Browsing by Author "Marks, Jonathan"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    The evolution of entrepreneurial networks a case of the networking behaviour of South African Built Environment Professionals
    (2011) Letsie, Rethabile; Marks, Jonathan
    In examining the evolution of entrepreneurial networks of owner-managed Small medium scale enterprises (SMEs) firms, this dissertation investigates the networking behaviour of South African built environment professionals, by observing the network composition adopted over the duration of their respective businesses.
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    Identification of common factors of innovation in a SMME
    (2018) Rautela, Nikhil; Marks, Jonathan
    Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise (SMME) businesses in manufacturing contribute significantly to the economic growth of a nation, yet most of the research on innovation management in manufacturing industries has been focused on big firms. The current study identifies factors in SMME’s that are common between the external and internal systems of innovation that supports firms in their management of innovation. The study gathered data through qualitative and quantitative interviews of 20 companies out of which 5 manufacturing firms in Western Cape, South Africa selected for this research. The study found that SMMEs acquire new knowledge from the external ecosystem to supplement their limited internal system based on the product or process development. This study identifies the common factors that the SMMEs can use as a guiding framework to pursue new innovative opportunities for development of product or process.
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    Misaligned needs: A study of CSR from an NGO and corporate perspective
    (2017) Hidden, Karen; Marks, Jonathan
    From a global perspective Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been highlighted by business and society alike as essential. However, there is a growing concern surrounding the misalignment of funded and failed projects between business and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). Literature indicates that often projects are initiated by the corporate donor without taking into consideration the need and long-term impact their investment might have on the selected NGO and the community that NGO supports (Blowfield & Frynas, 2005; Blundin, 2012; Kanter, 1999; Salang & Molebatsi, 2012). Furthermore, there is little emphasis on the role the NGO could play in the CSR granting process. The current research explores the role of CSR in business, the role of NGOs and the problems arising from the misalignment between the two. This paper questions the strategic alignment of CSR between business and NGOs and argues that something needs to change to form a cohesive and mutually sustainable model of engagement. A combination of phenomenology and Grounded Theory were used as the methodological frameworks for this research in order to understand how strategic alignment might result in a cohesive and sustainable match for the business and the NGO in the grant making and grant requesting phase. Justification for the use of blended methodologies is discussed in the study. The research examined the role of Dell South Africa's CSR processes and two of their NGO beneficiaries namely Christel House South Africa (CHSA) and Students Health and Welfare Centre Organization (SHAWCO). Staff from various levels within each of the above mentioned organizations formed part of the sample group. Semi-structured face-to-face and telephonic interviews were used to gather the research data, which was then analyzed and developed into codes using NVivo. The validity, reliability and justification surrounding the research have also been addressed. Eight key categories namely goal and vision alignment, strategic intent, communication, value creation, relevance and ROI, harsh realities, sustainability and impact and monitoring and evaluation, emerged from the data analysis and a model, based on the traditional Business Model Canvas, was developed. This model acts as a visual tool for corporates and NGOs when going through the CSR granting process and suggests that it should form the basis for a strategically aligned and cohesive fit between the two entities. Implications for corporates, NGOs and academics as well as areas for future research have also been outlined.
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    The observing self as a catalyst for behaviour change and wellbeing: Effective personal informatics system design to promote behaviour change in the changing health paradigm
    (2017) De Villiers, Stephanie; Baets, Walter; Marks, Jonathan
    The current study is a user-centred enquiry into how wellness-related personal informatics (PI) systems can be more effectively designed to better promote lasting behaviour change and sustained wellbeing in the context of the changing health paradigm. Until recently, the Western biomedical model with its disease focus has been effective in delivering health care; however, this paradigm does not efficiently support a system in crises - the contemporary health care system which is confronted with complex challenges of modern lifestyle diseases and behavioural disorders. Enabled by the technological revolution, a Systems Medicine model - a preventative, personalised, predictive and participatory (P4) approach - is emerging and PI systems play a significant role in realising this pre-clinical, patient-centric, behaviour-focussed shift in health care. This viewpoint paper argues that design strategies applied in PI systems to promote behaviour change play a vital role in supporting health outcomes, specifically, persuasive and mindful user experience (UX) strategies. By applying a phenomenographic research methodology, a user-centred approach is taken to understand qualitatively different ways in which PI systems (and their inherent design strategies) are experienced by users, to inform more intuitive design of PI systems that balance behaviour change strategies to support more lasting shifts and sustainable states of wellbeing. Drawing together ideas from systems medicine, complexity theory, persuasive and mindful design approaches in conjunction with phenomenography, this study aims to understand experiential nuances to offer implications for the future design of health care through PI systems. The theory built through the research process is applied in a prototype design, which is presented as an example of a PI system design that balances persuasive and mindful strategies and aims to promote lasting behaviour change and enduring states of wellbeing more effectively.