MARKING MEMORANDUM

General Management
Module
GMAN01-7
(NQF LEVEL 7)

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT – ASSIGNMENT

Assignment (GMAN01-7/S2 10/2020)

Due Date 04 September 2020

Exam Date 29 October 2020

Marks 100

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 Assignment (GMAN01-7/S2 10/2020)

Total: 100 marks

Note to student: You will be penalised for the copying of theory without
explanation/application to the scenario provided. You should use the theory in
support of your own answer. Non-application will result in a zero mark being
awarded.

SECTION A (100 MARKS) – CASE STUDIES

Answer all the questions:

Question 1 (20 marks)

Read the case study below and answer the question that follows:

Cox Yeats leads in personalised expertise

Cox Yeats may have celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, but the firm’s
fresh, innovative approach continues to keep it youthful and relevant. Having
recently achieved its third PMR.Africa Diamond Arrow Award for the Best Small
Law Firm in South Africa, Cox Yeats’ story bears testimony to the power of solid
foundations, a compelling vision and passionate people.

When Graham Cox launched his law firm in 1964, he founded it on two core
principles: integrity and individual care for clients. By the time the firm became
Cox Yeats a few years later, these principles were part of its DNA – and they
continue to drive its ethos and strategy. The last five years have brought much
change in the legal and business landscape, while technology has forever
changed the way professionals practice. Recognising the twin need to adapt and
remain in touch with client needs, Cox Yeats has expanded strategically in key
areas, attracting some of the best legal minds.

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Winning a PMR.Africa award in 2007 and 2011, respectively, assured the firm
that its strategy was working, and that its number one priority – the client – was
being well looked after.

The Cox Yeats of today is larger than it’s ever been, enabling it to serve a number
of major companies across KZN and South Africa, but it remains rooted in its
founding principles. “As a result, we can offer our clients the benefit of significant
resources and intellectual capacity, coupled with the personalised service and
attention of a small firm,” says Managing Partner, Michael Jackson. “The way we
do this is by working in specialised teams made up of talented, dynamic
professionals who connect directly with their clients, and who are also able to
draw on other teams’ expertise to offer holistic solutions and advice. This kind of
attention to detail and vibrant cross-pollination is what makes us a true ‘life
partner’ to our clients.”

The team-based approach, coupled with a policy of remunerating young

professionals based on performance, has reduced barriers to accelerated
professional growth and enhanced expertise within the firm.

“We value our people so that they can value and serve our clients as they
deserve. That’s why we place our young professionals in teams that bring out
their individual strengths, why we promote their involvement in extracurricular
activities to maintain a healthy work-life balance, and why we encourage them
to do community service and pro bono work,” says Jackson.

For Jackson, who was appointed as managing partner in 2011, the firm’s
founding principles are as relevant as ever. “It has always been the intention to
keep Cox Yeats an independent firm and to operate as a caring, professional
practice rather than a business. We aim to provide appropriate strategic counsel
based on clients’ needs rather than commoditised solutions. And we can do this
because we have the right mix of experience, knowledge and energy. Our rich
history and the listed expertise of our senior partners have created the platform
for a new, young, energetic Cox Yeats which is ready to embrace an exciting
future,” says Jackson.

Source: Kirsten, C. 2015. Law Firms Profile: Cox Yeats Attorneys Cox Yeats leads in personalised
expertise. [Online] Available from: https://www.coxyeats.co.za/NewsImage/53 [Accessed: 2020-06-
01].

Discuss how management at Cox Yeats have continuously apply an innovative

approach to the business by using all of the six managerial competencies
(Hellriegel & Slocum, 2017:30) as reflected in the case study. Fully substantiate
your discussion points. (20)

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Answer: (Topic 1 + Chapter 2: Managerial competency page 30-44)

 Strategic action competency - innovation, implementing new technology,

adapting. . These examples show how Cox Yeats managers understand the
industry, the organisation and take strategic action. .

