Abstract
M.Comm.
Lead is one of the oldest metals known to man, and has been used since the earliest
civilizations. Lead is a homogenous commodity, manufactured to standard
international specifications with little opportunity for product differentiation. The leadacid
battery is the largest application for lead in South Africa, and with increased
pressure on environmental regulatory legislation and higher performance are there
increased pressures and challenges confronting the secondary lead producers, who
will have to supply a growing market which demands higher purity lead. The South
African lead demand is dominated by the use of lead in lead-acid batteries, and the
secondary lead supply is dependent on the recycling of scrap lead.
South Africa does not have a national lead strategy to compare an organisation’s
alignment to the strategy; however, in order for an organisation to be aligned in the
lead industry, alignment in the industry will require alignment on one or more
dimensions, such as the competitive environment, management, organisational
structure, supply chain, and manufacturing.
Management needs to decide how they will tackle the strategic issues facing their
company, within the South African lead industry, which could not only require large
amounts of the firm’s resources, but also affect a company’s long-term prosperity.
The main concern of this study is therefore to determine strategic aligned in the
South African lead industry, as this will influence an organisation’s ability to sustain
their competitive advantage and to create long-term prosperity for all stakeholders.