First choice or fallback option? The attractiveness of South Africa’s retail industry for Gen Y members

  • 1079 Views
  • 216 Downloads

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

The wholesale and retail industry is the fourth largest contributor to South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product. However, it faces the major challenge of attracting highly skilled and motivated workers. Although South African universities launched programs in retail management, attracting young talents to a career in retailing remains a tough challenge. Drawing on previous findings from the field of graduate decision-making and industry image from other countries, this research examines the perceptions and expectations of Gen Y members with regard to their field of study and their prospective career. A nationwide survey with 1363 South African first year students, in their first week at university, shows significant differences between freshmen enrolled in retail business management and those enrolled in other business majors. While retail students, as compared to other participants, tend to hold stronger positive associations with their field of study and a retail career, majoring in retailing appears to be a fallback option. Over all participants, the analysis reveals that the perception of retailing careers primarily exceeds expectations on attributes that are only of minor importance. When it comes to important career attributes like payment, work-life balance and advancement issues, the retail image lags behind that of other industries. Comparing the field of study with the preferred industry, we identify four different segments of students that qualify to be targeted by companies and universities in different ways.

view full abstract hide full abstract
    • Figure 1. Student-retail relationships
    • Table 1. Demographics
    • Table 2. Current field of study
    • Table 3. TOP 3 consideration set of majors
    • Table 4. Role of various information sources for study decision
    • Table 5. Retail and non-retail students’ ratings of information sources
    • Table 6. Students’ preferred industry after graduation
    • Table 7. Students’ reasons for study choice
    • Table 8. Importance ratings and image of retail career
    • Table 9. Retail and non-retail students’ ratings of retail career image
    • Barber, A. E. (1998). Recruiting Employees: Individual and Organisational Perspectives. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
    • Broadbridge, A. M. (2003). The appeal of retailing as a career 20 years on. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 10(5), 287-296.
    • Broadbridge, A. M., Maxwell, G. A., and Ogden, S. M. (2007). 13_2_30: Experiences, perceptions and expectations of retail employment for Generation Y. Career Development International, 12(6), 523-544.
    • Broadbridge, A. M., Maxwell, G. A., and Ogden, S. M. (2009). Selling retailing to Generation Y graduates: recruitment challenges and opportunities. The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 19(4), 405-420.
    • Burmann, C., Schaefer, K., and Maloney, P. (2007). Industry image: Its impact on the brand image of potential employees. Journal of Brand Management, 15(3), 157-176.
    • BusinessTech. (2015). Here are South Africa’s 26 universities.
    • Cable, D. M., and Graham, M. E. (2000). The determinants of job seekers’ reputation perceptions. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 21(8), 929-947.
    • Cable, D. M., and Judge, T. A. (1996). Person-Organization Fit, Job Choice Decisions, and Organizational Entry. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 67(3), 294-311.
    • Deloitte. (2016). The 2016 Deloitte Millennial Survey: Winning over the next generation of leaders.
    • Dicey, L. (2016). South African millennials different from US millennials.
    • Eisner, S.P. (2005). Managing Generation Y. S.A.M. Advanced Management Journal, 70(4), 4-15.
    • Gush, J. (1996). Graduates into the retail industry: an assessment of the nature and causes of mismatches between the needs and expectations of the retail industry and its graduate employees. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 24(9), 5-12.
    • Hebben, M. (2011). Handelsverband HDE gibt Startschuss fur Imagekampagne.
