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MODULE NAME: MODULE CODE:

CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES COMP8411
CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES COMP8411p

ASSESSMENT TYPE: EXAMINATION (PAPER ONLY)

TOTAL MARK ALLOCATION: 120 MARKS
TOTAL TIME: The time given to students to complete this assessment will be
indicated on your module in Learn.
By submitting this assessment, you acknowledge that you have read and understood all the rules
as per the terms in the registration contract, in particular the assignment and assessment rules in
The IIE Assessment Strategy and Policy (IIE009), the intellectual integrity and plagiarism rules in
the Intellectual Integrity Policy (IIE023), as well as any rules and regulations published in the
student portal.

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Please adhere to all instructions. These instructions are different from what is normally
present, so take time to go through these carefully.
2. Independent work is required. Students are not allowed to work together on this
assessment. Any contraventions of this will be handled as per disciplinary procedures in The
IIE policy.
3. No material may be copied from original sources, even if referenced correctly, unless it is
a direct quote indicated with quotation marks.
4. All work must be adequately and correctly referenced.
5. You should paraphrase (use your own words) the concepts that you are referencing, rather
than quoting directly.
6. Marks will be awarded for the quality of your paraphrasing.
7. This is an open-book assessment.
8. Assessments must be typed unless otherwise specified.
9. Ensure that you save a copy of your responses.
9.1. Complete your responses in a Word document
9.2. The document name must be your name.student number.Module Code.
9.3. Once completed the assessment, upload your document under the submission link in
the correct module in Learn.
Additional instructions:
 Calculators are not allowed
 Answer any two questions If you answer more than two questions, only the first two
questions will be marked. Indicate the numbers of the questions that you have answered
by writing the question numbers on the front of your first answer booklet.

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Referencing Rubric

Providing evidence based on valid and referenced academic sources Markers are required to provide feedback to students by indicating
is a fundamental educational principle and the cornerstone of high- (circling/underlining) the information that best describes the
quality academic work. Hence, The IIE considers it essential to student’s work.
develop the referencing skills of our students in our commitment to
achieve high academic standards. Part of achieving these high
standards is referencing in a way that is consistent, technically
correct and congruent. This is not plagiarism, which is handled Minor technical referencing errors: 5% deduction from the
differently. overall percentage – the student’s work contains five or more
errors listed in the minor errors column in the table below.

Poor quality formatting in your referencing will result in a penalty of Major technical referencing errors: 10% deduction from the
a maximum of ten percent being deducted from the percentage overall percentage – the student’s work contains five or more
awarded, according to the following guidelines. Please note, errors listed in the major errors column in the table below.
however, that evidence of plagiarism in the form of copied or
uncited work (not referenced), absent reference lists, or If both minor and major errors are indicated, then 10% only (and
exceptionally poor referencing, may result in action being taken in not 5% or 15%) is deducted from the overall percentage. The
accordance with The IIE’s Intellectual Integrity Policy (0023). examples provided below are not exhaustive but are provided to
illustrate the error.

