The main aim of road freight transport is transporting of goods by road. It is the most developed area of transport. The advantage of road transport is the direct transport from the sender to the recipient, faster, easier transportation resulting from technology, availability and operability. The disadvantages of this type of transport are traffic intensity dependence on the state network of road infrastructure and negative impact on the environment. The significance of calculation in transport is so important. It helps carriers to inform on the efficiency and profitability of the services provided, also in allocation of pricing services for budgetary purposes, but also for reducing of cost. This study interrogated the inherent relationship between transport costing and organizational competitiveness in the Zimbabwe Road Freight Sector. The study was prompted by an observation that most road freight companies collapsed before even they reach the five-year mark of trading. Literature is awash with transport costing models and there seemed to be a disparity in the conceptualization and application of these to real business scenarios. That led to the use of somewhat firefighting costing strategies with no meaning results. This was a quantitative study of road freight transport sector across Zimbabwe with a population of 1256 registered companies and a randomly picked sample size of 384. A total of 384 questionnaires were distributed and 291 were retrieved giving a response rate of 75.6%. study found out that the idea of transport costing was alien in the minds of many operators and managers as they used borrowed rates from competitors to price their own services without looking at the cost build up to the rate. This led to unprofitable operations. The study findings established that transport costing has a positive effect on organizational competitiveness. The study recommends training and development into transport costing and inclusion of this concept as a stand-alone module in Zimbabwean Education curriculum.

The purpose of the study was to assess how external costs impacted on the overall performance of road freight transport sector in Zimbabwe. Both internal and external dynamics play a huge role on the decisions made by operators and mangers in freight transport business. Freight transport is key to socio- economic development of a country and hence there is need to scrutinize how external costs impact on the performance of such entities. This was a quantitative study of road freight transport sector across Zimbabwe with a population of 1256 registered companies and a randomly picked sample size of 384. A total of 384 questionnaires were distributed and 291 were retrieved giving a response rate of 75.6%. study found out that external costs such as accidents, traffic congestion and environmental pollution, if go unchecked have a huge impact on profitability margins due to fines for non-compliance, compensation and insurance costs. The study recommends development of a company policy document that would outline the scope and actions to be taken to ameliorate the negative impact of external costs on business performance.

From a business viewpoint, freight transportation is a necessity in the globalized world we live in. Companies are becoming more dependent on goods from various different locations worldwide and the demand for coordinated transportation is increasing. The aim of the study was to ascertain if Road Freight Transport Sector in Zimbabwe respected the value of time aspect in their operations. Value of time is a sound principle that strategically propels the business into the future. Literature highly recommends the value of time concept for business success as a key to customer satisfaction and an international best practice. This was a quantitative study of the road freight transport sector across Zimbabwe with a population of 1256 registered companies and a randomly picked sample size of 384. A total of 384 questionnaires were distributed and 291 were retrieved, giving a response rate of 75.6%. The study findings indicate that value positively influence firm competitiveness. This implies that travel time and reliability influences company’s reputation, profitability, customer satisfaction and market share. Several empirical studies have reached similar findings (Chi, King-lok, Steven, 2012; Song et al, Gitae, 2017) that value of time has positive impact on firm competitiveness. Study also found that all the registered companies that took part in the research confirmed that the value of time phenomenon was alien to their business practices as they worked on assumptions. They also indicated a loss of business due to customer complaints. The study recommends policy formulation for companies that emphasizes standard operating procedures and good time management for firms to be competitive. The study results and interpretation show that value of time positively influences firm competitiveness. Results imply that if firms in the road freight sector conduct regulars servicing of their fleet, train their employees, plan routes properly, respond to their customers and manage risks there can remain competitive.

The culture of an organization is influenced as the organization faces and learns how to cope with external and internal encounters. Those principles are maintained as the organization's way of doing business offers an effective adaptation to environmental problems and maintains success. The study sought to ascertain the importance of organizational culture in road freight transport sector in Zimbabwe. The road freight sector has been characterized by unprofessional behaviour and incompetent management. Organizational culture is key to defining the uniqueness of an organization, brand, philosophy, and how it relates to business ethics and all other stakeholders. Globally organizational culture has been given great eminence and priority as strategy followed culture in business performance. This was a quantitative study of road freight transport sector across Zimbabwe with a population of 1256 registered companies and a randomly picked sample size of 384 registered road freight companies out of 1256 companies from which data were collected. A total of 384 questionnaires were distributed and 291 were retrieved giving a response rate of 75.6%. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data. Reliability was checked using Cronbach’s alpha (?). Before conducting structural equation modelling, data were validated using exploratory factor analysis, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. SPSS® version 21 and AMOS® version 21 were used to analyse the data. The findings showed that organizational culture can help to mediate the relationship between transportation costs and firm competitiveness. The findings suggest that organizational culture has a significant impact on the relationship between transportation costs and firm competitiveness. The study also found out that all the registered companies that took part in the research confirmed that the value of time phenomenon was alien to their business organisational culture practices as they worked on assumptions. They also indicated loss of business due to customer complaints. The study recommends policy formulation for companies that emphasizes standard operating procedures and good time management as organisational culture for firms to be competitive.

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