    • Hurst, J. L., and Good, L. K. (2009). Generation Y and career choice: The impact of retail career perceptions, expectations and entitlement perceptions. Career Development International, 14(6), 570-593.
    • Knight, D. K., Crutsinger, C., and Kim, H. (2006). The Impact of Retail Work Experience, Career Expectation, and Job Satisfaction on Retail Career Intention. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 24(1), 1-14.
    • Koyana, S., and Mason, R. B. (2015). Transformation: Evaluation of the role of the W&RSETA in the last 10 years and the way forward.
    • Manpower. (2011). 2011 Talent Shortage Survey.
    • Martin, C.A. (2005). From high maintenance to high productivity: What managers need to know about Generation Y. Industrial and Commercial Training, 37(1), 39-44.
    • Michaels, E., Handfield-Jones, H., and Axelrod, B. (2001). The War for Talent. Boston: Harvard Business Review Press.
    • Mokhlis, S. (2014a). Marketing Students’ Perception of Retailing as a Career Option. The Social Sciences, 9(6), 486-491.
    • Mokhlis, S. (2014b). What Are Students’ Perceptions of Retailing as a Career Choice? Academic Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, 3(1), 363-368.
    • Nedungadi, P. (1990). Recall and Consumer Consideration Sets: Influencing Choice without Altering Brand Evaluations. Journal of Consumer Research, 17(3), 263-276.
    • Ng, E. S. W., Schweitzer, L., and Lyons, S. T. (2010). New Generation, Great Expectations: A Field Study of the Millennial Generation. Journal of Business and Psychology, 25(2), 281-292.
    • Oh, H., Weitz, B., and Lim, J. (2016). Retail career attractiveness to college students: Connecting individual characteristics to the trade-off of job attributes. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 31, 345-354.
    • Podnar, K. (2004). Is It All A Question of Reputation? The Role of Branch Identity (The Case of an Oil Company). Corporate Reputation Review, 6(4), 376-387.
    • PricewaterhouseCoopers. (2012). South African retail and consumer products outlook 2012- 2016.
    • Retail Merchandiser. (2003). Retail Employers Must Understand Gen Y Values. Retail Merchandiser, 43(2), 12.
    • Rhoads, G. K., Swinyard, W. R., Geurts, M. D., and Price, W. D. (2002). Retailing as a career: a comparative study of marketers. Journal of Retailing, 78(1), 71-76.
    • Richardson, S. (2009). Undergraduates’ perceptions of tourism and hospitality as a career choice. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 28(3), 382-388.
    • Rynes, S. L. (1991). Recruitment, job choice, and post-hire consequences: a call for new research directions. In M. Dunnette and L. Hough, (Eds.). Handbook of Industrial/Organizational Psychology (Vol. 2). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.
    • Sutherland, M. M., Torricelli, D. G., and Karg, R. F. (2002). Employer-of-choice branding for knowledge workers. South African Journal of Business Management, 33(4), 13.
    • Swinyard, W. R. (1981). The Appeal of Retailing as a Career. Journal of Retailing, 57(4), 86-97.
    • Swinyard, W. R., Langrehr, F. W., and Smith, S. M. (1991). The Appeal of Retailing as a Career: A Decade Later. Journal of Retailing, 67(4), 451-465.
    • Templer, A. J., and Cawsey, T. F. (1999). Rethinking career development in an era of portfolio careers. Career Development International, 4(2), 70-76.
    • UNDP. (2015). Human Development Report 2015: Work fpr Human Development.
    • Verquer, M. L., Beehr, T. A., and Wagner, S. H. (2003). A meta-analysis of relations between person-organization fit and work attitudes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 63(3), 473-489.
    • W&RSETA. (2014). Wholesale & Retail Sector Education and Training Authority (W&RSETA) Sector Skills Plan 2011-2016, 2014 Update. W&RSETA: Centurion.
    • Wiswall, M., and Zafar, B. (2015). Determinants of College Major Choice: Identification using an Information Experiment. The Review of Economic Studies, 82(2), 791-824.
Related Articles

  • The growth strategies of a global pharmaceutical company: a case study of Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Limited

    Victoria Margaret Hodgon , Muhammad Ehsanul Hoque doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.15(1-1).2017.12
    Problems and Perspectives in Management Volume 15, 2017         Issue #1 (cont.)         pp. 248-259 Views: 2636 Downloads: 2914 TO CITE АНОТАЦІЯ

