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APPENDIX A: ASSESSMENT COVER SHEET

ASSESSMENT COVER SHEET

Morewane
Surname
Mamotseo Katlego
First Name/s
201150
Student Number
Procurement and Supply Management
Subject
Case Study No. 1
Assessment Number
Melissa
Tutor's Name
03 May, 2023
Date Submitted
X
Submission () First Submission Resubmission
No. 6 Fish River Road
Umlele Springs
Postal Address
Kidd's Beach
East London
5264
mamotseo.morewane@zf.com
E-Mail
(Work)
083 664 2797
Contact Numbers
083 664 2797

Course/Intake Bachelor of Commerce Honours in Supply Chain Management/January 2023

Declaration: I hereby declare that the assignment submitted is an original piece of work produced by myself.

Signature: Date: 03 May, 2023

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Question 1.

1.1 Title:

An investigation into how the absence of a proper procurement process leads to fraud
and irregularities in organisations.

Research Problems:

• Lack of proper procedures leads to fraud and irregularities in organisations.

• Organisation's processes not reviewed regularly aren't improved.
• Lack of defined specifications leads to acquiring poor quality and inferior goods,
services, and people.
• Roles and responsibilities; and organisation structures aren't always defined.
• Poor procurement processes lead to a lack of oversight and audit trails.

1.2. Research objectives

The objectives of this study are as follows:

• To determine the role of an organisational structure in the company.

• To determine the need for roles and responsibilities to be defined in the
company
• To determine the importance of a good procurement process in the company.
• To determine the importance of reviewing the procurement process regularly.
• To determine the importance of a relationship between procurement and other
functions in the company.

Research Problems:

The research problems of this study are as follows:

• What is the role of an organisational structure in the company?

• Is there a need for roles and responsibilities to be defined in the company?
• What is the importance of a good procurement process in the company?
• When is the procurement process reviewed regularly?
• What is the importance of a relationship between procurement and other
functions in the company?
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Question 2

Data Collection Method

The data collection method used for this study is interviews. Qualitative interviewing
is a data-collection tool useful in various methodological approaches and may
therefore be applied to address a few research questions (McGrath, et al., 20).

According to the Canyon University Doctoral Journal (2022), a qualitative data-driven

interview can be unstructured and informal, in contrast to a quantitative interview's
necessary structure and formality. The interview is done using an interview script,
using follow-up questions as they occur and hoping to pursue any topics of interest
that arise during the conversation (Various, 2022).

The people to be interviewed will be the employees from various departments within
the company, notably the managers. The interviews will be conducted through either
two methods, face-to-face or online, using platforms like MS Teams or Zoom (DeBose,
2018). The sample size. Interviews will be recorded visually, and then transcripts will
be written down.

Analysis process.

According to Ravindran (2019), qualitative data analysis appears simple to those with
limited knowledge of the qualitative research approach. Still, it is one of the most
challenging tasks for the seasoned qualitative researcher. It is a complex and elusive
part of the qualitative research process. Many inherent challenges in the research
approach make the analysis process demanding (Ravindran, 2019).

The steps to be used to analyse the data are (Bhandari, 2020):

1. Prepare and organise your data. This typically involves gathering all of the
audio- or video-recorded interview files into one location, converting
observational notes to electronic format (e.g., MS Word documents or Adobe
PDF), and scanning documents retrieved in paper form (Nina Lester, et al.,
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2020). This process should include a structured naming protocol for each file
and the creation of a master data catalogue that lists each data source, its
storage location, its creator, and the date of its collection. This is two ensure
that the raw data is kept safe in case it needs to be revisited.
2. Review and explore your data. This involves examining the data for patterns
or repeated ideas that emerge—looking for the relative importance of data and
identifying relationships between data sets or themes (Valcheva, 2023).
3. Develop a data coding system. Based on your initial ideas, establish a set of
codes you can apply to categorise your data. A code is simply a short,
descriptive word or phrase that assigns meaning to the data related to the
researcher's analytic interests (Saldana, 2021).
4. Assign codes to the data. For example, qualitative survey analysis may mean
going through each participant's responses and tagging them with codes in a
spreadsheet. As you review your data, you can create new codes to add to your
system if necessary (Bhandari, 2020). Doing this will make it easier to interpret
that data and see whether there are recurring or new themes.
5. Identify recurring themes. Linking codes together into cohesive, overarching
themes. These may be based on similarities and dissimilarities from the data
(Mishra & K. Dey, 2022).

