ceo
celebrating excellence in organisations Vol 16 No 1 - 2016
Security Turning Challenges into Prospects
Walk the Talk Improving Your Reputation
Travel SA
Andrew Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of Toyota South Africa Motors
Hurdles
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Market
Overcoming
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How to Get Around
Capturing the Light Browsing through a portfolio of professional photographer Brenda Biddulph’s work, makes me want to grab a camera and take a photo. Attempting to create a visual moment like the many she has created is not easy.
Brenda established her own photographic business four years after graduating from the National School of Photography in Pretoria. She had gained experience in advertising, corporate photography, weddings, school photography and publications. Today her business, Monsoon Photography, has a faithful following of diverse clients who entrust Brenda and her team with repeat business. Putting a person at ease is an accomplished skill. Even the most senior executive can be a reluctant subject when a camera is pointed in their direction. Monsoon Photography has become a popular name to call among organisations needing photos for annual reports and events. The Monsoon Photography team has the ability to charm a smile out of the most world-weary executive. “We ignite with a jovial professional approach,” says Brenda. Brenda’s special love is vibrant fusion photography and experimenting with her “fascination for light”. The recipe for success behind Monsoon Photography is simple. “Our enjoyment of the profession
and passion for people attract clients to call on our services again and again,” she says. Monsoon Photography works on site and in studio, depending on the client’s requirements. Their studio, situated in the eastern suburbs of Pretoria, is perfect for family portraits and for shooting music videos. The experienced studio and on-line photographers that comprise Monsoon Photography share two things in common: a fascination for light and an eye for detail. With clients as diverse as Deloitte, Sasol and The Land Bank, Monsoon Photography adds a creative and professional touch to whatever the occasion.
Contact 083 452 4530 www.monsoonphotography.co.za
unger Awareness
“
Close to a billion people – one-eighth of the world’s population – still live in hunger. Each year 2 million children die through malnutrition. This is happening at a time when doctors in Britain are warning of the spread of obesity. We are eating too much while others starve.” Jonathan Sacks
”
Poor nutrition causes nearly half (45%) of deaths in children under five - 3.1 million children each year.
One out of six children - roughly 100 million in developing countries is underweight. One in four of the world’s children are stunted. In developing countries the proportion can rise to one in three. 66 million primary school-age children attend classes hungry across the developing world, with 23 million in Africa alone. Hunger kills more people each year than AIDS, MALARIA and TUBERCULOSIS combined
IF WOMEN FARMERS had the same access to resources as men, the number of hungry in the world could be reduced by up to 150 million.
Asia is the continent with the most hungry people - two thirds of the total. The percentage in southern Asia has fallen in recent years but in western Asia it has increased slightly. Sub-Saharan Africa is the region with the highest prevalence (percentage of population) of hunger. One person in four there is undernourished.
Approximately
795 million people in the world are chronically malnourished. That number is down 167 million over the past decade and 216 million less than in 1990-1992
Nearly 50 percent of people living in extreme poverty are 18 years old or younger.
The vast majority of hungry people, 780
out of 795 million people, live in developing countries
EDITOR’S
note The Governance Dilemma
B
usiness impropriety, the way a company (or government) structures its transactions and the pitfalls (or benefits) of dealing with influential people are issues that enjoy a great deal of media prominence at present.
At the heart of these matters lies corporate governance. It’s certainly no trivial matter if one considers how many organisations worldwide and locally have crumbled in recent years; as a result of poor or non-existent governance. Corporate South Africa and government has worked pretty hard during our first decade of democracy to clean up its act. However, our second decade of democracy has seen those gains slide. From some perspectives, this is difficult to believe. Since 1995, we have seen a raft of legislation governing labour relations, insider trading and public finances, to name but a few. So, in effect, any company operating within the bounds of these structures and systems should be above board. Perhaps more importantly, our democratic government came into power with huge moral authority, which gave it the social currency to ensure that these matters were effectively dealt with – making it part of our societal fabric. Unfortunately, we seem to have lost our way. Poor corporate governance grows seemingly unchallenged in some sectors of our economy. To complicate matters further, wealth creation and distribution designed at bridging the social divide is being tarnished in the eyes of the public, because not At the heart of these matters enough new candidates are emerging to benefit from this. lies corporate governance. The reality is, whether we like it or not, that quick returns on investment are not something that one comes by very easily – especially not in the social context that South Africa finds itself in. There is no better time than now to stop, consider this and then act appropriately.
It’s certainly no trivial matter if one considers how many organisations worldwide and locally have crumbled in recent years; as a result of poor or non-existent governance.
Valdi Pereira CEO 2016 Vol 16.1
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INSIGHTS
Oliver Fortuin
Oliver Fortuin, Managing Director, SubSaharan Africa, BT
The availability of smart devices, increased bandwidth, and the likes of cloud computing are all contributing towards ecosystems that are putting new pressures on IT departments and organisations who are still very traditionally-minded. Being connected, having access to data from anywhere irrespective of device, and relying on digital technologies for both business and personal use means that a new mindset is required by decision-makers. Helping drive this, is an increasingly tech-savvy employee base whose expectations revolve around all things digital. With digital natives entering the workforce, companies have no choice but to innovate or risk being seen as irrelevant. Of course, this does not simply mean a company can mimic what others are doing when it comes to digital transformation. As with any strategic approach, embracing digital requires an understanding of the key objectives of the company and how best it enables the delivery of those. What works for one company will not necessarily work for another. Part of the excitement of this, is the potential for the creation of new business models. Being digital means having access to tools, solutions, and people who think and approach problems in new and different ways. There is no such thing as a one-sizefits-all approach. It is only natural that the pace of this change can be intimidating. What works one day might not be the best approach the next. This is where the challenge lies – finding the right approach for your business.
Digital Transformation is Not Just about Technology The digital world is bringing with it incredible opportunities for innovation and doing business in new and exciting ways. Yet it is not only technology that is driving this, but also the people inside organisations.
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raditional views on technology have evolved over the past several years, thanks in part to its consumerisation. Increasingly, technology delivers on more than just products. Instead, it is focused towards offering solutions that span the corporate and consumer spheres. Phrases like the sharing economy, digitalisation, and collaboration, are driving us towards a new era of digital possibility.
The journey to the digital possible world is different to each organisation; even those in the same industries. How decisionmakers and employees, who have become invaluable partners in this world, engage with one another and develop bespoke solutions tailored for all stakeholders will be the litmus test. For it to be effective, the organisation needs to embrace its people, its customers and its partners. The digital world is not going to be about the technology, but instead the people that bring with them the competitive advantage. As a result, the organisational leadership is in an enviable position to drive this despite the demands required to still maintain a focus on business as usual. However, they need to be able to find the balance between technology, the people, as well as the enablement of digital transformation objectives. Any less would result in customers going the competitor route.
CEO 2016 Vol 16.1
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CONTEN 54
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BMW
REGULARS FORD EVEREST
10 THE LEADINGEDGE 08
THE FLIP SIDE
Amid a general global, continental and national economic slump, one of the world’s biggest and reliable auto manufacturers and dealers, Toyota is bullish about market prospects in South Africa and abroad. According to Andrew Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of Toyota South Africa Motors, exports from South Africa into Africa are very important. However, the key challenge is how to prepare for the growth potential, during a time when the rest of Africa is experiencing a decline in new vehicle sales volumes.
2 Your World Unravelled 3 Editor’s Note 5 Insights 8 Flip Side 16 On Point 34 What’s Hot or Not 52 Spotlight 66 In Conversation With
Steve Brings Health Back To Fitness Dream Body Fitness may just seem like another gym in an already oversaturated fitness market.
IN THE KNOW
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SPOTLIGHT
32 ONPOINT
60 Dr Anna Chifungula A Reforms Pioneer
62 Stephen Rwangyezi Rebel with a Cause
LIFEstyle 54 BMW
Leaders need to walk their talk; operational governance is an important building block in managing a lasting, positive reputation.
Vol 16.1
Focus on Excellence
BMW X1; Still Number 1 for Small SUV’s
56 Ford Everest
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Refined, Luxurious and Rugged
WHAT is HOT or NOT
60 Travel How to Travel Around South Africa
NTS INtheKNOW
GLOBAL Expand your business Horizon Publisher CEO Global (Pty) Ltd Tel: 0861 CEO MAG Fax: (012) 667 6624 Tel: 012 667 6623 info@ceomag.co.za www.ceomag.co.za Chief Executive Annelize Wepener annelizew@ceomag.co.za Director: Strategic Development & Editor in Chief Valdi Pereira valdip@ceomag.co.za Director: Corporate & Financial Services Carl Wepener carlw@ceomag.co.za Manager: Office of the Chief Executive Nadine Aylward nadinea@ceomag.co.za General Manager: Global Services George Wepener georgew@ceomag.co.za
36 The Agile Workforce: Why HR Must Take the Strategic Lead
General Manager: Global Media Services/ Head of Production Channette Raath channetter@ceomag.co.za
38 Financial Services Need to Radically Rethink Crime Protection and Prevention
Manager: Business Development – SADC South Danny Kabongo dannyk@ceomag.co.za
40 Your Intellectual Property is Not Immune to threat 42 Which of Your Customers Will Respond to Your SMS Messaging? 44 Beyond the Minimum Wage – Focus On Paying a Living Wage
Journalist Andrew Ngozo andrewn@ceomag.co.za Continental Project Administrators Sylvia Houinsou sylviah@ceomag.co.za Rumbi Chanda rumbic@ceomag.co.za Manager: Corporate Support Raymond Mauelele raymondm@ceomag.co.za
46 Business Intelligence – Waste of Time or Way of the Future? 48 The Rise of the Digitally Enhanced Leader
SUPPLYWORX 16 South Africa Needs Competent Directors: IoDSA 17 Do Professional Bodies Drive Professionalism? 18 SARS and Your Small Business 20 Defending the Organisation against Spear-Phishing 22 App Design is Dead 23 What Do Your Clients Say About You? 24 Still Not Moving To the Cloud? You Might Be Left Behind For Good
* No article or part of an article may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the prior written permission of the publisher. The information provided and opinions expressed in this publication are provided in good faith but do not necessarily represent the opinions of the publisher or editor. All reasonable efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication. However, neither the publisher nor the editor can be held legally liable in any way for damages of any kind whatsoever arising directly or indirectly from any facts or information provided or omitted in these pages, or from any statements made in or withheld by this publication.
26 Connectivity – Assisting South Africa to Build a Progressive Nation 28 Extracting Real Skills; Sales Conference Success 30 The Rise of the Data Executive
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FLIPSIDE
Performance
enhancement
Vive la France The modern Olympic Games have some rather swish roots. Baron Pierre de Coubertin was the cofounder of the modern Olympic Games. This member of the aristocracy was not only a keen sportsman he is also the person behind the design of the Olympic flag which contains five interconnected rings on a white background - the colours were chosen because at least one of them appeared on the flag of every country in the world. Clever move.
With doping in sports very much in the headlines (when is it not) we decided to take a closer look at the first known records of doping in sport. There’s a variety of opinions on the matter but it is generally agreed that the period 776 BC to 393 BC first saw the emergence of performance stimulants. Ancient Greeks gorged themselves on animal protein, used hallucinogens and even consumed animal genitals (eek!) in an effort to gain a performance edge. Interestingly, all of this was deemed perfectly acceptable….match fixing was then, as it is today, a big no-no.
Horsing Around In 1968, Kentucky Derby racehorse, Dancer’s Image became the first animal to be disqualified from a competitive event for using a banned substance (although it should be noted he probably did not have much say in the use of the stimulant). Phenylbutazone, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug that original led to the disqualification of Dancer’s Image was later (1971) deemed legal at the Kentucky Derby by a judge’s ruling.
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FLIPSIDE
Shocking Transcranial direct current stimulation – sound a little wacky to you? Don’t worry, we also think it is a little weird. However, athletes desperate for that extra bit of performance have resorted to shooting a 1.5 to 2 milliamp current to the brain’s motor cortex with the idea that it will boost the neurons there, making them more easily fired and the athlete that much faster and stronger. While the antidoping jury is out on this one, this could be something to watch.
1928 This is the year that the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF), the governing body for the sport of track and field, became the first international sporting federation to prohibit doping by athletes. In this instance we are not exactly sure that there has been much to gain by the first mover advantage.
On Your Bicycle Somewhat surprisingly records show that the USA (and Russia – not so surprising) have the most doping offenders over the past five decades at Olympic games. American cyclist Lance Armstrong also holds the dubious honour of holding the record for the greatest time lapse between the awarding of a medal (bronze in 2000) and the stripping thereof for a doping violation – 13 years.
