Abstract

OOSTHUIZEN, TFJ  and  KARA, M. People in the workplace: a tool to create a competitive advantage? Fact or fallacy. JCMAN [online]. 2008, vol.5, n.1, pp.39-57. ISSN 1815-7440.

Competitive advantage is a dynamic concept. Competitive advantage focuses on a variety of competitive alternatives. These alternatives include for example people, quality, speed, innovation, service, leadership, time utility and place utility. Developing a competitive strategy is vital to the survival and prosperity of any organisation. The objective of this study is to establish to which extent employees perceive people as a competitive advantage factor and use employees to gain and sustain competitive advantage for success. The population focus on employees at a leading bank. The empirical study considers bank learnership candidates (employees) as sample and people as a competitive advantage factor. The study yielded a minimum response rate of 98.7%. Analysing and establishing which people factors contributes to establishing a competitive advantage will ensure future organisational success and provide leaders with direction. Skill development; empowering members of the work force; and treating employees well has been identified as the three most prominent factors to consider when establishing people as a competitive advantage factor with reference to the research group. Learning and skill development programmes are therefore recommended to enhance the people factor for sustainability. Leadership development and employee support empowerment are of essence.

Keywords : Competitive advantage; management; learnerships; banking; people; employees; human resources.

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