PBA4808

MAY/JUNE 2020 PORTFOLIO EXAMINATION

POST-GRADUATE DIPLOMA in BUSINESS

ADMINISTRATION

PBA4808
INFORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT

EXAMINATION PAPER MAY / JUNE 2020 100 MARKS

EXAMINERS:
FIRST EXAMINER: Prof HH Lotriet
SECOND EXAMINER: Prof JA van der Poll

THIS IS A NON-VENUE BASED INDIVIDUAL PORTFOLIO EXAM

The paper consists of 7 pages and a case study is provided as additional document
 PBA4808
MAY/JUNE 2020 PORTFOLIO EXAMINATION

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATE
1. Please note that the SBL maintains a zero-tolerance stance against plagiarism.
2. Plagiarism carries a severe penalty and disciplinary action.
3. Please refer to the University’s Policy for Copyright Infringement and Plagiarism
4. Students must sign the Honesty Declaration (provided) and include in the portfolio
submission.
5. This is an individual exam.
6. Please submit your portfolio before the submission deadline 3 June 2020 at 23h59.
7. Please note that the onus rests on you to ensure that your portfolio posted onto edsOnline
is the final and correct version. No amendments to submissions will be accepted after the
deadline.
8. No late submissions will be accepted, and late submissions will be awarded a zero mark.
9. Candidates must answer all 5 questions.
10. Please number your answers correctly.
11. The portfolio must have a cover page (provided). Please ensure that the module code,
your registered name and student number appears on the cover page.
12. The portfolio must have the signed honesty declaration form (provided). Please ensure
that you read, understand and sign the form.
13. The portfolio must have a table of contents. Please ensure that you insert the correct
page numbers in the table of contents.
14. Answer each section/question of the portfolio exam on a new page (indicating the
section/question and the module code on the page).
15. The portfolio exam document must be in PDF format only and the following naming
convention of the final edited file must be used when submitting the document on
edsOnline: PBA4808 PORTFOLIO EXAM_2020_STUDENT SURNAME AND
INITIALS_STUDENT NUMBER
16. It is your responsibility to ensure that the portfolio document is not password protect and
the file submitted is not corrupted. If the marker is unable to access or open the submission
document, you will be awarded a zero mark for the examination.

17. Questions 1-4 are related to the attached case study “Digital Divide Data” (Available
under CC License CC-BY-NC-ND 3.0 from LearningEdge MIT Management Sloan
School) and the questions require you to apply various concepts and frameworks to
the company that is described in the case study. Please read the case study
carefully before answering the questions. You need to find and consult scholarly
articles to support your claims and inform your answers. Cite in-text and reference
these using Harvard format. Do a single reference list for all questions at the back
2|Page
 PBA4808
MAY/JUNE 2020 PORTFOLIO EXAMINATION

of the assignment.
18. You are required to carefully examine the requirements of the questions and make sure
all elements in the questions are addressed. This does not call for a regurgitation of facts
but a critical usage and application of those facts towards a logical conclusion. Your
answers to questions will be assessed in terms of the level of communication displayed,
the insights and inferences drawn, and your ability to show the implications of the factors
that you have assessed and discussed. An answer that merely gives a bullet list of points,
without showing insight into the reasons and results, will not earn good marks.

19. You score marks for the quality of your answers (logical, cohesive and referenced
arguments), not for filling the pages with words.
20. Papers must be 1.5 spaced in 12 point font (Arial) with 1.5cm margins. Number the
questions correctly using the question numbers provided.
21. Use the Harvard style to document sources used in the paper. As with any research
paper, students must cite their work along with all other works and add these to the
reference list at the end. "Citations" may not consist, solely of web sites and must reflect
wider reading of scholarly papers and research.
22. Do not exceed 22 pages including a cover page and references. Put your student number
and name on the front page and the subject code.

3|Page
 PBA4808
MAY/JUNE 2020 PORTFOLIO EXAMINATION

Graduate School of Business Leadership

PBA4808 Exam Honesty Declaration Form
▪ This declaration form must be read on the date the examination paper is received and personally completed in the
candidate’s own handwriting in black ink.
▪ The completed form must be submitted in PDF format as part of the portfolio submission and inserted after the cover page
and before the Table of Contents in the document.
▪ This form declares that the candidate commits to the University’s assessment policies and procedures applicable to this
examination.
▪ Any candidate who fails to submit the hand-signed form with the portfolio will be deemed to not agree with the University’s
assessment policies and as such will not be allowed to participate in the examination and will be awarded a zero mark.

