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Lillah, Riyaadh. "Environmental management systems in South African small and medium-sized businesses." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/2909.
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Businesses have been criticised for their contribution towards the ever-increasing rate of destruction of the natural environment. Although businesses have responded by adapting their management practices, production processes and products, they still face a number of challenges in reducing their environmental impact. One way in which businesses have responded to the environmental crisis is by implementing environmental management systems. Despite the importance of environmental management implementation, researchers have neglected to identify the antecedents that could lead to environmental management system implementation in South African small and medium-sized businesses. Indeed, much of the research on environmental management has concentrated on large business in Europe or the United States. The limited research that has been conducted on environmental management in small and medium-sized businesses has been descriptive in nature, and fails to produce results that are generalisable and that advance the understanding on this topic. Given this situation, the objective of this study was to develop and empirically test a theoretical model to explain the implementation of environmental management systems in small and medium-sized businesses. A quantitative survey methodology was adopted in this study to test the proposed theoretical model empirically. In total, 417 small and medium-sized businesses participated in the survey; 326 of these were not implementing an environmental management system, and 91 were implementing such a system. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise the sample data. The findings of this analysis suggest that the respondents had a favourable attitude toward environmental management systems; they were aware of environmental issues; they perceived themselves and their businesses as able to deal with the barriers to environmental management system implementation; they felt personally obligated to reduce their business‟ environmental impact; and they perceived actions aimed at reducing their businesses‟ environmental impact as socially desirable. To test the hypothesised relationships in the theoretical model, correlation and multiple regression analyses were used. The hypotheses dealing with the relationship between the environmental antecedents and the owner-manager‟s intention to implement an environmental management system, and the actual implementation of an environmental management system, were supported in this study. Thus, the environmental antecedents were found to be positively related to the small and medium-sized business owners‟ intention to implement an environmental management system; to their formal and informal implementation of an environmental management system; and to their practices related to waste management and legal compliance. Empirical evidence to support the hypothesised effect of resource constraints as a moderating variable was found in this study. In terms of environmental values, support was found for the moderating effect of egoistic, altruistic, and biospheric values. In terms of the biographical characteristics of the business owners, significant moderating effects were found for gender and age, but not for education. Gender influenced the relationships between the environmental antecedents, attitude towards an environmental management system and personal pro-environmental norms, and the intention to implement an environmental management system. Age moderated the relationship between subjective pro-environmental norms, waste management, and legal compliance. Given the empirical evidence provided in this study, it is recommended that greater awareness of environmental issues be fostered among small and medium-sized business owners as well as the individuals who influence their decision-making. There is also a need to reinforce the positive business outcomes of environmental management system implementation, as well as the personal and social obligations to protect the natural environment among small and medium-sized business owners.
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Rathnam, Sharad. "Designing an environmentally conscious decision support tool for capital investments in small and medium enterprises." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/18922.
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Silinga, Nyaniso Sandisiwe. "Antecedents to sustainability of small consulting engineering businesses within the Amathole district municipality." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/5184.
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The South African consulting engineering industry faces a challenge of relevance, particularly in the wake of government infrastructure investment through the planned National Development Plan and other current infrastructure plans. This challenge is even more so for small consulting engineering businesses within the industry who experienced a decline in earnings by ten percent in the first six months of 2013 as compared to the last six months of 2012 (Consulting Engineers South Africa, 2013:38). Government, as a job creator, has a duty to ensure that the conditions that these businesses operate in are favourable to them in order for the businesses to remain sustainable. Factors that contribute to the sustainability of small consulting engineering businesses need to be identified. Amathole District Municipality (ADM) situated in the Eastern Cape Province and which is the second largest province in South Africa but the second poorest (Eastern Cape Socio Economic Council (ECSECC), 2011:15 cited in Mtshibe, 2013:1) is one of those job creators. According to the Amathole District Municipality (ADM) (2013:38), the district, which comprises of seven local municipalities, is the 3rd largest economy in the province after the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality and Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, contributing twelve percent to the provincial economy. Figures published in the Division of Revenue Bill, 2014 (RSA, 2014:236) indicate infrastructure development allocations totalling R1.34 billion budgeted to the ADM for the next three years. This translates to job opportunities for the consulting engineering industry of this region. However, the latest ADM SMME procurement data reveals that in the past five years, only a small percentage of tenders awarded were to small consulting engineering businesses with a majority going to medium to large well-established enterprises (ADM, 2014). These results pose a serious challenge for policy makers who have a duty to ensure that work opportunities do not disadvantage emerging small businesses. The main objective of this study was to gain an understanding of the antecedents that impact on the sustainability of small consulting engineering businesses within the Amathole District Municipality. This was done by identifying antecedents to sustainability of small consulting engineering businesses through a detailed literature review. This literature review identified the competitive environment, regulatory environment and policy environment (independent variables) as being antecedents to sustainability of small consulting engineering businesses (dependant variable). In testing the above research objective, the researcher used statistical analysis methods to reach a conclusion with regard to these antecedents. The positivistic research paradigm (quantitative method) was selected in testing this research objective through the use of hypothesis testing. Data was collected using self-administered questionnaires distributed to 100 small consulting engineering businesses using the databases of both the Amathole District Municipality and Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA). Out of the selected sample of 100 small consulting engineering businesses, only 81 responses were received, thus representing an eighty-one percent response rate which is considered adequate. The collected data was then analysed using inferential and confirmatory statistical analysis methods. The analysis was presented in the form of graphs and tables. The results of the empirical survey identified rival competitor influence, the competitive environment and policy environment as being antecedents to sustainability of small consulting engineering businesses within the Amathole District Municipality. Based on these findings, recommendations were made to the management of the Amathole District Municipality in an endeavour to make the environment within which small consulting engineering businesses operate more favourable for the businesses to be sustainable. Suggestions for future research were also made as a way to help in addressing some of the challenges that are faced by the engineering industry.
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Bezuidenhout, Sol. "Advantages associated with the implementation and integration of environmental management systems in small manufacturing businesses." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/20902.
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Thesis (MIng)--University of Stellenbosch, 2003.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: TheSouthAfrican economy islargely dependant on small enterprisesas a valuable source of job creation, gross domestic product as well as product development and innovation, However, unfortunately there existsan extremeiy high failure rate among small businesswith 20%of startup businessesfailing within the firstyear of operation, and an almost 60% failure rate within the first6 years of existence, Thesestatisticshave initiated several research studies,and have been the focus of many businessbooks, in itseif, creating a vast industry of small businesssuccesstools and quick fix solutions, When considering the high failure rates of small businesses,the concepts surrounding sustainable development come into question by pure method of association, Sustainable development issueshave become a top priority globally and have moved up the corporate agenda in recent years. When trying to "marry" these two concepts, questions arise regarding the effect of integrating sustainability principles and management systems,with contemporary small businessstrategy. Theaim of thisstudy isto investigate existingcritical successmodels and to integrate some simple initial stages of sustainable development business strategy within these models. Expectantly, some of the principles contained in the formalisation of management systems that address sustainability issues,could be incorporated in traditional management models in an attempt to identify possible interventions and tools that might positivelyimpact on the successrate of small businessenterprises. These concepts would be tested by means of implementing a formal environmental management system (based on the ISO 14001standard) as an initial approach to addressingsustainabilitygoals, as a case study, The successful implementation of an ISO 14001 environmental management system at this small businessenterprise, realised several advantages for the company, and have been used to adapt traditional management models to include for some of the simple concepts of sustainable development.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Suid Afrikaanse ekonomie is in 'n groot mate afhanklik van klein besighede as 'n waardevolle bron van werkskepping, bruto binnelandse produk, asook van produk ontwikkeling en innovasie, Des nieteenstaande, bestaan daar ongelukkig 'n baie hoe faling syfer onder klein besighede, met 20%van aanvangsbesighede wat mislukbinne die eerste jaar van bedryf en ongeveer 60%van besighede wat mislukbinne die eerste 6jaar van bestaan. Hierdie statistieke het reeds verskeie navorsingstudiesgeinisieer en was reeds die tema van verskeie boeke, wat opsig self 'n reuse industrie genereer van sake sukseshandleidings en kits oplossings vir verskeie probleme, Wanneer hierdie hoe falings statistieke onder klein sake ondernemings oorweeg word, bevraagteken mens die konsepte rakende volhoubare ontwikkeiing, bloot as gevolg van assosiasie,Volhoubare ontwikkeling het in die laaste paar jaar baie aandag geniet op die prioriteitsagendas internationaal, asook van verskeie korporatiewe agendas. As gepoog word om hierdie twee konsepte met mekaar te vereenselwig, ontwikkel daar verskeievrae rakende die effek van die integrering van volhoubare ontwikkelingsbeginselsen verwante bestuurstelsels,met bestaande kiein sake onderneming strategie, Die doel van hierdie studie isom bestaande suksesmodelIe vir klein sake ondernemings te ondersoek, en om sommige van die begin fase beginselsvan volhoubare besigheids strategie, met mekaar te integreer. Daar sou verwag kon word dot sommige van .die konsepte bevat in die formaiisering van bestuurstelselsrakende volhoubare ontwikkeling, ook geinkorporeer kan word binne bestaande traditionele bestuursmodelle, in 'n poging om moontlike ingrypings en gereedskap te identifiseer wat 'n positiewe impak kan he op die suksessyfersvan kleinsake ondernemings. Hierdie konsepte is getoets aan die hand van 'n implimentering van 'n formele omgewingsbestuurstelsel(gebasseer op die ISO14001standaard) as 'ngevalle studie, wat die begin benadering vorm om die doelwitte van volhoubaarheid aan te spreek. Die suksesvolleimplimentering van 'n ISO 14001omgewingsbestuurselsel by 'n klein sake onderneming het verskeie voordele vir hierdie maatskappy tot gevolg gehad. en is gebruik om tradisionele suksesmodelleaan te pas, om voorsiening te maak vir sommige van die konsepte rakende volhoubare ontwikkeling.