 Emotional intelligence, self-management, and teamwork competencies - very

approachable, .lateral-thinking and unconventional management team. who
have grown Cox Yeats from a one-man band in 1964 to its current staff. .

 Global awareness competency – the company serves a number of major

companies across KZN and South Africa., but it remains rooted in its founding
principles. .

 Communication, planning and administration competency - driving force has

been the passion -. about customer service; about the crucial importance of
.customer relationships. .

 Teamwork and communication competencies - “We value our people so that

they can value and serve our clients as they deserve. .That’s why we place
our young professionals in teams that bring out their individual strengths.

 Planning and teamwork - The team-based approach, coupled with a policy

of remunerating young professionals based on performance, . has
reduced barriers to accelerated professional growth and enhanced
expertise within the firm. .
 Strategic action and global awareness competencies - . Our rich history and
the listed expertise of our senior partners . have created the platform for a
new, young, energetic Cox Yeats which is ready to embrace an exciting
future,” .

 Strategic action, planning competency, communication (negotiation) - the

power of solid foundations., a compelling vision and passionate people. .
Good academic writing .. (20)

Question 2 (20 marks)

Read the case study below and answer the question that follows:

Leadership challenges at Gloss Beauty Parlour

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You are the interim supervisor of a team of therapists at Gloss Beauty Parlour.
You are relatively new, having recently replaced the previous experienced and
popular supervisor.

As is to be expected, your relationship with the team is a bit uneasy because

they do not know you and still need to develop trust and a solid working
relationship with you. Personally, you feel that that they do not really accept your
authority due to your young age. As a result, you intend to work very hard to
build trust and improve matters at the parlour. Fortunately, a beauty parlour
supervisor’s job is routine and easy to do. Once you build rapport with the team,
they let their guard down.

It is a well-known fact that due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the beauty parlour
business is facing a major crisis, as customers are wary of subjecting themselves
to the ‘personal’ nature of this service, where therapists are in close bodily
contact. In order to overcome this potential challenge, once the pandemic is
contained, the company will need a strong leadership with fresh ideas, a wide
client base, and a reputation that is beyond reproach to create a new direction
for the company. This will enable the parlour to survive the turbulence that it will
face from competitive forces and the need to re-build client confidence.
Source: Examiner

2.1 Using Fiedler’s Contingency model, recommend the leadership style that
would work best for you and your team of beauty therapists in this
situation. Justify your answer with three (3) references to the
scenario. (10)

2.2 Assume that Gloss Beauty Parlour realises your qualities as a

transformational leader and decide to appoint you permanently. Fully
explain how a transformational leader could influence your followers’
behaviour at the parlour to tackle the challenges facing beauty parlours
worldwide, as discussed in the case study. Justify your answer with three
(3) references to the scenario. (10)

Answer: (Topic 4, pg.348-350) Topic 4, pg. 355-358)

2.1 Fiedler’s model proposes that the leadership style must match the
situation. According to Fiedler, the manager should understand his own
leadership style, diagnose the situation and then match the style to the
situation. It is proposedly difficult to change leadership style. The LPC

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 (least preferred co-worker) description is used to ascertain whether a
leader is relationship or task orientated. In this scenario, a relationship-
orientated leadership style would work best for the supervisor /you and
your team within their situation. This will be best because the staff have
not yet developed a good relationship with the supervisor which can be
interpreted as poor leader/member relationships. It can also be seen as
poor power leadership position and high task structure. (10)

2.2 The transformational leader’s behaviour will turn things around at the
beauty parlour. Such a leader will have a vision. She frames her vision
by selling the vision and showing how to attain it in the business
environment/ beauty industry supported by strong values. She will also
be doing impression management by controlling the impressions of
others of her. This will transform the followers’ behaviour because they
will identify with the leader and her vision. It will heighten emotions and
feelings of empowerment. This type of leadership behaviour also
suspends any form of judgement. The outcomes of transformational
leadership include major organisational/social change, higher levels of
effort by followers, greater follower satisfaction, and increased group
cohesiveness. The leader will need to communicate the Parlour’s new
vision in view of Covid-19, and be able to communicate (framing) with
staff and clients how they are conducting the business and manage the
impression of clients and staff of the business (10)