CANDIDATE SURNAME

CANDIDATE FULL NAMES

STUDENT NUMBER

MODULE CODE

CONTACT DETAILS
DECLARATION

▪ I declare that all the details provided by me on this form are true and correct.
▪ I am aware that the examination submission deadline is 03 June 2020 before 23h59, after which the edsOnline system
will not accept any late submissions.
▪ I will comply with all the rules, regulations and policies of the University pertaining to this assessment.
▪ I agree that it is my responsibility to ensure that I will have internet access to enable me to access edsOnline and submit
my portfolio.
▪ I agree that it is my responsibility to personally download and/or print and/or access the question paper provided to me via
the EDS online and to upload my completed portfolio to the EDS online and that any late submission will not be marked
and graded at 0%.
▪ I am aware that my completed portfolio must only be submitted via the EDS online and not to be submitted via email to
the lecturer, programme administrator and programme manager.
▪ I am aware that the assessment will be conducted in medium of English only.
▪ By completing and submitting the PBA4808 portfolio exam, I declare that:
• I have read and understood the Unisa’s Students’ Disciplinary Code;
• I know what plagiarism is, that plagiarism is wrong and that disciplinary steps can be taken against me if I am found
guilty of plagiarism;
• The written portfolio submission as required for the PBA4808 l Examination is my own work and I have neither
received nor aided any person whatsoever in completing this examination;
• I have independently and individually completed the examination without copying work from any other person/s;
• I have not allowed any other person/s to copy my work during the examination;
• I will report and provide details of any third party or person not associated with this examination, who approaches or
solicits me in any way whatsoever, regarding this examination, to the University;
• I know that if I am found to be in violation of this declaration, I will receive 0% for this examination and that Unisa
may investigate further and institute disciplinary action against me.

CANDIDATE
SIGNATURE
DATE

WITNESS

4|Page
 PBA4808
MAY/JUNE 2020 PORTFOLIO EXAMINATION

COVER PAGE

PBA4808

INFORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT

PORTFOLIO EXAM MAY/JUNE 2020

STUDENT NAME:

STUDENT NUMBER:

QUESTION MAX MARK MARK %

1 20

2 30

3 20

4 20

5 10

5|Page
 PBA4808
MAY/JUNE 2020 PORTFOLIO EXAMINATION

ANSWER ALL 5 QUESTIONS BELOW

Please study the case study “Digital Divide Data” (Available under CC License CC-BY-
NC-ND 3.0 from LearningEdge MIT Management Sloan School) provided separately from
this paper on edsOnline. Questions 1-4 specifically relate to this case study.

Question 1 [20 marks]

Use a suitable and appropriate strategy framework (that you found in literature) and do
an information strategy analysis for DDD. Show all assumptions that you are making
quite clearly. (2-3 pages)

Question 2 [30 marks]

2.1 Propose and motivate an appropriate Information Management Framework (on the
basis of scholarly literature) that could be used to guide information management at DDD.
You may either motivate the use of an existing framework you found in literature (and
make a scholarly literature-based argument about its suitability) or develop your own
framework on the basis of literature consulted (motivate clearly the elements of your
framework from literature). Clearly indicate any assumptions that you are making. (2-3
pages)

2.2 Apply the selected IM framework from Question 2.1 to DDD and indicate clearly the
practical implications for information management at the company. (2-3 pages)

2.3 Indicate how the IM framework (as applied to DDD in Question 2.2) will allow for
convergence of information strategy (developed in Question 1) and information
management at DDD. (1-2 pages)

Question 3 [20 marks]

3.1 Can DDD benefit from adopting and using any of the new technologies associated
with 4IR? Motivate your argument from literature. (2 pages)

3.2 What would be the practical implications for DDD that they would need to consider in
terms of your answer in Question 3.1? (1-2 pages).

Question 4 [20 marks]

4.1 What Knowledge Management framework would you propose for DDD? Motivate
from literature. (2 pages)
6|Page
 PBA4808
MAY/JUNE 2020 PORTFOLIO EXAMINATION

4.2 Show what the operational implications for DDD are in applying the KM framework to
the organization. (2 pages)

Question 5 [10 marks]

DDD has part of its footprint in the developing world. In your opinion, what are unique
features of a developmental context that could provide an IT company with opportunities
for digital innovation? (If you choose you can specifically discuss the African context. Your
answer does not have to relate to the DDD case study.) (1 page)

Total: (100 marks)

UNISA 2020

7|Page