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林碧華 and Pik-wah Jocelyn Lam. "Is ISO14001 a sustainable EMS solution for SMEs in Hong Kong?" Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2007. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B45013779.
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Street, David Michael. "The small business entrepreneur : a psychological profile." Thesis, Rhodes University, 1995. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002574.
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With the growing importance being placed on the small business environment as having a positive influence on economic growth and vitality (Erwee, 1987: Burns & Dewhurst, 1989), there has been a corresponding increase in attention being paid to entrepreneurship and the characteristics of the entrepreneur. This increased attention is due to the fact that entrepreneurs have long been linked to small business creation and recognised as an important factor in the small business development process (Boyd & Gumpert, 1983). Despite the quantity of research on entrepreneurship, there appears to be an ongoing controversy oyer what characterises an entrepreneurial business. and the specific characteristics of the small business entrepreneur. It has been argued that although there is an overlap between entrepreneurial and non-entrepreneurial businesses. they are in fact different entities (Carland, Hoy, Boulton & Carland, 1984: Drucker, 1985), and that not every individual who starts a business is an entrepreneur (Drucker. 1985). Small business entrepreneurship has been found to be specifically related to the psychological characteristics of the owner-manager who controls the business (Miller. 1983). The purpose of this research was to identify and describe psychological characteristics displayed by a group of South African small business entrepreneurs, thereby compiling a psychological profile of the small business entrepreneur. Given the nature of entrepreneurial activities and processes, Hofer and Bygrave (1992) recommend that accurate, precise qualitative data that is rich in its descriptive characterisation of the situation and the phenomenon involved be collected. As a result the researcher used qualitative rather than quantitative methods of investigation. Innovative behaviour has long been linked to entrepreneurship (Schumpeter. 1934) and entrepreneurial businesses were distinguished from other small businesses by their use of innovative strategic practices. Two sample groups consisting of entrepreneurial and non-entrepreneurial businesses, were created and the data collected were analysed independently. The results, based on personal interviews with 32 small business owner-managers and the administration and interpretation of tihe Structured Objective Rorschach Test (SORT), indicate that small business entrepreneurship should not be used as a term synonymous with small business ownership and/or management. Despite similarities between small business entrepreneurs and other small business owner-managers. the results suggest that a distinction between the two groups is necessary for accurate future research on entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurs differed from other small business owner-managers in terms of their psychological characteristics including their motives, their perception and attitude towards the external environment, and various sociological factors. The entrepreneurial businesses were also different in that they were more innovative and growth oriented than the non-entrepreneurial businesses. The research contributes towards a clarification of the concept of small business entrepreneurship and indicates a need for more precise sampling techniques to be used in entrepreneurial research.
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Coffey, Thomas M. "Small business and environmental cleanup at Fort Ord, California." Thesis, Monterey, Calif. : Springfield, Va. : Naval Postgraduate School ; Available from National Technical Information Service, 1995. http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA311194.
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Peters, Ian Joseph. "Small business growth : spatial and non-spatial aspects of development." Thesis, University of Southampton, 1989. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.236411.
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Williams, Melanie L. "Small business organizational support of health promotion programs." Virtual Press, 1998. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1115737.
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The primary purpose for this study was to investigate small businesses organizational support and interest in health promotion. The research question for this study was, "Are small businesses actively involved with the organizational support of health promotion programs?"A survey was distributed via mail to small businesses in the Lynchburg, Virginia area, with a follow up three weeks later because an appropriate number of surveys had not been returned. The results of this study have provided insight into the current status of worksite wellness programs of businesses with fewer than 250 employees.Small businesses do actively support healthy food and smoking policies at the worksite. Some small businesses provided activities to measure employee health risks. The main issue small businesses deal with are safety/accident prevention. Other health topics are not prevalent in small businesses. Small businesses that had a health promotion program in place offered more programs and awareness materials than those who did not and are actively involved in the organizational support of health promotion programs.Fisher Institute for Wellness
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Jenkin, Nicola Pat. "Exploring the making of meaning: environmental education and training for industry, business and local government." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003425.
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The aim of this research was to explore how participants made meaning in an environmental education and training course for people from industry, business and local government in South Africa, and to identify and comment on any constraints to this meaning-making. I used a Symbolic Interactionist theoretical framework to explore and comment on the meaning-making process. I started my research by conducting a questionnaire to select participants for interviews. During the course the selected participants were interviewed, as well as the two course co-ordinators. Data was also gathered during the course from participant observation field notes ('captured talk'), photographs, participants' assignments and course evaluations. The data was analysed using an adapted form of discourse analysis and matrices. The research highlights that the opportunities provided on the course were adequate for encouraging meaning-making amongst both the co-ordinators and participants. However, recorded instances of meaning-making were low, which indicated that there were certain constraints during the meaning-making process. This research highlights and comments on identified constraints such as time and workplace support. The research supports similar findings which emerged from research conducted on the Gold Fields environmental education course for teachers and also offers recommendations for further research and practice into meaning-;making within the field of environmental education and industry, business and local government in South Africa.
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Robb, Christopher. "An approach for systematically developing environmental assessment information for small-to medium enterprises." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/18902.
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Van, den Berg Ruan. "An examination of Christian values and correlated concepts in small business practices in South Africa." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1021094.
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The purpose of this research project was to establish in what way Christian entrepreneurs, in this case owner-managers of small and medium-sized enterprises, drew on their Christian faith – as an identity-creating construct – in the day-to-day running of their businesses. Religion was identified as one of the significant contributing elements that form part of individuals’ underlying values that are used to make numerous value-based decisions. Because SME owner-managers that adhere to the Christian faith constitute a fairly large segment of society in the Western World, a study of this nature can be regarded as a worthwhile undertaking that provides valuable insights related to how and to what extent this particular group of economic actors merge religious convictions with business operations. The research was set up in such a way that SME owner-managers in South Africa, who were self-proclaimed Christians and broadly defined as members of the Protestant tradition, constituted the sample participants. The methodology regarded as most suitable was a qualitative, grounded-theory approach whereby interviews were conducted along the lines of a semi-structured interview schedule. An openended exploratory strategy was adopted that allowed respondents to convey their thoughts and ideas pertaining to the research phenomenon from their personal perspectives. A number of conceptual and linguistic frames offered by the respondents – that gave language to the way they rationalised their faith in the context of managing their businesses – were recorded. A total of sixteen major themes and an additional eight sub-themes emerged from the data. The themes recorded and analysed were: faith, grace, calling, stewardship, kingdom, holiness, discipleship, discernment, love, relationship, anointing, inseparable dimensions of life, the Christian life journey, money, cultural perspectives and biblical principles, including the centrality of the Bible, integrity and honesty, sowing and reaping, humility, forgiveness, power of the tongue, importance of prayer and the centrality of Christ. The research findings revealed that a correct understanding of the Christian identity as well as a correct application thereof is crucial in successfully incorporating Christian ideals in the market. Full integration of the Christian identity plus an internalisation of God’s purposes and principles create an inner sense of direction that is less focused on external moral guidelines and codes of conduct – the phrase living from the inside out’ seems appropriately fitting to describe a group of economic actors who pursue their business careers with a sense of calling coupled with a belief that their commercial whereabouts are distinctively linked to a transcendent objective. In addition, general business administration guidelines, where the issue of religious affiliation per se is of no particular consequence, allow for the integration of the value concepts uncovered through the study by way of the corporate governance framework as contained in the King III report – particularly with reference to business practice interventions related to the formulation and implementation of core organisational values and moral codes.
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Revell, Andrea. "The business case for sustainability : a small firm perspective." Thesis, Kingston University, 2008. http://eprints.kingston.ac.uk/20424/.
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The empirical research outlined in this submission explores the environmental attitudes and practices of owners of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK and Japan. The submission spans three studies conducted over a period of seven years from 2000-2007, involving interviews with a total of 70 owner-managers and 22 government and industry 'key informants', as well as survey responses from 220 SMEs. The research provides a dynamic picture of the barriers and drivers of environmental reform within small businesses during this time, embedding the findings within broader debates on sustain ability and 'ecological modernisation' (EM) theory. A key conclusion of the research is that an SME policy strategy which relies too heavily on voluntarism and self-regulation is unlikely to be effective due to the many internal and external barriers to environmental management experienced by owner-managers. A more participatory and interventionist approach, which combines education initiatives with stricter regulatory controls, market-based instruments and negotiated decision-making is highlighted as a potentially more successful way to encourage SMEs to reduce their environmental impacts. The responses of business owners also highlight that to achieve environmental goals, it is just as important to encourage a change in culture amongst customers as it is amongst companies. The research thus recommends that EM scholars broaden their focus to include the ecological modernisation of consumption, and to engage with contested concepts such as 'sufficiency' and equity in order to ensure that theory can still have currency and gravitas in debates on sustainable development.
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Engström, Adam. "Integrating sustainability aspects into the business development processes of Hemfrid." Thesis, KTH, Hållbar utveckling, miljövetenskap och teknik, 2018. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-232025.