Required: Minor errors in technical correctness of Major errors in technical correctness of referencing
Technically correct referencing referencing style style
style Deduct 5% from percentage awarded Deduct 10% from percentage awarded
Consistency Minor inconsistencies. Major inconsistencies.
 The referencing style is generally  Poor and inconsistent referencing style used in-
 The same referencing format consistent, but there are one or two text and/or in the bibliography/ reference list.
has been used for all in-text changes in the format of in-text  Multiple formats for the same type of referencing
references and in the referencing and/or in the bibliography. have been used.
bibliography/reference list.  For example, page numbers for direct  For example, the format for direct quotes (in-text)
quotes (in-text) have been provided for and/or book chapters (bibliography/ reference
one source, but not in another instance. list) is different across multiple instances.
Two book chapters (bibliography) have
been referenced in the bibliography in
two different formats.
Technical correctness Generally, technically correct with some Technically incorrect.
minor errors.  The referencing format is incorrect.
 Referencing format is  The correct referencing format has been  Concepts and ideas are typically referenced, but a
technically correct throughout consistently used, but there are one or reference is missing from small sections of the
the submission. two errors. work.
 Concepts and ideas are typically  Position of the references: references are only
 Position of the reference: a referenced, but a reference is missing given at the beginning or end of large sections of
reference is directly associated from one small section of the work. work.
with every concept or idea.  Position of the references: references  For example, incorrect author information is
are only given at the beginning or end of provided, no year of publication is provided,
 For example, quotation marks, every paragraph. quotation marks and/or page numbers for direct
page numbers, years, etc. are  For example, the student has incorrectly quotes missing, page numbers are provided for
applied correctly, sources in presented direct quotes (in-text) and/or paraphrased material, the incorrect punctuation is
the bibliography/reference list book chapters (bibliography/reference used (in-text); the bibliography/reference list is
are correctly presented. list). not in alphabetical order, the incorrect format for
a book chapter/journal article is used, information
is missing e.g. no place of publication had been
provided (bibliography); repeated sources on the
reference list.
Congruence between in-text Generally, congruence between the in-text A lack of congruence between the in-text referencing
referencing and bibliography/ referencing and the bibliography/ and the bibliography.
reference list reference list with one or two errors.  No relationship/several incongruencies between
 There is largely a match between the the in-text referencing and the
 All sources are accurately sources presented in-text and the bibliography/reference list.
reflected and are all accurately bibliography.  For example, sources are included in-text, but not
included in the bibliography/  For example, a source appears in the in the bibliography and vice versa, a link, rather
reference list. text, but not in the bibliography/ than the actual reference is provided in the
reference list or vice versa. bibliography.
In summary: the recording of In summary, at least 80% of the sources In summary, at least 60% of the sources are
references is accurate and are correctly reflected and included in a incorrectly reflected and/or not included in
complete. reference list. reference list.

Overall Feedback about the consistency, technical correctness and congruence between in-text referencing and bibliography:

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Question 1 (Marks: 60)

Cross Country Logistics is a medium-sized, family-owned organisation, with a network of offices
and clients in the Western- Eastern- and Northern Cape provinces. From its humble beginnings in
Epping Industrial in Cape Town in the early 1950s (with only one bakkie and an old 10-ton truck),
the company has since expanded its fleet to over 100 vehicles, employing more than 150 people.
Cross Country specialises in transportation, warehousing and logistics services for mostly retail
clients across Southern Africa..

The current CEO, who has been at the helm for the past 30 years, is in the process of grooming his
son to take over the business. Although the essential management functions of planning,
organising, leading and control is still as important today as it has always been, the business itself
has grown in leaps and bounds over the years. Furthermore, the organisation's (internal and
external) environments have changed dramatically over the past three decades. So too, has the
shift in emphasis on the basic roles and skills that managers need to be successful today, as
opposed to the past. The changes in the internal and external environment is also forcing Country
Cross Logistics to implement new processes, systems and procedures within the organisation in
order to stay with the changing times.

Q.1.1 Contrast the traditional, 20th century workplace with today’s 21st century
workplace as it relates to Cross Country Logistics. Using the following criteria:
a) The role of technology; (4)
b) Types of resources used; (4)
c) Basic managerial roles; (3)
d) Managerial skills required; (6)
e) Value systems of younger people entering the workforce today. (4)

Q.1.2 Organisations like Cross Country Logistics must analyse the internal and (18)
external business environments continuously. Assist Cross Country Logistics by
analysing and making recommendations on the impact of at least two elements
from the general, task and internal business environments that Cross Country
Logistics operates in.

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Q.1.3 You are the operations manager of Cross Country Logistics. Think of any routine (21)
task performed each day in this organisation; which will now have to be
changed completely, so that the company can become more efficient.

