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Abstract - Teenage Pregnancy in South African Schools: Challenges Faced by School Management Teams
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Abstract: Teenage pregnancy in South African schools poses a serious management and leadership challenge. This article is based on the findings of a study that was conducted in South Africa, Limpopo Province. The aim of the study was to examine management of teenage pregnancy in secondary schools in the Vhembe district of Limpopo Province, South Africa. In this article, the challenges faced by school management teams regarding teenage pregnancy are explored. Findings revealed that most School Management Teams do not have policies regarding teenage pregnancies and the Department of Education has not trained them on the policy that it has issued. The study also showed that pregnant learners are the victims of expulsion or school dropout because of those challenges. It is recommended that intervention programmes be developed that include training of School Management Teams, School Governing Bodies and educators regarding the management of teenage pregnancy. Keywords: Counselling, absenteeism, dropout rates, pregnancy management challenges. |
Abstract - International Trade and Developing Countries: An Analysis of Socio-Environmental Cost in Nigeria, Chile and Iraq
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Abstract: The paper analyses the socio-environmental costs of International Trade in Nigeria, Chile and Iraq as archetypes of Developing Countries (DCs): while Nigeria and Iraq are major Crude Oil producers in Africa and Asia, Chile is a major Solid Mineral exporter in Latin America. It seeks to unveil the relationship between international trade and socio-environmental challenges in these countries, as well as identifies the bearer of cost implications of these challenges, as part of the uncalculated costs of production and distribution of goods and services in international trade. The study adopts the Theories of Unequal Exchange, and Ecologically Unequal Exchange. Secondary data were widely used for the study. It identifies the imperatives of international trade as the source of environmental pollution, and social conflicts which destroy the means of livelihood of the local population, and engender poverty and underdevelopment. The study recommends the domestication of International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention, Article 169 by all Developing Countries involved in resources extraction, as well as the inclusion of socio-environmental costs in Trade and Investment Agreements in order to safeguard the interest of the local population, and future generations. Keywords: International trade, socio-environmental costs, Nigeria, Chile, Iraq. |
Abstract - Organizational Strategy, Leadership and Human Resource Management: Trends of Status and Role in the Digital Age
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Abstract: In the 21st century, organizations are getting more and more flat. Celerity, more than associated with decision-making processes, is now decisive in the pursuit of strategic, tactical and operational objectives. While organizational strategies have successive impacts on what their traditional approaches were, today's organizations realize that strategic management is much more than just a few harmoniously arranged indicators in a carefully formulated plan. First of all, managing strategically is taking risks and being prepared to manage them efficiently, mitigating them. Managing strategically implies understanding the new roles that are associated with statutes that are dealt with organizationally and socially. Because these roles have already changed a lot and will continue to change. In Digital Age, with the increasing pace of the technological challenges addressed to us, whether individually, collectively and, above all, organizationally, skepticism rests on the heuristic reach of classical theoretical approaches, be it at the level of sociology of organizations, or at the level of organizational behavior. New challenges continue to apply to human resources management, leading managers to respond to fast organizational changes stemming from information technology-related factors. The purpose of this article is to analyze the advantages, disadvantages, and challenges inherent to this new reality. In addition to several influencing factors, we find that the human factor continues to be the most relevant in this field. Almost everything has changed and this is just the beginning. This article helps us to better understand the new asymmetries between status and role in the Digital Age, where competitiveness and innovation are crucial. Keywords: Status, Role, Globalization, Postmodernity, Strategic Management, Organizational Behavior, Leadership, Human Resource Management, e-HRM, Information technologies. |
Editorial: Innovation Policy and Trends in the Digital Age
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Abstract - Addressing Service Failure and Recovery in Digital Service Systems: Opportunities and Challenges
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Abstract: Digital service systems are changing the world as we know it, enabling companies to embrace new forms of relationship with their customers. The aim of this article is to propose a categorization of service failures in digital service systems and an illustration of recovery solutions based on life situations. Thus, this article used an exploratory case study research conducted in a Portuguese private bank. Data collection involved multiple sources, such as semi-structured interviews, customer complaints from an online database, and direct observation. The case revealed that digital service systems are not failure proof and service failures are inevitable. As a result, companies are struggling to consistently maintain high service standards across all channels and, for that purpose, have essentially invested on automated interactions. On the other hand, humanized recovery solutions are expected to enable organizations to make significant progress, including prevention and corrective actions, that will mitigate the perception of poor service delivery. While current studies tend to focus on what is going wrong in digital engagement, researchers have hitherto not investigated sufficiently this digital breakdown and the subsequent recovery solutions. Keywords: Digital service systems, service failure, recovery solutions, channels, case study. |