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Sustainability is becoming more of a strategic tool in many companies today and will become even more important in the future. Hemfrid is today looking at many new business areas and has realized the importance of including sustainability in its new businesses. However, the link between sustainability and business development has not been researched in a larger extent and therefore there are no good methods to use. Therefore, the aim of this report is to provide a method and tool for Hemfrid to integrate sustainability aspects into their business development processes. To fulfil this aim, an analysis of current scientific literature and models within the areas of sustainability and business development was done. Based on those models, with a foundation in the Sustainable Development Goals, a model was created. To be able to weigh different impact area against each other, an MCA was conducted. Finally, the model was assessed through external feedback and through a SWOT analysis. The model is based on 14 of the 17 SDGs with specific impact categories for all of them. A tool was created in Excel to easily assess the impact of the new business development projects. Lastly a seminar was held with Hemfrid’s management team facilitating the model.Hållbarhet håller idag på att utvecklas från ett område som de senaste åren varit en operationellt fokuserad verksamhet till något som mer och mer närmar sig strategiarbete. Som en del av den här utvecklingen börjar många företag konstatera att integrationen av hållbarhet i deras affärsutvecklingsarbete blir en fråga som blir allt viktigare. Hemfrid har de senaste 20 åren växt fram till ett marknadsledande företag inom hushållsnära tjänster där hemstädning för privatpersoner är den dominerande tjänsten. Hemfrid har valt att fokusera på att ge sina anställda kollektivavtal och trygg anställning och fokusera på sina anställda och kunder och i dagsläget tittar man på många nya affärsutvecklingsmöjligheter för att fortsätta erbjuda sina kunder hjälp i sina hem. I och med Hemfrids fokus på hållbarhet med schyssta arbetsvillkor och miljövänliga produkter har de även insett vikten av att även på ett tidigt stadium få in hållbarhetstänk i sitt affärsutvecklingsarbete. Denna rapport syftar därför till att skapa en modell och verktyg för Hemfrid för att integrera hållbarhetsaspekter i deras affärsutvecklingsarbete. Hemfrid-modellen är framtagen med de globala hållbarhetsmålen som utgångspunkt där olika kriterier identifierades inom varje mål som Hemfrid sedan kan utvärdera sina affärsutvecklingsprojekt utifrån. En litteraturstudie är även gjord där det identifierats nio ytterligare modeller inom hållbarhet respektive affärsutveckling som på olika sätt varit användbara för att skapa kriterier och övergripande användning av Hemfrid-modellen. Varje mål är viktat utifrån Hemfrids nuvarande verksamhet och strategi för att spegla företagets hållbarhetsprioriteringar. Verktyget är framtaget i Excel, baseras på en Multikriterieanalys och ger Hemfrid ett enkelt sätt att på en 5-gradig skala, för varje mål, utvärdera om kriterierna förändras från en skala mycket sämre till mycket bättre jämfört med dagens produkter eller tjänster. Verktyget visualiserar sedan om projektet som helhet är bra eller dåligt hållbarhetsmässigt samt vilka mål man har väldigt positiv påverkan på och bör kommunicera mot sina kunder samt vilka man bör se över och förbättra. Vidare har verktyget testats på två olika affärsutvecklingsprojekt där representanter från hållbarhetsavdelningen och affärsutvecklingsenheten fått ge feedback på användning och modellen har även presenterats och diskuterats tillsammans med Hemfrids ledning för att förankra modellens användande inom bolaget. Slutligen gjordes även en SWOT-analys där modellen visade vara över lag positiv. De negativa delarna med modellen ligger i att den är en förenkling av verkligheten och inte kommer kunna ta upp alla hållbarhetsaspekter som finns samt att det i användandet av modellen finns risk att man gör subjektiva bedömningar och ger sig själv bättre poäng än vad man egentligen borde. Modellen kommer dock kraftigt förenkla integrationen av hållbarhet i affärsutvecklingsprocesserna på Hemfrid och kommer användas för att försäkra att Hemfrid fortsätter vara starka inom hållbarhet och att erbjuda sina kunder smarta lösningar.
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Casey, Terry W. "Perceptions of power, control, and environmental setting in a small business organization." Thesis, University of Bath, 1987. https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.377785.
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Lanz, Beat. "A search for business opportunities for small companies in the field of environmental protection in Hong Kong." Thesis, [Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong], 1992. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B13302826.
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Morys, Thomas. "Company valuation and environmental value." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/15046.
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Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2008.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The natural environment has gained intensified importance in recent years (Stern, 2007) as the depletion of free natural resources and creation of non-intentional by-products speeds up. Especially air quality-related issues such as carbon dioxide emissions caused by non-intentional by-products from fuel combustion intensify the pressure on nature and thereby on human beings. Global commitments to greenhouse reduction by different nations, manifested in the Kyoto Protocol, increase the pressure on the economic environment as they force nations and in particular companies to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to the agreed levels. This means that companies unable to meet the emission targets are forced to acquire additional emission rights. This has an impact on the value of a company. The lower the emissions, the more emission rights can be sold on the carbon markets. Furthermore, the less natural environmental risk a company is exposed to, the higher its value. In general, the risk reductions result from creating benefits for the natural environment. This research project shows how the natural environment impacts on the value of a company. It considers the green value, described as the overall tradable benefit from the reduction of non-intentional by-products, of a small liquid-petroleum-gas (LPG)-converting company. It is assumed that emission benefits created through the reduction of relevant marketable byproducts will lead to emission credit notes, equal to emission rights, offered to companies at the carbon spot market. This enables the companies participating on the carbon market to buy additional emission rights. This non-empirical report focuses on a study of the theory. Topics such as the global natural environment, awareness of natural environment and willingness to pay for higher quality of the natural environment, traditional valuation, and environmental accounting give an understanding of the subject. In addition, personnel communication was used to discuss relevant market expectations and prospects. The outcome is a valuation approach to determine the potential value of companies. The intention is to show that the value goes beyond a purely financial approach. From the valuation procedure performed one can easily see that the value of a company is strongly influenced by the green value component derived from valued environmental benefits.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die natuurlike omgewing het in die afgelope paar jaar toenemend belangrik geword (Stem, 2007) namate die uitputting van gratis natuurlike hulpbronne en die skep van toevallige neweprodukte toeneem. Veral kwessies wat met die gehalte van lug verband hou, soos koolsuurgasvrystellings wat deur toevallige neweprodukte van brandstofverbranding veroorsaak word, verhoog die druk op die natuur en dus ook op die mens. 'n Wereldwye verbintenis tot die vermindering van die kweekhuis-effek deur verskillende lande, wat in die Kyoto Protokol inslag vind, verhoog die druk op die ekonomiese omgewing, aangesien dit lande, en spesifiek maatskappye, dwing om hulle kweekhuis-gasvrystellings tot by die ooreengekome vlakke te verminder. Dit beteken dat maatskappye wat nie die vrystellingsteikens kan haal nie, gedwing word om bykomende vrystellingsregte te bekom. Dit het 'n impak op die waarde van 'n maatskappy. Hoe laer die vrystellings, hoe meer vrystellingsregte kan op die koolstofmarkte verkoop word. 'n Maatskappy se waarde verhoog indien die risiko rakende die natuurlike omgewing verlaag word. Oor die algemeen is hierdie risikoverminderings die resultaat van die skep van voordele vir die natuurlike omgewing. Hierdie navorsingsprojek toon aan wat die natuurlike omgewing se impak op die waarde van 'n maatskappy is. Dit ondersoek die groen waarde, wat beskryf word as die algehele verhandelbare voordeel uit die vermindering van toevallige neweprodukte, van 'n klein vloeibarepetroleumgas-maatskappy. Die aanname word gemaak dat vrystellingvoordele wat geskep word deur die vermindering van toepaslike verkoopbare neweprodukte daartoe sal lei dat vrystellingskredietnotas, wat gelykstaande aan vrystellingsregte is, aan maatskappye by die koolstoflokomark aangebied sal word. Dit stel die maatskappye wat op die koolstofmark handel dryf in staat om bykomende vrystellingsregte te koop. Hierdie nie-empiriese verslag fokus op 'n studie van die teorie. Onderwerpe soos die globale natuurlike omgewing, bewustheid van die natuurlike omgewing en 'n gewilligheid om te betaal vir 'n natuurlike omgewing van 'n hoer gehalte, en omgewingsrekeningkunde dra by tot 'n beter begrip van die onderwerp. Verder is persoonlike kommunikasie gebruik om toepaslike markverwagtinge en -vooruitsigte te bespreek. Die uitkoms is 'n waardasiebenadering om die potensiele waarde van maatskappye te bepaal. Die doel is om aan te toon dat die waarde verder as 'n suiwer finansie1e benadering strek. Uit die waardasieprosedure wat uitgevoer is, kan maklik gesien word dat die waarde van 'n maatskappy sterk beinvloed word deur die groenwaarde-komponent wat deur gewaardeerde omgewingsvoordele bepaal word.
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Cheng, Hau-chung, and 鄭孝仲. "Sustainability management in apparel & footwear supply chain." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10722/207615.
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Self-regulatory Code of Conduct has widely been adopted by international brands to manage CSR issues in apparel and footwear supply chain for the last 2 decades. Increasingly, more apparel and footwear brands started to expand CSR scope to include environmental management in their supply chain. However, only very few international brands have disclosed their efforts on environmental management in their supply chain. This study aims to find out how apparel and footwear brands implement environmental management in their supply chain. Furthermore, what motivates them to carry out environmental management, and lastly, what challenges the industry encounters in carrying out effective environmental management. Primary and secondary data research were carried out in this study. Primary research, in a form of self-administered survey, was conducted for 11 brands and 15 of their respective suppliers. Secondary research was conducted through desktop research to gather additional information from brands, NGOs, academic studies and news.
The study revealed environmental management in apparel and footwear supply chain is becoming more important. However, most of the brands’ approaches on environmental management are loose (i.e. lack industry-wide sustainably environmental management strategy), and small in scope (i.e. first tier supplier only). It is suggested apparel and footwear brands should improve effectiveness of environmental management program in their supply chain, by applying different implementation strategies internally, with both brands’ and suppliers’ governments, suppliers as well as their stakeholders.published_or_final_version
Environmental Management
Master
Master of Science in Environmental Management
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Harris, Peter-Dirk. "South African environmental taxes and investment incentives in practice." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/95565.
