side perspective.Motivation for the study: Research studies on improving financing from FFIs to immigrant SMEs will help to boost the survival of immigrant SMEs and promote economic development in South Africa.Research design, approach and method: This qualitative research design used an interpretivistic research paradigm to achieve the research objectives. Data were collected from 16 purposively selected participants and analysed using the five-step process of content analysis outlined by Terre Blanche, Durrheim and Kelly.Main findings: The findings revealed that FFIs are uninterested and biased against considering financing immigrant SMEs and tend to charge them higher interest rates. Collateral, equity contribution and the possession of a South African permanent resident permit with a South African ID are the most important requirements that impact the willingness of FFIs to finance immigrant SMEs.Practical/managerial implications: Implications for the financial institutions in policy development were provided.Contribution/value-add: This research study highlights the requirements and the challenges faced by immigrant SMEs in accessing credit from FFIs. The use of qualitative research design further contributed to the literature on FFIs financing of immigrant SMEs.

The impact of risk factors on South African consumers’ attitude towards online shopping

Orientation: The advances in technology have resulted in an increasing number of people choosing to shop online, globally. Despite the growing number of those shopping online and online retailers, most customers continue to avoid shopping online. This could be because of risks inherent in online shopping that have resulted in some consumers opting not to shop online.Research purpose: The main aim of the research study is to identify the risks influencing consumers’ attitude towards online purchases.Motivation for the study: The study was driven by the need to determine the risks associated with online shopping that influence whether consumers will shop online or not.Research design, approach and method: A survey, using the non-probability convenience sampling method, was used to reach respondents (207 consumers in South Africa who visited two shopping malls) in Gauteng, South Africa. Data were collected from consumers at the two shopping malls from March 2019 to April 2019. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to test the conceptual model for the study.Main findings: The results showed that product risk and privacy risk influence consumer attitude in online shopping positively and that delivery risk does not to have a great influence on attitude towards online shopping. The attitude towards online shopping was also found to positively influence their intention to shop online.Practical/managerial implications: The practical implications for this study would be that retail owners and marketers would understand and manage product and privacy as risks that inhibit consumers from shopping online. Retailers should formulate appropriate marketing and retail strategies that address these risks to change consumers’ perceptions about online shopping and reduce the level of risks related to online shopping.Contribution/value-add: Marketing and retail strategies should include strategies on how product risk and privacy risks will be managed and reduced to ensure they do not influence consumer’s attitude against online shopping.