    Given the rapid and sustained growth of Aspen over the past decade, the main aim of this study is to identify and analyze the growth strategies, adopted by Aspen over the period from 2004 to 2014. The research method used was a descriptive study through a single case study of Aspen by analyzing secondary data in the form of publicly available company reports and presentations, as well as financial results, issued between 2004 and 2014. The study finds that, guided by strategic and visionary leadership, Aspen adopted a number of growth strategies including (i) organic growth, as a key factor in creating incremental value for Aspen and its stakeholders, (ii) inorganic growth, in the form of carefully planned and well executed acquisitions, aligned to the Group strategy, (iii) extending territorial coverage through global expansion, particularly into emerging pharmaceutical countries, and (iv) ongoing investment in production capabilities as a means of achieving a strategic advantage. Despite the challenges of intense competition, restrictive legislation, pressure on medicine prices, currency volatility and market specific risks, Aspen has delivered double-digit earnings growth to its shareholders for 16 consecutive years.

  • Executive compensation and firm performance: a non-linear relationship

    Rijamampianina RasoavaORCID doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.17(2).2019.01
    Problems and Perspectives in Management Volume 17, 2019         Issue #2         pp. 1-17 Views: 2569 Downloads: 249 TO CITE АНОТАЦІЯ

    In order to ensure profitability for shareholders, optimal contracting recommends the alignment between executive compensation and company performance. Large organizations have therefore adopted executives remuneration systems in order to induce positive market reaction and motivate executives. Complex compensation schemes are designed by Boards of Directors using strong pay-performance incentives that explain high levels of executive pay along with company size, demand for management skills and executive influence. However, the literature remains inconclusive on the pay-performance relationship owing to the various empirical methods used by researchers. Additionally, there has been little effort in the literature to compare methodologies on the pay-performance relationship.
    Using the dominant agency theory framework, the purpose of this study is to establish and examine the relationship between firm performance and executive pay. In addition, it intends to assess the characteristic of model specifications commonly adopted. To this aim, a quantitative analysis consisting of three complementary methods was performed on panel data from South African listed companies. The results of the main unrestricted first difference model indicate a strong non-linear relationship where the impact of current and previous firm performance on executive pay can be observed over 2 to 4-year period providing support to the optimal contracting theoretical perspective in the South African business context. In addition, CEO pay is more sensitive to firm performance as compared to Director pay. Lastly, although it affects executive pay levels, company size is not found to improve the pay-performance relationship.

  • Antecedents of attitudes towards and usage behavior of mobile banking amongst Generation Y students

    Marko van DeventerORCID , Natasha de Klerk , Ayesha Bevan-DyeORCID doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/bbs.12(2).2017.08
    Banks and Bank Systems Volume 12, 2017         Issue #2         pp. 78-90 Views: 2052 Downloads: 954 TO CITE АНОТАЦІЯ

    Despite the benefits that mobile banking has to offer, coupled with positive mobile penetration rates, the use of mobile devices to perform banking transactions and access financial information is not as widespread as expected. The significantly sized Generation Y cohort is a rewarding market segment for retail banks. In South Africa, however, this cohort’s mobile banking adoption is largely under-researched. Understanding the antecedents that positively influence Generation Y students’ attitudes towards and usage behavior of mobile banking will assist retail banks in their efforts to tailor their business and marketing strategies effectively towards this cohort, and in doing so, foster increased acceptance of their mobile channels. As such, the purpose of this study was to extend the technology acceptance model (TAM) and determine the influence of perceived ease of use, relative advantage, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, perceived integrity and the perceived system quality of mobile banking on South African Generation Y students’ attitudes towards and usage behavior of mobile banking. Following a descriptive research design, self-administered questionnaires were completed by a non-probability convenience sample of 334 students registered at the campuses of three registered public South African universities located in the Gauteng province. Data analysis included correlation analysis and structural equation modeling. The findings suggest that while perceived ease of use, perceived integrity and the perceived system quality predict Generation Y students’ mobile banking usage behavior, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and the perceived relative advantage of mobile banking predict attitudes towards mobile banking, which, in turn, predict their mobile banking usage behavior.

Download Preview
Close
Problems and Perspectives in Management
Problems and Perspectives in Management