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Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2012.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The South African economy is faced with a number of challenges as an upper-middle income country that is highly resource-intensive, with an open economy. It has a number of developmental goals that must be achieved in order to maintain environmentally conscious sustainable development. The country will have to find pioneering ways to address the poverty problems faced by a large proportion of its people, while still ensuring economic growth at a reduced cost to the environment. In an effort to promote the shift to a “green” economy, the South African state and its related entities have developed a number of incentive programmes aimed at easing the transition. These incentives primarily support businesses in their efforts to become more energy-efficient, or to convert to renewable energy sources. The objective of this study is to critically evaluate what the South African government is doing with regard to environmental instruments aimed at assisting the country to reduce carbon emissions. This case study follows a quantitative approach, considering the financial effects that the different environmental instruments could have on South African manufacturers. Through the study the researcher will be able to make certain recommendations to businesses in the manufacturing industry who are interested in investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency. The results of the study will also give the researcher insight into the South African environmental incentives, which will allow him to make informed comments on the proposals that government has tabled regarding future environmental taxes and incentives. The research questions that the researcher tried to answer were based on the current and future policy measures that the South African government has implemented, or will implement, in order to move the country to a low-emissions trajectory. These policies were then also compared to international measures in order to determine if the policies chosen by the South African government are appropriate for the this country’s economy. This study has led the researcher to discover a number of issues relating to the status of environmental policy in South Africa. These discoveries have allowed him to make certain recommendations to businesses investing in this realm, as well as to government which develops these policy measures. The main findings of the study are that with the assistance of the South African government and related entities, investments in renewable energy have become viable. When considering the current status of South African environmental policy, the researcher has also come to realise that the country is lagging behind the rest of the world with regard to policy development. The South African economy is unique, thus policies have to be structured in a way that will not be detrimental to the country.
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Okioga, Teshamulwa (Teshamulwa Irene). "Water quality and business aspects of sachet-vended water in Tamale, Ghana." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/39278.
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Thesis (M. Eng.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2007.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 119-126).
Microbial water quality analyses were conducted on 15 samples of factory-produced sachet water and 15 samples of hand-tied sachet water, sold in Tamale, Ghana. The tests included the membrane filtration (MF) test using mColiBlue24® medium, 3MTM PetrifilmTM test, and Hydrogen Sulfide Presence Absence (P/A H2S) test. With the MF method, 1 factory-produced and 1 hand-tied sachet-water sample had E.coli counts of 5 CFU/100ml and 49 CFU/100ml respectively. Almost half (47%) of the factory-produced sachet-water samples had some total coliforms (range from 1 CFU/100ml to 115 CFU/100ml). All the 15 hand-tied sachet-water samples had total coliforms (range from 4 CFU/100ml to 2010 CFU/100ml). One sample recorded TNTC at a dilution factor of 10. The MF method showed little correlation with the 3MTM PetrifilmTM method (R=0. 16). With the 3MTM PetrifilmTM test method, none of the factory-produced sachet-water samples had E.coli and only one sample had total coliforms with 100 CFU/100ml. The hand-tied sachet-water sample with 49 E.coli CFU/100ml in the MF test, turned out to have 100 CFU/100ml in the 3MTM PetrifilmTM test. The MF test results were considered more reliable.
(cont.) For the P/A H2S test, 7% of factory-produced sachet-water samples and 27% of the hand-tied sachet-water samples returned positive results. Overall, hand-tied sachet water was found to be two times more microbially contaminated than factory-produced sachet water. Turbidity tests done on the samples showed that 93% of the hand-tied sachet-water samples and 20% of factory-produced sachet-water samples had turbidities greater than 5 NTU - the limit set by the 1998 Ghana Standards for drinking water. Out of 30 random passer-byes in Tamale and neighboring Savelugu that were interviewed, all drank sachet-vended water, signifying its popularity in the areas. For 37%, sachet water formed the sole supply of drinking water, even at home! 70% drank more water when away from home, 20% the same amount at home and away from home, while 10% drank more water at home. Sachet water formed the main source of water away from home. Sachet-water vendors made 100% to 400% profit.
by Teshamulwa Okioga.
M.Eng.
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Rainford, Sophie Elizabeth. "Environmental Management in Micro and Small Tourism Enterprises: An Owner-manager Perspective." The University of Waikato, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10289/2283.
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This thesis seeks to gain insight into environmental management implemented by micro and small tourism enterprises and explore levels of awareness and interest among owner-managers of micro and small tourism enterprises toward schemes aiming for the environmental improvement of business. The research uncovers findings that elevate possibilities for reducing misinterpretation of terminology relative to sustainable tourism business. This research seeks to understand why the suggested lack of sustainable tourism implementation remains evident in tourism. Discussion from findings intends to draw attention to central themes relative to achieving research objectives and seeks to yield important information in the pursuit of sustainable tourism business. A qualitative, semi-structured interview approach was used to gain in-depth and detailed perspectives from owner-managers of micro and small tourism enterprises. Owner-managers interviewed were purposively chosen using non-probability sampling. Selection was based on providing a variety of tourism businesses and physical business locations across the case study region. Overall, findings suggest that owner-managers are implementing low levels of environmental management and have limited knowledge of what implementation of environmental management specifically involves, such as, how long it takes and how much it costs. The underlying values of owner-managers demonstrate potential opportunities for further implementation of sustainable business practice. In addition, owner-managers seemed to place importance in conducting business responsibly and having minimal impact on the environment so that quality of life remains for future generations. Essentially, research findings aid in the understanding of why the suggested lack of sustainable tourism implementation remains evident in tourism and pose future avenues for research in the pursuit of sustainable tourism business.
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Hutchinson, Michael Andrew. "Environmental management in Devon and Cornwall's small and medium-sized enterprise sector." Thesis, University of Plymouth, 1994. http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/2575.
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The challenge of sustainable development has become one of the most important strategic, economic and social concerns facing global society today. Although literature on environmental management theory and sustainable development philosophy has increased apace throughout the 1980s and 1990s, very few of these writings have documented the case of the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME). The objectives of this research are: i) to determine the level of awareness and perception of environmental issues within the SME sector and to assess prevailing attitudes of owner/managers to the importance they attach to managing this aspect of their business operations; ii) to gain an understanding of the scale and nature of response to environmental issues across a broad section of SMEs; iii) to utilise the knowledge gained about awareness, attitude and organisational response to assess the relevance of the environmental management systems so far developed to and to link this to achieving sustainable development; iv) to draw upon the expertise of owner/managers and appropriate institutions to validate and, if appropriate, further refine the new and/or revised systems as necessary; v) to assess the possibilities for sustainable development within the SME sector. The first phase of the research involves a mail survey which identifies: what the SME sector is doing to improve its environmental performance; what the general attitudes to organisational change are: and levels of awareness of various environmental issues. Phase two of the research considers in more depth the issue of practical response to environmental issues through a series of in-depth interviews concentrating particularly on reasons why companies do not have detailed strategic management plans to deal with the environment. Phase two tests the results from the in-depth interviews on a larger sample frame providing the empirical foundations for testing existing models of environmental management. Phase three of the research analyses the need for an alternative strategy for the SME sector to manage environmental concerns. Material for a new model is obtained from case study material of best practice, alternative literature and primary source information. Results show that existing models are inappropriate for the majority of SMEs and that environmental practices are limited within the sector. Awareness of environmental issues and attitudes towards change are more positive from larger secondary sector companies. To this end the research proposes an alternative Bioregional Regeneration Model which could be tested and applied to induce local community regeneration and the development of a sustainable community based SME sector.
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Schoeman, Pieter Stephanus Johannes Albertus. "An empirical investigation of environmental performance and the market value of JSE listed companies." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/97358.
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Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In the recent past, there has been increasing awareness of, and concern for, the impact that many companies are having on the natural and social environment. This has seen the emergence of a triple bottom line approach to business, with environmental and social metrics being used in addition to financial metrics when evaluating company performance. Despite the growing level of investment in corporate sustainability, it is not clear whether these investments are viewed positively by the market, and to what extent it creates shareholder value. To shed light on the relationship between environmental performance and financial performance, this research assignment used the event study methodology to investigate whether there is statistically significant stock market reactions to announcements relating to the environmental performance of companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. A total of 260 news announcements related to environmental performance were collected from a variety of news sources. The 260 news announcements represented 67 different companies across 11 different industry sectors. News announcements were collected from several prominent business news sources including the Business Day, Financial Mail and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange News Service. Abnormal share returns were estimated for a three day event window around the announcement date by using the market model approach. Results were aggregated based on four different categories of environmental performance, including corporate environmental initiatives, environmental awards and certificates, negative environmental publicity and, environmental reporting, permits and licences. Consistent with related research in developed countries, this study found that the market rewards certain categories of positive environmental performance but penalises certain categories of negative environmental performance more severely. The results show that there is a significant positive market reaction to announcements of corporate environmental initiatives on the trading day following the announcement. This result indicates a positive relationship between corporate environmental initiatives and financial performance, as measured by market value. In terms of negative environmental performance, it was found that the market responds negatively to the broad category of negative environmental publicity. In particular, negative announcements from civil society and environmental groups seem to result in more significant market reactions than negative announcements from local or national government. In contrast to some studies done in developed countries, no statistically significant relationship was found between announcements of environmental awards and certificates and the market value of companies. Neither was there a statistically significant relationship between environmental reporting, permits and licences and the market value of companies. These results therefore indicate that the market is selective in its response to announcements of environmental performance.
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Bakhtiar, Abbas. "Business strategy, manufacturing strategy and environmental dynamism : the case of small manufacturing firms." Thesis, University of Strathclyde, 1997. http://oleg.lib.strath.ac.uk:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=21252.
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The impetus for the current study was to provide a better understanding of the small manufacturing firms operating under varying environmental conditions (dynamism). This study investigated the influence of dynamism on important strategy variables such as strategy, structure, production technologies employed, and performance. The results indicated that small manufacturing firms, depending on the environmental dynamism, tend to a adopt one of two adaptation approaches: product oriented, and operations oriented. It was shown that small manufacturing firms operating in unstable environments tend to have an organic organisational structure, follow differentiation strategies, and employ non-routine production technologies (product oriented approach), while small manufacturing firms operating in stable environments tend to adopt a mechanistic structure, along with price/cost leadership strategy, and employ routine manufacturing technologies. These findings advances the previous work don e by Miles and Snow, by clarifying that where they (Miles and Snow) have identified four generic adaptation types for all firms, it can be reduced to two for small manufacturing firms. This study also investigated a much discussed issue of planned versus emergent approaches to strategy formulation processes. The findings rejects both Ansoff's claims that firms tend to adopt a planning approach in unstable environments, and Mintzberg's argument that small firms regardless of the environmental conditions adopted an emergent approach to strategy formulation. The findings showed that small manufacturing firms operating in stable environment tend to adopt a planning approach, while small manufacturing firms operating in unstable environment adopted an emergent approach to strategy formulation. Another important area under investigation was the importance of manufacturing strategy for small manufacturing firms. The results showed that firms in stable environment tended to place a higher emphasis on production departments than their counterparts in unstable environments. However, this importance did not translate into a clear manufacturing strategy; rather it reduced the manufacturing strategy to a single important decision of choosing the right type of production technologies employed. Finally the current study investigated the relationship between environmental dynamism, strategy, and performance. The empirical findings indicate that dynamism interacts with strategy to determine performance.
