3

and C!uJ.ture of the organ.ization. A study in this area will

include a description of operations and human·c~sources. 'l'hs

research focuses as much eli personal antidotes, historical

contexts and the intangible spirit of. Cashbuild, as it does

on the more tangible aspects of the organization such as its

st.ructure or financial performance.

The research report will attempt to t~mt the "southerness" of

Cashbuild as described by Lessem 1993. The resear~h will

also attempt to illustrate and define the degrees of

NC'rthern, Wests:l:nand Eastern orientations svJ.deJ.ltwithin the

o:r·ganisation.

A large portion of the report \"ill focus on the perceived and

real values and benefits of the Southern orientation, wir.h

specific reference to perceptions and key occurrences ~ithin

the organisation that demonstrate not only the existence of

a Southern orientat~<on, but also its ,;\,msequences.

Christio (l994) points out that the need fOl' an indigenous

approach t.o management is evident from the cases of Japan

and, more recent.ly, many in the Pacific Rim. In both areas,

economic success has been achieved la:t'g~)ly by absorbing

manag~ment pracr,ices developed elsewhere f and at the same

time retaining traditional cultural and contextual ccmrnuna),

2

business environment for management to shift its philosophies

and methodologies from its present Eurocentric focus to a

morr;! Afrocentric approach, in order to remain globally

competitive.

This research is primarily focused at contributing to the

fil.·st phase of the proj ect, namely tbo resGurch development

and d(1£inJ.t:i.Ol'lc,f an incHgenoHs Sout'.1 Afr:l(~fm approach to

management.

Cashbu,tld was chosen a~ the DubjeGt for thio otudy due to it.s

unique ml'l~agement app:t'oaah highlighted by t<oopman, A (1993)

irA Tran.gaul tural Managemen t: I:to~r to Unlock Global Resources.

It is necessary to highlight:. why a qUillitative case study

methodology was used, and why Lessem's Model IfFo'.].rWorlds ~

The Southe~n African Business Sphere" (1993) was uaed ao the

prime analyti~al tool.

The reason for using ;wessom's IfFour Worlds ~ The South

AhAican Busil'leSS Sphere" is to be able to draw a distinotion

between the managernent; approaches ,)f other Clultu'res and

global regions and that of South Africa. The moclel does

provide a concise theoretical framework of comparison, and is

a key a.nalytic model for the ~outh African Ma11agemel~t

Projeot.

The resec,trch focuses on the study of the management approach

1

Cl-IAl?'rlllRONgIN'rRODUC'rION TO THE RESEARCH

"how ihate the deceitful paradisethat man lives within

and the selfish way he now handles my life ... II

"i resigned from paradiseand went back home to africa

in search of my imageto dig up my roots II Ingoapclo Madingoane

The South African ManngementProject was initiated by and io

currently operating under the auspic.es of tlte Wits Business

School (WBS,1994).

The proj ect is plan11sd to have two c:. Lotinct phaaes , Phase

one jl3 concerned with tho reD9uroh, development and

do+'lnit:l.on of an indigenous South Africa approaoh to

management. The second phase will involve the promotion and

implemQntation of th€l indigenous managementmethods into the

business community.

'1'heproj ect is foutlded on two key assumptions. Firstly that.

for management to be successful it needs to have contextual

and cultural relevance. Secondly that in l:he ourrent pcsti-

apar~heid South Afrioa, there will exist a preEH:Nrefrom the

4.4.2

4.4.34.4.44.4.54.4.6

4.4.7

(viii)Functions •• f •••• " •• , • II •• 91

4.4.2.1 Training ., , " - ..... 91949697

The Training Dilemma · ..~ifentorshil?and Career DevelopmentAf£:irmative Action . . . . . , . . .The Divisional Human Resource Manager 994.4.15.1 The Interviews • · 100Commentary . . . •• 107

• lOS, • lOa

· 109

· .. · ..4.S Regional and Branch Level

Iutroduction . . . . · .4.5.14.5.24.5.34.5.44.5.54.5.6

• t ••

Eranch Venturecomm and CAAE Gr("'lups..A day in the life of a 13l."ancn · .. · 111

· 116· 122

The Interviews . . • • t .......The Disciplinary . I • II • ....Commenta~y . • • · .....

4.6 Overall Classification T£ ,le . · . , .. . •• 127

134ReBearch Propositions Answered " .. " . · .. ..CHAPTER 5 : OONCL't1S:X:ON • • • . . . . . • . • • . . • . 138

5.2Back to Sasics . . . .5.1 ..... " . · 138

· 144Application of Findings and Research . . · , ..REFER-ENema • • . . • • . • . . • . • . • • • . . . . . 149

00000000

(vii)3.1,1 Case Study .

3.2 Da~a Collection , .3.2.1 Obeservation .3.2.2 Interviews ...Population of Sample Size

· .

.. • ••• I

3.4 Data A'l.alysisMathods . . . · ..3.5 Limitations of the Research ...

lh~AutsxsOF R~SULTS . . . . . . . . . . ( . 51

4.1 Current company Profila . . . . . .4.1.1 Nature of Buoinass . · ...

· ...

4.2

4.1.2 Current Company Structure4.1.3 Financial StatusThe Executive . . ... • • t ••

• •• t

" .

4.':1. 1 Intx:oduot:l.on. . ......'.i. , 2 •~ The Il'l.tel:'vieW9. . . , . •4 • 2 • :3 Summary . . . .4:.2.4: Commenc,\ry , , . .The Great Indubu . . . . . .4.3.1 Description ...

· ....• ft ••

...I • , •

4.:L2 Oue Team Oue NationIndaba Critique . . . . . · ...

...4.3.:34.3.4 Management Opinion . . . . . II •••••

4.3.5 . .. , ... ..4.4 '!'haHuman Resource Function . . . . .

4.4.1 Introduction .... , ..... · . " .· ....

40

4142

43

4647119

$1

5153

5659

596076777979818697

8S8989

(vd)

'l'.hl3LE OF CON'rEN'l'S

J?nge

Title Pagt;'Abst.ractDeclaration . . . .Dedication . • • • .

. . ., .. , . , " ., ...• (i)

(iii)

(iv)· (,\,.)

(vi)

...........

.......Acknowledgement.s . . • . . . • • ,

Table of Contel:'4ts. . , • . I( ... .... ., .

11~RODUCTION TO THE RESEARCH , , . . • , . . 1

13ackgrouncl. . • •1.1

1.21.3

••• t ... . , ;, .. . , . • :1.Research Problem PfJi.l1'litlonThe Rat.ionale , , . • • .

•• t •• t · 3..... " . · 4

1.4 The Reoearch propositions ......... • • 7

ClIAl?'l'ER2 : LITERATURE REVIlllW• . . . . • • . • . • • . • e

COrltc...xt.ual and African Management ........ • • 8

LenDem's Model of ;'\nalysis: Itll.'he I~otlr '''1o:t'J.ds"

2.4 Literature Review Discussion . ... , .. " ..

1724

37

2.3 2acltgro1.U'ld Review ., • i " ..... , •••••

. " . , .... , .. , 39

3.1 The Methodology ••.• , .•.•••.... , • 39

(v)

~CKNOWLEPGEMF~NTS

I wO\11dlike to thank Pet.er Christie for his guidanae during

this research and his inspit'ation over the past four years.

'l.'hanl<:you too to Ronnie IJessem for sharing his immense

intellect.

My gratitude goes to all members of Cashbuild Lta for their

epennaus and t :I.med\\ring the inte.r.vil~wsI especially Mal:iuEj

Bierman and Carol Basrutinni,

A special thank you goes to Desiree Lahaud for her help ill

preparing the dccumenc,

(Lv)

RESEARCH DEDICATION

This Research Report is dedicated to f(y wifo, Cheryl, who

provided encouragement and support, and who! am su:re willcOl'ltribute greatly to Mal1C1.gemer.tdev€\lopment:..

(iii)

OlllCL.AIU\.'.t:J:ON

! declare that tl:lis reseal:ch report is my own, unaided work,

It io submi.t ted in potential fulfilment of the requirem(;!nts

of the degree of Manter of Management in the University of

the t'1it\'1ace:rsrand, Johannesburg. It has not been submitted

before for any dCs:,:!\"eeor examination :l.nany cche:;: university.

Signed

At.e JI

~:;t~-I'·..·

On t1iio -!'!If ••••..•• day of September 1995.

(ii)

literature and semi-structured interviews with people at

various levels within the organiaation.

The results revealed that there ~.s indeed a management;style

and culture within the organizatiorl that reflects Afrocentric

Philosophies and Practices.

'rhis indigenous style is also seen as the source of employee

commit.mentand motivation. The Afrocentric approach does not

exd st; however in isolation of more conventional Eurocentr;l,c

Northelm and Western o:dentations which are demonstrated to

be essEmt:i.al for overall organisational effeotiveness.

(i)

ABSTRACT

The aim of this research Was to investigate the managementprinciples, key philosophies and culture of CASHBUILD LTD(Cashbulld). The Cashbuild Group is a leading wholesale andretail suppller of building mate~ials in Southern Africa.

The unique management style of Cashbuild has been widelypopularized over the past fifteen years. As demonstrated bylargest ever recorded sales of a South African business book,liThe Ccrporate cxuaadexsv , by Koopman, Nasser and Nel, apublication which popularized the Cashbuild story. Opinionamongst many South A.fricanacademics in the menaqement; field,has held that CashbuUd I s unique management approach canprovide an Afrocentric archetype for all South Africanorganit!lC::ltionscurrently at.'"emptingto adapt to fundamentalenvironmental shifts.

The methodology takes the form of a qua1:\,tativecaae study.The "Four World" Business Sphere Model of Ronnie Lessem wasused as an analysis tool. In the spirit of an .A.frocentricstyle this paper does not only focus on the tangible andobservable systems and structures of the organisation, butexplores the values of key individuals and the ve':yspirit ofthat company.

'rhechosen data sources include direct observat:i.on,relevant

SOUTH AFRICAN MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLESWITHIN A

BUil.DING SUPPLIES ORGANISATION

ELTON DAVID BONDI

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Management,University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partialfulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master ofManagement.

September 1995

lSFurther evidence of the importance of African philosophy andculture playing a significant role in conventional business,is found in the experiences of Zimbabwe's "Eastern HighlandsTea Estate".

Located on Zimbabwe's southern border is the remote buthauntingly bealltiful Honde Valley home of the Tea Estates.The area had long been the sight of intense bush fightingthat characterised the country during the 1970 IS. As aresult, Managi.ng Director, 'l'onyHugill, found that during theearly 1980 I S productivity and mo.t",lewas exceptiona.lly lowamongst the 3000 stIong workforc€;, These problems Werecompounded by social and material disarray and dereliction.

Lessem (1991: 10) describes Lovemore Mbigi, a 25 year oldZimbabwean and aftex-soldier in Robert MUgabe' s ZANLA forces,as ".. a social work graduate and business entrepreneur. Infact Mbigi had not only remained closely in touch with hisown peasant roots, la:t:'gelyunder the influence of hismaternal grandmother, but. had also singlehandedly putcorrespondence education on Zimbabwe's rural map",

Mbigi joined the Tea Estates as Personnel t.~e0tor and asreported by Leesem (199: 11) ",..he built up a ~~a~ition ofmanaqomenc and workers, of women of the villleyanc'spirits ofthe ancestors, of hunters and gatherers, of agronomists andrainmakers of management of objectives and \'I'let'aphysical

14productivit:y, low levels of literacy and education, high

industrial unrest and a wide divide between contemporary

management and labour It is dLf:ficult to identify a single

root cause to these problems. However the traditional

autocratic south African Management style, with :I. t .i

x'Boultant, alienation of workers, decline in motivation and

!."f:lsistance to innovation must s\J,rely be a contributory force.

Denial of the baaa.c spi:dtual e:x:istence of a society would be

the key cause to many of theoe negative symptoms.

»(

ReseQrch cenduened by l<ny Chadford (1994) on South .African

Sto)tvel'3 revealed that manypeople j ..)in stockvels in order to

fulfil the need for a sense of community and social purpose,

which is lacking in people's w(·lt~lives.

Simil,arly I a research otudy by Coldwell and Moe:rdyl<:(1981:

70) revcHll that "Ther:e are:" host of cuaccms and usagoo that

l.mdoubt:.edly changed the process of encultevation, but there

are aloo many deep :t;'ootedbeliefs I customs and tradi tiona I of

which the bringing up of youth is one I that resist chcm~e and

o.re often strengthened in adversity".

Cordwell and Moerdyk (1991: 189) continue this ascertatiOl'l:

"The majority of urbanised blacks' attitud(~o are still shaped

t:o a groater or lesser extent by thei.r tribal/oultural

heritage and j,f not: directly I then indirectly by relatives

and their expect,ations".

13African's social organisation, his goods and chattels his

agriculture, the way he tended his crops as well as his

cattle. Chiefs I tribal organisations, witch doctors and

ancient rituals were abolished r.lwiftly by the administration

with a penll•

Thio quote is offered as an explanation of perhaps why tho

business cultu:t'Q in South Africa has developed with a

remarkabJ.e absence of indigenous influence.

Van der Post: (1955: 47) continues: "The EU:t"opean has

discredited the African way of living and dealing with the

forces of nature about and within, and then ob1.igf-ld him

increasingly co live d.n a waywhich rejects the institutions,

auctions and initiation rite~ and rituals whereby f.or

eent:uries he strueJe a balance I',."iththese overwhel.ming aopec::ts

of nature which uro incomprehensible to reuson and quite

beyond rati~nal control and consciou~ articulation. Having

diserediterJ_ th,u.') ancj.ent; way of living we hUVCl not. put an

hOlloura:ble alternative on its ')lace. No human being or

oociety, however solf onffioient and national it may appear,

can live without; thooe aspecna of life which cannot be

explained rutionallyn.

The results of thin historical trend can be view(ld aa 0.

contributory factor to tho problems of contempo~ary South

Afrioo.n buoinass. Plagued with ito compuratively low

12examples however; where organisations have risked breaking

with South Afrioan management convention and creatively

developed a manage.ment approach that closely resembles

aspects of Af:l:'ioal'leemmuna; life. Cashbuild is thought to be

one such example (Koopman, 1991).

The SGH.u:chfor an African management model does not end with

the study of a singlt"! PJ:'opol3ed archetype but ro.the:r. assuggested by Binedell (1993: 10) who would include

n ••• uncovoring the indigenous phil~sophielill or world views

that would un.derlie our South Afl:ioun reaJ.ity ~ the second

In:oa.;l thrust is to d~velop endc.'genous conct'Jptual model,s

related. t(. the indigenous realities of SO'l.tthern Af:rica, to

transform endogenoulJ management concepts to the African

cont:e~et.

In orde1.4 to discover the African world view and then to

develop Pt'uct i.eal modelo, one has to taka cognisance of tho

historical fo.cto:t:s that have led to the apparent exclusion of

Af:l,'j',can philosophy in bUdinGlD(l, Van d<:al'.'Post: (1.955: 42)

otat:oo t:hat II." :muropea.n man arl."ived in Africa already

despising African and African bf3ings. He arrived there, net;

for Al:l'.'ic(m sake , but: :for what he could. get out of Africa on

his own behalf. Ho o.rrl.vod as 0. superior pm."kjOnroady to

imfx)fHahimDolf and hie: way of living em Africa, not doubting

far a BeCon' that his waD a tettor way and that it was for

all Africa' 0 good, The same thing which made him despise t'.he

11As a result Lessem (1993: 18) argue~ ~hat "Business

enterprise in Southern Africa has not emorged in a vacuum.

In eff~ct it has evolv~d out of one particular C,lult:.u:r.-al

heritage and duly ic;tl'\oredothers. More specifico.lly, it h;~s

drawn strongly 01'1. :Lts competitive and personalised \,G;lstll:.;rn

world, to a lesser extent co-ordinated and managerial world

heritage, while ignoring its co-operative and cOlnmunal

worlds II •

Koopman (.1.993: 55) confirms further thut:. "thim ~tra.tegic

ox'giltlioation io mimmatched with the eultm,"al organisation in

South Afriea II •

Porter (1990) has found t;hat those economies that have b1.),ilt

em theiJ:' particular cultural aspects have been abJ.1J to

achieve world clao~ statuo.

The African world view and \lforks ethic is different to tha.t

of the West. Coldwell a.ndMoerdyk' s (199l: 70) assel.~ted that

"JuD!:.aDI in the Weo!:.,Calvinism generated ill. phiJ.oaophy (;md

value system wh~en is still evident:. toduy in the

individualised world ~ even if its precise connection with

Calvinistit.~ doctrine is forgotten - 80 africa has evolved it,s

own philosophy and corresponding world view",

'l.'he Africa.n worl~ ethic and. world view has not been highly

ovident in the South Ab'd.emnarena. There have been i,solcated

lOChri.stie argues similarly to Ormosa that too much faith is

placed upon management practices davel.ope.c1 in II •• ,Am'~rioa,

Europe nnd Japan. Yet our organisations e.mploy primarily

$out.h lIfricans I ::merat:e primarily in South Afrioa, and market

their goods and services primarily to South Africans",

The fact that m.:.tntlgcmentin South Afl:idctt has largely been

based on a foreign model Lo highly Idvidcmced. What ::It:i11

needs ntill to be proved is the question, of what io a South

l\,fl~i,cnn or African mede1? r~hich bego the. question: docs

South African management need to adapt to ito context, or io

it better for people in business to adopt foreign t'nanagement

principle.s?

Ce;wdwcll and 1'<toerdy]~(19B1: 191) argue that: IIIt: is easier to

re:tructure a role than to restructure the character of

oither an individual or society. In aecexdanee with this

argument, and irl order to build upon the :i.ndivid\\Ul' S

exioth'lg valueo and abilitios rather than to deny them, it io

ut"SlLodthat: nt!tontion t:3houldbe given to the development:. of

orgnnioa~ionul and managerial structures that are more

culturally correct".

'rho majority of the South AfJ:ican populution, and of tho

poople wol~ldng in orgnniout::lono I are made up of indigonous

li.fr:Lcnn people. Tho majority of management is however made

up of white mulos with Western and l'l'orthorn cul tUJ:ul rooto.

G

9

ProJect Lessem, Christie et 01. (1994) argue that business

must J:~eflect the environment~-\l context in which it operates.

Acknowledging the unique historical, oocial, economic,

clUltural and political forces in contemporary South Africa,

wou:td imply the need for an ol::l.gillal mfm.agementapproach to

South African management issues.

7.'helite.rature on contextual management whilGt baing rare, is

certainly not new. Hofstede (1990) and Mant (19B3) write

about the j,mportance of the acknowledgement of context and

culture i.n order to aenfcve I.mccessful buoiness J.Qaderohip.

More rocentlv OrmolJa (1994: 94) suggests that leaders in

Africa who have tried to impose Western values and theories

on Ai:t:'iconnc1.\lture have refuse.d to see that the European

model, baDed em a homogeneouopopulation oha:dng one language

cu1turo and ro1igion, could l'lot simply be transferrod .to

Africa 'l'1it~h ito m\,tlti..culturul, multi"linguiot, multid•

roligiouo bacltground.

Chr:i.otie (1994: 8} ccueheu on tho opecif:tc differonoe botwocm

mnnagomcmtno a uni voroaJ, soianoo und contextual managoment

whon stating that " ... t:he formex' position eeaeemo the

dCl:ivation of g(meral principles upon which all ma.nagomont

o.etiono can bQ bnsed, tlU;1 J,o.tt.or ccneeenn tho intogra.tion of

managomont with the specific cont:extual and oultural milieu

\llithin which. munagement occurs",

8

lilt is saidLint poets write of beauty

of form, of flowers and of lovebut the words I write

are of pain and of rage" James Matthews

There is eompartivoly very little literature on the subjeots

Contextual. Manugemant or Afrioun Munugement and even leoo

researoh eendueued :i.n the fields.

A kay raason for this is touol\ed on by 131unt (1983: xi) who

argues " .•. mm'lagemen.t.texl~ books uned by leoturers and

at::udcnto in Afrioa have up to now been mostly Eritish OJ;'

Amerioan in origin, written by Western aeadem:i.oo for a

readerohip in the West, and talee as a. otart:i.ng p<::>inta

Western buoinm:w environment. Very few bool<:oindeed have

baen wld,tteu wh:i.oh deul with a 'l'hird WOl:ld or A:f:doan

environment I or provi,do an ulterna.tive perspeotive ralovant

to tho issues and problems faced by Managers in our

devoloping soci.etiesll (Blunt 1993: xi). As a result thoro

has been vo:t.'y litt:.le dreativity in the development of an

Afl:'ioun ManagementModel.

'rheoriots al1Soo:l.ateci wit-.h the South African Management

7

1.4 xgE RESEARCH PROPOSITIONS

Two major reseal:'ch pl:'opositions are being advanced with

l:'efel:'enc:a to both the litel"ature review and the was South

African Management pl:'oject proposal:

i) The 'Southel:'n' management approach, which has a

humanistic orientation, will be evident in an

o:rganiI2H:l.tionwhich has managed to wir. the hearts and

minds, and subsequently the commitment, of its members.

ii) The 'Southern' management approach can operate in

par€\llel with more conventional 'Western', 'Northern'

and 'Eastern' orientations, to provide a ccnuexcua),

Af:l:'i!.'!al'lmanagement methodology that has global relevance

and will best enhance organiZational effectiven~ss.

000000000

Furthermore, the economy of apartheid south Africa geared

itself relatively successfullY to cope with global isolation,

relying heavily on mass exploitaticm and its large minera1

wealth.

It is painfully obvious that the philosophies I structures and

practices of the Apartheid economy are h:l.ghly deacxuccLve to

the new South Afl:.'ic,mand the new world.

Cashbuild has been chosen as a subject of study, to indicate

a new archetype of South African business that could help

mould the new economy. The reason.'$!for Cashbuild's selection

are based on two key factors: Firstly I Cashbuild has

demonatrxatred benefit as a direct result of its enrichment of

indig(;)no'Us cultural values into a successful management

ethos I that differs considerA.bly from I:.raditional apartheid

management culture. Secondly I Cashbuild' s culture evolved

from il\\tocratic management roots I that similar to the current

South African economy, su:Eferoad:Cromint~ernal press1.tres which

stemmed from cultural and value :celated incongruencies \\fithin

the organisation.

If the "Africanisation" of Cashbuild's philosophies and

praotices are a sucoessful response to pressures similar to

those experienoed by all South African business today, then

it would follow that a study of this organisation may be of

benefit to all South Africa.j,

5

artificially divided societies and cultures.