Overcoming by Carl Wepener
Market
Andrew Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of Toyota South Africa Motors
Hurdles
LEADINGEDGE - Toyota South Africa Motors
Amid a general global, continental and national economic slump, one of the world’s biggest and reliable auto manufacturers and dealers, Toyota is bullish about market prospects in South Africa and abroad. According to Andrew Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of Toyota South Africa Motors, exports from South Africa into Africa are very important. However, the key challenge is how to prepare for the growth potential, during a time when the rest of Africa is experiencing a decline in new vehicle sales volumes. We are working hard to improve our competitiveness, product and service offering to position ourselves for the future, while ensuring that Toyota remains the brand of choice for many of the increasing Africa middle class. It is all about overcoming market hurdles in a very competitive space, contends Kirby. In South Africa and globally car sales are under pressure. How will Toyota South Africa respond to overcome these hurdles to ensure profitability for the company and affordability to the public? The market of car sales in South Africa and the rest of the world has been sluggish recently. This year, and those that follow immediately, does not seem to bring with it any brighter prospects either. Our first approach is to increase our own market share in order to offset the declining market. But Toyota being Toyota wins against all odds. Thus the past five years have been characterised by a vigorous marketing strategy to consolidate and increase our market share. When the markets are down customers tend to move towards more reliable brands that have stronger resale value and that gives them more security in their investment. Low costs in operating their vehicles remains paramount. Toyota has been, and will remain, that brand which is cherished and respected. Toyota has been very successful in growing that market and the plan [now] is to do just that and to further increase our volumes. That we are in tough economic times does not necessitate us to drop our guard and offer poor service. On the contrary we will forever improve our product offering and servicing to our clients. We also have many wide ranging activities to reduce our costs. In order to do that, we are benchmarking against other affiliates around the world; learning from those best practices and implementing them here in South Africa, even though we are already competitive globally. Rest assured that, from a cost point of view, we will retain existing clientele while remaining globally competitive
in the market. Strengthening our foundations and weathering these struggling market conditions will be at the core of our operations. What I have just alluded to is Toyota South Africa’s winning formula as we pursue the path to profitability while ensuring affordability to the public. It is what we call overcoming market hurdles. How important are exports from South Africa into Africa for Toyota South Africa and how much of your production capacity do you see going into Africa in the next 10 years? We are proud of our endeavours in this regard because Africa is, by far, our biggest export market. At one point, these totalled 60% of our overall export volumes. Last year that figure dropped to just under 40%. Obviously, that was largely due to the economic and socio political challenges we experienced in Africa as commodity prices have come down. That, again, put a lot of pressure on the vehicle market. Toyota South Africa’s performance has not declined per se; it is just that the market has dropped significantly. However, we think that Africa is going to be one of the fastest growing economic regions in the world for the future. Everybody agrees on that, it is a matter of when it is going to happen. When things start moving in that direction, Toyota South Africa will be at the thick of things from the onset! A lot of resources have been spent on infrastructure as there is a growing middle class base which has resulted in there being a huge need for vehicles from a mobility, and also from an economic development point of view. As Toyota South Africa, we are positioning ourselves to a space where we can try and leverage that and help with growing and driving sales in Africa. We would like to see that growth going beyond 60% in the next five years so that it will be back at the levels where it was before and, certainly, beyond 2020. Is this a pipe dream? I think not, because it could happen much sooner. Rapid growth of technology is disrupting parts of the automotive industry. How will Toyota South Africa deal with it and what will these rapid changes mean to clients as their purchases will age much faster? The service and spare parts divisions of the business into Africa is quite complex. We can only supply the parts for Africa for the vehicles we produce, thus leaving a substantial gap for parts for imported vehicles supplied from a different channel via Japan. We do not have any intention to go into that area right now. Most of the governments in Africa want to grow the market but their first intentions are trying to reduce their exposure to foreign exchange or else they will continuously struggle with their balance of trade. To do that, one of the key challenges or key strategies is to add some local key elements or local manufacturing. Our approach is more about finding a way in which Toyota South Africa can support the development of the motor industry in the rest of Africa, than just the sale of vehicles and parts. If we can
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LEADINGEDGE - Toyota South Africa Motors
The market of car sales in South Africa and the rest of the world has been sluggish recently. This year, and those that follow immediately, does not seem to bring with it any brighter prospects either. achieve that, then we would have taken the industry to the next level in Africa. Yes; technology is accelerating and there are two main thrusts in the motor industry. One of them is towards alternative drive trains and of course, we as Toyota have the first production of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles which is a very strong alternative. The other thrust is around connected vehicles and that is not only around providing telematics or internet access in a vehicle. It is much more than that. Those are the two big technologies that are going to impact on the future. In South Africa, we have a number of fundamental steps to take that are going to affect our vehicles. We don’t have clean fuel as yet and it is hampering more advanced technology. Technology will trickle into higher priced premium vehicles, but in terms of the volume market, they are quite expensive and it will take a while before it becomes commercially viable for our customers. To a large degree a part of South Africa and a large part of Africa is going to be driven by conventional technology and we will be looking to provide that service in an affordable way to the market on the continent. What is your take on the consolidation of research and products from motor manufacturers and what is Toyota South Africa’s standpoint on this for Toyota products? Even though we are industry leaders, we still believe that collaboration in this field is important for success. A lot of ventures and joint partnerships are happening to try and accelerate the introduction of consolidated and affordable new exciting technology products from motor manufacturers. Autonomous driving is one of the exciting developments taking place through such joint ventures. Although much needed, such research and developments are quite costly. In terms of the impact on South Africa, we will not see significant influences in the next five years except for safety technology that is important to our customers as well as technology around efficiency and cost of motoring.
What I have just alluded to is Toyota South Africa’s winning formula as we pursue the path to profitability while ensuring affordability to the public. It is what we call overcoming market hurdles.
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The motor vehicle “sales space” is becoming much more competitive. What are the differentiating and distinguishing factors that will keep Toyota South Africa ahead of the competition? Generally there has been a drive for Toyota to compete on the basis of our processes to remain competitive. We have world renowned solid processes in running our business and are always on the lookout for ways and means of improving it all the time. On top of that we have now recognised that a more important factor is our business culture, especially the way we approach business and that is most probably the most difficult thing to replicate - the business culture. Some of the key elements for us are the mind set and approach to finding better ways of doing business and striving to continuously change and adapt to meet the needs of the future customers. That is our big drive at the moment as far as South Africa is concerned. We still need to improve on the basis of refining our products and appeal, especially to the younger customers who, in future, will make up the majority of our clientele. Presently, our ability to attract those customers is not as good as it should be and our strategy is to turn that around and to have ‘that’ element that appeals to customers. Just watch this space! Automation of vehicles is a given. What is Toyota South Africa’s opinion of this being practical and available in the next 10 years for South Africa and Africa? A lot has been written about the automation of vehicles, autonomous or self-driving cars. Toyota has a very low tolerance to having any safety risks that could lead to fatalities. The quantum of research that needs to go into this before it
becomes commercially available is still a long way off. What is very exciting is that what underpins autonomous driving is some very strong safety systems that can ‘speak’ to other vehicles and interact in a way which has a far better ability to predict the risk of an accident or an incident and protect the occupants from a potential calamity. We are going to see those safety systems trickle into our vehicles as they become safer and safer. With all things being equal, that technology will be at the forefront of all Toyota South Africa vehicles going into the future. Autonomous vehicles are great for well-structured roads systems and infrastructure. But what happens when the unpredictable happens? For instance, how do you approach a South African traffic circle? There are lots of these kinds of elements that need to be developed. And we are busy navigating that space. Toyota vehicles make up a huge number of the automobile population in Africa and the largest number of those is older models that are not technically advanced and will need to be serviced. We have launched a value service element at our franchise dealers that gives more affordable parts and labour costs to bring down the expenses of owning an older vehicle. It will work well in South Africa, especially with our service plans to extend servicing for quite a long time. It is a different story in the rest of Africa and we will have to think innovatively about how we are going to service all of those customers. Toyota South Africa really wants to further grow our contribution to the country, because if we can do that and support the industrialisation of South Africa, then that will be a significant support to our economy and our communities.
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Turning Visions into Value Coal Energy, Renewable Energy, Electricity, Petroleum,Storage Facilities t: +27 12 361 7492 | f: +27 86 680 1633 | e: info@ontarioenergy.co.za
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EXPAND YOUR BUSINESS HORIZONS Vol 15 - No 5 - 2016
Accounting Evolve SARS and Your Small Business Bodies Professional Do They Drive Professionalism?
Institute of Directors in Southern Africa South Africa Needs Competent Directors
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CEO MAGAZINE
SUPPLYWORX
South Africa needs
competent directors: IoDSA The Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan, has recently renewed his calls for a new board to be appointed at South African Airways (SAA). His comments come as the national carrier’s financial statements are delayed, owing to the Treasury not providing the guarantees needed to convince its auditors that it is a going concern.
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inister Gordhan is quoted as stating that the guarantees will only be considered once the airline has a new board and executive team. This‚ Gordhan told a business breakfast‚ would require a “whole new board” of “credible people… with the right balance of skill and exposure”. According to Parmi Natesan, Executive: Centre for Corporate Governance at the Institute of Directors in Southern Africa (IoDSA)), “The IoDSA’s Board Appraisal Benchmark Study shows that public sector boards perform less well than those in the private sector. One of the reasons for this, sited by public sector board members themselves, is that board members are often political appointees, and thus lack the necessary knowledge, skills, experience and independence to fulfil their roles adequately.” The IoDSA’s Board Appraisal Benchmark Study concluded that board composition is probably the single most important governance factor in respect of an organisation’s future success. Interviews with members of these boards indicate that key challenges include the fact that incorrect criteria are used in appointing board members, lines of accountability are not clear, and a lack of industry knowledge resulting from the high turnover of ministers, MECs and directors.
Need for professional directors “When it comes to appointing new members to the SAA board, it would be wise to ensure they have the correct knowledge and skills—public-sector directors have a tough job and the company’s performance is dependent on their competence,” Natesan says. “Directors generally have such an important role to play, and the issues they face are so complex, that a new cadre of professional directors is required.” In response to this need, the IoDSA has introduced a formal professional designation for directors, the Chartered Director(SA) or CD(SA). In addition, a structured pathway has been designed to enable directors/aspiring directors to acquire the director competencies they need to complement their existing business skills whilst working towards the designation. The CD(SA) designation also enables directors to demonstrate objectively their fitness to serve on a board, and provides a vehicle for continuing professional development. “While the pool of CD(SA)s is still relatively small, the pathway and ultimate designation should be used as a benchmark for competency to serve as a director in South Africa,” says Natesan. “If SAA is to turn the corner, it needs board members with the right knowledge, skills and personal competencies; and a clear understanding of their responsibilities to the organisation, to the state and, ultimately, to the citizens.”
SUPPLYWORX
DO PROFESSIONAL BODIES DRIVE professionalism? The Business Dictionary defines a ‘professional body’ as a; “Trade association of an organised profession that certifies successful completion of its requirements, and thereupon awards a license and bestows a recognised appellation (designation). Professional bodies usually prescribe a discretionary or mandatory code of conduct for their members.” The question arises – do these associations add value for their members?
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ark Orpen, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of The Institute of People Development (IPD), believes that they do. “Professionalism is incredibly important in the skills development (SD) and learning and development (L&D) environment,” says Orpen. “However, while the key to quality and efficiency is professionalism, it is the codes of conduct and ethical practices of an individual that define the profession. As such, the intervention of professional bodies builds the individual, in turn making the industry a more professional one.” In the SD and L&D sector, these bodies play a pivotal role in developing a proficient and more-than-adequately skilled labour force. “Professional bodies serve members by creating a platform for real, valuable, and practical value exchange. From knowledge sharing, to creating access to resources, benchmarking best practice, and creating communities of expert practice, their input is invaluable,” confirms Orpen. When considering membership to a relevant professional body - such as the Marketing Association of South Africa (MA[SA]), or the SA Board for People Practices (SABPP), two options are usually available; corporate membership and individual membership. “Individuals decide whether they will honour the profession by their accountability to exemplary practices,” adds Orpen. “Companies that pledge commitment to these practices through corporate membership present themselves as an extension of either the professional body, or the individual; which roles need to be well defined. Often companies simply pay for their employees’ professional membership fees.”
The advantages of a membership include the resultant access to current knowledge and practices. The advantages of a membership include the resultant access to current knowledge and practices, through continuous professional development (CPD). “When the perceived value of the networking, information sharing and learning outcomes exceeds the cost to participate, membership is strengthened.” As is the case with most membership platforms, some disadvantages do occur. “Most associations become tested as platforms where individuals influence others for their personal aims. The leadership of an association (or professional body) remains the critical success factor - along with healthy communication, a commitment to quality and a culture of sharing and learning.” When considering membership to a professional body, Orpen encourages potential members to check the professional body’s credentials. “The South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) accredits professional bodies and measures their performance,” he concludes. “Successful professional bodies manage member records, implement online CPD and events that synchronise real time, provide cloud access to members to view their professional development and status, and deploy established and reliable technologies. They also ensure that learning is conducted through reputable institutions.”
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SUPPLYWORX
SARS
AND YOUR
SMALL BUSINESS
Perhaps one of the biggest challenges faced by South African small businesses is understanding and dealing with SARS. The key, regardless of what type of business you are running, is knowledge. Knowledge of SARS’ practices and requirements, as well as the belief on your part that SARS wants small businesses to succeed. Communication is the other important key. Communicate with them and they will work with you to keep your business going.
