Titans Regional Digital Magazine 2018

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A

s much as we recognise and celebrate the great women in Africa it is just as crucial to recognise the Titans who are building Nations. The following pages are filled with inspiring men who have followed their dreams and made them a reality. They have excelled significantly within their sectors and in turn serve as examples to others who want to achieve the same level of success.

These men are ethical leaders in business and government who have an innate desire to make a difference for the benefit of our economy and communities. Titans is proud to be partnered with such giants in government and business and we are excited to see what the future holds.

We hope that the younger generation is inspired by these remarkable men to use their own talents and abilities to serve others and build their communities by contributing to economic growth and the overall wellbeing of others.

It is with humble gratitude that I thank our partners for their belief in this programme and publication. It is through them that my dream of recognising men in Africa has become a reality. Not only have they supported our brand, they are also committed to the recognition of Titans who are building nations!

SME DEVELOPMENT PARTNER

FRAMING PARTNER

Yours sincerely Annelize Wepener Chief Executive: CEO Global

2018 1

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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

who’s who in the zoo

African spirit

2018/2019

Embracing the

Chief Executive Annelize Wepener annelizew@ceomag.co.za

Personal Assistant to the Chief Executive Betty Yengo bettyy@ceomag.co.za

Throughout CEO Global’s existence, we have always valued the upliftment and celebration of those positively making waves in our economies and communities. This calling has always led us to the upliftment and celebration of women, as well as men. African men in business and government are making major strides in the upliftment of women and other majority groups as well as vastly contributing to economic development and growth.

For these reasons it has become important for CEO Global to recognise these feats as they are equally beneficial to us and our continental counterparts as are the efforts of African women.

Men across the continent have laid the foundations of business for future generations to enjoy. These determinations are making the continuity of economic growth more plausible.

This year we once again look forward to sharing the amazing works of Africa’s men with the public. Men play a key role within the economy and they can also play a pivotal role in supporting women within their respective fields to achieve their true potential. Men should see it as their duty to advance equality.

It shouldn’t be seen as competition or a threat but rather an opportunity to share the spotlight.

As much as men achieve amazing things each and every single day, so do women, but they need men to acknowledge their abilities and achievements – as equals, not as someone less worthy. This by no means implies that this is what men do, but women are fighting hard to find their place in the world of business. Both men and women need and deserve recognition for what they contribute. Men truly have a unique and incredibly important role to play, and we celebrate the following men who have proven they have what it takes to achieve success but also serve as proud leaders – making the continent a better place to live each day.

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Director: Strategic Development & Editor in Chief Valdi Pereira valdip@ceomag.co.za Director: Corporate & Financial Services Carl Wepener carlw@ceomag.co.za Business Development Manager Amesh Bisram ameshb@ceomag.co.za

General Manager: Global Services George Wepener georgew@ceomag.co.za

General Manager: Global Media Services/ Head of Production Channette Raath channetter@ceomag.co.za Editor Charmain Pieterse charmainp@ceomag.co.za Editorial Team Abigail Moyo abigialm@ceomag.co.za Lakhe Thwala lakhet@ceomag.co.za

Motion Graphic Designer Senku Segoapa senkus@ceomag.co.za CEO Class Administrator Nyahsa Rugara nyashar@ceomag.co.za Letlotlo Rampete letlotlor@ceomag.co.za

Tawanda Mandizvidza tawandam@ceomag.co.za

Manager: Corporate Support Raymond Mauelele raymondm@ceomag.co.za

* 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.

EXECUTIVE COACHING “Most leaders who have risen to the highest levels know that their experience, knowledge, qualifications and expertise are no longer the most important factors for continued success, but how they lead.

In my executive coaching I follow a process that enables the leader to make changes where it matters most for increased leadership effectiveness.

Contact me for face to face or online coaching and let us explore your unique potential for increased effectiveness and success.”

Award winning executive coach • 2015 Titans Building Nations - Country Winner (CEO Magazine) • 2017 Top 100 Global Coach award winner (World HRD Congress) • 2017 Best in Executive coaching SA (Acquisition International) “Gerhard is a phenomenal coach. His endlessly deep insight into human nature, behaviour and relationships has had an immense impact on my life. I cherish every moment I share with him and look forward to the journey ahead!”

“The exceptional pragmatic approach applied by Gerhard are a unique skill to be experienced. In looking back at the impact his coaching has had on the business, it is one of the most crucial programmes we embarked on.”

“I have seen a marked improvement in team interactions, individuals’ self awareness and motivation. This must be attributed largely to Gerhard’s process, his calm and reassuring manner and his unthreatening and approachable way.”

“Gerhard has the wisdom and integrity to ensure open dialogue. His experience evidenced in his gentle yet direct manner in asking the right questions of a situation and eliciting the correct motivational elements required for change.”

“These sessions with you should have started twenty years ago … You coached me to see everything in a different way, for which I am truly grateful.”

http://www.newlead.co.za/

gerhard@neweraleadership.co.za

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gerhardvanrensburg/

CONTE THE LEADING EDGE

Leading Edge

10

CASE IN POINT Pacinamix - A new breed of specialist consultants The Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa Thebe Investment Corporation – Making a lasting Difference Thebe Investment Corporation - Media Growth and Development Thebe Investment Corporation – Focused on Travel & Tourism

60 124 140 142 144

X &Y FACTOR Annelize Wepener 6 Insights from Yvonne Finch – Embracing Innovation & change 8 Patron – Commander Tsietsi Mokhele 9

SUSTAIN ABILITY Drought Disaster: Natural or Man-made?

44 How many jobs will be lost to technology?

52 Invoice fraud targets both businesses and individuals 66 Why risk managers are so interested in flexible working 88 Workplace Wellness 105

SKILLSTRANSFER How leaders build effective teams through management and teamwork 32 Ethics 101: Morals at work 73 Why SMME’s fail 96 How to be an effective mentor 100 Supply chain Infrastructure solutions for Africa 110 Angels & Demons: what to know when negotiating equity funding for your start-up 156

ENTS EMPOWERED LEADERSHIP

It’s time for Africa’s Enterprises to embrace Gen Z Not ticking anyone off? Then you just aren’t trying hard enough Employee training is key to growing an organisation How customer experience impacts bottom line growth

48 78 92 128

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE Is the customer always right? 154

LIFESTYLE Porsche Carrera T for Touring 39 Mercedes Benz X Class: The X factor or not?

116 Kenya Inland tour is the way to go 150

Country& Regional Awards Lifetime Achiever 12 Agencies & Regulatory Authorities 22 Agriculture 28 Arts & Culture 34 Automotive and Components 42 Aviation 46 Building & Construction 50 Business/Professional Services 54 Chemical, Pharmaceutical & Petrochemical 62 Education and Training: Private 74 Education & Training: Academic 68 Financial Services 82 Government Employed Officials 90 ICT 94 Logistics and Shipping 98 Manufacturing and Engineering 102 Mining 108 Media 112 Medical & Veterinary 120 Public Enterprises 126 SME 130 Tourism & Leisure 136 Welfare 146

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X&Y FACTOR

6 2018 TITANS

X&Y FACTOR

Building

a continent T

I recently read a very enlightening article on the numerous traits of Unstoppable People. Needless to say, these are the very traits that are evident in our award winners within all the sectors. These individuals believe in themselves, have a clear vision of what they want to achieve, they take firm action and they persist through life’s storms.

hey are also fully committed to their goals, are motivated from within and surround themselves with high achievers. These are just a few of the traits identified, but it becomes clear that to achieve success, you have to be focused, driven and passionate. You cannot achieve success otherwise. You have to want something with your entire being and be willing to sacrifice in order to achieve your dreams.

Excelling in what you do and in what you want to do is crucial. That is why the following individuals are considered winners in their respective fields. We want to encourage you to continue taking giant leaps within your respective fields and setting examples to others.

You are building your companies or your personal skills sets, and in turn you are building your nation and invariably your continent.

Africa, now is the time to build your dreams. It is time to claim your spot in the limelight as the continent continues to churn out brilliant leaders every single day. This is not the time to take a step back or allow others to stand in the way of your dream; claim what is rightfully yours.

Africa needs confidence in its ability to produce products and services that are innovative and unique and driven by technology – all crucial elements when looking to achieve success in the world of business today. This is exciting times for the African continent.

It is busy evolving into a powerhouse and Brand Africa will be a significant one in the not so distant future.

Throughout all of this rapid change and growth, CEO Global is there to play a paramount role through our programmes that recognises your fellow peers. In this manner we help to uncover the true potential of Africa.

We are excited to be with you on this journey, and we are inspired by your achievements. Africa is the place to be right now and the whole world is casting their eyes on the continent. It takes small steps daily to achieve big goals, and your dreams are helping to build your economy daily. The following men are prime examples of what it takes to achieve success. We congratulate you for taking a stand and building this beautiful continent.

May you continue to inspire those around you and help others to build their dreams too.

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X&Y FACTOR

Embracing innovation change

Digital disruption, artificial intelligence, the fourth industrial revolution – these are all buzzwords in the world of business today, and for very good reason. Characterised by the mass adoption of digital technologies and innovations is at the heart of the fourth industrial revolution, as is the awareness of how fast our world is changing and how small it has become.

D

uring this time of significant change we not only need to reflect on these things that influence our lives, our careers and businesses, but also need to take heed of the importance that leaders play in ensuring the smooth transition of these disruptive forces and technologies.

Technology and innovation form the very foundation of most of these trends, and true leaders embrace the opportunity to use both in a manner that will ensure the sustainability of their businesses. You cannot move towards something positive without embracing innovative ideas that rely on technology to create something new. The word new is key here; and this years’ Titans are doing exactly that – they are focused on creating something new, something innovative, and something that utilises all forms of technology. As such they are ready for whatever the future throws their way, irrespective of the challenges and numerous obstacles, of which there are many.

We hear that business leaders must be agile, that volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambigu-

ity can be characteristics for organisational failure and that if we aren’t prepared to be disruptive we will fall behind in achieving client expectations. Our 2018 Titans are proving that they are fearless in this ever changing world; that they are prepared to be disruptive before they are disrupted.

This is good news for the African continent as it is vital that the continent is seen to be a significant business player on the global stage. The Titans awarded in 2018 are utilising their skills with tenacity and a calm commitment. Each is a role model in his environment, and each understands that the journey to sustainable success is paved through collaboration.

Yvonne is an expert in human capital development and plays a pivotal role in developing mentorship programmes internationally. She is also passionate about seeing people reach their potential and attain their dreams.

Yvonne Finch

Each is a role model in his environment, and each understands that the journey to sustainable success is paved through collaboration.

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X&Y FACTOR

A focus on equality

Men can play a key role in contributing to the development of women without forsaking their own positions. Too often the men versus women debate focuses on each group separately, where one has to be a winner and another a loser.

Why can’t men and women add to the value of each other’s careers without feeling as if they are being negatively impacted in the process? Yes, there is the fear that the gap between men and women is becoming larger as opposed to smaller, but let’s rather highlight what each can do for the other without suffering in the process.

M

en in leadership or senior positions can take responsibility for ensuring that more women are employed in leadership roles and are welcomed into the boardrooms. Unfortunately, when the economy takes strain, everyone is in survival modes. This is usually when programmes to advance women is neglected or put to one side. However, when the economy is doing well, organisations usually open up their companies and add additional positions to their boards. I am hoping that we don’t find ourselves so far back while the economy is taking strain that it is too difficult to recover. Women need to be part of these recovery efforts. They need to be uplifted to a better platform of commerce, economics and politics. At the same time, it shouldn’t become a woman agenda; those with the abilities should form part of the mainstream, irrespective of their gender.

Women in powerful positions have proven they can do the job, and they can do it well. Why then would there be any hesitance to employ women as

your fellow colleagues and within senior positions?

Why should gender dictate what somebody is or isn’t capable of? The same goes for the pay gap between men and women. If we look through glasses of equality, none of these things would be issues, and yet they are. Men can play a key role in driving the needs of women in business so that the issue of equality becomes a given within any organisation or business.

The key message for the winners and finalists this year is to remember that they can contribute to the ongoing development of women without suffering in the process. Focus on supporting women in leadership roles within business and encouraging the advancement of women in senior positions. Equality isn’t a threat; colleagues – both men and women – can support each other to achieve success and to excel within their respective positions. Once this happens the future will continue to look bright for men and women.

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Dr Imtiaz Ismail Sooliman, Founder of Gift of the Givers Foundation

Hope-Driven

by Charmain Pieterse

Leader

Dr Imtiaz Sooliman is a truly remarkable man and has created innovations that have benefitted millions of lives. He respects those in need and makes it his personal mission to positively affect their lives, no matter what it takes and irrespective of any challenges that lay ahead. Learning about him is inspiring and teaches you a very big lesson indeed; we can all do more to help others and make a difference, and there really is no excuse. If you learn more about Dr Sooliman you will begin to appreciate that there are no boundaries when it comes to in essence saving others and saving lives. His story is enough to inspire anyone to reach out and make a difference, however small, because no small act of kindness goes unnoticed. Dr Sooliman is most certainly one of SA’s busiest and most hard-working human-aid advocates.

10 2018 TITANS

LEADINGEDGE

He may not practise medicine anymore, but he says that his medical knowledge has been immensely helpful in his field, which includes setting up hospitals and aiding the ill or wounded.

F

rom his early beginnings in Potchefstroom in the North-West Province to commandeering the largest disaster relief organisation in Africa, Dr Sooliman has always embraced the opportunity to take on new challenges. His dream was to become a doctor and after graduating in 1984, Dr Sooliman completed his community service at King Edward Hospital, then moved to Pietermaritzburg where he opened up a private practise in 1986. He may not practise medicine anymore, but he says that his medical knowledge has been immensely helpful in his field, which includes setting up hospitals and aiding the ill or wounded.

Social work has been a high priority for him since the beginning of his career; he became involved with the Isalmic Medical Association (IMASA), and provided assistance during the Gulf War and the catastrophic Bangladesh cyclone, both in 1991. While travelling to the disaster-hit cyclonic country via Turkey, a chance meeting brought Dr Sooliman face-to-face with a Sufi sheikh and spiritual teacher; a meeting that changed the course of his life forever. The learned sheikh taught him to understand the spiritual side of Islam, stating that “love, compassion and human dignity override every other law in Islamic teaching.”

Under the advice of his sheikh, Dr Sooliman started Gift of the Givers in August 1992. Building this colossal organisation from the ground up, Gift of the Givers has made far-reaching changes to the lives of the needy and destitute in South Africa and the rest of the world. With 21 different categories of assistance, the NGO has delivered aid to blocked regions in Yemen, drought-lashed countries in Africa and runs two of the biggest hospitals in northern Syria, managed by 230 staff members.

Dr Sooliman has numerous achievements to date. He designed and developed the world’s first and only containarised mobile hospital of its kind in 1993, deployed in Bosnia and compared

by CNN to any of the best hospitals in Europe. He designed the world’s first containarised primary healthcare unit in 1994. He innovated the world’s first groundnut-soya high energy and protein supplement (Sibusiso Ready Food Supplement) in 2004, ideal in conditions of HIV/AIDS, TB, Malnutrition, Cancer and various debilitating conditions. He also developed Africa’s largest open source computer lab in 2007 and deployed it in Northbury Secondary School in Pietermaritzburg.

Dr Sooliman advises that money isn’t a requirement to help people. Imparting your skills or knowledge to others is just as important. He highlights that the youth can empower other students simply by tutoring them as this will have a positive impact on their lives.

Dr Sooliman replies that he has no worldly desires and the only thing that satisfies him is serving others. “The less you have, the better it is,” he concludes. “I have no desire for other stuff because it’s not real. Human suffering is real.”

Dr Sooliman is a wise man who feels for those in need and desires to only do good and what matters. The world needs more men like him; brave men who are willing to go out there and make a positive difference, regardless of how big or small.

He has achieved an enormous amount of success in his life to date, and it becomes very clear very quickly that he isn’t prepared to stop. What he does is like breathing, it is part of who he is and nothing will ever change that.

He is an inspiration; a phenomenal leader and someone you can look up to. His soul is evident for all to see. He may be considered a simple man but there is nothing simple about his accomplishments.

We can only ever try to achieve just a small amount of what he has achieved in his lifetime. Respect is given where respect is earned.

Words of wisdom 1. “Continue serving people.” The fastest way to attain spiritual growth is through service to mankind.

2. “Serve people.” A powerful sentiment put simply, Dr Sooliman says he has everything in life to be grateful for and that “there is no greater gift than contentment.”

3. Dr Sooliman would like to leave his legacy as a reminder to people to do good for others. He doesn’t wish to be celebrated in any way, saying that “Everything I do is by the grace of Allah.”

4. Success means gaining God Almighty’s acceptance of your good deeds.

5. His favourite quote: Verily we have created man into toil and struggle.”

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Taking the Pierre Moifo, Director General of the SAWA hotel

by Charmain Pieterse

lead

The SAWA hotel, situated in the Douala’s administrative district – the “Cameroon main gateway”- faces the sea and is right in the heart of the historic area of Bonanjo.

Pierre Moifo has the pleasure of serving as Director General of this luxurious , 4 star hotel. It is comprised of 288 rooms, and features 6 meeting rooms, 2 restaurants, 1 bar, 1 pool, 2 tennis courts, a fitness room and parking for 150 vehicles. The hotel has been operating since 1978 and is 100% owned by government bodies. It was managed from 1978 till 1992 by Novotel (Accor Group), however, after their contract was not renewed, the hotel’s management was taken over by the owing company, SNI to date.

12 2018 TITANS

“I

manage people in order to improve the overall profitability of the company,” says Pierre. “This is done through permanent training of each team member, assessments and the measurement of performance. My permanent presence in the field and the fact that I am investing in workshops and seminars for my people has considerably improved the overall performance of my team members. Without a well trained staff, no results can be achieved – for each team member and for the company. By developing people you develop their futures as well as the future of our nation. You learn, you practise and you grow. This is important for each individual’s self-accomplishment as our world is unique and the hospitality sector highly demanding.”

Career History When Pierre first took over the position of General Manager in 2010, the hotel was at the bottom of the market in terms of revenue and value for money. After

LEADINGEDGE “Without a well trained staff, no results can be achieved – for each team member and for the company. By developing people you develop their futures as well as the future of our nation. You learn, you practise and you grow. This is important for each individual’s self-accomplishment as our world is unique and the hospitality sector highly demanding.” three years of managing, the hotel was number one in terms of revenue and they continue to work hard to imrove the product and service which will build the reputation of the destination.

Before managing Hotel Sawa in Douala, Pierre was in charge of Hotel Mont Fébé in Yaoundé where he was asked to restructure the old hotel built in 1968. The hotel was completely abandoned with a slim chance to survive. After five years of conducting the job as General Manager, and before leaving that hotel, the improvement was drastically visible with regards to quality, revenue, market share and profit. After 40 years of permanent loss, the hotel then became profitable as from 2008 and a reliable destination in Yaounde.

“The exposure gained while working for Hilton Yaounde and my involvement in the creation of the Cameroon Association of Professionals in Tourism in 1990 opened the door to the younger generation,” Pierre enthuses. “The Association organised four tourism fairs in the country during my period of Chairing and plays a major role in expanding the Tourism and Hotel industry in the country. Therefore, we experienced the opening of hotel schools, hotels and leisure facilities around the country. In addition to that, more people were interested in working in the sector. This whole situation resulted in a higher performance of the industry in the country and in the Central African region in general.”

Giving hope to others According to Pierre he leads by example and is frequently called to partake in various seminars and present speeches whenever possible.

His broad experience is an asset for younger generations and his aim is to share his values and vision. “I give back by training others, leading by example and developing the talents of each individual,” he says. “By listening to others I have learnt a lot and I can help them by showing them the right direction. Empowering others is another way of measuring the capacity of this giving back process. I endeavour to create better working and living conditions for all and a better world for us and for future generations.”

The best lesson he has learnt is to not only talk and give advice but to be an example to others on

a daily basis. He has most certainly achieved this if one looks at his career to date. He is interested in those who work with him and he takes great pride in guiding them to achieve their own excellence.

He has left a lasting imprint on everyone who has come into contact with him and he will continue to do so well into the future.

Q&A 1. Share any special achievements that you have accomplished in any sector? a. I am the Founder and President of the Cameroonian Association of Professionals in Tourism. Today this Association is a member of the National Tourism Council headed by the Prime Minister of Cameroon. The Association gives rise to a changing view point of the industry. This has resulted in the creation of new hotels and schools. As a result more people are employed in the sector. b. The two properties I have managed since 2005 are now running at 60% occupancy rate and delivering net profits of no less than 10% since 2009. The working conditions for staff has tremendously improved.

2. Have you contributed to your organisation’s overall sustainability objectives?

The company’s Social responsibility undertaking is through waste management programmes.

We act as a donor to some non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Within my organisation, I have also rebuilt a broken roof of a primary school.

3. How are you directly influencing the bottom line and contributing to efficiencies?

Good practises in purchasing produce bottom line results as well as controlling and maintaining the costs as defined on standard terms. Follow-ups and reviews of figures are also of key importance.

4. What would you identify as your key strengths?

I am honest, punctual and passionate about my work. I have strong analytical, logical and problemsolving skills. I am self-motivated with high levels of energy. I am patient and skilful in dealing with people’s issues. I have excellent interpersonal skills.

I am structured and excellent in streamlining and coming-up with processes.

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Darshan Chandaria, Director and Group CEO of Chandaria Group

Building an

by Charmain Pieterse

empire Darshan Chandaria is a passionate man who has achieved an enormous amount of success as Director and Group CEO of Chandaria Group. Chandaria Group is one of the largest privately owned business groups in East and Central Africa, with its flagship company being Chandaria Industries headquartered in Kenya.

T

he Group’s operations span Tissue, Paper & Hygiene Products Manufacturing, Real Estate, Venture Capitalism, Insurance, Banking, Automobile Manufacturing, Mining, Flexible Packaging and Solar Energy Generation. The group is geographically spread across Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, India and Dubai.

He has quickly become an inspirational leader and role model for young people in the corporate world.

He has been instrumental in transforming Chandaria

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Group from a Kenyan family business into a Global Conglomerate. He is the winner of the Young Business Leader of the Year 2016 in the ALL AFRICA Business Leaders Awards by CNBC & Forbes Africa and also the winner of the Young Business Leader of the Year 2016 in the EAST AFRICA Business Leaders Awards by CNBC & Forbes Africa. He has been listed in the Business Daily’s Top 40 Under 40 Men’s list for three consecutive years; 2014, 2015 & 2016.

In 2017, he was specially invited amongst a small group of high influence executives globally for the Senior Executive Business Program by Harvard Business School. He is also the youngest member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) in Kenya after being invited to join in January 2012 for his outstanding corporate achievements.

YPO is an exclusive global network of business owners and CEO’s. Darshan was also invited to join the African Leadership Network (ALN) in May 2013, becoming a member of Africa’s prestigious business

LEADINGEDGE owners and CEO’s organization. He is a young philanthropist and personally supports several educational and medical institutions and NGO’s across Kenya. In recognition of his philanthropy, he was invited to join the Global and African Philanthropy Forums in July 2014.

“When I joined Cardiff University in 2004 I was eager to engage in any form of work,” he explains. “My first job was to lay out catalogues at the stadium for the local football league matches. I earned the equivalent of $5 an hour. I was 18 years old at the time. Although it was winter and very cold to be outside laying out catalogues I was eager to get work experience. From an early age I always wanted to understand if I ran my business what it would feel like for the employees I manage. I wanted to get that experience.”

According to Darshan, the people who have had the biggest impact on his career have been his parents. “From a purely business perspective it’s my dad,” he says. “His commitment, dedication and vision have been incredible in shaping my life and my vision to do more with our businesses. A motto that I live by which my dad always said to me: ‘Be clear about where you want to go and be dedicated to get there.’”

Darshan goes on to say that he is very passionate about starting new ventures, launching new products, new projects and seeing them through from start to finish. He derives great satisfaction in seeing the end result when it comes to fruition. The two major visions that keep him going are the drive to create something innovative and to transform lives.

When questioned where the best place to prepare for leadership is, business school or on the job, Darshan firmly believes it is on the job. “I always wanted to do an MBA with one of the renowned institutions,” he states. “In fact I had offers from a number of business schools.

However, after spending two years in our business I realised I was learning more about our businesses and the practical elements of working life than I would in business school.”

His message to Africa’s aspiring business leaders and entrepreneurs is a quote he lives by: ‘Success is not a destination but a continuous journey. The question is what is that journey for you?’ “I truly live by this and it has helped me redefine my journey,” Darshan concludes.

Have you contributed to your organisation’s overall profitability/sustainability objectives? How have you done this?

1) I always aim to employ the best talent, ensure their all-round development provides an environment that enables them to deliver their best. This has helped us build a strong, high performing loyal team.

2) We have a customer centric approach to our business, everyday our teams are empowered to improve our customers’ competitive advantage.

3) We are market leaders in most of the sectors that we operate in and as such we understand our responsibility to all our stakeholders.

4) We understand the importance of building strong brands backed up by the best in class quality and price offering. For this reason Chandaria Industries became only the second company in East African history to achieve a Superbrands status for all its brands and by virtue becoming one of the strongest brands in Africa.

5) We are ISO 9001:2015 certified and we practice the highest level of Kaizen therefore we have a continuous improvement process and culture engrained across the group.

6) Due to our stringent governance and quality control policies we have become the partner of choice for all international licensing authorities and partners. For example we were appointed Disney partners in the tissue & hygiene products category for East Africa in 2016.

7) I ensure that we invest in state of the art manufacturing and process technology allowing us to benchmark quality standards globally not just at an African level.

8) Constant innovation has kept us ahead of our competition. For example we were the first company to manufacture a 3 ply toilet tissue product in East & Central Africa in 2016.

9) We partner and work with the best in class suppliers, machinery and service providers both locally and internationally to ensure that we always deliver the best.

10) Being the largest integrated recycler of paper waste in Kenya, East & Central Africa we have saved over 22 million trees over the last 31 years and will save another 7 million with our expansion plans in the next 5 years.

11) Chandaria Industries in Kenya and Tanpack Tissues in Tanzania are widely considered 2 of the most profitable companies in East Africa, thanks to the leadership excellence shown at all levels of the 2 companies.

12) Chandaria Industries is rated triple ‘A’ by all local and international banks and is the most sought-after consumer goods company for investors in East Africa.

13) I have inspired thousands of young Africans to follow their dreams and build the next wave of Kenyan & East African multinational companies. This is of utmost importance to me for the sustainable future growth of Africa.

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Higher-Ambition

The

by Abigail Moyo

leader Amos Bagumire; Managing Director of ABS Consulting Group Ltd.

An Australian-born American author, Peter Drucker once said, “Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision.� These are some bold words that remarkably describe Amos Bagumire; the Managing Director of ABS Consulting Group Ltd. Bagumire has more than twenty years of experience and practice in providing consultancy services. Seven years ago, he saw an opportunity to create employment when he opted to start ABS Consulting Group which specialises in Corporate Governance, Risk advisory, Human Resources, Forensic Audit and Executive Development.

16 2018 TITANS

LEADINGEDGE

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he 2017 Continental CEO Global Titans Award in the SME category winner is an ardent advocate of integrity as a virtue for business growth and achievement of recognisable impact. Bagumire is a certified Accountant and Human Resource Practitioner by profession who holds a Masters in International Global Human Resources. In addition, Bagumire possesses several accomplishments to his name.

Prior to ABS Consulting Group, he was a Director at Ernst&Young where he was Head Regional Business Risk Service for Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Ethiopia, Lead Consultant at the Federation of Uganda Employers, among others.

Being a role model As Director of a company making waves in the SME sector, Bagumire only strives to be the best in what he does. He also believes that the critical factors that have helped him in realising his success includes surrounding himself with the right team and building a people-first culture based on trusted relationships with people he works with. “I develop people around me through effective transfer of skills to empower them to be authoritative in their areas of expertise through coaching and mentoring,” says Bagumire.

It is true when they say ‘we never stop learning’ as is the case with Bagumire. Bagumire has learnt that leading by example, and building confidence and trust in people inspires them to learn quickly and do the right thing. With no doubt, the Ugandan entrepreneur is an inspiration to many people. “I have trained over 1000 accountants on top of grooming other employees I work with and I’m proud to say that some have turned out to be successful CEOs and Heads of Departments in well established organisations,” he enthuses.

Sustainability and better practice Under Bagumire’s leadership, ABS Consulting Group has grown to be one of the most reputable firms in a short period of time. Previously at Ernst&Young, his revenue portfolio was USD 5 Million and he managed a 20 Million Euro project at EDF Micro projects programme.

Bagumire believes that having worked with large international organisations for a lengthy period of time has helped him to become skilled and to appreciate the importance of performance driven best practices based on quality services delivered to clients. “As an individual I have acknowledged that once you promote high levels of integrity by making people live the values, it is easy to achieve set performance standards than simply relying on strategic plans,” explains Bagumire.

Bagumire envisions a future with based on an inspiring strategy that is easily understood by people

he works with. “Balance scorecard is one of the tools I have used to translate the strategy onto actionable performance targets that are easily monitored at all levels of implementation,” he states.

Influence and Achievements With years of experience in the business sector, Bagumire has confidently and positively influenced many individuals around him. In his industry, he is certainly a force to be reckoned with. One of Bagumire’s enormous accomplishments was starting ABS Consulting Group Ltd and growing it to spread beyond the countries’ borders. Currently, the organisation provides professional services to big companies such as the Uganda Development Bank, East African Community, New vision, to name a few.

Through his company Bagumire has been recognised and honored nationally and internationally various times. In 2015, he was awarded a prestigious Excellency in Business Leadership Award and Business Leader Personality in the category of Small Companies in emerging markets by the World Confederation of Business. Consecutively, he was also honored as the World Leader Business Person in recognition of excellence in business leadership in America.

As an acknowledged recipient in the business sector, Bagumire is a Member at the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya and Uganda. He is a Member of the Top Management Committee at Saracen Uganda Limited and was a Board Member of the African Epidemiology Network (AFENET).

