COMP8421 - Contemporary Management Principles And Practices Assignment

Assignment Task

Questions

Case 1: SA's big new jobs opportunity: Working remotely for offshore companies

The Covid‐induced global shift to remote work has vastly expanded the employment opportunities available to South Africans.

Previously, Saffas who lived here had to work for local companies or the satellite offices of foreign groups

This was extremely limiting, considering that our government has done so much to crush the domestic economy. Rolling blackouts, a growing logistics crisis, and confused policymaking have led to a catastrophic employment situation.

As many as 24.1 million South Africans of working age are either searching for jobs that don't exist here, have given up trying, or are not economically active for other reasons, according to the latest employment report.

At the risk of making the understatement of the year, there aren’t nearly enough jobs to go around.

But in stark contrast to the untenable position, we find ourselves in, many wealthy nations have a problematic shortage of workers.

Corporates often can’t find suitable or even willing people to fill vacant roles, and as a result, pay demands are rising too. That’s further fuelling the remote work revolution and breaking down national barriers. Many American and European firms, in particular, are now fishing for staff in the large and ever‐growing South African employment pond.

This is a genuine win‐win. By snapping up South Africans, those companies get cheap and hard‐ working staff (we’re cheap for them, but the dollar‐ or euro‐based pay is great for us) and the chances of us finding employment in our specific fields of expertise go way up.

Every time a South African switches from a local employer to a foreign one, they open a gap for a fellow countryman perhaps an unemployed graduate to fill.

And they start bringing euros and dollars into the country. It’s near impossible to quantify how many South Africans are working remotely for offshore groups, but there’s no doubt this is a fast‐growing trend.

The company hired me via a global human resources management organisation called Remote, which acts as your local employer and takes charge of yoursalary payments, leave applications, and tax. It’s a smart operating model.

Anyway, I asked Remote recently how many South Africans are now on their books, and they said over 100. They’re not the only ones in this game. And far more South Africans are contracted directly by foreign firms, with no local intermediary involved.

Every week I meet another professional who’s signed a contract with an overseas company. A word of caution here, though: My team at the American company was shut down due to budget constraints, and we were all retrenched a year ago.

Because I was employed via Remote’s South African office, I was protected by local labour laws and was therefore entitled to severance pay.

My American colleagues weren’t so lucky, and South Africans hired directly by foreign firms could well find themselvessuddenly stranded as well.

So being employed through an intermediary means there’s a safety net involved, although it’s not always an option. And of course, remote work is only possible for those who’re fortunate enough to own a laptop and an education or skill that companies in foreign lands need. This option is only really available to the middle class

That said, remote work is providing at least a small boost for the local economy and jobs market, and it’s something that more South Africans should keep in mind. Don’t limit your job searches to local employers – there’s a big world out there and the South African work ethic is coveted in many markets.

There’s no need to move to London in search of greener pastures, and there’s a reason so many Europeans decide to work remotely from South Africa for months on end. Stay here, enjoy the African sun, earn more, learn new skills and ways of doing things, and free up space for people in need of work experience. And remember, other countries are doing what our government can’t: Creating jobs for South Africans. Let’s take our wins where we can.

South Africa’s working age population is growing by nearly 600 000 people a year, which means we need to be creating a lot of jobs just to maintain the status quo. Our current government is not willing to provide the conditions needed to do so, but thankfully, others are.

1.1 One of the most interesting characteristics of managerial work is the rapidly changing workplace. One of the most significant changes since COVID‐19 was the introduction of ‘remote work’, or, as some of you might know it, ‘work from home’. Also, COVID‐19 had a significant impact on business, with many not surviving, impacting countless livelihoods. Some organisations used COVID‐19 as a positive Black Swan event, one that is an unpredictable, highly impactful event where the benefits of the event are unlimited while the disadvantages are limited.

• Henry Mintzberg offered a number of interesting insights into the nature of managerial roles. These roles take on greater significance in the world post‐ 2023. Discuss Mintzberg’s managerial roles within the context of the new workplace, specifically as it applies to remote work.
• Discuss the challenges faced by management within the context of the new workplace, specifically as it applies to remote work.
• Using the rational decision‐making model, analyse how successful organizations possibly applied the process to thrive during COVID‐19. Ensure that you use the adoption of remote work to frame your discussion.

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