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arlene Menzies, CEO of SMEasy, and Kantha Naicker, Managing Director of Evolve Accounting, provide expert advice on understanding and dealing with SARS as small business owners. You are not alone: Many entrepreneurs believe that SARS is the bogeyman and they also tend to feel as if they are the only business facing challenges with them. It’s this thinking that breeds a secrecy mentality and hinders transparent and open communication with SARS when you find yourself in difficulty. Although complying with tax regulations and legislature can be daunting, understanding that you are not the first or last company to deal with these challenges is a huge comfort. Using VAT or PAYE as cash flow – When it comes to SARS the best piece of advice to give small business owners is not to use your VAT and PAYE money as part of your cash flow: this is a very reckless way of running your business. Many entrepreneurs do end up using VAT and PAYE money to pay staff costs and crucial month-end expenses. This is a very common and irresponsible business practice. Heavy penalties and interest are imposed
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on late submission of returns, as well as late payments. Interest on VAT is levied at a prescribed monthly rate of 10.5 % on all amounts due, while the penalty is levied at a prescribed rate of 10%. The same applies to PAYE and UIF, but interest of 10.5% is levied on a daily basis and the penalty is set at 10%. When dealing with late payments for PAYE or UIF, SARS can also impose an additional penalty not exceeding twice the total of the outstanding amount on your business for failing to pay the relevant amount with the intent to evade your obligation. These penalties are very onerous and can easily sink a business. The bottom line is: never use SARS money to survive; it is a very expensive and dangerous business strategy. What if you have used SARS money to survive? In this situation, avoidance is the worst strategy you can embark upon. The first step you need to take is to make contact with SARS without delay, either via their contact centre on 0800 00 SARS (7277) or by visiting your nearest branch. Like any creditor, the key is communication; by communicating clearly and discussing your financial situation openly you make it clear that you are not
SUPPLYWORX
evading your tax obligations. In certain circumstances, you can reach an agreement with SARS to defer your tax debt for later payment or for payment by instalment. The key thing to bear in mind in dealing with SARS is that it is in their best interest for your business to remain afloat because it’s the only way they can recover their money. Work with them to find a viable solution. How do you avoid getting yourself into the same situation in the future? The only way to avoid getting into debt with SARS in the future is to focus on your cash flow management. It is crucial to watch your cash flow carefully, to manage it closely and efficiently. You need to check your bank account and track the movement of the money in your business daily. Be aware of what money is due to come in and go out so you can make plans well in advance if you are going to run out of money at any time. Upon reflection on the heavy penalties and interests levied by SARS, it is crucial to recognise the signs that you are getting into the same situation and make appropriate plans to resolve it. Hoping you can trade your way through it is the worst possible approach. Investigate accessing finance, understanding that using SARS money is a very expensive way of funding your business. There are far cheaper ways to raise working capital. Be creative in managing your cash flow, reduce expenses where possible and consider offering discounts to your customers if they pay you sooner. While it may be difficult for some entrepreneurs to believe, the reality is that SARS really does wants to see small businesses succeed. They don’t want to see jobs lost or liquidations occur. Remember to communicate, rather than avoid, SARS if you have fallen behind on payments and, most importantly, recognise that using SARS money is a very expensive and reckless way to run your business and should be avoided at all costs.
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Defending
the organisation against
spear-phishing
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One of the main worries for companies last year was the rise in the use of socially engineered phishing, which caused many organisations to lose thousands of rands, and immeasurable customer confidence. These scams are set to continue, says Sarel Lamprecht, MD of Phishield, specialists in cyber fraud insurance.
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e says that spear-phishing is one of the primary tools employed by cyber crooks to compromise endpoints and gain a foothold in the enterprise network. The hacker uses a targeted, specifically crafted email that lures users to perform an action that leads to them being infected with malware, having their login credentials stolen, or both. However, he says luckily, there are tools available to combat these dangers. “Probably the most significant step towards defending against these types of attacks is the use of context analysis and behavioural learning to quickly pinpoint any mails that show anomalous behaviours, or deviate from the usual email paths.” Normal email traffic within the enterprise will follow certain patterns, related to various things, such as common sources, or typical domains used by third-party partners, fellow employees and clients. Also, there are typical paths for message delivery through the Web, from specific sources, and the usual entry points into the company network. “There is expected metadata in mail headers, text and images in the body of the mail, and types of attachments.” A clear picture of normal email sources and paths for the business, or its subsets, can be drawn by scrutinising email traffic over the course of time. In addition, advanced behavioural techniques can create baselines of these variables. Once the initial period of studying is over, the solution can employ the maps and the baselines to highlight any emails that deviate from the norm, and should be able to identify these, even if their differences are highly subtle. Next, he says, email threat intelligence can be used to identify attack infrastructure and ensure the users who are most at risk are made aware of the dangers. “Threat intelligence about spam and phishing, for example any domains or IP addresses that have been linked to attacks, assists in the detection and prevention of spear phishing attacks. Threat intelligence can also put hackers off, as it compels them to register fresh domains and set up new web servers for every new attack. This will not deter the most determined of attackers, but like most criminals, they will
go for the low-hanging fruit, and will move on to an easier target,” Lamprecht says. This type of threat intelligence can also help raise user awareness, and boost training by assisting the technical departments to focus their education and support efforts on staff who are most likely to be targeted, because of their job description, or because they have been targeted previously. Next, he says tools to implement instant reporting on spear phishing to pinpoint, display and monitor suspicious emails and high risk targets, can be highly effective. “New ways of looking at information in real time can better the ability of the security team, as well as staff, to identify and act upon spear phishing attacks as they see them occur, and stop them before they achieve their malicious ends. Reporting tools offer true visibility into emails that harbour any malicious software, as well as those that could be part of a spear-phishing campaign.” According to Lamprecht, there are also a few common-
The hacker uses a targeted, specifically crafted email that lures users to perform an action that leads to them being infected with malware.
sense measures businesses can adopt to avoid phishing and spear-phishing campaigns. “Invest in technology and secure the perimeter. Work with ISPs to monitor whether visitors to your sites are being redirected to spoofed sites. Be consistent with your employees, don’t advise users to avoid links in e-mails and then send them e-mails with links to information yourself. Make it simple, and explain security in a way the average employee can understand. And, of course, make sure you’re protected by having a cyber insurance policy in place.”
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App design
is DEAD Today’s apps have become standalone entities, not designed to integrate or interface with other enterprise functions. Only apps that are agile have a hope of keeping up with the pace of business technology change.
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longside this, there is a paradigm shift happening in software development: The nature of development is morphing from developing and deploying large intricate apps to offering current and new services in agile ways that add value. “The core of application development itself has forever altered. The days of complex design are over, and the era of agility, simplicity and flexibility has arrived,” says Richard Firth, CEO of MIP Holdings. According to analyst firm Forrester, while “developers are still trying to master application development, the market is shifting away from apps, and toward more contextually relevant micro-moments, delivered across families of devices, that are personalised to anticipate unique customer needs.” This, says Firth, is the result of the fact that the traditional methods used to develop applications do not translate well into the mobile environment. “Organisations must ensure they bring their existing systems and business processes into the consumer driven mobile world through apps. At the moment, what most companies are doing is publishing the existing versions of their legacy systems within an app, rather than designing an app to meet specific needs.” It is not just about an upgrade but rather reviewing your business with the assumption that you have access to a consumer 24/7, he adds. “One of the key elements of redesigning a traditional web function into the app world we call ‘socialising’
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the experience. Traditional web-based legacy systems were really driven for transaction input rather than a social experience where a user almost feels a direct relationship with the app and the user’s needs. The whole process has to be redesigned to facilitate these considerations.” This will give rise to the “invisible app” where the road to the digital market may no longer be the front end but rather how the app service can plug into another app to provision more contextual information, Firth says. As a simple example, the immediate displaying of the weather in a diary app when entering an appointment for a different physical location. “More than a year ago, Matthew Panzarino wrote an article on TechCrunch in which he described a new type of mobile app experience that he coined the Invisible App. He predicted that we would imminently see the rise of a huge number of apps that would live in the background, anticipating our needs based on sensor and contextual data, and do things for us before we even had to ask. What an exciting vision,” he adds. “Is this not where the Internet of Things may just come to the fore? These devices will have the ability to measure contextual information that will add value to a user experience within an app.” At the end of the day, says Firth, the speed of change is bringing huge challenges to developers, but this is unlikely to slow down. “Agile development and composition of apps is the best way to stay ahead and satisfy end user expectations.”
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What do your Clients
say about you? By Ismail Schuster, Head of Nashua Business Solutions
Technology and the ability to share information has democratised the perception of brands. Customer opinion is more influential than ever in determining brand perception. What consumers believe a brand represents, their views on products and services and how they compare with competing brands are now front and centre.
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ompanies that embrace new technology undoubtedly have the advantage in today’s tech-savvy landscape. Tech trends often reveal new markets or expose niches for products and services. Companies who are actively using tech to gain consumer insights and adapt their offering will always have the lead over competitors. Here’s how businesses can harness the power of technology to shape public perception of their brand – and why the tech they offer needs to solve problems too. Social is the only currency Increasing use of social media influences consumer opinions – it plays a crucial role in how consumers discover and share brand information. This reality means companies need to invest in solid social media strategies with an insight-feedback loop, to stay in the know about how consumers feel about their brand. Customers can now research and empower themselves about brands before they even interact with them. They’re able to form assumptions about brands before they invest – and share experiences that influence potential purchasers. Content shared online can answer questions customers might have about your product, service or brand and inform their perception upfront. Video content is especially powerful in this regard. Ensure relevant brand information and testimonials are available online, so you influence brand perception from the outset – particularly where first time purchasers are concerned. They’ll be much more attuned to their buying experience, will do more research and be looking for reassurance they’re making the right choice. The value in user experience In addition to gaining insight via social media and
putting perception-enhancing information in the right places, make sure you’re conducting frequent surveys or feedback sessions to find out how customers feel about your brand in real life. This information can then be used to inform product or service tailoring going forward. Functionality and user experience are what make consumers loyal – simple, seamless experiences foster bonds that convert into brand loyalty. This is why people opt for Apple rather than Android, or vice versa. Brands can become ‘trust marks’ – which shorten the decision-buying process. More than ever, it’s vital consumers have the best possible brand interaction. If the user experience is complicated or clunky it’ll put them off the product or service permanently. And if they’re having these experiences with your offering, you need to know. Seamless changes and integration are key to adaptation and boosting profits. Banking is the perfect example of an industry that’s constantly adapting to suit consumer needs, based on feedback around tech and the user experience. Responding to tech changes To constantly improve customer perception, Nashua has moved from selling products to integrated business solutions. By seeking out consumer insights, we’ve re-engineered our products to add maximum value and optimise processes. It’s vital we’re always exploring innovative ways to save money and enhance businesses – based on valuable feedback from new and existing customers. Businesses need to be responsive in the age of everchanging tech. To stay ahead, they must take advantage of technology to shape positive consumer opinions – resulting in increased loyalty, sales and profitability.
@ Still not moving to the
CLOUD
You might be left behind for good
by AJ Hartenberg, Portfolio Manager: Data Centre Services for T-Systems, South Africa
Bringing your analogue business to today’s digital markets is the equivalent of bringing a knife to a gunfight. Just a few short years ago, we in the technology industry were touting cloud computing as the latest and greatest competitive advantage for progressive companies. Fastforward to today, and it now seems like cloud migration is more of a hygiene factor than a competitive differentiator.
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imply put, if you’re not already moving your IT estate into private, hybrid or public clouds, you’re going to fall behind in the coming years. Markets are digitising, they’re globalising, and they’re coalescing into each other, or splintering apart in interesting new ways. And these market shifts are changing the rules of the game for everybody. Netflix started life as a DVD rental company, then became a video streaming service, and is now spending U$5billion a year on creating original movies and TV series. Nintendo’s modern-era began with console games, before launching a new realm of motion-sensor technology with the inventive Nintendo Wii. In its most recent ‘pivot’, the immersive augmented reality game Pokemon Go, it hauled in U$200 million in just its first month. There’s a litany of reasons for these firms’ successes – from culture, to leadership, to strategy. But from a technology perspective, boundary-pushing companies like Netflix and Nintendo all share one common principle – flexible, scalable cloud architectures that enable the rapid expansion of services, to millions of users. These two firms have truly leveraged the power of cloud computing. But, in fact, in every industry you’ll find examples of digital cavaliers, quickly gobbling market share from slowerpaced incumbents who’ve been entrenched for decades. Failing fast, failing forward Cloud-based digital tools and assets allow organisations to create new routes to market, insert themselves into new value chains, and address entirely new customer segments and
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Simply put, if you’re not already moving your IT estate into private, hybrid or public clouds, you’re going to fall behind in the coming years.
geographies. They help the organisation to better understand changing market dynamics, influences and trends – and to respond with speed and decisiveness. The cloud also enables faster, lower-risk experimentation with new strategies, products or services. If a prototype proves successful, then it can be scaled up to achieve commercial value. And, if it’s unsuccessful, then it can be quickly shut down and the team can move on to explore other ideas – it’s a principle we refer to as ‘failing fast, and failing forward’. With the real-time data streams that cloud computing makes possible, businesses can fine-tune every aspect of their operations – making minor tweaks where the data points to improvement opportunities. Perhaps the data leads you to make changes to the production schedule, to change supplier relationships, or to change the tone of the marketing campaign, for instance. We talk about a cloud-centred business being a blend of both art and science. This is the true beauty of the cloud: it unleashes the creativity of the creative types, to dream and to design. At the same time is provides a platform for the more left-brained team members to form methodologies, gain control, and ultimately make ideas commercially-viable. In fact, the science of big data might reveal opportunities, for creatives to find an innovative solution to capture that market opportunity. Now, imagine an analogue business trying to compete, without all of these cloud benefits? Taking the plunge Despite all of the cloud’s compelling advantages, migrating part or one’s entire IT estate to the cloud often entails incredible complexity, uncertainty and cost. These concerns tend to cause inertia in decision-making, particularly in larger, more entrenched businesses, or those in protected and slower-moving industries.
