Daniel F. Ofori

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) perspectives of leading firms in Ghana

Purpose – Corporate social responsibility (CSR) research has blossomed in this new millennium. This has been due to: the increasing concern expressed by policy makers about corporate social responsibility; the pressure exerted on firms to demonstrate high ethical standards; and for developing countries, the increasing demands on their firms exporting to Europe and other western countries to document adherence to high ethical standards in order to be competitive. This study sought to ascertain and document the extent of recognition, nature and content of socially responsible actions by firms located in Ghana.Design/methodology/approach – The study used a sample of companies listed in the Ghana Club 100 database, an annual ranking of the most prestigious firms in Ghana. The study adopted an in‐depth, exploratory and comparative approach in examining the CSR issues from the perspectives of local versus internationally‐connected firms in Ghana.Findings – The key findings of the study were that, although local...

The internet and lawyers in Ghana: some initial qualitative perspectives

Purpose – To contribute to the internet use literature with particular respect to lawyers. This current study seeks to investigate qualitatively, the impact of the internet on the work of lawyers in Ghana.Design/methodology/approach – Following several other empirical studies in the general information systems arena, a qualitative design was adopted for this study. A second motivation for adoption of this design was the fact that this research was exploratory in nature and it was the opinion of the researchers that this case study will provide rich insights into the formulations of research propositions for a larger study on internet use and legal practice in Ghana. Interviews were conducted with lawyers who had been called to the bar for before 2003 (we needed to be sure that these lawyers had been practicing for at least two years). Lawyers employed in law chambers, private sector institutions, international organizations, law consultancies, public sector institutions and the Faculty of Law of the Unive...

An Exploratory Study of Project Management Competency in Ghana

Project outcomes in Ghana have been adjudged to be poor as a result of how projects are managed, the form project management takes, and the project management approaches used. Low project management expertise has been identified as a contributory factor to how projects have been managed in Ghana. In the current study, the author adopted an exploratory research design approach to investigate project management competency in Ghana, using a purposively selected sample of 200 managers. Competency scores were used to determine organizational project management competency levels. Results showed that Ghanaian managers possess varying degrees of project integration, human resource, communication, quality, risk, and scope management competencies. The study recommends the systematic and deliberate improvement of project management competencies in order to increase the rate of project success in Ghana.

Corporate Social Responsibility in Sub-Saharan Africa: Hindering and Supporting Factors.

Purpose - – In recent years, the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has gained recognition and importance in both business and political settings. While considerable research has been conducted on CSR in developed countries, the extant literature on CSR in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is scant and CSR is seen in terms of philanthropy. This paper aims to examine CSR from a broader perspective and in particular to identify the factors that hinder and promote CSR activities in SSA using the Smit (2009) CSR Value Chain Model. Design/methodology/approach - – This paper is based on data obtained from a survey conducted by GTZ (now GIZ) on factors promoting and hindering CSR in SSA. The study surveyed 85 companies from six countries, namely; South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Namibia. The study essentially examined the internal and external CSR environments of the companies in the participating countries. Findings - – The study revealed that there are nine key promoting and hindering factors of CSR for businesses in SSA. These include: leadership and governance, policy framework, project management, monitoring, evaluation and reporting, stakeholder engagement, staff engagement, government, funding and beneficiation. The study recommends a systemic and context-sensitive approach that relies on the potential of organisations and communities to design and implement their own solution within global frameworks in order to further develop CSR in the region. Research limitations/implications - – There are a number of limitations in this study. First, this study did not include any informants from the responding organisations’ stakeholder groups, but relied mainly on information obtained from single respondents from organisations. Further research should include responses from other stakeholder groups. Practical implications - – To promote or achieve the successful implementation of CSR and broaden its scope within the region beyond its current focus on philanthropy, managers must build bridges with their stakeholders through both formal and informal dialogues and engagement practices. Additionally, firms may enhance and maximise both social and economic value created when managers link their CSR activities to areas that improve firms’ long-term competitive potential by collectively and systematically applying their distinctive strengths to such activities in accordance with the value chain model. Originality/value - – The finding in this study is novel and adds an important contribution to the developing CSR literature in the SSA region.

An exploratory and comparative assessment of the governance arrangements of universities in Ghana

Purpose – Institutional governance has recently attracted significant attention, fuelled by increasing numbers of global high-profile corporate failures and scandals. In many countries issues have been raised about university governance. In Ghana, university governance has become crucial following the upsurge of private universities in recent years arising out of: increased demand for tertiary education resulting from high population growth; and expanded enrolment at basic and secondary levels, which have far exceeded the capacity of existing institutions. This study aims to explore and assess the governance arrangements of private and public universities in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach – A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select three private and two public universities. An exploratory and comparative approach was used to examine the governance arrangements of private and public universities in Ghana. Findings – Both private and public universities in Ghana follow the ‘‘traditional’’, ‘‘business’’, and ‘‘trusteeship’’ models of university governance, although in different proportions. Additionally, both types of institutions follow the bicameral system of decision making. Research limitations/implications – Only five of 19 universities in Ghana were sampled. Future research might expand the sample size to test and validate the initial perspectives from this study and also investigate differences between governance arrangements of faith based and non-faith based private universities. Originality/value – The paper reports the findings of the first nation-wide investigation into governance arrangements of Ghanaian universities. It will interest policy makers, university authorities, and other stakeholders in the higher educational sector.