Volumes

THE IMPLEMENTATION OF INTERNAL CONTROL SYSTEM AMONG MALAYSIAN CREDIT CO-OPERATIVES

Abstract

This study aims to examine the perception on internal control system (ICS) practices among Malaysian credit co-operatives. Specifically, this study provides input to those who are involved in developing ICS in co-operative namely, the Board Members (BOARD), Internal Audit Committee (IAC) and management staff. Using Malaysian Co-operative Societies Commission (MCSC) definition on classification of co-operatives, four groups of respondent cooperatives based on size of cooperatives were developed i.e. micro, small, medium and large. After eliminating with incomplete data, 536 co-operatives were selected to be included in this study, where, two questionnaires were mailed to co-operatives’ BOD and IAC. After three follow up procedure, 22% of the respondents returned the questionnaire. To compliment the questionnaire analysis, a case study on four co-operatives using unstructured interview questions was conducted. The data was analysed based on three themes namely ICS awareness, readiness and practices. It was found that the majority of respondents are highly aware on the importance of ICS and they believed that ICS should associate with monitoring activities. Consistently, the large majority of the respondents pointed out that, their co-operatives are ready to perform ICS in the perspective of human resource, knowledge, and training. On the other hand, the majority of Malaysian credit co-operatives are not ready to provide sufficient financial resources to appoint competent and skilled staff. Finally, the majority of the respondents (> 80 percent) have performed 60 percent of the ICS components presented to them. Also, 56 percent of the respondents submitted periodic report to the MCSC as required by the law. These findings indicate that Malaysia credit co-operatives are aware and ready to perform ICS towards good governance in the interest of their members.

DEVELOPMENT AND PROSPECT OF ORANG ASLI COOPERATIVES: A CASE STUDY OF PERAK AND PAHANG

Abstract

This research was undertaken to identify the status and progress of the indigenous people or so called the Orang Asli co-operatives, their participation in economic and entrepreneurial activities, governance practices, and potential growth. The individual household economic and entrepreneurial activities amongst the Orang Asli community were also examined to provide further insights to the research. A total of 33 Orang Asli co-operatives in Perak and Pahang and 655 heads of households (HOHs), of whom 241 of them were co-operative members were selected as the sample for the study. Data were collected through surveys using structured questionnaires and interviews with various stakeholders, conducted by the researcher and a group of trained enumerators from amongst the Orang Asli community. The study observed that the development of the Orang Asli co-operatives was largely lagging behind particularly in terms of fnancial performance, business capacity, leadership, management expertise and economic participation by members. Most of the co-operatives have not been able to accumulate adequate capital and establish any form of sustainable economic activities to generate fund for the co-operatives. Management of the co-operatives and its business are entirely run by the Board who lacks business expertise and experience. The Orang Asli co-operatives also faced poor participation by members, consumers, employees and suppliers, poor accessibility to funds and insuffcient support from related agencies. The study found that only a small percentage of individuals are involved in producing and marketing products and services at the community and local level. Besides poor infrastructure which limits mobility, inaccessibility to funds and unavailability of business premise to spur economic activities, Orang Asli entrepreneurs also encounter bureaucratic problems in obtaining permits, licenses, and approval of working paper. To improve the performance of the Orang Asli co-operatives, the study proposed a “business development model” that puts emphasis on the collaboration and strategic alliance between the co-operatives, the private sector, government agencies, government link companies (GLC) and non-government institutions. Adequate incentives and policies must also be in place in order for the co-operatives to achieve its role as an effective platform to enhance economic and entrepreneurial activities and develop their communities economically and socially.

Key words: Indigenous co-operatives, Orang Asli, business and management

KUALITI PERKHIDMATAN MAKTAB KOPERASI MALAYSIA CAWANGAN SARAWAK

Abstract

Kajian ini secara umumnya bertujuan untuk mengenal pasti sejauhmana tahap kualiti perkhidmatan Maktab Koperasi Malaysia Cawangan Sarawak berdasarkan elemen-elemen dimensi kualiti perkhidmatan. Objektif khusus bagi kajian ini adalah untuk mengenalpasti tahap persepsi peserta kursus terhadap elemen dimensi kualiti perkhidmatan Maktab Koperasi Malaysia Cawangan Sarawak berbanding dengan perkhidmatan yang diperolehi mereka. Dimensi-dimensi kualiti perkhidmatan telah dibentuk berdasarkan model Parasuraman, Zeithaml dan Berry (1988) untuk mengukur dimensi Jelas/Nyata dan Fizikal (tangibles), dimensi kebolehpercayaan (reliability), dimensi tindakbalas (responsiveness), dimensi jaminan (assurance), dan dimensi prihatin (emphaty). Kaedah pengumpulan data adalah berdasarkan jawapan soal selidik daripada responden yang hadir berkursus di MKMCS. Analisa deskriptif statistik menggunakan ukuran peratusan dan min. Secara keseluruhannya, dimensi yang mempunyai min yang paling tinggi ialah dimensi prihatin dengan min 6.925 manakala dimensi yang mempunyai min yang paling rendah ialah dimensi Jelas/Nyata dan Fizikal (tangible) dengan min 6.032. Bagi ujian-t bagi melihat perbezaan persepsi peserta kursus terhadap kualiti perkhidmatan berbanding perkhidmatan yang diperolehi yang dilihat mengikut jantina, umur, jawatan di koperasi dan latarbelakang akademik peserta kursus, didapati tiada perbezaan diperolehi. Kesimpulan yang boleh dibuat dalam kajian ini ialah tahap kualiti perkhidmatan di MKMCS boleh dikatakan mencapai tahap yang sederhana tinggi berbanding tahap jangkaan awal responden.