Playing a role in society “The biggest challenge we have in Uganda is lack of capacity mainly due to inadequate human resource practices to develop people,” highlights Bagumire. As a result, the successful Ugandan-born entrepreneur has positively contributed to his society by grooming and training accountants as well as assisting in fighting corruption through transferring Corporate Government skills to CEOs and Board of Directors.

Above all, Bagumire has trained several Board Members across East Africa through Executive Development Programmes in the areas of Corporate Governance, Strategic Planning and Risk Management.

Bagumire strives to develop people and empower his staff. He is also actively involved in identifying ways to serve as a role model and drive the People First philosophy throughout his organisation.

As a way of giving back to the community, Bagumire serves as one of the Board of Trustees of Entebbe Gold Club on a voluntary basis. “I deliver public presentations on different topical issues especially in the areas of Governance and managing human resources,” he concludes.

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Dr Das Mootanah, Chief Executive Officer of Metro Express Limited

Express

Success

by Charmain Pieterse

Dr Das Mootanah has over 27 years’ international high-profile cross-sector experience in strategic leadership and senior management, innovative complex programme management, management consulting, risk and assurance, integrated strategic operations, change management and transformation in London, Sydney and Mauritius. He also has significant experience in major infrastructure programmes and operations, construction, public transport (rail & highways), financial services and regulatory, public sector/government and R & D.

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LEADINGEDGE

T

his extensive list of experience highlights how determined and passionate Dr Mootanah is about what he does. He stretches himself to the maximum and always moves into something new, setting new goals and achieving even more than he had before. He is an ideal example of what it takes to achieve career success. It isn’t an easy path, it requires hard work and discipline, however the end result always makes everything you have done and put in worthwhile. Just as he has achieved one goal he immediately moves on to the next – this is a busy man who never stands still and after 27 years in the industry, he is still making his mark.

In 1991 Dr Mootanah qualified with a B.Tech (Hons) in Civil Engineering from both the University of Mauritius and The Dundee University in the UK. He went on to pursue a MSc in Civil Engineering (including Project Management) in 1994 from East-London University in the UK and in 1999 he qualified with a PhD in Project Management from Anglia University/Reading in the UK. In 1989-1990 he served as Trainee Civil Engineer and in 1991-1994 as Project Manager for the General Construction Company in Mauritius.

“I Project managed several highways and civil engineering projects and successfully managed teams on different concurrent projects under extreme deadlines; involving project management and quality management processes, planning and supervision, cost control, works organisation and programming, and progress monitoring,” he says.

In 1995 he embraced the position of Researcher, Lecturer & Associate Management Consultant at Anglia P University & Dearle & Henderson Consulting in London. Here he developed a PhD research proposal in project risk and value management – obtaining private funding. Whilst working as well as part-time lecturing, Dr Mootanah managed to complete a PhD developing innovative management methodologies, drawing from management research and industry best practise. His papers were published in journals and presented at international conferences.

Dr Mootanah moved on to several other positions before taking on the role of Senior Management Consultant in 2001 at Booz Allen Hamilton, a Strategic Management and Technology Consultancy in London. “I developed programme and risk management for various rail and transport clients,” he says. “I also led business development initiatives and pitched to international Board-level clients as well as

conducting Mega-Projects Reviews, for example, Programme Risk Reviews (Clients: Office of Rail Regulator, Strategic Rail Authority): I advised on (i) £( Multi-billion West Coast Route Modernisation infrastructure programme (ii) £500m implementation programme for installing train protection warning systems over the rail network (iii) £500m stations modernisation programme.”

He then went on to serve as Relationship Manager/Supervisor/ARROW Lead in November 2005 to 2007 at the Financial Services Authority in London. In 2007 he accepted the position of Olympic Risk and Assurance Lead at Olympic Delivery Authority for the London 2012 Games which was a once in a lifetime opportunity. In 2011 He took on the position of Enterprise Risk Management at RailCorp in Sydney, Principal Advisor - Australia. He was headhunted to lead on Enterprise Risk Management practice for this organisation employing over 10 000 employees, working with the Executive, CEO and stakeholders at all levels as well to advise on multi-million $ Rail Infrastructure programmes.

Dr Mootanah accepted several other positions before serving as Chief Executive Officer of the Metro Express Ltd (MEL) in Mauritius in 2018. “I am proud to lead the Metro Express Project, the first Mauritian light rail system which will transform the transport sector, with major infrastructure development and will act as an engine for economic growth in Mauritius,” he enthuses. “The 26-km long light rail system will comprise 19 station including six interchanges and will cost Rs18.8bn. The Metro Express will enhance travel between Curepipe and Port Louis, linking major town centres to the capital city of Port Louis. The corridor will serve the fastest-growing areas in the country, contributing to the country’s medium to long-term economic development.”

Looking at what Dr Mootanah has achieved and what he is set to achieve going forward is truly inspiring. He has shown that anything is possible if you just believe in yourself, equip yourself with the necessary knowledge and skills, and then go out and do the best you possibly can. It will also be exciting to see how the project he is currently working on progresses, and how it will positively impact the lives of millions of people. Whether it is something small or something big, the same principles apply when it comes to achieving success, but the key words here are ongoing success. Dr Mootanah is a perfect example of this, he has achieved phenomenal success throughout his career, and the next opportunity is always just around the corner.

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Gearing up for

Africa’s Future

Harold Jere, Managing Director, Anderson Engineering Ltd

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by Valdi Pereira

LEADINGEDGE

As Africa hurtles towards a future filled with scientific and technological opportunity, it is becoming apparent that the only way the continent will be able to fulfil the economic promise the next few decades holds will be for it to develop its engineering prowess.

T

he continent already has numerous challenges boasts a team of capable Malawians with the ability in the field of technology and some countries to handle any size project. In addition the company like Malawi are even further strained in its has financial stability – with a turnover of MK10Bn pursuit of technological advantage, by a distinct lack and offers good technical support, guaranteeing the of engineering graduates and experienced engineers. client’s peace of mind.

Harold Jere, Managing Director, Anderson As a Managing Director and a successful Engineering Ltd graduated from the University entrepreneur, Harold is well travelled in Africa and of Malawi in 1990, with a Bachelor of Science, abroad, developing the business. He has most Mechanical Engineering. He fully understands the recently participated in an annual trans-regional need for skilled engineers, during a period when trade and business conference in Lagos, Nigeria. there is heavy demand for Malawi’s infrastructure development to be kick-started in a number of diverse He fully understands the need for skilled areas such as road networks, water and engineers, during a period when there is sanitation, housing, electricity grids heavy demand for Malawi’s infrastructure and power generation.

Therefore it is no surprise that development to be kick-started in a number Anderson Engineering, a company of diverse areas such as road networks, water formed in 2000 in Lilongwe, by and sanitation, housing, electricity grids and Jere, has the purpose of improving the livelihood of fellow Malawians. power generation.

Since its establishment Jere and his company have developed expertise in engineering products supply, established a reputation Jere said the conference provided a platform as knowledgeable installers and service providers of for him and others to connect with other global process equipment, air conditioners and products business leaders. such as water meters and pipelines and valves.

“Lessons learnt from Lagos will help inspire This work has been undertaken across a range me and my business to aim higher and achieve of economic sectors including the water sector, more. I trust that the organisers will continue on tobacco, sugar and general commerce. Thereby their trajectory to providing opportunities to the reinforcing the position of the company as a multiindigenous business people by exposing them to faceted and skilled organisation that can help clients the outside world,” he said. solve their engineering needs in a variety of diverse Looking ahead, he notes that it will be important for engineering organisations to have an innovative operating environments. and lateral thinking approach to the challenges that Jere observes that, “small opportunities are they are dealing with for their clients. The reality always the beginning of greater enterprises, and so is that the world of technology and engineering every stage is a stimulus for the next.” With this as is undergoing a rapid change with new materials, his guiding principle he has acquired a wide range approach and technologies making a number of of skills, which stretch beyond the purely technical engineering developments possible that a few short realm into the field of project management, years ago were out of reach of number of companies international procurement and team organisation. or only reserved for top tier market leaders.

These soft skills have stood him in good stead as he With an innovative approach it is clear that some has driven his business forward and he is possibly African countries, like Malawi, can see their own most proud of the fact that he views himself as a engineering sector, which is currently dominated self-described team player, who is always focused on by foreign expertise, become a strong driver of the end goal, whether for his company or his clients. growth and opportunity. Not only for the existing This commitment he has shown to building both engineering sector, but also for the youth who wish internal and external relationships for his company to enter this exciting and increasingly entrepreneurial has powered Anderson Engineering up the ranks of focused arena of African business. engineering companies in the country and today it

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Persistent &

passionate pioneer

by Charmain Pieterse

Seth Quaye, MD, MAC Mining & Construction Partners Ltd, Owner/CEO El-RAPHA Contracting Services Limited

Seth Quaye is a Business and Sales Operations Executive with more than 20 years of successful experience in customer service and an excellent track record of strategic leadership, management and executive coaching. He is credited with leading the transformation of Metso Ghana Limited into an 16-country Western Africa Market operation within five years. He is an action-oriented strategic thinker, with strong technical and contract negotiation experience and is also an Entrepreneur.

Please tell us a bit more about your current position as Owner/CEO of El-Rapha Contracting Services Limited.

El-Rapha is another company I founded to satisfy certain engineering and construction services needs of the non-mining markets (residential & general

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construction). I currently only contribute to and oversee to the strategic direction and market development of El-Rapha. As Ghana and Africa continues to deliver strong economic growth we are setting up to capatalise on its opportunities.

LEADINGEDGE What does entrepreneurship mean to you?

Basically I exploit my own interests, talents and networks in order to benefit from them. I seek every opportunity available to continually improve a situation I find myself in and add value to self and others; be it for profit or personal fulfilment. This is what I regard as entrepreneurship. I identify problems and match them with solutions; be it my own solutions or solutions I tap from others. You need an innate hunger and drive in order to become an entrepreneur and I rely on these attributes when pursuing my own entrepreneurial goals.

empire out of Ghana. So I mooted the idea to my boss and presented a business case for it; he liked it and lobbied it and so we got started. It became a 12 country market operation worth some 65 to 75million Euro by the time I left. The actual work was performed by the rather brilliant and committed team I selected and put together over the period; from eight when we started to about 70 when I left office. Of course there was also the manoeuvrings needed for overcoming the politics and challenges of a multinational organisation. This is where my relationship skills were key.

What character traits do you think are necessary to become a successful entrepreneur?

How did you acquire your business acumen?

Curiosity and creativity (innovation) I would imagine.

Over and above my education, I would say largely Combine this with a large dose of interpersonal skills; through my curiosity and ambition. I always seek to and on top of this you need to be able connect well and understand something, do something; anything to quickly with the people and resources necessary to achieve your vision and I am self-motivated and get passionate about mission. As noted above you also need an inner drive and determination to almost anything I find to do. Ironically that achieve your goals, no matter how big also is the cause of many failures. But I always or small. Quitting isn’t an option, you choose to see the positives in almost every continue pushing ahead irrespective of the challenges, and rest assured there will outcome of my endeavours. be many. However you need to overcome these obstacles as they will enable you to achieve the impossible. contribute to something. I also attended various business seminars, workshops and took various courses as well Why do you believe you have achieved success in to improve myself. I then went on to pursue an MBA. It’s your career? important to continuously educate yourself, whether it I would put it down to my passion. I am selfis through formal or informal means. Everyone should motivated and get passionate about almost anything seek more knowledge, and this knowledge should be I find to do. Ironically that also is the cause of many accompanied with action. failures. But I always choose to see the positives in almost every outcome of my endeavours. Passion can only What challenges have you experienced in your career get you so far before you need to start acting on your and how did you overcome these? passions. Action is what leads to success, but passion I experienced quite a few challenges, but most drives those actions. frequent has been opposition to my often avant-garde ideas. I usually overcame these with perseverance and What should entrepreneurs know to achieve success? good salesmanship.

That failure can also be viewed as an opportunity which is why it’s best to try to learn from it and What legacy would you like to leave behind? continue pressing forward. Quitting should never be I have always wondered what my legacy would an option – you will never know what you are truly be. I would say a thriving family business and a few capable of unless you pick yourself up and carry on copies (clones) of myself will make me proud. It’s a trying. Most successful entrepreneurs have failed at blessing to also work with my sons, so perhaps my least once within their careers. shared knowledge and wisdom will be what my true heritage becomes.

Tell us more about Metso Ghana Limited? How did you lead its transformation?

What advice do you have for those aiming to achieve It was passion, ambition and curiosity. I got the similar success in their careers? unique opportunity to lead the country operation You have to always be “entrepreneurial”. First which I had joined five years earlier. But I wasn’t have a dream/goal, research this dream and ensure satisfied with managing just that, and noticing the you know about it, then start implementing steps company had no other entity in Africa except South persistently while continiously improving yourself and Africa, I became curious about creating a market what you do. It works.

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sector foreword Lifetime Achiever Lifetime achievers are people who typically are recognised for a long history of excellent service, holding positions of leadership, making significant and innovative contributions and positively influencing policy or practice on a national or international level. Such people have displayed an extraordinary wisdom and depth of service.

At the top level of leadership (such as described by John Maxwell) the leader’s status is based on a foundation of respect. Leaders at this level impacted in such a way on their organisations that the organisation can be viewed a top level organisation. These leaders remain in the thoughts of employees long after they have left the organisation. Through their example, influence and mentoring they have developed the next generation of leaders and did so with a strong example of stewardship and the willingness to give. They can furthermore be recognised for their humility and continuous openness to new learning.

To have been able to achieve at a top level over the course of a lifetime and be nominated for a lifetime achiever award, a person certainly demonstrated resilience, personal mastery, interpersonal effectiveness, development of others and leading change abilities. More specifically, they would have been outstanding in their ability to persevere in difficult times, grow their character, refine their self-discipline and ability to self-motivate, adapt to changes and sufficiently balance different areas of their lives. In achieving organisational goals, they would have honed their strategic skills, built support and teams, communicated effectively and grew a culture of trust and excellence.

In leading change they would have been innovative, visionary and aware of the new trends impacting on their fields of specialty.

Africa needs a growing number of leaders who fit the above description. It is therefore both important and special to celebrate the success stories of those nominees we introduce in the following pages. Congratulations and thank you for what you have done over many years.

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LIFETIME

Achievement

South Africa

From Mauritius

Peter Mann

Hon Bernard Degtyarenko

Chairman

Chief Executive Officer

Peter Mann is a journalist who became a communications consultant; he is a PR figure in South Africa and a creative experienced strategist. He graduated from University of Natal in Durban. He started working for the Rand Daily Mail and covered South Africa’s Parliament for five years as the political correspondent of the Sunday Tribune. He was the Political Editor of Argus SA Newspapers in London and News Editor. The South African versatile-journalist was the Senior Assistant and Night Editor of The Star during the state of emergency which ended Apartheid. In 1999, he opted to join Aubrey Sussens to form Sussen Mann, now Meropa Media. He ran the company until 2017 when he became the Non Executive Chairman. In 2016 he was honored to become the first-ever recipient of the Public Relations Institute of South Africa Lifetime Achievement Award.

The previous country and regional winner in Titans Building Nations Awards, Hon. Bernard Degtyarenko is the Chief Executive Officer at Quickbooks Ltd. He holds a Master in Accounting and Information Systems, Degree in Management, Certificate in Public Relations, among others. Hon. Bernard is a business guru with years of experience and practice; he is also the CEO of Business Intelligence Experts Ltd, Director and Founder of (Maritime Museum) and is actively engaged in the Information Technology Development in his country and around the continent. Hon. Bernard has been recognised and honored for his hardwork in the industry numerous times. He was awarded the Africa Leadership Award and won the CEO of the Year Africa Leadership Award.

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LIFETIME

Achievement

Uganda

South Africa

Amos Masaba Wekesa

Adv Willem Hendrick Heath

Managing Director

Chief Executive Officer

Amos Masaba Wekesa is the Managing Director of Great Lakes Safaris, Budongo Eco Lodge, Primate Lodge Kibale and Simba Safari Camp. It has become abundantly clear that through the various experiences, challenges and blessings, his destiny lies in tourism. The tourism of Uganda where he hails from has yet to be fully realized.

As an advocate and tourism lobbyist, he invites everyone to what Prime Minister Winston Churchill referred to as “The Pearl of Africa”. He has travelled worldwide promoting Uganda’s tourism attractions in the United States where he has visited Washington State, Oregon, California, Maryland, New York, New Jersey and Las Vegas where his Budongo Eco Lodge was nominated for the Tourism for Tomorrow Award in 2011 at the WTTC's 11th Global Travel & Tourism Summit in 2011. He has also earned several media reviews on several occasions as a business model for promoting tourism, entrepreneurship and sustainable business management.

26 2018 TITANS

The Former South African Judge, Adv Willem Heath is the Chief Executive Officer at Heath Forensic Investigators and Consultants. He holds a BA Law Degree, LLB Degree and a Diploma in Management Development. He has been, by invitation, called to present at symposiums and conferences around Africa, Europe and America. In the 90s, he was part of the 16th International Symposium on Economic Crime by the Government of the United States of America Global Conference on Corruption, invited by and chaired by then US Vice-President Al Gore. He is also a member of several professional bodies. He is a Member of the Council of the Faculty of Law at the University of Fort Hare, Founding Consulting Editor of the Constitutional Law Reports and Member of the International Institute for Public Ethics, Australia.

Malawi

From Congo Brazza

Rowland Franklin Msiska

Tsengué Tsengué

Managing Partner

Managing Director

Rowland Msiska is the Managing Partner at SECTIONS AND PROFILES, a consulting engineering company specialising in design and supervision of Civil Engineering Projects. With a Diploma in Civil Engineering and a B.Sc. (Civil Engineering), Msiska has twenty-three years of in-depth and extensive practice in the engineering sector and has worked in Tanzania and Zambia. Prior to his current role, he has handled several projects for the Malawian Ministry of Health, the Evangelical Association of Malawi, and the World Bank, to name a few. Msiska is a registered Engineer with the Malawi Board of Engineers with twenty five years experience in design and supervision of building and roadworks with both the public and private sector. He is also an Associate Member of the Malawi Institute of Engineers.

Tsengué Tsengué is the Managing Director at I.C.I Challenge Futura. I.C.I Challenge Futura is a mechanical engineering company which specialises in engineering and the production of technologies (machines, plants and processes) mainly in agriculture and food processing, as well as in construction and civil engineering and energy. Tsengué is an Engineer, graduate of the Ecole Centrale de Paris; he holds a Degree in Engineering of Arts and Manufactures and a Master in Mathematics and basic applications.

With over thirty years of experience in the sector, Tsengué was part of the design and construction management of a pharmaceutical alcohol distillery, the first chemical industrial plant with specific equipment entirely designed and built

by Congolese.

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LIFETIME

Achievement

Kenya

Ghana

Dr Manu Chandaria

Edward Boateng

Chief Executive Officer

Executive Chairman

Dr Manu Chandaria is the Chief Executive Officer at Comcraft Group. Comcraft Group is an industrial conglomerate with operations in fifty countries globally and manufactures aluminum, plastics and steel products in Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda and internationally.

Dr Chandaria is the founder of the East African Business Council which he created to support the East African Community. He is also the initiator of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance which serves as a platform for dialogue with the government on all aspects of business. He has been recognised and honored several times throughout his career.

He was previously named as Most Respected CEO in East Africa, awarded the degree of Doctor of Science by the University of Nairobi and was made an OBE by the order of the British Empire (Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s New Year Honours List).

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Edward Boateng is one of Africa’s foremost media, entertainment, film pioneers and thought leaders and is the current African Business Leader of the Year as judged by the African Business Awards Governing Council. He is Founder and Executive Chairman of Global Media Alliance, a leading international integrated media and entertainment company, with businesses in Broadcasting, Public Relations, Events, Sports Management, and Entertainment. Through Boateng’s excellent leadership skills the company now boasts a television station (e.tv Ghana), four unique radio stations, an Event Management company, a Public Relations Firm, a Creative and Brand Management Firm, etc. Boateng also helped establish Nu Metro Cinemas, later to become Silverbird Cinemas in Kenya and Nigeria.

From Mauritius

From Mauritius

Dr Guy Adam

Boodhun Maubarakahmad

General Surgeon

Permanent Secretary

Dr Adam is a General Surgeon at Fortis Clinique Darne in Mauritius. He qualified in Dublin, Ireland in 1978 and completed his post graduate in London, England. He worked in several hospitals in order to gather experience and returned home with a wealth of experience to offer his patients. He has been in Mauritius from 1988 to date and is active in his profession. He introduced vascular surgery which was non-existent when he arrived at the hospital. He then set up a Day Care surgical centre which was also not present at the time. Dr Adam also learned the new technique of Minimal Access Surgery in 1992 and in 1993 started doing these types of operations. He got extremely involved with disease prevention and health promotion and set up a Wellness Centre named Synergy Sports & Wellness Institute in Mauritius.

He also wrote a book on the subject titled “Your health from My Hand to yours” which came out in December 2012.

Boodhun Maubarakahmad is the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Youth and Sports and over the last three years has been involved in the Ministry of Business Enterprise and Cooperatives, the Ministry of Civil Service and Administrative Reforms and the Ministry of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare. Prior to his current role, Maubarakahmad served at the Ministry of Business, Enterprise and Cooperatives where he successfully set up the Mauritius Business Growth Unit to assist in the growth of SMEs and other enterprises and he also started the revamping and reforming of the Public Sector with the concept “Technology Driven Transformation”. Maubarakahmad has been a lecturer in Law and Management at the London College of Accountancy (Mauritius) for the past nine years. He is also fully involved in social work as he firmly believes that it is only right to return to the country what it has offered him and it is a must for him to assist where he can and do his part for the community.

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LIFETIME

Achievement

Kenya

Uganda

Dr Isaac Murichu

Dr Patrick Tusiime

Chief Executive Officer

District Health Officer

Dr Isaac Murichu is the CEO at Kenya Pharmaceuticals Distributors Association. The Kenya Pharmaceuticals Distributors Association was formed by a group of indigenous Kenyan Pharmacists to make use of the WTO provisions on parallel importation of pharmaceuticals. The Kenyan-born entrepreneur holds a Bachelors degree in Pharmacy and is the founder of a private college and chemists in Kenya. Isaac serves in various committees in the Ministry of Health and Pharmacy and Poisons board on health /pharmacy related matters. He is the secretary general of the East African Health Platform, and Chairman of the Kenya Pharmaceuticals Distributors Association.

Murichu has also been holding press briefs on health and medical issues and informing Kenyans and prescribers of the alternatively cheaper, high quality medicines. Murichu is an expert on intellectual trade related issues for access to medicines and a member of the Regional and Continental Drug Registration and Harmonisation Processes.

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Dr Patrick Tusiime is the Kabale District Health Officer in South Western Uganda. He first graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Medicine and Surgery and later with a Masters of Public Health Degree. Dr Patrick has previously worked both in the military and civilian environments and during this time he served in various capabilities as a Commander, Medical Doctor and Public Health Physician. Dr Patrick’s passion is to serve the less privileged and vulnerable communities. Through his excellent leadership skills and goal orientated management with a team of over 1 000 health workers, he successfully managed to deliver good standard health services to his people. Dr Patrick has been previously recognised for his excellent health leadership and performance. He was awarded the Presidential Distinguished Service Award and the ‘Public Health Award’ organised by the Private Sector and Ministry of Health to recognise Ugandans that have significantly contributed to the social wellbeing of women and children.

South Africa

From Zambia

Dr. Freddy van der Berg

James Chinkubila Kasongo

Group Chief Executive Officer

Country Director

Dr Freddy van der Berg is Group CEO of Mukundi Mining Resources. He served in numerous positions at several companies as Director and as Executive Director. He has an extensive list of training throughout his career, which ranges from Management Accounting, Project Management, Strategic Financial Management and Budget and Decision making, to name a few. He has also joined several professional bodies such as The Institute of Directors (IoDSA), South African Board of People Practise and Human Capital Institute.

He is describes as having strong analytical, strategic, numerical and reasoning abilities. He also has the ability to establish credibility and be decisive. He develops the people around them by knowing them, mentoring them, teaching them, testing them, training them and spending quality time with them.

James Chinkubila Kasongo is the Current Country Director for Heifer International Zambia, an International Non-Government Organization involved in Sustainable community rural and peri urban developments. He holds a Master of Business Administration, a Master of Science in Agriculture and a Bachelor of Agricultural Sciences. With over 27 years of widespread practice and knowledge in rural development and poverty reduction, James has held senior management positions for more than two decades. Before Joining Heifer International Zambia, he worked for various organisations such as Zambia Agricultural Development limited, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocational training and the Danish Association for International Cooperation. He has also contributed to the education sector as a part-time lecturer at the Natural Resource Development College.

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LIFETIME

Achievement

Cameroon

Namibia

Pierre Moifo

Johny Mitchell Smith

Director General

Chief Executive Officer

Pierre Moifo is Director General at Hotel SAWA. He is responsible for the hotel management, budget, sales and management, project management, IT, accounting and human resources. As a leader of more than 100 individuals, Moifo believes that his excellent management skills improve the overall profit of the company. He achieves this through permanent training of each team member, assessments and measurement of performance.

As a role model in his community, Moifo is frequently called to take part in various seminars and deliver speeches in order to share his values and missions. He is also the founder and President of the Cameroonian Association of Professionals in tourism, an association which is today a member of the National Tourism Council headed by the Prime Minister of Cameroon.

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The strategic marketing expert with a broad history in brand strategies development is the Chief Executive Officer at WALVIS BAY CORRIDOR GROUP. He holds a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Commerce.

Smith has extensive experience within the finance sector and since 2008 he has been selected and approached several times to do presentations at conferences in almost forty countries worldwide.

As part of the training and development programmes, Smith has attended the Graduate Development Programme, the Global Management Development Programme, and a course on Management Training for Africa in the USA. He is a hardworking and notable leader who was recognized as the best Corridor business model by the United Economics Commission for Africa and was appointed by various Corridor Management Institutions from all the regions in Africa as the Chairperson for the newly created Africa Corridor Management Alliance.

Securing

the mobile enterprise

The use of personal mobile devices in the workplace has skyrocketed, creating unprecedented threats to information security.

Organisations that are geared up to meet these risks can reap tremendous gains in productivity and competitive advantage.

S

o says Lauren Wain, General Manager at Credence Security, who says staff members want to access work files from the same smart phones they use to update their social media, text their friends, and do their online banking.

“The benefits are clear: Accessing company data information from smart devices enables workers to be more accurate, efficient and flexible.”

However, as undeniable as the benefits are, so are the risks. “Just think about how easy it is to lose a smartphone. These can be left in a cab, at an airport, in a restaurant. Once lost, the device is a total liability, containing a host of proprietary company information, work contacts, personal messages and customer data – all of which is now at risk of getting into the wrong hands.”

And losing a device isn’t the only danger, she says. “Mobile phones, tablets and wearables, can also expose businesses to data loss as a result of malicious software such as viruses, worms and Trojans.”

Then there’s the threat of social engineering.

“Most people totally overshare on social networking, and employees can easily divulge sensitive company information purely by accident, or should they fall prey to clever cyber criminals. Cloud applications are also a danger, as they blur the lines between control and ownership of data. The dangers are endless.”

The first thing a business needs to do is update the governance model to include mobile informationsharing rules and regulations, and clearly define the objectives for managing mobility risks. “Formulate a mobile device policy that sets out the rules, policies and procedures governing the use of mobile devices within the work environment. This needs to include personal devices that attach to the corporate network, as well as any company issued devices,” she says.

Policies should cover areas such as device and infrastructure security, roles and responsibilities, security assessments, training, and what to do in the event of a lost or stolen device.

“Also, ensure that all devices that plug in to the company network have some good AV installed, as this will protect against the usual malware, spyware, viruses and the associated attacks. Certain products on the market feature anti-spam capabilities too, and firewalls to guard against any unwanted or suspicious connections by intercepting incoming and outgoing connections based on pre-set rules, and blocking or allowing them as necessary.”

Wain adds that it is also a good idea to set automatic updates to ensure all the bases are covered. “It is useless to have a good anti malware solution if it is left to get outdated, and procedures can be set to make sure updates happen as they are made available.”

sector foreword Agencies and Regulatory Authorities Regulation is one of the three key levers of state power (together with fiscal and monetary policy). It is obvious that we need these bodies for an orderly society. As consumers we are protected by regulatory policies, as workers by wage regulation policies, as road users by vehicle regulation policies, and similarly in many other areas of our daily lives.

Regulatory policy, a comparatively young discipline, is taking shape in different ways across the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD is an intergovernmental economic organisation founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade). We can appreciate the work of our regulatory authorities considering their rationale for existence: The OECD is a forum of countries describing themselves as committed to democracy and the market economy, providing a platform to compare policy experiences, seeking answers to common problems, identify good practices and coordinate domestic and international policies of its members and beyond. Main characteristics of good regulatory system include that should be responsive, outcome-oriented, predictable, risk-proportionate, and independent.

There are many examples all over Africa of the development and implementation of regulations that have become important and even critical for Africa’s growth in general. As an example, over 30 African countries have established energy sector regulatory institutions. While it is acknowledged that the establishment of energy sector regulators in Africa has been associated with numerous challenges, there is still the need to deepen regulation on the continent to facilitate further reforms of the sector, encourage private sector participation and improve overall sector outcomes.

Another key area for regulation is in medicine. Every country in Africa has a NMRA (National Medicines Regulatory Authority), although the functionalities are variable across countries and they are at different levels of growth, maturity and expertise. Thirty-four countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have quality-control laboratories with different levels of development, and 21 of these are engaged in market surveillance. Further positive news is the establishment of The African Medicines Agency (AMA) which is intended to be an organ of the African Union, legally mandated by Member States to provide a platform for coordination and strengthening of on-ongoing initiatives to harmonise medicine regulation.

