2008 February - USB Leaders' Lab Magazine
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- ItemRelationships that can bear fruit(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch Business School, 2008-02) Smuts, Annelie; Loubser, StephanusCan a new model of supplying fruit to the export market nourish competitiveness and help ensure the long-term survival of South Africa’s deciduous fruit industry? Research conducted at the University of Stellenbosch Business School (USB) revealed that the present linear supply chain model of producer to marketer to retail may have become outdated. Instead, the study suggests that South African fruit exporters cultivate a new approach towards producers that can strengthen the position of both parties in world markets.
- ItemCash-flow tells a story : how can cash-flow patterns assist analysts in investigating a company's financial health?(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch Business School, 2008-02) Steyn Bruwer, Wilma; Hamman, WillieCash has been called the lifeblood of a business. A company’s ability to generate cash from its activities is a critical determinant of its survival and growth. Moreover, companies that consume cash consistently are on the way to disaster. This makes the cash-flow statement a vital set of information for assessing financial health. It reveals a company’s ability to generate sufficient cash to repay loans, to fund expansion and to pay dividends, and also enables analysts to understand how much profit is realised in cash. Past research has established that there are distinct cash-flow patterns that can be associated with the life-cycle phases of companies. Life-cycle theory suggests that companies go through phases of start-up, growth, maturity and decline. In each phase they face different operational circumstances which give rise to different cash-flow patterns. This research, conducted at the University of Stellenbosch Business School (USB), used empirical data to show how analysts can study a company’s cash-related variables and ratios and, by comparing them with expected patterns, gain a broader understanding of the company and its relative level of maturity. The study found that listed South African industrial companies displayed predictable occurrences of cash-flow patterns associated with start-up, growing and mature enterprises. It also found that certain patterns are only sustainable over short periods. Companies exhibiting these are at the end of their life cycle, and will either disappear or be restructured.
- ItemRaising a crop of farmers(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch Business School, 2008-02) Duma, Moses; Thomas, WolfgangIn the wake of the launch of Zimbabwe’s land-reform programmes and the subsequent deterioration of the formal farming industry, contract farming has emerged as a significant economic activity. It offers communal farmers the opportunity to sell their produce to agribusinesses at predetermined terms and prices. The concept has gradually taken off to provide a degree of stability in crop production that might otherwise have collapsed. Research conducted at the University of Stellenbosch Business School (USB) investigated contract farming in Zimbabwe and came up with suggestions for improving the system. The study found that contract farming enjoys substantial acceptance and support from its key participants: smallholder farmers, agribusiness, and the Zimbabwean government.
- ItemLeading tourism ventures : what are the characteristics that enable some small tourism enterpreneurs to succeed, while others fail?(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch Business School, 2008-02) Van Zyl, Chris; Mathur-Helm, Babita
- ItemWho needs strategy?(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch Business School, 2008-02) Alberts, RethaModern executives have become sceptical about the merit of strategic planning in the unpredictable business world. Should they be?