Ethical considerations

Throughout the entire study all ethical standards and principles, as set out by the UNISA Ethical Policy, were met. This study was conducted according to the four moral principles of ethics that UNISA recognises as the basis of any research, namely:

 research should respect the autonomy, rights and dignity of research participants,

 research should make a positive contribution toward the welfare of people,

 research should not cause harm to the research participant(s) in particular or to people in general, and

 the benefits and risks of research should be fairly distributed among people (UNISA, 2013:9).

The UNISA Ethical Policy requires that certain general ethical principles are met before, during and after the research. The way in which this study adhered to the general ethical principles are summarised in table 4.9.

Table 4.9 General ethics principles considered in this study

General ethics principle Adherence to the general ethical principle during this study

Essentiality and relevance An extensive literature review was conducted to establish whether there was a need for the research and whether the research was essential in the pursuit of knowledge. According to the literature, a need for developing and strengthening supply chains within

townships exists. Therefore, the research could be deemed essential in the pursuit of knowledge in order to assist small business owners or managers in developing and strengthening their supply chains and possibly increasing the businesses’ odds of survival. The knowledge could benefit the more capable owners or managers and improve their businesses’ sustainability.

Maximisation of public interest and of social justice

The purpose of this study was to determine how formal independent small retail businesses in Soweto could increase their odds of survival by managing their logistical supply chain drivers in terms of responsiveness and cost-efficiency. As many of these businesses are faced with similar challenges, the findings of this study could be used to assist small businesses operating in respondents were respected and protected to the best of the researcher’s ability. The fieldworkers were trained in order to ensure that they treated the respondents with respect, and treated all information as confidential. Fieldworkers were instructed to explain the purpose of the questionnaire, and to inform respondents on how, and by whom, the information would be used. Both the information and the sources of information were, and will be, treated as confidential. respondents by the fieldworkers before the questionnaires were completed. Respondents were

informed that participation was voluntary and that they may halt the process at any stage, if they were uncomfortable about the questions. Respondents signed the questionnaires; indicating that they understood the aim and purpose of the study; what participation involved; and that they could withdraw at any time. By signing the questionnaire respondents also agreed that they consented freely and voluntarily to participate in the study.

Integrity, transparency and accountability

The researcher used professional fieldworkers to gather the primary data to ensure that the research was conducted honestly, fairly and transparently.

Source: Compiled by the researcher

The study was reviewed by the Ethical Committee of the BMR and ethical clearance was granted.

(see appendix B).

4.4 Conclusion

This chapter began by defining research and determining the need for this particular project. After taking into consideration time constraints, available data and the nature of the benefits, as opposed to the costs of the project, it was established that research was necessary to determine how formal independent small retail businesses in Soweto can manage the three supply chain drivers, in terms of responsiveness and cost-efficiency, in order to survive. The research process that was followed to conduct the research was identified and consisted of nine steps. Each step of the research process was addressed in theory, as well as in how it applied to this study. Table 4.10 provides a summary of the research methodology discussed in this chapter.

Table 4.10 Summary of the research methodology for this study

Empirical research aspect Description of empirical research aspect in this study Survey area Defined business areas in Soweto.

Survey population Formal independent small businesses located within

business areas/stands across Soweto. These include businesses situated in shopping malls, large shopping areas (outside shopping malls), smaller shopping areas, stand-alone businesses and industrial areas with 2-5, 6-10 and 10-plus surrounding businesses.

Sample frame A list of 650 formal independent small businesses operating within the boundaries of Soweto compiled in 2012 by the BMR.

Sample size 650 formal independent small businesses.

Sampling method Probability sampling using a stratified sampling method.

Research instrument Structured interviewer-completed questionnaires consisting of close-ended questions, using nominal and ordinal measurement scales (refer to appendix A).

Collecting, coding and capturing of data

The fieldwork was coordinated by the BMR and the data was gathered within 7 weeks (July-August) by five fieldworkers. Data was captured on Excel and SPSS (version 23).

Analysis of data Both descriptive (frequency distributions) and inferential analyses (Kruskall-Wallis test, Pearson Chi-Square test and binary logistic regression) were conducted on the data.

Ethical considerations The fieldwork was conducted within the directives of the ethical policy of the University of South Africa (refer to appendix B for the ethical clearance certificate).

Source: Compiled by the researcher

Chapter 5

Empirical findings on the logistical supply chain drivers

5.1 Introduction

In this chapter the empirical analyses related to the three logistical supply chain drivers are discussed by presenting both descriptive and inferential statistical findings. The findings are derived from data gathered from 556 formal independent small retail businesses which will be referred to as “the respondents” or “small retailers” in the subsequent discussions. The inferential analyses were performed by either the Kruskal-Wallis test or the Pearson Chi-Square test.

Throughout the chapter, twenty four empirical findings are reported on, and indicated by using the abbreviation EF.