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Article History

Accepted: 13 October 2024

First Online: 4 November 2024

Declarations

:

: The authors declare no competing interests.

: None.

: The researcher has obtained ethics clearance from the University of the Witwatersrand from the human resources ethics committee (HREC) non-medical.

: Participants participated voluntarily and were not pressured to take part in this study. Njie and Asimiran () argue that people should never be forced to participate in a study and that participation should always remain voluntary. The participants had the opportunity to decide to participate without any consequences.

: Informed consent conveys to the participant what the researcher expects from the participant and for the participant to partake (willingly) in the research (Zikmund et al. ). Before engaging in interviews with the participants, comprehensive information regarding the study’s purpose, procedures, potential risks, and benefits was shared with them. Each participant was fully informed so that they understood what their participation entails, and informed consent was verbally given before continuing the interview.

: The identities of the informants and the firms which they represent were confidential and anonymous throughout the research process. Information that could potentially identify the participants was removed or disguised in the research outputs. Interview transcripts and data logs were stored systematically and securely to protect the confidentiality of the participants.Participants were notified that anonymity and confidentiality resulting in reports and publications would be maintained as the participants granted such consent.

: Author 1; Author 2 (2024), “A Systems thinking approach to improving firm’s competitive capabilities and firm performance”, Mendeley Data, V1, doi: .The data link will be published once the article is published.