that the Marketing programme of the NWU. Potchefstroom ... applications and represent the best of the best. .... explain
It all starts here ™
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The honours group of 2014.
Letter from the office of the Director
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t is my privilege to welcome you as reader of this first edition of the newsletter, Marketing Leaf, issued on behalf of the Marketing programme. I express my congratulations to the staff of the Marketing programme with their initiative to compile and publish this interesting and informative newsletter to a wider audience in order to introduce the programme and its staff. Providing you with some background information, I can mention that the Marketing programme of the NWU Potchefstroom Campus is one of the three programmes within our School of Business Management. The other two programmes are the Business Management programme and the Tourism programme. The qualifications that can be obtained in the Marketing programme include the BCom Marketing Management, BCom Communication Management, and the BCom Marketing and Tourism Management degrees. This programme has excelled through an extensive focus on quality teaching, research and community involvement. The staff component comprises of young, enthusiastic and enterprising lecturers, who under the competent leadership of Prof Danie Petzer, are developing into a formidable team that will take this programme to great heights. Apart from their outstanding teaching skills, they are developing a research culture in the programme which should achieve great recognition in the Marketing industry in the future. My vision for this programme entails further development so as to contribute to and impact on the challenging and ever-changing Marketing environment, academically as well as practically, worldwide in the years to come.
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Welcome honours group of 2014
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n 29 January 2014, the School of Business Management welcomed the 2014 BCom honours group specialising in Marketing and Business Management. We are proud to have 45 students in this year’s group. This group is the largest intake of honours students in the School’s history and in line with the School’s objective to increase student numbers in its honours programmes.
programmes were divided into teams and were allocated an amount of money to prepare a ‘potjie’ and an accompanying punch.
Students were selected from many applications and represent the best of the best. The students face a challenging year ahead in which they will be honing their theoretical and practical marketing and management skills.
Based on all aspects it was a great day. The function allowed students from all honours programmes in the School to get to know one another, make good friends and set up valuable networks for the future.
Pictured above are the 2014 honours group and lecturers in front of the Economic and Management Sciences building. On the 30th of January 2014 the School of Business Management hosted a function for honours students from all programmes in the School (Marketing, Business Management and Tourism) at the old Waterworks facility of the Potchefstroom Municipality. The function entailed a team-building competition. Prior to the function students from the different honours
The groups furthermore had to set a table and dress according to a theme the group themselves determined. A judging panel consisting of postgraduate students from the Tourism programme judged the ‘potjies’, punch, tables and attire of the different groups.
*We would like to thank the School director, Prof Renier Jansen van Rensburg, for initiating and funding this event, as well as Mr Armand Viljoen and his team from the Tourism programme, for organising the event. A group of students participating in the competition in their themed attire.
Enhancing our skills
Extraordinary visitor
Research ideas gain international perspective
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r Stephen Saunders, from Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, visited the Marketing programme for the second year running during December 2013. Dr Saunders specialises in marketing and has published articles in journals. He presented several workshops over a two-day period assisting staff in the programme with refining and consolidating their research ideas.
Pictured from the left: Prof Göran Svensson, Prof Danie Petzer, Dr Alfred Henrico and Prof Jaco Pienaar.
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uring January 2014 the School of Business Management welcomed Prof Göran Svensson for his first visit since being appointed as extraordinary professor in the faculty. Prof Svensson visited the School and shared his wealth of expertise with staff members. He presented several workshops focusing on the research process, on publishing in international journals, statistical analyses (regression-, correlation-, factor analyses and structural equation modelling), and the development of multi-item scales. Prof Svensson also delivered a public lecture in his capacity as extraordinary professor in the faculty. His lecture focused on the development of a comprehensive Business Sustainability Index (BSI) based upon the triplebottom line. The project is multinational of nature and Prof Danie Petzer in the Marketing programme is also extensively involved in this project. The visit culminated in a stay at Inyala Lodge where Prof Svensson experienced the natural beauty and wild life the North West Province has to offer.