Question 3 (20 marks)

Read the case study and answer the questions that follow:

Structure Follows Strategy – Safaricom Ltd

When a Kenyan mobile telecommunications operator, Safaricom, asked 13 senior

executives to apply afresh for the firm’s top jobs, CEO Bob Collymore said, “The
purpose of this re-design is not to downsize or retrench staff but to have in place
a structure that will support the delivery of our business strategy in a rapidly
changing and increasingly competitive business environment” (Business Daily,
2011).

Mr Collymore cut down the number of C-level positions (managers whose titles
begin with the word ‘Chief’), that directly report to the CEO, from 13 to nine. He
also did away with the title ‘Chief’ for senior managers, turning them into
directors.

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Mr Collymore took over the leadership mantle in the second half of 2010, as
Safaricom’s rivals stepped up the war for market share with deep tariff cuts and
as the regulatory landscape shifted rapidly, putting the firm’s profits under
threat. Safaricom’s market share dropped to 75.9% in October 2010, from
80.7% in June 2010. Airtel, which was, and is still is, Safaricom’s main rival,
grew its market share to 13.5% (from 9.1%) during the same period. Mr
Collymore therefore had to come up with a major strategy that would maintain
Safaricom as the dominant firm in the industry. He aimed for a lean executive
team with fewer reporting layers that can support the company’s growth in an
increasingly competitive market. The strategy was to turn Safaricom from an
innovative company to a customer-led organisation that will be able to offer the
best customer service in a bid to maintain its market share
(www.safaricom.co.ke, 2010). Under Safaricom’s new management structure,
procurement, finance and investor relations were merged into one position as
well as IT and technical officers’ roles. Marketing, commercial and customer care
were merged into a single department, while the legal and communication
functions now reported to one director. Mr Collymore also created new divisions,
such as enterprise business, consumer business and financial services that will
run as profit centres, a pointer to the fact that Safaricom is looking beyond the
competitive voice market for growth. Under this structure, the popular money
transfer service M-pesa falls under the financial services department. At
Safaricom, it is quite evident that structure follows strategy
(www.safaricom.co.ke, 2010).

Source: adapted from: Kavale, S. 2012. The Connection between Strategy and Structure. International
Journal of Business and Commerce. 1. 60-70. [Online] Available from:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/313444758_THE_CONNECTION_BETWEEN_STRATEGY_AND_
STRUCTURE [Accessed: 2020-05-31].

Discuss the relationship between organisation strategy and organisation

structure. Your answer should include at least five (5) examples or evidence from
the Safaricom case study, and be based on what Safaricom did to achieve its
objectives. (20)

Answer: (Topic 3 + Chapter 8/Organisation structure, pp.250, 251, 253-261)

Safaricom
 One of Safaricom’s greatest competencies was to identify the need for
reorganisation.
 Safaricom’s approach addressed the specific functional and structural
reorganisation required within the context of the business model and
strategic intent..

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  The first element of its approach is to define how the business was
organised or structured to go to market., to interface with stakeholders,.
and to react to external factors..
 The second element involved the creation of a blueprint that connected
an organisation’s strategy. and business model with the detailed
functional processes..
 These two elements created the context for reorganisation, including
organisation redesign..
 The key outcomes of a reorganisation-type intervention range from the
highest level of strategy formation. and the business-model definition,
through to detailed process design (for implementation of people, product
and technology solutions).. (Hellriegel ch 3 )
 An important part of the implementation of business strategy, with a view
to achieving goals, is the manner in which the organisation is structured..
 An organisation’s structure needs to be designed to optimise the
strategies and plans embodied in an organisation’s goals..
 The design of an organisation’s structure should support strategy
implementation..
 A change in strategy necessitates, in consequence, a change in
organisation structure..
 The basis on which jobs and roles are grouped, in order to accomplish
organisation goals, is called departmentalisation,.
 Effective organisation and structure are crucial for the effective and
efficient management of any business..