Some traditional businesses are so consumed with the day-to-day grind of simply ‘keeping the lights on’ that they hardly have time to think about futureproofing their enterprise technology. And others still are remaining relatively successful – for the time being – without having made any serious attempt at digital transformation. But the question is, for how much longer will this last? For large organisations, cloud migrations are certainly complex and scary. But there are ways to manage the risks and costs, and become more certain of success. It generally starts with a comprehensive evaluation of your IT environment, and a very sharp understanding of your own business, your market, your customers, and your competitors. Find a trusted technology partner, one that’s helped other firms through the process of cloud migration, and is willing to shoulder much of the risk and provide guarantees in terms of both costs and business returns. Once you’ve selected the right strategy and the right partner, commit to the transition and pour all your energy into making your cloud migration a resounding success. As we see with the likes of Netflix and Nintendo, cloud-based organisations have one crucial advantage over their more traditional peers – the ability to continually reinvent themselves, serve new customer demands, and respond to ever-shifting market landscapes. The time is now. Take any longer, and you may never catch up.
Connectivity assisting South Africa By Eckart Zollner, Head of Business at Jasco Group
to build a progressive nation
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The discussion around connectivity in South Africa has to evolve. It’s no longer just about infrastructure and the advantages broadband delivers; it’s about the country’s participation and progress on a global level in a Digital Era. For South Africa to reach past its current limitations, a new mindset is needed – one focused on South Africa becoming a progressive nation and society.
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usinesses today are increasingly reliant on technology and as such, broadband has become ever-more important. The benefits of cloud computing and fast broadband include increases in efficiency, growth of productivity and cost savings. Companies no longer have to own infrastructure or software -- it’s available in the cloud as pay per use and hosted offerings. Backend tasks like backups and storage are also easier with broadband throughput and cloud storage. However, the challenge for companies outside South Africa’s metro’s where there is little broadband connectivity is not just lowering cost of business and increasing efficiencies to compete. The arrival of the Digital Era means South African businesses and their service models are facing competition from unexpected places. Digital changes the game. Traditional models are being replaced, with new players with digital business models taking market share away from incumbents. Digital adoption also means that businesses need to engage with clients and partners differently. To participate, companies need to be connected, and they need to digitise their offerings and operations end to end. Digital erases borders’ and opens up markets. That’s good for business. It’s also good for people looking abroad for jobs and income as a connected, digital world makes the work ideal of ‘anywhere, anytime’ a reality. This brings us to the challenge of education in South Africa. In rural areas, people are being left behind in terms of education. It’s one of the many reasons they are migrating to commercial centres. The mindset shift should be towards how do we build a progressive nation, one that can compete on a global level? Government’s progress in terms of digitisation and transformation sets the pace for the country. As the various departments begin the process of digitising to serve a digital citizen they have the opportunity to review and revitalise their processes, engaging more meaningfully and effectively with them. Across sectors, fear of job losses to technology advances can hold progress back. The answer is upskilling – it will address skills gaps and skills shortages, and enable us to compete on a global stage.
We live in a global society so we must compete globally. Foreign direct investment will only come when investors rate the enabling services they need to do business as satisfactory. South Africa has the platform to do it – we are the leading light on the continent; but we lack a progressive mindset. We need a new vision. The answer is not more control or regulation to manage this dizzying change we are seeing in every direction. Today, technology and with it, the way we do business and live our lives, changes so often that regulatory authorities simply cannot keep up. That can slow us down. It is perhaps important that South Africa as a country reviews and revises its policies and rethinks what it is trying to protect. We can take our lead from other countries. The EU for example, understands the need to protect privacy. It also understands that long and drawn out licensing processes are not needed to implement that. Quite simply, market forces will dictate change faster than any regulatory body. In this context, the state needs to relook what it needs to control and what it can leave to the open market to manage. While limited resources like radio spectrum need to be carefully managed, we are living in a period of great and rapid change – we cannot be afraid to explore. At the same time, if progress is our goal, we need to change how we allocate scarce resources and opportunities related to communications and connectivity to realise the full potential of the economy. Services are as, if not more important than financial gain if we want to find a way to reach 100% penetration of broadband in three to four years. The shift is from earning to growing. For example, rather than selling off spectrum to the highest paying operator, let’s consider how we will ensure we can provide connectivity to all LSMs – whether that allocation comes with a service obligation or other instruments that ensure the operator’s commitment to increase penetration. This means government has to commit too. It needs to be clear about its policies – it is difficult to be a regulator and a player, and hope to attract investment in those areas.
Digital changes the game. Traditional models are being replaced, with new players with digital business models taking market share away from incumbents
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EXTRACTING Sales Conference success
Sales managers require passion, knowledge, and a very unique set of skills. Innumerable companies throw lavish sales conferences annually – but are these conferences resulting in just a fun event, or do they actually impart knowledge, sending a driven, passionate and more skilled sales-workforce back to the grind the next day?
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s sales motivation and training guru Mark Hunter once said; “It’s not about having the right opportunities. It’s about handling the opportunities right.” The key to knowing how to handle opportunities correctly lies in having the skills required to do so – skills that can be gathered at sales conferences; if they are run correctly. To be run correctly, the objectives of the conference must be determined at the onset, ensuring that goals are mapped. “A sales conference is aimed at communicating key company messages to a large group of people at one time,” confirms Kim Currin, Currin’t Events Account Director. “It is essential to ensure that all employees are given the same key messages. This encourages employees to learn more about the company, to get to know their fellow
To be run correctly, the objectives of the conference must be determined at the onset, ensuring that goals are mapped.
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REAL SKILLS; colleagues in a more social light, and to develop interpersonal working relationships – all while allowing employees to have fun at the same time.” The trick is to translate these goals into workable, implementable skills when the staff return to their offices. “A good conference that incorporates all the key aspects that need to be fulfilled will be hugely effective in communicating the correct messaging, as well as allowing employees to translate those skills back at the workplace. An effective conference should not be seen as a once off event, but rather the main catalyst in a stream of communication methods to ensure employees are understanding, remembering and following through on items discussed at the conference.” This brings in an element of mentorship, where senior managers guide sales staff in implementing what they have learnt. “The key is to follow through with the conference messaging. The conference is not to be treated as a single, isolated event, but rather the start of a series of messages which need to be reiterated once employees return to the office.” It is important to remember that implementation in the office will only be possible if the event itself was a success, and if the intended skills were in fact conveyed. Resultantly, an essential element to success lies in the service provider chosen to manage the event. In essence, companies should do their research before committing to an events company. “Look for a company that has a proven track record. A company that has the ability to create unique ideas for your conference. Look for a company that works within the top south African corporate market, because these are the people who need to be a step ahead at all times,” concludes Currin. “You also need to work with people you trust and feel comfortable with. The aim of a great event company is to make you, the client, look good.” CEO 2016 Vol 16.1
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The Rise of the
Data Executive By Christy Pettey
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Roles and titles evolve to support data-driven, digital businesses. The shift to data-driven, digital business is compelling organisations to create and reinvent new roles, positions and duties that sharpen focus on data and analytics.
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igital business transformation requires a new breed of “data executives.” They include the chief data officer (CDO) and chief analytics officer (CAO), IT leader roles focused on data and analytics (e.g., business intelligence and master data management leaders) and other business roles. Their objective is to exploit data analytics to drive digital revenue and supporting operational improvements for IT, marketing, risk management, compliance, production and finance. According to Joe Bugajski, managing vice president of data and analytics research at Gartner, the rapid rise in the number of new executives demonstrates how companies are adapting to the market and technology trends in their shift to digital business. “The trend for new executive roles shows the strategic use of data and analytics to achieve mission critical priorities, that include digital revenue, efficient and effective business process outcomes and more innovative data-driven insights and decisions,“ said Mr. Bugajski. This evolution of data and analytics leadership in all manner of organisations – commercial, non-profit or government sector – underlines their commitment to exploiting powerful trends, such as algorithmic business and the Internet of Things (IoT). These and many other developments and business
It’s time for organisations to recognise the need for a new cadre of leaders, data scientists, architects and engineers.
opportunities arising from the analysis of new data sources and technologies highlights the need for new executive roles that bridge the gap between ‘business’ and ‘IT,’ and harness the data to achieve digital business objectives. The new reality for data and analytics leaders is the evolution of terminology, such as machine learning, and methodologies such as predictive modelling, to reflect these changing roles. “Until recently, organisations have thought of ’data’ as a lower order for of ‘information’. However boards of directors, CEOs and senior executive have thankfully started to change such thinking,” Mr. Bugajski said. “Increasingly IT and business leaders now talk of ‘data’ and ‘data management’, rather than ‘information’ and ‘information management’ while referring to ‘analytics’, rather than ‘business intelligence’.” These gradual changes in terminology, roles and titles, along with the emergence of bimodal IT capabilities and other developments, provide an insight into the breadth and depth of organisational change that will be associated with the transformation to data-driven digital business. New and advanced analytics technologies are on the rise, such as predictive and prescriptive analytics, decision management software, smart machines, event stream processing applications and operational intelligence platforms. As a result, the demand for analytics has moved outside specialty IT-based communities and is now being headed up largely by individual business units. “It’s time for organisations to recognise the need for a new cadre of leaders, data scientists, architects and engineers, together with new and organisational designs and modernised applications/infrastructure,” said Mr. Bugajski. “The breadth and depth of the challenge calls for leaders who can operate as master change agents. They will need to drive the creation of a cohesive set of businessrelevant capabilities across all channels, sources and uses of information in order to maximise information investments and leverage the new economics of information.”
ONPOINT
It is essential that everyone within the organisation is familiar with company rules for each of the stakeholder groups.
ONPOINT
Walk your Talk
and
Improve your Reputation
Businesses don’t fail, leaders do. In the words of Henry A. Kissinger, “The task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been.” Leaders need to walk their talk; operational governance is an important building block in managing a lasting, positive reputation. Regine le Roux, Managing Director at Reputation Matters, shares insights on how this key element exemplifies your reputation to your stakeholders.
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uilding a strong corporate reputation is all about consistency, which is fundamental in successfully running an organisation. To ensure consistency within an organisation, it is vital to align operational governance namely the organisation’s rules, processes, procedures and policies to its strategic intent, and ultimately having the leader of the organisation walk their talk. “Operational governance essentially establishes the ground rules for conducting your day-to-day business; its purpose is to clarify the intervention scope of some areas, defining reporting and decision flows, what needs be done and by whom and who the buck stops with,” shares le Roux. “It is the organisational component that establishes the frontier with operational activities. In our line of work, we very often see that there is no alignment between the strategic levels of an organisation and their operational levels. They might have very good intentions to give excellent service or provide quality products, without having the necessary operational governance in place,” continues le Roux.
Communicating policies and procedures ineffectively poses a colossal threat to an organisation’s reputation, especially on internal governance structures. It is therefore crucial not only to have procedural structures and policies in place, but also to communicate these internally, so that all parties understand what they should be doing, how they should do it and why it is important. Le Roux motivates that a two-way conversation will enable feedback from key stakeholders to raise and address any uncertainties before issues arise; in that way the processes can be refined even further. “Leadership within the organisation needs to be seen as ‘walking the talk’, and leading by example; they themselves need to be seen following protocol when it comes to company rules to ensure business continuity,” says le Roux. “As a leader myself, it is paramount that I lead by example by keeping in line with my organisation’s vision, mission and values. Similarly, it is also important to have operational governance structures in place for all stakeholder groups, including external groups such as: customers, suppliers, distributors and the media, to name just a few. The first step is to identify key stakeholder groups, each with its own set of governing structures and communication platforms in place,” she adds. “It is essential that everyone within the organisation is familiar with company rules for each of the stakeholder groups so that they can speak with the same voice when engaging with different stakeholders,” explains le Roux. Echoing the same message from within is crucial for organisations. It eliminates confusion and inconsistency; and ultimately builds trust in how the company operates. As an example, having clear and consistent payment terms and conditions outlined across the board for customers and suppliers from the outset of the relationship, will level the playing field and let everyone know what the expectations are right from the start. This will allow everyone to plan accordingly. Without procedures in place, an organisation sets itself up for a catastrophe. As Benjamin Franklin once said, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” “When it comes to corporate governance, communication is the glue that brings it all together. Consistent communication about operational governance builds reliability, which ultimately builds trust and positively impacts corporate reputation,” concludes le Roux.
As our always ld ou h s s view under n e k be ta ent advisem
what’sHOTorNOT
We share brief perspectives with you on items that we think are worthy of your consideration. *some of the images were obtained from 123rf.com
Secure Phone Fed up with sneaky feeling you have that someone is spying on you? Well, there are ways around that problem. A cryptophone that will set you back a cool 2500 Euros just about has all the bases covered. While the concept of encrypted phones is not new, the fact that these units use Android as their operating systems demonstrates the power and flexibility that open source software brings challenges like software security.
Hot Spot While many successful and big multinational companies will not dare venture into Africa to do business, the continent couldn’t be a much brighter prospect for a world leader in the security solutions provider, G4S. Africa is the place to be and do business in, despite challenges across the continent. These challenges can seem daunting for local and international investors looking to do business in Africa, but conversely create massive opportunities for G4S to work with its customers to find solutions to their security problems. G4S has won numerous awards under its belt on the African continent, most notably as the Top Employer for consecutive years.