In conjunction with its identity quest I South Africa is

placed under extreme economic pressure b~th within its own

borders and from abroad.

Internally South Africa's comparatively l:'apid political

change has resulted in "a crisis of expectation" where

majority of its citizens demandparallel economic and social

ahang~ at an equitable pace.

Externally the li£t:!.ng of sanctions and resultant increase in

international competition is presenting local buai.neaa with

prev;i.ol.tsly unrealized threats and indeed opportunities.

The economythat is faced with meeting these two pressures is

not only affected by an unresolved social and cultural

context, but is plagued fUrthermore by its own ethos

developed as a response to its historical demands.

The South African economywas developed out of the apartheid

legacy and catered primarily for t.he minority whit.e sector of

the economy. AS a result, the social fabric of the nation

Wasgrossly manipulated to service the economy. All example

being the advent; ()f the migrant labour system which broke

downthe basic cell of social life, namely the black communal

and family structure.

4

concepts.

With this reality :i.nmind it is the puzpoae of this paper to

attempt to discover if the approach to management

demonstrated by Cashbuild is in fact unique; and furthermore

whether it represents a truly indigenous archetype which

would be of benefit to all South African business.

1. 3 T:t!E RATIONALE

The rationale behind the chosen research problem is based on

several factors.

Firstl~r, the unique and intense social, political and

economic cli.a.ngesthat fact~ contemporary South Aft-ica.

Secondly, the evidenced turbulent change in the universal

business sphere where competition is no longer within a

nation's borders or even within a region, but rather across

the entire globe. As a direct result the competitive

advantage of companies is linked to the cultures and worl<:

ethics of nations. Indus....ry benchmar'ka are now truly

internatj.onaJ. .

South Africa is in a state of flux, desperately trying to

discover

within,

(or rediscover) its own busin.ess identity from

as it att<empts to reconcile its previously

27

A strong holding companywith a retail network oat.ex'ing

to simila~ oustomer base.

A large and relatively untapped market demand.

It is important to note that with the possible exclusion of

the dynami.c entreprenFiluriaJ. style of Cashbuild I S leadel:8hip,

nothing was unusual about the management 01" oul tur~ of the

oompany. In fact it was run quite autocra.tfcally like most

co-npanaos at that time.

The authoritar:l.an style worleed until 1982 when the chain had

reached twelve outlets. In 1983 profits dropped from R GSaoeo to R GO000, staff turnover was running at 120~ per annum

and stock shrinkage had beoome a major problem.

The reason for this drop in performance could not be

i.,"tttrib1.lted to e":onomio conditiono ae this period could

ostensibly be described as a boom. Cashbuild'm problems were

the1"sfore interl'lal. Corporate culture l"eadings taken s'Lnee

1981, revealed that 80P.r of managsrs felt that the company was

prospering in 1981 and the same reading in 1982 showed that

81% of mo.no.gcrwere confident of the company's performance.

'l'his perplexed Koopmanand his leadership team, 80 in 1983 he

called for a "yeal' of total re..::earch II to discover the view of

nJJ, EmlployeesI not only those of management.

The procesa started with w01Akshopswher.e I(oopman and his

26

steel windows, corrugated iron and cement, with a small range

of finishing materia.ls.

The increasing number of brt:1l1Cheswere located primarily near

central communication links or rural growth areas. Many

early Cashbuild branches were located near Metca.sh sites,

this was a great. advantage becauoo oj the fact that the two

dl:C:Ctll:.'ontoperations had similar customers and estnbliohment

coots were competitively lower, thus contributing grea.tly to

the initial accelerated growth ~f tho Cashbuild chain.

Cashbuild also established a close relationship with its

otlppliers i:rom the onseu (a. characteristic also still llighly

evident today). Cashbuild sought to worlt interdevrmdantly

with oupplie:r.s, often educating ehem or! blacll: ccmoume:cneeds

and thus :i:":lrminga strong incluotldal co..operutive network.

In its formative yeUl.'l3Ca(lhbui:ld waDnot faced with uny real

c~mpetition. It dominated c,':\ very large and untapped mu:r.)~et.

The period from :1,978 to 1992 could be deGC'ribed ae a

"booming" phaoe, until the picture ohanged and performanoe

deolined.

In it:, first five yearD of operation CashbuJ.ld' a OUCCOElO

c::!ould1 ' att.ribut:od to tll.ccc major faCltoro:

2m ontrepreu\llnrial young and dynami<.:leuderohip.

25Then in 1978 Metcash invitec1 Koopman h. 1""join the group and

head up the new enterprise that he had p:l.oposed two years

earlier. The company' fl decision was influenced largt~ly by

the fact that it had a camh surplus of R1S mUlion and was

looking for new ventures to invest in.

teoopmanwas given one million l;'tmd £ll'd free reign in runnin~)

the now chain, with t'.he onl,y condition that he produced a

profit within the £irnt year of operation. WOz;-k:Ll'lgwith hio

OperatiOI'lS Director, Gerald Haumn.ntf I<oopmanopened the firot

branch in Ieing William' CJ Town. :By February 19aOI Pl~Q~t~mc

p:t'ofits h~d risen to R40 000. I<oopmansummal'ized that "tho

market was subject to very erratio demands, and thQ

traditional distribution channels we.:cen't able to meet those

demanda, A pj.·ofesa:l.onal whole~mJ.e operator woul.clahorten tho

distribution ohannel ~ and he I d be in buoinefw to stay".

l<oopman was right ;.md soon Cashbuild became the faot:eot:

growing oompany within the Tro.degro Group.

15'romthe start Caohbu!ld developed em Atl1.oSof intrinsic:

If customer foous" (which the researoher found in evidenoe

Dtill today). Co.ohbuild conccmtrutod on low murgin/high

volume trade. Items were priced acoord;t,ng to stook turn,

with fast moving itemo having lower margins.

The company targeted a niche in the m,arket where there was a

demand i!or houvy builcling mo.terio.ls such as door*f:r.amer.~,

24

Bubstantiate these pioneering theories, will surely

contribute to the development of these economies.

'1'h£.1acepa of this l."eporl: is however I fooused on the

applioations of these pri11cip1es in a single organization.

It ;is relevant therefore that this literature review include

a h:i.sto:doal aceeune of Cashbuild.

'l'hiD £let. chapte:r.' is a summary of "A Win for the Company " A

W:l.nfor the worke:t's" I Cashbuild Limited, A Case study by J.B.

Bl1rolsky I (WaSI 1985).

Cal3hbuild was established in 1978 as a bu:i.lding materials

cash and cal.~ry wholesaler targeting the black ceneumez

Im;ll~ket.The company wu.s started as a wholly owned subsidiary

of Metro Cash and Carry I a food and ho\\sehold products

wholesaler within the 'rradegro Group of Companies.

A buoineoo idea was first proposed in 1976 by Albert Koopman,

wh~ was at that time the Metcash head of corporate

development. Koopmanhad been with Metcash since 1973 when

he :joil'led as a management trainee.

'rhe ideo. was initially :t'<ilj ect;f:ld und I<oopmunseen left the

company to work as a Marketing Consultant: wi.~:~ Hunt, lleucharEl

and Hepburn.

..

23organization. It iE') the hope of :Wassom that A:Ericul'l

Managoment will become entrenched not only within

irldividualo, not only within separat(~ organizations and

induotrioe, but riglJ.t through to Ill1 Southern African

eeenemaca. Van del'."Merwe (1993: 240) similarly states th~t,

"At the l'l.eart of Africunism is a deep sense of

int.,t~rdepol"denC!(:a. 011.00 very sense of personhood j.EI depender ;

\11 how one io rog(u:ded by othp't'o. AfricCLn HUmUl'lismor

Obunt't ao it io eullod, io an invaluable asset through which

to e:t'oute communit:~·'.

Mbigi (19g3) oerongly states that South Africa can achieve. a

highly competitive global stance, by harnessing the

"oollecti ve will" of all South Africans. The potential

t:;margy, that hilS to a ~.argo de.gree bt~Glnunseen in the South

Afr~,can ccenemy, can on...y be a.chievecl through a philosophical

ohift in mano.gement thinking. :r. t may be similarly al..gued

that real Docial and. eeenemre success must be p:r.eceded by

spiritual tranofox-mation in thQ economy. The path to such

change io thl:'ough indj.vidual induotr:l.es, organizations and

people.

'1'ho limi tod 1:1.t:erature on the Dubject of Afl.'ican management

pointD te U oubject and new oriclUtat:.ion that io highly

oicrnifiClcu't for Southern Africa and even tho world. at th:l,D

t~ime. The UeJd :l,o relatively new nr,'.i t~ho potent~~,al

ccmtribution of ilny aeademf.e Dtudy tnat would help

22in the Cashbuild Co-operative. He describes the value system

of the communally based convivial manager which resulted in

a. shift of emphasis from roles and fun~tions to morals and

emotions. Management techniques moved partial.ly away from

hierarohical decision making towards continuous debates and

II Indabas II • The' spiri t I behind this style is I as Koopman

explains, because of the traditional cultural emergence of

blacks through the spoken word and in the form of metaphors

and storie.s.

All the relevant literature points t.o the emergence of a

metaphysical management al:'chetype when j.mplement.ing an

Afl:'ican management cultul:'e. Metaphysical management implies

a stronger management focus on intangible or cultul:'al aspects

of .:.he ol:'ganization, The so called spirit of the oompany as

opposed to ito physical body or tangibJ.e Pl:'oce.sse.s. The

difficulty is not to integl:'ate the NOl:'thern and WestGil:r'n

ol:'ientations ¥lith an i'mate African culture, but t'<J.ther to

ensure that peoples of Europe~n descent are able to adapt to

al" African orientation. The pr:i.mereason for such difficulty

is that it requires not only the change of any system, policy

or praotioe of the orgcmizo.tion, but l:'athal:' a shift in

}':)Llliefs, values and \spirit I of <All individuals and of the

organizutil.m.

Mbigi (1993) ('.lalls for management to 1001tbeyond the phya,; cal

and to understand the \spil:'i tun1' fullness of an

21effective, and in a new environment".

Lessem (lS93: 20) poineD to the fact that "now is the 1;,ime

fOl' South Africa to wOl::kmore independently to cn:eate a

fusion of cuJ.tureen• Lessem states further that II... the

denial. of African cultures in the business environment:. will

in fact mean that emphasis must be placed on the Southern

orient;ution but without total exclusion of the other three

worlds". Lessem cont:inueo that emphaois must shift from ". , .

worlt opirit rather than phYElical labour, human as eppeaed to

financial capital, intangible rather than tangible roeources,

culture rather than economy,. ,",

Tho challenge of this research is to discover how th:l.s ohango

could be put into oporation. To a certain extent Mbigi

(1993) illlswero this question. He propooeo that an

inotitution that is governed to tho letter of law, :1.0 one

that will not: bo able to realize its fullest human potontial.

Mbigi 'IJ vision ue tranofol.·m an cecncmae entity into an.

intimate 1\.f:l:'ioanvillags and thus heighten the spiritual life

and. humar; potexltial of the organi:,o:ut:l.onwas l~Qalized through

his management stylo at the Eo.ote:r.nl1j.ghlando Ton EstateE.~ in

Zimbabwe. The goal would bo to find similar arohetypoa for

south Africa.

T~oopman(lSl93) in his books, 'Tl.·ansc:mltu:r.al Mnnt1!.1eml~nt' and

'Tho Corporate Cl.'usadors', has written about his experiences

20With the growing Lnfl.uerice of the blaclt business and the

increasing number of black managers it is imperative that

business orientation in South Africa moves to a more Southern

orientation without abandoning the positive aspects of the

Western and Northern influences.

In order to fully appreciate the African way, Mbigi (1993)

points us to the African wo:!:dof 'Nhorowondo', a concept that.

traces the metaphysical root.s Qf a phenomena. Such roots

would include the history, environmental circumstances, the

key actorS and the themes that underpin uny phenomena. In

effect this points to .:he fact that African management is

about visionary leadership and about t::hemetaphysical myths

that enoompass the 'spirit' of the organization. This

research would therefore not fulfil its purpose if it did not

highlight the metaphyoico.l origina of the organ;i.zation I FlJ

rituals.

This io not to say that the Africrm business io totally

exclusivG CoIf any Western, Northern or :mustern orientatiol'l,

rather ClI] stated by Eeclt (1982: 3), "New management will

contuin much of what now exists but in a different form. It.;.

is analogous with the emergenoo of the ch~ugonwfly from the

crystals. Until it rids itself of ito old sJdn completely,

that dragon~ fly io going nowhere. While the eSlJential parts

have alwuys been present, or in the malting, new arrangements

and new emphasis have produced a creation of beauty, highly

19The management style characteristic of this world ishumanistic, concerned with value sharin.g and sp:l.ritualtransformation. Most aspects of the Southern world aremetaphysical and therefore relatively 1e913 tangible than inthe other three worlds.

These world are summarized by Lessem and refined by Christie(J.994) in tIte South African Management l?roject FundingDocument as shown in the following table.

World 1 ..West World 2 • l\iorth World 3 • East World 4· South--....... ~----...~

Competitive and Oo-otdlnated and Co-operative Communalpersonalised managerial-Primal management Rational Developmental Humanistic

i-- . management management management-_.Free enterprise Planned corporate Industrial renewal Socio-political

gr0w.th reconstructlon-Business leadership Dlrlglsrna, Sustainable Spiritual

~omic planning development traneforrnetlon .-Prlvatlsed Publlo/Private 00- Co-operating Networks of rCJ-cornpetition ordination clusters construction---Entrepreneurship Professional cadre, "Japan lnc.: Communal

elite enterprise-Process rea Corporate planning Kalzen, Ubuntu • communityengineering continuous building

Improvement

Empowering people, Industrial Quality Clroles Story telling, valuecustomer democracv sharing~ ........ \. --Improving work rote Undortaklng work Enhanolng work Building work

study flow rhythm

Adding value Allooating value Enhancing value Value sharing

Economy Technology Ecology Spirit

18opportunitistic and innovative outlooK.

World two, the Northern world, is more co-ordinated and

managerial. It represents a rational approach to management

which is headed by a professional cadre or elite. 'l'his

business-sphere is more typical of larger well established

South Afr:i.can companies with their multi-layered hierarchies

or matrix. structures. The result of such a rational approach

to management is a very definite struct'.1.lre whioh in turn

results in the creation of specific and defined levels,

functions and roles. This definition assists in planning and

organizing larger institutions, but denies the individual

full freedom of expression, oonduct or feeling.

The third world or Eastern world, is characterized by a co~

operative approach focusing on sustained and oont:Lnuous

development of systems, prooesses and people. It is a mOre

wholistic a'P,proach to management that has at its oore a

spiri t of idealism that is oonstantly strived for.

Organizations, like people, are seen as oonstantly developing

as they progress on a never-ending road to the perfect state.

Profit and monetiaxy wealth are only a measure of this

journey.

'l'he fourth and fim~l wozLd is the Southern world. This

business-sphere hc..:J its core ph.iJ.osophies rooted in humanism.

It is typified by cc.immunalenterprise and communitybuilding.

172.2 LESSEM'S MODEL OF ANAtYSIS - liTHE FOUR WORl,DS"

Lessem points out however (1993: 38) IIthat African Management

as a dynamic whole is represented by the Four World views of

Wes~ern emperialism, Northern nationalism, Eastern idealism

and Southern huma.nism'". Lessem continues, II that whilst Soutb

Africa has developed its Northern and Western world views it

has appaeent Ly neglected its Eastern and soucheen heritage in

management. In order to achieve a more holistic balance of

the four worlds more emphasis must be placed on nurturing a

Southern orientation".

It is Lessem's view that each distinct style links to a

compass point that is closest to its place of origin. West

being typified by the Unl::t;:>dState of America; North

e~itomizing the Germanic and French traditions; East

epitomizing the Japanese culture and finally the Southern

Approach seated in African communal tradition.

Lessem (1993) describes the four worldF' c:l.S ft"ll_

World one, the Western world, would reprenent a \oom~")etitive

and personalised primal 0usiness style', with a high value

placed on entrepreneursh~.p and business leadership.

Organizations typical of this business s:r;here are usually

small semi-structured units centred around a strong leader,

they have an aggressive competitive spirit and an

16

management'. His work involved creating an indigenous form

of village government with the fozrnat Lon of personal and

group unit work schemes.

blend of collective

plots were formed with a unique

and individual responsibility.

Traditional festivJ.ties and rituals in the form of singing

and dancing as well as rain-dancing were combined with

conventional motivational techniques. These Lnt exvent Lona

also included the building of new homes, clinics and schools

f.or the community II •

The results Vlere staggering. Productivity was raised by

thousands of point~ with morale and work-rate soaring

increasingly higher. As a further result the Tea Estates

have diversified and are flourishing in coffee produr.tion.

Lessem (1991: 11) reveals that the valley II ••• had become a

flourishing, communal enterpr:i.se".

Questions that arise from this example lead one to efi re

whether such an intervention would be possible and in fact.

desirable in an industry different. to the agricultural sector

that the Tea Estates opexat e in, and if so, to what extent

would it be different in the ManutacturJ,ng and Retail

indi.4stries.

39CHAJ?'.rE~ l'Iilt!JlE

R~SEARQH ME'.rHODOLOGY

"No, let them learn to be honest with themselves firstBefore they persuade me to change my ways"

Paul Chidyausiku

3.1 '.rHE ME'.rHODOLOGY

A qualitative research methodology has been chosen for \:'.hio

paper because of the unquantifiable nature of many of the

phenomena and t.opics under review. The s\.tbjact; of African

management is reJ.atively new, and therefore a method of stu.dy

that is more appropriate has been as indicated by Paft (1983)

who claims that qualitative researoh is more appropriately

ueud to highlight me.aning rather than measueemant ,

The :fact that mflny of the key fl'l.ct:.ors that sUI'round

'Southern' management. are intangible, justifies uo~n9 a

descriptive methodology.

Eryman, Bresnan, Beardsworth and l<e1l (1988: lG) furthe,:'

indicate that.. inductive, qualitatiVe research 11, •• may bring

1:0 the surface issueD and topics which are important yet

which are omittod by relying on l:he rCH3earche:t'ao the oeuece

of what is relevant".

36su~cess not possible, unless a fundamental change in

management ethod is achieved. Cashbuild is thought to be one

such orgunization. It io the aim of chicJ work to d:tscoV'er if

thin io truly DO.

000000000

37

participat:J.ve management conauktiancy ,

This review hus attempted to highlight.:. the fael',: that

management principles I styles and methodologies ~lro not

universal. Management ethie stems from the histol:ieal and

eu),t.ural contE~xts in which they evol vo.

FOUl;1distinct business world views have been identified in

Lessemo (l~L..) Four Worlds Model. It is suggested that to a

lesser or greater extent all four are evident in South

.A.f:rica. It l.S however stated that due to the historical

realities there is a dorninal'lOEIof the West:ern and No:r.thel:'n

worldviows. 'J.'his l:'EJoulto in an apparent laclc of the pl:'oposed

more conte,ctually und. cuJ.t:urully :t'El1evant, Southern

orientation.

The ultimute :t:er.mJ.t of thiD state of £Jeemingly Clont:rary

C4.l;"CUmotanee has caused in cont:empcll:ary Sout~h Aft'ieUl'l

business to be out of context. It is thought that this has

played a role in creating tho many human p:t:oblfams that

cont:t.'ibute to the weakening of Sout.h Africa' E3 global

compotitivcll1eofl.

It io postulated. that ve;,"'y fow organization£) have adopted

'Southorn' mDllUgement::.principlos and have attainod a level of

315

also makes the decision on the prcmot.Lon of branch

members.

'I'he Venturecomm

objectives in mil'ld.

system waS started with two central

Firstly, to improve V,;adership capacity

and promote credible participation. Secondly, to t~ansfer

technical skills to black employees.

The Venbuxeccmm is 9'iven direct accaas to brau(.)h budgets,

performance figures, profit and losm accounts, us well as

strategies and goals.

With the introduction of Venturecomm in 1995 the CARE

presidsnt system was done away with, and replaced by the

branch CAREgroup, where all branch members belonged to a

board CAREgroup which met once a month. l?rob1.ems raised at

the meeting were then dealt with by the Venturecomm.

Cashbuild does not see itself as opposing trado und.cna , Much

of the union's role was taken up by the Vel'l.turecomm. By 1996

Cashbuild intl'od\lced its National Indaba.o to negotiation of

salaries, wages and other ~onditions of employwent.

By lS86 turnover had increased by 34~ to Rl17 231 000, profit

was R$ 2014000 and thc company had grown to G40 employ'ceo.

In Mareh :1.987, Albert Koopman left Co.shbuild to i:3tart 0.

35

The other portfolios are filled by employees who are elected

by all branch members. These portfolios deal. with \ softer'

variables suoh as otaff, and customer service issues.

The V€:;nturecommsystem is still in place, but the portfolios

have beGIn ':"1hangedto:

1. Opt3:r:ations

2 • 'rraining

3. HumanResources

11. H8alt.h o,nd Welfure

5 • Cl..u~tome:t'Care

'l'he changes W€iiJ:r.e made to make the. po:t:tfolios more specific

and more sophi$ticated.

The daily decision making author.ity of. the Vcnturecomm

includes:

Hiring and fi:d.ng of staff ..:.h:t:oug·hrho d:LscipliTlary

prooeos where l~he Vel:'J,turecommmakes the deed.siona (no

1cnger ~h~ sole domain of the manager). Includod in

thi;'1 respons;l.bility is the ability of the Venturecornm to

d:tomi"s employees :for poor performance, or for not

o.db.cring to tho C,;ompany's philosophies. This.i

achieved by a two..t:hirds majo:r.:i.ty voee , and in BaathrQe managers were Ured in thj.s manner. Venturecomm

34

hierarchies. Tlle:l:'1i.lwas a strong commitment to the promotionof black managers. This resulted in 25~.; of white managersleaving the company, but overall staff turnover declined.

By the end of 1983. CARE Presidents were beginning to berejected by workers as they were seen as becoming too elitistand too close to management to represent employees views.

A~ a CARE President's meeting in 1985 it was iQentified thatwhilst many ''Cea and coffee' issues were solved, employeesdemanded mcxo decision making authori ty and mox'e pewar ,

Afcer consultation wit.h employees, and aft.~r a vote,management introduced the Venture Committee, or Venturecomm,i.n early 1985.

Vent,uro committees WE'Jreset up at. all branches, and theyconsisted of five portfolios:

1. Operations:1. Qlw.lity of worl<:life3. Safety4. La}:)our5. Merchandising

The operat:iono ,t:)ortfoliois held by ~he 13rcU'),chManager who :I.sreoponoihle for all the tang:L:Ulebuai.neas d~~cil3ionsrelat.inr•to branch performance.