Describe the most logical approach that Cross Country Logistics must follow to
address the change that you as Operations Manager is suggesting should be
implemented. For each step, give a specific example of actions you would take
at that step.

Question 2 (Marks: 60)

You are the general manager (GM) of a large organisation named Terra Vita. This company
manufactures, imports and markets a range of agricultural chemical and related fertilizer
products; distributed mostly through specialist wholesalers and farming co-operatives, but also
directly to farmers, nationwide. The company also exports to several African countries. In recent
years, most the product lines have grown substantially.

However, Terra Vita's success has caused a number of competitors to enter the market in the
last two years. During a recent meeting with the CEO, you were informed that the organisation
should do all it can to protect its market share in the face of this new competition. To achieve
this, the CEO requested you to find ways in which the overall operating costs can be reduced by
15 percent to allow for the product lines to become even more affordable for consumers.

After a detailed examination of the situation, you decide that there are three options for cutting
costs by the required 15 percent:
1. Retrench a portion of the workforce and increase the roles and responsibilities of the
employees that remain. This would allow the organization to recruit lower-skilled workers
to conduct work at a much more affordable rate;
2. Replace existing manufacturing equipment with newer, more efficient equipment.
Although this option involves a substantial initial investment, you are confident that this
investment will make up the difference by lowering production costs;
3. Start sourcing slightly lower cost materials for your production processes from alternative
suppliers.

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Q.2.1 Based on the importance of decision making, analyse the impact that each
of these decisions might have on the overall functioning of the organisation. (11)

Q.2.2 a) Identify and justify the option is the most cost effective (in non-financial (3)
terms) regarding the impact on other parts of the organisation.

b) Identify and justify the option would be the least cost effective (also in (3)
non-financial terms), regarding the impact on other parts of the
organisation.

Q.2.3 Think of the above scenario as a decision-making process. Identify and justify
with examples from the case study, the type of decision making used in the
scenario. (5)

Q.2.4 Explain if there are any other options (besides the three above) for achieving
your goal of reducing costs. (4)

Q.2.5 Identify and select any TWO major management perspectives (i.e. theories) (9)
that you think would be most relevant and effective for the Terra Vita
company's current situation. Motivate why you chose each; by means of a
brief summary of each of your two selected management perspectives.

Q.2.6 Workplace motivation can be studied from a content perspective, or a

process perspective. Compare and contrast these two perspectives as
follows:
a) Describe the best-known theories under each of these two (7)
perspectives.
b) Discuss the implications for managers of each of the two basic (10)
perspectives on motivation.

Q.2.7 Recommend and justify any two motivational strategies, and two reward (8)
systems you would use to improve the Terra Vita company's employee
motivation levels.

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Question 3 (Marks: 60)

The Rise and Fall of Steinhoff International

The collapse of Steinhoff International, the multi-billion dollar global business group, can rightly
be described as the biggest corporate scandal in South African history.

The company’s origins, and its subsequent spectacular rise and fall, are skilfully told in a new
book Steinhoff: Inside SA’s Biggest Corporate Crash, by former journalist James-Brent Styan. It is
the story of a "bold vision and ambition, entrepreneurial grit and guile, continuous innovation,
relentless risk-taking, corporate hubris, and friendship betrayals".

Steinhoff's spectacular growth came from a two-pronged strategy. First, the creation of a low-cost
(mostly furniture) manufacturing base. This enabled the business to supply products at cheap prices
to its target market of lower-to-middle income groups across the globe.

The second pillar was based on aggressively acquiring companies; across Europe, the UK, Australia,
New Zealand, Britain and the US.

This dual focused strategy enabled Steinhoff to become a global giant; straddling sectors such as
furniture manufacturing, retail, logistics, consumer finance, building material, wood and vehicles.

At the pinnacle of its success, Steinhoff International was a firm favourite of stock market
investors (private and corporate), analysts and the financial media. But, as it later turned out, its
success was built on "shaky foundations"; which included unbridled greed, unethical practices,
questionable leadership styles and practices, alleged accounting irregularities, tax evasion and lax
corporate governance standards.