Mind Games
Blimp If you needed more proof that mankind specialises in putting a new spin on old stuff look no further than the Airlander 10 airship. At first brush it looks like a variation of the helium filled airships of yesteryear that not only created new aviation benchmarks but also brought its fair share of tragedy. The Airlander 10 airship takes a new look at the blimp concept by combining the best elements of a variety of aircraft. We still think drones are going to be bigger business in the future.
Life coaches and fung shei practitioners are always quick to point out that green is a soothing and calming colour. Very interesting indeed, night vision equipment generally gives you a green image too, perhaps it is an effort at calming the user before the storm.
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THIS ADVERT IS NOT ABOUT THE PLANTS. Well…it is. But mainly it’s about our dedicated fieldworkers who work tirelessly to protect southern Africa’s environmental surroundings and who need your support. Visit www.ewt.org.za to find out how you can help to protect another precious resource – our people.
The agile workforce: why HR must take the strategic lead Anja van Beek, Vice President for People, Sage International (Africa, Australia, Middle East and Asia)
Most organisations are under pressure to evolve their businesses at a faster pace as they try to get in step with rapid changes in the business landscape, technology and customer behaviour.
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hat means HR departments, too, need to become better equipped to lead the organisation’s people through constant and rapid change. They need to build a more agile workforce that is ready to adjust to the evolving needs of the market. This goes beyond offering people flexible working arrangements such as flexible hours or the ability to work from home. It is about helping to shift the organisational culture to one that embraces learning, change and innovation. It is also about recruiting, developing and retaining people who thrive in a changing world – chameleon workers who can adapt to change, learn new skills in a short space of time and seamlessly move from assignment to assignment. The HR department of the future must thus shift its focus from reducing risk and managing red-tape towards a highly strategic role of guiding change, improving agility, and ultimately driving higher performance.
INTHEKNOW
Create flexible career options In an agile workforce, HR will need to rethink how it develops career paths, salary bands and job descriptions. It will need to support managers and their teams as they organically develop their own roles and tasks, often on a project-by-project basis. This will also mean new ways of measuring performance and rewarding employees that meet the needs of a changing workplace. For example, tech companies like Google allow engineers to spend some of their workday working on passion projects and innovative ideas rather than making them spend all their time on a narrowly defined scope. This has the benefit of creating new ideas for the business and keeping employees engaged – in turn, helping with talent retention. Facilitate a culture of innovation HR departments play an important role in shaping organisational culture – from helping to source talent to supporting change management and designing rewards and incentive programmes. To support a more agile business, they need to look at how and where they source talent; how they reward and incentivise the right behaviour; how they support managers and employees through their tools and processes; and how they measure performance.
Here are a few ideas about how HR must evolve in the years to come: Accommodate a more fluid workforce The way that businesses structure their workforces is changing as they begin to source more of their talent through freelancers, crowdsourcing, and other approaches that give employees and companies more flexibility. What’s more, we can also expect to see a further churn in the workforce as more young professionals join an organisation to take part in a project or achieve a specific career goal – and then leave after two to three years. Even within the walls of the business, we can expect to see teams become more fluid as people are brought together for specific projects and initiatives, and then disbanded so they can move to other parts of the business. In a sense, many parts of the business will follow the same sort of ‘gig economy’ model as movie studios and agencies, building bespoke and sometimes virtual teams of in-house and external skills for each project. HR teams will need to facilitate this shift, making it easier for managers to source and develop the talent when they need it and where they need it. For example, they might build databases of skills that they share with managers and facilitate talent exchange programmes between different business units and departments.
Develop a learning organisation rather than a ‘training strategy’ One of the major challenges HR face is helping the business and the workforce keep up with the rapid pace of change in today’s digital world. With mobile technology, the cloud, analytics, blockchain and the Internet of Things changing the world so rapidly, companies and their workforces need to learn fast. This means that HR departments need to look beyond rigid learning programmes towards creating a culture where continuous learning is valued. This is all about creating opportunities for mentorship, providing on-thejob learning opportunities, and responding quickly when new skills are needed. Closing words Integrated HR management systems play an important role in helping HR departments become more agile and to provide their businesses with strategic support. They automate red-tape so that HR professionals can focus on where they can add value, and they provide data and analytics tools to support agile decision-making. In a time of seismic technological change, Sage is focused on using the smartest technology to reinvent and simplify HR processes and this has made us an indispensable business partner to our customers. CEO 2016 Vol 16.1
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Financial Services needs to radically rethink
crime protection and
prevention
Economic crime in financial services outpaces other industries Increased spending on compliance fails to reduce economic crime
Despite significantly increasing investment in compliance and being continuously under the scrutiny of regulators, economic crime in Financial Services has increased, showing new thinking is needed to make investment in compliance deliver more value and tackle economic crime.
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he views are published in a new paper by PwC examining how the Financial Services sector (including both Banking & Capital Markets and Insurance) responds to economic crime. Financial Services has traditionally proven to be the industry most threatened by economic crime, as it serves the financial needs of all other industries. In a survey released earlier this year, 46% of 1,513 Financial Services respondents to PwC’s economic crime survey reported experiencing crime in the last 24 months, up from 45% in the last survey (2014). This outpaces the industry wide global average by 10% (46% vs 36%). It means the industry has not managed to substantially reduce the level of reported economic crime for seven years, despite their level of investment in compliance outpacing the wider business world. The cost impact of crime has also increased with 46% of those experiencing losses valuing them at up to $100,000 for every crime (40% in 2014), and almost a quarter (24%) experiencing losses between $100,000 - $1m (23% in 2014).
Tackling economic crime and proving positive intent to regulators has often meant Financial Services spending more on compliance. However, the increased spending has not resulted in less economic crime. 16% of those that reported experiencing economic crime had suffered more than 100 incidents, with 6% suffering more than 1,000. Cybercrime reports increased 10% (49% experienced), and insider trading 6% (from 4% to 10%) 53% of respondents reported that compliance program and resource spend in response to the threat of economic crime was increasing – 55% expect it will continue to increase. 33% of our respondents revealed that data quality still can restrict compliance with anti-money laundering regulations. Financial Services also faces a global shortage of sufficiently skilled and experienced compliance professionals, particularly in areas such as Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing compliance, to help understand and manage the interconnected risks of economic crime. Hiring the right calibre of personnel with the requisite experience is the most significant issue facing South African financial services institutions, with 28% of local respondents citing this problem. Although 58% of frauds were committed by external perpetrators, higher than the average of 41%, in Financial Services 29% were committed by internal perpetrators generally junior or middle management – although 14% were from layers of senior management. Financial Services organisations have struggled to join the strategic dots across the growing volume, sophistication and variety of economic crime. Louis Strydom, Forensic Services Leader for PwC Africa, says: “New thinking is needed to make investment in compliance deliver value and to tackle economic crime more effectively. Spending should be targeted
where it can make the biggest difference. For large global financial institutions, this means automating labourintensive processes, improving the quality and accessibility of information and evaluating new, more effective technological detection methods. “Financial services organisations need strategic financial risk assessment frameworks to make sure policies and programmes target the greatest areas of risk.” Over the last decade, improved money-laundering control measures in the formal financial systems have forced criminals to seek new ways to ‘move’ the proceeds of their crimes. This is why regular risk assessments are crucial, enabling organisations to identify and address the money-laundering and terrorist-financing risks they face — wherever and with whomever you do business. Despite the clear advantages, only 31% of the financial services firms in South Africa that participated in our survey either are not currently conducting an anti-money laundering (AML) or counter financing of terrorism (CFT) risk assessment across their global business footprint or don’t know if they are, adds Strydom. 35% of global (and 47% of South African) financial services respondents thought financial crime had high or medium impact on relationships with regulators, with the costs of remediation and compliance described as ‘staggering’. Spending should be targeted where it can make the biggest difference. For sophisticated global institutions, this means automating labour intensive processes, improving the quality and accessibility of information and evaluating new, more effective technological detection methods including blockchain, biometrics and data analytics. Strydom concludes: “Financial Services organisations need strategic financial crime risk assessment frameworks to make sure policies and compliance programmes target the areas of greatest risk. And the best way to tackle financial crime is by embedding the latest strategies and technology into day-today operational decision making.”
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INTHEKNOW
Intellectual Property Your
is not immune
Regardless of how much of your business is run offline, you are still a target, says Sarel Lamprecht, MD of Phishield, the world’s first cyber insurance provider.
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ven sectors of the economy that have thought themselves immune to cyber attacks – because they don’t traditionally need machines that connect to the internet – are finding themselves vulnerable in this connect everything age of the Internet of Things. Just a few weeks ago, betanews.com revealed that Kaspersky had uncovered that hackers are focusing on industrial and engineering sectors in 30 countries globally. The publication explains that the attack – which the anti-virus company has code named ‘Operation Ghoul’ – uses what is known spear-phishing emails and malware, based on a commercial spyware kit, to find valuable business-related data stored in a victims’ network. The group apparently behind the attacks has been tracked by researchers since March 2015, although this is really no indication of how long they have been operating. How it works is through delivering malware that can easily be bought on the so-called dark web – the space general users of the internet do not know about as it’s mostly hidden except to forces of evil – which, once installed, collects all sort of data from the victim. This data includes keystrokes, clipboard data, FTP server credentials, and account data from browsers, email clients and messenger programs. That’s a lot of information, in fact, it’s enough to render your entire company obsolete because the hackers can wipe out your bank accounts, steal your client files and
delete all your information. No matter how good someone is at CAD drawings, this is a very real risk. The gain is, as usual, financially motivated as these thieves want to steal intellectual property and business intelligence, which they can sell to a competitor in the virtual version of industrial espionage to wipe out bank accounts. Any company that doesn’t have the necessary protection and insurance in place is at huge risk. In fact, just recently, German-based wire and cable supplier Leoni fell victim to fraud thanks to falsified documents, identities and the use of electronic communication channels, Business Insights reports. As a result, the company lost 40 million euros because of the scam.
The fraud was perpetrated through an email impersonation with a message purporting to be from a CFO at one of its Russian factories the key behind the incident. The fraud was perpetrated through an email impersonation with a message purporting to be from a CFO at one of its Russian factories the key behind the incident. This resulted in the opening the criminals needed to steal the money. Although Leoni denied any risk to its IT infrastructure, or security, the reputational risk of an incident like this is huge, and the scam led to the company’s share price
INTHEKNOW
dropping. It also highlights just how easy it is to gain access to someone’s email account and move cash around. What if the hackers had been able to perpetrate more than that fraud? In addition, even though it said its operating performance was in line with what it forecast,
The gain is, as usual, financially motivated as these thieves want to steal intellectual property and business intelligence
Leoni did caution that “the extent to which the damage will affect the projected net income for the year cannot at present be assessed”. Business Email Compromise scams are clearly on the up, and they affect every single company – even if you don’t think your core business is happening online. As soon as you are connected to the net, you’re at risk and, even though you’ll take steps to mitigate any risk. the thieves are always one step ahead. This is why cyber insurance is vital: it covers your losses, helps with the reputational risk and finds and fixes any gaps in your IT infrastructure. It’s never too late to sign up.
INTHEKNOW
Which of your customers will respond to your
SMS messaging? Ekow Duker and Megan Yates, Ixio Analytics
Cell phones have taken off worldwide. Around six out of seven billion people worldwide have cell phones, which is comparable to global literacy at 84%, and higher than the number of people with shelter from the wind and rain (77%).
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he up-take of cell phones in Africa is staggering. Research conducted by Afrobarometer reveals that 93% of Africans have access to cell phone service, and yet ironically, only 63% have access to piped water. PewResearch Centre’s observation is apt: “Today, cell phones are as common in South Africa and Nigeria as they are in the United States.” Given the popularity and widespread use of cell phones, it is not surprising that SMS (Short Messaging Service) messaging is king. According to blogger Mickael Bentz in 2015, 20 billion text messages were being sent daily - around 5,5 million per second, or 73 trillion annually. SMS messaging is both cheap and quick. Bulk SMS messaging is a popular way of communicating with customers, congregants, fans, prospective customers and the public at large. It comes as no surprise, therefore that it is the world’s fastest growing marketing tool; it is also used extensively to build and grow businesses. Forrester’s “Guide to Using Mobile Moments with Messaging,” says 49% of marketers use SMS messaging. Most importantly from a brand building perspective, Anchor Mobile reveals that brands that use SMS marketing have connected 95% of all mobile users to brands. Besides cost, there are other compelling reasons for using SMS messaging. Perhaps the most compelling is the fact that people open their text messages much faster than their emails. The readership rate is also very high at 98%. The average response time to SMS messaging is 90 seconds - the time that it takes to win an Olympic Gold medal, or for a jet to go from take-off to 3000 feet. Emails, by comparison, are a bit like snail mail – it takes 2,5 days on average, for people to open an email. SMS marketing is very efficient - Mobile Commerce Daily claims “SMS has eight times the response rate of email.” But is SMS messaging all it is cracked up to be? Unfortunately, marketers often use a shotgun approach, also known as shotgun marketing – they send an SMS to everyone on their mailing list. The idea is to capture the attention of the largest group of people possible. Because there is no specific target, it is akin to betting on every horse in the race or placing a chip on every number and on red and black on the Roulette table. Some political parties used shotgun marketing in the recent municipal elections. They sent SMS updates or calls to vote in a specific way to everyone on their list, irrespective of age, or likely political affiliation. Estate agents, retailers, banks,
Predictive analytics enables retailers to understand their data. cell phone operators, motor dealers, florists, institutions selling funeral cover or gyms, selling gym memberships are often guilty of this practice. It makes no sense whatsoever to send an SMS message to a 90-year-old woman informing her about a special offer on bicycles or gym membership, or for that matter, an SMS offering funeral cover to a 16-year-old. Besides annoying the recipient, the retailer concerned ends up red-faced because it clearly knows nothing about the recipient. Sending inappropriate SMS messages can result in reputational damage. There is also the danger that recipients will view all future SMS messaging from a particular service provider or retailer as spam. Recipients can opt-out, including people who will never be your customer. There is, however, always the very real risk of losing an existing, loyal customer who is irritated by repeat SMS messages offering services or products that do not interest her. Repeated messaging rubs in the fact that the retailer ‘got it wrong.’ The ability to predict customer behaviour should be an integral part of any customer retention strategy or strategy to grow market share. Predictive analytics enables retailers to understand their data. Based on past interactions, it enables them to understand which customers are likely to respond to SMS messaging, and to know which offers, using SMS messaging have worked in the past. Simply stated, predictive analytics removes the guess work. It enables retailers and marketers to replace the shotgun approach with that of a skilled marksman. It enables them to use their data to understand who their customers are and what they want. It also assists them to use SMS messaging as a very personal form of messaging, which builds relationships. Because it enables them to personalise their offerings and target their customers, retailers are likely to achieve a much higher customer conversion rate. It makes much sense to target an existing customer who makes five purchases every month than to ‘cold call’ a complete stranger. Do you know which of your customers are going to respond to your SMS messaging, or are you content to continue using the shotgun marketing approach, where vendors are paid based on the SMS messages sent, rather than on a campaign’s success rate? As business people ourselves, we would far rather remove the guess work from our decisionmaking. We would far rather know who we are targeting, and the likely response rate or conversion rate than simply sit tight, fingers crossed, and hope for the best.