Whereas it is important not to smother or inhibit growth and entrepreneurial initiatives, the establishment of appropriate energy policies and robust regulatory frameworks are crucial to ensure the financial viability and sustainability of the sector, and incentivise private sector investment. A good example of a developmental and responsive approach rather than merely enforcing rules, is that of South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA). They recently stated: The FSCA will move away from a rules based, reactive, tick-box compliance approach, to a principle based, forward looking, pre-emptive, outcomes focused and risk-based approach.

For every success story there are leaders who, through their skills, expertise, sacrifices and commitment ensure progress and further development of our continent. We appreciate them and encourage them to continue their excellent service to the people of Africa.

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Winners

From Sierra Leone

From Uganda

Wiltshire Christian Nicolai Johnson

James Saaka

Registrar/Chief Executive Officer

Executive Director

Johnson is a Registrar and CEO of Sierra Leone’s National Drug Regulatory Authority, The Pharmacy Board of Sierra Leone. He has worked in establishing the country’s drug regulatory structure over the last two decades and has championed the fight against substandard and falsified (S&F) medical products in Sierra Leone, Africa and the world at large. Johnson holds an Msc (with merit) Pharmaceutical Services and Medicines Control and Bachelor of Pharmacy with Honours and he has attended several short courses such as workshop on Promoting Rational Drug Use and Tuberculosis Management workshops the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, to name a few. He possesses a decorated work record. He has served as a National Coordinator, Superintendent Pharmacist, Associate Lecturer in Clinical Pharmacy and Head of Department drug Information Pharmacy of Sierra Leone, to name a few.

James Saaka has almost ten years of experience and practice as the Executive Director at the National Information Technology Authority, Uganda. As the Executive Director he is liable of coordinating, promoting and monitoring Information Technology development within the context of national, social and economic growth in the country. James has accomplished quite remarkable deeds within the Information Systems industry. Back in 2004, James was one of the first Ugandans to become a Certified Information Security Manager and has previously worked at Shell. One of the well-known brands in the continent and he led the first time ever successful Information Security compliance for the entire Shell Africa operations, that operated in 27 countries.

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Winners

From Botswana

From Namibia

Oaitse Ramasedi

Jochen Traut

Chief Executive Officer

Chief Operations Officer

The notable chartered accountant, banker and insurance guru all by examinable qualifications and over thirty years of in-depth practice and experience in the finance sector, Oaitse Ramasedi is the Chief Executive Officer at Non-Bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority. Oaitse is a great and remarkable leader who loves his people and work. “I believe in up skilling those around me and I do so by encouraging them to attend workshops and trainings so that they can level up their knowledge capacity,” says Oaitse. During his spare time, Oaitse involves himself in church activities and is a board member at the Botswana Retired Nurses Society where he donates his expertise free of charge.

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The 41-year-old is an educated man who possesses several qualifications to his name such as BSc, BSc honours, MSc and PH.D all in physics. With no doubt, physics has always been his preferred path. Traut also has a decorated work history and he has definitely proved that his is a man for the big occasion. He has worked as a Senior Research Scientist, Senior Lecturer, Associate Professor, Visiting Research Scientist/Professor and at this present moment he is a Acting Head of the Department of Physics in the absence of the HOD. His hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed and he was rewarded with Member of South African Young Academy of Science, Listed in the 2013 Top 200 Mail and Guardian Young South Africans, Listed in the 2014 31st edition of Who Is Who in the World, Featured in the 2013 November-December Issue of Destiny Men Magazine, Listed in the 2014 8th edition of 2000 Outstanding Intellectuals of the 21st Century and Grant holder: Nanotechnology Flagship; 2014 – 2016, to name a few.

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Winners

From Kenya Paul Nganda Mwaniki President

The 43-year-old has proved himself on several occasions that his is no victim to stage freight.

Mwaniki has been able to bag quite a number of demanding roles with success in his career such as a President of Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya, Vice Chairman of Kenya Healthcare Federation, National Treasurer at the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya Consultant in Regulatory Affairs, to name a few. Mwaniki has also served as a Pharmacist, Regulatory Affairs Manager and currently he is a Founder and Managing Director of Kileleshwa Medical Plaza and kileleshwa Pharmaceutical Limited. The Kenyan entrepreneur has. Pharmacy has always been his calling and that’s why he opted to follow his heart and fortunately he holds a Bachelor of Pharmacy to his name.

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COUNTRY

Winners From Zambia Chilufya Peter Sampa Executive Director

Chilufya Sampa is the Executive Director at the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, Zambia. Since taking on his role as the Executive Director, the agency has achieved a number of remarkable deeds. They have been recognised and honored by the World Bank, International Competition Network and the Zambia Institute of Market as the best Public service delivery organisation numerous times. The agency is also the first in Africa to achieve the status of a High Performance Organisation and they are actively involved with the community as they provide funds to orphanages, hospices and schools. They are also involved in wellness talks with specialists on drug abuse, HIV and AIDS, gender based violence and financial management.

From Uganda Elly R.Twineyo Kamugisha CEO/Executive Director

The Ugandan businessman has several qualifications and he also has work experience in various fields. He has an MSc in Finance and Marketing/International Business, a certificate in Project Planning and Management and a post graduate Diploma in Marketing, to name a few.

During the neither make nor break it phase in his career, he also managed to complete numerous courses with ease. He completed a Dilpoma in Standards of Business Conduct, a General Marketing and Management workshop, Advanced Budget Analysis Training and CEO Master class, to name a few. He also has more than 26 years of practical experience working with the private sector, government and civil society and more than 15 years of practical experience in managing a government trade institution and its projects, and the private sector, and research institution.

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COUNTRY

Winners From South Africa Skhumbuzo Macozoma Chief Executive Officer

Mr Skhumbuzo Macozoma is currently the CEO of the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL). He was previously the CEO of the Electronic Toll Collection Company, and has also served as MD of the Johannesburg Roads Agency and as Chief Officer: Transport & Logistics, on the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Local Organising Committee. He holds an MSc in Civil Engineering, with extensive experience in infrastructure and construction. Under his leadership, SANRAL has developed a new, long-term strategy called Horizon 2030, which seeks to ensure that our road transport system delivers a better South Africa for all.

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sector foreword Agriculture As we know, agricultural growth was the precursor to the industrial revolutions that spread across the world, from England in the mid 18th century, to Japan in the late 19th century. In the modern world, the cycle of economic growth resulting from agriculture development, is more complex. As the economy grows from the low levels of ensuring food security, and growing numbers of non-food items are produced for consumers, spending on food flattens. Over time, resources like labour and capital then move from agriculture to more remunerative uses in other sectors. The shift that takes place sharpens the focus on productivity and efficiencies in agriculture. In simple terms, a highly productive and economical agricultural sector can thrive in providing food to a thriving urban area.

The reality of agricultural development in Africa is still far from ideal. African farm yields are among the lowest in the world whereas a vibrant, sustainable and resilient agriculture sector is vital for sub-Saharan Africa’s economic future. Some reports suggest that by 2030 food production in subSaharan Africa needed to have increased by 60 percent to feed a growing population.

Agricultural productivity is related to a range of factors, one being irrigation. Only 5% of the cultivated land in Africa makes use of irrigation, with most of the farmers depending on rainfall.

In comparison in Asia, 38% of the arable land is under irrigation. Another factor is the need for infrastructure that links farmers to lucrative regional food markets. Furthermore, sound policies on land ownership are needed to encourage and support farmers, especially women who produce the bulk of food in Africa. Access to credit and productive farm inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides, and farming tools are other obvious factors for a growing agriculture economy.

A good news story is that of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), founded in 2006 through a partnership between the Rockefeller Foundation and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Millions of smallholder farmers in Africa have been helped through this initiative. AGRA has supported more than 400 projects, including efforts to develop and deliver better seeds, increase farm yields, improve soil fertility, upgrade storage facilities, improve market information systems, strengthen farmers’ associations, expand access to credit for farmers and small suppliers, and advocate for national policies that benefit smallholder farmers.

For their hard work and perseverance in droughts and through many other adversities, the farming communities of Africa should be thanked, encouraged and supported not merely by words, but actions that will strengthen the sector and make it a sustainable and significant contributor the Africa’s economic growth. In the pages to follow you will learn about the remarkable role players in this sector, people we salute for their special contributions.

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regional

Winners

From Uganda

From Tanzania

Christopher Mulindwa

Mahenye N.C Muya

General Manager

Managing Director

The nature and manufacturing devotee, Christopher Mulindwa is the General Manager at Pig Production and Marketing Uganda Limited. Pig Production and Marketing Limited is a livestock company specializing in trade of pigs and its products. The company deals with pork breeding, stock and consultancy services to pig farmers together with entry levels in the business. As the General Manager, Christopher is involved in workshops that provide farmers with free training refining them about basic pig breeding for them to lead a successful business in pig nurturing and production. As a way of raising awareness in communities, Pig Production and Marketing Limited hold a national pork expo every year which serves as a platform to educate people about African swine fever.

Muya holds several qualifications from different countries to ensure that he is familiar and wellinformed in several fields. He holds a certificate for a two week Course in Seed Business Management and Seed Production from Stellenbosch University in Cape Town, MSc in Agricultural Engineering from Sokoine University in Tanzania, Postgraduate Diploma in Computer Science and Postgraduate Diploma in Farm Mechanisation from Larenstein International Agriculture College in Netherlands and a BSc in Agricultural Engineering Degree from University of Dsm. Due to his qualifications, he has been able to attract quite a number of positions.

He has served as a Chairperson, Director and currently he is a Managing Director at Suba Agro-Trading & Engineering Co and MASO FARM ENTERPRIES Co., Limited and a CEO at FrasalInter-Trade Co. Limited.

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Winners

From Mauritius Dineshing Goburdhun General Manager

Dineshing Goburdhun is the General Manager at Mauritius Co-operative Agricultural Federation Ltd. The day to day manager of almost fifty individuals has over ten years of in depth practice and experience in the agricultural sector.

Dineshsing is a business guru who holds a B.A Honours in Business Administration, Diploma in Office Management and Administration and an Advanced Diploma in Business Administration.

Because of his advanced knowledge in business and management, Dineshing is the Treasury of a well-known and established agricultural organisation called Croplife in Mauritius. He is also a member of the National Pension Appeal Tribunal, National Plant Varieties and Seeds Committee and the Director at Mauritius Cooperative Alliance Ltd.

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COUNTRY

Winners From Cameroon Roland N. Fomundam Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Fomundam has several qualifications to his name and that is one of the many reasons behind his successful career. He holds a Master of Science in Technological Entrepreneurship and a B. sc in Business Administration.

The Cameroon-based entrepreneur has more than 5 years experience as a lecturer in Innovation and Entrepreneurship and he also has over 10 years knowledge in sustainable technology development and deployment.

He has also been able to use his skills in creating employment. He has worked as a Managing Director for African Centre for Renewable Energies and sustainable Technologies and he is also a founder and Chief Executive Officer for JolaVentures. He is also a Founder and Chair for Youth Action for Rural Africa, managing to reduce the high rate of youth unemployment.

From Uganda Iganachi Omia Managing Director

Iganachi Omia is the Managing Director at Omia Agribusiness Development Group Ltd. It is an Agribusiness Development firm providing practical, innovative, sustainable and result driven products as well as services to agricultural value Chain actors in the country. Iganachi holds a diploma in Animal Science and a BSc. Agriculture (Economic). He is an enthusiastic public speaker with excellent computer and problem solving skills. He has held several leadership positions; he was the deputy disciplinary Minister at Makerere University, he was one of the speakers at Makerere University Agricultural Research Institute. Iganachi has also completed numerous online courses. He did an online course on Agriculture, Economics and Nature from the University of Western and a Plant doctor training with CABI international, among others.

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how

Leaders build Effective Teams through

Management and Teamwork

by Myron Curry

Leadership is a big word. It means more than what it appears to be and is written about in millions of books around the world. Leading a person or a group of people is an infinite responsibility. Of course, we have different kinds of leaders and people are constantly looking for leaders who can create more leaders than followers.

A

t work, in business, in families and within friends, leaders are important because they just don’t show directions but help people identify their strengths and bring out the best in them.

Supreme quality work is one of the main attributes of management or leadership. Quality management is crucial for the people involved as it is for the end result of any work. Managing the quality of the team does not always have to do with work. It also means maintaining a healthy, cheerful, enthusiastic and result-oriented atmosphere within a team. Great managers always focus on creating a code of honour for the team before they get started. It is an excellent, result-oriented and an effective way to lay rules that everybody in the team must play by. It is unspoken on many occasions but firmly agreed by all. It is largely true that when there are no rules, people come up with their own. This is perhaps the most deterring factor between good and great quality management.

Quality management is a vital aspect for any team improvement. Quality management deals

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with empowering people and encouraging open communication at all times. Of course, the code of honour presets how issues and concerns within the team must be addressed constructively. As for work, clear and sharp communication helps members of the team comprehend the true reason for their presence and how their work affects others’ and the team as a whole. No two people are alike in a team and therefore the approach to handle each of them and their work must be different too. Where there are people, there is bound to be friction however here are some basic recommendations for improving quality management within a team.

Consistent Improvement: Time is more important and valuable than money. This cannot be stressed enough. In the world of finance, a golden rule explains that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar tomorrow. Similarly, in the team management, the quality of the team’s work along with interpersonal relationships must improve on a consistent basis. Everybody appreciates an overnight success but unless

SKILLSTRANSFER Great managers always focus on creating a code of honour for the team before they get started. It is an excellent, result-oriented and an effective way to lay rules that everybody in the team must play by. It is unspoken on many occasions but firmly agreed by all.

it is a consistent story, nobody wants to own it. The dynamics of people, the quality of the commitment towards work and team work must improve at regular intervals. Continuous improvement shows the capacity of the team to withstand pressure.

Customer of the mind: If it was not for the customer, there would be no business. Without business or work, any of this would not make sense. Quality is a feeling more than it is a tag.

Teams need to be made understood that when any customer receives a product or service or

even interact with the staff, he or she must feel the quality. Quality is present in all that can be done and all that cannot be done. As long as team members can put themselves in customers’ shoes and feel the difference, positive changes are limited. A simple greeting can stand out for quality and get the conversation going. When teams have customers on their mind, accountability and sense of pride helps them deliver only the best.

Get Involved: Feedback mechanism is one of the best ways to take appropriate actions. When quality work is the focus, it is always beneficial to get all members of the team involved. Typically, the people who interact with the customers are the best to give the feedback about what the customer wants. Customers are always giving feedback with their emails, gestures, attitudes and voices. Only the best trained quality obsessed teams can identify and act on that feedback. Involving everyone will broaden the possibility of getting more solutions and ways to improve quality within a team.

Recognition: When a member of a team goes out of his/her way to help resolve a customer issue, be present in place of another team member or stand for the mission of the team, recognition is mandatory.

Just like businesses appreciate great financial results and reviews by top notch companies, team members also appreciate being recognized for their efforts.

Lack of recognition can lead to discouragement and affect the morale of any great bonded team.

Quality management is largely based upon how the leader views it, the team members view it and how the management views it. As long as these three entities are in sync with their definition and belief about quality, the business will continue to thrive under the most severe of circumstances.

Myron Curry is the President of Business Training Media, a leading provider of teamwork training videos for improving management and employee productivity.

Source: https://www.businesstrainingmedia.com/leadershipquality-management-article

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sector foreword Arts & Culture The Cultural and Creative Industries Federation of South Africa (CCIFSA) is the controlling body set up with the assistance of the Department of Arts and Culture for cultural and creative sectors in South Africa. It was formed as a non-profit company to promote and develop the social and economic interests of the cultural and creative industries and to act as the controlling body for these sectors. As such, it can certainly be viewed as one of the catalysts for socioeconomic transformation and is it a key instrument in the vision to achieve economic freedom. The World Economic Forum named culture the "fourth pillar of development" that fulfils the objectives to build cohesive societies.

The spontaneity and creativity that we find in the arts and culture section are as relevant to the development and fortune of a nation as are more obvious economic endeavours. Its financial contribution to the economy is in itself significant – 1.7% of total GDP in 2016. It is estimated the creative economy accounts for 6.72% of all jobs in South Africa. The department’s budget for 2018/9 is R 4.5 billion.

Looking at the creativity one finds in global cities, it is fair to say that a causal correlation between growth and cultural employment exists. The tragedy is that while the African continent is rich in oil, gas, precious metals, and other minerals, corruption and tax evasion in far too many instances deny the ordinary citizen in Africa any benefits of those riches. A saying of the Yoruba people is relevant and accurate: Wealth that enslaves the owner isn’t wealth. Instead, many feel, African citizens could reap major economic and social benefits if their governments more efficiently develop and promote their cultural activities – music, painting, sculpture, design, literature, publishing, and the performing arts that all make up the creative sector.

With the above said, African leaders should be more conscious of the negative image often associated with African countries. In business or marketing terms one can speak of poor country “brands”. It clearly leads to the lack of attractiveness for investment as well as tourism. While wildlife helps drive tourism in some countries, the rich variety of African cultural traditions should be equally attractive.

African leaders in the field, such as those who are recognised in the following pages, are advocates for the role of arts and culture in society. They often find themselves fighting a hard battle for proper recognition and allocation of budgets. Here, we acknowledge and thank them for their invaluable work and contributions.

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regional

Winners

South Africa

From Uganda

Andre Le Roux

Kenneth Kimuli

Managing Director

Chief Executive Officer

Andre le Roux is the Managing Director at the Southern African Music Rights Organisation.

He is an excellent administrator and skilled communicator who passionate about art. Andre holds an Honours in Public Administration and has twenty years Senior Management Experience and board sub-committee level, strategic and brand management experience as well as institutional and organisation strategic governance in the organisation and on external boards and international projects. He is the Chairman at Business Arts SA, member of the Music in Africa and UNISA Music Foundation, among others.

In his position as the Managing Director, Andre successfully built and established the SAMRO Foundation which grew to having a bigger brand persona and Social Media footprint managing the music education, music archive and stakeholder hub.

The previous CEO Global Titans Awards Finalist, Kenneth Kimuli is the Chief Executive Officer at Pablo Live Limited. He holds a Bachelor of Arts, Mass Media, Journalism and Creative Writing.

As the CEO he is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the company’s strategic plans and sourcing support for company activities from possible sponsors in the corporate world, among others. Kenneth has more extensive work experience in standup comedy, acting and playwriting. He was a cast in the Oscar winning movie “Last King of Scotland”, featured in the series “Hand In Hand” and has written a number of plays. Kenneth has been recognised and honored for his work several times. He won the Best Performing artist award by Edutainment and was recognised as the Star Prominent Comedian in the Rising Star Awards.

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Winners

From South Africa

From Uganda

Alan Peter Samons

Benon Mugumbya

Artist and Dealer

Production Director

Alan creates paintings mainly in the Japanese nihonga style, but also in oil. His paintings are done on silk, paper, gold-leaf or silverleaf. He also re-mounts and restores old Japanese and Chinese scroll paintings and paper screens on new purpose-made rigid boards. This allows the artwork to be displayed and appreciated in a more contemporary way which is suitable for Western interiors. Many of his techniques are adaptations of traditional Asian mounting techniques. He was taught by a South African artist and foremost expert on Asian art, and used the skills he learnt from her, as well as refinements and new techniques he had to develop by himself. Added to that, he also sculpts and makes art jewellery using precious metal clay and traditional goldsmithing techniques. Repurposing old artworks allows them to be appreciated anew. Much of the fine silver he uses is also recycled from sources.

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Mugumbya aims to touch the lives of people through his songs as a musician and he holds a Diploma in Computer Maintenance and Network Essentials. As expected, he has worked for quite a number of production related companies.

The 38-year-old Ugandan has a decorated work history on his work history. He has served as a System Administrator, System Produce. At this present moment, Mugumbya is working as a Video Editor, Song Writer, Musician and Production Director. Due to his hard work and persistency, he was rewarded with the Pam Award Winner for Audio Producer of the Year 2010 and Buzz Teeniez Award BEAT MARKER 2010. One of Mugumbya’s career highlights was when he was given a once in a lifetime platform to Perform at the Uganda Nationals Association (UNA) Convention 2008 USA.

regional

Winners

From Kenya Tosh Gitonga CEO and Creative Director

Gitonga is an award-winning filmmaker and mentor. He studied at the Kenya Institute of Marketing, where he graduated in 2003 with a Diploma in Marketing. Due to his skills and passion, it didn’t take him too long to establish himself as one of the most gifted Film directors in Kenya.

During his studies he started an internship at a production company called Baraka Film where he was introduced to the world of film and worked on his first feature film ‘Dangerous Affair’ 2002 as a production Assistant. The 37-year-old Kenyan has won several awards and accolades across the African continent for his filming work. “Tosh” has served as a Production Assistant, Assistant Director, Director and he is a CEO and Creative Director at Film Crew in Africa Limited.

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COUNTRY

Winners

From South Africa Sibongeleni James Ngcobo Artistic Director

This iconic theatre is housed in a building, a grand dame and is the most iconic of all theatre spaces in the country. The one thing that has kept this space, this vision going for years, is the core of the DNA of the Market Theatre which is staying in touch with the pulse of the country. If the core team is not equipped with the right skills, there is always a gap between implementation of the organisation objectives and the people tasked to deliver them. Therefore Ngcobo is clear about making sure that people’s capabilities are developed, thus ensuring sustainability of the organisation and industry. He is also very passionate about contributing towards the creation of a future generation that is ready to receive the baton that is passed onto them.

As a seasoned practitioner in the industry, if he doesn’t personally roll his sleeves, who will?

From Zambia Taonga Tembo Programs Director

Tembo is trained in Trauma-Focust Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Children and he is an artist by profession, greatly trained in performing arts and richly experienced in Theatre for Development. He has locally and internationally attended high profile conferences and globally facilitated in workshops. The Zambian artist is a co-founder of Barefeet Theatre and currently occupying the position of Programs Director for the same Organisation. The 41-year-old performer is not talented only but he has brains too. He holds a Diploma in TraumaFocused Behavioural Therapy and has been involved in few trainings such as Theatre for Development training with Barefeet Theatre, Monitoring and Evaluation in Finland and In house trainings in community awareness campaign programs. With his talents he has travelled all over the world at present he is a National Publicity Secretary for Zambia Popular Theatre Alliance.

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Carrera T for Touring Believe it or not in all my 16 years of testing vehicles, I have never driven a Porsche 911. I have driven every other derivative of the Porsche brand except the 911.

My first impression was that it looked like its other siblings and that it will have all of its pro’s and con’s.

by Carl Wepener

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A

s Journalists we were asking what the T stands for and of course it is for Touring. Now first of all if the new Porsche Carrera T is for touring then why is it a strip down version? Is a strip down version not more for racing or as we did it “dicing” between robots?

The Porsche 911 Carrera T has its heritage from the Porsche 911T that won the 1968 Monte Carlo Rally. It was specifically chosen for the rally due to its lightweight and it is about time we see the rebirth of such a model.

The Porsche 911 Carrera T is a budget version thus all the luxuries of “touring” is just not there. That being

said, who needs all of the luxuries as you are still left with all of the essentials to make this Porsche a real drivable car to be enjoyed. The question remains, why would you want to go on anything other than having mountain passes to enjoy the “T’s” cornering abilities or the raw power when accelerating on a long straight patch of road and of course between robots? No sir, since most of your and my driving is in cities or short trips, this is an excellent car to be used for just that. Oh yes, the sound is spine chilling when you let loose. It is a bit more noise due to the sound deadening material being taken away, but it is oh so extremely exhilarating.

The Porsche is well finished and craftsmanship is second to none. The “T” is perfectly balanced and the steering, seating and instrumentation is exactly like it should be to ensure that you have the most enjoyable driving experience possible, come rain or shine.

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The interior of the Porsche Carrera 911 T is typical Porsche with another I believe lightweight mechanism being the inside door handles that has been replaced with web loops.

In this case “stripped down” or I would rather use the phrase lightweight is the way to go and the price is also lightweight measured against the other derivatives. Some of the reasons this Porsche is a lightweight is the use of less sound-deadening material from its underside, the removal of the back seat and the use of lightweight glass in the rear windows.

The ride quality is still exceptionally good even with the car having been lowered 20mm. You do get more road noise, but on a good road surface it is not intrusive.

Porsche has not cut on the gearbox and both the seven-speed manual and the great PDK gearboxes are available. For the true enthusiasts the manual gearbox is probably the way to go as you then control every aspect of your car. I have found the PDK gearbox to be faster in acceleration, it is smooth and it quickly adapts to your drive style. The PDK helps as the driver can concentrate more on other road factors without having to change gears. Having driven both derivatives the 7 speed was a bit of a challenge as you could easily push back from five into four instead of six. Gearing up you have to go through each gear and not skip, for instance six going onto seven. It took some time to get used to the manual and you had to focus on every change until it becomes second nature.

To catapult this dream machine, oh and by the way I loved the canary yellow, there is a 272 kW flat 6 cylinder engine delivering 450 Nm of torque up to 7 000 rpm. As the “T” is weighing 20 kg less it ensures that the 0 to 100 km/h mark is reached in just 4.2 seconds for the PDK and 4.5 seconds for the manual.

The top speed of the “T” is just over 290 km/h. Fuel consumption was a respectable 11.4 litres per 100kms, taking into consideration that we do not drive like normal people. A consumption of around 8 to 9 litres per 100 kms is attainable for normal driving.

The interior of the Porsche Carrera 911 T is typical Porsche with another I believe lightweight mechanism being the inside door handles that has been replaced with web loops. They are colourful and may need a bit of extra cleaning in the long run. The Porsche is well finished and craftsmanship is second to none. The “T” is perfectly balanced and the steering, seating and instrumentation is exactly like it should be to ensure that you have the most enjoyable driving experience possible, come rain or shine.

The Porsche Carrera T looks like it is going at speed even when it is standing still. The sleek 911 body, the 20 inch rims in titanium grey, the black engine vent and the T sill striping on the sides of the car just gives you a feeling of excellence and speed.

The Porsche Carrera T is seen as the lightweight version of the Porsche 911 brands and it is a magnificent vehicle for the price of R1 536 000.

Most of the 50 cars to be imported have already been sold.

I have not had the opportunity to drive any of the other 911 derivatives, but personally the “T” impressed me and I believe it will become a very sought after model.

What is also important is to realise that the after sales service from Porsche staff and management is excellent and they do go the extra mile to ensure that their clients are more than happy with their product.

Now for those that really want a great experience go test drive the “T”!

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sector foreword Automotive and Components In comparison to some other industries, the automotive industry is probably ‘closer to home’ and the interest of people, especially car owners. Most people either possess a car and then have to maintain it, or are looking for a new one, or else hope to buy one day. For the last century, the car culture has spread over the entire globe. As much as any other product, the car has shaped not only the global economy but how billions of people live. In Europe alone, the automotive industry accounts for roughly 12 million jobs and in the US, more than 8 million. This industry is however no less vulnerable to the unpredictability of the 21st century global economy than any other one.

Dealership groups, even the better managed ones with lean cost structures and extensive product lines, tend to struggle during tough economic times.

From a global perspective, the industry is about to enter a period of wide-ranging transformation.

Sales will continue to shift and environmental regulations to tighten. It is signalled that companies that want to have a successful, long-term future need to get key strategic decisions right in the next decade. More complexity, as all industries experience to a higher or lower degree, is to be expected. There will be more platform sharing. At the same time, regulatory pressures will tighten, and prices in established markets are likely to be flat.

The prospect for the industry, from an African perspective, is interesting. As income levels rise and a growing middle class emerge, automotive companies in Africa will be able to gain a competitive advantage. The average of 44 vehicles per 1 000 inhabitants is far below the global average of 180 vehicles per 1 000 inhabitants. In 2015, approximately 1.55 million new vehicles were registered across Africa while some sources estimate that Africa’s passenger vehicle sales could reach up to 10 million units per annum by 2030.

Challenges and opportunities for Africans in the industry is firstly to overcome the over-reliance on second-hand vehicle imports. Currently, imported second-hand vehicles account for more than 80% of total sales. Access to new vehicles therefore need to be improved. Addressing insufficient vehicle finance options is another challenge and to build a sufficient local supplier base a third.

By enhancing the operating environment countries will be able to both increase the scale of local vehicle production and attract suppliers into the market.

Thanks to the champions of the industry who are nominated here for an award, we can look forward to a growing automotive industry which will contribute significantly to the African economy.

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Winners

From Kenya Manvir Baryan Managing Director

Manvir Baryan is Managing Director of Porsche Centre Nairobi Limited. He is an ardent motorsport fan and an enthusiastic competitor. He recently became the first Kenyan driver to win the Rally of South Africa (dubbed the York Rally) after outpacing his southerners' adversaries in Mpumalanga contrary to all expectations.

In winning the South African round of the FIa ARC, Manvir joins the growing list of legendary champions who include Serei Very Der Merwe, Jan Habig, Johnny Gemmel, Enzo Kuun, Mark Cronje, Leroy Poulter and last year's winners Japie Van Nielerk. Nevertheless, Manvir, who is also the 2017 Kenyan Motorsport personality of the year broke the duck in an event previously dominated

by VW Polos and Golfs, Ford Fiestas and Toyotas.

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SUSTAIN ABILITY With this in mind, the very first thing that may be thought of is the looming ‘Day Zero’ in Cape Town. The Western Cape is currently experiencing the worst drought in over 100 years. With this period in mind, the demographics differ vastly to the number of people that were around 100 years ago.

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f course, a reasonable person back then would have regarded the drought as bad, but massive measures on water saving did not have to be devised, as there would have been enough water to satisfy the population at the time. Fast forward to the present day and this drastically changes to the ninth degree. What is further alarming is that he publication, Plumbing Africa, published many, many articles over the past decade on the subject of drought, maintenance, preventative maintenance, and the measures that can be implemented to prevent the continuation of droughts, and maybe curb them somewhat.

Have we even read these articles? Have we comprehended and then articulated the content that had been painstakingly mistaken to empower plumbing fraternity? I am sure that some people have read the articles and are now handsomely remunerated by articulating the content therein to uplift their business and the public at large to the best of their ability.