Kata kunci: Dimensi kualiti, Kualiti Perkhidmatan, Maktab Koperasi Malaysia, SERVQUAL

TRAINING NEEDS ANALYSIS FOR MALAYSIA CREDIT CO-OPERATIVES

Abstract

Education is important for developing human capital and intellectual strength, enhancing business knowledge and inculcating positive values. The main objective of this study is to identify training programmes that are appropriate for members of credit co-operatives. The fndings from this study are important for Co-operative College of Malaysia (CCM) as a guideline in formulating training programmes suitable for all co-operatives in Malaysia.The respondents in this study comprise staff of 136 credit co-operatives from the medium and large clusters, selected randomly. Questionnaire forms were sent to these co-operatives but only 72 of them (52.9%) returned a total of 196 completed forms. The data were analysed using frequency tables, the chi-square test of association study and gap analysis of the respective mean scores. The results of the study show that the supervisors are satisfed with the skills of their staff in performing fve tasks. However, the former are of the view that the skills exhibited by the staff in 12 other more challenging tasks are only at the moderate level. Based on the staff’s self-evaluation, they are found to be highly committed to their organisations and able to work in a team, but have some problems in fulflling promises and lack the spirit of give and take. The study also examines the relationship between level of knowledge on the one hand, and the background of respondents on the other, vis-à-vis, length of service, age, gender, education level and cluster of the co-operatives. It was found that only two factors are signifcantly related to the level of knowledge, namely, education level and the co-operative cluster. The fndings are suitable for use by those involved in the development of co-operatives such as the Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism (MDTCC), the Malaysia Cooperative Societies Commission of Malaysian (MCSC), CCM and the co-operative movement itself. In particular, the fndings of this study should be used as a guideline in identifying and formulating suitable training programmes for the staff of credit co-operatives to enhance their management performance.

Key Words : Credit Co-operatives, Training Needs Analysis , Training Programme

MEASURING CONTROL MECHANISMS FOR GOOD GOVERNANCE IN SELECTED MULTI-PURPOSE COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES AFFILIATED TO ROBI BARGA COOPERATIVE UNION, WEST SHOA ZONE, OROMIA REGIONAL STATE OF ETHIOPIA

Abstract

Cooperative societies employ a variety of governance control mechanism choices (GCMCs) those are the outcomes of control mechanisms which leads to good governance to protect themselves against various hazards of changes and reduce conflicts amongst the stakeholders pursuing the maximization of their welfare. In this study an attempt was made to measure control mechanisms for good governance in selected multipurpose cooperative societies affliated to Robi Barga Farmers’ Cooperative Union. This paper therefore, aims at exploring governance practices, assessing the relationship between internal and external control mechanisms and analyzing variables influencing GCMCs. To address these objectives, 150 respondents from 15 cooperative societies of two Districts were selected and collected primary data by administering semi structured interview schedule. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS (version 20) and simple statistics such as; frequency and percentages to describe the result, correlation were used to determine the degree to which the variables were interrelated. In addition, Multinomial logistic regression model was employed to determine factors that influence GCMCs. The fndings show that poor application of good governance mechanisms, insuffcient stakeholders’ participation in governing cooperatives, ineffcient committee members and lack of autonomy and independence were found to be the reasons for committee turnover which led to absence of good governance and resulted to increase in the rate of state intervention. The correlation analysis result shows that internal and external control mechanism have signifcant relationship and it implies the extent to which the external control system influences the activities of cooperatives positively. Finally, the multinomial logistic regression model results show that, GCMCs were influenced by business factors, constitutional factors and management factors. All gaps found would be addressed through collaboration of members, cooperative stakeholders, government and cooperative societies to bring ethical and good governance for sustainable development of cooperatives.

Key words: Cooperative Governance, Cooperative Society, Governance Control Mechanism Choices, Good Governance.

VALUE CO-CREATION DIMENSIONS: THEIR EFFECT ON SATISFACTION OF COOPERATIVE MEMBERS

Abstract

Value co-creation is a crucial component in the service industry and pivotal to the growth and survival of organizations. The rationale is based on the belief that value is created by both the organizations and the customers. Notwithstanding its magnitude, little is done to delve into the subject matter in cooperatives in the context of developing markets. The present study attempts to investigate the relationship between value co-creation dimensions and satisfaction of cooperative members in Sarawak. A quantitative approach using self-administered survey was adopted. A total of 300 copies of the questionnaire were distributed to cooperative members in Sarawak and 274 usable copies were subsequently collected. Multiple regressions analysis was conducted to assess the effect of value co-creation dimensions on members’ satisfaction. The fndings indicate that relating, ethical, developmental and concerted joint actions have positive effect on members’ satisfaction, where developmental joint actions is found to be the strongest influence dimension. The study thus highlights the practical importance of learning culture among service providers and cooperative members, and lays the foundation for future studies.

Keywords: Value Co-creation Dimensions, Members’ Satisfaction, Cooperative