Question 3
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Fraud, as defined by The Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS), is

defined as an act of intentional concealment, omission, or perversion of the truth to
gain an unlawful or unfair advantage, induce or cause another party to experience a
loss (economic, status, or rights) or inflicting injury on another party. Fraud comes in
different forms and usually affects company operations and financial strengths. This
is done through waste and abuse, improper payments, money laundering, terrorist
financing, public security and cybersecurity.

According to various reports, fraud is South Africa's number one economic crime.
Since fraud accounts for 7% of company revenue worldwide, any further increases in
this figure could prove detrimental to an organisation in these difficult economic times.
In South Africa alone, it is estimated that fraud costs the economy above R2 billion a
year (Mongie, 2009).

In the case of FFRA, forensic investigation confirms fraud and other irregularities at
the company, with its CEO, Mamodupi Mohlala, being suspended. The significant
findings were that the CEO committed fraudulent and other irregularities by:

• Contraventions of pension fund legislation and rules;

• Irregular appointments of staff and the appointment of under-qualified persons;
• Flouting of procurement processes leads to inconsistent, fruitless and wasteful
expenditure; and fraud.

This literature review explores how such activities can be prevented and detected
sooner by defining roles and responsibilities and the importance, implementation and
review of the procurement process within the PPRA.

3.1. Role of an organisational structure.

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According to Kenton (2023), an organisational structure is a system that outlines

how certain activities are directed to achieve the goals of an organisation. These
activities can include rules, roles, and responsibilities. Kenton further explains
(2023) the organisational structure also determines how information flows
between levels within the company (Kenton, 2023).

In the case of Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority (PPRA), findings such

as irregular appointments and paying of excessive salaries being done by the CEO
Mamodupi Mohlala is a clear indication of a need for a clear definition and
understanding of roles and duties as the role of appointing of individuals should
be done through the HR department. According to Chand (2023), in an excellent
organisational structure, the conflicts between individuals over jurisdiction are kept
to a minimum.

3.2. Importance of an adequate procurement process.

Procurement is essential in understanding supply chains because it helps a

company find reliable suppliers that can provide competitively priced goods and
services that match its needs. That's the case whether the company is seeking
raw materials for manufacturing, a marketing services provider or new office
supplies (Jenkins, 2021).

Jenkins (2021) further elaborates that the procurement process generally involves
several steps. The business identifies particular goods and services that it needs,
sources the suppliers to help the company reach its objectives, negotiates terms
and costs and then purchases and receives the relevant items (Jenkins, 2021).

By having a good procurement process, PPRA will be able to track and account
for every purchase and transaction made, which will avoid findings like:

• The catering service provider was not vetted for tax or BEE compliance;
• The delegation's visit was for 15 and 16 March 2022, but the catering
supplier's invoice was paid for three days.
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• A maximum of 40 people were catered for, but the invoice was issued for
120 people;

This will help the company avoid many other issues and findings and instead
help them optimise their operations. Another way to ensure that the
procurement process works well is to investigate the implementation of e-
Procurement software.

3.3. Importance of regularly reviewing the procurement process.

Reviewing and auditing processes are vital as they help organisations in being
able to pick up blind spots and faults in the process for the betterment of the
company. Auditing is defined as the on-site verification activity, such as inspection
or examination, of a procedure or quality system to ensure compliance with
requirements (Various, 2023).

Procurement Cloud (2023) states that procurement KPIs are a performance

measurement tool used to evaluate and monitor the efficiency of an organisation's
procurement management. These KPIs help organisations optimise and regulate
spending, quality, time, and cost. For this reason, it is vital to set up procurement
KPIs which can be used to review the current procurement process in place
(Various, 2023).