The poor, the aged, the infirmed, and the young children are most at risk as 50L per day is hardly much to survive on

Drought

by Andy Camphausen

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SUSTAIN ABILITY Yet, others may play the blame game and say that it is the short-sightedness of the government or the municipalities that have landed us in the drought mess. Yes, it is a mess and it is going to get worse before it even gets better.

The poor, the aged, the infirmed, and the young children are most at risk as 50L per day is hardly much to survive on. If you are sick and cannot get to one of the water points, then what?

Well, in this country’s climate, three to seven days is all your body needs to shut down and off without any water. Water and airborne diseases become a reality and the urbanized cities and its surrounds will smell worse than a dead rat.

So? Is this drought man-made or a natural disaster?

We need to bear in mind that the Eastern Cape up to Port Elizabeth is fast becoming a droughtstricken area, too. I recently heard that the town of Oudtshoon is all but desolate. No one knows where the ostriches have gone. And what has happened to Beaufort West?

Another person has stated that the hub of the South African economy will run out of water by 2025. Not long away?

Yes, this is a natural disaster as it can be reasonably deduced that if no rainfall occurs for a prolonged period, the earth will start to dry up. But can it be attributed to a natural disaster only?

Cape Town is a shining example of how humankind can mess things up. The ‘Day Zero’ buzzword is on every person’s lips, but what are we doing about it? We can blame the residents of poor communities as they leave their taps running day and night. We can blame everyone, but is it all a user problem? Should we not have asked where we can assist those who are running the provinces?

Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality has designed an app for this very reason. But is it not a little too late? Now there is an app for preventative maintenance and no water apparatus to maintain as there is no water. It is going to take some time before the desalination plants come online- what do people (users) do in the meantime?

There is most certainly going to be carnage at the water points, and people run the risk of getting very, very sick. Numerous ‘rats and mice’ are appearing from all walks of life with inventions that are being imported now. Are some of these contraptions not an eventual health hazard that could add to the disaster that was already faced?

This subject is vast and can be debated till the cows come home, but there are some points to ponder as professionals in the plumbing fraternity.

What are you doing to assist with the drought?

Or are you going to wait to smell the coffee? Just remember that water is needed to fuel that coffee, so don’t wait too long.

The definition of drought in the context of water according to the Oxford English Dictionary, “A prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall, leading to a shortage of water.”

disaster: Natural or man-made?

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sector foreword Aviation The potential that the aviation industry holds for Africa should serve as an attraction for investors and commitment to success in the industry by all the role players. The International Air Transport Association, a trade association of the world’s airlines, this year expressed the view that 10 of the fastest growing aviation economies over the next 20 years will come from Africa. It puts air connectivity across the continent firmly on the agenda.

Currently, Africa holds around a 3% share of the global air transport market while it is home to 15% of the world's population and makes up 20% of the earth’s landmass – obvious room for catching up with the rest of the world. Another prediction is made by The International Air Transport Association.

They namely predict that air passenger activity will double by 2035. Africa’s growth of 5.4% per annum is expected to outstrip the global average of less than 5% per annum over this period.

These optimistic predictions must be read against the background of some disappointing statistics: over the past 30 years almost 150 airlines ceased operations; 35 would-be airlines did not achieve start-up and 32 African airlines have suspended operations. However, positive signs come from the Travel and Tourism sector. Travel for leisure and business, is one of the fastest growing sectors in the world, if not the fastest, and in Africa grew by 9% in 2017. Tied with Africa’s GDP growth of recent times and the predictions should serve as reliable guidelines.

Problems that need to be addressed are, among others: the lack of domestic flights; high-ticket prices; intra-region visa restrictions (on average, Africans need visas to enter 55% of states within the continent. A visa-free Africa would be ideal and a massive accelerator of growth for the industry).

Positive developments that should be mentioned are the growth of relationships between African cities and countries and their Asian and Middle Eastern counterparts. As intra-African trade has increased and visa restrictions have decreased, travel within the continent will also continue to grow significantly.

Since aviation is synonymous with connectivity, adventure, holidays and mobility across the globe, it can probably be seen as a public favourite. By making air travel easier and accessible, more and more people can travel and increase interpersonal interactions across multiple borders. By bridging geographic gaps, removing complexity and bringing people closer, aviation will boost the creation of shared value in our fractured world. With the above said, we cheer the nominees on to further lead by example and seize the aviation opportunities for everyone’s interest.

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Winners

From Zimbabwe

From Kenya

Tawanda Maruza

Mohamed Ibrahim Somow

Regional General

Director

Maruza is a qualified flying instructor, Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe delegated examiner and aviation safety / quality expert who possesses a 21-year flying experience with over 5500 hours. He has a number of certificates such as Commercial Pilot licence, Aviation safety management systems, and he is currently studying towards an Aviation Management certificate. Maruza’s work history has always been about flying and that’s where his heart is. The flexible 43-yearold’s employment record is pure gold. He has worked as a Safety Manager Wilderness Air, Chief Pilot Wilderness Air, Pilot Wilderness Air, Fighter Pilot Military Airforce of Zimbabwe. At present, he is an Accountable Manager Wilderness Air and General Manager Zambezi Region and Accountable Manager Wilderness Air in Zimbabwe.

Being a pilot is not a child’s play and one needs a proper training to embark that journey.

BVeing a Pilot comes with a lot of pressure, guidance and hard work. Somow attended CMS Flying School from 2003 to 2006 to ensure that he is mentally and physically trained to fulfill his dream. His work history consists of several challenging and demanding roles but he has been consistent and managed to get one position after another over and over again. He has served as a Pilot for more than 4 years and presently he is a Director and Pilot at Skywest Aviation Limited, Commercial Director and Pilot at Skyward Express Limited and Director, Accountable Manager and Pilot at Silverstone Air Services Limited.

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It’s Time for Africa’s Enterprises to Embrace

GEN

by Terri Chowles

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Generation Z is entering the workplace, and enterprises will have to adapt if they want to attract and retain them. This is according to Novartis South Africa HR Director, Mbulelo Ntusi, who goes on to explain how Generation Z will drive change in an array of enterprises, including healthcare, and what companies like Novartis can and are doing to nurture them.

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cross Africa, where a tech-savvy young population is emerging as a force to be reckoned with, employers should be welcoming the breath of fresh air they bring to the corporate world.

Generation Z, also called Gen Z or iGen, is the generation following Millennials into the workplace. As true ‘digital natives’ aged under the age of 25, the Gen Z approach to work, and their priorities and expectations, are markedly different from those of older generations. Gen Z is going to drive change in enterprises, but forward thinking companies like Novartis welcome this.

They are already welcoming the youngest Millennials and new Gen Z interns, learners and employees into the company, and they find that they bring with them a change in workforce dynamics. This younger generation is characterised by very entrepreneurial thinking, independence and confidence in their abilities. They are goaloriented and don’t want to be micro-managed.

They also seek different approaches to leadership – the old hierarchical structures are not the best model for this generation.

Leveraging the enthusiasm, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit that Gen Z can bring to the workplace demands fresh approaches to leadership, organisational structure and even company culture. Novartis is successfully attracting and retaining next generation employees by refreshing their approaches to management and adopting the ‘unboss’ model of leadership.

Speaking during his first visit to South Africa in his new role as Novartis Global CEO, Dr Vasant (Vas) Narasimhan, noted that this ‘unboss’ approach is designed to ensure that the company’s culture stays relevant in a changing world.

Leveraging the enthusiasm, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit that Gen Z can bring to the workplace demands fresh approaches to leadership, organisational structure and even company culture.

With workplaces now populated by up to four different generations, a new reverse mentoring culture is taking root, which benefits all the generations and the company as a whole.

Dr Narasimhan said, “At Novartis we have started on a new culture journey – the ‘unboss movement’.

This is set to create a platform for dramatic change where we hope to see our organisation shift from a hierarchical and ‘know-it-all’ culture to a learning, empowering and inspiring one. This kind of workplace environment is quite critical for keeping Millennials and Gen Zs engaged and performing at their best. The new breed of employees that organisations are employing are becoming younger, brighter and more tech enabled. This calls for leaders to start leading differently by creating more clarity, being ready to serve and multiply the impact of their organisations.”

He added that as a multinational pharmaceutical company, Novartis realised the opportunities that rest with the young population that Africa has. And as a result, the company is committed to developing local talent and giving them opportunities to be part of a global network.

Novartis is focused on developing a culture of bold, continuous learning, in an environment with a sense of affiliation. They are moving from an internally competitive environment in which one wins at the expense of another, to a more collaborative environment in which we all win. This culture resonates with next generation employees.

In addition, with workplaces now populated by up to four different generations, a new reverse mentoring culture is taking root, which benefits all the generations and the company as a whole.

This builds an engaged, collaborative, curious and empowering culture.

Gen Z is keen to see rapid progression, and Novartis’ well-established skills development and career progression programmes also resonate with young employees. This generation’s willingness to learn is inspiring older employees to step up their mentorship efforts. Because of the younger generation’s focus on flexibility and work-life balance, companies like Novartis are adapting their formerly rigid approaches to work. Instead of managing time, they are focusing more on outputs and outcomes; and they’re looking at more flexible hours and remote work.

These changes are not proving disruptive, but are instead beneficial for the entire company and older staff are welcoming the changes the next generation brings. By becoming more agile and diverse, the company gains a competitive advantage.

Source: http://ehealthnews.co.za/time-africas-enterprisesembrace-gen-z/

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sector foreword Building & Construction Considering that, according to some, business spending in Africa will grow to $3.5 trillion by 2025 (from $2.6 trillion in 2015) and over the same period an additional 187 million Africans are estimated to migrate to cities, the building and construction industry in Africa should plan ahead for the increase in demand. Currently it is estimated that inadequate infrastructure in Africa still cuts growth by as much as two percentage points per year, leading to a loss of almost 40% of productivity.

With the above scenario in mind, it is suggested that strategic public and private sector collaboration is needed for appropriate long-term planning. Where would the best investment and construction opportunities lie and how can economic growth and industrialisation in Africa be optimised? Are construction firms in Africa in a good position to take the opportunities? Do Africa have the capacity to win World Bank funded contracts? In East Asia about 95 percent of all International Competitive Bidding (ICB) civil works transactions in the region, are won by regional firms. This can be seen as an indicator of the demonstrated capacity of local firms. The same can unfortunately not be said for Sub-Saharan Africa which points to the need to increase construction capacity in the region.

Two notable construction projects in Africa is the hydroelectric power plant at the Gibe Dam III in Ethiopia, and the ‘The Pinnacle’ in Nairobi, Kenya, which at a height of 300m will be the tallest skyscraper in Africa, easily exceeding Johannesburg’s 223m Carlton Centre. The Gibe Dam III was completed in 2016 and the inauguration took place on December the 17th of the same year. The plant boosts electricity supplies in the East Africa region, doubling electricity supplies in Ethiopia as well as providing electricity to neighbouring countries Kenya (500MW), Sudan (200MW) and Djibouti (200MW). The Pinnacle is expected to be completed in the second half of 2021 and will include its own helipad, residential apartments and a 5 Star Hilton Hotel.

In South Africa the construction industry is poised to play a meaningful role in the empowerment of historically underprivileged groups. As transpired at the 6th annual African Construction and Totally Concrete Expo in May 2018, community engagement and building capacity for small to medium sized contractors, women contractors, black contractors and other underprivileged groups has been identified as key to driving transformation and ultimately building the national economy.

The people who were nominated for the Titans award in building and construction made their mark in the industry by being visionary and dedicated to the growth that is so needed for the continent.

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Winners

From Tanzania Dipak Vasa Managing Director

The Managing Director at Reni International Co. Limited, Dipak Vasa is the daily executive of almost fifty individuals and has almost ten years of practice and experience in his current role. In the past two decades Reni International has been well known for contributing in the field of renewable energy in Tanzania. As a Mechanical Engineer by profession, Dipak’s desire is to constantly carry out research about the industry and keep on delivering the best technology products for the sector. For the past five consecutive years, Reni International has been recognised with the “Top 100 Mid-side Company Award� in East Africa. This has positively led the company into sustainable ventures in fields like power stability, transmission and renewable energies.

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How many jobs will be

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ST to technology?

Digital transformation is a reality, and is having a major impact on organisations of every size, and across all industries. The benefits of innovation and agility are numerous, but many fear that this transformation is threatening jobs.

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he rise of disruptive technologies is seeing total transformation within the job market.

Automation of manual tasks is the most obvious change, but AI, big data, the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchains and crowd funding are also highly disruptive, allowing established players and new incumbents to circumvent current infrastructures, and even replace man with machine.

Many technology pundits are even predicting that AI will ravage some of the most sought-after jobs, such as doctors and lawyers. Any profession or skill where some form of repetition in decision making or work process is mandated or required will be in the direct cross hairs of AI, or at a minimum, augmented intelligence.

“Jobs could be affected in two ways. Either because digital transformation and automation means that people are being replaced by machines, or because companies failing to keep up and remain relevant and competitive will close down as they can no longer compete,” says Richard Firth, CEO of MIP Holdings.

According to Firth, digitisation, automation, machine learning, artificial intelligence and selfservice technologies will naturally have an impact on the skills needed to run a particular business.

“The pace of technological change, together with growing competition, is seeing certain skills become obsolete, while the demand for new skills rises at an unprecedented pace.”

Moreover, the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Future of Jobs Report predicts that in around three years from now, the workforce will be needing vastly different skills than today, saying: “Current trends could lead to a net employment impact of more than 5.1 million jobs lost to disruptive labour market changes over the period 2015–2020”. In addition, the report estimates that a whopping 7.1 million jobs will be lost as a direct result of digital transformation and innovation, with two-thirds of these jobs being office and admin oriented.

“This will undoubtedly affect the financial services industry, which employs more white collar office and admin staff than other industry – more than most,” says Firth. “Other industries, where machines are already entrenched, such as mining, manufacturing and production, are already seeing more machine substitution. However, there is always the potential to upskill and redeploy people, to enhance productivity, rather than just substituting them with machines.”

He says this is why training and “upskilling” will be vital for individuals looking to hang on to their jobs, or find new work over the next few years. “Not only are machines competing for the jobs out there, population growth and a less than ideal job market are making competition even fiercer. Labour unions will also have to pay particular attention to this facet of technology transformation. The labour unions would put their membership at very real risk if they continue to employ the current ‘slow change’ strategy.”

On the plus side, although there are a slew of examples of how machines and automation are affecting jobs - such as the advent of the ATM, which many naysayers said would herald the demise of the bank teller – they help drive efficiencies to the point where more actual branches could be opened.

“Instead of taking jobs away, ATMs allowed bank staff to focus away from routine and mundane tasks, to other, more important areas of the business that couldn’t be handled by machines.”

The lesson here, says Firth, is that automation doesn’t necessarily take jobs away, it just redefines them, and at the same time, saves money, increases efficiencies, and forces employees to learn new skills.

Jobs could be affected in two ways. Either because digital transformation and automation means that people are being replaced by machines, or because companies failing to keep up and remain relevant and competitive will close down as they can no longer compete.”

“Businesses and labour unions looking to the future need to think carefully what skills they will need to promote to remain competitive in years to come, and start preparing their staff or membership for the transitions associated with transformation and automation. People are still most organisations’ biggest asset. Companies need to plan and anticipate which skills they will need to conduct business in the future, and give their people the opportunity to learn and upskill to meet future challenges.”

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sector foreword Business/Professional Services Professional services are tendered by people trained in the arts or sciences. Some professional services require holding professional licenses such as architects, accountants, engineers, doctors and lawyers. Other professional services involve providing specialist business support to businesses of all sizes and in all sectors; this can include tax advice, supporting a company with accounting, IT services or providing management advice. The professional services industry is usually the largest employer and contributor to GDP in most developed economies.

From being mostly local business in the past, business and professional services today are global, finding needs and opportunities in global value chains. Trade in services is a conduit that facilitates and coordinates the connections necessary to increase participation and boost competitiveness. It is observed that the enhancement of the competitiveness of the service sector is an imperative for Africa’s continued economic development. In this context it is interesting to note the rising share of low-income developing countries’ service exports in all such exports - from 1.6 percent in 1990 to 4.5 percent in 2012 according to a World Economic Forum report.

In a publication sponsored by the World Bank with the title The Unexplored Potential of Trade in Services in Africa, the following important observation and comment is made: For many decades, services have been playing a critical role in a traditional as well as a modern set-up, yet their importance is downplayed in growth and development narratives. As oil and commodity prices tumble globally, diversification into services exports will be critical for maintaining future growth in Africa … Very little is known about trade in services in Africa and its prospective impact.

The continent’s potential to engage in trade in services, especially in dynamic knowledge-intensive activities remains neglected.

In the interest of growing the sector and ultimately African economies, governments can minimize restrictions to trade in services and stimulate regional cooperation. They can do so by strengthening data generation efforts on services trade flows (transaction costs and outcome indicators); monitor services integration (focusing on the impact of reforms on lowering trade costs); and put informal and knowledge intensive services on the agenda of policy makers.

As is the case in other sectors, strong visionary leaders will take the next steps in the development and growth of business and professional services across Africa and beyond. We thank those who laid solid foundations for others to further build the sector.

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Winners

From Nigeria

From South Africa

Obafunso Ayinoluwa

Bakani Ngulani

Managing Partner

Managing Director

Obafunso Ayinoluwa is the Managing Partner at AO Partners. He has almost 34 years of experience and performance in client engagement, coordination, audit and assurance. Obafunso is a Chartered Accountant, financial advisory, IT audit review and a Certified Forensic Accountant. In all the years he has spend in practice, Obafunso has successfully motivated youth to form an international non-governmental organisation that helps the needy, support start ups and other small and medium accounting practice firms. Additionally, he managed to successfully influence the firm to carry out corporate social responsibility, such as provision of free medical services like eye tests, free medical tests to the community. With his assistance and volunteers, some brilliant but financially challenged individuals have been sponsored to tertiary institutions, as well.

At only 25 years of age, Ngulani has seen it all. He is currently the director of BN Business Solutions which is an award winning accounting, taxation and compliance firm with branches in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban and soon to be in Namibia. The South African entrepreneur has established himself as one of the most successful entrepreneurs in South Africa. He gained work experience and academic knowledge through studying for his BCompt Financial Accounting with UNISA whilst serving his articles in Chartered Accounting. He has also been able to strike a balance between his studies and work. That has worked as an advantage in giving him exposure and maturity in the financial services industry which has catapulted him years ahead of his peers. He has also accomplished quite a number of awards. He was the finalist for Zim Achievers Awards, Male Entrepreneur of the Year 2018 and South African National Young Entrepreneur Champion 2017, to name a few.

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Winners

From Uganda

From Zambia

Victor Anthony Male

Edwin Zulu

Managing Director

Chief Executive Officer

Male has scores of accomplishments to his name, he is an engineer, corporate member and assessor of Uganda Institution of Professional Engineers with 20 years’ experience working on infrastructure design, construction supervision and capacity building projects in the East African region. The versatile Ugandan has proven to be a man for the big occasion, he has 10-years experience at senior level as project director, project manager and team leader. The 45-yearold Ugandan has been involved in over 50 major projects for African Development Bank, DFID, World Bank, Total E&P, GIZ, SNV and Oxfam GB. Male has also been able to attain several qualifications, he holds a BSc in Engineering and MSc for Technology and Management for Rural Development.

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Zulu is an educated man who holds a certificate in Sales and Marketing from Chartered Institute of Marketing in UK and he also holds an Advanced certificate in Business Administration.

With his hard work and persistency, the 48-yearold has also been able to establish himself as a man for the big occasion and he has been able to deliver constantly in leadership that requires one’s A-game day by day. Zulu has served as Branch Manager, Marketing Project Coordinator, National Coordinator and Project Coordinator, to name a few. At this present moment, Zulu is a CEO for Elif Business Solutions LTD. With no hesitation, Zulu is not a victim to stage freight and he has shown with various companies that he can step-up and deliver on a daily basis.

regional

Winners

From Kenya

From South Africa

David Wanjau

Manzini Zungu

Managing Director

Chief Executive Officer

With excellent technical skills and expertise in entrepreneurship, business development and project management, David Wanjau is the Managing Director at DEEVABITS Group of companies. As the daily manager of more than 100 individuals he is responsible for the direct administration of all financial plans, overseeing business policies and practices as well as to develop and monitor project budgets to assure efficiency and appropriate resource allocation, to name a few. He holds a B Sc (Hons.); Biomedical Science and Technology. David has been recognised and honored several times throughout his career. He won the Power Africa Off-Grid Energy Challenge under US African Development Foundation and was selected among 1,000 African entrepreneurs who will transform Africa by Tony Elumelu Foundation, among others.

Zungu is a thought leader in Integrated Marketing with a particular interest media and communications spaces and the chief executive officer (CEO) of Pacinamix. The South African entrepreneur possesses a 25-year professional experience and he has been able to bag quite a number of headship roles in his entire career such as Non Executive Director, Director, Managing Director, Executive Director for Marketing, Sales and Advertising. Zungu is also an educated man who holds a IMM from Milpark Business School and he was a Volunteer at The Salvation Army.

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COUNTRY

Winners

From Cameroon Nguekam Wappi Frank Richards Managing Director

Wappi possesses a Diploma of medico sports first aid and he has obtained the German Language Certificate.

Wappi is also one of the few individuals who has been able to bag quite a number of leadership roles in his career. He has served as a Director, Creator, Promoter, National Coordinator, Designer and Director, National President and Founder. His consistency and hard work has helped him establish himself as one of the best in his sector. He participated in about 20 British parliamentary debates, attended 14 parliamentary raids in 32 villages in 7 of Cameroon’sregions and also participated in 4 parliamentary sessions in 3 of the 10 regions of Cameroon, to name a few.

From South Africa Peter van Niekerk Managing Partner and Head of Litigation

With over thirty years of litigation practice and knowledge, Peter van Niekerk is the Managing Partner and Head of Litigation at Eversheds Sutherland Inc. It is a modern law firm that provides world class services based on traditional professional values. Peter has achieved a number of remarkable deeds throughout his career. He is listed in the Chambers Legal Directory and has received a band 3 rating for Dispute Resolution Lawyers in South Africa. Peter has sat as an Assessor in the High Court, as well as a Commissioner of the Small Claims Court and The Business Days "Best Lawyers World Premier Guide" voted him as the best lawyer in the category - Arbitration and Litigation. Additionally, he is a Director at the Teddy Bear Foundation for Abused Children and of the Shaken and Abused Baby Initiative.

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COUNTRY

Winners From South Africa Carel Aaron du Toit Chief Executive Officer

The South African born entrepreneur is a front-runner of digital transformation and has travelled around the globe to help companies establish their digital roadmaps and ensure competitiveness in the 4th industrial revolution.

Carel has evolved Mint Group from a single entity to a global group of companies and he has also managed to gain recognition for the organisation as a Microsoft Inner Circle Member, became a top 1% global Business Applications provider, employs two of only 103 ALM rangers worldwide, and developed websites ranked in the global top ten. Being a leader and holding challenging positions is what he does best. He has worked as a Non-Executive Director, Business Development Director, Sales & Delivery Director and at present, he is a Chief Executive Officer for Mint Group.

From Kenya Samuel Gichuru Chief Executive Officer

Samuel Gichuru is the Chief Executive Officer at Nailab Accelerator Limited. He has a Certificate in Information Systems Audit and is currently enrolled for a Bachelor of Arts in Community Development, Minor in Communications.

Over the past years Samuel has successfully grown a sustainable business and has developed various outstanding skills. He has a range of expertise in business development, management, technology, project planning, public and motivational speaking, among others. Samuel is also the Founder of #140 Friday, a forum for engaging ICT industry players on policy and industry related issues. He productively Co-hosted a technology radio show for two years, secured partnerships with SEACOM, Accenture Netherlands and became the first Microsoft Bizspark plus Partner in East Africa.

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FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: Mikateko Chauke (Director: PR, Comms, Activations and Digital), Xolisa Moerane (Director: Enterprise and Supplier Development), Manzini Zungu (Chief Executive Officer), Tendai Mapuranga (Director: Human Capital and Development), Zizipho Zungu (Finance Director) and Lesego Ngobeni (Managing Director)

A NEW BREED OF

SPECIALIST CONSULTANTS Evolving trends, transformation and ever-changing landscapes in specific industries have culminated in businesses relying more on external experts for their specific marketplace solutions.

P

Consultants have emerged as champions of facilitating client learning; providing clients with holistic strategic planning and techniques that either solve their problems or empower them with a competitive edge.

acinamix is a trend setting PR, Communications, Activations and Digital consultancy that builds brands and reputations. The cutting - edge consultancy thrives on creating relevant, engaging and interactive digital experiences that captivate audiences.

With core expertise on business strategy, visual design andtechnology with a full range of digital solutions, Pacinamix can be seen as the “new breed of specialist consultants” owing to their extensive cross-sector experience and expertise to support and execute customized client strategies that combine deep industry insight with analyst, digital and traditional media reach

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and a best-in-class service ethic to ensure that clients receive creative, clever communication strategies that are aligned to their business objectives and deliver measurable business results.

At the core of Pacinamix’s cutting edge ethos, is the agile know-how to achieve objectives with variable or specific solutions. The consulting firm offers integrated brand communications expertise focused on brand strategy and solutions for clients across a broad spectrum of industries and environments to ensure their clients have access to the latest thinking on, and approaches to, communications.

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For that reason, Pacinamix invests considerable time and effort on innovation. This means constantly looking for new ways to communicate with and influence people, not just to have fun but because they believe great communications strategies are directly linked to the business goals of organizations.

value of resourceful and efficient HR practices as a key strategic enabler of business performance management.

This lies in the firm’s capacity to provide the right combination of capabilities, resources, and approach to help clients integrate human performance with organizational objectives for maximum organizational effectiveness.

The growing need companies have for tailored, practical Mining solutions also form part of Pacinmaix’s repertoire. consulting support and knowledge has competitively The firm’s mining research and development is strategically positioned Pacinamix as key players in an industry that is focused towards the development of products for use in all valued at over R70-billion according Consultancy South types of underground, and open-cast mining, power Africa; an online consultancy networking platform. This generation plants, petrochemical plants and all other directive can be attributed to the fact that companies want manufacturing environments. It is with this impetus that experts who have Pacinamix specializes in Intrinsic comprehensive subject Safety product design. These Pacinamix’s cutting edge specialist mining solutions extend matter insight coupled ethos, is the agile know-how to in the areas of Gas Supply, with the reputation to and Resources as well deliver and constantly achieve objectives with variable Commodity optimized to achieve goals. as Fleet and Trading Services.

As cross-sector experts, or specific solutions.

The value of Pacinamix as a Pacinamix’s experience further advance into the expertise of Enterprise and Supplier consulting firm is fundamentally entrenched in the attribute Development (ESD) and Human Capital Development. of using knowledge to formulate subject matter that is specifically meaningful to the business objectives and results The focus on ESD encapsulates the entire ESD value chain of clients. that includes a combination of preferential procurement, supplier development, supplier diversity and enterprise With strong networks and access into all levels of social and development- - as key drivers in the Broad-Based Black business communities, Pacinamix offers a gateway into Economic Empowerment policy to advance economic business-to-business and business-to-community industries transformation in South Africa. to deliver and develop breakthrough, relevant and innovative Pacinamix’s consultancy expertise in this arena qualifies strategies. the firm to architect end-to-end ESD programmes while journeying with clients in creating shared value.

The consulting firm’s strength comes from a tight-knit digital, experienced and creative team that loves to problem solve, From a Human Capital Development perspective, Pacinamix coming up with creative digital business solutions for clients; strategic Human Capital Development consulting offerings this means if there is a more effective way to get a company’s span the entire spectrum of HR transactional, talent message across, Pacinamix will explore it without you having management and planning processes, as well as functional to ask. management. The objective is to align clients in seeing the

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sector foreword Chemicals, Pharmaceutical & Petrochemical Central to the modern world economy, the chemical industry converts raw materials (oil, natural gas, air, water, metals, and minerals) into many thousands of products we rely on in our daily lives.

Broad categories are commodity chemicals (which includes plastics, petrochemicals, inorganic chemicals and fertilizers), life sciences (pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, animal health products, vitamins, and pesticides), specialty chemicals (electronic chemicals, industrial gases, adhesives, sealants, coatings and others), and consumer products (soaps, detergents, cosmetics etc.).

To excel in the industry many different skills and qualities are required, such as analytical skills, creativity, ingenuity, mathematics skills and ultimately leadership skills. Africa certainly need growing numbers of chemical engineers and leaders in the field to help build the industry and its competitiveness in the global market.

According to some reports global conditions over the next decade are likely to become more challenging with considerable uncertainty and disparity of performance throughout the chemical industry. Chemical manufacturers are advised to invest in digital technologies and advanced analytics to help them harness their data for maximum performance and thrive despite the challenges they face. It is said that the number of variables to process for maximum performance are enormous. Add to the above the fact that plants in emerging markets typically must address a skillset gap and in some cases an increasingly complex regulatory environment, and role players in the African market will clearly be challenged to deliver good results.

The production of agrochemicals is a key focus area of the sector, especially since agriculture still forms the backbone of many African economies. Africa imports large amounts of various types of chemicals for industrial, domestic and agricultural purposes, as well as for cosmetics, food, plastics, laboratory and petroleum. Africa can however tap into its rich biological diversity to produce pharmaceutical chemicals.

Demand for chemicals in the agriculture subsector will continue to grow based on several factors.

Africa has 25 percent of the world’s arable land and 60 percent of the world’s uncultivated arable land. Africa’s current low crop yields per hectare represent significant growth opportunities and even with existing cultivated land, a doubling of cereal yields would turn Africa into a major food surplus region.

In addition, the agribusiness value chain including storage, logistics, packaging and processing will add more opportunities for investors.

Much more can and will be achieved, but we are proud of the list of nominees for the Titans Award and congratulate them for their success.