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Barrett, Giles Andrew. "Multiple disadvantage and black enterprise : aspects of African-Caribbean and South Asian small business." Thesis, Liverpool John Moores University, 1997. http://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/5575/.
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Numerous studies have been undertaken on a wide range of issues affecting racialised minorities and small businesses. This thesis has chosen to focus on a number of issues pertinent to the nature of ethnic minority owned small firms. Whilst the topic of finance has been researched in tandem with other factors, it has rarely received the attention devoted to it in this thesis. The thesis critically evaluates finance availability for black small enterprises owned by persons of South Asian and African-Caribbean origins. Semi-structured interviews have been conducted with business owners in fifteen locations in England. These interviews have been enriched by a smaller number of in-depth unstructured conversations. Apart from finance, other relatively under-researched aspects of black enterprise are also discussed in this investigation. The interplay of gender, ethnicity and small enterprise is explored in chapter four whilst chapter seven examines the nature of both African-Caribbean and South Asian businesses situated in contrasting market areas. Parallels are drawn between the experiences of allegedly entrepreneurial-minded groups such as the Koreans and African-Americans in the USA who are distinctly under-represented among the small business owning classes. The outcome of this investigation of African-Caribbean and South Asian small enterprises is an image of a group of owners who have a strong determination to succeed in their ventures, exemplified through such factors as their motivation and attendant vocational qualifications, whilst simultaneously attempting to overcome numerous obstacles. Some of these barriers are generic to small businesses per se, whilst others are more exclusively 'ethnic'. The whole thesis is encapsulated within socio-political debates around the plight of severely disadvantaged visible minorities and proposed self-help strategies mediated by the persistence of covert and blatant racism.
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Amirzadeh, Fujan, and Mattias Boström. "Challenges of implementing social and environmental sustainability in Small and Medium Enterprises." Thesis, Högskolan i Halmstad, Akademin för ekonomi, teknik och naturvetenskap, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-42934.
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The term sustainability is a topic that has been increasingly acknowledged in the modern business world. This has raised awareness and increased understanding of the different dimensions and how paying attention to sustainability can help to improve different aspects of the organization. The financial dimension is well established in most companies since it has a clear connection to the wellbeing of the organization. The Social and environmental dimensions are however more modern and are not present to such a wide extent. External forces such as governmental influence, organizational competitiveness, and customer expectations gradually push companies towards an increased presence of sustainable activities and many companies to struggle with sustainability implementation while failing to see the potential added value. These struggles are present to a wider degree within small and medium enterprises (SMEs) since they have access to less financial resources than that of established companies. For that reason, this paper is dedicated to investigating and highlight the present challenges that SMEs face in the implementation process of social and environmental sustainability. To answer the research question, five interviews were conducted with managers and employees of four SMEs that currently possess some level of social or environmental sustainability. Also, one interview was conducted with an expert in the field of sustainability implementation. Secondary data was collected in the literature review section that highlights and explains both the social and environmental dimensions as well as appropriate tools that exist to help with sustainability implementation into existing business models. The method section will investigate the different methods taken to fully answer the research question. The findings section will highlight the new insights about the present challenge separately by reviewing the firsthand data while using secondary data to fill existing information gaps. Seven challenges are identified in this study, successful supply chain management, lack of financial resources, insufficient practical sustainability implementation, lack of knowledge about sustainability, absence of social and green thinking attitude, simultaneous management in all dimensions of sustainability and governmental and municipalities influence. After identifying the challenges each of the challenges was categorized in the relevant stage of the implementation process which are exploration, installation, initial implementation, and full implementation. These challenges are however heavily dependent on a certain SME characteristic which creates a need for more tailored research towards a specific industry. This has led the researchers to take on a broader approach to create a general overview that lays the foundation for future in-depth studies more tailored to individual companies. Although treated as separate challenges, the correlation between existing challenges is highlighted and discussed in the findings section based on the collected data from the interviews. This will again be present in the conclusion part followed up by the current limitations and suggestions for further research.
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Halner, Alan Joseph. "A study of the environmental consciousness of small and medium-sized enterprises in the United Kingdom and Germany." Thesis, n.p, 2001. http://ethos.bl.uk/.
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Penn, Angela Mary School of Biological Earth & Environmental Sciences UNSW. "The conservation and management of small mammals and lizards in a disturbed forest ecosystem." Awarded by:University of New South Wales. School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, 2005. http://handle.unsw.edu.au/1959.4/23012.
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The conservation of biological diversity has become one of the most important goals of managing forests in an ecologically sustainable way. In this thesis, I report a comprehensive study designed to examine the long-term effects of commercial logging and high-intensity fire, and the ability of Population Viability Analysis (PVA) models to predict these effects to aid in the conservation and management of multiple species. Initially, I compared the abundance of small mammals (A. agilis, R. fuscipes, A. swainsonii), and lizards (L. delicata, L. guichenoti, E. heatwolei), in sites with different disturbance histories: 18-19 yearold logging regrowth, 28-29 or 33-34 year???old clearfelling regrowth and unlogged forest. All sites had previously been burnt by bushfires. No evidence of long-term effects of logging or fire was found for A. agilis, R. fuscipes, L. delicata or L. guichenoti, and there were not enough data to make conclusions for A. swainsonii and E. heatwolei. Then the effects of a hazard-reduction burn were investigated. There was variation between the species in the effects of the burn, with interactions between year, aspect and burning for A. agilis and R. fuscipes, and interactions between year, disturbance and topography for the Lampropholis species. A. swainsonii became extremely scarce in the forest after the burn and E. heatwolei were generally unaffected. Next, PVA metapopulation models were used to predict the likely abundance and patch occupancy of these species based on historical data. Retrospective testing showed the models were accurate for all species, but best for A. agilis and R. fuscipes. Lastly, PVA modelling was used to rank management options; no management action, a hazard-reduction burn in 2005 or a logging event in 2005. The models predicted that future management is likely to result in the extinction of A. agilis, R. fuscipes and L. guichenoti by 2010. However, no one management scenario was most detrimental to all species. The current management regime for this forest involves commercial logging on a 40-year cycle and regular hazard-reduction burning. PVA modelling predicts that A. swainsonii and L. delicata are at the greatest risk of extinction under this regime, but that it is also likely to lead to the extinction of A. agilis, R. fuscipes and L. guichenoti in the near future. The results of this research indicate that the conservation of multiple species under one management regime is unlikely to be successful.
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May, Jode Joy. "Environmental sustainability leadership in South Africa: an empirical perspective." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1020766.
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Striking the balance between managing a successful organisation and paying attention to environmental sustainability requires excellent leadership. There are several benefits associated with being an environmentally sustainable organisation such as improved image (reputation and brand), increased customer loyalty, improved bottom line, attracting skilled experienced staff and improving the relationships with local communities. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the change leadership qualities needed to drive environmental sustainability in the South African landscape to reduce global warming reduction. The qualitative paradigm was utilised to investigate the change leadership qualities needed to affect create environmental sustainability, with focus on global warming reduction actions in the workplace. A literature review was conducted on environmental sustainability, change leadership, and leadership qualities necessary to effect change. A survey was conducted among 13 participants using an interview schedule in the Gauteng, Western and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa in both private and public organisations in various business sectors. Data was collected in 2013 over a four–month period by conducting face-to-face, telephonic and email interviews. The returned questionnaires were subjected to constant comparative, content and grounded theory analysis. Biographical profiles of the respondents and participating organisations were presented as case studies. Trustworthiness of the data was ascertained using data triangulation. Data was analysed in terms of the issues of environmental sustainability and change leadership. In-depth analyses were also conducted by means of provincial, business and employment sector comparisons. It was found that environmental sustainability was being addressed by the selected organisations, specifically relating to GHG emissions, energy and water saving actions. Change leaders should implement specific environmental sustainability strategies to assist in the reduction of global warming, create awareness, focus on employee involvement, report on their sustainability results and put and incentives in place to encourage environmental sustainability. In order to effect such changes, change leaders need to set targets to measure their sustainability progress. Green campaigns should be conducted internally to educate employees on the effects of global warming, and externally to inform the public about their commitment to environmental sustainability and to advise the public on courses of actions to assist in the quest to reduce global warming. It would be advisable for organisations to appoint a specific environmental sustainability team to drive these efforts. It was found that in order to bring about such changes, certain qualities were needed by change leaders to enable them to act as a change agents. Associated change leadership styles were also addressed. Change leaders should be knowledgeable in order to effectively communicate the importance of environmental sustainability. They should adopt a blend of leadership styles to drive environmental sustainability depending on the extent of change actions planned. Organisations should identify, appoint and mentor female leaders as they have the nurturing qualities that could successfully drive environmental sustainability actions. Change leaders should also preferably be personally involved in environmental sustainability as their personal values together with their job role at top leadership level could contribute towards successful implementation of environmental sustainability actions in the workplace. The study has provided general guidelines on the environmental sustainability issues necessary to address global warming reduction as well as guidelines on the change leaders qualities necessary to drive environmental sustainability actions in the workplace.
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Justino, Mateus Vicente. "Factors influencing the failure of small enterprises in a selected municipality in Luanda, Angola." Thesis, Cape Peninisula University of Technology, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11838/2045.