33

the organisation and for the individual".

The process of change according to Koopman, was not always aplanned and tidy sequence of events, but relied on innovativeideas to cope with problems as they arose.

Another efforl. to promote value sharing was the introductionof 'Hana Hana' meetings ('Hana Hana t a 1'101.'th81.'USotho wo:r:dfor talking nonsense) .

'Hana Hana' 8' were held twice a year usually at a remote bushlocation whe~re participants would 't I talk and sleeptogether around a fire. Management lister.ad and recordedproblems, but did not judge.

Problema raised at CAREl group meetings at 'Hana Hantl's'averaged about 56 issues per group per month. It:.wasstriking how many of these problems were 'tea and coffee'issues. Management dealt with these problems directly, andby the end of 1984 the number of issues monj.t;o:r.edwas aboutfive a month.

Senior management. publicall.y spoke of a f1..1t1.1reshock that:.would hit the company. They openly announced theircommitment to. 0 black government in the 1990 IS. The aam wasto change attitudes by 'destabilising' the organisation andohallenging their current systems, status symbols and

32The main princ:l.ples are captured in the Philosophy Booklet.,

and are outlined here as adopted from the Wits Business

School Case study by Joel 13aro19ky (1989: 7).

"We are committed to a policy of jOint decision

making and participation at all levels, and all

individuals must plo.y their pal;~t in finding

solutions to problems. Only in this way can we

build an effective team for the maximumbenefit of

both the individual and the organisation.

Webelieve in an open door policy.

Weare an open and free culture with every person

Ln the organisation having acceas to any line

manager. We d" not see that any individual's

grievance is so SI'l\all that it cannot land on the

chief executive's desk.

I)

Our team consists of individuals of different

sexes, races and cultural needs ~ none of which

are discriminateu against.

Cashbuild is committed to crairling ,",wo.ffaz all

:levels of tha hierarchy.

We believe in the 'Extra Mile' concept for both

31surveys were also conducted at each Pr.-esidentsDay to monitorthe effectiveness of participative efforts.

Despite all that had been done previously negative opinionsabout the company still prevailed. All issues were collatedand summaril:ledinto four areas:

1. L~w manager/employee trust2. Company perceived as exploitative by employees3. Managero had low cred:l.bHity and had not earned

the right to manage4. Managers were seen as mere cogs 1n a wheel5. Little d.lrect ccmmuni.oac Lon between senior

management and shop f1001: wOl.kera

It was soon realised that tho Cashbuild culture was notconduoive to ~hange or adaption. The solution sought was toredefine corporate objectives, but with t,he input of allotakeholders.

ThClresult waD the creation of the philosophy booklet, whichwas t::.t:anslatedinto seven, lcmguagues, and outlined companyobjectives, philosophies and values. The philosophy was alsogiven real u1.lthor:.i,ty,in that if anyone (including theC.B.C.) violated any principle of the philosophy, they couldbe t3everely repdmrmded or even dismissed by any otheremployee after an enquiry.

30organizational structure.Secondly, integrating the entire company into oneunified and participatory team.

'X'hesecond evolutionary stage was the introduction of theC.A.R.E. President's ayaceur. CARE stands for Cashbuild'sAspiratioli.Swith Regard to Excellence. r.rheprogramme soughtto }~egin co involve employees moze by providillg an <.mgoing

forum for everyone's opinions to be discussed. The company'IlaS divided by hierarchical levels into five CARE groups:

l) Labourers2) Branch Administration Staff3) lVliddleManagement4) Head Office's Administratjon and Middle Management.S) Senior Management

,, "A CARE president was elected for each leve'. The role of thePresident was to interface with management and communicateareas of general concern at their l.evel. Meetings were heldmonthly with each CARE grouping and its respective President.Also present at these meetings were members fo the highestCARE group in order to facilitate the solving of problemsbetween diff.erent levels.

diocuss pl.cgress affecting the entire company. AttitudeAn annual President I s Day was held to review issues and

29involvement, and joint decision making",

The initial step towards communicating with black employeeswas the election of "presidents". These people were electedrepresentatives or "natural leaders" from each branch.IIPrnsidents II attended several discussion meetings o:r:II Indabas" whe:re they gave the co'l.Lect.L lie opinion of allemployees relating to the company's past and futu:re.

Haumant described this as a painful p:rocess.wnite managers had expressed in earlieremrloyees totally nullified.

What optimismsurveys, the

'l'hehundreds of issues, complaints and problems raised by thepresidents at the Indabas wet's categorized into five keyareas, namely:

The customerThe employeeThe companyThe competito:r and supplie:r andMotivation

Firstly to provide people wit:.11

'l'heCashbuild philosophy was borne out of these five cent:'t'i!lissues and was aimed at fulfilling two generaJ, goa11,,:

28

senior team travelled to all the branches quest.ioning

people's views of the company and of management. Koopman

also asked where people saw the company going and what its

political role should be? The results were highly

disturbing. Koopmanwas seen as "pompous, egocentric and

distant" . Black employees exp: '.;ssed a lack of IIcare or

concern" for tbi$ company and :::'eported a distance between

management and employe~s, aggravated by instances of racism.

Running p'"lrallel with his workshops, Koopmanbegan to study

Japanese philosophy and Japanese management style. He also

developed a incerest in African culture. He took a coirrae in

Zulu and studied the culture extensively. He came to the

discovet:y that there WaS a key area of similarity between the

two cult.ures; namely the high value placed on a communaL

orientati,:,n.

KOOpmal'lalso realized that. the "boxed hierarchy" of the

Cashbuild outlets was meaningless to black employees wto had

an under~tanding of interdependence and who valu~d leaders

who had earned the respect of those they lead, as opposed to

managers whomwere appointed.

Employees saw no stake for themselves in the company. It was

during the exploratory workshops that Koopmanrealized that

employees wanted a "polj.tical commitmentII from management,

they wanted "fairness and justice, but they also wanted

51CHAPTER FO'Oll

~R~SENTATIONAND ANALYSIS OF R~SULTS

"I love the silent majorltyThat rise earlier than the sunTo (1 breakfast of expectations"

"I love the silent m(\jorityFor whom givers maximizeFringe benefits with a whip

To sensitise the receivers' backsTo the costs of classes and races"

Samuel Chlmsoro

"Cuohb\lild llimited" io an inveotmtimt holding compury. Tho

gz:oup ~~on.tJ~.sto of busineooG.:::: J.n the wholesale and retail

buildin~1 oupplies industry named Cushbuild and Homecentro I

reopecei,rely. The group haD: two CaohbuJ.ld brancheo in

Namibia I seven in Botswana, five in TJeootho and two in

Swa:r.ilctnd. Cno~ \lild branC!h(~o in South Afri(lu a:r.e divided

provincially 0.0 inllowo:

!' .

Gaut:eng

eleven branches

nine b:l:'Uli.cheEl

five brancheD

nix brunches

50unreliabl ....~.

The final limita,tiO"L relates to the fact that this is a

unique organisat.io.1 making inter-organisational comparison

difficult.

000000000

493.5 LIM:r.TATIONS OF TgE RESlilARCU

'1'he key limitation to this r(~search is the qualitative

methodology utilized which can allow fc~ subjectivity on the

part of the researcher.

Another limitation is the relatively unresearched nature of

African Management, making categorization of data difficuJ.t,

and making its relevancy to the field of management not fully

comprehensive. Along with this limitation is the fact ~hat

Lessem's (1993) Four Worlds Model is used as the key tool of

analysis and categorization. Lessem's model, whilst being

conceptually brilliant is as yet not fully tested. It was

discovered by the researcher that on several occasions

catego:;."ization of spedfic findings with regard to Le,\3sem's

four orientations was difficult.

Specific mention is made of data that revealed both

humanistic and i,dealistic phenomena making categorizr.\ltion

into the l!'espective Southern or Eastern, oJ:.'ientationo

difficult.

Other limitations related to logistical problems ouch as t;he

size of Caohbuild' s membership and the wJ.de geo~p~aphicaJ.

opr(l1ad of ito operations. The extreme time oonstl':[d.ntllJ

e:x:p(l~ri(:ll.l.cedby managero (a themo of the auudy) made the

secu:t'ing of interviews with some Jeey personalities

46

The analysis proved to be 11 highly challenging aspect of the

l;'epo:r.t. Di££icult:.ies stemmed fl.-om two En'~ec::'fic areas.

Firstl.y, due to the subjective nature of qualitative

observations and oemiRstructured interviews; and secondly,

because of the fact tl'w,t: Lessem' s l~our WOl.~ld'£J Model which

was the analysis tool, is relatively unproven and prone to

subjective interpretation. It was beaausc of these

diffic.mlties that the unconventional method of presenting an

atlulyslof commentary or critique immediately following the

presentation of specific results.

The degree of Western, NOJ,..tl·~rn, Eastern and Southern

orientation as origintlted by L€HilSem(1993) is highlighted

both in the deocription of findings and as a commentary at.

the end of each Chuptor. This fo:r.mut waFJuncd 00 that

anulyoio and orientation of data. would bo highlighted just

after the opoaific deoal:"iption of tho data preoontodl thus

malting comparison easier for the reader.

The final aonaluo.i,on more generally :Jumlmu~:l.zef.l~he themes

that have been documented with the support.,i.ng data. Thio

~ni1bleo the eene.lund.en ce foauo more opecif:i.oi!llly on the

general trendo and to draw conolusions a110ut t:ho researoh

propooiti.ons.

47availability of Cashbuild and ot.her time conat rad.nt s ,

Similul: semi-structured int~erviews and observations we:cemade

at all levels so that comparisons can be drawn throughout the

research.

An idiographic mode of explanation was used. Morton-W:Llliams

(1985: 40) comments that "the analysis of a. large amount of

qualitative material io a daunting task; since the o.uta was

largely unstruotured, it:. is the funotion of the researoher to

impose order and structure upon them",

The reoults are presented according to function or level

within the organisation, for example:

The Executive is prooonted as a separate seotion as is the

datu fr.-omthe HumanResource fun(Jtiem., the Regiont\l and the

Sl~i1nehlevel. '1'hio enabled two types of anm.lyois to be made.

Firotly, analyoio to cuucertain whethQl~ t:.he datu conforms to

LeoGJem's FOU1~Worlds Model (Leasem 1993). Secondly,

compu:dson is made between tho observation and respc::mBsS

collectoo. o.t aaeh grouping. This ~mabled analYSis of

oimilnrity or difference i11. puttGlrnS botween tho sub,~groups,

HumanRooourcco and Operations I as well aa oomparison between

different levelo with;1,l'lthe Operationo function.

4"was done where the respondents had a low comprehension of

English, the language used by the researcher. In these

groups interpreters wet'e used to translate. In most cases

the interpreter became an active oontributor to the

interview. Subj ecus were inte:t'viewed in their groups until

oommonality of response beca~e repetitive.

3.3 POPULATION AND SAMPLE

The population consisted of all membe:csat all levels of the

Cashbuild Ltd organisation, totalling 1199 people in total.

The sample size focused upon by this study oonsisted of six

l!:xeclll..iVEl MembersI a Division Human Resource Manager, two

Regional M, -ers, one Executive delegate and three Branch

Mano.glilrs and nine employees. The l!:xe(" i ve Managers

represented different funct:ic.ms in the cn"ganisation. Due to

thli fact:: thaI: general management;princ:Lpl.es were the focus of

this study only the operations of the Human Resource

department and Operations department wet'e covered in much

detail. As a x'eoult, alth~)Ugh the Ma:t:'keting and l::!usiness

Developml!)ntmana.gers were interv:l.ewed the functiona~. detaUs

of these clepartments were not covered, only their generi:l.l

mamlgement style. !t was deemed necesisary to detail both the

objec:tiveo and methodologies of the HumanResource depal:'tm<;m.t

as these relate directly to the research fOC"U8. Sample

'llection was based on ccuvcnf.enee as dictated by the

45

7. Questions focusing on specific benefits and/or negative

aspects of Cashbuild's culture, drawing specific

exampl~s where possible (Tests propositions one and

two) .

Note: All of the seven focus areas were always covered

in an interview and the same order was not always

followed. It was considered by the researcher to

be of greater priori ty to achieve honest

discussion, and to foous on issues important to

the interviewee as they naturally flowed in the

indepth interviews.

Jones (191:.\5: 46) supports this technique itt ~tating, !lin

order to understand why perSOltS act; as they do WI;;;. need to

understand the meaning and signifi.::an(.l(~ they give to their

actions. The ill-depth inter,rievl is doing so. E'or to

understand. the other p\~rson' s conBtructions of rea3.:lty we

would do well eo ask them .. , II •

It WillS cOlll3ido:t'edby the reseax-cher more import.ant co pursue

and :l:'BCorc\a line o:€ discnsrni.on and explanation relev,mt t.o

the resea:t~ch, rather than adhere I~t:dctly to the j.nt\~"'V'iew

otr\lcture.

On cccaai.cn, for practical reasons, group interviews were

hold with employees from lowel.~10vol11 in the h:l.erart:'Jhy. This

44The basic structure of the interviews adhered to the

following format:

1. Questions relating to the individual's past history in

other jobs and companies.

2. A comparison betwsen the management style ett:. Cashbuild

and ot.her companies (Tests propositi.on t.wo).

3 . I)iscussicm on the uniqueness of Cashbuild' 0 approach and

it.s affect on employees (Tests proposition ene) .

4. Focus on the person's i,ndividual values and experiences

and a comparison betWt'E:mthese and th~' philosophie~ and

ft.')unding principles of the o:t'ganizatiol'l. (Testa

proposition two) .

5. Where :relevant, probing of the degree of fulf:Llment nnd

job sntisfaction experienced by the individual ('1'eots

proposition one) .

G. Where possible with more longer serving employeeo, a

discussion probing the key differences bel:ween Cashbuild

b(;!fol;'6 and aftl?l:' 196'1. The specific focus W[lSon t1.1e

(~hange in employee behavlour and nt;,titude (Tests

P:t'oposition one unci two) ,

43

a manner so as to explain the feeling or moodthat surrounded

a particular event. As trends developed and phenomena were

discovered, they were where possible ccnf Lrrnedin Lncezvd.ews ,

Interviews and obsexvat Lons occurred simultaneously during

the re.learch process and as a result of continued

observation, the interview format constantly evolved to

cl.)nfirm the most current observations.

_;rnberv!ewE!

It is l1ecessary however for the :r:esea:t.·che:r.'utilizing a

qualitative research methodology to take a more active role

in data colleotion. This was acht.eved by the use of indepth,

sGtmi-structured interviews. These interviews oonsisted of

open..ended general qUestions, and often involved probing

deeper into ~.ssue~ that were :t'elevant to the researoh but not

necessarily included in the initial interview struoture. In

this way a process developed which enriohed the data

cOlleoted as more inte):;~views\'lere conducted. In an effort to

demonstrate the subjective thought pattet'ns and emotions of

the particular candidates, their responses are presented as

closely to the individual accounts as poss': ble.

A similar sem:l-;E:lt.ruct..uradinte:C'V'iewwas administered to all

the sub gl:OUpS /' n~mely The E1x~~cutive , The Human Resource

fUnction and at Regional and Erianch level.

42Many of the intangibl~ phenomena researched, can only bedescribed and understood l:y relating specifJ..cactivities asthey were observed. It is possible for e~ample, toillustrate the communality and homogeneity of a work group bydescribing specific occurrences and behaviour demonstratedduring a meeting of that group. Whereas a mere descriptionof the structure and format of that group will not providemuch evidence of the working relationships within the workgroup under review.

3.2.1 pbservaUop,

All objective was to provide valid and reliaple observationsof specific activities and behaviour, -',hilstattempting toensure minimal interference by the observer. This wasachieved by maintaining a ~ighly passive role when observingbehavj.our and taking notes. Where possible, ar;:tivitiesWe;!:'("observed from a vantage point not seen directly by subjectsunder review, and for long periods of time.

Specifics that were sourced and repo.ct:edby observation wouldinclude:A descri.ption of the physical appearance of a location;comment of the roles played by va:l:'iouspeopl(f;)1 highl :I.ghtofspeoific behaviours that explain the style in \I[hichroleswere played. Obsl'lrvationreporting does not: only describeWhat occurred, but also the way in which ev('mtshappened in

41This seems especiRlly relevant to the subject under review.The "boundaries between phenomena and centext;" are not at allclear due to the metaphysical nature of African management.It is felt by the researcher that a statistical analysis ofspecific behaviour or variable occurrence would notsufficiently explain certain phenomena. What is in factrequired, is a qualitative description of phenomenon withinthe relevant contexts that the phenomena occur. A case studyis therefore an effective method of achieving this.

Christie, Lessen! and Mbegi ;1,993) (editors) in "AfricanManagement: Philosophies, Concepts and Applications II, stressthat a. vital aspect of Afrocentr~ 0 management is itsqualitative wholistic orientation. It would not do justiceto this topic, therefore, if the methodology did not reflectthe same theme. A case study is arguably the best formalacademic research methodology to discover the wholism of thesubject under review.

3.2 DATA ~OLLECTr.O~

Yin (1984: 37) advocates that using multiple sources of data,assist in avoiding subjectivity and bias and thusoonstructing' validity by "encouraging convergent lines ofenquiry". In this researoh, the two chosen da.tasources weredirect observation and aemi·struccu~ea, indepth interviews.

40

3.1.1 Case Studv

The specific approach followed in this research is that of

the case scudy, The reason for embarking upon the case study

methodology, is to capture the meaning behind, and not just

the occur-rence of, events. The research will t.ake into

account more than just the relationship bet.ween variables,

but will also investigate the development of intangible

phenomena in a more wholistic fashion. This would involve

the study of events in a particular context and the influence

of :i.ntangible var:i,ables such as key personalities, eul tur&.l,

economic and social influences over time.

Laula (1985: p.3) says that " ... in the case of organizational

behavd.ouz' research, the:ce seems to be a p,articular danger

that: we will do research that is more ~ product of

methodology than of the phenomenonbeing studied II • In order

to ensu~e that this research is indeed "phenomena" focused,

it Was felt that a case study would enab.i.e the full,~~st

results to be realized.

Yin (1984: p.23) defines a l.Sl.sestudy as follows, "A case

study is an empirical inquiry that investigates a

cont~emporary phenomenonwi.thin its rea.l-life context; when

the boundaries between th~~phenomenon and ccncext are not

cle~lrly eV'idElllt; and in which multiple sources of evLdenr-e

are used".

62

'rhe Executive role is Eleenby the oparat.Lonu Manager as b3ing

a go~between betwee.n the staff and shareholders trying to

steer the company in a direction that wiJ 1 balance the ncede

of both stakeholders,

Dave has been in the. company since 1987 and has experienced

many ch~nge8 which are of particular interest. Firstly, he

states that the company, as it has grown larger, has become

more and more systemised. This has been a direct result of

two factors: firstly, Ger<~lciH9.umant's particul.ar style as

opposed to rnat of Albert !{oopmanI and secondly I that the

business needs to become more systematic in order to effect

contrul as it becomes larger,

The ~'lega.tive aspects of this increased systemisation c),r(~that

there is a definite decrease in entrep~eneurial flair, Dave

states that in the past:: few years, particularly in the lust

three yew.rsI several e''lt:r.epreneurial managers had left the

organisation compluinil'lg that it is too bUl:'eaucratio.

Another negative feature that Dave comments on is the amount

of tJ.me and effort that is required by any E,ceoutive manager

who does not only have to balanco st:rutcgic issuf':s and work

at a very senior and conceptual level, but is also expected

to handle d~ly"towday :i.ssues us a :re,=]ular function. This :1.s

extremely time conEJumingunci as che o:J::ganioation grows larger

it becomea more diffiQult to achieve.

61a ~e9'ionaJ. lllana9'e~ in Botswana. He has suocessfully risen

through the ranks I and :l.s regarded as a model employee by his

colleagues.

Dave ind~cates strongly that his Zimbabwean upbringing i8 a

major contribnting factor to hiD success and progreo£J within

the Cashbuild organisation, Its pa:t'ticipaHve cultul;'e and

the demands on senior manageX'o in the company who internct

closely W'lth l)lncl~ employees on low l evelo within t.he

orGanisation, io oomething that Dave feels comeo easier to

ex~Zimbabwecmobecauoe of the more multiracial DOCl,talfabl;;ic

of that: Clountry, whereas white South Af:dcans have more.

diff.i.culties in adapt.ing 1::0 tho Cuohbuild c\,llturo. Dave can

be described 0.0 the idaal CashbuiJ.der. He too, like all

other Cashbuild employees I is deeply pass.ionato about tho

company, acknowledges that tho company io unique and feels

very much part of a team with a commonaense of purpooe. He

has no or ~flict betw(?en the values of the."'.company and hiD own

person[ll morals. For Dave I the leay eEJsent~.a.ls for a

successful Caohbuild Executive Manager :l.s semecne able to

wOl:'kwell within a team, to demonstrate patience, to be

tolerant as well hewing a constant daoira to do mora than :1.0

expected. Dave also belioves that trust in other people and

trust Ln rola.tionships at all levels is a crucial necessity

for any ou(;,cetmfuJ. manager ,,1:1.thinthe company, an well us tho

abil:1.ty to achieve very speoific and high set standards.

60result of I<oopman's legacy and the constant striving for new

ideas and innovation as well as the constant quest to

permeate new markets.

'l'his study will be analyzed by drawing on highlights from

int,erviews with key execut:i.ve members. Each Executive Member

interviewed has a distinct personality type stemming from

different backgroundra. As a result, thei:l:' viewpoints on the

c. !.,orations and workings of the Executive differ quite

conoiderubly.

!:~t Intervie'1

'1'he first person interviewed was Dave HenderEJon, the

operations Director and the ,:aid to be successor for the CEO,

Gerald Huumant.

tax aasesaer . He later moved to Cedric lforboo whoro he

Dave Henderson is 39 years old and was born in Zimbabwewhere

he completed his schooling, He worlted for 'l~ years in the

tax department f~r the g~vernment of the then Rhodesia, as a

worked as a long··term pension I a manager before mo"i~'lg to

S01.\thAfrica in 1984. He then worlted in Piecermaritzburg :I.n

the accounts department of a motor dealership. After that: he

moved to a new position in a cattle company as an accounts

manager in Piet.ermar:itzburg. In 1987 he joined CashbuHd as

59

4.2 THE EXECUTIVE

4 ,;2 •1 :en t:t"OdUd t'4m'!