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Winners

From South Africa

From Namibia

Vikram Naik

Willem Cornelius Schalkwyk

Chief Executive Officer

Managing Director and Shareholder

With more than fifteen years of extensive practice within the medical sector, Vikram Naik is the CEO at AVACARE GLOBAL. Naik is an Anesthetist specialist who believes that by working together Africa can become a better and healthy continent for all. He has made it his life’s mission to change the face of healthcare in Africa. Starting off AVACARE GLOBAL about two decades ago, Naik has seen his company successfully growing and becoming the daily Executive of more than 850 individuals. In addition, AVACARE GLOBAL supplies ARVs to over 24 African countries, supports local and international Conferences as well as sponsoring several Healthcare professionals to attend those conferences.

Willem Schalkwyk is the Director at BACHMUS OIL, one of the largest fuel suppliers in Namibia.

BACHMUS OIL is the sole distributor of CALTEX (CHEVRON) lube oil and they have also been the top distributors in Southern Africa for the past seven years. Schalkwyk is also the founding member of Namibia Fuel Distributors comprising of six permanent drivers and an administrator.

Schalkwyk is a prominent leader who believes in promoting better practice to his people and deems that his obligation is to lead by example. As a way of giving back, Schalkwyk is a Chairman at a local golf club where he financially assists young golfers who cannot afford to travel for tournaments and he is also involved in some charities within the community.

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Winners

From Kenya Devesh Kumar Patel General Manager

Devesh Kumar Patel is the General Manager at KEL Chemicals Limited. KEL Chemicals is East and Central Africa’s leading manufacturer of phosphate fertilizers and Aluminum Sulphate, Sulphuric Acid - water treatment chemicals. He holds Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) Chemistry. He is an inspirational and notable leader of more than 100 individuals with over 20 years of experience and practice with Global and regional MNC across manufacturing and distribution operations.

He is a business guru in driving sales and marketing operations, new market expansion, operations management, turn around and business growth and expansion. As the General Manager he is responsible of overseeing the day to day activities in the company and increasing the company’s productivity.

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Winners From Zimbawe David Alfred Norman Technical Director

Norman has 32 years of extensive experience, providing complete hygiene solutions to the food, beverage, dairy, I&I, mining, engineering and hospitality sectors.

The 56-year-old holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Nottingham Trent University Business School development programme, a BSc Chemistry and Cell Biology from the University of Natal in South Africa and an Intermediate certificate in applied HACCP principles from the Royal Institute of Public Health in England. His work experience includes supply chain management, production planning and management, customer relationship management and product development for various industries. He is a Management Representative and project lead for the implementation of the ISO Quality Management System for Barco Chemicals. Visiting new areas and spending time in camping is Norman’s way to escape from his daily duties.

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e c i o v in ud a r f wala

e Th

akh

by L

th o b d ts n e a g r s e ta s s e n busi iduals indiv

Invoice fraud has been a matter of concern lately, appearing several times on the news after Goliath and Goliath was hit by hackers who seized the company’s invoice to its clients diverting over R300 000 from the comedy and entertainment agency and its subsidiary.

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he hackers gained access to the company’s emails and requested clients to make payments to a different bank account.

Goliath and Goliath CEO, Kate Goliath is persuading small businesses to be more alert and tighten up their security measures after her comedy and entertainment agency fell victim to authorized push payment fraud.

“Find out as much information about how hackers get into the system so that you are aware of what service providers need to offer,” says Goliath.

Push payment fraud happens when fraudsters trick a business or a customer into sending them a payment under false pretenses and to a bank account controlled by a fraudster. If the payment is made using the South African SAMOS clearing system it is irretrievable and victims can’t do anything after they payment has been made even if they realize they have been conned.

Fraudsters will always try to find several ways to scam people and they are also highly skilled using the internet and also familiar with technology. This is how they make their living and they have to be at their best and updated to perform these scams. Kate went on to say they are aware that banks are trying several alternatives to prevent cyber crime. ”We have noticed that some banks are posting warnings before a client makes a payment to verify that the bank details they’re using are correct,” Goliath emphasised. “We assume that this is because of an increase in these types of phishing attacks.”

Scammers take their time and do a thorough research before attempting to scam an individual or a business. There is nothing different about this current approach. They use social engineering techniques and may hack into email and other systems in order to set up their victims. Fraudsters have developed a wide range of classy hacking techniques so that their approaches are much more convincing compared to five years ago.

They target the business using vishing, smishing and phishing to gain access to information and build relationships they can use.

They also like using spear fishing techniques to target decision makers at a business and trick them into actions that enable the fraud.

These criminals are dangerous and clever and they will do anything to ensure that they get what they want. As electronic payment schemes can be used to transfer large sums of money, there is a need to employ layered fraud protection across all products and channels used to manage real time payments.

SUSTAIN ABILITY Authorized push payment fraud schemes include: Attacks on individuals Paying an invoice that looks exactly like the one from your service provider but it turns out to be from fraudsters and sending the money to the fraudster’s back account. Sending payment for work done by someone who performed a function for you, only to find that you have acted based on an email that came from a fraudster pretending to be someone you needed to pay. Account takeover is where scammers initiate push payments to new payees often across different channels with a goal of outsmarting existing fraud control.

Targeting property transactions This kind of fraud can affect any property purchase, whether by an individual or a business. Conveyancing solicitors may also end up as victims to payment fraud.

This type of fraud occurs when criminals intercept the email chain between sellers, buyers, estate agents and solicitors.

Once the fraudsters have intercepted the communication between all the relevant role players, they change the payment information related to transfer of funds so that payments are diverted to the scammers account. The sums are likely to be large and falling victim can be life changing.

Intercepting supplier payments Also known as fake invoice fraud, this type of phishing fraud uses a combination of interception and social engineering techniques to obtain information.

Scammers are able to convince individuals or businesses to change bank account details, getting their victims to replace the account number of the legitimate suppliers with their own.

Source: https://www.fin24.com

“Find out as much information about how hackers get into the system so that you are aware of what service providers need to offer.”

sector foreword Education & Training: Academic Benjamin Franklin rightly said, an investment in knowledge pays the best interest. It can be said that the Education & Training sector is the enabler of all the other sectors. And it is for that very reason that Africa need to passionately invest in this sector, with determination inspirational leadership and effective strategies.

As it stands, Africa faces a “severe learning crisis” that undermines economic growth and the well-being of its citizens, according to a new World Bank study. The region has made considerable progress in boosting primary and lower secondary school enrolment, but some 50 million children remain out of school, and most of those who attend school are not acquiring the basic skills necessary for success later in life. Learning levels across the region are alarmingly low. Among second grade students assessed on numeracy tests in several Sub-Saharan African countries, three-quarters could not count beyond 80 and 40 percent could not do a one-digit addition problem. In reading, between 50 and 80 percent of children in second grade could not answer a single question based on a short passage they had read, and a large proportion could not read even a single word.

One problematic area of strategic importance is the “traffic jam” in early grades, where children are stuck for many years with little learning, and are often taught in a language they don’t fully understand. Others include the need for regular student attendance, optimal class size and the implementation of a language of instruction policy. The World Bank study highlights the need for better teacher support, particularly around issues of recruitment, preparation, deployment, supervision, and support at the school level. Policies need to address high rates of absenteeism and lack of teacher knowledge and skill, with a focus on better and more effective teacher preparation programs, on-the-job support, and incentives.

To address the desperate need for education of Africa’s youth, innovative and courageous thinking and actions will be required. One consideration is the shift to private education. The rate of students choosing private education has grown higher than public education. The Business of Education in Africa report reveals that 66 million people will be enrolled in a private school by 2021. It can furthermore be expected that e-learning will play a major role in closing the existing gaps. The average annual growth rate of e-learning in African and Asian countries such as Nepal, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Senegal and Uganda is estimated to easily exceed 10% from 2016 to 2021.

A goal to work for is articulated by UNESCO : Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all by 2030. Africa’s challenges in this sector are certainly of the most critical and most difficult. It however presents the kind of opportunity that leaders, such as those who are nominated for the Titans Award, would face head-on.

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Winners

From Nigeria

From Cameroon

Atayero Aderemi Aaron Anthony

Lazare Kaptue

Vice Chancellor

President

Anthony is an educated man who holds quite a few of qualifications to his name. He holds a Ph.D in Communication Engineering, M.Sc. in Satellite Communication Systems, B.Sc. in Radio Engineering and Diploma in Methods of Teaching Russian as a Foreign Language. With his theoretical and practical awareness, he has been consistent and able to bag numerous headship roles in his career. He has served as a Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Chancellor, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Coordinator, Satellite Communications Engineer and Research Scientist, to name a few. Under University administration, he has bagged several managerial roles such as Directorate of Academic Planning Unit, Directorate of International Office and Linkages, Head, Department of Electrical & Information Engineering, Chairman of EIE Board of Studies, Chief Examiner of Department of EIE and Directorate of Center for Entrepreneurial Development Studies

Kaptue is an educated man who holds a Diploma of Tropical Medicine, CES of General and Applied Immunology, CES of Micro biology and Virology General, CES of Systematic Microbiology and Virology and a certificate of Microbiology, just to name a few. With his several qualifications, he has been able to attract several leadership roles. He has worked as a Parasitology Instructor, Director of Health, Inspector General, Founder of the Falciform Hematology Centre Anemia Centre at Central Hospital AND Founder and President of the National Committee of Fight against AIDS in Cameroon. At this present movement, Kaptue is a Professor of Hematology, Immunology at the University Centre of Sciences of the Health.

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Winners

From Cameroon

From South Africa

Prof. Tsafack Nanfosso Roger

Prof. Godwell Nhamo

Recteur

Chief Researcher

The Cameroon-born recteur has managed to accomplish quite a number of qualifications within a short period of time. He holds a Masters degree in Economics of the Firm, Economic Policy Management Studies, and a PhD in Labour Economics. Tsafack Roger has managed to remain consistent in his career. He has worked as a teaching assistant and lecturer. He also managed to work his way up and ended up as a professional lecturer and associate professor. Between 2001 and 2005, the versatile Roger was the National Director of the African Post Graduated Inter-university Program in Economics and Director of research programme (Post graduated) in Management Sciences.

He was also a permanent trainer in, Director Economic of Policy Management Programme and Deputy Vice-Chancellor and in September 2015, he started a s a Vice-Chancellor of the University of Dschang.

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With an astonishing academic journey marked by almost twenty years, Prof. Godwell is an outstanding graduate with seven PhDs, several Masters, hosted 9 postdoctoral fellows, written and or edited six books and published over fifty journal articles. The previous National Science and Technology Forum awards finalist, Prof. Godwell was recognised for the Chairperson of Council’s Award for Excellence and the Chancellor Award in research and has successfully written the UNISA Energy and Carbon Policy with numerous recognitions conveyed to him. Prof. Godwell is involved with some of the well-known Foundations and Organisations in the country. He is a division of the National Research Foundation of South Africa Green Economy Postdoctoral Fellowships Review Panel and in 2013 he efficiently organised the first ever zero emissions cars exhibition in higher education in partnership with the Department of Environmental Affairs.

regional

Winners

From Uganda

From South Africa

Prof. William Bazeyo

Prof. Mokhotjwa

Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor

Associate Professor

Prof. William Bazeyo is a Ugandan physician, academician and Occupational Health specialist.

He is currently a Professor of Occupational Medicine at Makerere University where he is presently the Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor Finance and Administration. He holds a Degree of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB), Master of Medicine degree and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Degree from Atlantic International University. Prof. William has conducted numerous successful researches within his field and has several articles published in science journals. He is also a member of various well-known affiliations and organisations within the sector. He is the Founding Member of the Higher Education Alliance for Leadership Training for Health, Member to the Board of the Uganda Cancer Institute, to name a few.

The 41-year-old Professor is an educated man who possesses and astonishing education history. He holds BSc, BSc honours, MSc and a Ph.D in Physics. With no doubt, Physics has always been his preferred path. With his strong education history, he also possesses a decorated employment history to his name. He has served as a Visiting Research Scientist/Professor, Senior Lecturer, Senior Research Scientist and Laboratory assistant. At present, he is an Acting Head of the Department of Physics in the absence of the HOD at UNISA. Due to his hard work he has received quite number recognitions. He was listed in the 2013 Top 200 Mail and Guardian Young South Africans, Featured in the 2013 November-December Issue of Destiny Men Magazine, Member of South African Young Academy of Science and listed in the 2014 8th edition of 2000 Outstanding Intellectuals of the 21st Century, to name a few.

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COUNTRY

Winners From DRC

Prof Patrick Kitume Mobambo RECTOR of University of KINDU

Prof Patrick Mobambo is the Rector of University of Kindu in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He holds a PhD in Crop Science and a Bachelor degree in Agronomic Sciences. Prof. Patrick is an author of several articles published in international journals, conferences and workshops on banana/plantain all over the world. As a man of many talents in the education sector, Prof.

Patrick is also the ‘Professeur Ordinaire’ at the Faculty of Agronomy and he a representative on ‘Biodiversity International’ in his country on research activities on Bananas and preparation of research and development projects with Biodiversity International, Montpellier, France.

From South Africa Prof Ochieng Ayi Director and Head of Department

“Team member development starts with the team leader and showing your care about the interests of your team members and taking their contributions into consideration,” emphasises Prof. Ochieng. He is the Director of the Centre for Renewable Energy and Water at Vaal University of Technology. As a leader of the youth, Prof. Ochieng successfully developed a “cascaded mentorship model” for the students at the University, which deservingly earned him a national award for ‘transformation and redress’. Prof. Ochieng is a member of several national advisory boards and in his own capacity he donates books, trophies and contributes money for rural schools building, and gives motivational lectures including teaching school learners’ physics and mathematics.

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Ethics Morals at Work

101:

by Terri ChowlesÂ

You have probably heard the word “ethics� thrown around quite a bit, but do you know what ethics are? Ethics are a person or corporations moral philosophy, which involves how a person or business defines and handles right and wrong behaviour. A solid ethical foundation is generally based upon human rights, what is fair and what is in the best interest of the workplace (both employer and employee).

D

ue to the fact that ethics can vary greatly depending on many factors, it can be difficult for a business to determine where the lines are drawn in the sand when it comes to quandaries involving ethical decisions. It is important not to confuse ethics with the law, as some laws may not be in line with what we consider to be ethical. What is ethical can change based on where we work and who we interact with.

Almost all employees will find themselves from time to time in a position where they are being asked to do something that is unethical. If a superior requests a financial report but asks that the numbers be manipulated, it is unethical, especially if you know that finagling the figures will benefit the recipient.

Managers and supervisors are not the only people who can dish out unethical requests and behaviours; colleagues are guilty of the same. Some new employees have reported being asked by more senior staff members to do their assignments or even take tests on their behalf. Of course, because the staff member is new, they feel pressure to be accepted and comply with the requests.

If you are in a position where your ethics or that of your employer comes into question, sit down and have a very frank discussion with the offender or even your Human Resources Department. Chances are, they may not even recognize their own behaviours. Be proactive and take steps towards prevention by educating yourself on workplace ethics.

If you are a jobseeker, it is important for you to know whom you are working for when you are seeking employment. Do research on the companies where you have applied and make sure you are asking questions.

Ask about the work environment, where the company sees itself in five years, and what the turnover rate is like. It is just as important for a recruiter to learn about its potential employees, as it is for you to determine if the company will be a good fit for you.

Myron Curry is the President of Business Training Media, a leading provider of business ethics training material for improving management and employee productivity. www.businesstrainingmedia.com

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sector foreword Education & Training: Private As Nelson Mandela said, education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.

Africa therefore need a strong, healthy, effective and growing private education and training sector to compliment the traditional public or government system. Children who attend private schools may be there because of their parents’ ability to pay private school fees, and may be selected for their academic prowess, or prowess in other fields, or sometimes their religious background. Private schools retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students for tuition, rather than relying on mandatory taxation through public (government) funding.

One report on private education in Africa estimates, based on current growth figures, that one in four young African students—or 66 million—will be enrolled in a private school by 2021. The huge demographic shift in the continent, rapid urbanisation, the increased use of technology, and the emergence of a middle class has amplified the role of private education throughout the continent.

African governments should therefore formulate policy frameworks and public-private partnerships that would expand access to and improve quality at these institutions. There are already an estimated 41 million out of 200 million young African students in private education.

Whereas there could be different and opposing arguments for or against the shift to more private schools, a solution or solutions must be found. With improved policy regulations, the right financing and strong public-private partnerships, the continent can develop a hybrid educational infrastructure that could solve much of the pressing problems to reach the children of Africa with quality education.

It has to be noted that as the competition amongst private school operators increases, the demand for quality teachers rises. The demand for affordable and practical teacher training qualifications will therefore also increase but so will the quality of the education.

As much as the sector finds itself in uncharted waters, role players and leaders in the sector must experience exciting, challenging and hopefully breakthrough conversations as they grapple with the challenges. It is a typical 21st century environment in the sense that the situation is complex yet need to be faced, goodwill in negotiations will be tested, visionary and systems thinking will be required, and collaboration should win the day.

We salute those remarkable people who are up for the challenge and have made their praiseworthy contributions.

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Winners

From South Africa

From Uganda

Rowan Kevin van Dyk

Morrison Twesigye Rwakakamba

Chief Executive officer

Country Director

Rowan van Dyk is the Chief Executive Officer at Dalamaro Business Consultant Training. He holds a BComm degree and a Master of Business Administration. Rowan is actively involved in his sector and strives to offer solutions whenever possible. In South Africa he is involved with WRSETA were he assists various companies to draft and submit their training needs to the departments and helps small providers to become accredited and sustainable. He is also part of the Namibia Training Authority were he aids with developing industry standards of training. Prior to his current occupation, Rowan has worked for several distinguished brands such as PEP Stores, Hicor Trading Ltd, were he held executive positions.

The Ugandan-bon director possesses qualifications that have paved a way to his worth-listening journey. He holds an MSc in Public Administration and International Relations and Diplomatic Studies. He has 15 years experience in public policy analysis, private sector development, civil society and government. He has been consistent and delivered in highest level and his ever demanding major positions. He is currently a Country Director for International Academies and he has worked as a Chief Executive Officer for Agency for Transformation and Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Special President Advisor, and Country’s Programme Manager.

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Winners

From Kenya Dr Washington Okeyo Chief Executive Officer, Managing Director

Dr Washington Okeyo is a PhD degree holder in Business Administration (Entrepreneurship) and is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic, Research, and Extension) and the PhD Coordinator of the Management University of Africa (MUA).

He lectures and has research interests in management, leadership, statistics, research, and organizational development consultancy and has published over twenty peer reviewed papers.

Dr Okeyo is a current member of the University’s Governing Council, Management Board, and the Senate as well as Chairman of several University Committees. Dr Okeyo is also a former General Manager at Kenya Breweries Limited, former Managing Director at Southlink Consultants Limited, former Director at Muthaiga Golf Club and former Project Manager at UNESCO.

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Winners Zambia Ceaser Siakacha Chief Executive Officer

Ceaser believes that developing people entails developing the nation. Once one person is given the skills, it benefits all. Holding a Masters Degree in Communication and a Bachelors Degree in Development Studies, Ceaser is the CEO at the National Institute of Public Administration. In his role as CEO, Ceaser has effectively administered a number of training programs at the institution, including a Bachelor of Public Administration, a Bachelor of Development Studies as well as Monitoring and Evaluation. He has also facilitated in various capacity building training offerings that include the training of trainers, M & E, Governance as well as Development Management.

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T T F O F N O E N O Y N A 90 2018 TITANS

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?

THEN YOU JUST AREN’T

TRYING HARD

ENOUGH!

by Adam Gifford

When was the last time you really offended someone at work? If you are a leader and your answer was ‘never’, you may want to rethink your job title. After all, American statesman and retired four-star general in the US Army Colin Powell had a point when he said, “being responsible sometimes means pissing people off.”

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f course, we’re not saying that if you’re a jerk, you’ll do great things. Quite the contrary.

But we are suggesting the flip side of that equation – that if you’re never willing to make unpopular choices, there is the possibility you won’t do anything transformative in your career. Because let’s face it, most meaningful achievements probably required a fight to get there.

The mark of a visionary leader is someone who’s not swayed off track when thumbs-up go swiftly south. Trying to remain popular can all too often stand in the way of being effective. If you want to leave a legacy, you have to be willing to take the heat. Otherwise, you’ll never shape anything that can outlast the fads. It’s the difference between taking people where they ought to go as compared to where they believe they want to go.

The majority doesn’t have the best track record Let’s face it, the majority is often complacent.

Looking down the halls of human history, many of our finest moments were forged in spite of the crowds and status quo. If it were a matter of conformance, the world would still be flat; women would still be unable to vote; and South Africa may have started a post-apartheid civil war. Liberation movements and step changes in business may be carried out by many, but they’re almost always captained by the few. It takes a Joan of Arc and a Steve Jobs to go out swinging before others follow.

If you’re too busy trying to get everyone to like your ideas, you’ll probably end up cornering your product into a stalemate, or to the point of being impotent and ineffective. The more impact you have, the more alone you’re likely to feel, because leadership requires a consistent stride in front.

On the flip side, leadership is also the ability to take people on the journey with you, even if it

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EMPOWERED LEADERSHIP wasn’t the place they thought they should go. This global product, and the product to get us there was requires tough decisions, including confronting bottled water,” says Daniel Flynn, its co-founder. “We those who need to be confronted. Doing so will felt the link was very important for customers: buying quickly differentiate your ‘supporters’ from those water and funding water, and buying food and who are committed to a strategy and getting it done. funding food, and so on.” Ahead of a big meeting with ‘Supporters’ stand on the sidelines cheering whilst the committed ones do all of the work. Support is quicksand to organisational Ticking people off is to be expected, if reform and far more insidious than dissent.

you want to leave a compelling footprint.

Know the conflict you’re working with Opposition is not a bad thing. Ticking people off is to be expected, if you want to leave a compelling footprint. But when dissension knocks on your door, you need to know what kind of conflict you’re working with, and how best to tip the tension towards your greater advantage.

Within any organisation, bruised egos and brittle-boned loyalties to “the way it’s always been done” are dangerous contenders. They’re loud; they’re disruptive, and you have to handle them with care. Often times, the best way to handle them is to graciously ignore the bark, since the bite is bearable, and just keep going.

But on the other hand, some conflict is your company’s secret sauce – and you’d be rewarded by paying attention to it. You need to be able to ask the question, is this particular head but a handbrake or an opportunity? If it’s the latter, use all of your EQ and resources available to transform these differences of opinion into creative tension that fuels the organisation forward. A good leader understands that there actually is an “I” in team. But, at the same time, the team only works best when divergent skills and personalities are given room to operate collaboratively, in a way that works best for them.

Turn your resistance into opportunity In his HBR article, writer and Innovations Editor Philip Auerswald writes about how even the underdog can push back the onslaught of incumbent resistance and come out on top, by making the competition the enemy and your cause the venerable hero. As Auerswald put it, “The more disruptive your innovation, the more your success needs to look like the creation of a political movement.”

Thankyou is a social enterprise that understands this concept pretty well. “We wanted to tackle a huge global problem (lack of clean water) with a huge

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Australian chainstore 7-Eleven, Thankyou went public and asked fans to jump onto 7-Eleven’s wall and tell them that if they stocked Thankyou water, they’d buy it. The gamble worked and Thankyou water was on 7-Eleven shelves within weeks.

But to win over the bigger retail giants with similar food and body care products would take far more daring. In their six-minute video on YouTube, they told fans that they wanted to present to Coles and Woolies. It was viewed 80,000 in two weeks. They also convinced donors to fund two helicopters to fly around Coles and Woolworths’ head offices carrying a ten thousand square foot sign which read: “Dear Coles / Woolworths, Thankyou for changing the world! (if you say yes)”. The rest, as they say, is history with the startup having raised $2.5 million to give 150,000 people access to water, and 190,000 access to hygiene and sanitation, as well as 12.1 million days’ worth of food aid in 16 countries in six and a half years.

Good leaders understand that ideas wait for no one, and when they come, it’s our job to pull them down into reality. As designer Charlie Wollberg says, “If you don’t bring that idea to life, it’ll go out and inspire someone else. Because even if people like to wait, the ideas don’t like to.”

Get comfortable with being uncomfortable In a constant world of disruptive overhaul, we need to sidle up to friction and get comfortable with critique. Ticking people off is not something to aim for, but it’s often a vital part of moving forward – and will help reveal who you’re moving forward with. The point is to accept that it’s going to be a part of where you’re headed. After all, if you’re not ticking anyone off – perhaps you should be!

Leadership 2020 Developing Africa's Richest Asset - It's People Everything starts with the power of the mind.

If you can control your mind you can steer your journey.

The Leadership2020 Seminars

Designed to empower, motivate, inuence and change young lives through incubating the youth of South Africa into a positive frame of thinking as well as arming the youth of South Africa with the relevant tools, tips and strategies to become successful and prosper.

* info@leadership2020.co.za

064 684 6635

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www.leadership2020.co.za

2020Leaders

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sector foreword Financial Services The main areas for careers, growth, progress and development in the financial services sector are banks, investment banking services, foreign exchange services, investment services and insurance. The sector is often recognised for innovative and progressive thinking in serving the client with a variety of products and slick and efficient IT applications. The pursuit of the best ways to improve the customer experience is never-ending. Ideally, the latest and best technology can offer, accounting and actuarial expertise, and interpersonal skills work seamlessly together for the best results in looking after our financial needs.

Whilst many kinds of challenges persist in Africa, one industry that has demonstrated particular success is financial services. Today, more people have access to basic financial services, such as personal banking, than ever before. Innovation, particularly through the much heralded use of mobile phones, means that millions more people can manage their personal finances in an efficient, transparent and reliable manner. This has transformed many local communities through enterprise and entrepreneurship.

The prominent themes that come up when imagining future development in banking are personalisation, digital engagement, biometrics in making payments, robotics and blockchain. How can the expectations of the digital consumer be met more effectively? How can chatbots (a program that simulates human conversation through voice commands or text chats) further be introduced to improve the customer experience? Are there more options for fingerprint scanning and facial recognition in speeding up transaction processes? How can blockchain technology be utilised?

Generally, the financial services sector in Africa can look forward to making further progress in using technology for the inclusion of people in financial systems. With the majority of payments still being made in cash (80% in Nigeria alone), the potential for improving the way people transact when buying goods and services is huge. Nigerians often still don’t trust the concept of cashless transaction. Greater collaboration between newer financial technology platforms providing payment solutions and the traditional providers of financial services is needed to for progress in this regard.

A cell phone in the hand of an African, wherever he might be, brings closer the possibility for him to manage his finances and become more educated in the process. Although the smartphone boom in the continent has increased access to financial services, it has not necessarily increased financial inclusion. Segments such as women, youth, farmers and small businesses still remain largely unbanked, meaning they don’t have access to banking services such as lending. These and many other challenges are the things that leaders, such as those we can meet in the following pages, thrive on as opportunities to apply their experience and abilities for the progress and growth of the sector and African economy as a whole.

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Winners

From South Africa

From Kenya

Fundile Ntuli

Paul Mwaura

Chief Information Officer

Chief Executive Officer

Ntuli is a highly committed and driven IT strategy and delivery leader with extensive progressive experience in local and international financial organisations with a proven and exceptional delivery track record. He is an educated man, he has a Diploma in General Management, Post Graduate Diploma in (IS). While working for Ubank, he has also managed to lead an end to end network infrastructure upgrade between 2016 and 2017. He is one of the few individuals to handle quite a number of demanding jobs with ease and success. He has worked as a Senior Manager Financial Systems, IT Manager and Business Information Officer, Head Solutions Delivery. At present, he is a Chief Information Officer for Ubank.

The young and self-motivated 33-year old finance expert, Paul Mwaura is the Chief Executive Officer at Interswitch East Africa Ltd. Interswitch is a leading Africa-focused integrated digital payments and commerce company.

He has studied in a number of countries across the world, like Australia, London, etc. He holds a Higher Diploma in Business Management, Bachelor of Commerce and is currently studying towards a Master in Business Administration.

Paul has extensive work experience within the financial services sector and has worked for several well-known financial brands. He has worked for the Standard Bank Africa Group, Easy Tax Global, Safaricom Limited, among others. He also has excellent core skills in Telecommunications, Banking, and Business Development, to name a few.

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From Swaziland Alfred Madondo General Manager/Acting Chief Executive Officer

Madondo is an educated man who possesses a Bachelor of Commerce Honours in Insurance & Risk Management Degree and he also has more than thirteen years working experience with more than ten years at managerial level. His career highlights was when he played a leading role in repositioning Diamond General Insurance into the top five in Zambia and played a pivotal role in customer relationship management, business development and technical leadership resulting in the SBU to achieve the best overall results for the company. Madondo is also a versatile man who has been able to adapt in several positions whenever given a chance to produce his A-game. He has served as a Head of Claims, Branch Manager, Acting Head of Operations, General Manager and Senior Underwriter.

Currently, he is an Acting Chief Executive Officer and General Manager.

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Winners From South Africa Wilhelm Nauta Executive Director

Wilhelm Nauta is remarkable and notable business guru who believes that in business it’s not all about money and that people need to build constant admirable relationships with each other. “The relationship is more important than the deal,” says Wilhelm. He is a Chartered Accountant by profession and is currently the Investment Executive of JSE-listed property company, Hyprop.

Wilhelm has over 21 years’ of practice and experience in the Financial Services sector as an auditor, research analyst and subsequently as a dealmaker in private equity and property. Throughout his career, Wilhelm has achieved seven number 1 ratings in the annual Financial Mail survey for investment research in several financial services sectors. Giving back, Wilhelm often raises funds for the Jan H. Hofmeyr School of Social Work, the first institution to train black social workers in South Africa.

From South Africa Donovan Antony Chimhandamba Executive Chairman

Chimhandamba holds a MBA in Business Administration and B.Eng (Hons) in Industrial & Manufacturing and he also attained a Lean Manufacturing Excellence Certification from Belgium. Donovan is a co-founding partner and Chief Executive Officer of Arkein Capital, a pan Africa fund management business and also Chief Executive of Arkein International based in Mauritius with offices in Johannesburg, South Africa, which invests and owns mineral beneficiation and energy projects across the African continent. He commands more than 13 years of professional experience at senior levels in Blue Chip Company’s including National Empowerment Fund, Engen Petroleum Refinery, Pretoria Portland Cement (PPC), Vesuvius International and Group Five. Currently Donovan is also Chairman of Nyanza Light metals, a US$550 million titanium dioxide pigment mineral beneficiation project to be established in Richardsbay, South Africa.