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Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2015.The necessary skills and knowledge on how to open and manage a business can be mastered but the uncertainties during decision-making, as well as the risks, obstacles and barriers present in the business environment can change established ways of conducting a business. However, identifying the causes of such uncertainties, risks and obstacles is essential as it may reduce the probability of failure in the future, and supports effective policy-making. The purpose of this thesis was to examine the factors contributing to the failure of small enterprises in the Luanda province in Angola, with three specific objectives: to assess the critical management and financial factors; to examine the effect of market competition; and to assess the factors in the economic conditions associated with the causes of small business failures. Recommendations made to government could mitigate the high number of business failures. Similar studies were conducted in countries other than Angola. As alarmingly high rates of business failure exist in Angola, this study sought to examine the factors associated with such failures. This research was conducted under a positivism theoretical perspective and a quantitative research method was adopted. A questionnaire was the primary data collection instrument and the snowball sampling technique was employed. Questionnaires were distributed to 130 small business owners and managers who had experienced business failures and 108 questionnaires were collected. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software was used to analyse the quantitative data which was collected. Results were statistically descriptive in nature and presented in tables, pie charts, and bar charts. The results indicated that critical factors which influenced the failure of small enterprises in Angola were: small business owners and managers lacked knowledge of business systems; small business owners and managers lacked financial accounting skills; and negligence by small business owners and managers in planning and controlling business resources. This indicates that institutions do not actively promote entrepreneurship knowledge and skills development and there is an absence of successful entrepreneur role models and business mentors or coaches for entrepreneurial capacity-building. Among others factors influencing business failure in Viana, this study identified a lack of economic support and availability of fundamental business resources such as raw material, skilled people and finance, rigid policy-making regulations, and a high level of corruption and theft in the country, to the extent that the small business may lack money and is unable to continue operations.The study recommends that since most small businesses operate on a basis of sole decision-making, it is important that the entrepreneur/manager should make a concerted effort to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills in management and finance systems, primarily to start a business or as needed, so that risk and probability of failure can be reduced. Policy-making should consider support structures for entrepreneurial capacity building, increase the production of primary products and raw material, provide entrepreneurial training and skills development (higher education), and develop mechanisms to allow easy access to information, reduce trading restrictions and reduce crime.
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Visser, Dirk Jacobus. "An investigation into aspects of transformational leadership in South African small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/49840.
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Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2004ENGLISH ABSTRACT: To the world community at large globalisation has been a gradual process, whereas its impact in South Africa was more intensive and concentrated over a shorter period of time - in particular since South Africa's return to the international community in the early to middle 1990s, its economy, inter alia, has had to adjust to this phenomenon. It is within this environment that all enterprises constituting the South African economy also had to adapt and adjust to a new world environment. From the middle 1980s a new discourse in the literature on the effect of a "new" style of leadership (based on continuous learning, renewal, innovation and entrepreneurship) was reported on in which these leaders brought about significant change in organisations. These leaders recognise the need for change in their organisations. They create a new vision. They bring about change in their organisations to meet the challenges from the changing environment and have been accordingly recognised as transformational leaders. This leadership style has been extensively reported on in large organisations, in both the private and the public sectors. For example, literature and research abound on the impact of transformational leaders in large business enterprises (e.g. Lee lacocca of Chrysler, Jack Welch of General Electric) and government institutions, such as education, the military and health (e.g. Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Mahatma Ghandi of India). A review of the literature on the impact of transformational leadership in large organisations, without fail, reports significant manifestations of success in those organisations' growth, cohesion and development into' more successful and competitive units. Concomitantly, it is generally acknowledged by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the European Union, the Asian Development Bank and other organisations of similar position, that small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) shape the very foundation of the majority of successful economies. The impact of transformational leadership in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has not been measured and reported on in an empirical appraisal and surprisingly little has been forthcoming on the role and impact of transformational leadership in SMEs globally. However, from an entrepreneurial perspective, much has been researched and written on the qualities that support risk-taking, innovation and competition in SMEs. It is within this context that it was decided to investigate the concept of transformational leadership in entrepreneurs, i.e. that group of people who are generally referred to as the drivers of the economy. This dissertation reviews the literature on leadership practices and styles in organisations as a basis to specifically identify the co-producers of leadership in entrepreneurs in SMEs. It is within this context that an empirical study on aspects of transformational leadership in SMEs in a South African context was conducted. This empirical survey verifies the relationship between characteristics of these entrepreneurs and characteristics typically associated with transformational leaders, as manifested in large organisations. Therefore, given the above empirical evidence, the model developed for this study defines the qualities of a transformational leader which will enable those leaders/entrepreneurs (in SMEs with growth potential) to take their organisations from average performance levels to levels comparable to world-class leadership and competitiveness.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Vir die wêreldgemeenskap in sy geheel was globalisering 'n geleidelike proses, terwyl die impak daarvan op Suid-Afrika meer intensief en gekonsentreerd oor 'n korter tydperk plaasgevind het - meer spesifiek sedert Suid-Afrika se terugkeer gedurende die vroeë tot middel 1990s tot die internasionale gemeenskap waartydens die ekonomie, onder andere, tot hierdie verskynsel moes aanpas. Dit is binne hierdie omgewing waarbinne alle ondernemings wat die basis van die ekonomie vorm, tot die nuwe wêreldomgewing moes aanpas. Vanaf die middel 1980s is daar redevoering in die literatuur oor die invloed van 'n "nuwe" leierskapstyl (met die uitgangspunte van verandering, innovering en entrepreneurskap) waarvolgens hierdie leiers aansienlike verandering in hul organisasies teweegbring. Hierdie leiers begryp die noodsaaklikheid van verandering en skep sodoende 'n nuwe visie binne hulorganisasies. Hulle bring verandering binne hierdie organisasies teweeg en aanvaar die uitdagings vanuit die omgewing - hierdie leiers word as transformasieleiers uitgeken. Vanuit die oogpunt van beide groot, privaat- en openbare organisasies, word hierdie leierskapstyl omvattend vermeld; byvoorbeeld, in navorsing en literatuur is voldoende verwysings oor die invloed van transformasieleierskap in groot ondernemings (bv. Lee lacocca van Chrysler, Jack Welch van General Electric) en in staatorganisasies, soos in opvoeding, die militêre asook gesondheid (bv. Nelson Mandela van Suid-Afrika, Mahatma Ghandi van Indië). 'n Literatuuroorsig oor die invloed van transformasieleierskap op groot organisasies dui sonder uitsondering op 'n beduidende invloed van sukses in die groei van hierdie ondernemings aan, asook beter spanwerk en die ontplooiing van meer suksesvolle en mededingengde eenhede binne hierdie organisasies. Insgelyks, word dit algemeen deur die Wêreldbank, die Internasionale Monetêre Fonds, die Europese Gemeenskap, die Asiese Ontwikkelingsbank en ander soortgelyke organisasies aanvaar dat klein tot middelgroot-ondernemings (KMOs) die onderbou van die meerderheid van susksesvolle ekonomië vorm. Vanuit 'n entrepreneuriese perspektief is 'n aansienlike hoeveelheid navorsing en publikasies reeds oor die faktore gedoen wat entrepreneurskap in KMOs ondersteun, naamlik risikoneming, innovering en mededining. Dog, vanuit 'n empiriese benadering, is daar nog nie navorsing oor die invloed van transformasieleierskap in KMOs gelewer nie. Dit is binne hierdie konteks dat die besluit geneem is om die konsep van transformasieleierskap in entrepreneurs te ondersoek, m.a.w. daardie groep mense waarna oor die algemeen as die dryfkrag van die ekonomie verwys word. As vertrekpunt ondersoek hierdie verhandeling die literatuur met betrekking tot leierskapgebruike en -style in organisasies, om sodoende meer spesifiek die medeprodusente van leierskap in entrepreneurs in KMOs te bepaal. Vanaf hierdie vertrekpunt word die empiriese ondersoek geloods en voltooi om die teenwoordigheid van transformasieleierskap in KMOs in Suid-Afrika te bepaal. Die empiriese navorsing bevestig die verwantskap tussen die eienskappe van hierdie entrepreneurs en die eienskappe wat tipies aan transformasieleiers in groot organisasies toegeskryf word. Gegewe die bogenoemde empiriese bevindinge omskryf die model (wat gevolglik vir hierdie studie ontwikkel is) die eienskappe van transformasieleiers wat vir leiers/entrepreneurs (in KMOs met groeimoontlikhede) van nut sal wees om sodoende hulondernemings tot prestasievlakke te neem wat met wêreldleierskap en mededingingheid vergelyk kan word.
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Chin, Yee-ming Margaret, and 陳綺明. "The business environment of tour operators in Hong Kong." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 1985. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31263161.
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Vasquez-León, Marcela. "Environmental adaptation, political coercion, and illegal behavior: Small-scale fishing in the Gulf of California." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1995. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/187441.
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This dissertation examines the shrimp industry in the Gulf of California from a political ecology perspective. The interaction between fishermen and their marine environment is explored, as well as the historical factors that led to vastly different types of fishermen in the communities of Guaymas and Empalme. Some have specialized in the harvesting of shrimp; others are diversified, multiple species fishermen. Some are highly industrialized offshore shrimpers; others are small-scale fishermen, more modest in their technology but more resilient when facing the current crisis in the shrimp industry. The underlaying causes of this crisis are explored by looking at state development policies, the assumptions behind fisheries management, and the configuration of markets. These have all emphasized specialization in the production of shrimp while ignoring the high interannual variability characteristic of shrimp populations. The end result: an overcapitalized, overexpanded industry and a possible overexploitation of shrimp stocks. Rather than addressing the root causes of the crisis, recent policies have instead transferred rights to the offshore fishery from cooperatives to private investors. At the same time there has been a concerted attack against small-scale producers. It is believed that by getting rid of this sector, catch per boat in the offshore sector will increase and overall "efficiency" will be improved. I compare industrialized trawlers and the small-scale sector and argue that the latter is currently producing high quality shrimp at lower monetary and ecological costs. But small-scale fishing is not equated with sustainability. Instead, differences among small-scale fishermen are analyzed. I contend that those who belong to traditional fishing families and have access to collective knowledge about the marine environment that has accumulated through generations, are better able to deal with a highly unpredictable environment and minimize risk. Those who do not have access to this knowledge have specialized in the harvesting of shrimp. I argue that a strategy of diversification is both more profitable in the short-term and sustainable in the long-run. Avoidance strategies among small-scale fishermen in response to externally imposed regulations are also examined. Fishermen are analyzed as individual profit maximizers and as community members who break the rules to serve collective interests. Just as individuals act collectively to deal with an unpredictable environment, they also act collectively to effectively challenge the institutions of rule-making.