After reviewing its current procurement process, PPRA can implement the
following to help optimise its procurement process:

• Invest in a good procurement software

• Enable swift employee adoption with training
• Define a clear procurement strategy.
• Determine costs and plan according to your budget
• Create an open communication channel with suppliers
• Integrate your procurement processes with APIs
• Establish policy and process compliance

3.4. Importance of a relationship between procurement and other functions

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Gartenstein (2019) states that successful internal purchasing relationships

depend on clear communication between purchasing staff and coworkers, who
rely on the items they buy. A productive relationship between procurement and
other departments also hinges on having data and information systems to convey
information quickly and accurately (Gartenstein, 2018).

Procurement is traditionally viewed as responsible for the acquiring of tangible

items. Still, they are also involved in acquiring intangible things such as service
providers for IT services, cleaning services, etc. The procurement process also
contains steps whereby suppliers, contracts, and goods are evaluated upon
completion. These steps can assist PPRA with Rural Brand Technologies, who
were contracted to help develop the PPRA At-Your–Fingertips app. The
procurement process would've assisted them in expediting the process and
ensuring that payment is only made once both parties have developed and signed
off the final App.

In closing,
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Question 4

According to Bhandari (2021), ethical considerations in research are principles that

guide your research designs and practices. Scientists and researchers must always
adhere to a particular code of conduct when collecting data from people (Bhandari,
2021).

Bhandari further elaborates (2021) the goals of human research often include
understanding real-life phenomena, studying effective treatments, investigating
behaviours, and improving lives in other ways. What you decide to research and how
you conduct that research involve critical ethical considerations.

When conducting research, it is essential to follow and consider ethics, as this affects
the credibility of your research study. Resnik (2020) elaborates that the importance of
ethical norms promotes the aims of the research, promotes the values that are
essential to collaborative work, helps to ensure that researchers can be held
accountable to the public, and promote a variety of other important moral and social
values (B. Resnik, 2020).

There are various ethical issues which need to be taken into consideration when
conducting research:

• Voluntary Participation: means that all research subjects are free to

participate without any pressure or coercion (Bhandari, 2021). The approval of
the research subject will assist in establishing a relationship of collaboration
and cooperation, which will be for the betterment of the research.
• Informed consent: refers to a situation in which all potential participants
receive and understand all the information they need to decide whether they
want to participate. This includes information about the study's benefits, risks,
funding, and institutional approval (Bhandari, 2021). An example of this is in the
case of recording an interview between yourself and the research subject.
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• Anonymity: Means, according to Bhandari, that you don't know who the
participants are, and you can't link any individual participant to their data
(Bhandari, 2021). It is also essential as it helps establish trust between yourself
and the research subject.
• Confidentiality: means knowing the participants are, but you remove all
identifying information from your report (Bhandari, 2021). Combining anonymity
provides trust and protection for the subjects depending on the information
being shared. An example of this is in the case of PPRA, whereby employees
report on the many fraud activities they've witnessed.
• Potential for harm: As a researcher, you must consider all possible damage
sources to participants. Harm can come in many different forms (Bhandari,
2021). In the case of PPRA, reporting fraudulent activities or actions can harm
the participants. Anvari states (2019) the perceived costs of whistleblowing,
such as the potential for retaliation, social ostracism, income loss,
imprisonment, and physical harm (Anvari, et al., 2019).
• Results communication: According to Zhing & Li (2022), communicating the
research findings is as critical as conducting research from inception to
completion (Zhang & Li, 2022). “The way you share your research results can
sometimes involve ethical issues. Good science communication is honest,
reliable, and credible. It's best to make your results as transparent as possible”
(Bhandari, 2021). In the case of PPRA, the communication of the results can
impact the company, affecting the employees and stakeholders.

In closing, Bhandari (2021) states that defying research ethics will also lower the
credibility of your research because it's hard for others to trust your data if your
methods are morally questionable. (Bhandari, 2021) She further explains that “even if
a research idea is valuable to society, it doesn't justify violating the human rights or
dignity of your study participants” (Bhandari, 2021).
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