Diploma in Business Administration

Purpose

The Diploma: Business Administration is a vocational and industry oriented qualification. The knowledge emphasises general principles, application and technology in the Commerce Field. The Diploma: Business Administration provides learners with a knowledge base in the Business field and the ability to apply their knowledge and skills in Business Management. It also equips them to undertake other more specialised and intensive learning.

This Diploma: Business Administration includes work integrated learning.

The programme is intended to provide learners with access to the labour market. It will provide learners with the necessary skills to contribute to economic growth.

This programme is based on three fundamental disciplines

• Internal Business Environment.
• External Business Environment.
• Practical and experiential Skills.

Rationale

The Diploma: Business Administration has been formulated such that it reflects the workplace needs of the Business environment as expressed by its stakeholders. The stakeholders' input has been used to ensure that the qualification provides the learner with the prerequisites to be employed in Business. This demand has been coupled with the statistics of the National Scarce Skills list for South Africa (2008), published by the Department of Labour to identify scarce and critical skills required by the country. The institution's endeavours are further correlated in its strategy with that of present government initiatives.

The learner should be able to communicate in English (NQF Level 4).

Recognition of Prior Learning

For Recognition of Prior Learning the learner will be required to submit a portfolio of evidence of relevant experience, in a prescribed format, to be assessed for formal recognition. The assessor and learner will decide jointly on the most appropriate assessment procedures, subject to the assessment rules of the Institution.

Access to the Qualification

The minimum entry requirement is the National Senior Certificate or an equivalent qualification (NQF Level 4).

The qualification comprises both compulsory and elective modules. Learners must choose an area of specialisation, one out of three, which is carried through from NQF Levels 5 to 7:

The three specialisations are

• Economics.
• Public Management.
• Human Resource Management.

NQF Level 5 modules (10 Credits each)

• Business Communication 101.
• Business Communication 102.
• Accounting 101.
• Accounting 102.
• Business Management 101.
• Business Management 102.
• Business Information Management 101.
• Business Information Management 102.
• Training and Development 101.
• Training and Development 102.

NQF Level 6 modules (10 Credits each)

• Business Management 201.
• Business Management 202.
• Business Statistics 201.
• Business Statistics 202.
• Business Law 201.
• Business Law 202.
• Marketing Management 201.
• Marketing Management 202.
• Total Quality Management 201.
• Total Quality Management 202.
• Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management (SBM) 301.
• Entrepreneurship and SBM 302.
• Industrial Psychology 301.
• Industrial Psychology 302.
• Project Management 301.
• Project Management 302.
• Work Integrated Learning 300.

NQF Level 7 modules (15 Credits each)

• Business Management 301.
• Business Management 302.

Electives

Choose either Economics or Public Management or Human Resource Management as a specialisation.

NQF Level 5 (10 Credits each)

• Economics 101.
• Economics 102.
• Public Management 101.
• Public Management 102.
• Human Resource Management 101.
• Human Resource Management 102.

NQF Level 6 (10 Credits each)

• Economics 201.
• Economics 202.
• Public Management 201.
• Public Management 202.
• Human Resource Management 201.
• Human Resource Management 202.

NQF Level 7 (15 Credits each)

• Economics 301.
• Economics 302.
• Public Management 301.
• Public Management 302.
• Human Resource Management 301.
• Human Resource Management 302.

1. Demonstrate an informed understanding of concepts, terms, rules, principles of business, business management, the management processes and the business environment and give a broad overview of the different management functions.
2. Demonstrate an understanding of and interpret the legal environment for sound business practices.
3. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of concepts and principles of Business Information Management in relation to Business Management.

Exit Level Outcomes for the Specialisations

Economics

1. Demonstrate an understanding of allocation of scarce resources, policy decisions and their implications for society (i.e. macroeconomic and microeconomic environment).

Public Management

1. Demonstrate integrated knowledge and understanding of public management theory and practice.

Human Resource Management

1. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the concepts and principles of human resource policies and practices and the importance of training and development programmes.

Critical Cross-Field Outcomes

All the Critical Cross-Field Outcomes are addressed in the qualification.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Explain how business performance is related to strategic management.
• Develop a basic business plan for small to medium enterprises.
• Explain the marketing instruments of product, price, distribution and marketing communication.
• Apply financial management concepts and principles relating to financial analysis, investment decisions and financing decisions in order to achieve continued financial health in a business.
• Evaluate the current competency level of the HR function in an organisation and prepare a strategic plan to increase the overall level of competency of the HR function from a holistic perspective.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2

• Demonstrate an understanding of contracts in general.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the Council for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), unfair dismissal and employment contracts (procedural) fairness.
• Explain the characteristics of the various forms of businesses, i.e. Partnership, Close Cooperation and Company.
• Identify the factors which the High Court requires before granting an application for voluntary surrender.
• Discuss the processes by which persons are rendered insolvent, sequestrated and rehabilitated.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the Competition Act (Act 89 of 1998).

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3

• Explain Business Information Management Systems.
• Describe how to select and organise computer hardware components to support information systems objectives and business needs.
• Define general data management concepts and terms, highlighting the advantages of the database approach to data management.
• Discuss the importance of implementation and monitoring in problem solving.
• Identify factors that influence the success or failure of a systems development project.

Associated Assessment Criteria for the Specialisations

Economics

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Demonstrate a sound knowledge and critical understanding of definitions, concepts and principles of micro-economics and macro-economics.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of demand, supply and prices and analyse the effect of demand, supply and income elasticity.
• Identify and define market forms with respect to output, cost and price determination.
• Explain the difference between the goods market and the labour market.
• Explain and discuss the functioning of the labour market and the role of trade unions.
• Discuss the use of money in the economy and analyse its implications for policy and growth.
• Define and analyse macroeconomic phenomena such as unemployment, inflation, economic growth and development.

Public Management

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Discuss the approaches to policy making.
• Give an overview of theories and models for the public policy process.
• Demonstrate knowledge and application ability of policy analysis and evaluation.
• Demonstrate detailed knowledge of public financial management and the financial functions of government.
• Demonstrate detailed knowledge of responsibilities of financial managers.
• Discuss Public Administration concepts that facilitate public service delivery such as strategy, policy, monitoring and evaluation.

Human Resource Management

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Discuss how the effective, strategic management of human resources leads to the strategic goal achievement of the organisation.
• Identify the processes involved in the effective attraction, selection and retention of employees who will contribute to the strategic goal achievement of the organisation.
• Discuss the role of positive and equitable labour relations in ensuring long-term organisational success.
• Discuss an induction programme for a new employee, paying attention to what should be implemented, by whom and on what timescale.

Integrated Assessment

Integrated Assessment at this level provides an opportunity for learners to be able to integrate concepts, ideas and actions across modules in order to achieve competence that is grounded and coherent in relation to the purpose of this qualification.

Integrated Assessment will judge the quality of the observable performance and also the quality of the thinking that lies behind it. Assessment tools encourage learners to give an account of the thinking and decision making that underpins the demonstrated performance. Some assessment practices will be of a more practical nature while others will be of a more theoretical nature.

During assessment the assessor will make use of formative and summative assessment methods and will assess combinations of practical, theoretical, applied, foundational and reflective competencies. Input to completing the assessment typically makes use of combinations of the following assessment methods:

• Time-constrained written examinations.
• Coursework Evaluations.
• Continuous Evaluation.
• Practical Evaluation.

Work Integrated Learning assessments also provide opportunities for assessments of the various disciplines that compose the curriculum of this qualification.