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Winners From Namibia Walter Edward Don Chief Executive Officer

The 55-year-old holds a National Diploma in Human Resources and he is a registered Human Resources Practitioner. The Zambian entrepreneur has been seeking knowledge everywhere to better his skills of being an entrepreneur. Edwardv Don went to a National University of Singapore for a Top Executive Management Development Progamme and he has also been to New York Institute of Finance for an MBA Programme. The 55-year-old Chief Executive Officer lead a team that successfully bid for 2 million British pound grant to role out banking services to the rural poor in Namibia and he has also served as a Task Force member of Bank Windhoek.

He also possesses a 17 years experience as a Human Resources Practitioner.

From Tanzania Augustine Ntomola Chief Executive Officer

As the Chief Executive Officer of Hakika Microfinance Bank Limited, Augustine Ntomola is responsible for ensuring that the strategic direction of the bank is achieved and that everything is done according the company’s policy.

In his current role as the CEO, Augustine has actively and dedicatedly contributed to his organisation by ensuring that all shareholders’ investments are correctly used and managed. He has also initiated strategic alliances with various technology suppliers to ensure that mobile banking services are able to reach each and every rural and urban unbanked population. As a role model to many young people in his community, Augustine often carry out several youth trainings and has managed to introduce a regional radio program that sensitise youth and women to understand all the basics of finance.

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Winners From South Africa Patrick Matshidze Chief Executive Officer

Patrick Matshidze has more than fifteen years of subsequent practice and experience in medical financial services industry and he is the Chief Operating Officer at Rand Mutual Assurance. He is an Epidemiologist by profession and has an MBA in Health Economics. Patrick is well established and successful finance expert who is currently a board member of the Compensation Fund and participates in several board sub committees including Audit, Risk, Social and Ethics and IT Subcommittees at RMA. He also runs a small Christmas hamper programme in his community where he identifies needy families and provides them grocery hampers as part of the festive season celebration. “My aim is to ultimately contribute to poverty alleviation through food hampers and subsequently long term sustainable programmes such as gardening,� enthuses Patrick.

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Why Risk Managers are so interested in

flexible working Risk managers have a new weapon in their arsenals – flexible working.

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he use of flexible working, and a connected property strategy, as tools for risk management is a relatively new trend, and one expected to grow significantly as more businesses understand the new workspace strategies available to them.

We are entering a workspace revolution, powered by digitalisation and increased connectivity. IWG, the parent company of workspace companies such as Regus and Spaces, recently surveyed 19 000 business people from around the world (96 countries to be precise).

The results were astonishing:

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SUSTAIN ABILITY Most relevant for risk managers, 73% of respondents said that flexible working helped them to mitigate against risk. How? Perhaps some of the other results may provide insight:

89% believe

87% believe

83% believe

82% believe

80% stated

it helps their business grow and optimise costs.

it helps their business stay competitive.

it helps their business maximise profits.

it helps them create a presence in new markets.

that enabling their company’s employees to work from anywhere helped them recruit and retain top talent.

This revolution means that businesses are increasingly studying how flexible working can help them to grow. As part of that, they are also discovering how it can help them manage different types of risk.

First, financial risk. Research by real estate company JLL recently estimated that by 2030, 30% of corporate real estate will be flexible. That’s three out of every ten buildings. Why are companies using so much flexible workspace? One big reason is cost. Companies can save significant costs on real estate that they outsource, sometimes as much as 50% or more. Clearly, reducing long leases, capital expenditure and overall costs provides a financial boost that helps financial risk.

Incoming new regulation IFRS 16 – which will put leased assets onto a business’s balance sheet - will be a trigger for more businesses to recognise this advantage and to take advantage of the broader advantages of flexible workspaces.

Second, and linked, is strategic risk. Global businesses need to expand and move into new territories. They do this to be closer to customers, employees and suppliers. To do this successfully often demands commitment, but it can be challenging to understand what level of commitment is required.

Do you want to sign a long-lease on an office only to discover that the opportunity didn’t materialise?

And then find yourself tied to that office, with the overheads it requires, while you identify a fresh opportunity in another market? Again, a flexible workspace strategy negates this risk. Flexible working is not simply about personal employee productivity (although this is undoubtedly a key advantage) – it is also about ensuring that businesses of all sizes have the agility to seize an opportunity.

Third, talent retention. In a connected, extremely competitive world, business success is determined by talent. It’s clear that the expectations and demands of employees are

changing and indeed, that the demands of top talent are changing. A recent study found that 87 per cent of workers would like the option to work flexibly. And by that – they don’t mean working from home one day a week. They mean the chance to work on the move, explore new locations, and fit their work commitments around their life commitments. If you can deliver that, your appeal as an employer will rocket.

Finally, flexible workspace strategies can give risk managers peace of mind that they have a plan in place for those unforeseen events that can play havoc with business continuity from a physical and digital perspective. Having a flexible workspace provider as your recovery partner means you are not tied down to any one location and can adopt a location recovery strategy at any time. Best of all, you can test the business when and where you want - because workspace providers like nothing better than showing people their great workspaces.

The workspace revolution has transformed how individuals view office life. Now business leaders are recognising the specific strategic and financial benefits that it will bring to organisations of all sizes.

Central to that is how it will help them to mitigate against threats and seize opportunities. That’s why the smartest risk managers are paying close attention to their property portfolios and flexible working.

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sector foreword Government - Employed Officials The reality facing officials serving in governments is that the world is rapidly changing with increasing pressures on resources. Service delivery needs have become more complex. Global migration flows leads to increased fragility and less stability. The civic space is constantly evolving as the social media landscape becomes more and more vibrant. The ability of governments to respond to new, disruptive governance challenges is stretched while citizen expectations from government continue to rise, often resulting in an increasing deficit in trust.

The area that comes into the spotlight is governance and in this respect the World Bank's Governance Global Practice (GGP) supports countries in building open, effective and accountable institutions for inclusive development. This is critical for countries. Effective governance practices underpin sustainable growth. It provides the foundations for achieving the goals of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity. Countries with strong institutions prosper by creating an environment that facilitates private sector growth, reduces poverty, delivers valuable services and earns the confidence of their citizens. The vision of governments should obviously include relationships of trust that is created when people can participate in government decision-making and know their voices are heard.

Strategic priorities for the GGP is to help strengthen public policy processes, promote effective resource management, reinforce public service delivery, strengthen the public-private interface, and to understand the underlying drivers and enablers of policy effectiveness. Some of the important values and drivers that underpin the strategies are coordination and cooperation, openness and transparency, civil service reform, equitable and reliable service delivery, recognising public sector risks, processes free of collusion and corruption, and trust and social cohesion. To the degree that governments make progress in and lift their standards for the above, countries will experience growth in their economies.

As an example of corrective steps to address corruption, the following serves as an illustration and motivation: implementing the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a global standard for the good governance of oil, gas and mineral resources, Nigeria recovered at least $2.4 billion of the lost revenue – a comprehensive audit revealed $9.8 billion in outstanding recoverable revenues from 1999 to 2008, including an estimated $4.7 billion owed by the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

36% of the world's poorest developing countries (many of them from Africa who are helped by The International Development Association, IDA), report tax revenues below 15% of GDP, far short of the level needed to fund basic state functions. The task to eradicate poverty through, amongst other things establishing good governance, remains huge.

For those officials, such as the award nominees, who do their work with integrity and high levels of commitment and skill, we say thank you.

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Winners

From South Africa

From Mauritius

Darryl Arthur Erasmus

Viendra Daby

Chief Quality Assurance Officer

Permanent Secretary

The 39-year-old is an educated man who holds several qualifications such as Bachelor of Commerce, Diploma in Marketing and Business Management, Diploma in Financial Management, Diploma in Training Management, Diploma in Manager Development and Diploma in Marketing and Business Management, to name a few. He is currently doing a Master of Business Administration. Erasmus has an astonishing work history. He has worked for big-name companies being able to deliver constantly in leadership roles. He has served as Divisional Chief Executive Officer, Head Regional Marketing and Corporate Communications, Director Sales and Marketing, Sales and Marketing Director, Marketing Manager and Rooms Division Manager and presently he is a Chief Quality Assurance Officer at Tourism Grading Council of South Africa. One of Erasmus’s highlights in his career was when he successfully managed to secure three of the largest long term deals to date worth over R50 million.

With almost ten years of experience as a leader of more than 100 individuals, Viendra Daby is the Permanent Secretary at Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional, Integration and International Trade, Mauritius. In his role as the head of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Viendra successfully managed to initiate the standardisation of the operating procedures across the several productive Youth Centers. He is also the only Mauritian to have two mandates on the International Council of the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award and locally, he is the Chairman of the National Award Committee. Viendra is a hardworking individual who believes in his work and serving his people.

He believes that his role at the top of the Ministry and the perfect harmony with Honourable Minister has allowed him to be a best leader for his team and the nation.

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Employee

Training Growing an Organisation is Key to

by Myron Curry

No matter what line an individual is pursuing there is always the element of evolution that should be addressed effectively.

In order to stay as competitive as possible, all organisations should ensure that their work force is constantly kept up to date with the latest developments relating to the product or service being sold.

P

roviding the necessary training and tools is one way of addressing the ever changing and evolving business environment. These often rapid changes usually require the work force to be better skilled and knowledgeable in the lasted tools or related material being launched or used.

Employees who are better informed, adaptive, flexible and focused on the future are an asset to the organization.

Encouraging all involved to adapt to growth and career development by providing coaching, seminars, workshops, training and other beneficial exercises will help the individual feel better equipped to face the challenges which may arise from time to time.

It will also help the individual to be more proactive and forthcoming with ideas and work ethics which will benefit the company in the long term scenario. These training sessions and tools also help to keep the entire company more competitive as respected participants within the business community.

Those on the receiving end of such training and tools will also have the sense of value, belonging and loyalty towards the company as they acknowledge the willingness of the company to invest in the said tools and training sessions for their benefit.

Some of these tools and training may include management development,

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Encouraging all involved to adapt to growth and career development by providing coaching, seminars, workshops, training and other beneficial exercises will help the individual feel better equipped to face the challenges which may arise from time to time.

career development, basic skills, and professional skills, technical training, supervisory skills are just some to be named. The positive outcome of which will be employees with better and upgraded skill, individuals being able to reach their full potentials which results in the ability to meet any new challenges which may present itself.

Increase Efficiency with the Aid of Business Training Videos Businesses run around several rules and protocols that are imperative to be followed. Regardless of whether you are a boss or an employee, following the rules is important. In an office set up, people have to appear professional so as to follow the decorum as set by the business.

As an employer, you can organize a session wherein you can show videos to your employees in order to help them better serve the organization. These videos can be purchased online without going through much difficulty. Since there are a number of online stores, it is crucial that you conduct online research beforehand. This will help you to find an ideal store for buying business training videos. The professionals offering these videos aim to help businesses make their staff efficient. Some have offered services to companies in different parts of the world and have many satisfied customers. They make sure that customers are treated with utmost respect and provide the right solutions to manage their business.

Other than videos for business training, you can find human resources videos too. Human resources are an essential part of your business. The responsible individual needs to be trained so as to offer the best services possible to your company. The videos are well thought and documented so as to enable the user to understand without difficulty. Over the internet, safety training videos can be found which will help you to maintain the safety standards of the professional environment. Invest in these videos for lucrative returns.

Myron Curry is the President and Founder of Business Training Media, a leader provider of business management training material for corporate training and development, workplace safety, human resources and professional development.

Source: (Business Training Media); www.businesstrainingmedia.com/increase-efficiencybusiness-videos.php;

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sector foreword ICT ‘Information and communication technology’ (ICT) is the term used for unified communications and the integration of telecommunications, computers as well as necessary enterprise software, middleware, storage, and audio-visual systems, which enable users to access, store, transmit, and manipulate information. In 2018 we can hardly imagine our lives without the products and services of this sector.

The impact of ICT on human life in the 21st century is such that some of our behaviours, as a result, can become so habitual and compulsive that we get a sense of being controlled by it.

In modern society ICT is ever-present, with over three billion people having access to the internet.

Research in 2014 showed that internet use grew at 6.6% globally (3.3% in developed countries and 8.7% in the developing world). The number of internet users in developing countries doubled in the period 2009-2014. Whatever sector we take part in, thinking and planning future directions and strategies can hardly exclude the role ICT can and should play.

The acceleration of digitisation (the conversion of text, pictures, or sound into a digital form that can be processed by a computer) has many direct implications for how we work and think about our work. For instance, if Africa is to compete in the digital age, we need to shift away from competing against each other. The collaboration between government, business (local and international), labour and academia has the ability to change mindsets, implement policy and create an environment for knowledge sharing and execution. All of the above follows the fact that more and more channels of effective communication are opened up, facilitating the meeting of minds across traditional boundaries almost instantly. From an African perspective, it facilitates much needed developmental changes, often in a surprisingly short space of time – exactly what is needed for an African renaissance to take its course.

In today’s ever-changing business world, competitors are no longer the traditional large organisations.

They are agile and entrepreneurial, embracing new and exponential technologies to compete and disrupt markets through digitization.

From an African development perspective we hear the ‘right noises’ when Kwesi Quartey from the African Union Commission, last year in discussions with China’s Vice Minister of Cyberspace Administration, Mr. Ren Xianliang, said: ‘With ICT, we can leapfrog the digital divide, have education for all and leverage the use of science and technology in the service of production, processing and industrialisation whose socio-economic impact would be huge.’

Congratulations to all the nominees as presented in the following pages. We salute them for their achievements and contributions to the general growth and development of the sector and Africa.

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Winners

From South Africa

From Uganda

Gerald Naidoo

Dickson Mushabe

Group Chief Executive Officer

Chief Executive Officer

Naidoo launched his company, Logikal Consulting in 2005 after he successfully held management positions at International Leaders such as Unisys, CSC AND HP. That’s when he realized and saw an opportunity to make a transition from being an employee to an employer. The South African born entrepreneur has managed to leverage his abilities to establish his company’s leadership position in Africa. He has a compelling track record of delivering strategies and project spanning IT consulting, architecture design, programme management and Independent testing and network operations, to name a few. He holds a Diploma in Banking and a BSc in Genetics, Advanced Biology, and statistics.

Naidoo has held several top positions in his career.

He has worked as a Director, Regional Sales Manager, Managing Executive and he is currently a Group Chief Executive Officer.

Mushabe is the Founder and CEO of Hostalite, one of the leading Web Hosting, Design and Software Development Companies in Uganda, East Africa. He has over 9 years of experience in Information and Communication Technology, Information Exchange Systems and Business Automation. The Ugandan entrepreneur is also the author of the best-selling business book, “I Am Not Sorry For My Mistakes”. The 37-yearold businessman is a member of the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Policy Framework Management and Consultation team for the Level Domain. Dickson is a Director on the Board of ICT Association of Uganda – ICTAU. He has an MBA, majoring in Management Information Systems for Business and He is also a member of the Advisory Council of the Global Shapers, an Initiative of the World Economic Forum..

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Why SMME’s Fail The historically high level of SMME failures is a serious impediment to job creation in South Africa, but recent research by Cranefield College is shining a light on the path to SMME success.

The research shows that the failure of small businesses is mainly caused by the lack of management planning.

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y

SKILLSTRANSFER

A

n entrepreneur is defined as “a person who undertakes a wealth-creating and valueadding process through developing ideas, assembling resources and making things happen”.

It is a well-established fact that small and mediumsized enterprises (SMMEs) are engines of economic growth, since they create between 65% and 70% of new jobs in the economy annually. The importance of SMMEs is further underlined by our National Treasury, which regards small, medium and micro enterprises as being essential for efficient markets and ensuring sound competitiveness. They are profoundly essential for both urban and rural areas and are particularly useful for alleviating poverty.

Unfortunately, too large a portion of small businesses and startups actually fail within the first two years and even more worrying, is that many more fail within the first five years. Research conducted

by Cranefield College Master’s degree students indicates that the vast majority of failures are related to deficiencies in management and leadership. This indicates the importance of education and training in ensuring that small and medium-sized enterprises succeed. It must be remembered that business is about people and, in particular, the management, directing, motivation and nurturing of both entrepreneurs and their staff. Today’s small businesses operate in an external environment that is increasingly volatile. This means that small and medium-sized

properly conceptualised, designed, implemented and operated always fail. This means that entrepreneurs who start up businesses need to have a sound knowledge of how to perform the entrepreneurial project including the business plan, followed by operating the established deliverable, which is the business itself.

Many failures are attributed to starting the venture as a result of being unemployed and is the reason for many of them commencing business while suffering from a shortage of funding. Cash flow is often cited as a major factor in the failure of the majority of small businesses that are often guilty of being overly focussed on the production of the products or services.

The research found that having effective business plans and executing the entrepreneurial project properly can assist businesses largely in the first two to five years of existence, and throughout their lifespan. To mitigate the above problems, Cranefield College offers two short courses, one on entrepreneurship and another on how to plan and execute the entrepreneurial project.

Source: http://www.opportunityonline.co.za

businesses have to continuously adapt to the rapid changes that occur in technology, customer needs and market conditions.

The research shows that the failure of small businesses is mainly caused by the lack of management planning. This is particularly true in the start-up phase of small businesses where many entrepreneurs fail to develop an effective initial business plan. Good initial business planning is essential for ensuring that the entrepreneur and employees of the business are focused on achieving the same goals.

It must always be kept in mind that starting a business is a project, and projects that are not

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sector foreword Logistics & Shipping Logistics and shipping, the management of the flow of things between the point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet requirements of customers or corporations, typically attempts to minimise the use of resources. The logistics of physical items usually involves the integration of information flow, materials handling, production, packaging, inventory, transportation, warehousing, and often security.

Technology has disrupted every industry and supply chain is no exception. With the advent of digitalisation, the logistics and supply chain industry is getting a complete makeover. Specific trends that are observed are: blockchain (a decentralized, distributed and public digital ledger that is used to record transactions across many computers so that the record cannot be altered); delivery of choice (the option to choose among logistics providers to receive their shipment by); elastic logistics (the flexibility to expand and shrink capabilities to align with the demands within the supply chain during a given timeframe); perfect order deliveries (the percentage of orders delivered to the right place, with the right product, at the right time, in the right condition, in the right package, in the right quantity, with the right documentation, to the right customer, with the correct invoice) and data driven logistics (the use of big data algorithms, data visualisations tools and advanced analytical tools for data patterns and forecasts demand).

Efficient logistics and shipping operations clearly require highly scientific disciplines. The challenges for Africa centers around the need to modernise the seaports and cabotage regimes, and to reform customs and other import-export procedures. Africa needs to take advantage of the economic potential of its ports if it is to realise its growth ambitions. One analysis shows that a 25 percent improvement in port performance could increase GDP by two percent. Furthermore it has been found that the disparities in performance between different ports impacts negatively on Africa transport logistic chains.

Transformed thinking is required to recognise the ports as facilitators of trade and growth, not merely a place to extract revenues. Another finding is that the business case for port expansion is often only defined once capacity is already constrained, and thus many ports operate under severe pressure while investment decisions are being made. Other concerns in the industry is the unnecessary costs as a result of time lost in traffic jams, congested harbours or inefficient transport interchanges, long storage of goods in inefficient supply chains, and costs at the border: inspection fees, tariffs and bribes. There is thus much room for improvement in the sector whilst the expectation of increased retail sales in Africa leads to companies are aiming to enter and expand in this region.

We heartily congratulate the nominees in this sector and thank them for their contributions and exceptional achievements.

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Winners

From Kenya

Mauritius

Cosmas Kamuyu

Manish Bundhun

Chief Executive Officer

Chief Human Resources Executive

Being a CEO comes with a lot of pressure, anxiety and depression. Kamuyu loves to read books at least 30 minutes every day, plays tennis three times per week and participates in at least two half marathons in one year to relax his mind and to ensure that he does not suffer from depression due to his ever-demanding occupation. The 50-year-old holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Egerton University and he has worked in management roles in his career being able to produce his A-game continuously. He has served as a Business Devt Director, Credit Control Manager, Invoice Clerk and currently he is a Chief Executive Officer at Nellions Moving & Relocations in Nairobi.

Manish holds a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) and is a certified Master Practitioner in NLP (Neuro LinguisticProgramming), Neuro semantics and is a certified Agility Coach & Trainer whose personal mission is to help people grow and realise their potential.He currently holds the position of Chief HR Executive within the Rogers Group, where he heads the Human Resources, Learning Academy and HR BPO business units.

His current areaof responsibility covers 4,000+ employees over 12+ countries and 6 business sectors - Aviation, Financial Services, Hospitality, Logistics, Real Estate and Technology. He has served as a Division Manager and Human Resources Manager. He also holds a B.Sc. (Hons) Management and at this present moment, he is a Chief Human Resources Executive at the Executive Management level, Rogers Group.

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How to be an

Mentors continually invest in themselves so that others can reap the benefits. As a mentor, you have to keep learning in order to set the example and to keep evolving the knowledge that you impart. The mark of a truly inspiring mentor is when others come to you to learn because you have built knowledge and wisdom, built relationships and built a personal brand that inspires.

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effective

mentor Build knowledge and wisdom and then share it I firmly believe that knowledge and experience which is shared reaps ten times the benefits. This is one of the reasons why I love the parable about Growing Good Corn. It tells the story of a farmer with award-winning crops who shared his special seeds with his neighbours. When asked why, this was his response: “The wind picks up pollen from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbours grow inferior corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbours grow good corn.”

You don’t just want to be a mentor; you want to be a mentor of mentors. This means that those whom you inspire must be encouraged to inspire others which will effectively multiply your efforts.

Robert Heinlein describes it as follows: “When one teaches, two learn”. There is no point in keeping your wisdom to yourself. Set it free so that it can change the world and benefit you in turn.

Build relationships through understanding Steve Jobs told another inspiring parable about how stones in a rock tumbler polish each other to become their best selves. We should not shy away from conflict, but rather learn to understand ourselves and others to manage conflict and grow as a consequence. You cannot be a mentor if you are unable to connect on a personal level and have the necessary tough conversations to help others develop. This requires knowing what switches others on or off.

We are but our thoughts. As René Descartes said: “I think therefore I am.” If our thoughts determine who we are, we should diligently guard what we allow our minds to ponder. As a mentor, you should also guard the minds of those in our care. This means leveraging what inspires them (switches them on) and helping them overcome what demotivates them (switches them off ).

Entrench and enrich learnings by being the example It is often said that children will do what you do rather than what you say. In mentorship, I would like to take this one step further by highlighting that your mentees will pay more attention to who you are than to what you say or do. I often phrase it like this: It is not about doing, it’s the being that inspires.

Being a mentor requires having a believable personal brand that forms the foundation of everything that you would like to impart.

Therefore, don’t neglect building your personal brand while building your knowledge. Your mentees must believe in you before they will believe in what you say.

There is no better acknowledgement than someone excitedly and proudly pointing out “That’s our leader” or even more so “That’s my mentor”.

A mentor is effectively a farmer who cultivates knowledge. If you do this effectively, the knowledge you impart will not only be passed on, but it will spark new research and learnings that could benefit you in turn.

Having worked as a business leader for a big corporate, run my own business for 12 years and coached and facilitated to so many organisations, I can comfortably say that is not about leadership; it is about humanship. Mentors don’t lead – they are just awesome human beings.

Brian Eagar is a founder and the CEO of TowerStone Leadership Centre. Visit http://www.towerstone-global. com/ Source: http://www.leadershiponline.co.za/articles/howto-be-an-effective-mentor-25809.html

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sector foreword Manufacturing & Engineering This sector involves itself in the creative application of science, mathematical methods, and empirical evidence to the innovation, design, construction, operation and maintenance of structures, machines, materials, devices, systems, processes, and organisations. One specific engineering field is manufacturing which requires the ability to plan, research and develop tools, processes, machines and equipment; and to integrate the facilities and systems for producing quality product with the optimum expenditure of capital.

The opportunities in Africa for growth are endless. However, stagnation in the industry followed the emergence of an abundant supply of cheap labour in countries such as China, India, Vietnam and Indonesia whereas skills shortage hinders countries such as South Africa. Increases in Africa GDP contributions are occurring mostly in the services and related industries as opposed to the manufacturing sector, causing industrialisation efforts to lag behind. Despite this fact the continent has, , in recent times, seen some growth in value addition across industries linked to commodity processing and import substitution, indicating a change in the African industrial landscape.

One example of progress is Ethiopia which has enjoyed an increase in pro-industrialisation activities such as investments in special economic zones supported by enabling policies at the national level. What it demonstrates is the importance of an integrated and comprehensive response from all stakeholders – government, private sector, academia, and civil society – in efforts to industrialise. As further encouragement for the sector, an incentive for industrialisation in Africa was mentioned in the 2018 African Economic Outlook Report: increasing the share of manufacturing in GDP in Africa (and other less developing countries) could boost investment from the G20 by about $485 billion and household consumption by about $1.4 trillion.

With regards to trends in the sector, the four trends that were listed in an October 2017 publication were: machine learning (automatic categorising of data to create a collection of thousands of designs to select form); the internet of things (sending and receiving data between products); tailored products (to suit individuals) and industry 4.0 (the convergence of all the latest tech, like robotics and machine learning, to remove the need for any humans in production).

We hope to see many advancements in this industry given the need for the industrialisation on the continent. People who made their mark in the sector are introduced in the following pages. To them we say thanks you for your expertise, hard work and leadership ‌ and congratulations with this nomination.

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regional

Winners

From Uganda

From Malawi

Dr. Venkata Krishnan

Harold Stanley Pickford Jere

Managing Director

Managing Director

The outstanding and notable expert in operations management, growth and revenue enhancements, Dr. Venkata Krishnan is the Managing Director at Katon Manufacturers Ltd. As the Managing Director and day to day leader of more than fifty people, Dr. Venkata is responsible for setting and monitoring business plans, handling teams, building and planning a distribution infrastructure, among others. He holds a Diploma in Printing Technology, Post Graduate Diploma in Packaging and has attended a number certificates to his name attained from of short courses and management programs. Dr. Venkata has achieved a number of remarkable deeds throughout his career. He was awarded with the Doctor of Letters for BRILLIANT ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND COMMERCIAL PRINTING AND PACKAGING, recognised with the Top 100 Mid-sized Companies Certificate of Excellence Award.

Jere is a Mechanical Engineer and experienced Managing Director who is well equipped in Project Management, International Procurement and he is a team organiser. He has twenty years experience in engineering products supply, installations and service such as process equipment, air compressors, air conditioners, water meters and pumps pipelines and valves.

As a Managing Director and a successful entrepreneur, Harold is well travelled in Africa and abroad, developing the business. The Malawian entrepreneur has served as a Managing Director, Branch Manager and Technical Sales. Jere has also been able to bag headship roles such as Director and Shareholder, Managing Director, Chairman & Shareholder and Director, Chairman of Board & Shareholder. Jere was honoured by Malawi Institution of Engineers Entrepreneur Award in July 2010 for contributing to transforming Malawi through Employment creation for Engineers..

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COUNTRY

Winners

From Zimbabwe Mohamed Lunat Chief Executive Officer

Lunat is a forward thinking, hardworking and dynamic leader with a proven ability to build and lead a management team and a track record in consistently delivering targets. The 41-year-old Zimbabwean possesses a strong executive & managerial background, with multi-faceted experience across all spheres of operations and strongly believe that what makes any business better and more successful than its competitors, is the attitude and passion of its people, and the ability of the business to "be different" and "better" than its peers in whatever it does. Lunat holds a Bachelor of Science (Hns) Applied Accounting and has a decorated work history. He has served as a Financial Director, Financial and Administration Manager, Executive Director/ Chief Financial Officer, Auditor and he is a Chief Executive Officer at Dulux Zimbabwe LTD.

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Workplace Wellness

by Dr Dicky Els and Jene’ Palmer, (reviewed by Terrance M. Booysen)

The Board is responsible for overseeing and monitoring the execution of the organisation’s strategic plan by, inter alia, driving a culture of accountability through appropriate and transparent reporting and disclosure. In today’s increasingly competitive business environment, stakeholders are demanding more information on the social and ethics risks facing the organisation.

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A

s such, effective boards are recognising the interdependencies between stakeholders and adopting a stakeholder-inclusive approach to setting strategic objectives and reporting on the organisation’s performance. Furthermore, integrated reporting requires greater emphasis being placed on providing feedback on the organisation’s use and impact of its capitals, which include the financial, manufacturing, intellectual, human, natural and social and relational capitals. However, some of these capitals are intangible and difficult to quantify, and consequently don’t get the focussed reporting that they deserve.

While most integrated reports effectively include human capital information such as their core competencies, capabilities, experience and skills development initiatives, they generally fail to report on workplace wellness indicators.

Integrated reports normally also include disclosures pertaining to occupational health and safety initiatives, human resources development and traditional HIV/ Aids programmes, but very few integrated reports refer to the value of, and risks associated with, workplace wellness and effective disease management.

The value of workplace wellness programmes can only really be appreciated when the outcomes of these programmes are measured and evaluated in the context of the organisation’s strategic objectives.

Identifying and regularly measuring workplace wellness metrics such as group risk insurance claims, onsite health care, presenteeism and absenteeism costs as well as related changes in work performance, functional capacity and quality of life of employees, will better inform health risk mitigation strategies and organisational development processes tailored to add value to the business. Understanding employee health risks and accurately quantifying their associated costs, is essential to developing workplace wellness objectives which support the organisation’s strategic objectives. For example, by measuring the employee health risks (such as inadequate exercise, unhealthy diets, smoking, obesity, poor sleep and substance abuse) and comparing them with the costs of non-communicable diseases (such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, mental and muscular skeletal disorders); the organisation can gather management information critical to optimising human capital management.

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Where workplace wellness metrics can be accurately monetised, which includes tracking non-financial trends of employees’ behaviour, relationships and their performance; these measures all demonstrate the impact of effectual workplace wellness programmes.