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INTHEKNOW
Beyond the Minimum Wage Focus
on paying a Living Wage Perceived overpayment of executives has become a highly divisive issue, and is fuelling antagonism between labour and employers. It has also become a political football. But the underlying cause for the bitter resentment is the fact that the lowest paid workers are often unable to live decent lives. “The real issue we should be confronting is not just the minimum wage but what a Living Wage is, and how to begin paying it,” says Martin Hopkins, an Executive Committee Member at the South African Reward Association (SARA) and a partner at PWC in the People & Organisation practice.
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he Minimum Wage is a statutory minimum that all employers must pay, whereas the Living Wage is a generally higher level of income that can provide for a “frugal but dignified life” for the employee and his or her nearest dependants. Paying a Living Wage is usually a voluntary measure adopted by an employer. “Companies should see paying a living wage as a strategic imperative that will improve employee engagement, improve relations with important stakeholders and contribute to social stability,” says Hopkins.
working poor are a destabilising force both in the company and in society in general because they support perceptions that ‘the system’ is unfairly biased towards those at the top. “However, we should not lose sight of the fact that there are relatively few people equipped to lead a large company, where the slightest miscalculation can have devastating consequences for share- and stakeholders,” says Hopkins. “These executives are global, so a company that does not pay the market rate runs the risk of losing its top talent.”
National minimum wage debate In South Africa at present, minimum wages are set by sector. There is a body of opinion that argues the need for a national minimum wage which, Hopkins says, would probably be between R3 500 and R3 700 per month. Whether a national minimum wage would have a positive or negative effect on unemployment generally is a hotly contested point. However, it needs to be recognised that just paying the minimum wage creates a category of the ‘working poor’, people who simply do not have enough to live decent lives, and cannot afford to educate their children properly. The
Balancing both sides Balancing the need to retain and incentivise top executives with the moral imperative to treat the lower paid workers fairly is one of the biggest challenges for remuneration committees, says Hopkins. It is clear from the draft of King IV that the ethical implications of remuneration are to become part of the governance landscape. King IV gives remuneration committees the responsibility to ensure ‘fair and responsible remuneration’ within the context of the wage gap between executives and the lowest-paid employees.
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The argument for paying a Living Wage Hopkins argues that remuneration policies should be seen as contributing to the company’s social licence to operate. It’s no mistake that in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals - “inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all” - are linked, he says. The United Kingdom-based Living Wage Foundation cites an independent study showing that it improves the quality of work, reduces absenteeism, and enhances recruitment and retention. Seventy-five percent of employees reported that the quality of work they delivered improved as a result of being paid a living wage, while 50 percent said it predisposed them to adopt changes in their working practices. “One should not underestimate the challenges that many companies would face in paying a Living Wage, which would be significantly higher than the Minimum Wage but, equally, one should not lose sight of the fact that it is imperative in order to rebuild social trust in business, and to defuse the antagonism that has built up between labour and employers—something that is impeding growth,” Hopkins concludes. “We need a neutral, non-partisan body to be established to develop a rigorous methodology for establishing just what a Living Wage is, to advocate its implementation, especially in large profitable companies, and to conduct studies that measure its benefits.”
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Business Intelligence waste of time or
way of the
? Imagine a company where the CEO walks into his office at 8am and spends just 30 minutes on his strategic dashboard. Imagine that in these mere 30 minutes he is able to know exactly what sales are in the pipeline; what problems there are in the factory; where HR is in terms of recruitment; what the latest capital expenditure is; the progress of strategic projects and; the latest competitor news that has been gathered from social media. This no longer needs to be imagined by executive teams because with Business Intelligence it is a reality that is at our fingertips, explains Jeremy Hurter CA (SA), CFO at BIPB.
T
here is a common misconception in the business world, particularly in South Africa, about what Business Intelligence (BI) is and the extent to which it can impact on business if implemented and used properly. In terms of BI strategy, there are four types that have been observed in the market: None, Outdated, Accidental and Purposeful. In the case of “none”, many companies are recording transactions and going about their business but are not analysing their data in any detail. With regards to the ‘outdated’ category, these enterprises use spreadsheets and very expensive, rigid reporting technologies to try and develop some BI capabilities. These companies often have large IT departments and BI teams but are not able to deliver what the business needs. The ‘accidental’ group are businesses which have had some great data fall into their laps and have capitalised on it or, have some smart business employee who develops their BI in an extremely tactical way but with very few rules around data governance. Finally, the very rare and elite ‘purposeful’ group, includes businesses that have developed their BI to support and guide their strategy.
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Business Intelligence can be both a strategy and a tool to support the strategy execution process. The key is to identify pieces of information that are needed in order to ensure that the company is on track every day to achieve the strategy. If you really simplify it, a CEO will present a strategy and budget to the company stakeholders before the year starts. He then has to walk into the boardroom after the year ends and tell the board whether the company has achieved the goals set out in that strategy. That is really the CEO’s whole job: if he gets that right and the company meets or exceeds its goals everyone wins. If we were able to predict this, can you imagine how revolutionary it would be? This would mean no managers running around all day crunching spreadsheets and compiling PowerPoint slide presentations, as they too would be able to access their BI and know how their teams are performing. People would finally be focused on doing their jobs, rather than being stuck in meetings all day. In my past life, as a CFO working for other corporates, I was astounded at how much time was spent in meetings and preparing reports where executives fed back information
INTHEKNOW
Business Intelligence can be both a strategy and a tool to support the strategy execution process.
from their various units. All this time combined kept them away from doing the jobs they were called to do, often resulting in their actual work being done after hours. Effective BI promises to change all this. I am talking about all of the information a CEO needs to know about how the company is doing in terms of the strategy that he has set. All of this critical strategic information gathered, without human intervention, after it has been captured in the source systems. It stands to reason that if your CEO can know every day how he is doing in terms of meeting his company’s strategy, he will be able to either know that he is on track or, if he is not, he can start to make decisions supported by the information to adjust the business levers to get back on track. Good data is critical for making great decisions. I think of the data held in an organisation as the organisational memory. Every time a transaction is recorded or, some piece of master data is recorded, it adds to this memory. So, in effect, this data probably knows more about a business than anyone else. If you then leverage this data with great BI, you can create another member of your executive committee/ board who tells you things and share insights with you in order make decisions that are based on facts. Add to this the new world of big data, social media analytics, machine learning and predictive analytics and you really have a cool robot to help drive you to success. However, the reality is that if you don’t get BI right, it can be a colossal waste of time and resources and, quite frankly, you shouldn’t even bother. Peter Drucker said that “Culture eats
strategy for lunch”, and it’s quite true. If your strategy does not fit with the company culture, it will fail. As such, a good strategy is to try and get the culture to fit the strategy. It is really difficult for a company that is conservative and old fashioned to suddenly become the next unicorn start up in Silicon Valley. There are a number of other reasons why BI initiatives don’t work. One of the major causes is when the initiative is led by IT and not business. This leads to a number of disconnects. However, this is not always the fault of IT. Many Execs and CEO’s automatically hand off the BI projects to IT and expect them to deliver a good result with minimal input. IT may have the technical skills to effectively deliver on them but, for obvious reasons, this is a major problem because BI is a business requirement and must be led by your business leaders. So, how do we get this right? Well, firstly you need to make sure you identify what is needed to measure in order to check that you’re on track. This involves setting Key performance Indicators – KPI’s. The general guideline for this is to use SMART principals to do this. In order to be successful, KPI’s must be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-based. The place this starts is right at the lowest level of the organisation when data is captured. It really frustrates me when I go into a retailer and they have a system meant to capture data about the customer but the person doing it tries their best to avoid this process. As a result, things like addresses or contact numbers are not captured or are captured erroneously. The overall business trend that’s been identified this year is that data is becoming appreciated as something businesses of all sizes can now use to give them a competitive advantage. The challenge is how they harness the power of this asset. Furthermore, the volume of data being generated is ever increasing. Companies are faced with the dilemma of how to make sense of the massive amounts of data that’s being constantly generated and how to differentiate between what is valuable data versus what isn’t. That is where a company who specialises in BI solutions comes in. BIPB, for instance, pride ourselves on being business led with our BI solutions and specialise in assisting companies in making informed decisions based on massive amounts of data that they own, to help improve operational efficiencies and their bottom lines. In short, BI is the way of the future and Executive Committees that have the vision to use this powerful tool will undoubtedly be among the top performing businesses in their sectors.
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The rise of the
digitally
enhanced
leader By Joanne Doyle-Went, Workforce Engagement Lead at Deloitte Digital Africa
Imagine the transformation a business could undergo should its leaders have accurate empirical data that highlights the aspects of the workplace environment, and the behaviours of the people within it that enable or inhibit productivity at the individual, team and organisational levels. Imagine having this data more frequently and as real-time pulse checks instead of through archaic annual engagement surveys.
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ost leaders already measure some aspect of the performance or well-being of their organisations and people. Periodic performance reviews are one example. However, the information these approaches generate has been shown to be often highly subjective. The interventions that flow from them also aren’t timely enough and adopt a one-size-fits-all approach that leaves the needs of too many individuals unmet. Digital technologies allow for this. I do not mean just wearables and smartphones. There is, at present, a fastgrowing list of networkable devices – dubbed the ‘internet of things’ – that make it easier to quantify ourselves and measure the parameters of our experiences that affect performance. Equipped with software, sensors and connectivity, devices such as Apple Watch and FitBit join a list of other social, mobile, analytics and cloud (SMAC) technologies meant to help people monitor, measure and improve aspects of their well-being. At the moment, the main focus for most manufacturers of these devices is on personal health and sporting activities, and is heavily consumer oriented. But these devices have the potential to do much more than measure sleep patterns, resting heartrate or steps walked. In concert with similar technologies, they can give empirical data-gathering rigour to the centuries old practice of people analytics – that is, measuring people at work to achieve specific business
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outcomes. These technologies can generate accurate, real-time business-to-staff intelligence that leaders can use to transform the workplace into a more sustainably productive place to be. The difficulty is knowing what to measure and how to respond to it, given the pace at which new devices, tools and approaches are being introduced. In my experience, the energy state of people in an organisation intersects just about every aspect of their work experience, be it productivity, well-being or how engaged they are by their dayto-day tasks. Measuring and understanding the aspects of the workplace environment and individual behaviours that boost or drain energy at the individual, team and organisational levels is a powerful analytical framework for leaders. When this framework is combined with technologies that offer real-time, accurate data, it provides leaders with a rational, scientific and measurable basis to devise interventions that improve their own, their people’s and the organisation’s performance. The volume of data and quality of information these technologies generate about people at work and the workplace environment itself is bound to grow in the coming years, especially once concerns about privacy are addressed. And this is sure to present leaders that have developed the capacity to harness this business-to-staff intelligence with a competitive edge, one that could make the difference between being toppled or crowned by the digital revolution.
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Spotlight
Steve BRINGS HEALTH BACK TO FITNESS Dream Body Fitness may just seem like another gym in an already oversaturated fitness market, yet if you take a closer look at owner and founder Steve Mululu or ‘Big Steve’ a little closer you’ll find that there’s an element to it that is often missing in today’s fad workouts and quick-fix diets: health.