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Tekin, Ilknur Mary Joy Nirmala. "Green Index: Integration of Environmental Performance, Green Innovativeness and Financial Performance." PDXScholar, 2014. http://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/1815.
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The integration of sustainability performance of companies is becoming increasingly important. The recent global requirements (i.e. the Kyoto Protocol) for significant reduction of the negative impact of companies on the environment over the next 6 years have been putting pressure on the companies, requiring them to lower the negative environmental impact of market performance. This requirement challenges the profitable growth of the companies' business functions, given the change needed for business operations to improve on their environmental impact.
In this dissertation a new corporate sustainability performance index, called: The Green Index, for measuring and assessing the integrated sustainability performance of companies is developed. The Green Index integrates Environmental Performance, Green Innovativeness and Financial Performance, by quantifying the expert opinions toward their integration. Development of the Green Index is a holistic approach in defining and measuring "green" performance for companies, integrated into their market performance. Green Index, for the first time in the literature, introduces Green Innovativeness in defining and measuring Green Performance of companies, in integration with Environmental and Financial Performance.
In the literature and business practices, there are various sustainability indices used, and methodological approaches in measuring corporate sustainability performance with more than hundred performance indicators. The Green Index, uniquely refers to the collective expert opinion of management researchers, executive managers of corporations, high-tech companies' R&D managers, financial managers, corporate social responsibility managers, in defining a shorter list of 29 performance measures under the three core performance dimensions. Hierarchical Decision Modeling is used for the development of Green Index based on experts' collective decisions. At the next level, desirability levels for each one of the 29 performance measures are scaled by a group of angel investors and investors. And their collective desirability quantifications are used toward the application of the Green Index to quantify the Green Index value for a set of scenario analyses for alternative company performance states.
Green Index fills a major gap in the scholarly literature and business practices. It meets the needs prioritized in the near future strategy of World Business Council on Sustainable Development (WBCSD) towards development of new performance metrics and business models for industries that are financially successful while innovating with green products as they are reducing their negative environmental impact (WBCSD Annual Report 2010, 2011).
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Mcleod, Michelle. "Does environmental performance predict financial performance? A South African perspective." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/80774.
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Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2011.Corporate environmental responsibility has engaged the attention of academics, practitioners and environmentalists for some time, creating pressure for companies to conduct business in an environmentally greener manner. To find economic support for such conduct by South African companies, this study aims to investigate whether superior environmental performance by South African listed companies leads to superior financial performance. A review of related literature identified significant diversity in research approach and methodology as well as environmental and financial performance measures employed and therefore also in the results obtained. Given the continuing emergence of climate change as a material issue for business, this study utilised South African Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index (CDLI SA) ratings as proxy for South African companies’ environmental performance. The infancy of the Carbon Disclosure Project in South Africa does result in some data limitations which necessitated a portfolio approach to address the research question. This approach, however, prevented explicit consideration or judgement on the direction of causality between environmental and financial variables. The environmental performance data limitations and the resulting need for some assumptions resulted in this study being explorative in nature. Using CDLI SA ratings as distinguishing environmental performance characteristic, industrymatching, mutually-exclusive stock portfolios were constructed. Relative portfolio performance was measured with reference to the Sharpe and Treynor ratios and a simple statistical test. Considering the three years 2008 to 2010, the Sharpe and Treynor ratios for Environmental Leaders and Laggards portfolios did not clearly identify either Environmental Leaders or Environmental Laggards as superior financial performers and results also varied across industries. There appears to be some trend emerging which sees Environmental Leaders outperforming Environmental Laggards in more recent years for some industries, however, the short time frame under consideration provided insufficient support for such conclusion. Statistical means testing concluded that the mean returns of Environmental Leaders and Environmental Laggards are similar. Sensitivity analysis performed on the Financials sector indicated that the Sharpe and Treynor ratios are sensitive to portfolio construction. Despite this sensitivity, statistical means testing consistently found little evidence to infer that the mean returns of Environmental Leaders portfolios are either higher or lower than that of Environmental Laggards portfolios. It is suggested that the similar performance of the Environmental Leaders and Environmental Laggards portfolios may be attributed to the use of an environmental performance measure unable to sufficiently distinguish between environmental leaders and environmental laggards. Another interpretation of the results could be that investors consider disclosure-based environmental performance measures as unreliable, or less reliable as compared with outcome-based or combined measures. Finally, it may be that investors’ expectations have not yet been adjusted to reflect the fact that climate change constitutes a materiality issue for business in the long run, which will require companies to actively manage carbon risks. Although there exists voluminous international research on the topic of this study, South African research in this regard is restricted. This study adds to the existing body of South African specific research, but is only explorative in nature; therefore areas for future research have been recommended.
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Sze, Wai-mun, and 施惠敏. "Does the enhancement of employee environmental awareness help improve a company's environmental performance ?" Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2005. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B45013238.
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Liu, Yang. "Exploring the interrelationship between supply network configuration, capabilities and green supply chain management strategies." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2015. https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.708635.
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Purwandani, Junia. "Analyzing the Drivers and Barriers to Green Business Practices for Small and Medium Enterprises in Ohio." Ohio University / OhioLINK, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1590198740533297.
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Shen, Hung-Wen. "The "small-firm" problem on standard and penalty setting with incomplete enforcement." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1991. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/33613.
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Zahid, Sardar Muhammad. "Green Supply Chain Management Practices and Determinant Factors: A Quantitative Study on Small and Medium Enterprises Using Structural Equation Modeling." Diss., North Dakota State University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10365/25929.
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Considering the prominence of green supply chain management (GrSCM) research has developed expressively in this field. However, there is a dearth of studies from emerging economies comprised of modelling and empirical testing of hypotheses. Moreover, the literature is lacking the empirical evidence on the determinants of GrSCM practices by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) especially in the case of Pakistan. The literature has yet to determine what green practices are being adopted by SMEs in Pakistan, an elucidation why GrSCM practices are adhered, what construct is appropriate to evaluate adoption of GrSCM practices by SMEs in Pakistan, and whether mediation of internal factors exits between the relationship of GrSCM practices and external pressure.
This dissertation uses Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to investigate GrSCM practices adoption, the appropriate construct for evaluating green practices, and examining three potentially important determinants in Pakistani SMEs. With the data collected in two stages from the SMEs sector of Pakistan, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed a three-dimension structure for measuring the GrSCM practices. Subsequently, the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was carried out on two measurement models (i.e. first and second order) of GrSCM adoption based on EFA. The empirically outcomes advocates that both models for GrSCM adoption are valid and reliable, however the second order model has better fit indices. The SEM testing shows significant results for mediation of internal factors in the hypothesized relationship among the GrSCM practices and external pressures. For academicians and supply chain mangers these results yield several exciting theoretical and practical implications.
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Guillen-Arguelles, Elisa. "Environmental Auditing : Assessing Environmental Performance in Tourism The case of Small and Medium-Sized Tourism Business in the Mexican Caribbean." Thesis, University of Reading, 2009. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.511666.
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Bodley, David Cyril. "The relationship between opportunity-related aspects and the performance of primary co-operatives in South Africa." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/14653.
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South Africa is a country facing divisive social and economic challenges. It has a history that generated imbalances within the economy and requires urgent solutions to one of the most significant issues the country faces, having too few South Africans in work. Globally, a key solution to creating work has been to make small business the engine-room of economies. Consequently, the South African Government has identified the establishment of small businesses as a priority, which incorporates the development of collaborative forms of businesses in marginalised communities. The co-operative form of business and a strong co-operative movement is, therefore, a critical element of government’s initiative to create work and economic independence for South Africans. Governed by the seven International Labour Organization (ILO) principles, this form of business is often more complex than a typical firm, making the task of establishing and growing these entities particularly challenging. This study analyses the literature to gain an understanding of co-operative movements across the globe. It then looks at the specific challenges the movement faces in South Africa, followed by an analysis of best practice that a business should engage in its establishment and growth. Specifically, the literature examines whether there is a relationship between opportunity-related industry, market and entrepreneurial team aspects and improved business performance of business entities such as co-operatives. The study collates data from co-operatives in the South African economy using two separate methodologies. Firstly, a structured interview was used to acquire information on the opportunity-related aspects. Secondly, business transactions were recorded and basic financial statements were produced for each co-operative, enabling a rating on business performance. The primary data was then analysed within Chapter 6, to investigate the strength of the relationship between opportunity-related aspects and business performance. The findings extracted from the primary data reinforced certain facts within the body of knowledge as it relates to the relationship between opportunity-related aspects and business performance, but there were also some interesting new insights that were extracted from the data. The South African co-operative movement has achieved certain success and momentum as well as experiencing certain failures, and the study clearly highlights both, and makes recommendations to improve the movements and government’s efforts to establish a vibrant and meaningful co-operative sector.
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Soontorn, Angwara Na. "Cultural perspectives on managing environmental practices : small and medium hotels in Nong Khai, Thailand." Thesis, University of Bedfordshire, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10547/622478.