*We would like to thank the School director, Prof Renier Jansen van Rensburg, and Prof Jaco Pienaar, (Director WorkWell: Research Unit for Economic and Management Sciences) for funding his visit. Göran Svensson is Professor at Oslo School of Management, Norway. He is also Professor at Halmstad University, Sweden. In addition, he is Honorary Professor at Deakin University, Australia, Adjunct Professor at Monash University, Visiting Professor at University of Johannesburg, South Africa, and Extraordinary Professor at North-West University, South Africa. Furthermore, he is a Guest Professor at the National Chung Hsing University in Tai Chung, Taiwan.
Staff members took part in a three-minute thesis competition where they were required to present their research in three minutes. Dr Saunders also shared cutting-edge research techniques and teaching technologies used by Australian universities with us. We are looking forward to welcome Dr Saunders back in November 2014. *We would like to thank the School director, Prof Renier Jansen van Rensburg, and Prof Jaco Pienaar, (Director WorkWell: Research Unit for Economic and Management Sciences) for funding his visit. Pictured from the left in the back row: Prof Danie Petzer, Dr Stephen Saunders. Middle: Ms Hester Spies. Front: Ms Liezl-Marié Kruger, Ms Stefanie Kühn (du Plessis), Ms Carinda Williams.
He holds a PhD from the School of Economics and Commercial Law, Göteborg University, Sweden, and is the editor of European Business Review (Emerald). He is a frequent author of international journal articles and international conference contributions. He is also engaged as a book author.
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Research snippets Dr Nedia Mackay is heading to Bucharest
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r Nedia Mackay will deliver two papers at the upcoming 21st Conference on Recent Advances in Retailing and Consumer Services Sciences (EIRASS) held in Bucharest Romania this year (July).
Ms Alicia Fourie, two time winner of the Rapport Top Lecturer Award.
Using social media as a tool to engage students
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s Alicia Fourie, from the Department of Economics at the NWU Potchefstroom Campus (winner of the Rapport Top Lecturer Award in 2011 and 2013), hosted a practical session on 28 February 2014 for staff members of the Marketing programme on the application of social media as tools to communicate and engage with students. Alicia discussed the use of Twitter and several other social media platforms. She explained how these platforms can be used to successfully communicate and engage with students. The staff members were furthermore introduced to Tweetwally, a social platform that could be used to stream live feeds in a class setting and Storify, a tool that is invaluable to assist in explaining complex concepts to students with the incorporation of web content such as tweets, articles, images and videos. We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to Alicia for taking time out of her study leave to host this session.
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One paper is titled ‘The influence of relational benefits on customer satisfaction in the South African short-term insurance industry’ from her PhD and is co-authored by her PhD supervisors Prof Pierre Mostert and Prof Danie Petzer. The second paper is titled ‘The influence of food quality, service quality and dining atmospherics at sit-down restaurants on customer satisfaction – a South African perspective’ co-authored by Prof Danie Petzer. We wish her the best of luck!
Conference papers 2013
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ight conference papers were delivered at international conferences. The conferences include the 20th Conference on Recent Advances in Retailing and Consumer Services Sciences (EIRASS), the 42nd Academy of Marketing Sciences (AMS) conference, the 15th Global Business and Technology
Association (GBATA) conference, the Johan Arndt Conference, the Transformation in a Changing Climate Conference, the 7th International Business Conference (IBC), and the Conference of the Emerging Markets Conference Board (EMCB). Staff also delivered eight papers at local conferences during 2013. The conferences include the 34th Southern African Marketing Research Association (SAMRA) conference and the 25th Southern African Institute of Management Scientists (SAIMS) conference. Ms Hester Spies, Ms Stefanie Kühn (du Plessis) and Ms Liezl-Marié Kruger at the EMCB Doctoral Consortium 2013.