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part for having a dream body himself, Big Steve has been in the gym industry for over 25 years. Looking around him, he realised that despite South Africa having one of the highest concentration of gyms in the world, it has one of the fattest and sickest populations. “There is a huge disparity between what you expect to get out of joining a gym and the reality. If you look around you at a gym, how many healthy and fit looking people do you see? The answer is not a lot,” Steve explains. He realised that the solution lies in education. There are so many fitness workouts and diets out there that it leaves South Africans confused, over-burdened with information and fatter than before. If you Google Diets, you get almost 5000 different diet books. This was why Dream Body Fitness was born five years ago – a fitness institution that would be synonymous with health. With a strong belief that what you put into life is what you get out, Steve is a certified National Federation of Personal Trainers (NFPT) personal trainer. He’s also a professional body builder and has a few South African Provincial Championships under his belt. His goal is to help as many people as possible commit to a healthier and happier lifestyle. Steve’s super power is remembering people’s names, which goes a very long way in his business. He says, “People like to be called by their name and have their stories remembered. It’s very important and will take your business far.” On top of this, he is also caring and kind, while striving for excellence in everything that he does. If Steve was shipwrecked, apart from food and water, all that he would need are his dogs with him. With the mindset that by focusing and being grateful for what you have in front of you, you will always be wealthy, it’s no wonder that his joy comes from the simple things. His philosophy is that he can make the world fitter one person at a time by teaching each individual how to train and eat right with balance, energy and the right attitude. He also believes in providing a life-long process of assuming responsibility that empowers the individual to exercise.
Steve Mululu, owner and founder, Dream Body Fitness
Spotlight
Success comes naturally when your business reflects your personal values
Judy Woodgate, founder and CEO of natural water bottler, Tsitsikamma Crystal Spring Water, believes that her company is successful because it serves and supports core human values.
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hese values are represented by the company’s product. Sourced from a quartzite aquifer high in a mountain on the Woodgate’s dairy farm, well above any possibility of contamination by farming or other activity, it is known for its purity and soothing, pleasant taste. “In other words, as the best possible quality of entirely natural water, it shows both respect for the customer and honours the extraordinary processes of nature,” Mrs Woodgate says. “It’s a privilege to have such a product as the basis of one’s business.” Inclusive and supportive The product’s origins are also deeply connected to the Woodgate’s journey of personal care-giving. The business was started as a means of creating the additional income needed by the young Woodgate couple to offset the medical and educational costs incurred by the purchase of equipment and payment of assistants to facilitate his education. By the time they got their business off the ground, their son was eight years old and education was becoming costly. “We had built up one tiny dairy operation from 12 cows to the point where we could move to our current operation in the Tsitsikamma,” Mrs Woodgate says. “But, we were a long way from being profitable. We needed our land to provide for us in other ways – and that’s what the aquifer has done.”
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Judy Woodgate, founder and CEO of natural water bottler, Tsitsikamma Crystal Spring Water
“Today, it sustains not just us, but some 50 jobs in an area dominated by highly mechanised dairy farming that offers very little employment. “Just by putting regular wages in the pockets of our staff members, we’ve been able not only to directly support 184 people, a number that includes our staff and their family members who are 100% dependent on Tsitsikamma Crystal for their livelihood, but also to reduce crime in the local community,” Mrs Woodgate says. “People who are not hungry and have a place to live have no need to steal from others.” For the Woodgates, Tsitsikamma Crystal Spring Water is more than just a business. It’s a means of creating value at all the essential levels of ordinary people’s lives. It is a vehicle for good. “When your intentions are wholly good, life gives you more,” Mrs Woodgate says. Giving it all you’ve got Establishing the business was not easy, however. Now 19 years old, the business started out with Mrs Woodgate and one or two employees hand bottling the water and Mrs Woodgate making all the deliveries. “For the first eight years, mine and my husband’s average working day was 12 to 18 hours long.” Mrs Woodgate says. “As owners, we took no salaries because we ploughed every cent of profit into growing the business. Even today, we are not the highest paid people in the company. And, during those early years, we walked a constant financial tightrope, not knowing from month to month whether we would make it.” The biggest financial strain came after the Woodgates took finance to the value of R13.5 million from Standard Bank in 2007 to pay for equipment that would allow them to replace
small equipment with double the filling capacity and, thereby, increase sales volumes and, consequently, profitability. They also started manufacturing their own bottles. “A loan we had taken in 2004, to move from hand bottling to a mechanised production line, was stressful enough,” Mrs Woodgate says. “But, when we applied for the additional finance in 2007, our financial advisor said the bank would never agree to it because our business was too small. When the bank did approve the loan, he said we were foolish to continue and threatened to resign as our advisor. All of which caused us enormous anxiety. We went ahead only because we had always been extremely careful in working out our business plans and has always achieved the budgets laid out for the bank. “Then the 2008 global financial crisis hit and our market shrank significantly. The sales we had planned on didn’t materialise. But, through sheer hard work, ensuring that we exploited every possible form of efficiency, and believing in the value of the business to the local community, we pulled through.” Currently, Tsitsikamma Crystal Spring Water is among the market leaders in the Eastern Cape and also supplies Western Cape, Free State and Gauteng. Continuously escalating transport costs make distribution in the more distant provinces expensive, but the company is developing a national footprint. Priorities “We did not set out nor do we need to be a mega business,” Mrs Woodgate says. “Our hard work and commitment has given us the results that matter to us. We are in close contact with our daughter, who is our Western Cape regional sales manager. We have lunch daily with our son, who manages the dairy farm. “We have close relationships with our employees whom we’ve seen grow in capability to the point where they could very comfortably run the business while my husband and I took a bucket list trip through Africa for a year. “We are contributors to and beneficiaries of the well-being of the local community. We are able to protect the aquifer that supports all of these positive outcomes. We’ve never let down any of the large and small businesses that have enabled us to grow. And we’ve put in place securities that will see the business continue when we die. The people who have worked here deserve to have their livelihood guaranteed. “What more could we ask for?” Mrs Woodgate’s advice for people looking to start a small business is ‘crystal’ clear. “Don’t think about being an entrepreneur if you’re not prepared to invest for the long term everything you have and everything you are. A small business is an expression of your values. If you set out to do the right thing for the right reasons, you will succeed.”
BMW X1 Still number 1 for small SAV’s
by Carl Wepener
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From the first moment I acquainted myself with the previous BMW X1 was impressed and enjoyed the X1 in most driving conditions.
he new BMW X1 treats the premium compact segment to an even more potent shot of Sports Activity Vehicle DNA. The interior of the new BMW X1, meanwhile, offers significantly more space for passengers and luggage, a cutting-edge premium ambience and functionality grounded in solid engineering. Four-cylinder engines from the BMW Group’s latest generation of power units, an efficiencyoptimised version of the BMW xDrive intelligent all-wheeldrive system and newly developed chassis technology all help to palpably enhance sporting ability and ride comfort. A host of innovative equipment features also help to secure the new BMW X1 its stand-out position in the segment. Among the items on the options list are full-LED headlights, Dynamic Damper Control, the BMW Head-Up Display and the Driving Assist Plus system. Rugged proportions, a powerful presence highlight its status as the youngest member of the BMW X model family. The new model has grown in height compared to its
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predecessor (+53 millimetres), which has helped increase the spaciousness of the interior. And its significantly raised seating position (+36 millimetres at the front, +64 millimetres at the rear) optimises the driver’s view out over the road. Knee room in the rear has increased by 37 millimetres in standard specification and by up to 66 millimetres with the optionally adjustable rear seat, while the 505-litre boot capacity is 85 litres larger than that of its predecessor. Folding down the standard-fitted 40:20:40 rear seat backrest, which can also be specified in angle-adjustable form as an option, allows load capacity to be expanded to as much as 1,550 litres. The interior is typical of BMW’s design characteristics with a driver-focused cockpit design that has become a hallmark of the brand’s models with touches promoting authoritative, SAVstyle driving pleasure and a contemporary premium ambience. Standard equipment includes air conditioning, an audio system with USB and AUX-in sockets, and the iDrive operating system, whose 6.5-inch display is integrated into the instrument panel
in freestanding monitor form. Meanwhile, the Sport Line, xLi and M Sport packages available as an alternative to standard specification open the door for targeted individualisation. The second-generation BMW X1 (fuel consumption combined: 6.4–4.1 litres/100 km; CO2 emissions combined: 149–109 g/km) lines up with an all-new selection of engines. Two petrol and one diesel unit will be available, all of which have four cylinders and are members of the BMW Group’s new engine family. Outputs range from 100 kW to 170 kW. The engines link up with either a six-speed manual (sDrive 18i and sDrive20d only) or an eight-speed Steptronic unit (standard in all xDrive models and six-speed Steptronic unit in sDrive18i only), both of which are new developments. The xDrive intelligent all-wheel-drive system also takes its place in the new BMW X1. Joining the fray in the BMW X1 sDrive20i, meanwhile, is a front-wheel-drive construction which has been developed to deliver the driving dynamics typical of the brand and has already proved its mettle in the BMW 2 Series Active Tourer.
Significant advances in the field of intelligent connectivity has been made with the new addition of the Head-Up Display which projects driving-related information directly onto the windscreen. The BMW X1 can now also be specified with the Driving Assist Plus line-up of the Active Cruise Control system with Stop & Go function, Lane Departure Warning, Traffic Jam Assistant, Collision Warning and Approach Control Warning with City Braking function. These systems are complemented by an up-to-the-minute selection of apps allowing customers to add to the car’s comfort, navigation and infotainment functionality, as desired. With all of the abovementioned features the BMW X1 can be expensive but is really an enjoyable, good quality vehicle for clients that want the best.
Ford Everest, Refined, Luxurious and Rugged
by Carl Wepener
Having been the proud owner of the previous generation Ford Everest I looked forward to get the new Everest for a seven day test period. The bright red Everest was delivered and what immediately impressed me was the modern looks, the classy interior and the quality finish of the Everest. Driving the new Everest was like driving a luxurious sedan, so good was its manners and ride quality. The Everest is also very quiet as far as road and wind noise are concerned.
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he all-new Ford Everest was designed from the ground up with the durability to take on the most inhospitable environments. I found that the enhancements for the body-on-frame construction, intelligent four-wheel drive and an advanced Terrain Management System to help navigate challenging terrain, brings with it ease and confidence. The Everest is as secure for off road excursions as for daily on road driving. Together with an intelligent four-wheel drive system, an active transfer case with Torque on Demand and best-in-class ground clearance of 225mm and water-wading capability of 800mm, the Everest helps drivers navigate difficult terrain with ease. For ultimate capability, the advanced new Terrain Management System gives drivers four settings – Normal, Snow/Gravel/Grass, Sand and Rock– that alter the vehicle’s throttle response, transmission, intelligent four-wheel drive system and traction control to confidently tackle any situation. For extreme off-road environments, drivers can manually lock the transfer case in low-range four-wheel drive mode for increased control To ensure further enjoyment for town or highway driving the Everest have a SYNC®2, Active Park Assist, and segmentfirst Curve Control and Blind Spot Information System with Cross Traffic Alert. The exceptional capabilities of the all-new Ford Everest are made possible by the latest-generation 3.2-litre five-cylinder Duratorq TDCi turbodiesel engine which incorporates an advanced exhaust gas recirculation system to boost efficiency. It produces 147kW of power matched to an impressive 470Nm of torque, which makes the all-new Everest ideal for applications such as off-roading or towing. The 3.2-litre engine is matched to a durable and efficient six-speed automatic transmission that delivers smooth shifts and outstanding responsiveness – with the added benefit of a responsive Sport mode as well as a Manual mode for improved control.
to control the car’s entertainment system, climate control and connected mobile devices more easily than ever before. SYNC®2 also boasts an eight-inch touchscreen with colourcoded corners for easy menu navigation. The entertainment system features a top-end 10-speaker sound system with an integrated subwoofer, providing accurate and precise sound reproduction and deep, rich bass. Other segment-first technologies in the Everest include Curve Control, designed to help drivers maintain control when approaching turns too quickly, and Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) with Cross Traffic Alert on the Limited model, which informs drivers when there is a vehicle in their blind spot while driving or when preparing to reverse out of parking spots. The vehicle also offers other advanced features, including Roll Stability Control and an Electronic Stability Program that works with traction control to help the driver stay in control. Active Park Assist on the all-new Everest Limited enables drivers to parallel park hands-free, requiring only accelerating, shifting and braking from the driver.
Advanced technology for a smarter, safer drive The latest generation of Ford’s in-car connectivity solution, SYNC®2, recognises 10 000 natural voice commands
Smart and functional design The all-new Everest’s bold exterior presence is paired with a modern interior that makes use of refined materials and
emphasises horizontal lines to create a comfortable, harmonious environment for up to seven adult occupants. The Everest have a very spacious, modern interior with highquality craftsmanship that delivers a comfortable ride for up to seven passengers. The third row passengers may be a bit cramped if they are tall. The third row of seats is easily lowered by a powerfold function to form a completely flat load bed. The tailgate is powered taking the slog out of opening and closing it. The interior further features ride comfort with ultimate practicality, with standard folding second and third-row seating, more than 30 cleverly designed stowage spaces, multiple power outlets and flexible seating and cargo arrangements to achieve a perfect balance between passenger demands and packing efficiency. To ensure exceptional cabin quietness, Ford equipped the all-new Everest with Active Noise Cancellation technology in addition to optimizing cabin sealing and sound absorbing materials throughout the vehicle. Rich model line-up The all-new Everest is available in three specification levels, starting off with the XLS-spec 2.2 Auto 4x2, as well as the Manual 4x4 and 4x2. The 3.2 Auto 4x4 is available in XLT specification as well as the range-topping Limited guise. We in South Africa will have to wait for some of the models as only the following models are currently available. Everest 3.2 TDCi XLT 4x4 6AT Everest 3.2 TDCi Limited 4x4 6AT
from R634,900 from R698,900
The XLT is comprehensively packaged with features that customer’s value. This includes an exceptional level of safety features comprising seven airbags, driver assist technologies such as Electronic Stability Program (ESP) with Roll Stability Control, cruise control, as well as rear park assist with rear view camera. The XLT features 18-inch alloy wheels and running boards as standard. As the flagship of the all-new Everest range, the Limited model gains an extensive set of premium features including power-fold third row seats and powered tailgate, plus innovative driver aids such as Active Park Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control, Auto High Beam Control, Blind Spot Monitoring with Cross Traffic Alert, Tyre Pressure Monitoring, Lane Departure Warning and Lane Keep Assist. This model also includes the innovative new Terrain Management System. Exterior enhancements include 20-inch alloy wheels, high intensity discharge (HID) headlamps and LED daytime running lights. I have enjoyed my time with the new Ford Everest Limited as it is a far cry from the previous model. It may find itself too highly priced against the Toyota Fortuner as its contender but I am sure Ford has plans to set that right.
