Masters Degrees (School of Accountancy)

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Browsing Masters Degrees (School of Accountancy) by browse.metadata.advisor "Butler, Rika"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Defining and reducing the IT gap by means of comprehensive alignment
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009-12) Smit, Sybil; Butler, Rika; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Accountancy
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    The development of a framework to achieve alignment between information technology (IT) and business objectives while adhering to it governance principles
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03) Patterson, Marí; Butler, Rika; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. School of Accountancy.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY : Information technology (IT) is developing at an accelerated rate, making it virtually impossible to separate business and IT strategy. The rate, scope and impact of recent technological advances has led to the fourth industrial revolution which is characterised by the exponential rate of technological developments, its global impact on most industries, and its significant influence on how companies are doing business today. In order to gain and maintain a competitive advantage, companies are forced to stay abreast with new information technology and its impact on not only their own companies, but also their competitors and the industry in which they operate. Due to pervasive implementation, IT can no longer be viewed in isolation. The IT strategy of a company has to be integrated with its overall business strategy in order for IT to add value to a company. It is important that both senior management and IT specialists be engaged in the design, implementation and revision of IT solutions in order for IT to assist in meeting strategic objectives while maintaining a competitive advantage. Miscommunication between business and IT managers is a major contributing factor to IT projects failing to deliver the desired value. This concept is known as the IT gap. Many companies currently follow an unstructured approach towards the implementation of IT solutions due to the IT gap. The purpose of this study is to develop a tool that can be used by companies to bridge the IT gap by aligning business and IT objectives. The author proposes the development of a framework which can be used by companies to achieve alignment between their IT and business objectives while adhering to IT governance principles. A hypothesis exists that alignment between IT and business objectives can be achieved by defining the key driving forces of a company, known as business imperatives, and designing the IT architecture with the objective of supporting these business imperatives. By validating a list of business imperatives commonly found in companies, the findings of this research validates the aforementioned hypothesis and concludes that business imperatives act as the drivers of a company and should be used as the basis to bridge the IT gap. This has resulted in a framework which provides practical guidance to senior managers of a company to both identify the business imperatives relevant to the company, and assist IT specialists when designing and implementing IT architecture to support these business imperatives. The framework consists of three elements, representing the process necessary for the achievement of strategic alignment between business and IT. Firstly, a list of validated business imperatives are provided, which can be used by senior managers to identify the key driving forces relevant to the company. Secondly, the framework contains the business requirements needed to give effect to these business imperatives and lastly, the potential impact of these business requirements on the IT architecture of a company is discussed. This framework can be used to improve communication between senior managers of the business and IT specialists. This improved communication will ensure alignment between strategic objectives and IT strategy, resulting in the elimination of the IT gap.
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    Mapping the Information Technology (IT) governance requirements contained in the King III Report to the IT domains and processes of the Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT) framework
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009-12) Steenkamp, Gretha; Boshoff, W. H.; Butler, Rika; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Accountancy.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Due to the integration of IT into all aspects of modern-day businesses, it is vital that the risks associated with IT are governed as an integral element of enterprise-wide corporate governance. The Third King Report on Corporate Governance (King III) was issued by the South African Chapter of the Institute of Directors in September 2009 and becomes operational on 1 March 2010. This marks the first time that the King Report has specifically addressed IT governance. King III will apply to all corporate entities. Such entities could benefit from applying an IT governance framework to ensure that they adequately address all aspects of IT governance, as required by King III. One of the comprehensive frameworks available is COBIT (Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology) issued by ISACA (previously known as the Information Systems Audit and Control Association). King III mentions the fact that COBIT could be used to assess and implement IT governance within an entity. The aim of this research is to determine whether the use of COBIT ensures compliance with King III’s requirements relating to IT governance. It was found that the main requirements in King III relating to IT governance and the processes of COBIT are well aligned, and, as a result, COBIT could be used effectively to ensure compliance with King III in relation to IT governance. However, an entity would still have to pay attention to certain King III-specific requirements. Furthermore, it was found that the application of the principles in COBIT could further strengthen the IT governance of an entity, as COBIT also addresses the more detailed activities, such as the implementation and operation of the IT system, which is not specifically addressed by King III.
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    Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) : considerations and implications for SaaS customers
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2008-12) Dippenaar, Jacobus Frederik; Butler, Rika; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Accountancy
    Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is a software delivery model whereby software applications, such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Human Resource administration and payroll and Procurement, are hosted centrally by various service providers at their premises. These hosted applications can be delivered to multiple service customers via an existing Internet connection, with a browser based front-end, or via a thin client system. As all hardware and support services are provided by the service provider, operational costs for customers are reduced in comparison to a traditional, in-house supported software application. Traditional cost estimates for the deployment of on-premise software applications exclude personnel costs that are needed for ongoing support and maintenance. Depending on certain variables, such as the application involved, these costs can vary between 50% and 85% of the total cost of ownership of the application. Additionally, the cost of maintenance, periodic upgrades and continued support, on an annual basis, can be up to four times the initial cost of purchasing the application. From the perspective of the service customer the most difficult part of determining whether to move to SaaS is the total cost of ownership (TCO) calculation. This is due to the fact that the TCO does not merely include the cost of new licences, but also the careful consideration of certain variables, before a potential service customer can make a decision regarding a potential move to SaaS. These variables include considerations such as: - Physical and logical communication interfaces; - User requirements; - Security and privacy of information and data; - Customisability; - Availability of services and data; - Service levels; - Data ownership; and - Integration with existing systems. Presently no comprehensive framework exists that sets out the various aspects to be considered by a user company when determining whether to adopt SaaS, or not. The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive framework of considerations relating to the adoption of SaaS by user companies in the form of a Total Cost of Ownership calculation. The framework was compiled after considering the variables that would influence the decision to move to SaaS, the impact of these variables on the potential SaaS customer and the costs associated with each of the above aspects. The framework compiled can assist potential SaaS customers in the decision to adopt SaaS. In addition, this table of considerations can also be used by the potential SaaS vendor in determining the viability of their SaaS offering, when compared to an equivalent, on-premise based software solution.