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This research explores cultural aspects of Thai Small and Medium-sized Hotels (SMHs) as they navigate their way through environmental management problems. In addition to the context of business motivation, which sets the groundwork for the cultural attitudes findings, the study also examines how government officials’ actions on environmental policy in relation to SMHs are affected by their cultural attitude. An interpretive paradigm employing qualitative method (semi-structured interviews and observation) was conducted. Key informants are from 27 SMHs and seven related government officials from six districts in Nong Khai city. This study was piloted during June and July 2013 and the second main study during February and May 2014. Additional revisits and interviewing were conducted during May 2015. This study reveals that relationships dominate SMH owners’ motivation, and that they are motivated by family lifestyle, social position and business opportunity. Environmental implementation in SMHs is also mainly influenced by culture. A complex socio-cultural system, e.g. seniority and hierarchical, power-based notions and patron–client relationship, has led to the Thai style of enforcing legislative action in the government sector.
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Williams, Donna Clare, and n/a. "Doing Environment Business With China Through Cross-Cultural Networks: A Dynamic Model for Small-to-Medium Australian Enterprises." Griffith University. School of Environmental Engineering, 2004. http://www4.gu.edu.au:8080/adt-root/public/adt-QGU20060313.140417.
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The research is a critical analysis of the operational aspects of doing environment business with China through cross-cultural networks. In particular the investigation involved establishing an intensively documented, longitudinal profile of a single network. This network comprised Australian Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Chinese players based in the People's Republic of China. This profile covers a period of two decades. The research adopted a broad multi-disciplinary and inductive approach, using action research, case study methods, and systems analysis techniques. An innovative approach used time values as a constant to analyse the relativity of player connections, activities and structural levels in the network. This approach drew its applied orientation from the environmental sciences, and its theoretical base from the social science disciplines of marketing and international business. The specific field of study was the structure and evolutionary dynamics of networks. The outcome of the research is a model Australian SMEs can use for doing environment business with China. This model sets environment business in the context of a wider trading network of Chinese, Australian, South East Asian, and Middle Eastern players. The cornerstone of this model is the corporate role of the academic sector in accessing the Chinese environmental market. The research shows in detail how Australian SMEs can, and do, use cross-cultural academic linkages for trade. Such linkages facilitate market research, negotiation, risk management, product development, and the establishment of distribution channels in Asian markets. The study also demonstrates the importance of using a number of parallel nets of Chinese players to facilitate trade and overcome interruptions or obstacles. The research has contributed to knowledge by establishing an Asia-oriented, empirically derived model that differs substantially from the mono-cultural models in current practice in the Australian environment industry. The intensive investigation of the network of SMEs and Chinese players has identified the entrepreneurial strengths of SMEs in the international marketplace. This finding contrasts with the prevailing view that SMEs must depend on larger players for export success. In addition, the research has established that this kind of network has a clan-like structure. This finding is central to the model. The research demonstrates that a clan-like structure is a flexible framework that is compatible with the independence and capacity of small firms to adapt to change and to make decisions. This characteristic of SMEs enables them to proceed without, and at times in spite of, the encumbrances of large and unwieldy corporate and institutional structures. This finding is directly contrary to the belief prevalent in the Australian environment industry that SMEs depend on larger players to enter international markets. The finding also challenges the established view that Chinese networks are relatively closed systems based on family ties. The research shows that Australian SMEs can become part of these systems either directly or through links, and have many common attributes with their Chinese counterparts. The research has made a key contribution to theory by using these findings to develop an organic network model that differs from the so-called contrived network. This empirically derived theoretical model represents the seven dimensions of cross-cultural collaboration. The four social dimensions are the personal, organisational, sectoral and regional levels of a person-centred network, composed of nets of individuals with extensive linkages to other individuals and to organisations. The three dynamic dimensions are the triadic, the temporal, and the trading levels of interaction between the players. This theoretical model also demonstrates the depth of cross-connection between the nets of individual, and the embeddedness of the network in other networks. The model emphasises the centrality of time as the key connector between the social dimensions of the network and the exchange processes that characterise clan-like interactions. The model also represents the layers of evolutionary development that characterise the exchange processes in the network. These layers include adaptive processes, short-term exchanges, and long-term exchanges, and exchanges that derive from particular arrangements of players and market openings at critical points in time. This model extends concepts that have emerged from the original International Industrial Marketing and Purchasing (IMP) Interaction Model, and gives empirical credence to recent philosophical, but untested, views on the relevance of time as a context for interaction.
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Tilley, Fiona Jane. "The gap between the environmental attitudes and the environmental behaviour of small firms : with an investigation of mechanical engineering and business services in Leeds." Thesis, Leeds Beckett University, 1998. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.264531.
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Wood, Dorothy, University of Western Sydney, College of Law and Business, and School of Accounting. "The influence of environmental social controls on the capital investment decision-making of the firm : Australian evidence." THESIS_CLAB_ACC_Wood_D.xml, 2002. http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/228.
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Social controls influence the environmental performance of firms and require them to be more accountable for their environmental impacts. These controls include governmental interventions such as mandatory disclosure requirements, regulation and subsidisation, as well as less formal controls such as stakeholder opinion. This thesis examines the relative influence of environmental social controls on the acceptability of capital investment and provides insight into the perceptions of Australian managers concerning capital investment decision-making. An experiment is used to measure the relative influence of the four social control measures. This is supported by a survey to gauge firm size and industry influences and also a range of attributes of the controls on the capital investment decision. Experiment results suggest that the influence of stakeholder opinion on capital investment is very high and mandatory disclosure very low. The survey measured the influence of a range of indicators of each control and also firm size and industry effects. Firm size effects were weak while industry effects were much clearer and more consistent. A comparison of the influence of social control indicators and a range of financial and strategic indicators on the capital investment decision showed that the mainstream indicators had more influence.Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
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Warwick, Mara Kathryn. "Environmental information collection and enforcement at small-scale enterprises in Shanghai the role of the bureaucracy, legislatures and citizens /." online access from Digital dissertation consortium access full-text, 2003. http://libweb.cityu.edu.hk/cgi-bin/er/db/ddcdiss.pl?3090701.
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Rask, Lovisa. "The aspects of Environmental Sustainability in Export : A study in the context of Malaysian businesses." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för marknadsföring (MF), 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-96396.
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In a world which is highly reliant on international trade and at the same time is facing what has been described as among the greatest challenges planet Earth ever seen, climate change. The connection the two have to each other becomes increasingly essential to understand. This study was put in the context of a developing country, Malaysia, due to the increased amount of businesses located in developing countries which are choosing to internationalise and export products. The 17 Global Goals created by the United Nations, which has been adopted by all member states are aimed to be reached in 2030. The Global Goals are built upon trust and responsibility for the planet which creates a scenario where the behaviour of both businesses and consumers is changed. The purpose of the study was to gain knowledge of how the aspect of environmental sustainability impacts export and what motivates the Malaysian businesses to change for the better. The outcome of this study indicates that the customers have a significant role for both motivation of businesses and the implementation of new strategies. The study has also seen an indication of a connection between the speed of internationalisation and export related to how businesses are motivated by customers in terms of environmental sustainability. Moreover, the study has shown that there is little connection between the business’s selection of export mode and environmental sustainability.
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Price, Leigh. "A transdisciplinary explanatory critique of environmental education." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2007. http://eprints.ru.ac.za/909/.
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Karambakuwa, Tapuwa Roseline. "Determinants of export performance among small to medium enterprises in Zimbabwe." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/17647.
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There is consensus that Small to Medium Enterprises (SME) exports play a critical role in the development of economies. It has been widely acknowledged in empirical research done around the world that small businesses make a significant contribution to economic development, employment, competitiveness and the reduction of regional disparities. However, empirical literature gives conflicting evidence on the determinants of export performance among SMEs. The study contributes towards the debate on SME exports by: (i) investigating the variables that determine export performance among SMEs in Zimbabwe (ii) establishing the competi-tiveness of Zimbabwe’s exports and (iii) ascertaining the major constraints faced by SME ex-porters in Zimbabwe The researcher gathered data from 120 SMEs and 10 institutions in Zimbabwe for the period 2009 to 2015. SME samples were chosen from Harare, Mashonaland Central and Mashonaland East provinces while all 10 of the institutions were chosen from Harare province. Convenient non-probability sampling method was used to select SMEs while stratified sampling technique was applied in the selection of institutions. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were employed. For the quantitative approach, panel data ordinary least squares method was used in the form of the gravity model of trade. Export intensity (used as a measure of exports) was regressed against support institutions, business ownership, research & development, educational years, use of export processing zones, product type, export years, firm size, firm age, gender, distance from trading partner, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of trading partner, and GDP of Zimbabwe. The random effects estimation method was used, basing on results from the Durbin-Wu-Hausman test. The null hypothesis was based on the premise that the variables under study do not determine export intensity of SMEs in Zimbabwe. Other null hypothesis were that the major constraint faced by SME exporters in Zimbabwe is not access to finance and that Zimbabwe’s exports are not competitive in the mining, agricultural and manufacturing sectors. The revealed comparative advantage index was computed to measure the competitiveness of Zimbabwe’s exports.For the qualitative approach, the study used the triangulation method which involved combining and utilising the questionnaire, interviews and focus group discussions. The results from the study indicated that following variables increased export intensity of Zimbabwean SMEs; business ownership, use of export processing zones, export years, firm size, and GDP of trading partner. The following variables have an inverse relationship with the export intensity of Zimbabwean SMEs: gender, distance from trading partner and research & development. The results also indicated that these further variables do not determine the export intensity of SMEs in Zimbabwe: support institutions, years of education, product type, firm age and GDP of Zimbabwe. The major constraint faced by exporting SMEs in Zimbabwe is limited access to finance. Zimbabwe is competitive in the agricultural and mining sector exports, but not in manufacturing sector exports The policy implication of the findings is that SME support needs to go beyond support institutions when it comes to SME export promotion. Further SMEs in the agriculture and mining sectors need to be promoted for export growth since Zimbabwe is competitive in these sectors. However the manufacturing sector cannot be ignored, since many economies have developed due to exports of manufactured products and a country needs to have balanced export growth in both primary and manufacturing sectors. In order to have motivated, career SME exporters, entrepreneurship education should begin from primary school right up to university so as to improve entrepreneurial aspirations, attitudes and behaviour in the long run.