Browsing by Author "Darko, Eric"

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    The existence of the Chirano Gold Mine Limited and its effect on the livelihood of the Chirano Concession Area
    (2012-06-29) Darko, Eric
    Ghana is endowed with rich mineral resources e. g. gold, diamond, manganese and bauxite. Mining of minerals has triggered agitation by communities, who expect improved livelihoods from the mining companies. This study aimed at assessing the effect of the existence of the Chirano Gold mine Limited (CGML) on communities in its concessional area (Etwebo, Akoti and Paboase). Quantitative and qualitative primary data on general household characteristics e. g. employment, food security, health care, and sustainable utilization of natural resources were collected via questionnaire, interviews and personal observations. One hundred and fifty (150) respondents were drawn from traditional rulers, district assembly, land owners, farmers, youth groups, opinion leaders and women. The Statistical Package for Social Scientists was used to analyze the data for percentages, ranges and central tendencies. Results indicated that majority (98.2%) of respondents have obtained both direct and indirect employments (through stimulus for infrastructural development) from CGML. Thirty two (32%) of the respondents expressed worry about lose and degradation of farms, farm lands and farm roads while 93% cited the problem of air pollution. Sixty-four (64%) respondents have not been educated beyond the Junior High School. This placed restrictions on the extent of employment for members of the communities who on the contrary have not fully appreciated this limitation. There appears also to be a wide communication gap between CGML and the communities. This has masked the company’s image weakening its mutual co-existence with the communities. Adoption of more open communication and operational policies and stakeholder inclusion in local interventionary measures could help improve the relationship between company and the communities for co-existence.
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    The Influence of Sales Promotion on Consumer Buying Behaviour in the Telecom Industry; the Case of Vodafone Ghana.
    (2012) Darko, Eric
    The deregulation of the Ghanaian telecom sector in 1994 has led to the increase in the number of telecom firms in the country which render identical services. The ever increasing competition in the industry has prompted telecom firms to be determined and ensure satisfaction of customer needs and wants more effectively than their competitors. In other for these telecom firms to succeed in this ever increasing competitive market, they employ a lot of different promotional tools to attract and retain their customers. One of the most commonly used promotional tools is sales promotion which provides incentives to customers or to the distributor channel to stimulate demand for a product. This study is aimed at assessing the role sales promotion play in influencing the consumer buying behaviour of telecom consumers. A non-probability sampling technique was used for the study and the sample was selected from a population of telecom service users resident in the Tema Metropolis. A five point Likert scale questionnaire was used in acquiring the respondent’s information. The questionnaires were analysed with the help of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel. The study indicated significant influence of sales promotion on consumer buying behaviour. The research consequently recommended that, telecom service providers need to undertake regularly sales promotion activities to ensure constant influence on their patrons.
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    International Strategic Management: the role of the senior managers in Ghanaian International Companies
    (2008-11-17) Darko, Eric
    As a result of current global developments in the market environment (i.e. g1obalization and advances in communication technology), strategic management has taken on a substantial international dimension. This has challenged companies to rethink their strategies, structure and most especially, the necessary competencies of managers for enhanced organizational performance. To this end, global managers need to be equipped with a wide range of flexible professional and multinational skills to be able to adapt and exploit new opportunities that globalization brings. However, many global companies, especially those in the developing world (like Ghana), have a shortage of such competent global managers leading to the Ghanaian economy not being fully integrated and engulfed in the current waves of globalization. This study is therefore focused on finding out the perceptions of senior managers in Ghanaian Global Companies on the term “Global Strategic Management” (i.e. thinking globally or not) and to make recommendations on the required managerial skills and training for the Ghanaian Global Manager. To achieve above stated objective, the study used mixed research methodology that is a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods. In view of this, both questionnaires and interview were used in this study. The data collected from both questionnaires and interviews have been collated, summarized and analyzed. The study revealed that Ghanaian Senior Managers are aware and know almost every aspect of how effectively to deal with the intense global competition. However, they are not happy about the type of training they are receiving as it does not adequately equipped them to compete effectively on the global market. Additionally, the study unearthed that within the Ghanaian global companies, there are relatively small proportions of managers who have jobs that are globally integrative in nature and that Ghanaian Global Companies do not send their managers for international assignments to gain international experience. The study concludes that effective development of Global Managers in Ghanaian Global Companies is most likely to be achieved if all management resourcing and development activity is an integral part of strategic management and is linked to achieving challenging corporate goals. Based on the research findings, the study recommends the following human resource practice that can enable Ghanaian Global Companies to acquire, develop, train and sustain competent global managers for their global operations: that recruitment of staff should be based only on merit and experience (especially global exposure); and Ghanaian Global Companies have to develop and manage people who can think, lead and act from a broader or global perspective. This research could be the basis of further research into global strategic management. It will also help Ghanaian Global Companies to know the link between company strategies and management development practice in order to understand the basic pre-requisite for selection and development of global managers. Moreover, it can serve as a reference material for future researchers on the same or similar issue. Finally, it may also be useful for practitioners who may use the concept and approaches to describe their ongoing and future business activities