Ms Hester Spies, Prof Naresh Malhotra, Ms Stefanie Kühn (du Plessis) and Ms LiezlMarié Kruger at the EMCB Doctoral Consortium 2013.
Ms Stefanie JOURNAL ARTICLES Kühn (du Ples- PUBLISHED IN 2013 sis) in Seychelles In 2013 the Marketing programme had a productive year with respect to research outputs. Staff in the Marketing programme contributed to the publication of eight journal articles published in either local or international journals. The following articles were published: Dr Nedia Mackay, Ms Hester Spies, Ms Carinda Williams, Prof Renier Jansen Van Rensburg and Prof Danie Petz er authored an article titled ‘The influence of service brand equity on the strength of brand relationships in the fast food industry’, published in the South African Business Review. Ms Liezl-Marie Kruger and Prof Pierre Mostert authored an article titled ‘The influence of relationship intention on relationship length and contractual agreements’, published in the Journal of Contemporary Management.
Ms Liezl-Marie Kruger, Ms Stefanie Kühn (du Plessis), Prof Danie Petzer and Prof Pierre Mostert authored an article titled ‘Investigating brand romance, brand attitude and brand loyalty in the cellphone industry’, published in Acta Commercii.
Ms Stefanie Kühn (du Plessis) attended the 7th International Business Conference (IBC) in Seychelles from the 1st until the 5th of September 2013. Stefanie delivered a competitive paper entitled ‘Variety versus price, payment method and spending when buying casual wear: an exploratory study among Soweto residents’. The paper was authored by Prof PG Mostert, Ms SW Kühn (du Plessis), Prof CF de Meyer and Ms B Cooper.
Roland Goldberg, a former master’s degree student, and Prof Renier Jansen Van Rensburg authored an article from his dissertation titled ‘Relationships between ethnocentrism and lifestyle dimensions among a targeted consumer segment in Sandton’, published in the Journal of Contemporary Management. Prof Danie Petzer co-authored four articles with staff from other institutions, titled: ‘Perceived Justice in South African Airline and Hospital Industries: Measurement Model’, published in the International Journal of Quality and Services Studies. ‘Trials and tribulations: marketing in modern South Africa’, published in the European Business Review. ‘Key information sources influencing prospective students’ university choice – a South African perspective’, published in the South African Journal of Higher Education. ‘Investigating Perceived Justice in South African health care’, published in the Journal of Contemporary Management.
Three of the five first-time authors of jour nal articles during 2013 in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences are from the Marketing programme. Congratulations to Dr Ned ia Mackay, Ms Carinda Williams and Ms Stefanie Kühn (du Plessis) with this achievement!
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Organising committee of the 25th Southern African Institute of Management Scientists.
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he School of Business Management hosted the 25th Southern African Institute of Management Scientists conference under the capable leadership of Prof Elmarie Slabbert from the Tourism programme. Three staff members of the Marketing programme served on the organising committee. Prof Danie Petzer was responsible for sponsorships, Ms Jackie Van der Merwe organised all refreshment functions and venues for the evening functions, and Ms
Liezl-Marie Kruger was responsible for the marketing of the conference and all arrangements for the conference exhibitors. In addition, staff in the Marketing programme were involved in five papers delivered at the conference. For information on and photos of the conference, please visit the SAIMS Facebook page titled ‘Southern African Institute for Management Scientists’ or the conference website: saimsconference2013.webs.com
Life as a postgraduate student Simonne Fourie Current Position: Assistant brand manager at Clover (Aquartz, Nestlé Pure Life water and Manhatten Ice Tea) Background: Simonne grew up in Krugersdorp and matriculated in 2006 from Hoërskool Monument. She undertook a year of part-time studies at Damelin, after which she enrolled at the North-West University in 2008 for a BCom in Marketing and Tourism Management, followed by a BCom Honours in Entrepreneurship and Marketing, and an MCom in Marketing Management.