The Executive is made up of nine membel'sin total, as well as

an Executive Trainee Oesignate. The Executive comprises of

the CEO, the P'inancial Oirector, the General Manager of

Homecentre, the Training and Development Manager, the

Marketing Services Manager, the General Manager of Cashbuild

and three Regional Managers.

The fu:nctions undertaken by the Exeoutive are ".rerysimilar to

most conventional companies Ln South Africa. The Exeouti ve

is responsible for making strategic decisions, monitoring the

companyI setting goals and deciding on specifio p~llc.:i,es and

systems. What is pro'haps unique about Cashbuild is the

methods uoen by the Executive to achieve it13 tasks.

The operational style of the Elxecutive was found to be a

combination of the 'northern' and 'southern' orientations as

well as, to a lesser extent, the 'west~rn orientation. The

'llOJ."tllern I ord.entation is reflected in the highly procedural

natiuxe of its operations. The company has a surprisingly

h:i.gh focus on speoif tc targets and set procedures. The

'sc.mtheJ."n' nature stems from th'l:'ee ltey sources: the

personality of the Chief Executive Officer, the legacy of

Caahbuild I s o:t~iginFJ and the continual reference to t~he

philosophy of Cashb\.tilc'l.. The 'western I orientation is as a

58

- --VALUE ADDED STATEMENT(000'13)

'rurnover 54.5 747Cost of goods and expenses 484 677Gross distributahle funds 61 070i -

APPLICA'L'ION OF FUN1JS

OOO's n,'~..

EmployeE:salaries andbC'lleritEl 38 941 64

Companytax 8 632 14Shareholder's dividends 2 996 5

Retained fer futuregrowth 10 501 17

Particular notice should be drawn to the fact that 13,8~ of

p:r'ofit befl:;)re tax was dedicated 1:'.0 various incentive bonuses.

This accumuJ.ated to R2, 77 m:i.llion heing' distributed to staff.

Shrinkc).ge as a percentage of' sales remained constant with the

previous year at Q. G?% which is greater than the 0 I 4!tt target.

Group assets total R 54 312 000 of which employees currently

hold "7, 451~• It is a stated objective of the group to

increase this to lO~.

57position up until the 2Gth F,~bruary 1994.

'rut'novor (000'13)

~ Increase over previous year

R':;)al term gain

N~~tincome before taxatic.l (OOO's)

Earnings pp.r shFl.re:.(cents)

Increase over previous year

Compound.growth over ~rev:i.ous 5 years

R 54!! 747

18.01%9.1%

R 20 05139. 58~.;

69.581$

1:1.. 94~u'

~'-------~--.--.'_"_P.~----------------------------------~It must be noted that the Lncz-aaae in ea:r'nings per share waL'

from a low base in the prev~ous year, 199..1, whioh produced

23,46 oento per share, em effective 29. 60~ decrease from

1992.

The company has an interest bearing debt of R G,S million and

a oash resouroe of R 5,9 million. This almost neutral ratio

was achj.eved partly through the disposal of land and

buildings totalling R11, E:i million 1::.oge.:1:1orwith their related

long term loan of R14 tnilliorl.

56Ventreoomm Chairperson

Human F"eSOtt:l:'('1es

Customor Care

The Ventureoomm is e.leoted annually by all Branoh Managers

and this management. hi.eraroh~r superimposes the traditional

Branoh Manager's role.

A bram;:~' 0 management decision mald.ng :Lo further superimposed

by the CAREGr,~mp. CAREotands for Ca,shbuilders A.spirat.ions

rcgnrding ExcelJ.ence. The CAREqt'o\'t.!? i1l.01udes all Bl:anoh

l!'etnners and is responsible for the election of all

vencureecmm portfolio holdel."s excluding the Bl::anohManageit'.

The CAREgroup cam however bring the dismissal of a Branch

Managel" or any of the Vent.Ul:'ecommmembers I through an

unanimous vote of no confidence, where pr~.nciples cont;aine.d

in the philosophy bo"Jtl~t have not been adhered to.

Venturecomm will :refer controversial issues to the CAREg:r.oup

for a vote. It is the right of any CAREgroup member to

appeal n.gainst any Ventu:r.'"10mmdecision to the Cashbuil.d

Executive committee, thereby seouring communi.catLen flow and

enf31.\ring participative decision making from the v'llry senior

to the most jUl'l.ior person within the Cashbu.i.ld sl::ructure.

All the figurAA quoted in this sub-section are sourced from

the Cashbuild 1994 ~lnual report, refl~ctlng the company's

55

General Manager (Cashbuild)

Financial Director

'Homocentr~~Genl;!ral Manager

'rraining and Development Manager

The Execut.ive Management team also inc:luc1.es the three

Divisional Managers and tihe Marketing Services Manager who

report to the General Manager.

The Executive meet on a monthly baSis and is r~sponsible lor

most corporate policy decisions as well as regular company

performanoe measurement. and scrateg1.c planning of all aspects

relating to the organisation.

'1'he Executive has very strong links and communications

networks with all areas and levels with:ll'l the company.

ThGlDJ vir-Jional Mc;magerf:lhave. six regional managers reporting

to them. In turn, regional managers have responsibility for

five to seven Branch Managers. A typical Cashbuild branch

has 15 employees. ..'ypical staff positions in a branch are

detailed as follows:

Tho :Branch Manager who is account.abke for overall branoh

performance. Responsibility for specific portfolios however

fallS under the Venture Committee (Ven1;urecomm). The

Ventu~eoommconsists of the following portfolios:

54

(Responsible f~r Homecentres)

3) Financial DirBGtor (Director)

(Overall Group re~ponsibility)

4) Training ~nd Development Manager

(Overall Group responsibiJ. i.ty)

6) Compu::.;e:t'izat:!.onProj ect Manager

(Overall Group responsibility)

5) Corporate Development Manager

(Overall Gl:'OUP responsibility)

'7) Expo:r:t Manager

The se~ond tie~ of the $enior management consi~ts of four

managers. 'l'he Northern, Central and Southern Divisional

managers and the Cashbuild Marketing Services Manager. 2\J.l

these positlons report to the Genet'al Manager who is

ref~ponF.lible :for all the Cashbuild branches.

The senior management structure is super~imposed with the

executive management team which (!omprises Ot the Chief

Exeoutive Officer and the following four reporters:

54(Responsible for Homeeentres)

3) Financial D~rectur (Direc.tor)(Overall Group responsibility)

4) Training and Dovelopment Manager\Overa11 Group responsibility)

5) Corporate Development Manager(Overall GI'OUp responsibility)

€i) Cornpute:t:'ization]/J;'oj eet Manager(Overall Group responsibility)

7) Export Manager

The second tier of the senior management consists of fourmanagers. The Northe<:n, Central and Southern Divisionalmanagers and the Cashbu:Lld Marketing Services Manager. AV.these positlons report to the General Manager who isresponsible for all the Cashbuild branches.

The senior management structure is super-imposed with theexecutive management team which comprises of the ChiefExecutive Officer and the following four reporters:

53

13.45% IInsurance companies . . . . . . . . . . . .Directors I t=Jtaffand Share.Incentive Scheme •• 6.99~u

l,ank~ and nominee companies . 14.17%Othl;)rcumpanies ... •••• O.53~u

General Public .. '" ., • 2.79~u

mate:r:ialand irlholesaledistribution. 'l'hesecond being

Current Cem12a.ny;StructureThe group is divided into the previously mentioned businessarCfW. The first being Cashbuild, focusing on building

XHomecentre, concentrating on the retail trade of buildingmaterials, home improvement products and "Po-it-yourselfllmerchant lines.

The group has nine directors and operationally is headed upby director and Chief Executive Officer (C.E.O) GeraldHaumant.

The C.E.O. has Seven portfolios reporting to him directly,detailed as follows:

1) General Manager (Director)(Responsible for Cashbuild)

2) BnE Homecentre General Manager

52Kwazulu / Natal

Easte:t'n Cape

Western Cape

six branches

twelve branches

one branch

This b:t'ings a tota.l of 72 Cashbuild outlets of which 56 are

in south Africa.

The retail l-Iomecentresconsist of eight outlets in total, one

of which is in Lesotho, two are in the Northern Tramlvaal,

one in the Western 'rransvaal, one in Gauteng, one Ln the

Orange Free State ,one in l{wazulu/Natal and one in :.he

Eastern Cape.

Th~ group head office is currently based in Aeroton, located

to the south of ,1ohannesburg.

'fhe business is target~d essentially (but not solely) at thr.>

bla\ck market and in most cases specifically rura.l dwellers.

Cashbuild Ltci i8 owned 62.07% by l?epkor with its remaining

shareholding being divided as follows:

An eX<ilI\1'!PL,.:;of a l':;l,l:rr':lnt prcj \==ctt.md~rt'3.1~en b}' Cashb~tild l..!nd~~1;.'

the direction of Wandisile, is the 13<:1taltim; D':av~l-::pm~tl.t n"";:n.'

rJprinrsGJ, where CashhuiJ.d haa s:::t: up a bran 'i , !\m P~l:.'c(::,nt,,'7':

the !)rl')fJ.t:.o of t:.hat branch ~til1 be given )o,'lck int'.. t:hf:.~

communityfor their development. The prcject so fal': is Vi;."l'Y

EJmall but:. io growing and aims to be a model f"'l' tt..tl::.1..u:('

partnm:ohipa between cor 'lunities and Cashhuild to tilke

mlvant:.age of RDt?spending.

Wandioilc believes that the reason that there are no blilck

EXfwutiveo is not because of the lack of ability of many

black managers but rather because the Executive has not;

:ec)cu(Jod on this issue for many years. His views on

participation reveal that it works very well at lower levels

:in t:h(l orgunisation howavel:' at t.he moxe aendcz' level, the

1:0(;;1UfJ is meee autocratic. l?articipat.ion fol:' Wand:Lsile OOeUl:'D

J:o:e issues that :r.elat:.e to daily wcxk life and branch

operation, howevex, more otl:'ateg,ic Lasues do not enjoy the

IJatno pal:t::icipation and consultation ar:. re\ ealed by the tabl~

}j'11ow I which is how Wandisi1e descri!)es bzanch l~veJ.

pa.l'dt~ipation :

nsp<':'cialising in company systems. He was appcd; ted in

November 1994 as a NewBusiness Development Manager.

Wandisile's view of the Exeoutive is demonatrratied by the key

contrast he sees between Cashbuild and Unitl:ans. Su,amarised

as follows:

"In Cashbuild everybody has and often uses direct access to

the Managing Director from. all levels II , The second

difference is that worltplace dod.sions are taken by all, a

pl:ocess which Wandisile admits can sometimes be \ longwinded' .

The final point is that Wan~isile acknowledges the pres~nce

of more human empathy than in any company he has come across.

"::tt l:eally does feel J Ute a lal:'ge familyll, an important

statement demonstrating the communal orientation.

Wandisile finds t~at:

comfol:tably with his

the Cashbuild systcm fits

family and childhood values.

very

He

expressed that in Cashbuild emphasis on training and human

development is very l:oal and caksn far moxe seriously than it

was at Ul'litrans. Some of the pr:l.o:dties in his particuJ.ar

l:ole as New Eusinefus Development Managel: demonstrates the

focus of his work on taking advantage of the RDl?and a growth

in construction spending and hous.l.ng. Up until this date

very J.ittJ.€1 has been done in this area. The ROl? La not

9'('a:n~dfOl: caah ' n Carry. The se:wices that a oompany like

Cashbuild can provide have been uvel:1CJo)t;:e-1and contracts fOl:

.1l

in the past. However, his overall nature can be best

illustrated with the example of when he was awarded a

persomtl bonus of R100 000 from the Cashbuild Board for

excellent performance d4ring a particular year. Gerald took

this money and divided it equally amongst all Cashbuild

employees.

Gerald has also launched a one car policy, (VW Jettas tot' all

managers) . In making decisions he always considers the

effects on the majority of p~ople in the company and weighs

up thiD variable against hazdez' busdrieaa demands, orten

without much regard for managers. He has often opted not to

taJt~ an increase in lJalary when per£ormal"lce has been

margil'.1ll1.

!.~ .....C_ut,;!,.V.~haJnee D,.f!sign@..te_,rnte...,rvie',!!

One of the designate Executive members was also interviewed,

providing an interesting view. His name is Wandisile

Goliatr WundisUe iEl 26 years old and was born il'lto a

family of five people in Uitenhage. In 1.987Wand:l,sile went

to Rhodes university wh~re he obtained a Bachelor of

Economics. Straight after University, Wand:Lsile worked for

l~ years as a lecturer at Eethal College. Thereafter his

-:ather wan transferred to Glaucong. H(~movedwith his family

i;md tool<: up a job at Unitrano aD a trainee man<l\ger. He

stayed in that:. company for one year and one month after which

he joined Caehbuild as a technical traini:1S officer

,

70'tokenism' in its affirmative action drive, this does happen

and people are placed in positions or 0lven opportunities

purely because of their race and not because of their

abilities. Whilst he has no problem with this, he claims

that Cashbuild should be more open and honest about this

conduct.

He admits that tangible benefit has been gained however, from

the participative process in terms of gaining commitment

especially during difficult times where emploY(:Iesare asked

to go "the extra mile". The exclusion of unions or the

reduction of union activity in the company is also another

ber~:3fit which he has seen. He continues further stat ~ng that

as the participative process develops, it becomes easier

because trust is constantly l",lilt up.

p.E:.o. ProfileThe mcst; dominating person on the Executive is of course, the

Chief Executive Officer, Gerald Haumant. Gerald is of French

origin and a Chemical l!nginE~er by profession. He has

trave.lled and worked e:x:t::enaivelythroughout Africa and can be

best described as a highly respected man and truly credible

leader with a stl."ong sense of humanity, and a demanding

9t:y10.

SomeExecutive m(~mbers'!Jill desc:dbe hi\"1as being mccdy and

holdi.clg grudges against people he may have had Clonflic:tFJwith

69ownmomentumwithout the constant PW;Hl of the Executive. He

goes on to stress that there is a very definite formal

expectation on the conduct of Executive members. 1I1'fone was

to be too .i.·.dividualistio and break away 'xcm the group

consensus ,one would bE'\comeisolated very quick.ly". He

claims that this factor has contributed tc the resignation of

many Executive members. Of the ten Executive members in

1989, only two still remain with the Executive today. A

second contributory factor to the apparent high turnover of

Executive personnel is the comparatively low remuneration

that people at that level receive as compared with the

colleagues in other organisations at similar levels. He

remembers years where salary increas~s at lower levels have

been as high as 20~u, where Executive increases have only been

9Po ~uring the same yeae ,

AS tho organist~tion grows larger, thl?l.·ois an j ncreasing lar.!k

of tolerance to individualism and entrepreneurial flair.

This Executive member criticises fUrther by sa.ying that "a.

large portiOll of Executive performance is mea.sured according

to corporat''? culture readings taken by Human Resource

Managers who are often subjective in their ratings",

The positive aspeot of the company he claims "is the

opportunity to develop other peopl.ell, which provides great

pSl.'scnal satisrnc:'tion. He ol~ims hmlever that while

Ca~hbuild may not~ formally embark upon 'window dressing' or

68recent political unrest has spilled over into Cashbuild

branches that are unionised. These branches are typified by

high shrinkage and low otock turn performance. He indicates

a specific growth in union activity in that province since

the end of the elections. This problem is further compounded

by the fact that the oompanyhas grown too large and it is

beoomil'lgincrea~ingly difficult to maintain the clOGG!contact

with employees at branch level, a factor that Ka:d regards as

being essential for meaningful partioipation.

In reality, Karl acimits that participation at branch level

revolves chiefly around tea and coffee issues and to a lesser

extent, arou.,d operational issues with the veneureccmm,

There is very little participative input at branch level on

st~ategio issues.

E.~.J1'!itlLLt1t e t'v:l. ew

The last memberof the Executive interviewed asked to remain

nameLeas, He stated that the Execut~ive operates as a big

family which, whilst being a positive thing, has negative

dra.wbur.:H:S. Differenoes of opinion and too much of an

individualistic style is usually frowned upon. one is forced

to become too much l,.')f a team player and show too much

consensus.

He believes that the Cashbuild culture is driven by the

E~cec\\tive and is cenvi.need th<.l.tit will not eencanue with its

.~,.,._s"L",·.,_, """'_

67

philanthropic human values, which he sees as being important.

I<:Cl.rlbelieves that the original dream of Albert Koopman was

to have a happy, healthy workplace where people were trE'atedwith dignity and respect, and in return to obtain greaterperformance from both individuals and the organisation as adirect result of the democratic p:r.o(~esses.I<arladmits thatthis has been achieved to a great extent, however, certainbarriers inhib:l.tthat original goal. Firstly, the size ofthe company and secondly, the poor educat:ion level of manyemployees. For Karl, the II "\jor threat to the Cashbuildmethodology and philosophy is the pc..1orsophistication of manye.mployees who are unable to grasp basic business concepts.As a result, this will hamper participation. The poor levelof understanding is a reality that ~equires time andr0souroes that Cashb:lild cannot afford.

All decisions are based on a balance. Bonuses are seen as abalance between performanoe and reward on an e~uitable basis.The key benefits for 1<a:1::1of tho Cashbuild philosophy is thelaclt of third party in\~ervention in the workplace and the~bility of the company to develop people from within. As anexamplo, he cites six regional managers that have developedfrom the shopflool;~. l(tu'lis not opposed to unions. In hisview unions are 110, good thing in theory, however, in l:'eality,their agendas are not always for the benefit of the companyor the employee II • He cites examples ;i,n I~wazulu Natal where

66is 35 years old and like, Pave Henderson, was born and

educated in Z:l.mbabwe. He then ,,<'.meto Durban University to

study Mechanical Enginoering. During 1984 he moved

permanently to South Africa where he married a South African.

His fi'l:'st job in South Africa was for Sanlam as a te<.lhnical

consul tant . He occupied this pas! tion for two years,

followil'lg which he joined Cashbuild as a trainee manager in

Klerksdorp.

Karl comments that Albert I(oopmanactively sought to employ

exwZimbabweausduring that time because it was evidenced that

they were better able to identify with him and his value

system. Karl, like Dave Henderson, is very comfortable with

the Cashbuild culture and there is no confliot between his

pereQ~al values and those of the organisation.

Similarly ce Dave, Karl comments that Cashbuild in 1984 is

very different to Cashbuild in 1995. In 1984 the culture was

more personal, more spontaneous and entrepreneul.nial. It has

become more structured and bureaucratic over time. l<arl

x'eflects that during mid 80' 9, Cashbuild was the anomaly,

'they we:r:ethe out.cascs ". Today, they still I:)e~Lhemselves

as being different, however they are the 'role models' to

follow. l1e does have a deep sense of purpose in working for

tho company. He bel.iuves company's philosophies and

participative styles aohieve two key goals: Firstly, they

achieve better results and secondly, they ~atisfy

6.5

is 35 years old and like, Dave Henderson, was born andeducated in Zimbabwe. He then came to Durban University tostudy Mochanical EnginE ~ring. Du:t:'ing1984 he movedpermanently to South Africa where he married a South African.His first job in South Africa was for Sanlam as a technicalconsultant. He occupied this position for two years,followirlgwhich he joined Cashbuild as a trainee manager inKlerksdorp.

Karl comments that Albert Koopman a~tively sought to employex..Zimbf.bweansduring that time because it was evidenced thatthey were better able to identify with him and his valuesystem. l<arl,like Dave Henderson, is very comfortable withthe Cashbuild culture and there is no conflict becween hispersonal values and those of the organisation.

Similarly to Dave I l<arlcomments that Cashbuild in 1984 isvery differenC to Cashbuild in 1995. In 1984 the culture wasmore persor.al,more spontaneous and entrepreneurIal. It hasbecome more st:.ructuredand bureaucratic over time. Karlreflects that during mid BOis, Cashbuild was the anomaly,'they were the outcasts', Today, they st:i.llsee themselvesas being different, howevAr they are the 'role models' tofollow. He does have a deep sense of purpose in worJdng forthe company. He believes company's philosophies andpartioipative styles achieve two key goals: Firstly, theyachieve better results and secondly, they satisfy

65

apparent conflict between fai:rness and employee development

on one side and cificiency and business performance on the

other. 'l'he trade-off is very often time. Nick';: ·!els that

Cashbuild is'! in a niche market \~hich it dominates. However,

he believes if intense competition had to enter that market,

more compromisewou.l.dbe seen on the people development focus

of the business which would be lessened in order to sustain

results. The reason he claims is that ~it just takes too

long" ; and he often wonders if the price paid in time is

worth the benefits, namely co-operation from employees.

Nick also indicates that the time and effort required by a

Cashbuild EXecutive member far exceeds the remuneration

received, esp'~cially when remuneration is compared with

Executives at a similar level in other organisations. He

says quite emphatically, "one does not work for Cashbuild to

become wealthy, but. there has to be something else herell•

For Nick, it is the spirit of camaraderie and tea,mwork, in

his words, "l: enjoy working here and I enjoy the people I

work with".

For Nick the ideal characteristics

organisation are flexible management,

ability to get on well with people.

to succeed in

expertise and

the

the

Third Interview

The next Executive memberinterviewed is I<arl Kneppers. Karl

64

certainly aid to facilitate closer contact as the companygrows. Dave'S chief concern however is that as theorganisation develops it will change its focus and lose someof its founding philosophies as a direct result of the sizeincrease. To this problem, Dave has no answer.

second InterviewThe newest member to the Executive is Nick Argo. Nick is aregional manager who ran his own building supplies companywhich he sold before joining Cashbuild. N'ick describeshimself as a successful entrepreneur who joined Cashbuild fora more stable lifestyle. His views on the Executive and itsoperations differ somewhat to those of Dave. Nick seesCashbuild as being too systematic and too bureaucratic.

However, an extremely positive point that Nick stresses aboutthe way decisions are made in the Executive pertains directlyto the oetting' ofaxlrlual strategy. strategies are setindividually at branch level. These are then translated toregional and then divisional strategies which are tabled andthe key strategies 3nd issues are brought to the Executivefor discussion. As a result, strategic decision making ispushed from the bottom up. This provides much flexibilityand effectiveness at branch level without too manyconstraints from the centre.

\

A major issue that Nick sees with the organisation is the

63The positive result, he comments, is that very often what

would be major crucial problems in other organisations are

often sorted out in a few days. ]I..n example he giv~s is the

way in which salary increases are discussed in the Great

Indaba with very little argument. Dave comments fUrther that

the attention given at low levels results in many employees

being devoted and committed to the company, 1.10t only in

sentiment but in activity too. Very often bzanchee will be

asked to work over-time and never is there a Y'''' "h', • reJ,ating

to this. When a branch has to be moved to another area I

employees offer very little resistance and understand that

the move is for the benefit or. the company.