By measuring the employee health risks (such as inadequate exercise, unhealthy diets, smoking, obesity, poor sleep and substance abuse) and comparing them with the costs of non-communicable diseases (such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, mental and muscular skeletal disorders); the organisation can gather management information critical to optimising human capital management.

Raising the standard The business case for workplace wellness is realised when financial and non-financial management objectives are aligned, integrated and effectively managed. While there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to workplace wellness programmes,

SUSTAIN ABILITY

these management interventions should, as far as possible, be benchmarked to those of industry peers and at the very least, important physical and mental wellness metrics should be measured, tracked and analysed. This benchmarked information can be used to establish organisation-wide transformation initiatives and evaluate the impact and effectiveness of specific workplace wellness programme interventions.

Enlightened organisations adopt a combination of curative (disease management), preventative and health promotion (wellness management) interventions. By embracing a holistic integrated workplace wellness management and reporting approach, organisations can broaden their views on human capital management and the extent to which it preserves, creates and promotes business value. It is well-known that an integrated workplace wellness strategy creates significant value when management interventions involve several aspects of the business such as occupational health and safety, human capital development, employee benefits and corporate social responsibility. As such, benchmarked workplace wellness programmes should incorporate and capture information pertaining to multi-dimensional aspects of workplace wellness, including the prevalence for communicable and non-communicable diseases, health and safety risks, organisational climate and the physical and mental health status of employees.

Such information should be analysed in the context of the organisation’s social and ethics risks and their (potential) impact communicated to material stakeholders. Importantly, the outcomes and the actions taken to address the potential negative impacts of these risks, should also be disclosed in the organisation’s annual integrated report.

The organisation’s health and wellness metrics also inform organisational change management

processes. Leaders in the organisation must consider and monitor the ripple effect of their decisions and how these decisions influence organisational behaviour and employee wellness (and consequently business outcomes). For example, organisational restructuring and downsizing initiatives often result in job redesigns, re-assignments, retrenchments, different business processes and the re-distribution of certain managerial duties.

These volatile situations typically introduce additional stressors into the workplace environment which may negatively impact employee wellness and ultimately human capital performance. In these circumstances, well-designed workplace wellness metrics can help provide leaders with the information they need to make informed investment decisions regarding the allocation of resources to workplace wellness programmes specifically aimed at countering work stress and increased job demands.

This management information becomes even more important when organisational change is driven by positive intentions and aimed at increasing efficiency, optimising performance and employee engagement and maximising talent retention.

Leaders in the organisation must consider and monitor the ripple effect of their decisions and how these decisions influence organisational behaviour and employee wellness (and consequently business outcomes).

As the speed of change continues to increase and as more industries become more complex with the introduction of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the advent of “cyber-physical systems” the requirement to understand the benefits of leveraging workplace wellness programmes to create value for the organisation becomes even more important. Stakeholder communication programmes should therefore ensure that critical workplace wellness information is timeously and transparently disclosed, especially during times of organisational transformation. Moreover, employers should be able to demonstrate how their workplace wellness programmes promote social cohesion and help the organisation to manage its social and ethics risks by reducing ill health, changing behaviour and developing a culture of wellness.

Source: https://cgfresearchinstitute.co.za

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sector foreword Mining The mineral industry of Africa is the largest mineral industry in the world. For many African countries, mineral exploration and production constitute significant parts of their economies and remain keys to economic growth. Africa is richly endowed with mineral reserves and ranks first or second in quantity of world reserves of a number of minerals including diamond and platinum. Gold mining is Africa's main mining resource.

It was predicted (by Mining Review Africa) that 2018 holds the best prospects in a decade for African mining. This view is motivated by the argument that for the first time in a decade most commodities have seen significant price recovery. At the same time miners have done a lot of work cutting costs with margins, globally, on the increase. As a further motivation it has been stated that some countries in Africa have learned that the right legislation can achieve national development goals by creating a fair, responsible and conducive environment for foreign investment.

Notwithstanding the optimistic outlook, significant challenges remain: the costs of production as well as the cost of the infrastructure like roads, rail and ports needed to bring minerals from the mines to market.

In an attempt to reduce costs, investors are considering mechanisation and automation of the mining operations. This is strongly aligned with the “mines of the future� concept.

The industry is also made aware of the implications of the fact that mining companies will no longer be allowed to develop and operate their mines unless communities grant them a social licence to do so.

Infrastructure which benefits a wider community and not just the mining company and, possibly, a small community has now become a crucial requisite for that licence and an important determining factor in any new mining investment in Africa.

Technology innovation will always play a big part in mining. New trends are mining software and innovations in water resilience. Others are autonomous trucks, driverless trains, robotics, underground excavators, electric vehicles, x ray diffraction, and sensor based sorting.

Leaders in the industry are challenged to integrate many variables into their thinking about the way forward. What is in the best interest of Africa, given its development needs, and what are the requirements for sustainable growth in the global market?

For now, we can celebrate the hard work and efforts of performers in the industry. We trust they will continue with their good work and positive influence for further success in one of the most important industries for Africa’s development.

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regional

Winners

From Ghana Seth Quaye Managing Director

Quaye is a Business and Sales Operations Executive with more than 20 years of successful experience in customer service and an excellent track record of strategic leadership, management and executive coaching. He holds quite a few of qualifications such as Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Executive Masters in Business Administration. Looking back Quaye will be proud of his professional accomplishments.

He Negotiated a multi-year multimillion Dollar maintenance & service contract and Instituted an annual award for brilliant students of the only mining university in West Africa, to name a few.

He has served in managerial roles. He has worked as a Regional Manager, Operations Manager, Sales Engineer and Managing Director & Country Manager. At present, he is a possessor and CEO for El-RAPHA Contracting Services Limited, owner for Dominion Agro Ventures Limited and a Managing Director and CEO for MAC Mining and Construction Partners Limited.

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122 2018 TITANS

Along with economic growth in Africa comes increased pressure on supply chain infrastructure, creating challenging business conditions and difficulty in matching supply with demand, particularly in the healthcare arena.

M

any African countries have experienced a surge in the volumes of medicines and healthcare products moving through their public health facilities, putting strain on existing infrastructure, and affecting supply chain efficiencies, creating a demand for creative and flexible solutions.

From warehousing to clinics, surgical units to laboratories, unique solutions are required to overcome the challenges experienced by ministries of health, aid organisations and other healthcare providers, if their targets of bringing healthcare to even the remotest of areas are to be met.

Resolve Solution Partners, a division of Imperial Logistics, has developed a unique answer to this supply chain challenge in Africa. Tagged “In-a-Box” solutions, these modular infrastructure designs enable the rapid commission and installation of prefabricated warehouses, clinics, laboratories, and storage units with all the componentry required to deliver a pharmaceutical compliant, validated, total solution, packed and ready for delivery in 40ft containers.

These solutions address a country’s chronic lack of supply chain infrastructure, limited storage space and lack of quality storage facilities, as well as the need for clinics in remote areas. Suitable for both urban and rural settings, the standards and operational benchmarks are aligned with international good warehousing practices, supply chain and design principles.

The materials used in producing “In-a-Box” facilities are significantly cheaper than traditional building methods, and boast a 30-year plus lifespan. Focus is also placed on sustainability – each one can be built to green building standards, and designed with water, HVAC condensate and solar harvesting, as well as water and waste treatment options. Cooling and energy costs are also reduced due to energy-efficient panels, doors and lighting design.

“One of our flagship solutions in the modular infrastructure range is Warehouse-in-a-Box,” says Arno Haigh, Managing Executive for Resolve’s Capacity. “Pharmaceutical warehouses are largely invisible to patients, but they are essential to ensuring that health commodities are available and maintained in good quality. Poorly constructed, maintained or managed storage facilities put products at risk of damage, diversion or expiry – all of which put health programmes and patient health in jeopardy.”

“Pharmaceutical warehouses are largely invisible to patients, but they are essential to ensuring that health commodities are available and maintained in good quality.

Poorly constructed, maintained or managed storage facilities put products at risk of damage, diversion or expiry – all of which put health programmes and patient health in jeopardy.”

Warehouse-in-a-Box has been deployed in Rwanda, Tanzania, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, with another in progress in Mali.

Clinic-in-a-Box is another innovative design produced by Resolve Capacity, and has been deployed all over Africa, including in Tanzania, Ivory Coast, Mozambique, Kenya, Nigeria and Rwanda, as well as South Africa. Two years ago, the solution won Resolve the Corporate Innovation Award at the 2015 SA Innovation Awards. Storage-in-a-Box is another successful design, with over 200 deployed in Malawi for the country’s Ministry of Health.

The configurations available for modular solutions are almost endless, and Resolve Capacity has designed Cold-Storage-in-a-Box, which offers pharmaceutical compliant cold storage solutions for healthcare providers, as well as various Community-in-a-Box options, such as school classrooms, libraries, community centres, and mortuary solutions. Staff living quarters can even be added to clinic and dispensary configurations.

Containerised solutions are also part of the offering, and to date, Resolve has produced containerised clinics in South Africa, and laboratories in Namibia.

In addition to job creation and local business development during construction, Resolve’s projects have made a significant positive impact on distribution networks in the regions where the units are deployed. They have also proven how the implementation of innovative thoughts turned into tangible products can have a significant and lasting impact on others. Once again it has been proven that dreams sparked by passion soon become a reality for all.

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sector foreword Media Media can be described as communication through designed channels. As explained by the Governance and Social Development Resource Centre (GSDRC), the media can be a powerful force for change in both developed and developing countries. In developing countries, it can have an important role in advancing a pro-poor development agenda, as well as supporting economic growth by stimulating consumer markets.

Where it is able to effectively fulfill the roles of watchdog, gatekeeper and agenda-setter, it can improve governance by raising citizen awareness of social issues, enabling citizens to hold their governments to account, curbing corruption, and creating a civic forum for debate. It can also amplify the voice of marginalised and excluded groups. Recent research has shown that the media (particularly radio) is serving a growing population of young, rural, and non-literate demographic groups in Africa.

The media in Africa is expanding rapidly due to advances in telecommunications, especially mobile phones and the internet. In newspaper reporting, many Africans have won international media awards. In writing both prose and poetry, many awards have also been won by Africans, including the Nobel Laurete in Literature.

Media development often faces obstacles such as: low professional journalistic standards; lack of financial resources; weak technical skills; fragmented legal frameworks and undemocratic political systems. In patronage societies they run the risk of being captured by private interests. The question then need to be asked if donors can be assured that the media will benefit the public. Another important point for the development of the sector is that donors can no longer conceive of conventional media as a stand-alone platform for communication. ICT and traditional platforms need to be integrated in media development discourse and practice.

The advent of digital media has turned the media landscape upside down. The news cycle moves at lightning speed, thanks to live tweeting, blogging and citizen journalism, all unknown just a few years ago. In South Africa, with the state capture saga, the public had first-hand experience of the power of media in general and the effectiveness of social media as a platform for democratic expression of interests and rights. Advocacy journalism, in particular, is growing exponentially - bloggers and citizen journalists are mobilising for various causes, including good governance.

For the sector in general, it is a vibrant time of opportunity and growth with no sign of slowing down. If you want to play in Africa, you can’t afford to snooze. The media is instrumental in deepening and institutionalising democracy. Citizens need to be informed as nations take on new responsibilities in a globalised world.

In the pages to follow you will read about role players in the industry who are recognised for exceptional work and commitment. We congratulate and thank them for their contributions.

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regional

Winners

From Uganda

Zimbabwe

Matt Bish

Michael Chideme

Managing Director

Corporate Communications Manager

Matt Bish went to film school in Amsterdam where he graduated with a Diploma in Digital Film. He previously worked for Sony England as an Exhibitor and then move on to freelancing for almost eight years. Matt has produced and directed three theatrical features which were produced under Bish Films and he has also directed three television feature film dramas for Zamaradi productions a Kenyan based Film Company. His success in filmmaking has enormously given him the chance to co-produce a short film “A Good Catholic Girl” with Focus Features an American Film Company in a program called Africa First. Matt has also been on judging panels for both local and international film festivals.

Michael Chideme is the Corporate Communications Manager at Harare City Council. Chideme is responsible for stakeholder engagement and marketing of the city’s tourism and investment potential. Chideme is a prominent leader of a hardworking team which was recognised with different accolades such as the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, the Travel Expo Harare Agricultural show and the Local Government Investment Conference. He is also a member of well-known proficient bodies. He is the President of the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists and a member of the Southern Africa Journalists Association. Michael is also a mentor to students and when he is out of the office he frequently organises clean-up campaigns and dedicates time to go into schools to educate pupils on keeping their environment clean.

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regional

Winners

From South Africa

Swaziland

Patrick Palmi

Mbongeni Mbingo

Chief Executive Officer

Managing Editor

Creative Mobile Marketer, experienced executive, African Internet Entrepreneur and early stage Start-up Investor are some of the main aspects that Patrick Palmi excels in. Patrick is the Chief Executive Officer at Justpalm Wireless Internet Solution (PTY) LTD. He holds a Bachelor degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering and a Bachelor degree in Information Technology, supplemented with various Executive short courses in Telecoms, Sales and Digital Marketing from various reputable global institutions. Patrick has remarkable experience in growing new businesses, meeting and exceeding sales targets, coaching teams, and has managed several accounts for mobile networks in Africa like Airtel, MTN, Vodacom and leading global FMCG companies like Unilever, SAB Miller, to name a few. He also possesses excellent mobile telecommunications, applications, and marketing skills.

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Mbingo holds a BA Honours in Journalism and Media Studies from Wits University and he is a chairman of the Swaziland Editors Forum, a position he now holds for the second consecutive term. As an experienced editor and a managing editor of a newspaper, he has become a very active player. To give back to the community, in 2013, Mbingo started a supporters club of Liverpool Football Club and it has grown to over 200 members. He uses this club to allow him to work on charity and giving back, rallying the members to support charity. One achievement t Mbingo’s major achievements is how he helped to create awareness and gave a strong voice to one of their editors who was arrested for contempt of court.

Developing leaDers to fulfil the promise of a Principle-based leadership™ development journeys - developed in Africa, by Africans for Africa

brighter future “The material is something I will continue to return to and reflect on. I believe it will be of lifelong value to me.”

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“The FLA programme is unique in many facets and elements.

I enjoy the fact that it is Afrocentric and relevant for our African context where the dynamics and uncertainties are constant for leadership.”

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Mercedes Benz Class: The

by Carl Wepener

When I first saw the prototype photos of the X Class and the hype built around it I said, yes!!! Not only was it bold and modern but it also looked so cool.

128 2018 TITANS

Factor or Not?

T

hen came the official unveiling and behold here is a “Nissan Navara with Mascara”!

Well from afar, yes but when you are close by and especially from the front it is unmistakably a Mercedes Benz.

What a turnaround from the dynamic looking prototype shown.

Since driving the two models in two wheel and in four wheel drive derivatives, I must say a great number of people turn around to look and to stop and ask questions about the X Class.

What has become very clear while testing the X Class is that it has both great on road and off road capabilities and is as far as I am concerned the most luxurious and comfortable double cab I have driven.

Off road I found it to be very capable even up to a level 3 off road course.

I am really surprised by the punch given by the X250d, 140kW, four cylinder motor and with the 7 speed automatic gearbox with all-wheel drive that is really a gem on any terrain. With the X220d, 120kW, 2 wheel drive, 6 speed manual I found that I had to gear back on steep hills. Both the auto and manual were great on bad gravel roads and never did I get bouncing over ruts. Average fuel consumption during testing came to 8.1 litres per 100 kilometres for the X220d and 8.7 litres per 100 kilometres for the X250d.

It is clear that in the final design of the X Class that Mercedes wanted a real contender for the market and not only a good looking “Bakkie”.

Mercedes has achieved just that and although looking at price and its major contenders, a number of people and CEO’s that have accompanied me on a weekend in Limpopo say that that they will probably choose the VW Amarok, 3.0, 4motion or the Ford Wildtrak. Showing them the capabilities of the Mercedes and the ease of use they all agreed that it will be a hard decision, but based on the Mercedes brand and value retention it will certainly be seriously considered.

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fe the driver driver in in ge mage andand PARKPARKvehicle icle visible visible – – the driver driver to recto recnally y provides provides hus e, thus helping helping anoeuvring. euvring.

Seating position and support is great and even passengers travelling in the back found it to be much more than adequate as far as leg, shoulder and head space was concerned. The infotainment system is good with all of the necessary information. The 360 degree cameras came in handy when I had to reverse over some obstacles without having a partner to guide me through.

| Highlights | Highlights 17 17 X-Class X-Class

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LED High LED Performance High Performance headlamps headlamps and taillights and taillights are standard are standard for theforPOWER the POWER line. line.

130 2018 TITANS

Mercedes X 220d 4x2 D/Cab Progressive

Mercedes X 250d 4x4 D/Cab Progressive AT

RRP

R 646,071.00

R 702,650.00

Doors

4

4

Engine Capacity

2298

2298

Engine

Transverse Rotary 4

Transverse Rotary 4

Cylinders

4

4

Power

120Kw@3750

140Kw@3750

Torque

403Nm@1500

450Nm@1500

Fuel Type

Diesel

Diesel

Transmission

Manual

Automatic

Gearbox

6-Speed Manual

7-Speed Automatic

Drive Wheel

Rear

All

Drive Wheels

2

4

Power Steering

Yes

Yes

Hydraulic Breaks

Abs, Ebd. Asr, Ba

Abs, Ebd. Asr, Ba

Accelerating 0 - 100 KM/H

12.40 Seconds

11.80 Seconds

Top Speed

184.00 Km/h

175.00 Km/h

Average Fuel Consumption

7.50 L/km

7.90 L/km

Braking 100 - 0 KM/H

0.00 Seconds

0.00 Seconds

Steering Wheel Controls

Audio, Cruise

Audio, Cruise, Gears

Electric Mirrors

Electric, Heated

Electric, Heated

Adjustable Wiper Speed

Rain Sensor

Rain Sensor

Xenon Lamps

Halogen

Halogen

Rear Parking Distance Sensors

Option

Option

Front Parking Distance Sensors

Option

Option

Front Tyres

255/65 R17

255/65 R17

Length

5340 M

5340 M

Width

1916-2113 M

1916-2113 M

Height

1819 M

1819 M

Mass

2133 Kg

2234 Kg

Gross Weight

3200 Kg

3250 Kg

Ground Clearance

222

222

Towing Capacity

3200 Kg

3500 Kg

Approach Angle

28.8 °

28.8 °

Departure Angle

23.8 °

23.8 °

Ramp Angle

20.4 °

20.4 °

The X Class is an expensive bakkie but then it is a great utility vehicle as well. As said I was disappointed that it was not a “modern cool”, even funky bakkie but it is as refined as can be well-appointed especially with all of the options available. It will sell well between its contenders and will be well received by its buyers. The X Class oozes lifestyle but can be as rugged as you want, depending on your wallet.

There will be 3 models, namely Pure, Progressive and Power and will initially be powered by the

2.3-litre turbodiesel engine. The X220d will generate 120 kW, while the bi-turbo X250d will offer up to 140 kW. An X350d 4Matic delivering 190 kW / 550 Nm from its V6 turbodiesel engine is expected later in 2018. This permanent all-wheel drive will come standard with a 6-speed manual transmission while a 6-speed automatic will be offered on request.

I am looking forward to experiencing the X350d and to try it against some of the competitors.

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sector foreword Medical & Veterinary Veterinary science is about much more than taking care of the illnesses of our pets or livestock. It helps human health through the monitoring and control of zoonotic disease (infectious disease transmitted from non-human animals to humans), food safety, and indirectly through human applications from basic medical research. They also help to maintain food supply through livestock health monitoring and treatment, and mental health by keeping pets healthy and long living. Veterinary scientists often collaborate with epidemiologists, and other health or natural scientists depending on type of work.

Ethically, veterinarians are usually obliged to look after animal welfare.

The fact that healthy food can only come from healthy animals, underscores the importance of the right medicines, diagnostics laboratory facilities and education. Farmers are an obvious market of veterinary practices from where than can get help to raise healthier animals and secure more sustainable revenues. Ultimately, it is critical to the economic development of the country and continent. Secondly, the development of the livestock value chain through modernised meat processing facilities will help ensure return on investments to farmers.

Note the importance of the industry to Sub-Saharan Africa: Sub-Saharan Africa is home to some of the largest livestock populations in the world, and the highest density of impoverished livestock farmers.

Livestock is an essential asset to rural communities – improving its health and the productivity of small hold farmers are critical to achieving food security in areas of exceptionally high animal and human disease incidence.

Some of the industry trends that can be noted are the general growth in the pet population, the increasing penetration of pet insurance, pet humanisation within the growing global urban population and increased awareness of animal welfare needs due to social media. These factors, among others, are helping the veterinary industry to maintain growth at 6.2% a year, according to a 2018 market research report.

Some of the factors listed in the same report that influence the size and growth of the industry are: the animal disease burden; GDP and its distribution; consumption patterns; Government regulations relating to animal health safeguarding and meat and dairy production; the size of the veterinary workforce; and investment by the industry.

We celebrate all the nominees in this sector knowing that they have dedicated themselves with hard work and passion for the good cause that the sector represents.

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Winners

South Africa

From Rwanda

Nico Van Der Merwe

Kalimba Mutebwa Edgar Consultant Pediatric Pulmonologist Director Material and Child Division

Founder and Executive Director

Van Der Merwe holds a BSc in Pharmacy and one can tell that pharmacy is Merwe’s calling.

With his skills and knowledge, the 68-yearold has served in quite a number of different positions. He has served as a Riviera Pharmacy and Owner Manager at Dispensing Pharmacist South African Pharmaceutical Society of South Africa. Van Der Merwe has also been involved in several community programmes. He developed an emergency first aid kit on behalf of the Pharmaceutical Society of South Africa.

In addition, the South African entrepreneur collected and distributed 6 tons of bay food in 1976 to provide relief to Angolan refugees that fled to Namibia.

The Rwanda-born international holds an MBBCh and Master of Medine qualifications.

He has transformed all his theory knowledge into practical success. He is currently the Head maternal and child directorate Consultant pediatrician and he has also worked as Medical Officer, consultant pediatrician and pulmonologist and Registrar in Paediatrics. With his continuous high rate of consistency and hard-work in his sector, he was rewarded with the Best pediatric registrar oral presentation, South African Pediatric Association congress in Limpopo, 2012 and Best employee of the year at hospital level on May 2018. Edgar has alsdo managed to share his knowledge when he opted to embark on a teaching journey. He has worked as a Medical clerkship bedside teaching and tutorials and Supervision of master’s projects for pediatric residents.

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Winners

From Uganda Dr. Abdul Sebbaale Chief Executive Officer and Proprietor

Dr. Abdul Sebbaale who is the Chief Executive Officer and Proprietor at Case Medical Centre started the company back in the 90s and Holds an MBChB, Master of Medicine, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management, among others. In 2000, Dr. Abdul started another health care service which is an indigenous Health Maintenance Organisation, CASE MEDCARE Ltd, a new concept in Uganda medical industry.

He is also a member of well-known established professional bodies within the medical industry.

He is a Fellow of Association of Surgeons of East and Central Africa, Member to Association of Research Scientists of Africa, Member to World Association Of Laparoscopic Surgeons, to name a few.

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COUNTRY

Winners Uganda Dr Bildard Baguma Executive Director

Dr Baguma is Executive Director of Joint Medical Store, a private-Not-For Profit (PNFP) Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) which was established in 1979 as a joint venture between the Uganda Catholic Medical Bureau (UCMB) and the Uganda Protestant Medical Bureau (UPMB).

Looking to the future Dr Baguma highlights that they are focusing on manufacturing with a keen emphasis on what is needed locally in the interest of ensuring that as a country they have commodity security. This is because as the world changes and moves on and the western countries might cease to produce drugs for tropical diseases. Therefore, as a country they need to design their destiny. They have plans of opening up a branch in Mbale to serve the greater eastern region and also another branch in Gulu to serve the northern region. All this is to ensure that they cater to all regions in the country.

Mauritius Kenya Jacinta M Nzigoka Dr. Ashish Sharma Title Medical Services Head Dr. Ashish Sharma is a dedicated healthcare professional with more than ten years of exclusive experience and practice in Medical services, Clinical Patient Care, Material management and profit margin achievement.

He is currently the Head Medical Services at Fortis Clinique Darne, where he is the daily executive of more than 100 individuals. Dr. Ashish has attended a number of workshops and trainings throughout his career. He has attended a training on Corporate Governance, Basic life Support and Effective Leadership Skills, to name a few.

He was honored with the Super Doctor of month Award twice, received a Letter of appreciation for support and working in JCI and NABH audits and he was Chairman of Indian student association.

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Professor Pamela Naidoo, CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa

Hearty decisions lead to business success

by Charmain Pieterse

“Men tend to be assertive which is a strength in business,” highlights Prof Pamela Naidoo, CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa. “Assertiveness helps to manage the risk that business may face if others attempt to sabotage it.”

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T

been important factors in reaching the ultimate he Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa’s position of CEO,” Prof Naidoo says. “Finally, my level vision is to promote cardiovascular health of social and emotional awareness is a great asset in through advocacy, influencing policy, providing initiating collaboration, and maintaining a good and information, tools, and support which will empower people to adopt healthy lifestyles and seek appropriate constructive networking system.” care early in the manifestation of the disease and to Individual responsibilities assist in making healthier choices easy.

In an age where artificial intelligence and the indusThis is crucial as cardiovascular disease (CVD: heart trial revolution are taking the business world by storm, disease and stroke) are the second-biggest killers in it has often been said that technology will replace South Africa, second only to HIV and AIDS. At least jobs.

This has created an enormous amount of fear and 80% of early deaths caused by heart disease and uncertainty, which is especially threatening given the stroke can be avoided by following a healthy diet, current high rates of youth unemployment. Taking this regular physical activity, avoidance of tobacco use, into consideration, Prof Naidoo notes that technology limited alcohol intake and checking your blood preswon’t replace jobs, it will just change the landscape sure regularly. Cardiovascular disease also remains the leading cause of death worldwide, and yet 80% of these deaths are preventable.

Taking the above into consideration, Cardiovascular disease also remains the it becomes clear that the leadership role leading cause of death worldwide, and yet undertaken by Prof Naidoo is critical and directly impacts the lives of others. She is a 80% of these deaths are preventable. woman with a powerful voice, and is very eager to share her insights and knowledge gained of employees’ responsibilities. Furthermore, while the from experience with others. “To achieve success in economy may be reliant and driven by technology, business you require good leadership with the corpeople skills will always be a fundamental requirement. rect skills set,” she explains. “Spending cautiously and For this reason, it is more important than ever that understanding the processes around money is just each employee takes responsibility for their own career as important. Also ensure that all levels of staff share and remain relevant by continuing their education, be the organisations mission, vision and purpose.” it through short courses, diplomas or even degrees.

They key is to never stop learning. This is why Prof Success and challenges Naidoo has encouraged her professional staff to study She goes on to say that success doesn’t come further. “In so doing the staff can also see the positives easy, you have to work hard and a strong work ethic outcomes of running an organisation in a professional is important. She advises that you always have to manner with the relevant knowledge,” she emphasises. work within a legal framework (by respecting the law) and also within a human rights framework. “I Passions and strengths don’t engage in a business relationship unless it’s Prof Naidoo is driven by an innate passion for in a legal framework aligned with the vision and what she does, always trying to inspire those around mission of the organisation in question. It is also imher. “My passion is to improve the quality of life and portant to consult your board on issues which have overall health of people in South Africa, the region major consequences”, Prof Naidoo continues. and globally so that the resultant net effect can be One of the biggest challenges any organization increased productivity and,” she says. “My passion is faces, including her own, is losing the key individuals driven by the results of hard work. When you make a and institutions that contribute to the financial sussocial and financial impact on people around you (or tainability of the Foundation. “The Heart and Stroke citizens in the country) it drives your passion.”

Foundation does not have ring-fenced funding to Prof Naidoo concludes by adding that perhaps her carry out our work which is the reason that financial greatest strength is that she is internally driven which sustainability of the Foundation is my top priority,” helps the motivational aspects of her personality. She Prof Naidoo emphasises. believes that the foundation years of your life are very When questioned about her career and how she important and that you need to work hard and smart managed to climb the so called corporate or organiand strive towards discipline. “Discipline comes from zational ladder, she explains that once she achieved that internal drive; just do the best you can do but all her post -graduate qualifications she was considalso positively exploit the resources around you,” she ered a “super” specialist in her field, which influenthuses. “Also aim for a degree of balance in your life. enced her appointments in various Management Mind, body and spiritual balance are important. Family, positions. “My additional ability to manage finances friends and a trusted network of people around you and use a good sustainability model has possibly keep you grounded and human.”

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Winners

sector foreword Public Enterprises Public enterprises primarily operate in the domain of infrastructure (e.g. railway companies), strategic goods and services (e.g. postal services, arms manufacturing and procurement), natural resources and energy (e.g. nuclear facilities, alternative energy delivery), politically sensitive business, broadcasting, banking, demerit goods (e.g. alcoholic beverages), and merit goods (healthcare).

The motivations for state ownership can change over time, but state-owned enterprises appear to be an enduring feature of the economic landscape. It probably will remain an important economical and social instrument for some years to come. As such, it is important to ensure that – whether held nationally, regionally or locally – the state’s investments actually deliver the societal outcomes desired.

In South Africa the image of state-owned enterprises has certainly been dented by the revelations of corruption and political interference over the past few years.

State-owned enterprises (SOEs) are an influential and growing force globally. For instance, the proportion of SOEs among the Fortune Global 500 has grown from 9% in 2005 to 23% in 2014, driven particularly by the growth of Chinese SOEs. Government ownership has advantages in certain circumstances e.g. furthering social outcomes, providing physical infrastructure and creating stability in times of crisis within and across supply chains. But equally, there is a risk that state ownership can destroy value if best practices in ownership and management are not applied: of most concern are issues of corruption, bribery and inefficiency. Although there are many different drivers and motivations, where state ownership is the favoured option, SOEs should not be purely evaluated only on the basis of financial results, but more widely on how they contribute to societal value creation, taking an integrated and holistic view of their impact.