PRETTY. DEADLY. When Chinese Lanterns, also known as Sky Lanterns, are released from beaches, they are often mistaken foremergency distress flares. NSRI volunteers then launch rescue boats and spend hours looking for people in difficulty.
Chinese Lanterns are also harmful to the environment and are a fire hazard.
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It is widely debated that the term ‘success’ is relative. But with regards to the Zambian Auditor General Dr Anna Chifungula success was hers to have from as early as April 1975 when she joined the civil service and employed by the Department of Technical Education as a printer’s assistant. Apparently the feisty Anna was not content with being a mere assistant and so worked hard to climb up the corporate ladder. So it happened that a little over a year later the printer’s assistant’s perseverance paid off as she was transferred to the Ministry of Finance where she was re-graded as a clerical officer on accounting duties in the salaries section. She never looked back till she arrived at the top.
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A Reforms Pioneer by Andrew Ngozo
Dr Anna Chifungula Auditor General in Zambia
r Chifungula was appointed as the first female Auditor General for Zambia in 2003. Her ascendance to the office seemingly heralded the beginning of major reforms as late President Levy Mwanawasa kick-started his regime. She was the only chartered accountant for the entire establishment in 2003. Interestingly, she now heads the institution with more than 200 other professionals holding that qualification or better. A peek into her reign shows that Dr Chifungula could be ascribed as the pioneer of the reforms in the office following her appointment in July 2003. In a document dubbed ‘Working life for Anna O Chifungula,’ the Auditor General says, when she was appointed, the office had only 96 audit staff to cater for the entire country. “I felt as if I had been demoted coming to a place that looked more dead than alive, but (then) Secretary to Cabinet, Leslie Mbula convinced me to give it a try,” notes Dr Chifungula who, prior to that served as Ministry of Finance Permanent Secretary among other
2015/2016 top positions. Dr Chifungula says she immediately embarked on the recruitment of auditors because the 96 were too few, considering that the audit reports were four years behind. The morale among the workers was low while the institution was least funded and, therefore, she signed an agreement with the Norwegian government for financial and material assistance to the office.
Wings Spreading Far and Wide The staff requirement at the time was 214. In November 2003, 18 auditors from outside the civil service were recruited. “In December 2003, we managed to complete and edit the 2000/2001 and 2002 reports. This involved working with a team of 20 dedicated officers, who included my current Deputy Auditor General, Ron Mwambwa through the nights to produce those reports,” she says. The Auditor General then embarked on further recruitment and retraining of the officers with 200 new entrants reporting for work by April 1, 2005. Two Deputy Auditors General, seven directors, 11 deputy directors and nine assistant directors were also employed. New departments were further created, thereby increasing the staff establishment to 580 and with nearly 350 auditors mostly paid by the Norwegian Government. “Currently because of the continued assistance from the Netherlands and Norway, we have trained and retained 200 chartered accountants, who are ACCA, CIMA or ZICA professionals.” In 2008, provincial offices were built and the following year district auditors were also recruited for 36 districts. Currently, her office has 460 well-qualified auditors while the new buildings are able to accommodate all staff. In the last 10 years the office has produced all the reports on time, that is, by December 31 of each year. Special reports such as parastatal reports, performance, information technology audits and forensic audit reports are also being produced timely. In terms of coverage, Dr Chifungula says the audit has increased from 20% in 2003 to 85% in 2013. That figure is on a gradual rise. “I was awarded a life time achievement award by ACCA in 2008 and in 2013; the Zambia Institute of Chartered Accountants also bestowed such an award on me,” she says. For five years – from 2007 to 2012 – the office was appointed by the European Union (EU) to assist in the reconstitution of the Audit Office of Liberia. She says
that the work that has been put into the office has resulted in its recognition as it continues promoting good governance and accountability.
An Institution of Good Governance It is important to note that Dr Chifungula had long been busy with reforms prior to her appointment as the Auditor General. The list is endless but a few are worthy of a mention. In June 1998 she produced an Internal Audit professional guideline on the rules of conduct for Internal Auditors. In January, 1999 she formed a specialised unit within Internal Audit consisting of six fully trained officers in fraud investigations and audits. She points out: “In conjunction with the fraud unit of police headquarters, I, together with the six officers, was trained at the London Business School and at RIPA, United Kingdom as fraud investigators. The training was conducted by the serious frauds office of the United Kingdom.” The trained officers were all stationed at the Ministry of Finance and assigned whenever the need for such special investigations arose. What followed thereafter was a series of successful investigations. Working with Zambian Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) they travelled to the United Kingdom, United States of America and Mauritius to track down, three Zambian fraudsters involved in money laundering and theft of billions of Ministry of Education funds. “Some money was recovered in Mauritius and a number of Ministry of Education accounting staff members were sentenced to prison terms. The master mind, a Sambi Mumba was finally arrested by the FBI and convicted,” says Dr Chifungula. They also investigated the theft of oil by a cartel. A number of Indeni personnel were convicted over oil tankers which were supposed to be carrying oil to Zambia, only to have this oil stolen in transit. The tankers were being certified as having delivered the oil to Indeni when, in fact, they were coming empty. Zambia had lost colossal sums of money in this scam. After these, and many other milestones, the Zambian populace can rest assured that the office of the Auditor General will yet make many a breakthrough to ensure good, clean and corruption free governance. All the work put into the office has resulted in recognition of the office, which previously was almost unknown to an institution noted for the promotion of good governance and accountability.
2015/16
Stephen Rwangyezi, Founder and Executive Director of Ndere Foundation
He has been described as a fantastic storyteller with a compelling stage presence and the Encyclopaedia of Ugandan culture. Stephen Rwangyezi, the Founder and Executive Director of Ndere Foundation, is most famously known as the force behind the Ndere Cultural Centre and the Uganda Development Theatre Association. Internationally, he is perhaps better known for his role in the film The Last King of Scotland. A former school teacher turned rural agricultural economist, Rwangyezi was the Director of the Uganda National Theatre and Cultural Centre from 1990 to 1994. In 2006 he played the character of Jonah Waswa, Idi Amin’s Minister of Health, in the film Last King of Scotland. He is a published author, with a string of films and documentaries to his name.
Rebel with a Cause by Andrew Ngozo
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mos His venture into the arts industry was a practical response to a deep seated anger that had built inside Rwangyezi since childhood, he shares. “When I started the Ndere Troupe, I had two major goals. One was to restore dignity and integrity in the music and dance of Ugandan and African origin, and raise it to the status and look that it should be. For me, that loss of cultural pride was a disaster which led to the loss of selfconfidence and personal worthiness,” Rwangyezi explains. So one of his main goals was to ensure that pride and dignity could be rekindled through dignified and artistically beautified cultural activities. The second goal was to work with disadvantaged boys and girls. “Child labour kept me
out of school until I was 15 years old, but playing the flute got me into, and saw me through, school. Therefore, I wanted to organise boys and girls who had similar talents to mine and ensure that, rather than begging and moaning, they could utilise their talent capital to self-actualisation,” explains Rwangyezi. In 1987 he went to his village for a cousin’s wedding ceremony and was struck by the fact that there were groups of boys who feared HIV/AIDS, which, in those days, was known as ‘Slim’. He states that many people believed it was witchcraft but they had heard of something called a condom, which could kill Slim. So, the young men put some money together to buy one condom, and they used it in turns…. something that was useful was now becoming dangerous, he notes.
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Overcoming Odds “I then asked myself: How do I tell as many of these young people, as quickly as possible, that what they are doing is suicide? At that time in Uganda, there was only one newspaper, one radio station and only one TV station that only worked for four hours per day – all based in Kampala. Given that over 87% of the population lived beyond the last mile and were illiterate, I decided to use the familiar, attractive and friendly cultural music, dance and drama to spread the message,” Rwangyezi reveals and adds that, through these efforts, Uganda was later credited for having brought down the incidence of HIV/AIDS. It has been a long and arduous journey for Rwangyezi since then. One with the sole aim of making cultural dance and music a popular phenomenon in Uganda again; educating, informing, entertaining and providing employment opportunities simultaneously. “In order to achieve this, I had to
Throughout the entire colonial period and the post-colonial mismanagement, school, religions and government all worked hard to deliberately destroy Uganda’s cultural framework, elaborates Rwangyezi. “When I was growing up, The Idle and Disorderly Act forbade African dancing during the day. During the night, there was no electricity, so no one was looking at you dance. For that reason nobody developed the dances because you could only dance for yourself. The Witchcraft Act of 1957 was used to forbid the playing of drums and other traditional music instruments such as ensaasi (gourd rattles or shakers). Wearing of traditional attire and ornaments such as bark cloth and cowry shells was forbidden. These items were classified as witchcraft and therefore to be confiscated and destroyed by all law enforcing agents and law loving citizens – who inevitably were products of the same system. It was such factors that made me to rebel. I’ve always known that I’m rebelling. I find that
So one of his main goals was to ensure that pride and dignity could be rekindled through dignified and artistically beautified cultural activities. upgrade and update the artistic and design quality of the music and dances – to make them more organised and to appeal to contemporary and rather unaware tastes. It is important to note that previously, the church and school teaching derogated these arts and manipulated the law to prohibit public presentation of these arts. Therefore the only social dancing was at night – without light. This meant that no one bothered about the choreographic designs, costumes, stage organisations, melodic development etc.” Once the artistic spectacle became impressive, he spent many years trying to get Ugandans to appreciate the beauty within traditional dance. Secondly, every Sunday from 1988 to 2003 there was a free performance at the Kampala Serena Hotel. This, Rwangyezi articulates, helped to introduce these arts to the international communities, tourists and the middle class Ugandans that had returned from exile. States Rwangyezi: “The latter were rather nostalgic and keen to introduce their families to values they had long lost – and were therefore more receptive. This is how the audiences that now throng the Ndere Centre, hire us for social and corporate functions, or even invite us abroad, were cultivated.”
normally, people who create systems to conform to are doing it for totally other reasons. What preoccupies me is trying to resist manipulative destruction, read the signs correctly and communicate for people who can’t do it for themselves before it is too late. That is what motivates me,” he concludes.
Fast Facts about Rwangyezi • He has held the position of Founder and Executive Director of Ndere Foundation for 31 years • He managed and rehabilitated the Uganda National Cultural Centre (UNCC) and Ndere Troupe • Rwangyezi taught cultural arts in primary, secondary and teacher training colleges • In 2015 he launched The Institute of Indigenous Civilisations and Creative Industries, The Living Museum and the Nile ni Kwetu International Festival. CEO 2016 Vol 16.1
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InConversationWith What occupies your time outside work? Family, travel, art, golf and tennis. I am essentailly a touchline dad and spend most of the weekend watching my kids from the sidelines. Favourite music? A broad selection but if I look at what I spend most of my Spotify time on it would be the Dave Matthews Band, Beirut, and any suggestions that Spotify takes me to.
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Grant Theis Grant Theis has been trailblazing through leading edge technologies over the past 10 years. In fact, creating a business out of these technologies is what gets him up in the morning. As the executive director and chief strategist for Fastcomm and the co-founder of ttrumpet, Theis heads up the App’s Factory and is a thought leader for the group given his 25 years’ experience in telecoms, internet and broadcasting. What is the value of assets under your control? R500m What is the number of employees in your organisation? 50 What does a typical working day entail? We are an internet company that is always working on bleeding edge technologies and often technologies or applications that do not even exist. So a lot of my time is spent figuring out markets and products that we should be in or be developing. So strategy takes up a lot of my time. I have a few direct reports that I deal with on a daily basis for all the daily operational issues.
What was your dream job as a child? Sports professional (I didn’t come close!) What would you be if you weren’t in your current position? I would probably be involved in modern art in some form or another. What three things would you take with you to a deserted island? Spotify, a sand wedge and ball, and a pack of cards for solitaire. What are you reading? Wired Magazine Five people you’d invite to dinner? Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Dave Matthews, Richard Dawkins and Ricky Gervais Three words to describe your leadership style? Trust, integrity, boldness What led you to your current career path? The first job I got 27 years ago was for a Telco in the UK. I didn’t set out to work for a technology company but grew to love the constant innovation and contribution to society so I just stuck with the industry. What advice would you give to someone aspiring to your position? If you are scared of losing then this job is not for you. What do you know for sure? You spend a lot of time at work. If the thought of work everyday starts to become a drag then you need to get out as quick as possible. You have to enjoy what you do for the majority of your day.
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