The main theme of this issue centres around different aspects of business, for example, the business information needs of graduates, marketing a business to investors, the business records of exporting companies, business intelligence in the telecommunication industry and, lastly, efforts to provide a better ICT service to the community and therefore contribute towards improved business results (specifically with regard to community or so-called telecentres).
A logical starting point for this issue refers to the business of telecentres. In response to the urban-rural digital divide in South Africa, various public and private sector ICT-related initiatives have been launched to counteract the disparities that characterize this divide. Most of the initiatives have simply been attempts to introduce more ICT infrastructure to a rural area. To a lesser extent, some have also incorporated elements of computer training and actions aimed at using ICTs to promote types of education or information provision in rural areas. Jacobs and Herselman's article on Integrated service delivery to communities: from model to prototype is an effort to provide solutions on how a management system can be used as a means of improving the quality of operations and service delivery by community centres through defined guidelines, templates, content and information management. The results of this qualitative research project culminated into a prototype model. Issues identified by the Ikageng Community Centre staff and management with regard to day-to- day operational aspects are addressed in the prototype model of this management model for rural community centres (the Ikageng Centre is situated in the town of Itsoseng. South Africa). It is also stressed that a strong foundation for a successful community centre is the ability to respond to customer demands, and therefore increase its client base, which in return supports the long-term sustainability of the community centre.
Still with developing issues in mind, the next article is by Chachage and Ngulube. Their discussion centres on the current status of the management of business records in a number of enterprises in Tanzania, with specific reference to the area of exporting (Management of business records in Tanzania: an exploratory case study of selected companies). The authors argue that every business is involved in the production of records as part of its internal processes. Therefore records management should be one of the key by-products of business processes. Furthermore, businesses keep records to fulfil legal requirements for their operations and to protect the rights of stakeholders. Chachage and Ngulube's research used interviews protocols and observation schedules to collect primary data from nine exporting companies in the Iringa region of Tanzania. This approach confirmed clearly what had been envisaged: that business records, although generated in both electronic and paper formats were not adequately managed throughout a record's life cycle. Their main recommendation is that companies in the Iringa region should embrace the hybrid records model suggested in this article as it strikes a balance between the records life cycle model and the so-called records continuum theory (also discussed in the article).
The article Using corporate Web sites in Africa to market to investors by Nel and Baard concentrates on marketing issues. The departure point of their work is that companies around the globe are increasing their use of the Internet to market themselves to both customers (e- commerce) and investors (investor relations). The focus of the research was on establishing
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