The overall encompassing benefit of the Executive style Ls

the trust factor. There is very little politicKing or second

guessing. The Executive and the entire company trust Gerald

Haumant totally and as a result, so too are the individual

Executive Managers trusted by their direct reportees and by

the entire workforce.

Dave sees the future of the Executive function and the future

of the company cont .~u.ingon a similar track to that of the

past. HoweverI the growt:b. of the organisation will

necessitate better information technology being introduced.

It becomes increasingly difficult to participate at lower

levels with the numbers of emph)yees growing I therefore

technology such as E-mail and Mult:i-media for training wC'lld

85

took longer to vote on, and membi;rs of the Executive ha1 to

limit queat i.ons asked. As the day wore on the room became

noisier, with people becoming far less focused on the

p:t:esentations and many private discussions started. 'r••ere was

a tense moment during the day which demonstrated the

legitimacy of the Great rndaba , as well as the support

management enjoys from majority of staff.

The :Lncider.tt occu.rred when a union :r.epres(mtative from a

UniOl'l.ized branch in I(wazulu Natal stood up to speak. The

reprer.:E!l'l'c.ative q1lotl;Id from the Labour ~elatioQ.s Act and

stated that any proposal that, was agreed to in this forum

would not be binding upon his branch. Mariua responded to

the stCitement saying' that the Executive recognized che rights

of that bzanch and that the Executive would be happy to

negotiate 8epa~ately with that branch. As the day continued

the representative got up and spoke more aggressively a!'Jainat

thA le~l'~timl::cy of the forum. Gerald, the CEO, eventually

stood up and reminded the Urdon man that his branch did not

have to adhere to any principles agreed, and that he was

invi t,ed to the forum as an obaezvez-. Gerald's statement was

met \lith a very enthusiastic cheez and applause from everyone

in the 1"001\1. After that the representative l;'emained silent.

(It was discovered lateJ~ that the branoh in question was

l3ufferil1.g from high shrinkage and that all its members wer~

to bA Flubjected to I?n pn.qui:ry.)

84

asked questions as to who was to qualify for a housing loan

scheme and how they would qualify. After the debate which

lasted ab~ut 15 minutes. The Financial Director then asked

the people to vote. Thero was an overwhelming majority vote

of 84P.; in favour of maintail'd.ng the. budget for the housing

loan sche.me.at R4 million.

The honesty of the Financial Oiro\ _Qr's presentation must be

highlighted. There was no attempt to cover up

misrepresentary facts. The dd.acuaad.on after his pres~nt(.'tion

and prior to voting I rev.:aled that many delegates had

prepared themselves for the day, and the questions asked

demonstrated an advanced knowledge of business understanding

by many employees.

When he left; the podium there was a warm applause, many

cheer~ and a feeling of goodwill amongst all employees. Tho

day c<:'utinued in much the same way with d:l.fferent Elxecut:l.ve

portfolio holdel's presenting information, chail ..ing

dioeul3sions at).d co··o:rdinating voting as various proposals

were accepted and rejected during the course of the day. At

Lunchtidrne everyone wont to the hotel restr..,uro.nt. lJ:'he:t:'ewas

0. celebro.tory feeling throughout the moal.

'1'11() atmosphere al~tct' lunch was far less fl:>rmal than it had

be. n in tl1.(~morning I wH:h 1ivoliel: (iebate ac peoplo became

more l':'olaxod. A negativo aspect of this was that proposuls

83The first issue on the agenda was a gene:l:'al discussion by

Mariua on affirmative f),ction, C!~{plu..i.uingchat although the

company does not have a formal affirmative action quota

l,Jt.llir;y, but it. does, however, need to u.dd:t·t;l~~.i.muu.l,;mc(;.l8in

development. Marius explained the dange~s of affirmative

action with regard to poor performing employees being

unfairly promC"ted to senior positions and eJepressed some

positive steps that would be taken such as developm~j·.t of

pe.ople and mentorship. He gave an explanation of wha.t the

requj,red resources would be and how the process would unfo10.

in the coming year. There waS general discussion on this,

but everybody was il1 agreement that acme sort of uffil.'mative

a~'tit.:ll1developrr'1nt programme shou1.d be formalized. The issue

was clooeci at that. Mariua received a warm round of applause

when he left the podium.

His place waG then taken by the Finuncial l1:Lrector, who has

be~n with the company for several years. He is of Scottish

deccene and spoke wit}- a wa,:m Scottish accent He spoke

about a houoing schemo, and started off hiD presentation by

saying that: the Executive felt that R 4 million should be

ltept aside. for the housing scheme for 1995. He then

expl£d.ned in a lot of detail, using preoentati.on overheads f

what the current', financial posit;.ion of tho c~ompan.ywas. He

otroosed that if mot'e than R4 mill:Lon was kept for this

purpose ;1,t could endanger the cmohflow of the compuny. Wh(~n

he had finished his p:r.esent:at:ion u fow p8oplo in tho lludience

82overcrowded. The pt'oceeding were started by Marius Bierman,

Divisil'.'mal Human Resource Manager fa:: caahbudLd. Mariua

started with the Cashbuil,d buzz, a kind of dance which was

devuloped dU;t,'ingAlbAri': Koopman'0 time and still has great

significanc(J and mpur1ing in the company today. Ea~·dcal1y

described, all delegates then :r:ise to their feet and started

t;o make a buzzing sound us they crouch down with arms out

ott'etched and then as the leader jumped up, so too did all

delegates and ohouting out. "Caohbuildll• This seemed to

li£{hten up thQ utmoophc:t.'oquite conoiderably and once all

pooplo had taken thoir eeato and eetel.ed down.again, Mariuo.

spoke. He started by d:t'awil'lg'analog'ies between Cashbu:l.ld and

the New South Africa, flaying how the Great Indaba and the

importance of the next three days were ul'l.alogous to a

Government of National Unity in the. country. Ma:dus spoke

apout democracy and voting as well as the ideals of

transparency. He ment Loned how all j.sslles I facto and figures

in the workbook had been audited by indr.:pendent auditors and

several chosen members of Venturecomma. He had confirmed

that everything printed wap indeed factual.

Gerald Haumant, tho C.E.O., kept a very low profile during

chiD opening opeech. He sat with many of the employees,

whilst most of the managers sat at a table towards the back

of the conference xeem.

81issues in the document. So, the G:reat Indaba is a process of

malting decioions whe:re overybody in the Cashbuild

organisation has contri,buted. A vote is taken on all

propoBuls after extensive Qebate. Decioions are taken aspositive if thero i,s 7S~s majority vote. In the event of a

;;O~r_..E1ll£1vote I but a less than 75~ vote, the io~sue is then

redim::uooed and a second and final vote i,s taken. If a

prop' <:Jalreceiveo pc!lf.)w_S~O';'~on r he first count, or below 75~o

on the second count, it; is them rejected. Voting is by show

of hondo and :r(;~presentat:l vee vote on behalf of their branch

cc'lloaguos,

4.:3 .2 !,OnC3 T~nt'l :t'!ntion.!!,

'the :t:'ooearcher had the opportunity to attend the 1.994 Great

Indabo.. l~very Indaba has u theme and for 1994, this was 'One

Team, One Nation'. The venue ve» the Protea Gardens Hotel i2'

HiJ lbrow. The Indo.ba started on a Saturday morning and ended

on the Monday evening, spanning u total of three days. Al~

delegateD a.t:.tondinq h~d checked in the F:dday l'light.

befol':'ohcmd. The atmoophere at 08hOOon Saturday morning was

roluxed, yot oeriouo. Most of the c~GllegQtes attending wore

op(m~neolt Caohb1.tUd ohirto and easuaa type trousers or jeans.

Nobody wore a tie. t'iJoulagomentand employees intermingled and

one couldn't tell the difference between the two.

By 081130 people hnd otm~ted to toke the:Lt' oouto in t:tlO

oonferenee room which wac (with 3CO dole~!at\"ilo) l;'a.t:her

80Great Indaba.

'rhe work~book format starts off with a question, for example,

in the case of housing loan schemes. The question will be:

"How much money ~rill the company dedicate to housing Loan

schemes, and how will somebody qualify for a housing loan?"

After the question there will be a detailed summary of the

information pertaining to that issue. This will typically

include financial details, historical details, market-related

details and any other direct relevant information. At the

end of the summary is a question: IIShould the housing loan

schemp. be valid for people who have been in the company for

more than five years, Yes or No?

All Venturecomms are issuEtd with the summary document a ml.)nth

before cho Great Indliba where in the l'lext :90 days they have

1.;0, du:dng work time, debate and decide with the entire

braut.:h each and every issue documented in the booJ<:let. If a

partd.cular point or issue requires further elaboration or

more detail, then the vencuxeecmmor any employee can ask the

Branoh Manager or any Reg:!onal Human Resource M<:magerto

provide additional information.

The objective is that by the time the Great Indaba cemee,

evol:ybody in the coml'JarlYhas had a say and a),l the

Venturocomm roprosentativeo who will be attonding the Indaba

have a recol."d of how each brunch feels about the different

79

The negative aspects of the \Southern' element of the

Executive are firstly the evidence of subtle exclusion of

l1on~oonforming members, and secondly the g:t:eat time pressure

imposed by a culture that expects interaction at all levels.

4 ~:3 .l pAnd:d.pti~

The Great Indaba is arguably the single largest demonstration

of cashbuild's participative style. The Indaba is a three

day annual forum where the whole of th~' Executive, all Branch

Managers, ao well as employee represent:.attives h'om all brt:mch

and Venturecomms get together to discus$ issu(;ls ranging f:t'om

wage increases all the way through to affirmative action

policies or housing Lean schemes.

Prepa:ration fo:I': a Great Indubu starts 12 m..i.Ll,thsin advance

whet'e the Execut~ive will oto.rt to :t:ecord any major policy

ioouoo Ot' otrategic iODues that come to the fore during a

year preceding tho Great Indaba. 'rhese iS9UOS are all

recorded. Other issues recorded on the agenda WQuldinclude

any q\leotiono or major reC,IuQsts that have been passed to the

Executive by various Venturecommo, managers or individual

cmpl.oyeeo. All of t'.h.e.oepoints are s\\mmL,:cizedto about 30

pl:'imo iO£lueo and u month before the Great Inuaba u work-book

io compiled by tho Exooul~i'170 and Dont to each brun~h. '1'ho

workobook will outline the 30 iosuol3 to bf! disoussed at tho

78

standardized approach of the CEOaE:lwell as the separate

functional responsibilities of the Executivp. and the

hierarchy in t::lxistence within the entire organisation.

The "Western" orientation is less evident and is l.l.tpidly

decreasing as the organisation grows. It is of interest to

note that the degree of entrepreneurial freedom within the

Executive is e,~perienc.:ed diffel:ently by different members

according to their background. Whereas everyone, regardless

of background, has experienced a decrease of individual

scope.

The "Eastern" orientation is demonstrat:.ed by the commonideal

to continue to develop the und.eue Cashbuild ethos. This

orientation is also shown by the Executive'S willingness to

posit:.ion Cashbuild as an interdependent link in the aeencmy,

by forming direct ties with local oomm1.Ulitiesand Qoverrunent

agencies.

The "Southern" oriel'lttltion is illustrated by the. family-like

style of the Executive Teamexpressed by the enjoyment of all

matnbel.~st.o WQ:t.'k together. A humanistic element is also the

focus of m,my of the Elxecutivas I decisions which aim to

uphold l<oopmlln's legacy. The introduotion and facilitlltion

of p:t.'OOGtJSOOlike the Great Indaba pay t.estament to thi£!

fact.

77not use company funds but individual member funds. TheEJC6cutive has a strong sense of moral responsibility towardsits empluy~es and shareholders and constantly weighs up theoften differing demands of both parties.

Key problems indicated by Executive members revolve aroundthe extraordinary high workload imposed on management as adirect result of th~ participative approach taken. Severalmembers have e~cpressed that decisions take longer than in themore autocratic organisation and that the time thatExecutives must spend with lower level employees imposefUrther pressure. Sala:r.ieeat Executive level are not fullymarket related and the demands on a Cashbuild Executive farexceed those of managers in other organisations at similarl.evels.

A, key distinguishing factor of the Elx9cut:l.veis the commonlyheld aspiration to the creation of a strong team spirit whichseems to be one of the single most motivating factors thatdr:i.vesthe Executive, its operations and its methodologies.

4.2.4 ~mmenca~Although differences between the Exeoutives interviewed havebeen highlighted, certain common theme~ do emerge whioh oanbe categorised into Lassems (1994) "Four Worlds".

The "Northern" or:l.entationis evident in the systems and

organisationemployees.

76

is a reality that is oftenHe also hinted briefly that

used byalthough

allth~

E:x:ecutive does appear to be a cohesive team, there arepolitical issues which underlie many Executive decd ai.cna, buth~ said because of the company ethos, these are far moreunder~layed than in most other companies.

The politicldng that is evidenced often breaks team spiritand is fuelled by a hunger for power I however I this isminimtsed by certain key personalities such as the CEO.

In conclusion, Wandisile states that the Cashbuild culture isheavily influenced by strong or dominant personalities in bheExecutive. It started with Albert Koopman and now, eventhough some of the personalities in the Executive may 110tbeas outspoken as him, they are still dedicated and loyal rolemodels that inspire many people in the company. Wandisilefoels that if five key personalities left the Executive,Cashbuild would be run as an entirely different organisation.This factor aJ.ong with the growth of the company, are issuesof concern as to the longevity of Cashbuild I s systems andethos as they currently stand.

4.2.3 Summar'll

An overall summary ~f the Executive would reveal a strongsense of team spirit amongst most of its members. If theExecutive atte~Q any social functions as a group, they will

IJnf~V.Vcit;in'j t:l'w ~lit;:"!Dof the other Executive membersWandisile

'IIf/uVl liy.,~ to (JtJO more resources put into staff education and

Il trlirdmllfn educat Lcn ent ry level of Matric for all employees

(thio ;to f)u}::moquently being approved). The development of

I,{Jwnr level employees Ls essential for overall participation.

A (JoGc,md Lanue that 1i'landisile would change is the increase of

and oon:i(,'l~ manaqement . This has resulted in senior

puy CU Doniar managers. TTe feels that there is too much

nmphL1.(Jioon lower level salaries I to the exclusion of middle

WilntUu:Ll.n ndmite that Cashbuild iF' an e1',..-il ~!.: that will

munUHomont:£mJ,arics being out of line with the rnarket; place.

iH't~C\pt'c divore:Lt:.yvery easily and that the ;fhi,losophy is to

Cashbuild is a gocld mode.l of

Ih\l't l.l.'.'ip,\l,ivonKl,nagementin South Africa. It also provides

" q,\twl Wt\l'k mwi:rclJ.mcntwhere real teamwork is demonstrated

.md ,t t bl\"I.\ll\l~n >1 ple(lsurc to operate Lr, such an environment.

F llili.l. tYI \",mdidl~ admits that Cashbuild has an open-door

\'Ill t un' wh(\:t't~ di .:ect access into any level of I he

74

ITYPE OF BUSINESS

SUBJECT I INFORM CONSULT JOINTDECISION

I MAKINGQuality of work-life Yes Yes Yes(Tea & Coffee) -Daily operational Yes Sometimes .sometimesissuesLong term strategic sometimes No Noissues

centralized level within the Executive. Whereas

Wandisile states (and this is a view contrary to DaveRender-son) that the appcd.ntment of manaqez's, setting ofbudget!:' and implementation of systems all occur at a

participation at decentralized branch level will involveitself with more tea and coffee issues and daily operationalfactors.

level.

Wandisile says that this is not a bad thing as the company isdeveloping a skilled pool of management that wil1 one.day beable to take more tactical decisions at a a.ecentralized

Wandisile agrees with other Executive members, that peopleare. not developed enough at this time to participate instrategic operational decisions. Wandisile also felt thatthe highly systemised nature of Cashbuild tends to prop upweak mana.gers who do 11.0ttake initiative. This is a goodthing where there are lower performing managers but can be

9'/

oOUlpr:1.FJt-)IJ .1 combination ell: puvohom.-; I'll I"", Iliff, III IHlIll\n'

exeroises I interviewD and novcrnl OLll(ll l.n 'l,)1lflfl '11111 fl. "'h"

duration 01: che asseaumenc i fJ a two dayn , awl. wnlll It I Vi" I '.d IV

involve three or four Ob!HH:VOX'O.

,.

The aaseastnent.s are hi~!hly Dr: IJmLif If: I till! IJl1d J dud UIIII lH'JlI

in their orientation and typJr:alll n~tll1lt ill Ill" ,j1''1I,I''1,11II"JI

of a career path plan and tho all'jr:itL iWJ IiI 'itr' /1' 11''1'1It1

•, ..

96

Resource Manager who compiles a report for the Group Human

Renource Development Manager. Managerial and E~cecutive

Dc.welopment is monitored in a sim:i.lar way.

Caahbuilders regard themselves as self critical. They have

from time to time contracted the services of external

conau.Ltiantia to help critically alle lyze and develop thei:r

training materi(ll. Carol sees it as one of her roles to

constantly ke~p abreast w:i.th current training and development

trend which if utilized, will be adapted to the ul'lique

Cashbuild circumsta.nces.

Cashbuild has a Mentorahip Programme that is monitored by the

HumanResource Do'relopment Manager at centre but is supp'::Jrted

by the Regional l1umunResource Munugero.

Cal1.didates who benefit: from the pl:'ogrammewould typically be

Ventureoomm portfoJ.io holde:r:s who tll:'e naturally elected

leadel:'El and Who have excelled in their Venl:.ur9Commduti8s.

Empl(,yees who show a l<:een interaot in sel,f~developm'!rlt as

well as successful utilization of tho L.C.T.M. could also be

eons:idcu:'od fol:' the ment:ol:ship prog-ramme.

l:Uoct:cd eandidates would typically attend the Caroo:t.~Guidanee

Cant:);'r.in Springo (0. typo of Moeoomcmt~Centro). AooOfJfJm(.mt

9Sdecision making. In many branches this is a very real

problem. Often participation is poor in a branch, not

because of an unwillingness to contribute, but because of a

lack of basic knowledge and information essential for

productive and meaningful dialogue.

Carol admits that for a large number' of. employees the types

of basic: skills that are lacking and thereby hampering

participation, rev~lve around basic literacy and numeraoy

skills. Due to limited resources, Caohbuild does not supply

theE'Jf;abasic skills considered so essential for further

development. Carol reveals that "this is not a Cashbuild

problem but rather a South African problem, but we could and

should do more on this area!:.

,r;.

The HumanResource Development Manager, in conjunction with

the Regional Manager, also co-o:J:'dinutes special proj ecta,

that have heen decided at Executive Level. An example is the

recent 'Values Campaign' which involved the formulution ann

mon:i.tot'ing of training courses centred around the Philosophy

Booklet. such campaigns have a specific purpose and will

have a finite oompletion date.

All training is EJubject to very exaoting monitoring and

measurement :l.n respect to Whohas at.tended ccurass and what

have been the benefits. For examples, t.C.T.M.'s u:J:'e

monitored by the vencurecommus well as by the Regiona.l I'Iuman

94After Branch Managers have attended a training course at thecent~e, they are expected to brief and pass on the salientfeatures of their training to the Venturecomm ~embers.

It is the. role of the Human Resource Manager to ensure thatthe vencurecemm portfolio h.....'der responsible for weeklybranch training is properly coached on how to train and whatthe curre.nt trends or issues that should be trained are.

Vent~urecomm members that show potential and willingness tobecome Trainee Managers will be selected by the relevantbranch, :t:'egionnland Hunmn Resource Regional Manager toctttend training courses at the centre.

Similarly I Branch Managers will be nomi.natiedby Regional andHuman Resouroe Regional Managers for management t:rciil1ingaccording to various needs, but within the parameter~ of thebudgeted training days.

The Springs training centre is al~o used by branch staff asa site for specifio systems or teChnical training in oupporr.of the weekly training f.:~essions.

4.4.3 The ~~.!p.,:l:ng D:l.lexnm_s

It is stressed by Carol that for the partioipative process tofunct.ion prope:t:'ly,employees must be Skilled, informed andknowledgeablf,\enough to be ablQ to contribute to brunch level

93organisation.

Management and interpersonal skills training is sometimes('!cmntlC'teCl at the branch, but mainly at the Cashbuild Training

Centre in Springs. It is the view of the Exeoutive thattraining and development is very much a strategic functiyn.It. is treated as an integral part of Cashbuild's functioning.As c:\ result, the training oe:ntre will be relocated to HeadOffice in Ae:t'otonduring 19%.

At the tt'aining centre in Springs there are several sett'taining cc,urses which are bought either as a whole or areo.c!aptec:1f:r.·olll external courses or even written Ln-houae ,

Exampl~s of some of these courses are:t!0g:r.se

Lelld~~rshipDayTa:t::9At_J\udd.enqg

Trainee, Branch andRegional ManagersAJ.lManagersAll ManagersAl1 Managers and'rraineesAll ManagersAll ManagersAnyone selected toattend

Negotiate to WinPresentation skillsRecruitment and Selection

Management Development:.ProgJ::amme Regional Managers

Oevelopir.g ~ecJple

!l.meManagementInterface Training

92operational issues which fall undel:' the technical training

arena. Every branch has a copy of the L. C. T.M. for every job

in the organisation. These documents are available to

absolutely anyone , As a result any etl1ployee can learn at

his/her pace , any technical issue pertaining to any job that

he/she \';uuld lilte to grow into. It is the role of the Human

Resource Di:r:ector to co-ordinate the update of the IJ.C.T.M.' f::l

as well as to monitor the usage and progress of voluntary

candidates I through the Regional HumanResouroe Managers. As

a result Carol knows neat"ly evezyone at Cashbuild and

interacts with people at all levels even though she repot'ts

directly to the C.B.O.

At branch level further t:.rainin8" is performed 011 a weekly

baed.a by a Venturecommpo:rc..Eolj,ohol.der for two hours every

week. This trainincr rovolves around basic ~eohllical skills,

product knowledge and customer care and is oompull'3oryfor all

branch membexs , Through the t"eports of Regional Human

Resource Managers, the Human Resouroe Development Manager

monitors the progress of the Venturecomm training. The

Regional Resouroe Manager will support and monitor che

training directly.