Markus Jooste, was extraordinary in his leadership style in that he had the ability to sway
institutions and the public at large with his leadership. Markus was a “retail star” amongst
businessmen and women due to his ability to make good business deals through which Steinhoff
became a multinational company. He was mostly recognized for his charisma and intelligence
applied when making deals with companies. In addition, Markus had good relationships with
various well-known entrepreneurs how all and a good sense of business. Getting into this circle of
businessmen is extremely challenging and one would need either a good bank balance or
personality to get you into the circle of elite businessmen. With Markus, having access to the elite
business entrepreneurs and competences to sway deals it lead to him obtaining a large amount of

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followers which whom he was able to establish an emotional bond that encourages individuals to
defer to the authority of the leader. Markus Jooste, then Steinhoff CEO, can be described as
extremely dominant, forceful and autocratic; which instilled fear in his subordinates which often is
the case of charismatic leaders as their followers submit to their actions due to the charisma they
apply in their leadership. He even dominated the Steinhoff board of directors - long viewed as one
of the strongest and most dependable - but, coming under fierce criticism for failing to exercise
their fiduciary duties. To the detriment of the Steinhoff business, Jooste's leadership style also had
a profoundly negative, stifling effect on the organisation's culture. However,

Criticism has also been directed at Deloitte - Steinhoff's auditors for 20 years - for disregarding the
irregularities and the danger signs preceding Steinhoff's crash.

https://www.moneyweb.co.za/moneyweb-opinion/book-on-steinhoffs-demise-shows-danger-of-
big-men-business-leaders/

Mills Soko / 17 November 2018.

Soon after Jooste’s resignation, when the implications of the reported “accounting irregularities”
at Steinhoff started to sink in, Sygnia Group CEO, Magda Wierzycka, commented: “When I looked
at the financials … it took me exactly half an hour to figure out that the (organisational) structure
was obfuscated (overly complex), that financial items made no sense, that the acquisition spree
was not underpinned by any logic and was too frenzied to be well thought out, and that debt levels
were out of control.”

The repercussions of the December 2017 announcements, including the launch of various
regulatory probes into Steinhoff’s financial affairs, have been catastrophic for the company. At the
time of writing, the company’s share price has fallen by around 90% - from its original level of
around R 50 at the end of November 2017 - to a pitifully low R1.60. As they say in the movies, the
"jury is still out" on whether Steinhoff will survive in its current or an altered form ‒ or at all.

https://www.cnbcafrica.com/insights/steinhoff/2018/06/28/steinhoff-rise-fall/

Instructions
When analysing the "shaky foundations" that supported Steinhoff's initial success - and caused its
eventual demise - these can be distilled into THREE main areas:

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Critically assess, and comment on, how these three major factors caused the demise of Steinhoff
International. With the benefit of hindsight, make detailed recommendations on how the Steinhoff
group could have avoided the collapse described in the above scenario.
Q.3.1 Identify and discuss the type of leadership style that the former CEO of Steinhoff, (15)
Markus Jooste, is being portrayed as.

Q.3.2 There are three new approaches to leadership. Discuss the type of emerging (8)
leadership approach do you think the current leadership at Steinhoff should
follow.

Q.3.3 Unethical business practices especially in leadership, financial reporting and (14)
corporate governance are occurring daily in organization. Discuss the importance
around the implementation and management of ethical conduct within Steinhoff
after the whole debacle.

Q.3.4 Analyse the various financial control mechanisms that Steinhoff must implement (13)
in order to ensure that in future there will not be any accounting irregularities.

Q.3.5 Given Steinhoff’s history and the company trying to start afresh, innovation in their (10)
product line is important and could get the company back to where it once use to
be. Explain to the executive board of Steinhoff the various forms of organizational
innovation that should build the organization again.

END OF PAPER

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