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Degree to be conferred in 2014: MCom in Marketing Management. Title of dissertation: Investigating online complaint intention and service recovery expectations of clothing retail customers. Future aspirations: “My aspiration is to be successful in the dynamic Marketing environment. I plan to obtain practical skills and at the same time implement the knowledge I gained through my studies. I hope to pursue other academic activities in future.”
Adri Weideman Current Position: Course organiser and Marketing assistant at the Centre for Environmental Management of the NWU. Background: Adri grew up in Alberton and matriculated in 2007 from Hoërskool Alberton. The NWU was her first choice as academic institution where she enrolled for a BCom in Marketing and Tourism Management. The reason for this choice was her love for nature. Following the completion of her BCom degree, she enrolled for a BCom Honours in Entrepreneurship and Marketing, followed by an MCom in Marketing Management in 2012.
Liezl-Marié Kruger
Degee to be conferred in 2014: MCom in Marketing Management. Title of dissertation: Determining generation Y’s customer satisfaction, brand loyalty and relationship intention towards smart phone brands. Future aspirations: “I have the intention to complete a PhD in the future, but at the moment I am strengthening my technical skills by completing a few courses this year.”
Current Position: Lecturer at the University of Pretoria.
African Institute for Management Sciences (SAIMS) Conference 2013.
Background: Liezl-Marié grew up in Vereeniging and matriculated in 2004 from Hoërskool Overvaal. She enrolled at the North-West University in 2005, where she obtained her BCom in Communication Management (2008), BCom Honours in Entrepreneurship and Marketing (2009) and MCom in Marketing Management (2010) degrees respectively with distinction. To date Liezl-Marié has four accredited journal publications (two of which has been published from her PhD), one non-accredited journal publication, and three more publications under review at accredited journals. She also wrote and presented four conference papers, and participated in the European Marketing Academy (EMAC) Doctoral Colloquium (2012) and Emerging Markets Conference Board (EMCB) Doctoral Consortium (2013). LiezlMarié has acted as reviewer of publications for Management Dynamics, the South African Journal of Economic and Management Sciences (SAJEMS), the Journal of Family Ecology and Consumer Sciences (JFECS), and the Southern
Degree to be conferred in 2014: PhD in Marketing Management. Title of thesis: The influence of relationship intention on satisfaction, loyalty and retention following service recovery in the cellular industry. Future aspirations: “My career dream is to obtain an NRF-rating and therefore rigorous research published in accredited journals, attending conferences and growing as researcher are main priorities career wise.” Acknowledgements: “It was an honour to work in the Marketing programme of the School for Business Management (NWU Potchefstroom Campus) from January 2010 to March 2014. Thank you to Prof Renier Jansen van Rensburg, Prof Danie Petzer, Prof Jaco Pienaar, and all my colleagues, for continued support to develop as both researcher and lecturer. My time spent at the NWU has been the foundation for my career for which I am forever grateful.”
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An NRF-rated researcher joins our ranks
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rof Ernest North, who obtained an NRF-rating in 2006, joined the Marketing programme in 2013.
He currently lectures several undergraduate Marketing modules on the BCom qualification as well as an honours module. Although Prof North is a highly regarded researcher in the field of Marketing, he has a strong passion for teaching. Prof North brings a com-
bination of invaluable experience and knowledge to the classroom. Students attending his lectures are guaranteed an exciting learning experience. The Marketing programme has benefitted greatly from his expertise in both research and teaching since he has been appointed. Prof North has previously been a professor in Marketing at the University of Pretoria.
Prof Ernest North.
Contact Details of the Marketing programme Secretary: Ms Jackie Van der Merwe 018 299 2885 Research and Marketing programme leader: Prof Danie Petzer 018 285 2207 The staff of the Marketing programme would like to express their most sincere gratitude to Ms Liezl-Marié Kruger for designing and putting the first edition of the Marketing Leaf together.