~1..11a.~l:1:!;_i'X),.~Jnte~ ~racmn1..J1.lsU1A Tl~a:l,n.:!J:l,g

Tho Human Rosourc:e Oevelopll1ont Managor has

resv~nsibility for man.n.g'omentand interpersono.l

training at: wel.L ae tho m~ml.:.orfJhipprogramr ~

direot

altiUs

fOl~ the

91Similarly, Carol admits that she is receptive to cl.~iticism

and that her az'ea is fa:t' from ideal.

4.4.2 ~unotionsThe HumanResource Manager has three direct reportees and a

fl.lnctiotlal link to iall HumanResource Managers whd.ch are

al..l...)cated to each region and hold the same authority and

hierarchical level as the Regional. Managers. These Human

Resource Manage:t's de')I however report directl}' to the

respective Divisional Head.

The direct role of the II, ",.m Resource Manager is to co-

ordinate training, recruitment and career development. This

is achioved in conjunction with the regional HumanResource

Managers.

4.4.2.1 :l'ra:tning

Cashbuild's trainJ.ng can be divided Lnuo three key azaas :

(1) 'l'echnical training (2) Managerial training and (3)

Interpersonal skills training,

:;riAchn1,p,!.lJ,J1..!'I':'n.,i.n;i.ng

The Human Resource Development Manager co-ordinates

d~centralized training facilitated by the Learner Control

T:r.aining M,nnuals or L. C. or, M.. 0 e>f \<lhiohtho:t:'oare 14 in tho

company. These L.C.T.M.I a l~o%lsist of specific systems and

90organisation. She expresses a strong sense of belonging tothe family and she often acknowledges the common sense ofpurpose of the Human Resource and Executive teams.

As a member of the Executive, Carol confirms the importanceof the training role in the organisation. She has providesa consistent and valued input into virtually all strategicissues. CaroJ. 13agatinni claims that the unf.queneas of herfUnction in Cashbu:ild as opposed to any other organisationrevolve around the following tnree issues:w

J.) 'rheHuman. Resource Development ~unction is regarded asbeing as important as the operatiOl'lSor accountingfunctions.

2) ,]:'heemphasis placed on the humand snac and participativestyle of C~shbuild's operations.

:3) The very real and.tangibl.e sense of common purpose that:.surrounds the Executive regardless of the differentportfolios held.by Exeoutive members.

Carol, whilst being passionate about;he:1:role I does not overemph~aize the contribution of her functio~, and she openlyadmits the shortfaUo of her area. These revolve rna:l.nlyaround :1:eoou:r:cescarcity and the l:'esultcl1'lt:il'labi.l:ltytodevelop all employees as she would ideally prefer.

89where factual, tangible data was presented in a logical

order.

'l'he Southern clament was evic1ent in the discussion and voting

processes where, everybody had an influence on the outcome of

the decision.

T}"leIr.daba ::lemonstrated an i r.eresting blend of rational

business presentations grounded in hard facts; and the more

emotional debate and the mass voting process.

4.4.1 ~ntroduationThe HumanResources Department is represented at Exect.\tive

Level by the Training Manager who has three direct repartees

with direct responsibility and strategic input regarding

training and development for the entire group.

enthusiastic person caned Carol Bag-attini. Carol has a

The position is filled by an overwhelmingly ellergetic and

Master. of Management !leg'ree and has recently married the

previous HumanResource Director of Cashbuild who has now

left the company and who was respol1sible for many of the

organisation's early developments. Carol is deeply

passionate about the Cnshbuild methodology and she proudly

X'egards the company as being d:Lfferent to any other

88being given the opportunity to stay at the hotel and moreimportantly I at being able to contribute directly to thecompany's growth, They so.idthat management was very seriousabout their opinions, and it. WC:l.t:l now their duty to reportback to their branch colleagues everything that had beendiscussed, to ensure that Cashbuild remained one big family.

The researcher did 110t witness the agreement on annualincreaSes but was told later that this issue was settled inthirty"five minutes. This is i11 deep concxast; to manycompanies which spend months in wage dispute deadlocks.

Critics believe that events like the Indaba are token events.This is a total misnomer, Whilst the process may be too bigand clumsy, the proposals discussed are very real, and thevoting system is very final.

4.3.5 .Qo1mllent:nr,'lrThe Great Indaba demonstrated e"emencs of a Northern andSouthern orientation to the exclusion of the Western andEastern roles.

The Northern world was demonstrated by the structured formatthat the proceedings to01<,with each topic being dealt withaccording to a pre~determined agenda, The room layout wasth~ same as a conventional conference centre with all chairsand tables facing forward towards the speaker's platform,

87

not only the time required at:the actual Indaba, but the timeneeded by branches to decide on tne proposals, and the timeneeded to develop people t.o understand some of the morecoml?l~:x:issues.

One manager commented that the time and resources requiredfor participation is direct, immediate and measurable whilstthe benefits are indireot, long~term and relativelyintangible. He felt however that the time spent was worth itbecause participation in whatever form 11 is the glue thatholds this place together",

During the afternoon tea~break Branch Managers were asked ifthe participativE) process is really worthwhile to them at thecustomer interface; or was Cashbuild's growth and successmore attributaple to larger business factors such astargeting the right market in the right locations with theright product. The answer was to the contrary. Cashbuildhas recently been through a tough economic period and theybelieve that it was the enthusiasm of employees that havel<ept.the company strong.

The enthusiasm Was att.ributed directly to participativeprocess such as the Great Indab~. r.['hefinC').I) i.E..) in theIndaba came from employees ~.ntErrV'iewedfrom.hrl;d'l.~~het::iin theN'ol."thernTransvaal. rrhey Elxpt'e 1sed :ht',;,h" t:lpr..;,rt;\,,;:;J.~~:i,onat

86

It appears to be a trend at Cashbuild ~hat when an entirebranch has. been accused of theft, all its employees abandonthe Venturecomm system and join a Union. It must also beadded that this is a rare occurrence, and that when peoplehave been dismissed as a result of theft, the Union has neverappealed the decision.

4.3.3 Indab~ C:rit~Negative aspects to the Indaba indicate that the forum hastoo many participants to successfully engage in the necessarydebate. At the beginning of the day people were perhaps too

inhibited to participate and debate was limited and to thepoint. As the day wore on the debate increased and manypeople were not concentrating on the issue at hand. One gotan overwhelming impression that many delegates were notalways well prepared and did not fully understand thediscus~ion. This was demonstrated by the fact that only aminority of the same people asked questions whilst othersmerely voted and some did not even do this after a while.

(As a result next year's Indaba will have le~s people, fewerproposals and the entire Indaba will be allocated more time.)

The Indaba highlighted again, the problems reflected upon bymanagement I namely that participation requires la:rgeexpenditure in terms of time and resources and as the companygrows in alze this becomes increasingly difficulty. It is

109shares this responsibiHty with the Venturecomtn.

4.5.2 'l'he Sranch \Tentureoonun and CARElG:t·OUPt1.

Venture Committees or Ventureoomms were in:l.tiated at bran,::h

lev~l in oonsultadon. wj.th em:?loyeem during' lSJ8S. A

Venturecomtn is a g:t:'owingbody of five employees, EJ~ 1 of whom

are demooratioally elected by the entire branch by secret

ballot fol.' a one year period. The only member of veneuroecram

not elected. in this way is the Branch Manager, who hold<1Jtho

op~rations portfolio and who oc:mtro).s "ha:r:d" operational

variables I The Branch M&nager must however inform tho :t"~fJt::

of Venturecomm of any decisions and cc;,noicler t::ho:ir input.

The other four portfoli';;}eJ are heulth and welfare; rmfety;

1-1. R. and merchandising or custoID9r care. The four other

portfolios denl with oofto:\:, \rariables and eaeh individual io

responsible fol:' deo:!.sions made in hiS/her respective a:t:oa but

with consultatiorJ wi.th the r~st of Ventul:'ecomm. 'rho onti.ro

VotltureCCJmmhas the author:J..ty to:

Hire or fire utaff by 'voto (no longor the doma~n of the

manager) .

To aE1Diot in job alloc::nt:.icm. tl:'aini.ng and promotion.

'ro vote against other caam rnc.:mborothrough a Dyotem of

IIno ..c:onfidf.mce II , who are seen to b~ in violation of the

company philosophy ('L'l'l.ioDyotemh,;.3on occasion rCH3ulted

in tho diominnnl Qf Brunch Munugol:'o).

"

108development:., career path planning I

contreo, conducting of objec~ive

repQ~ting of tho industrial climat~.

systematj.c assessment

surveys, and general

(rhe final IWeot.:arn' orientation is illust.:t.'ated oolely by t • .9

fact that divisional human resource mnnaget's have ehe

latitude and seepe to operate in their at'eao in a manner that

each individual prefors; and to foous 01'1 tlUbj aoti ve areas of

wo:r.)taccording to the preferenoes of eaeh individual manager.

4.5.1 ~ntr.¢duoti~nIt is at Brunch level t:;,hut:.the true Southerness II of

Cushbuild oper<:l.teo.

Reg:i,onnl managers report eo nivisional Managm:'o!)and are

reoponlJibl~ fo:t' co ..ordinating the operatiom3 and !'Jerformance

(~i between f1 ve to nine bran.("'heo in a part ioulo.r geographioal

Tho branoheo consist of bet:wE:oneight to fiftl~en people. It

would bo incorrect to suy chat the enti:r.e. brunoh io the Dolo

responsibility of the lBranch Manage:r.. W'hiJ.ot: the B:r.anch

ManD-gor is the key liaison between the branch and the

Regional ManagOl~, ami he/sho if] aloo X'ospcll'lo::'blo for the

ovorall porformilnl:lO and functioning of I~ branoh, 1I.%ho

"

107Philooophy Booklet.

In t".hifJ way several manager have lost their jobs. The

ind\lDtrial relations role of the Regional HUm[l11:Resource

Manager is then to support the process through training and

every brunch. All disciplini;u:'Y o.ctionliJ are monito:r.ed to

coaching. 'r'he Industrial Relations olimate is measured

t:.hrO\lgh the use of attitude surveys caken bi-annually for

ooto.bli.oh 0. trend and to aceaaa whether the procedure is

being followed.

It! io evident from both the interviews and the observations

that the 1<:eyfocus of the HumanResource function reveal an

ideaJ.istie 'Eastern' ori(mt:ation as demonstrated by the

ctmtral canlc of the members of the department to constantly

enoure that a developmental orientation io enhanood in all

aspecto of the organioati~n'o operations.

A 'SouthDrn' orientation is also in evidence in the specificI

team building activicicC:1 conducted by the function at f.:\ll

10"11010. 'rho worldng style of this divi~'ilion does not

demcnntzaue the eommunulapproach so cl€~a:t'lyseen within the

Executive.

1\ tit'ODt deal elf the 'Northern' world io evidol'lCF'tlby the

oyotematic:: meaaurement and control of individual t;raining and

106Ll1.lthc.)rityto alter any principle wlt:.hout a majority appro·ral

elf 75lJ f:l:'omt~he entiro worltforc:e.

'rho PhiloDOphy E(')('lk18f. 1.1'1 the invtl:~ib18 cord chat; ties the

ent.ire company together. Ito key principles guide conduct

evaluation durJ,l::~9'a disciplinary hearing.

'I'he booldet! i.o tl:unolated into oix languagoa, and is given tc::>

and rJt:ucU.edby every ('lmployeeupon j Oin.1.1'19' the company. 'J,'he

leey p:cincipl()o are 'lTr:u:-ybroad idaalo; an example being; "we

are committed to the c:t'eatj,ol'l (;)f a non-raoial environment".

W:lt:h tho booklet pl.·!"viciingthe founding principles the role

of t'he vencureeemm dur:tng a diociplinal:'Y is to firstly assess

j,f; tho ovi\lm'l.(~cpr."rl.ded io true and oecondly decide if a key

fJhUot:lophy principlo hac been violated.

Ao a degr,,~e of practicality the entire veneureecmm need not

be pr8l1ent nt: an enquiry but at leaot t;woQthirdo muac be

prooont:. Tho dio~iplinary prooooa io oimilar to that of any': .

01::h0:t'convontional companywith two l<:eyoxoeptiono. F.i.rstly,

the judgem~mt io done by a grl'up of elected omployees.

SecJondlyf any employee haa t.he right to appeal any decision

to the no}!t level right up to the CEO. Th€.!individual' liil

1.'ig11to do not end hCl:'cI allyoma can appeal against the,

eehavi.eur ':Jf nul' ot;he:t:employee at: any time if thQ apl?Qllant

fool0 that the paroon accuoed io guilty of violating the

105int:er~persona'l relationships are understood and adhered to.

The most directly involved a Human Resource Manager will

become in the process, is when he/she is requ3Clted either by

the Venturedoml1 or by any employee to be p:r.esen.t as an

independent mediator or as the chairperson of an appeal

olaim.

Industrial relatjons, as it applies to the disciplinary and

grievance procedure, is one of the most salient examples of

Cashbuild's Southern approach. Much of the autho:dty,

normally vested in a line manager to control discipline and

enforce law, is transformed to a group of democt'atically

elected employees from any level ~ the Venturecomm.

Furthermore, any employ~e has the right to test the conduct

of any other employee eiehet' above or below them in the

hierarchy. The right to formally test the conduct and

actions of anyone above or below oneself in the organisation

stems from the Philosophy Booldet. This document is regarded

as the highest authority within the organisation. The

Philosophy consists of heliefs I princ:liples I ideals and moraJ.s

that have been jointly agreed between managemerd: and

employe~;ilsduring the time of Albel:t Koopman. The dceument; is

revised at every Great l:ndabaI b1.;\.tvery few changes to the

philosophy have oocurred over the y(~urs.

104CAREERADVANCEMENT:

The Divisionnl Human Resource ~anagers report on employee

deveLopment;, His assessment will weigh heavily em the

performance appraisal of Branch Managers and 'Rogional

Managers.

A tr·end at CashbuUd has revealed that Branch Managers who

have a high operation's performance, a1,80 tend to excel in

employee developm~nt. Employees have opportunities through

TJ. C.T.M' sand i:hrough Venturecomm portfolio 8el:vice to

demonstrate willingness to advance, tt:~lent and natural

leaderghip altills. It is those people, the HumanResource

Nanager and Branch Manager, in ccnjuneed.cn with the

Venturecomm who will elect for 'rrainee Management. This

involves attendance to the Assessment Centres and appointment

a coach and sponsor. The trainee's progress is closely

tracked through regular reports.

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS:Industrial relo.tiems is monitored by the Regional Human

Resource Manager. However it is seen as an opeX-ation's

function which io admi11ist:ered by the Venturecomm. ThE!

Regional. Human Resource Manager measures the indUstrial

relations climate through attitude surveys, receiving of all

disciplif.'Clry or grievance procedure minutes. The Huma:t1.

Resource Manager alElo coaches and trains employeeo and the

Venturecomm to ensure that ehe philosophies of Cashbuild's

103conducted and the providing of relevant trainLlg material

such as customer care courses. All weeJdy training conducted

by Venturecomm portfolio heads is strictly recorded,

detaiJ,ing times, duration, attendance and concent , 'L'heHuman

Resource Manager directs this training, in line with current

strategic issues.

The othe.r aspect of training at bran~h level are the Learner

Controlled Trainer Manuals (L.e.T.M). There are 14 of these

very basic work proceSs and system manuals that are designe.d

to be understood by a person with a Standard eight

qualification. The process is highly systemized into

specific modules which are examined by written tests and

practical demonstration that is evaluated by the Ve' l-urecomm.

The choice of whowould like to study from the L.C.T.M. is up

t~ any employee. The HumanResource Man.:1.gerwill council and

guide employees. l?ass:i.ng a L.C.T.M. does not however

guarantee promotion.

Marius explained that L.C.T.Ms are used more by younger

employees, and more. in certain branches where one person

bEmefite a resultant snowball effect if en~c)ura.gE~dby that

partic1.lJ ar Branch Manager.

L.C.T.Ms are an excellent tool for identifying talent and an

esmential aid for career development.

102down, this involves six key areas: recruitment, training,career advancement, industrial training, team builJing andother specific short-term projects.

RECRUITMENT:Recruitment at branch level starts with the internaladvertising of a vacancy. Applicants are Lncexvd.ewedby theBranch Manager and Mariu8. Having passed both these teststhe applicant is then interviewed by the entir~ Venturecomm.Cashbuild has a policy of internal advertising as a priority.Cashbuild also has a recruitment policy that.prohibits therecruitment of direct family members of current employees.Extern.al applioants go through the same procedure as l;U1.

internal applicant, but the appointment contains a. threemouth p~obation period.

Operations.and himself

Marius stressed that if both the Branch Managerare satisfied with an applicant, but the

The Regional Human Resoul:'ceManager also plays a ..01e in moresenior appointments by assisting with the Assessment Centre

Venturecomm rejeccs the .Jersonfor any rear.lon,that candidatewill not be appointed.

TRAINING:'rho Divisional Human Resource Manager liaises strongly withthe training portfolio holders on the VGmtur~~comms in thevarious branches. This involveo reviE~w:lngof training

101Industrial Relations Officer. After which he joinedCaehbuild in his current position in May 1991.

There is nothing unuaua l about Mar:Lus'S PEl.stexcept that hehas demonstrated his ability as a natural leader being amember ~f the University Student Representative Council andof the resident House committee. Marius was fai.rlypolitically active at University. He claims that hispolitical awakening Wrl.S as a direct result of his being onactive milita.ry service in Namibia.

It was only when Mariua joined Cashbuild that deep rifts werecreated between himself and more conservative members of hisfamily. Marius had to reconcile much of his c~nservative up-bringing with the Cashbuild culture. He desc:r:ibeshimself asa dedicated Afrikaner and a devote Christian. His views onmorality sit comfortably with his role in Cashbuild, but heis isolated from many of his family and f:r:iends.Like mostsuccessful Cashbuilders, Mariua is deeply loyal andpassionate to the company and its ideal.s. Mar:i.ushas aunique role over and above his daily Human Resource role andthat is "Guardian of the Philosophy". In his role heactively promotes the company culture and co~ordinatesawareness training for new rec~uits.

Ma:duf3describes his daily roJ.aas being "t:O add value to anyaspect of business wit.h specific focus on pe.oplell• Broken

•

100each branch. The measurement of these factors is performeu

in a highly objective and rational manner with the use of

questionnaires and surveys. 'l'hese ituman Resource measurement

tools are. in apparent, contrast to the fle:ICible and

participative style of Cashbuild's management. The precise

measurement is a direct reflection of the C.E.O,'s. Gerald

H~utnant's belief in maintenance of high and specific

standards; even though standards are always jointly a9,'.t:'eed.

Regional HumanResources Managers contribute to operational

issues too. An example is an active Lnvc'lvement; in stock

taking. It is strongly apparent Whenone observes a Human

Resource Manager how knowledga1.,)le and concerned he is about

stocl~ delivery, the effects uf local competitors and other

similar issues wh~.chhe will see as a duty to report and act

on if necaaaary ,

4.4.6.1 The Inter~e~s

The Regional HumanResources Manager interviewed and observed

is called Mariua Bierman. Mariua is 28 years old, he is

married and has, like moot HumanResource Practitioners in

other companies I an undergraduate and hcncuxs rlegree i,:1 the

Arts with Industrial Psychology oeirlg his major.

Ma:l!'iusattended school in Three Riverl:!, near Vereeniging, and

was brought up in a typical ccnsexvac Lve home. He attended

Rand Afriltallns Univlllrsity after his milital~)r service. His

£il'St: job after university was at WondElrfl:'asera as an

994.4.6 The Divisional HumanReSource Manager

All regions within Cashbuild have a Divisional HumanResource

Manager who hC'1.othe same status as the Regional Manage.r, and

who like the Regional Managel', reports di:r:ectly to the

respective Divisional Manager. The Regional HumanResource

Managers also have a fUnctional reporting line to the Group

HumanResource Development Manager.

the maasueement of operational or tangible issues. This

The reason for the equalled status of the Regional Human

Resou:r:ce Manager and the Regional Manager is to reaffirm

Cashbuild· s comt'II:l!;mentto the belief that the HumanResource

functic'n is as imro.•:tant as the operation's function. To

further demonstrate this point, the Di.visional Manager's

performance appz'ad aa), has a content base of 80?.; which

directly :t:'eflects the division's performanc...: in terms of

HumanResource Development (colloC1uially t ezmed "softer" or

intangible issues) The remaining 20%of the appraisal is

ratio is however under review and will be discussed in a

later chapter.

The Regional HumanResouJ;"ceManager develops HumanResout'oe

strategy wit:l the Regional ManageJ;" in accordance with

executive guidelines and direction as communicated by t.he

G:t:'oupHumanResou:r;'ceDevelopment Manager. The Regional Human

ResC")U:l:'ceManager implements and audits the culture, level .:>f

teamwork, individual caraer deval.cpment; and training within

98Development Manager who is a black.

Carol states that only when the designate is ready will he

take on an Executive position. C....rrently the Executive

designate attends all executive meetings and contributes but

is not yet a full member. 'te will be the first black

Executive.

At Branch le~elf Carol ~eveals that 50%of ~ranch Managers

are Asian, Coloured or black. This status has evolved from

years of non"racial policy as opposed to a specific aim to

promote black. Managers. The Venturecommsystem has provided

an opportunity for black employees with talent to demonstrate

their ability.

Carol claims that the biggest h:Lnderance to career

development is the lack of basic buai.neas knowledge and

skill, which is a South African problem that Cashbuild does

not have the reSOUl:'cesto addzeas fully.

In summar.y Cashbuild has a totally Ilon"rac:i.al view to

promotion and wl.ll concentrate on the develo~.l\ent of

dil:3advant~9'dd PoS!or1ethrough menconshdp, career guidance,

training and ExecuHve designate. The organisation will not

however p::.'c)moteutI,derqualified peopl.e or 'window-drecJs' in

order to mElirelyfill quotas.

12~that employees could speak directly tu all levels ofmanagem~ht . This appeared to be a :rf.3aJ,novel ty for newrecruits.

The x'esearcher noted the entihuai.asmwith whf.ch:,1anagersspokeabout a team spirit and how surprising it was that employeescould work positively as a team. However manace.rs did not.comment on their frtnedom to communicate at any level abovethem as being important.

Opposingly employees saw being free to communicate upwards asa real novelty whereas working as a team at their level wasquite naeuraf and '.mexciting.

A major positive foature mentioned by most staff members wasthe fact that Cashbuild remunerated highly, and if theyperformed wall they oould earn sales bonusBs. One personir.dicated that as a direct result of this he often encol.lrac)'edhis friends at his home to buy from Cashbuild. Not only didemployees appear to undersUlUd their roles in the Cashbuildcontext, but t.hoywere abJ3 to influence their contributionsand realize a tangible banefit as & direct remult.