Question 4 (40 marks)

Read the instructions below and answer the question that follows:

Study the prescribed readings (King’s IV Report on Corporate Governance and

Sasol Integrated Report) listed below and, bearing in mind the following
requirements, write a report evaluating how Sasol, as part of its control function,
is ensuring that the company is well managed and functioning with integrity and
accountability:

Report requirements

Length: maximum six pages (2 500–3 000 words)

Structure: short paragraphs, including an introduction, conclusion and
relevant research, which is correctly referenced

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 Style: good academic writing and referencing is a prerequisite. Do not copy
and paste information from websites; instead, paraphrase your essay using
your own words, and reference sources correctly.

Use the following structure as a guide when planning and writing your report:

Heading Mark allocation

Introduction 3
Defining corporate governance 5
Corporate governance at Sasol: elements to consider:

 Sasol’s corporate governance effort

 Stakeholder engagement and relationships
 Risks and opportunities 15
 Strategy and resource allocation
 Performance and outlook
 Remuneration
 Governance.
Forces to guide and shape ethical conduct at Sasol:

 Societal norms
 Culture
 Laws and regulations
12
 Organisational practices and culture
 Individual perspectives.
Conclusion 2
Technical care 3
Total 40

Prescribed readings

Institute of Directors in South Africa. 2016. King IV Report on corporate

governance for South Africa 2016: Part 5.1, 5.2 and 6.6. King Committee on
Governance. [Online] Available from:
https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.iodsa.co.za/resource/collection/684B68A7-B768-
465C-8214-E3A007F15A5A/IoDSA_King_IV_Report_-_WebVersion.pdf
[Accessed: 2020-05-31].

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Sasol. 2019. Integrated Report. Integrated Annual Report. [Online] Available
from:
https://www.sasol.com/sites/default/files/financial_reports/Sasol%20IR_Web.p
df [Accessed: 2020-05-31].

(40)

Answer: (Topic 3 + 6 + Chapter 4: Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

page 93-123)

Heading Mark Allocation

Introduction 3
Students must give a clear purpose statement.
Clear delineation of sub topics.
Students’ position on the discussion is clear..
Defining corporate governance 5
Corporate governance mainly involves the establishment of structures. (like
committees) and processes, with appropriate checks and balances that enable
directors to discharge their legal responsibilities. .In assessing the standard of
appropriate conduct, a court will take into account all relevant circumstances,
including what is regarded as the normal or usual practice in the particular situation.
Criteria of good governance., governance codes and guidelines will be relevant in the
determination of what is regarded as an appropriate standard of conduct.. The more
established certain governance practices become, the more likely a court would regard
conduct that conforms with these practices as meeting the required standard of care.
. The table of Committees per governance element has been provided. 5 of these
aspects can be discussed The importance of checks and balances and adherence to
King 3 will be discussed. .Allocate 5 marks for an evaluation of the governance aspects
and 5 marks for relating the report and examples to the effectiveness of governance.
Corporate governance at Sasol 15
Refer to current structures as indicated below. Also look for a discussion where the
student evaluate Sasol’s corporate governance effort
Stakeholder engagement and relationships
Risks and opportunities.
Strategy and resource allocation.
Performance and outlook.
Remuneration
Governance.
Forces to guide and shape ethical conduct at Sasol:
15 12
 Societal norms

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• Culture
• Laws and regulations
• Organisational practices and culture
• Individual perspectives.
Conclusion 2
Conclusion is clearly stated. and connections to the research .and position are clear
and relevant.. The underlying logic is explicit. . 1 mark is allocated for a
recommendation.
All references are correctly written and present. .The correct referencing style is
used accurately and consistently in the assignment and on the "References" page. .
Technical care 3
Total 40

TOTAL MARKS: 100

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