Effects of bottlenecks on graduation ceremonies : case of University of KwaZulu-Natal.

Abstract

Graduation ceremony plays a vital role in the lives of the individuals and families, as it is a much-revered ritual in educational institutions everywhere. Effective planning for better utilisation of available resources as well as accurate scheduling set of activities remain essential as it improve the flow of operations processes. The amplitude in staging graduation ceremonies epitomises a bottleneck effect, which reveals a number of mischievous problems through the supply chain networks. As graduands leave the ceremonies after receiving their certificates without the event even finishing, this has caused inefficiencies and the bottlenecks in the processes and flow of operations, due to the improper planning and information sharing for graduands. This study investigates selected graduands from College of Law and Management, IT and Governance, with emphasis in Supply Chain Management, Marketing and Management only at Westville campus. The effect of collaborative relationships remains the central hypothesis for instant information sharing on graduation planning, scheduling and flow of operations processes across supply chain trading partners. The main objective aims to determine bottlenecks experienced at graduation ceremonies, possibilities of collaborative relationships, staging graduation ceremonies and strategies to which reduced process bottlenecks can have on the process efficiency of the graduation ceremonies. The seamless linkages between supply chain partners seem to entrench effective planning for better information flow in graduation scheduling to improve the flow of operations processes. The study uses mixed methods to collect data. The quantitative approach uses frequency distributions to analyse individual variables. The qualitative approach uses thematic analysis to analyse respondent from Corporate Relations Division. The study found empirical research evidence on the optimised information sharing through collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment model that graduation ceremonies can fastidiously adapt to engage graduands in staging their graduation ceremonies. The study discovered that (84%) of respondents are of conviction that UKZN graduation ceremonies are missing out on memorable experiences that could be lived on graduation due to bottleneck effects. The study also found that majority of the respondents (79%) agreed that collaborative relationships have a significant role to play in mitigating the graduation bottlenecks and on the entire supply chain networks. The managerial implications indicated that the supply chain efficiency and integration is the responsibility of each individual supply chain partner involved in a graduation ceremony.