The only negative aspeccs were raised by two vencueeeemmmembers. on member expressed how demanding his role was. Hehad to do his job, att~end meet.ings and perform t:t.·ainingfunct~ions and the:t:e IIjust ion't time to do eve:t:ything

120!il.w.E.:ta:.\'..e.~Interviews

The researcher had opportunity during the day to speak to

several employees both indi vidt'ally and in small groups. The

discussions did not. tend \:0 be highly philosophical in

nat.uze , and as I{oopmanhac discovered in 198,1, the focus was

on daily wo:dt;life factors.

EmployeeEl e:x.t':'1:essedthat working at Cashbuild was totally

differsnt to working anywhere else. They fel t at ease at

CaohbuiJ.d and undeeacood mOl:eabout what was happening around

them, and what their individual oontribution to the company

was,

Employees really appreciated occasions like the Great Indaba

or the annual soccer Jamboree when they would travel with

their fumilieo to Johunnosburg and stay in hotels.

Many empJ,oyeeu expresoGd th(;lir Gxtreme loyalties towards

Gerald Haumant who they saw as being the pez-son that they

worJI:for directly.

Questions ourrounding the existenca of teamwork and a

communal spirit wet'e answered positiveJ.y but without extreme

enthusiasm. It appeured as if a communal spirit was

something natural and not something to become excited about

because it was extraordinary. What did however evoke

enthusiaot:ic comment was the seemingly Iextraordinary' way

"

119clerk phoned the TownCouncil soon after the Heilbron flood

disasters and offered Cashbuild' El assistance in supplying

build.ing mat:orials. '.l'hiE!was an initiative d.ecided upon by

the Ventureelomm and the clerk. During this period stock

ohrillkugeo (which was EuwcHJomdby morthly stock-t.akes

conducted. by other managers fell) to below O.4~.

For u six month period fifteen black. employees with a Mat:.ric,

being tho highost qualification between them, offectiv.ly

conducted operationo and improved the parformo.nce of the

bx'o.nch. Thio inclUded ordoring otocl<:, banking money and

conduct ing training without excesoive direct support. from the

Ragiono.:LManagat'.

After six months a now Manager was appointed and the only

areas that tho Venturecomm had neglected was proper

scheduling of stock order:!.ng' and roto.tion rosulting etocl<:~

eut.a ocourring on fJoveral occasions. Another area af

wealensss was administration and l:.'ecording as Wt~J.J. an

budgotary liaison with Head Office. The day to day

operations fUl'lot;Lol'~.were well executed o.nd total trust was

plaoed in the VQnturecomw

In oonclusiol'l the Regional Manager admitted that people would

/lccept tho ch<'.ll'lgein south Afrioa just as he had to accept

chang~; at Caohbu:l.ld, "because one has no option". "When.

people accepted change, they will live easier lives" I he added.

"

1:1.8

relationship. He hastened to add that he eventually l::ealized

that you cannot deny the inevitable and one must either adapt

or die. As a result of his soul-searching within Cashbuild

he has no problems in coming to terms with the social and

political change in south Africa, and unlike many of his

family and friends he is extremely optimistic about South

Africa's future.

'.rhe response as to whether or not Caslhbuild's valueG were the

same us his own, was rather start:.ling. The reply was, "I

don't believe in polit:i.os and don't thinlt it has a place at

work. So lClug as someone shows me respe.~G as an indi vidt.lal

then I will respect him rega:r'dless of his race".

As to whether there was any benefit of Cashbuild's philnsophy

from a business p ...nt of view, the response was an emphatic

IIof course". ~J.'he\legend I of the WelkombranGh was then

cited as an exan~le.

In mid 1994 the white Branch Manager at Welkomwas dismissed,

as a result of an effort initiated by the vencueeccmm,

becauae he did not adhere to basic concepts in the phUosophy

booklet. A replacement was not appointed for a six month

period, leaving that branch to be run solely by the

Venturecomm. The results were staggering, during the six

months t:urnover rose from R 5(10000 to an average of

R 700 000. This was due mainly to the fact that a Coloured

t.

117Manage:; and five employees were interviewed.

B,eca:l,ooM_Managen

The Regional Manager is of Afrikaans descent and started by

saying how different, and difficult Cashbuild was when he

first joined the companyas a Branch ManagerI during the mid...

eighties.

Coming from a ccnaervat Ive family background, pn;t:t:,iciputil1.g

with black people did not: come easily to him. H<1I admitted

that it was many years before he felt comfo~table enough to

invite. a black cJol1eague to his home for a meal. He was not

isclal~ed from hi £:I fr~.ends and family but avoided any

oonfrontation by keeping work issues striotly at the

worlt:plaoo. The reason he acuck with the position was because

jobs were hard to oomeby and he salary at Cashbuild was very

good.

It was admitted however howmany of his fellow colleagues had

reSigned over the Ylllars because they ceuf.dnI t adapt to

Caohbuild's philosophies. The reason he stayed with the

company and g:r.ewto enhance the philosophies and become a

S\.l.Ccossful Regional Manager can be attributed to two key

factors: Firstly I the charisma and enthusiasm of Albert

l(oopmanwas a highly persuaai ve tool. The second factor was

oimply a growth of respect for black culture which grew fJ:'om

years of c:;'ose co..operation and an intimate working

"

116where chairs were arranged in a circle. rL'llept,=poae was to

elect a new Venturecomm for the next twelve months.

Mariua chaired the meeting and the Regional Manager and

Branch Manager sat in. Mariua started by explaining my

pr€isence when he was stopped by an elderly employee Whoaaked

in broken English why they did not perform the Cashbuild buzz

which was the custom before any meeting, Mariua apologi~ed

and everyone "itood up and performed the buzz exactly as I had

witnessed at the GJ:eat Indaba.

Everyone then sat down and Mariua continued in English. An

inte:t'preter was used for the benefit of two older emplClyees

who were not flUent in Eng'liah. Mariu8 explained the

importance of Venturecomm and the election. A:Ct~r the

minutes of aisoussion it was agreed that a secret ballot be

held to assess if anyone objected to a re-election of the

entire Venturecomm as it currently stood. Employees make a

simple 'Yes' or 'No' on a pie.ce of paper, and the reSUlt was

an unanimous 'Yest'

The ntt:!eting was however characterized by a relatively low

level of part,icipation by most employees I who simply just

voted, without much discussion.

4.5.4 The InterviewgDuring the course c-f the day the :BranchManager, the Regional

"

115aspect being that employees felt the manager did not alwc\Ys

inform them of what was happening before it happened, only

after the event.

The Regiol1.al Manager took the Lnfozmat.Lon seriously and

reminded the Branch Manager that this was an operational

duty. The l3ranch Manager claimed that when the pressure is

on he has to make spot decisions and cannot inform the branch

until later. He did however agree to always consult at least

0ne Venturecamm member, who could inform the entire branch.

There a1:'e twelve memb<llraat. that b:r.anch, and wr~i1st everyone

was busy, there was an apparent lack of urgency about their

wOl.'k (l?erhaps it was a quiet day for business), I was

informed later, that Friday was always much busier than any

other day, and that being in che middle of the month business

is normally slow.

Mariua then spent an hour coaching the vencurecomm Human

Resources portfolio holder on some th~mes relating to

cuaccmex service th'- ~ should be focused on in the weekly

training sessions. Ma:r:iul.'ladmitted that he had reviewed all

the Venturecommmi.nubes the previous night I and that training

was noticeable in its abs-ill1ceof mention.

Towards the end of the day a eMF.: grc.lupmeeting was held with

the ent Lxe branch. The meeting was held on the shop floor

.,

114

in the township.

I l$<lrnt later that Cashbuild did not deliver gOuds as a

fixed practice, but in fact, encouraged small businessmen to

provide this s~rvice. These satellite transport businesses

are qui te commonin many rural b:t'anchos.

At about 11h30 the Regional Manager had arrived and he was

greeted with the same familit' enthusiasm Marius was. He did

a tour around the branch and spoke to most employees before

entering the Branch Manager's office. He demonstrated that

he knewmuch about the employees' personal life and families.

When the Regional Manager walked into the Eral'lch Manager's

office to discuss the issue about the competition, the Branch

Manager called in a Venturecommmember to participate in the

discussion. The Regional Manager agreed with the strategy

and s~~id they should waH for approval from head office

t)eff")re proceeding. The Regional Manager asked whot s idea the

strategy wa~, when he was told it was the Venturecomm's

members idea, he congratulated him in an unpatronizing

manner. He dil.. not; make an immense issue of the fact that

the iaea came from an employee.

By early afternoon, Marius had joined the two managers in the

office to process his survey results on the computer. The

resu.lts revealed a 90%positive score, with the only negative

"

113share their own c"!OItomsand values. Whilst people were very

welcoming and honest I felt separate from the high unity that

is demonstrated. An example of this was whenMarius start~d

to conduct his attitude surveys, two employees joked with the

Branch Manager say;i,ns, that "now they were going to get him

back for all the tough t:Lmeshe had given them". Everyone

laughed at this comment.

The next majoz' impression I gained Was the deep sense Ot

pride and long service loyalty demonstrated by employet.'s.

The people I spoke to were not satisfied to answer my

questions but wanted to showme around the branch and to tell

me of the, often more than ten years, service they had with

the company.

The branch was extraordinarily tidy, as was the manager's

off:ice. Whilst Marius spoke to individual people, most

~rnployees went about their work in a cheery manner with much

shouting and laughing to each other across the yard. The

branch had no customers at the time, and most of the activity

was cent.red around u.nloading a supply truck.

Outside the branch in the oar park was a small plastic tent

with two small vans nearby. The vans were in rather poor

shape. It was explained to me by one of the older employees

that the trucks belonged to a black ent repxeneur' who makes

his living by delivaX'ing Cashbuild morchandise to customers

"

112

and the branch waF;waiting for approval to continue the

str.ategy

I had the cppozLundty to speak to branch members at about

10h15. I was very surprised to ddacover thilt: the entire

branch was fully aware of the new competitor and were

confident that the strategy to form an alliance with the

retailer would work.

Employees could best be described as highly aggressive

towards the competitor, and manyshoweda profound knowledge

of Cashbuild's bulk buying power, saying that no" one was as

big as Cashbuild and therefore rio-one oould buy building

materials in as high quantities and subsequently as low

prices as Cashbuild. The Venturecommmemberwho knew the

retailer stated that he was very ·,dlling to enter into an

alliance with Cashbuild and that it was also in his interest

not only to sell at a lower price because Cashbuild would

supply to him at a reduced rate, but he was also prepared to

lower his ma~gins.

The second overwhelming impression was that of relaxed

humour. The feeling I gained from walking into any Cashbuild

branch or office is that of a relaxed informality. This is

typioal of the Southern orientation.

I :Eelt like an outs.' der to a very tight family uni.t I who

"

111

a result the avez'aqe shrinkage at a cashbuild branch is 0.49.;.

4.5.3 A day in the life of a BranohThe best way to illustrate the unique operational style of aC~shbuild branch is to decide a typical day at a branch. Iarrived at the Thaban'chu branch at o9h30 on a Wednesday. Iwas with Marius Bierman, the Divisional HumEl.uResourcesManager. The immediate impression was one of fr'miliarity,illustrated by the warm welcome received from all employees,who l'lerereferred to by their first names by Marius Bierman.

to see Marius. The manager reported that they had justThe Branch Manager was in his office and also appeared happy

completed a Venturecomm meeti~g to discuss the problem of acompetitor who had opened a building supplies store in a tnorefavourable Lcr-aud on very near to the local township. TheCashbuild branch is situated very near to the town centre,and the majority of its customers wel'e from the townshipseveral kilometres away. It was reported that a Venturecommmember had a close friend who was a retailer of building'supplies in the township, and who was supplied by Cashbuil~.

A strategy was decided by the Venturecomm to lower theirprices to the retailer so that he could compete morefavourably with the new competitor in the township. TheRe~ional Manager had been informed of this decision and wason is way to the branch. A fax had been sent to head office

"

110In areas of conflict the highest authority is the philosophybooklet. The entire Venturecomm is however accountable tothe CAREl group. The CARE (Cashbuilders Aspi:r:a.tionswithRegard to Excellence) group ~.ncludes all branch members.Venturecomm decisions are discussed at CARE group a minimumof once a month or mo~e frequently if required.

The entirtl CAREl group and Venturecomm process is supportedand monitored by the Divisional a.R. Manager who conductsannual audits and surveys to assess the effectiVeness of thesystem. The H:. R. Manager also keeps a second copy of allVenturecomm meetil'l.g'minutes. Results of surveys are sent; toea.ch respective Divisional Manager where they are used aspart of the Regicmal and Branch Managers I performanceappra.isal.

Another major measure of Branch Performance is produotivitywhich is measured as sales per employee on a monthly basis.Sales curnovee is measured against a set budget. If thebudget is exceeded in any partioula:t:'month, then the extrawealth created is dist:r.ibuted am6ngst all branch members.Some branch managers interviewed indicated that it is notuncommon fOl~ employees to irece Lve a bonus cheque of fivehundred rand a month for h:Lgh performanoe.

Cashbuild also has a shrinkage bon~ ~ystem whe~eby people'sbonuses are reduced according to the level of shrinkage. As

"

133

Another trend which was highlighted by the results; is thecomparatively less evidence of the Eastern and Westernorientation.

While the E:x:ec\ltivGand Human :Rei3ourceDepartment express adegree of Eastern idealism, this is not reflected at Regionalor Branch level.

As to the entrepreneurial ~1esternBusiness sphere, elementsare evident at all levels, but as reported by s(;''eralman~gers this is an orientation in decline, due to companygrowth. It was often R~ated that company growt.h reducedentrepreneu:.:ial scope aJ'd increased the use of tormalsystems, with a resultant increase of a Northern rationalf.ocus.

It is of interest to note that the communal, humane Southernorientation flourishes at lower levels despite the growth ofthe company. 'l'hisis due to the fact that company growthinvolves the development of new branches and not theincreasing of individuals at an existing branch. 'l'hedegreeof communality is higher in an isolated rural branch than inthe larger urban head office.

What folJ.ows is a summary table of ...¢fJults indicating thevarying degrees of Western, Northern, Eastern or Southernorientation as demonstrated in the Executive, the Human

"

J.32

a strong balance between the Southern and Northern

orientations. Whilst methodologies and operating ~tyles may

be Southern, the.re is a definite fO'l:'maJ,hierarchy and

I3tructu:t:e I and employees I scope of work are clearly defined

by C', systematic framework, that clea:r1y defines individual

roles. This se.emingly contradictory status io effective,

ensuring that the following are achieved:

J.. Firm operational standards are understood and adhered to

by all ..

2 . Weal<:ermanager have a system to aid their performance.

'3. The core governing principles remain communal in

orientation.

The result being that people work within a well defined goal,

operational fraltleworl<:and focus, but with 0. style that is

more informal. ThiE:-lallows employees to have a limited

measure of influence em. daily operational issues, and greater

influence on quality of worklife, or \tea an1 coffee' :issues

as summarized in th~ table below.

Manymanagers interv:i,ewed revealed thaI- ti~e idef.1.l acat,e of

management: has not been attained, and many agree that a

part::.icipat:i.ve approach is more strongly evidenced at lower

levels and with more short-term variables.

"

131

and people in general was very instrumental in

dreat~ing the change.

"5. The final point relates to the gGographical,

cultural and sociological context in which

Cashbuild was born. Operating in South Africa I

with its myriad of divt::rse cultures and unique

social divides, provided (and still does provide)

a difficult set of variables to manage, thus

necessitating an original approach.

An overall assessment. of Cashbuild according to Lessem's

(1994) 'Four Worlds' is illustrated by the following summary

anaJysis table.

This research has focutJed on observing, recording and

analyzing elements Ot Af:r.ocent:r.ic Sout.hel:'ness evident in

Cashbuild. The analysis has taken place in three main areas,

namely; at the Executive LeV"~l; within the HumanResource

Function and at the Regional and B:r.ancnlevel.

Results :r.eveal that whilst the Sout:.hel:n orie:ntation is

evident throughout:. the orgunization, it is mere kltrongly

demonstrated ut lower levels than at Elxecutive level,

although it is a definite focus at all levels.

Al1.othermajor theme j.n the findings ifi.l ens fact t:.hat~there Ls

"

130

of which it would be difficult to rank the greatel.~import&nct'!of anyone factor. These factors are:

1. The nature of Cashbuild's customer base ispredominantly black and most branches are locatedin rural areas or small towns. (It would be moredifficult to see a Southern management approachevolving in a company that provides exolusivejewellery originals to wh:Lte clientele only, forexample) .

2 . '1'he fact that the majority of Cashbuild 'semployees are black would have also played a greatinfluence. (Could this have started ir.a f.irmofwhite accountants?)

3. The pr.ocess of cultural change to a more Southernapproaoh was s~t off by the "catalyae."crisis thatarose in 1983. It is nearly impossible to accessif the company would have t:lmbarkedupon its chancreprogram if i ~ wasn I t for the crisis. What thecrisis did do however was to accelerate. the.changeand give it a sense of purpose.

4 . Thf} (1ou1:'ageand personali ty of Albel."tl(oopm£.mwasa definite motivating factct'. His extreme energy,enthusiasm and empathy for employeeC3 in particuJ.ar

"

129

The head of operations ~nd present C.B.a., Gerald Raumant,

also played a part in bringir.:'·: ."l. Northern influence into

Cashbuild from the outset. Gerald Haumant; was born in NancyI

France in 1946 and trained as a plastics technoJ.ogist. He

emigrated to South Africa in 1973 aft ~r w,')rking and

travelling in several African countries. Hauuiant; is reputed

for having excellent administrative and organisational

systems skills.

The Eastern Wo~ld

The growth and development of the ~ompany for a long term

future indicates strongly its early Eastern world sentiment.

'rhis is also demonstrated by the way Cashbuild started front

early on to create interdependent and cowoperative networko

by building strong relationships with its major "RoYGll"

suppliers and its big customers. It also formed partnerships

with the then cent:r.'al authorities and key companies in

Bophuthatswana, Qwa Qwa, KWGlndabele, l'Jebowa, Lesotho,

Swaziland and Venda when starting new branches in thos~

areas.

The SouthetA World

This world is the most distinguishing factol~ of Cashbui.ld's

management approach. The communal elements of Cashbuild'lJ

Southern orientation can be attributed to five l~ey factors,

128Historical Classification

Western Wo:r:ld

The Western element is evidenced by Koopmanhimse::'f. A

dynamic man born in 1947 to a Western. Transvaal farming

family. He had no benefit of any formal tertiary education

hut had shown an entrepreneurial flair at a yeung age. This

is proved ty the fact that the entire concept of a

professional building supplies wholesaler catering to the

black mar]l:et was his brainchild. His practical haphazard

method of enhancing the companyand its management style also

reflects his risk taking and entrepreneurial flair.

The fact that the companywas started by a young and dynamic

team who was given R1 000 000 and a free reig'n also

demonstrates a large element of the Western wor.ld that has

developed in the company.

'l'ne No;cthern t"lorld

Cashb1..tildl whilst being autonomous, started as a wholly owned

subs~.diary on a larger company. It is assumed that the

hierarchical culture of the parent company would have a

limited measure of influence on cashbuild stylet making the

company effectively Q Northern element.

"

127The idealistic \Eastern elell1ent' is nut. evident. at the

branch. Focus is mainly on d;ay to day activities and there

is no mention of a commonphilosophical ideal. Even the

development of people :I.s individualist in orientation.

What :i13 pe:r:haps the most salient feature is the apparent

harshness of the "Southern orientation". It was revetlled by

a Regional and Eranch Manager that on occasion a poor'

performing employee was "disciplined" informally without the

manager's kl"lOwledgein a manner muchworse than a dismissal.

Similarly, if a black customer is caught stealing when the

manager is not present the results can be extremely harsh.

The formal disciplinary was the only direct observation of

the harder aspect of Bouthern tnanagI::IIlCl'lt.

4:.6 .illU!lR.l-\.t.t. CLASSIFICA'l'ION 'l'ABLE

In studying and al1alysi~ig the evolution of management

practices in Cashbuild, the a:lthor can identify elements of

!..essem's Westerness I Northerness, Easterness and Southe:t'ness.

In order to give a full account of the Cashbuild management

philosophy it is imperative to draw attention to the founding

elements of the four worlds that are evident today. What

follows is the re~~archers analYSis and classification of the

original ingredients in Caehbuild's unique style that have

become major eont::ributory variables in shapin'J the company

today.

"

126situ~tion without knowing all the facts. The RegionaJ.Manager then felt this was a good time t.c adjourn thediscussion.

4.5.6 Commenta~In spending t.ime at the branches and speaking to vaz-Louspeople, several salient factors became evident to theresea:;:'cher.

Firstly I Cashbuild branches face the same issues as any otherbusiness, but the degree to which lower level employeesunderstand 'thesebusiness issues is svrprisingly high by theauthor's standards. Secondly, the good relationship betweenmanagement and employees is not characterized by thepatronizing nature that is evident in many other businesses.mmployees are far more outspoken and far less subservient tomanagement. In turn management really listen to employees'views.

The degree of communal southern spirit is evident not only inprocesses and rituals such as Venturecomm meetings and the\Cashbuild buzz' but:also in nhe interactio11Sbetween people.

The rational No:r:thernelement and entrepreneurial Westernal.emenc are both highly evident I both in the systems andmeasures as well as the individual initiatives respectively.

"

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125The silence and tension continued and eventually theVenturecomm member who was the oldest and who had not spokenup unt~l this t:~e, stood up and said the accused must bedismissed. This answer then prompted the ';)thertwo membersto justify their decision.

The accused and Branch Manager were called in and told of thedecision. The accused was reminded by the chairperson of hisright to appeal but he said he would not do so.

The Branch Manager and accused were again asked to leave theoff;i,ceand the Regional Manager used the opportunity to coachthe Vent:urecomm members on the disciplinary methodology usingthis case as an example.

too harsh. The researcher who was asked his impression,The Regional Manager stated that he felt the punishment was

expressed agreement with the Regional Manager. A Venturecommmember then replied aggressively towards the response. Hesaid that he did not enjoy what he had just done, and j.nfactthe accused was a friend of his who lived close by his home,and who he introduced to Cashbuild. He said tha,t the accusedhad been given a warning for similar acts, some monthspreviously but if the Venturecomm kept on warning him theyWQuld have no credibility with the rest of the branch who arewell aware of the man' f.J conduct. The VenturlUcomm member thenstated that the researcher cannot just come in and judge the

t;f

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124

'.rheRegional Manager ther..told the venturecomm that thedecision was theirs to make. I-IeE:!xplainedthat they had tofirstJ.y decide <>1... if the accused was guilty and secon.dly,what his punishment should be.

