Eslyn Isaacs

TRIPLE HELIX NETWORKS IN A MULTICULTURAL CONTEXT: TRIGGERS AND BARRIERS FOR FOSTERING GROWTH AND SUSTAINABILITY

This article deals with Triple Helix (university, industry and government cooperation) from an institutional theory perspective. The empirical context is the Western Cape Region in South Africa and the focus is entrepreneurship development. The purpose is two-fold: first, the existing Triple Helix model is adapted to the South African context; and second, facilities and impediments for working according to Triple Helix in South Africa are identified. The empirical material consists of a survey and three longitudinal case studies illustrating the degree of cooperation between the three parties. The article contributes to knowledge about how the Triple Helix model works on a regional level in a developing country. The study draws the following conclusions: when cooperation is to be identified between the three actors, only two of the three are involved; one missing link in the Triple Helix model is the focus on the entrepreneur; cooperation between the three parties are incidental rather than planned and there is lack of structure. In turn, some of these conclusions may be an effect of institutional changes on a national level. For a normative legacy, the article proposes a set of suggestions for incorporating all relevant parties on a practical level.

HIV/AIDS, Crime and Small Business in South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is located on the southern most part of Africa and stretches latitudinally from 22° to 35° South and longitudinally from 17° to 33° East. Its surface area is 1,219,090km2. It has a population exceeding 44 million and 11 official languages namely English, Afrikaans, isiNdebele, isiXhosa, isiZulu, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda and Xitsonga (Burger, 2004). Since becoming a democracy in 1994 it has embarked on an ambitious process of political, economic, social and legal reforms to improve the quality of life of the people of South Africa.

The Use of Financial Management Practices by Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises: A Perspective from South Africa:

This paper reports on an investigation of financial management practices used by small, medium-sized and micro-enterprises (SMMEs) in South Africa. It was found that more than half the SMMEs examined use external accounting staff to prepare accounting reports and more than 60% rely on external accounting staff to interpret and use accounting information. A majority of the SMME owners were found to lack interpretation skills and an awareness of how to use information from financial statements. An implication of this study therefore is that policy makers, business support organizations, banks and academic institutions need to focus on educating SMMEs more effectively in financial management, thereby mitigating the risk of cash flow problems and business failure.

Role of Support Organizations for SMMEs in a Global Environment A Study from thE Western Cape, South Africa

Many owners of small, medium-sized and micro enterprises (SMMEs) are not highly educated but are so motivated that they take uncalculated risks when starting their own businesses – often with disastrous consequences. It is therefore imperative that these owner-managers are provided with the right type of services to ensure that they do not become part of the SMME failure statistics. These owners are frequently not even aware of the existence of support organizations, because in many instances the organizations do not market their services properly due to limited funds. In countries that have policies specifically targeted at SMMEs, the rate of SMME development is much faster than in countries without such policies and it is evident that the role of support service providers is important. A typical service model should include at least some of the following services: business functions; education and training; consulting, counselling and coaching; policy and advocacy; and networking and infrastructure.

Family Business Succession: Founders from Disadvantaged Communities in South Africa--An Exploratory Study.

It is estimated that 50–70% of all South African businesses are family-owned and that these businesses form the backbone of the South African economy, their qualities providing stability and resilience in the changing society of the nation. Succession is one of the biggest challenges for family business owners. Research shows that only 33% of all family businesses progress from the first to the second generation and only 16% progress to the third generation. This is because in many small and medium-sized family businesses there is no formal succession plan and no appropriate governance structures are in place. Matters may also be complicated by destructive conflicts, with more than one family member believing that he or she is best equipped to take over as leader. In most developed countries family business research is receiving the same attention as, for example, entrepreneurship, but in South Africa neither topic has yet come of age. Of the 23 registered universities and technical universities in South Africa, only one offers a full semester-based module on family business, while four of the other institutions offer around two credit modules, of which succession is a small part. It is clear from the investigation reported here that unless the topic of succession receives more attention unclear succession plans, incompetence and/or lack of preparedness of successors and family rivalries will continue to result in unsuccessful successions and business failures.

SME Performance – Results from a Longitudinal Study

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have become the backbone of industrialized economies. This trend is also evident in South Africa, where, however, there are more closures than expansions: it is believed that only around 1% of the micro-enterprises started with fewer than five employees grow to employ up to 10 people. Consequently, these businesses contribute little to the taxation base of the economy, thus depriving the country of potential and much needed tax revenue. The rhetoric about the importance of SMEs in relation to the sustainability of jobs and poverty alleviation is current in South Africa, as elsewhere. Yet no studies have been conducted in the country to confirm that SMEs do have the desired effects. This study was therefore undertaken to ascertain whether SMEs do indeed contribute to and/or are able to sustain jobs over time. Performance data on SMEs were collected over a three-year period. During this period, a very small number of businesses closed due to failure; others simply disappeared or ceased business operations without formally de-registering the business.