The three Venturecomm members then spoke and debated i~ Zulufor about 15 minutes. Occasionally they stopped to ask theRegional Manager in English to clarify certain facts such astime, from his notes. On one occasion a witness was calledback in by the vencureccmm to repeat his account of thestory.

When the Venturecomm had finished debating they turned to theBranch Manager and one member said that they unanimouslydec:i.dedthat the accused was guilty. The Regional Managerthen asked the Vel'lturecomm to decide upon the specificpunishment, and reminded them that they could call in theaccused to hear any mitigating factors. The spokesman forthe Venturecomm said that it was not necessary as they haddecided on the punisbment.

When the Regional Manager aSked what the decision was, therewas an uncomfortable silence. No-one spoke for about twominutes. To break the tension the Manager reminded theconlmittee of their role and duty as well as of the fact::thatthey were democratically elected to represent the branch, andthat their decisions would rest solely on their conscious.

'.

123

The Branch Manager was th~ plaintiff. The guilty party wasa temporary work~~r who was accused of being drunk at work andinsubox-dination.

The hearing was chaired by the Region.al Manager. Alsl.)present were three vencurecomm members. (The other twomembers could not attend due to operational demands) .

The chairperson opened the proceedings by explaining theresearcher's presence and asking the accus~u and Venturecommpermission for me to stay. This was granted after aVenturecomm member asked for more details of the research.

The chairperson followed the striot instructions provided bya checklist, which he had in front of him at all times.

The plaintiff or l3ranch Manager in this case sited examp l.e sand details of the accused person's behaviour. His cas~ wasbacked up by witnesses which were called in from the floorfrom time to time. The accused did not argue at all, but Wasgiven an opportunity to state his case, also calling inwitneS'ses.

During this time the chairperson wrote detaUed notes and theVenturecomm WaS totally silent. The two sides of the storytook about one hour to complete, after which the accused andBranch manage!' 'Were asked to leave the office.

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122properly" .

The second negative aspect was revealed by a youngVenbur-eoomm member who desc::::ibedhow I when things .lere goingwell, the Branch Manager was keen to participate and did soeffectively which was appreciated by all. However whenthings did not go well and there was the pressure ofcomplaining customers or no stock, the Branch Manager actedin an aggressive manner, and took all the decisions himselflonly :i.n.forn';;_ngthe Venturecomm later "whel. f.;h:i...._.iscooleddown". The manager was usually very fair and did not act onhis own too often, and when he did, he usually made the rightdecision. "This is nClt how the Venturecomm is supposed tooperatel" expressad the specific member.

The overall impressions gained by the autihc.r of theinterviews at Branch level were of an uncommonly friendly andopen group of people that showed as much interest in theresearcher's presence as the researcher did in their work,but they did not however comment on much outside the ambit oftheir daily work lives.

4.5.5

Several weeks after my visit to Thaban'Chu the author wasinvited to witness a disciplinary hearing at the Ae:t:otonBranch.

"

Cashbuild is the leader in its industry and its und.que

orientation has definitely played a major role in this

SUccess. If one recalls the company's turning point in 1983

when it faced a potentially Eatal crisis, it is safe to

conclude that without its shift in orientation the cornpany

may not exist today.

Koopman's consultancy has sucC1essfully implemented simi,lar

aPl>roaches in other companies as have consultants like Peter

Christie. What remains disturbing, however is Albert.

Koopman's recent declaration to move to Canada to oontinue

his work in an environment more receptive to hi&

philosophies.

The rele'V'ance of Cashbt\ild's orientation mix to other

organisations whowant to succeed is evidenced. Onemust be

oautioned however in c:'.aiming that this approach is relevant

for all Sot1thAfrican organisatiol s , It; must be remembered

tha':. several unique circumstanC9C:lled to Cashbuild's present

ciroumstat.ce. These are:

The cha~ge occurred at a time of crisis.

The transformation was the sole inspiration of one

man who \1.\13 able to inj ect his inspiration. to

others who continued his vision.

'l'he blael\: customer baae and majority of the work~

force waS receptive to the changes.

Cashbuild was a relatively small company at that

145

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achieved at lower levels within the organization where peop l.ehave experienced the greatest hardships.

5 • 2 J\._PPLICA'l'IONS AND FURTHER. RESEARCij

The research revenls that Cashbuild's Human ResourceManagement and overall culture is indeed a contributoryfactor to the overall success of the company. Dilemmas andchallenges typified by intense ;,ndustrialaction, affirmativeaction, low trust, declining morale, poor productivity andincreasing expectation which face many South Africanorganisations are successfully managed at Cashbuild.

The 'Southern' orientation discovers a successful attempt tointroduce an African cuJ.ture into the organisatioll. Thisoccurs without: isolation of the essential Northern, Easternand Western orientations. These provide a crucial balance tothe organisation's culture with an effective overall result.

The other orientations ensure that th~ company can operatesucces~fully in the essentially Northern and Westernt:t."aditiondSouth African economic environment.

caohbu ild 'S' Southel~n1 approach does however reflect withgreater relevance the micro environment of it~ directcustomer base as well as the macro 'environment of SouthAfrica's new political reality.

144

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fact that it is as yet relatively untested.

Whenattempt.ing t.o characterior I"hr' moremetaphysical concept

that made up :8astern or Southern ma.iagement, differentiation

become practically diffioult.

If Eastern managementis ccncezned with idealism and Southern

management is ccnceened with hu.nand.am,then there is a

weaknaas in classification, because a humanistic focuZ!is an

ideal in itself.

There is also the added complication of the south African

reality where due to historical legacies manypeople in the

workplaoe were highly mistreated b'~' any normal global

standards. It cocuzzed to the researcher during the coueae

of the study, that many ini~iatives pioneered by Cashbuild,

just amount to treating people with respect and showing

interest in people'S ideas and value systems. This simple

practice is ~ll such contrast with our historical :reality that

the temptation to label such initiatives aElrevolutionary is

very real indeed. Another profound realization is that the

Southern orientation is part of any culture.

~ithin the spirit of every individual.

It e~dsts

Xn order to truly understand and implement a Southern

orientation one must create a humane sparit within the heart

of every :i.ndividual. It just so happens that this is easier

143

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constantly ~efocusing time and othe~ resources towards

culture or basic operations as and when the p~e,9S\lreSof the

envil-onment demand". It is therefore clearly not a case of

losing one aspect for anocher .

:Developmentof people and relationships do hcvevez come at a

cost t(') financial and time :r.esourc~s. '1'hebenefit of such III

cost is not always directly tangible. One factor is clear

however, that in ord~r to achieve a suocessful 'Southern'

orientatiol"., a shift in focus is imperat:l.ve. If the central

focus is on wealth creation, then a S...,uthern orientation

would focus on sharing of that wealth.

An acid test on the foous of an organ:i.zation woul.d be

realized during a time of rationalization where retrenchment

is identified as being imperative. A truly Southern

orientation would res.1.st such a IlJtrategy and the expense of

profit. This is an area that Cashbuild would oertainly

resist.

In 1997 culture was the. key foous as that is what the.

environment demanded, thi's may have been at; the e~tpenlJeof

hnrd line ope:::ational factors but in the long run the end and

goa.l of both competing arenas in the business are not

exolusive of each other.

A fundamental critique of teesem's Four World Model is the

142

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that the re-focus was overdue. and that the oompany

despe.rately needed to address basic operational funotions

that were ignored as a result of HumanResources i.nitiatives.

The most oalie.nt answer provided from an Executive member

revealod that HumanRelations and culture are the I'.'lay' we do

things, "they are our innbred habits that do require.

re; l1.forcement. What we at;l~ually do is sell building supplies

and at this time it is that aspect of Cashbuild that should

be focused upon".

Carol highlighted that it l.S because Cashbuild has so

DU<:loooo.Eullyachieved a participative culture that it can now

£(,)(,JllO on the basico, whereas other cempand.ee arc sti':'l

gcrappeling with Affirmative Action issues and Industrial

unrost.

It would be fair.' to oonclude that part.icipation will compet~~

with daily Opcl:i\4tional and btlsineos funct.ions. It:. is a<!so

true that:. ElUcceosful buo:i.ness is the ultimate goal. The main

d:l.fferOl'lCe to be stressed is that a b\'fJiness focus will g.A,ve

a ohort torm IJUC(JI:;!SSWhereas a parl:icipa.tivo focus will tal<:e

more time.

For Oaohbuild'D long~term DUCCOSDboth are highly necessary

and 0.0 Mariuf.l Biormo.n oayo, IIIt would be impossible to Elee

the full Ronefits of a hurd line business focus without a

participative culture in placo. It is just a mo.tt~e:t·of

:1.41

Good HumanResources has always been seen as a means to an

end. That end being sound business performance.

therefore a queat Lon must be asked. If a participative

southern culture in incrcaccd commitment and

ellt.hus.lasm \tlhich in turr. should lead to better individual '·nd

ccmpany performance, 'it/hy then is the focus in Cashbu.ild beirlg

shifted from these areas tc~ dir'3ct business areao?

L,l:·:

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election and method of operation with specific regard to

decision making and the disciplinary process, are adequate

examples of Cashbuild's strong Southern approach.

This hac not evolved as an a.ccident and it is impo:r.tant to

note Cashbuild's Management style and culture are a direct

result of much hard work from the Elxecut:l.ve. One of the key

supporting factors is the measurement of managerial

performance. As mentioned before management perfo:r:mance

appraisal is made up of 50% of tangible business performance

criteria and 50~.; intangible Human Relations and culture

relevant criteria.

It is vital to know however that during 1995 a new IBack to

Basics' campaign will aim to achieve more focus on business

issues such as cost reduction and an Lnczaase in sales. This

focus will be at the expense of HumanRelations development

and will result in amOl'lgstother things, more fr)cUs on sales

training and less on teambuilding as well ,:.9 i:ldjustment of

management appraisal to a 20~ HumanReSources issues focus

and 80~ bU9sinessis6ue focus.

The campai.gn is seen as a short-term strategy for company

survival. It has been introduced as a direct response to a

smalle1: sales increase than antio~.pated due to lethargic

R.D.]? expl'Jnditure.

139

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CHAPTERFJ:VE

CONCLUSJ:O~r

"IdeasOnly ihat?No outlet?

Incor.nr.nunicable?Remain camouflaged

Glossed overNever in black and whiteWhite influencing black"

Pathisa Nyathi

S.l BACK TO BASICS

The current "Ba.ckto Basics" campaign provides an apPl·op:date

lead into the fin':l commentary.

The purpose of this research is: Firstly to assess and

categorize different levels a.Ld the HumanResource function

of the organisation in terms of Lessem's (1994) l!Four World

Modell!. The second is to evaluate the buai.neas effectiveness

of Cashbuild's unique approach.

The Southern element of Cashbuild is evidenced from the

Executive right down to branch level. The operative style,

culture and ethos of the C.E.O. and the Exe.cutive as well as

the decision making mechanism of the Great Indaba demonatzat.e

the SO'l.ltherness at a seniol." level. At branch level, the

Vent.urecomm and CAREgroup committees as well as their

136

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137Southern style is evident.

The finance and budgetary process and function is highlyNorthern and Wes~ern, whereas due to the nature of the focus,the Human Resource funct.ion would be more Southern andEastern.

It is imperative that different orientations are realized atdifferent levels and functions so that a more wholisticapproach is employed in order to achieve best results. Whati~ also impor~ant however, is that the central philosophy ofCashbuild is centred around the Southern orientationcertainly in terms of overall company culture and operativestyle. The central objectives of the company are certainlycentred around p:t:ofit . It would be wrong however to claimthat this was its only reason for existence, but it wouldcertainly take priority.

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136

approach can ope;l.Aa'tein paralle1 wi th more conventional

'Western', 'Northern' and 'Eastexn' orientations, to provide

a contextual African management methodology that has global

relevance an.d will best enhance organizational effectiveness.

This proposition is more positively evidenced. There is

certainly strong evidence of Northern, Western and Eastern

orientations and styles operating in parallel with the

Southern orientation. The strongest orientation is the

Northern business-sphere which serves a very essential role.

It is clearly evident that the seemingly contra:t'y four

orientations can exist within the same organization. The

partioipative Venturecvmm concept wit.h its Southern

orientation exists in harmony with the highly rational branch

administration system where detailed minutes of Venturecomm

meetings are sent to the Divisional HUmanResource Manager

for review.

The Southern orientation would best be described as the

overall governing principle that characterizes the company as

a whole. Other orientations then dominate depending on the

level of ~he organization and function performed.

At a highli'r level a more Northern orientation prevails,

whereas at lower levels due to the rural setting, smaller

numbers and oultural mix of employees, a more overtly

"

135salient being the extraordinary operation of the Welkombranch, as well as the enthusiasm expressed by many branchmembers interviewed as various branches and at the GreatIndaba. 'l'hisis demonstrated by the reld.tive lacking ofunion or industrial aggression and the apparent edse at whd chmanagers are able to exercise flexibility in branc,operation.

The 'Southern' orientation is however limited in itsvisibility in other areas. Indeed the administrationactivities and executive level focus, show few if any limitsemanating from a Southern orientation. The:t'eis an overallperception amongst most Cashbuild employet.s at all levels,that the organizal:ion is different, in that it has a moz'ehumanistic focus. This knowledge (be it perceived or real) I

is certainly a major motivation and source of commitment. Atlower levels the oommi.uc.ant;stems from the simple humanrecognition and fair treatment that employees enjoy. At umore senior level there is a feeling of doing the 'moral'thing. This belief in moral 'correctness', seems to tie inwith the personal values of many seni';;l:t:'I 11:13' interviews,and is defini tely a source of C'..:>mmi-,. even thoughscunhexn management is not overtly evd.dent, ~t a senior level,the fact that, attempts are made to follow this orientationat lower levels does inspire many managers.

The second proposition that: Tbe \Sou ctiern I managemen t;

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134

Resource division and the Regional and Branch level.

SUMMARY ANALYSIS TABLE

Western r\lorthern Eastorn Southern

The Executive Evident but Highly Exists but not Evident Indecreaulnq evident and as a consistent focus andwith increasing theme methodQlogycompany with amongst all but notgrowth company members always a

growth direct priority

lhe HR Function Evident In the Consistent Expressed More evidentfreedom of with the strongly by the in focus thanthe rational Training and theoperations measures and Development Executive,displayed by controls of Manager and but lessDivisional training and Divisional evident InHuman I.R. Human methodologyResource Resource andManagers Managers functional

relationships

The Regional Exists In Highly Not highly Very highlyand specific cases evldont In evident, Focus evident in

Branch Level relating to systems, here is on naturallocal Issues hierarchy and practical, not methodologye.g. reliance 01"\ Ideological but always acompetitors head office. issues consciousand tactical focu,>operation

As to the first proposition: The \Sou thern ' .manage.ment

4.7 RESEARCH PRO~OSITIONS ANSWERE~

approach which has a huma:Ilistic orientation. will be evident

in the organisatioll which has managed to win the hearts and

minds and subsequently the commitment of its members.

This has been confirmed by several examples. The most

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150

Ra.mudzuli, A. 1993. 11Educa.tio'(L :for Africa - From RobbinIsland to ITISA", in Christie, Lessem and Mbigi (Editor8)A~rican Management: Philosophies. Concepts and Applications.Randburg: Knowledge Resources (Pty) Limited.

Van der Merwe, L. 1993. "A Learning Community with a Commonl?urposell, in Christie, Lessem and Mbigi (Editors) AfricanManagememt: Philosophies. COl1cei2ts and Applicationo.Ra.ndburg: Knowledge Resources (l?ty) l,imi ted.

Yin, R.K. 1984. Case Study Research: Design and Methods.London: Sage Publications Limited.

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149

Koopman, A. 1991. Transcultural Management: How to UnlockGlobal Resources. Great Britain: Basil Blackwell Limited.

Koopman, A. 1993. 'Transcultural Management - In Search ofPra~matic Humanism", in Christie, Lessem and Mbigi (Editors)Afr~can Management: Philosophies, Concept~n~~lications.RandbU:t'g: Knowledge Resources (Pty) Lim.i.ted.

Kotze, 11. C. 1993. In Their shoes: Understand:i.ng Black SouthAfricans rrhrough Thei:!:' Experiences of lrife. Kenwyn: Juta &Co., Limited.

Lawl.er, E.E. 1985. IIChallenging Traditional Research~ssumptionsll, '.1 I.Jawler et al., (Editors) Doj.·';1..,Res~h that19 Useful ~_!hLDry and "ractice. San Franci~ ~~: Jossey~BassPublisherr ..

L7edy, P. D. 1983. .!tracHeal Research: Planning_and Design.l".1.£th Edition, New York: MacMillan Publishing Company.

Lessem, R, 1990. Ilevelopmental ManagemE?~lJ.t: _J.~l;:inci:gle!3 of.Holisti,c l?usiness. Great Britain: Basil Blackwell Limited.

Lessem, R. 1990. Man§..~Corpor~1te: Ct11.t.ure. England: Gowex:Publishing company Limited.

Lessem, R. 1993. "Four Worlds - The Southern AfricanBusinessphere" in Christie, Lessem and Mbigi (Editors),l>f;:dcan Management: p.hilosop'hies, Condept~ and. Appl,;i,cation@.Randburg: Knowledge Resources (Pty) Lim:lted.

Orpen

Mbigi, L. 1993. "The Spirit of African Empowerment", R.@opleDynamics. January, pp.ll~14.Mbigi, L. 1993. "The Spirit of African Management", inChristie, Lessem and Mbigi (E::l.itol"S) .&~ri..can Management:Pl~ilo..§lonhie§! Concepts and A12pHcat:i.ons. Randburg: I(nowledgeResources (Pty) Limited.

Mbigi, L. 1994. "Unbuntu". ,Kale.:LdoF.!co:geManaqell1§.!l!t_Jl_rief(Editor) Alfred, M.

MitroU, :t.);. 1985. "Why Our Old Pictures of t.he WorJ.d DoNot WorleAnymore", in Lawler et al. I (Editors) Doing Resear_ghthat .:La UM;Eul _;t~lJ,§"~ill1d Pract;i,ce. San Francisco:Jossey~Bass Publishers.

148REFERENCES

Beclt, D.E. and van Reerden, R.K. 1982. The Cutting Edge ofTomorrow - Blue Print for Successful Organisation. Pretoria:Value Manag(;.n~Group.

Beck, D.E. and Linscott, G. 1993. "'rhe African Crucible -Unity in Diversity" in Christie, Lessem and Mbigi (Editors)African Management: Philosophies. Concepts and AppHcations.Randburg: Knowledge Resources (Pty) Ltd.

Binedell, N. 1992.December, p. 11.

Blunt, P. 1983. organization Theory and Behaviour : AnAfrican Perspective, London: Longman Group Ltd.

"New Approaches". People Dynamics.

Coldwell, D.A.L. C:i.ndMoerdyk, A.P, 1981. "Paradigms Apart:Black Managers in a White Man's World II. S\South African.uournal of ~usiness Management. Vol.12 (3), pp. 70-76.

Coldwell, D.A.L. and Moerdylt, A.P. 1982. "On FittingParadigms to J:leoplell• SOlJ,th African uournal of BusinessManagement. Vol.13 (4), pp. 189-195.

Christie I P. 1983. "An Integrated OrganisationalPerspective", in Christie, r.essem and Mbig'i (Editors) Af;r:i.CAllManagement Philosophies_,__ Concept~nd Applications.Randburg : Knowledge Resources (Pty) Limited.

Du pl:'eez, P.H. 1992. "Model:'n Management and AfricanTradition: a Matter of Reconciliation" H11man ReFiourceMEL~~~ment. Februal:'Y, pp. 28-32.

Ferreira, M. and l'uth, G. 1.988. "FocUS G:t.·oupInterviewing",in Ferreil:'a et., al.. ~Editu:t·f'l) Introduction to QualitativeResearch Methods. Human scf.eneeu Reseaxch Council, pp .162-189.

Groenewald, J.P. 1986. Social Research Design and Analysis.Stellenbosch: University Publishers.

Hal:'a:d, O. and Beaty, D.T. (1987). "Conducting Applied'Third World' Reseal:'ch in Organisations - Some Problems andSolutions". South African LTournal of Busines~C[ement,Vol. 18, No.2., pp. 109-112.

Human, P. 1993. "A Population Ecological Perspective", inchristie, Lessem and Mbigi (Editors) l}.frican Management:Jl!hUosoph:i,Els,_Conc8pt@ and App.1icat;!,ons. Randbul:'g: KnowledgeRe~iccs (Pty) Limited.

"

provi.des food and shelter for its members and their familiesas well as a senSe ot humanity and purpose of being to allthat work within it.

Its finest contribution may be greater still as it has th~potential to provide inspiratic ~ and guidance to allhumankind in the conducting of their workl! ves I givingmeaning and explanation to the excens ive demands and dizzyunoertainty of all our existences.

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"Though I approve of the goals of human liberationand profess love for freedom,

if I do not act on this love it is worthless.

Though I think I can tell which way the wind is blowing,if I let the moment to act pass me by~

I betray the imperative to love.

The people have suffered 10D~:charity serves barelyto keep them alive. but charity by itself defuses

the will of the people to act".

"80 Faith, Love and Hope must abide these three;but without freedom and dignitythey remain hollow shadows".

Canaan Uannna

1.47

"

time, with a dynamic management team and largecorporate backing.

What must be highlighted though is that the South Africa of1983 was far less receptive to the ohanges than theenvir.onment of today.

Further research could be conductFr;l.in other organisationsand industries to invescigate the similarity of HumanResout'ce challenges ttey currently face and those faced byKoopman in 1983. Resea:;:chcould also be conducted on otherfunctions and specific activities within Cashbuild such asthe budgetary process or site development strategy to ~ssesswhether these specifics adhere () Cashbuild's overallmanagement principles.

The most supportive research would be focused on other largeorganisations that compete in the building supplies industryto a'3SeSS f~.rstly the differenoe in Management principles andsecondly the degree to which these differenoes oontribute toCashbuild's mar.ket dominanoe. I"" this proves correct 'andthe researcher intuitively believes it will) then Cas1:.build'SAfrican Ma.nagement approach can be regarded as a oompetitiveadvantage and a tangible asset (just as goodwill is) that hascaken twelve yea:Y.·sto evolve.

J?erhaps more importantly the company called Cashbuild r~imited

146

I.

"

Author: Bondi E.DName of thesis: South African management principles within a building supllies organisation

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