The application of good governance in SOEs, which includes ethical behaviour and standards, should be supported by a thorough understanding of the concept of leadership; a clear demarcation of the roles of key players in the SOE governance environment; measurable performance indicators established in a shareholder’s compact, holding the board and management accountable for the performance of the SOE and its conformance to its strategic mandate. With the power dynamics of political alliances and pursuits, leadership in SOE’s can be challenged at a moral and character level as much as they are challenged at a competence level.

It is clear form the above that standout performances would come form people with high integrity and courage. We are deighted to have the opportunity to thank and celebrate the work of those who are ackmowledged for their contributions by being nominated for the Titans award.

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Winners

From Mauritius Dr. Das Mootnah Chief Executive Officer

Dr. Das Mootnah is a Chief Executive Officer, Board Member and Professional Engineer with over 27 years’ of international high-profile and in-depth practice and experience. He is an expert in innovative complex programme management, management consulting, risk and assurance and integrated strategic operations, to name a few. He holds a PhD in Project Management, MSc in Civil Engineering, B.Tech (Hons) in Civil Engineering, among others. Dr. Das’s exceptional knowledge of the industry has led him to be a member of several well-known established organisations. He is a Fellow of the UK Institution of Civil Engineers, Fellow of the UK Association for Project Management and a Judge for the UK Association for Project Management Annual Awards.

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HOW Customer Experience Impacts Bottom Line Growth

Companies are pursueing more aggressively than before the need to optimise their sales channels and increasingly search for transaction points and opportunities in their relationships with clients. The need for drawing attention to and securing world-class customer experiences is becoming more critical than before.

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From Journeys to Experiences It doesn’t feel so long ago that everyone was talking about buyers’ journeys. While the concept served to introduce many companies to the notion that their customers were on a journey and don’t just appear out of thin air, it still ultimately felt transactional. Consisting of a linear process that maps out the steps a buyer goes through in the process of purchasing a product, a buyers’ journey is made up of predefined steps. However, collectively, all the interactions the customer has with your brand during this journey, at each step, makes up their customer experience.

Increasingly, companies are acknowledging that it is a customer’s experience with your brand or company that leaves a lasting impression, either good or bad.

Recognising the power and value that lies in creating an exceptional customer experience starts with understanding that it is about personalisation. Great client experiences are not one size fits all, in addition, as we keep raising the bar, clients’ expectations keep climbing too. This is true for B2Cs and for B2Bs where it is about adding value to their businesses, in an environment where influencers often have different needs and expectations.

daily interactions with staff are consistent with how they would expect their staff to interact with customers. Executives should set the standard for positivity and for going beyond the call of duty to help customers. Sir Richard Branson of the Virgin Group is a good example of this. For marketers, who have daily contact with customers, it means picking up on the little details, like responding to questions that arise on unconventional channels like social media, all adding to the micro-moments that make up the customer’s experience. On an admin side, accounts receivable has a substantial amount of client interaction on a regular basis, discussing payments or sending and following up on invoices.

The Symbiosis Between Your Customers and Staff A true understanding of customer experience lies in appreciating that both your employees and clients are symbiotic, and essential, to the success of your business.

You cannot have one without the other, they are both important. Client satisfaction and employee experience track on similar sentiments – if staff are happy and engaged at work, it has a direct impact on your client satisfaction index. Nathalie Schooling, CEO of nlighten, explains: “Our data has shown that in terms of client retention, cross sell and upsell – if there is a focus on client feedback and dedicated action to improve or innovate product/service, then businesses can look forward to between a 10-20% improvement in sales.”

Internally, providing clients with exceptional experiences that will keep them coming back, starts with your hiring process. In the long run, this will have a direct impact on customer acquisition, retention and ultimately will improve your bottom line.

Rather than dealing with the customer transactionally, a little bit of patience can go a long way. Similarly, human resources have an important role to play in providing exceptional customer experiences. The HR department is going to hire the person whom the company is going to entrust with taking care of clients, so it is imperative that new recruits be a comfortable cultural fit for the business. Good characteristics to look for when hiring includes; initiative and motivation, patience and flexibility, optimism and problem-solving skills.

An Operational Map for Delivering Exceptional Client Experiences Practically, what does this look like? At executive level, leaders need to ensure that their

The HR department is going to hire the person whom the company is going to entrust with taking care of clients, so it is imperative that new recruits be a comfortable cultural fit for the business.

It’s All About Functional Integration While it’s a good start, increased awareness and individual commitment to providing exceptional customer experiences is not enough. You also need all functional groups and systems to align, supporting each other in customer experience efforts, sharing knowledge with each other, living and breathing a consistent brand message in ways that are meaningful to your customer. A memorable customer experience should be a strategic imperative fully interwoven in your businesses DNA and become who you are, not just what you strive for.

Source: http://www.leadershiponline.co.za/articles/howcustomer-experience-impacts-bottom-line-growth

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sector foreword SME The vast majority of firms around the world fall into the category of small or medium-sized enterprises . In terms of all enterprises, more than 95% are small or medium-sized. In terms of employment in low and lower-middle income countries, more than 50% of employees work in companies with fewer than 100 employees SMEs, therefore, constitute a very important component of the private sector in the developing world. The sector is responsible for up to 40% of national income (GDP) in emerging economies. Despite their importance however, they experience significantly higher obstacles (such as the lack of access to appropriate financial services ) to their operation and growth than large enterprises - approximately 70% of all micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in emerging markets lack access to credit.

In Africa, the growth of entrepreneurial businesses is spectacular. It is expected that sub-Saharan Africa will become the main source of new entrants in the global labour force by 2030. One area where Africa’s youth should be a catalyst for creating jobs, is in the digital space. They can take advantage of fiber connectivity in major urban centers. However, according to some observers, governments are often reluctant to spend in ICT especially on areas where they have no understanding. Just like other digital jobs destinations in India and the Philippines, there is need for a deliberate policy and effective implementation to support this emerging sector to provide much-needed employment.

2018 trends that have been identified are digitilisation (consumers and businesses are rapidly migrating services to digital channels for its sheer efficiency, convenience and scalability); differentiation (since there will be little help from the economy, SME’s will have to do the hard yards to engineer any form of business growth); growing relationships with banks (spend time to understand the offerings of banks such as eBucks rewards, free Instant accounting software and CIPC registration services); and good quality and accessible products and services (consumers aren’t only focused on the cheapest product or service despite the tough economic conditions).

From a sector stimulation point of view, Africa critically depends on innovative activity by existing and new financial institutions. Transaction-based lending to SMEs can be seen as one such innovation.

Other innovations include psychometric assessments as a viable low-cost, automated screening tool to identify high-potential entrepreneurs and evaluate risk and future potential, which have proven very successful in initial pilots in South Africa and other countries.

Typical of success stories in this sector is the hard work and perseverance of entrepreneurs. Those nominated for this award deserve our admiration and gratitude which we do here with a simple ‘thank you and congratulations’.

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Winners

From South Africa

From South Africa

Corrie van der Wath

Francois Mellet

Chief Executive Officer

Managing Director

With formal qualifications and studies in engineering, commerce and industrial psychology, Corrie van der Wath is the Chief Executive officer at Matleng Energy Solutions and a Director at Pendo Energy Solutions.

Matleng and Pendo are some of the leading service providers in technical and business solutions with projects of immense market worth in construction value. As a leader and role model to his people, Corrie successfully developed a system of workshops and trainings where people get to learn all they want about the industry. “I have developed a management, leadership and entrepreneurial course to develop skills and abilities of my people,” he says. “I am proud of our efforts to support those who are looking for an opportunity to create a better tomorrow.”

Francois Mallet is the Managing Director at ARINT Consulting Services (Pty) Ltd. As the director of almost fifty individuals his role is to grow the Technical Services footprint of the organisation around the continent and internationally, remain abreast of new technology and to ensure that customers receive quality services. Francois has been elected as a Council Member of the Southern African Asset Managers Association for two successive election periods. Inorder to ensure sustainable development in their organisation, they are involved in several entrepreneurial activities such as developing new Training Material, Driving ROI for our Customers, Performing Risk Assessments for their Projects, to name a few.

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Winners

From South Africa

From South Africa

Pragalathan Reddy

Sapho Maqhwazima

Chief Executive Officer

Co-Founder

Pragalathan is the Chief Executive Officer of The Furniture Technology Centre Trust (Furntech). He has held this position since 2001 and during this period Furntech has grown from a single branch in George to nine branches across the country.

Furntech is a medium enterprise with almost fifty employees and has been recognised as an international leader in sector specific business incubation and has won numerous National and International Awards of excellence in the sector. As an expert in the industry and CEO of a well established organisation, Pragalathan is a member of the National Furniture Initiative, South African Bureau of Standards Technical Committee, Southern African Business Technology Incubation Association, to name a few.

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Sapho Maqhwazima is the Co-Founder of an award winning Information and Communications Technology brand called X Spark. X Spark is a proud innovative company with a patented application in Telecommunications and software development space called UmoyAir. As the co-founder, Sapho has successfully grown their business model, managed risk and executed a sound financial production for the company to stay afloat by balancing liquidity and project commitments. Sapho is a remarkable hardworking leader who has deservingly been recognised and honored for his work several times. He is the SAB Kick-start National Award winner, he is currently on the panel of young innovative minds at the innovation Hub and a National Gazelles Top40 recipient.

regional

Winners

From South Africa

From South Africa

Sylvester Chauke

Xabiso Sidloyi

Founder and Chief Architect

Founder and Director

The multi award winner in the business sector, Sylvester Chauke is the Founder and Chief Architect at DNA Brand Architects. He holds a BA Honours, Marketing Communication, Bachelor of Arts and Communications and is currently enrolled for a Masters in Creative Brand Strategy.

Sylvester has over fifteen years of practice and experience in the industry and has worked for some of the country’s well-known organisations.

He has worked for MTV Networks Africa, Ogilvy and Mather, Nandos South Africa, where he held executive positions, among others. Earlier this year, Sylvester was honored with the International Association of Business Communicators, GOLD Quill Award, WORLDCORP, Inspirational Leader Award, and the National Innovation Award, to name a few.

Xabiso Sidloyi is the Founder and Managing Director of ArchWorXS Architects and Project Managers. Xabiso successfully natured ArchWorXS Architects into a well established award winning consultancy and as the Director his responsibilities are to manage the company and projects on a daily basis. He holds a bachelor degree, two Masters Degrees, and is currently completing a PhD; he is also the owner of a property development company named XS Developments which is currently working on refurbishment renovation and addition of new flats in Port Elizabeth. Through the company, Xabiso has won numerous awards and recognition included: SEDA best success story, PERCCI top 40 under 40 and M&G top 200 South African.

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Winners

From Botswana Tumisang Bogwasi Chief Executive Officer

Bogwasi is a young entrepreneur who has a passion for business and creating jobs. The 33=yearold entrepreneur holds a Bachelors Degree in Economics and Finance. He has been able to bag leadership roles in his career such as a Worship and Bible Study Leader at Tower of Refuge Church in South Africa and Captain of Crawford North squash team, to name a few. Entrepreneurship comes with a lot of challenges but Bogwasi prefers reading a book and playing squash to ease his mind. The Botwana entrepreneur has played a gigantic role in reducing unemployment in his country. Between 2014 and 2017, he founded The BRAND BUSINESS, Events Republic Brand shop, Project Leader for the Maun Business Network and The Maun Spring Fest.

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Higher Certificate in Management of Technology and Innovation with the elective stream: Principle-Based Leadership

“Empowering you with principled insight and core skills in all areas of leading self, others and change, for current or future leadership roles.�

The Da Vinci Institute is a School of Business Leadership focusing on the Management of Technology, Innovation, People and Systemic Thinking. Da Vinci prides itself on having a reputation for state-of-the-art thinking in all aspects of innovation, people and technology management and acts as a catalyst for government and leading industrialists through high-level think tanks, while adopting the Seven Da Vincia Principles in its approach. Through its South African and international partners, they offer a spectrum of programmes to create a cadre of business leaders who have the competence to lead their organisation successfully.

The Da Vinci Institute for Technology Management is registered with the Department of Education as a private higher education institution under the Higher Education Act, 1997.

Registration Certificate No. 2004/HE07/003.

The programmes at The Da Vinci Institute for Technology Management are accredited by the Council on Higher Education and offers Higher Certificates, Diplomas, Masters and Doctorate qualifications in the Management of Technology and Innovation and Bachelor of Commerce in Business Management.

Tel: +27 11 608 1331 | Website: www.davinci.ac.za | Email Address: info@davinci.ac.za

sector foreword Tourism & Leisure The particularity of Africa’s tourist attractions lies in the wide variety of points of interest, diversity and multitudes of landscapes as well as the rich cultural heritage. Countries like Egypt, South Africa, Morocco, and Tunisia have a successful tourism industry. Others like Kenya, Zimbabwe, Swaziland and Mauritius can be considered as countries that have steady and consistent income from tourism. Some other countries like Tanzania, Algeria and Burundi are countries that have little to no economic benefit from tourism, but would like to see it expand. There is general consensus that there is significant room for improvement in protecting, valuing and communicating Africa’s cultural richness as a strategy to grow tourism.

Trends in the industry include improving competitiveness especially in developing countries and particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. As the industry continues to grow, an increasing share of international visitors are coming from and travel to emerging and developing nations. The industry is furthermore continuing to build bridges rather than walls between people, as made apparent by increasing numbers of people travelling across borders and global trends toward adopting less restrictive visa policies. Connectivity has increasingly become a must-have for countries as they develop their digital strategy. A concerning aspect of the industry are the enormous difficulties in developing sustainably, as natural degradation proceeds on a number of fronts.

Other points of interest are the increasing number of people on the move. Consider the fact that international arrivals increased from just 25 million in the 1950s to 1.2 billion in 2016. In recent times tourist expenditures from developing nations have grown faster than that of expenditures from advanced economies, and it is expected to continue as a trend. South-South tourism is also on the rise. Another important trend as a stimulus for the industry is the fact that less countries worldwide require visas – the 77% of the world’s population who were made to apply for a traditional visa in 2008 has been reduced to 58% in 2016.

Some of the business trends in the industry are the move to mobile applications for advertising (tourists ant to be able to explore, plan and make decisions wherever and whenever they want); the boost in ‘bleisure tourism’ (blending leisure with business to take away stress); an increase in intergenerational expeditions where families spend time together; and the surge in social media reviews (there has been an explosion of reviews appearing on social media sites such as Facebook, Google Plus and Twitter). The growth in solo female travelers and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) tourism are two other notable trends in 2018.

Those at the forefront of exploiting the opportunities tourism and leisure in Africa offers, are celebrated in the following pages. We thank them for their hard work and vision and trust many more will follow in their footsteps.

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South Africa

From Uganda

Enver Duminy

Paul Womaungo

Chief Executive Officer

General Manager

Enver Duminy is a well accomplished Executive with experience in Operations, Multi-channel product distribution, finance, IT and marketing involving both start-ups and growth organisations.

He is the CEO at Cape Town Tourism. He holds a B.Sc in Computer Science and Mathematical Statistics and is currently studying towards a Master in Business Administration. Prior to his current role, Duminy previously worked for wellestablished organisations. He has worked for Nedbank Ltd, Eskom and Integer (Pty) Ltd. He is also a member of several professional bodies.

He is a Council Member at the Robben Island Museum (NPO) and Executive Director at CTT Commercial (Pty) Ltd.

Paul Womaungo is remarkable and hardworking General Manager at Imperial Royal Hotel, Uganda. He has extensive abilities and skills in business nurturing and growth. He holds a Diploma in Hotel and Institutional Catering, and is currently studying towards a Bachelors of Business Administration. Paul has worked for several renowned organisations within the hospitality industry. He has worked for Sheraton Kampala Hotel, Imperial Botanical Beach Hotel, and Mbale Resort Hotel, to name a few. Paul has over twenty years of experience in the industry and is an expert in Hotel Business Development, Hotel Operations Management, Foods and Beverage Engineering and Hotel Operations Audit, among others.

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Winners

From Ethiopia

From Mauritius

Yenealem Gatechew Habte

Marie Jean Cyril Julliene

General Manager

Chief Human Resources Officer

Yenealem Habte is the General Manager at Horizon Ethiopia Tour and Travel PLC. Horizon Ethiopia Tour and Travel PLC is one of the well established Tour and Travel agencies in Ethiopia.

Yenealem is a qualified Geologist who holds a Diploma in Tour Operation from Catering and Touring Institute as well. Yenealem is a business guru who is mostly drawn in promotions and marketing and owns another business involved in the export of Opal and Gemstones. As a way of giving back to his community, Yenealem sponsors destitute students whose families cannot afford to send them to school. “I seek only to see better people who can support oneself and those who can follow in my footsteps and believe in giving back,� emphasis Yenealem.

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Julliene holds several qualifications to his name such as a Diploma and a Degree in Business Administration. Julliene also possesses an 11-year experience in the hotel industry in Mauritius and he has also been able to lead a recruitment training quite a number of people as well as a recycling process of workers from different sectors who were jobless for economic reasons.

To give back to the community, Julliene takes advantage of the sports and leisure activities which are regularly organized for the staff to encourage their team members to contribute to those who are in need such as disadvantaged schools and orphanages.

COUNTRY

Winners From Uganda Christopher Winyi Managing Director

Starting off in the 90s as a ticketing agency Atlas African Safaris Ltd is a successful and well known Safari in Uganda. Christopher Winyi is the Managing Director at Atlas African Safaris Ltd. He is a day to day leader of numerous individuals who believes that by discussing issues in an open and frank environment where everybody’s contribution is taken into consideration within the organisation is a performance of better practice amongst people. “I support better practice because it is the only way to go. It breeds confidence within the staff and management,” highlights Christopher. In the past years the organisation was honored and recognised by the British Airways and won the best performance and Most Improved Agency award twice.

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Making a lasting difference

by Charmain Pieterse

Founded in 1992 as a pioneering black-owned company, Thebe Investment Corporation (Thebe) opened for business in July 1992 with an initial capital investment of only R100 000. Sole shareholder at the time was Batho Batho Trust, a community based trust which included Nelson Mandela (Chairman), Walter Sisulu and Reverend Beyers Naude as original Trustees and Dr Enos Mabuza as the first Chairman of Thebe.

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hebe is an African Company that came into being shortly before South Africa’s formal political transition to democracy, setting new norms and changing the face of business by establishing a socially embedded company that uses its business success to transform lives, and make a difference in communities.

The future of Thebe is articulated in Vision 2020, which focuses on the African Renaissance.

Thebe is divided into three divisions, namely Thebe Services Division, Thebe Energy and Resources and Transformation and Community Development. Thebe Services Division seeks to facilitate improvement and integration of African people into the mainstream of the global economy in the following sectors: Travel and Tourism related services, Health, Food and

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Logistics and Media and Telecommunications and Property by packaging “African solutions to African challenges in an African way.”

Thebe Energy and Resources is an integrated energy and resources business that is actively investing and focusing on various energy and energy related products such as oil and liquid fuels, chemicals, gas, power, water and a wide range of energy commodities. It is anchored around Oil & Gas; Power Generation; Mining as well as Chemicals & Water.

The third division offers through a range of community development and transformation initiatives for the benefit of local communities, at no cost to them. These initiatives contribute to the improvement of the social and enterprise ecology of local communities while transforming lives. This is their reason for being.

Thebe Services Travel and Tourism Thebe’s travel and tourism initiatives are implemented through the Thebe Tourism Group which achieved its 15 year milestone in April 2016 and over the years has grown into a profitable, robust and reputable tourism business.

Food & Agro-processing The Food Services & Agro-processing sub-division aims to realise long-term value from its investments in the food production and preparation sectors; and to drive and champion transformation in the agroprocessing sector.

Media & Telecommunications Thebe’s vision with regards to this sector is centred around being a significant player in the development and distribution of locally produced content and key to this strategy is access to various platforms; and the provision of requisite mobile telecommunications platforms such as Wi-Fi, LTE/4G through targeted acquisitions or strategic partnerships not only in South Africa but across the African continent.

Thebe Property Asset Management Thebe Property Management Services (TPAM) seeks to encourage transformation and normalisation of the South African property sector by creating opportunities for black property developers through partnerships and joint ventures. The property focus areas include student accommodation, which we view as a subset of affordable residential rental stock as well as affordable bonded housing. In the commercial property sector; TPAM invests in properties that are backed by Section 102 of the BBBEE Act.

Thebe Energy and Resources: Oil & Gas (Petroleum) TER has a strong and proven track record in Oil & Gas having started investing in the petroleum sector as early as 1997 through Bambanani (later named Tepco) Petroleum. Through their signature investment in Shell Downstream SA, the focus for TER in petroleum products has its roots from midstream infrastructure including SAPREF the refinery, storage terminals for petroleum products, all the way down to Sales and Marketing activities.

Power Generation TER’s investments in power generation were initially facilitated by the REIPPP, where they achieved tremendous success in both Window 1 and Window 3 bidding rounds; a combined total of 6 investments made out of two solar and four wind

plants. The total capacity once fully installed for all these six plants is approximately 600MW of electrons delivered onto the grid. For both gas and coal, their strength lies primarily in their ability to not only secure long-term feedstock supplies, but also identify the technical partners whose values and strategies are aligned with theirs.

Mining (Services & Supplies) The initial focus for TER in Mining will be the provision of quality and integrated solutions in the form of Services and Supplies for the sector. Through their controlling interest in Timrite and Turnstone, TER supplies underground roof support systems, high tech roof bolt solutions, above ground as well as ultra-deep underground exploration drilling methods.

In line with their aspirations and desires to be the leading provider of feedstock for power generation, TER is currently evaluating numerous coal producing assets opportunities for potential acquisition.

Chemicals and Water Through Unico, which manufactures blends and fills various grades of brake fluids and coolants, TER is regarded as one of the leading producers of automotive speciality products. Their association with Headstream has given TER a competitive advantage in the waste water treatment environment where the Hybac technology is gaining respect with large water users like municipalities and metros. Both the chemicals and water businesses are relatively new investments for TER but signify TER’s strategic intent to becoming a dominant player in the fast growing chemicals and water treatment segments.

Thebe Investment Corporation is a truly remarkable company as it demonstrates phenomenal growth since its inception in 1992. It is built on a foundation of innovation and when combined with a strong group of leaders, great things are bound to happen. As such the future looks bright for this inspiring company who continues to make a difference through its various service offerings.

Thebe at a glance  Annual Portfolio Valuation is in excess of R6 billion  Total of 45 portfolio companies  Average 10-year return on equity of 18.0%  Year-on-year growth in equity of 22.4%  26 years of operations  Cost of employment across all Thebe  Group companies was R2.3 billion  2 795 and 25 346 employees within subsidiaries and associates respectively  Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment status of Level 1

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Neliswa Booi, General Manager: Thebe Media & Telecommunications

growth & development Media

by Charmain Pieterse

Thebe Investment Corporation’s vision with regards to its Media & Telecommunications sector is centred around being a significant player in the development and distribution of locally produced content and vital to this strategy is access to various content platforms. It also plays a key role in the provision of requisite mobile telecommunications platforms such as WI-FI, LTE/4G through targeted acquisitions or strategic partnerships not only in South Africa but across the African continent.

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Media is a tool that can be used to positively transform the way people think and behave and consequently transform societies.

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eliswa Booi, General Manager: Thebe Media & Telecommunications explains that the organisation established Kaya FM in 1997 and is one of the few black owned media businesses in South Africa. “We believe in empowering communities through job creation, skills development and enterprise and supplier development, and transforming minds,” she says. “As Thebe, our strategic challenge going forward will be to positively change the way people think and behave by leveraging on the trust we have built with the audiences and listeners. The important questions for us are: How do we transform the way people think and behave in a manner that increases the returns for shareholders; and how do we transform the way people think and behave in a manner that creates social impact and cohesion?”

Discover Digital, a recent subsidiary of Thebe, is an aggregator of content and has capabilities to distribute the content on various platforms ranging from radio assets to television to mobile phones. It also has capabilities and capacity to generate and produce content for its platform.

The story behind investments With regards to attractive investment opportunities, Neliswa highlights that Media is a

tool that can be used to positively transform the way people think and behave and consequently transform societies. “Therefore we need to produce content that is relevant and transformative and distribute it innovatively leveraging off available technologies,” she says. “As such we are keen on scalable businesses and those that integrate into our portfolio for us to achieve both revenue and cost synergies.”

Given the current status of the global economy, Thebe focuses on several key aspects to ensure their investments continue to thrive and remain strong operationally. These include leveraging the strong brand and engaging listeners to grow listenership, the acquisition and retention of clients, which entails the ability to generate bespoke market research to assist clients with product offerings to target markets, and working closely with media partners to drive sales. “The retention of appropriate skills in the form of management and presenters and driving cost containment initiatives (where possible) are also critical,” Neliswa emphasises.

The last word “Thebe is keen to extend the reach of its radio business, not only in South Africa but across the continent of Africa,” Neliswa concludes. “It can achieve this strategic objective either acquisitively by acquiring equity stakes in other radio assets that are strategically located or extending our reach of the target market using a digital platform.”

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Focused

on Travel & Tourism

by Charmain Pieterse

Thebe’s travel and tourism initiatives are implemented through the Thebe Tourism Group, which over the years has grown into a profitable, robust and reputable tourism business. Their key activities include inbound, outbound and group travel, car rental service, attractions management and more recently, hospitality.

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“T

hese services we provide (or have a stake in) are of the top-performing players within the tourism sector, and contributes towards Thebe Investment Corporation’s goal which is to become a facilitator of world-class services for South Africa and Africa,” explains Brett Hendricks, General Manager: Thebe Tourism Group.

“Thebe is also the oldest black-owned tourism group in SA and has played a key role in transforming the sector through its investments.

We believe in empowering communities through job creation, skills development and enterprise and supplier development opportunities. We see it as being a great opportunity to serve as a leader in transforming the domestic market in SA by creating products that speak to the black market and who have not had the opportunity to travel and explore this beautiful country.”

With the launch of Soul Traveller Tours, Thebe has been able to rejuvenate domestic travel as a means of economic development. Soul Traveller Tours SA is the first group travel tour operator in South Africa which specialises in unique travel experiences for the local market.

When it comes to challenges the industry faces, Brett highlights that crime continues to be a problem, however, this has always been a high priority matter for the industry which works with Government and SAPS in terms of effective communication and preventative measures so that visitors are always aware that their safety is of utmost importance.

“The water criss the Western Cape experienced had a major impact on the industry.“The visitor numbers decreased across the board. Thebe Tourism used its stakeholders such as Cape Town Tourism,

Wesgro, Cape Town Big Six and other tourism bodies to formulate communication that will encourage visitors to return to Cape Town. So instead of focusing on the negative, we worked together to let visitors know we are still open for business; we have just become more water conscious.

Talking about investments According to Brett, Thebe believes in investing in opportunities that offer unique experiences. For example, “Kruger Shalati” in the Kruger National Park at Skukuza will offer luxury accommodation in a train suspended on the old Selati Bridge. This offers an once-in-a-lifetime experience to visitors.

“These are the types of opportunities Thebe finds attractive: unique, box-ticking experiences,” explains Brett. “Tourism creates jobs and at present employs more people than mining. It speaks to the national objectives of government and is a key growth sector for the economy and contribution to the GDP.” Given the current status of the global economy, it’s important to focus on investment opportunities that will thrive and remain strong operationally. To this end Thebe offers unique experiences and worldclass service which ensures that the organisation remains relevant and will prosper in this dynamic economy. “If people see our product as a must-see or must-do, they will ensure it’s on their list when making travel plans,” Brett concludes.

“When cost is a major factor, people limit their nice-to-haves and our goal is to be a must –have experience. Investing in staff and focusing on community upliftment is also a key area we focus on. If the staff is trained well and the community feels a sense of ownership, they will deliver worldclass service.”

We believe in empowering communities through job creation, skills development and enterprise and supplier development opportunities. We see it as being a great opportunity to serve as a leader in transforming the domestic market in SA by creating products that speak to the black market and who have not had the opportunity to travel and explore this beautiful country.”

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sector foreword Welfare & Civil Society Organisations (including non-profit Environment Organisations) Civil society organisations or NGOs (non-governmental organisations) are usually non-profit and sometimes international organisations independent of governments that are active in humanitarian, educational, health care, public policy, social, human rights, environmental, and other areas to effect changes according to their objectives. They are thus a subgroup of all organisations founded by citizens, which include clubs and other associations that provide services, benefits, and premises only to members. Some of the causes of such organisations according to one research study, are social services (20%) , education and research (21%), culture and recreation (17%), health (12%), development and housing (7%), and religious congregations (7%). They are not hindered by shortterm financial objectives and accordingly able to devote themselves to issues which occur across longer time horisons. In South Africa, two types can be identified: service driven organisations (for underprivileged communities) and human rights organisations (performing the role of watchdog).

The non-profit sector continues to grow rapidly in Africa and around the world. For most observers, they seem to be well-intentioned actors who do a lot of good on the continent. NGOs, for instance, play a leading role in providing health care and education. There are commentator who allege that the neo-liberal policies (favouring a smaller role for the state in the economic arena) advanced by powerful international actors have limited the influence of the state and that NGOs have benefited as a result. Since the 1980s, international financial institutions like the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, have forced indebted African states to reduce public expenditure.

This has encouraged the flourishing of non-state actors like NGOs. Whilst playing a vital part in assisting the government, NGOs (particularly in South Africa) face numerous challenges or growth pains: the need to ensure appropriate levels of accountability and transparency (adhering to monitoring and evaluation standards applied in the public and corporate sectors); the need to develop more innovative ways of raising funds; and the need to adopt expertise that is stipulated by donors (such demands have the unintended effect of distancing these organisations from the very poor that they are meant to serve). Another issue plaguing South African civil society, according to one commentator, is the increase in government criticism of NGOs and the work they perform.

Formal and informal civil society need to work in harmony: We need citizens to be able to organise spontaneously, but we also need institutions to be there long after to continue pressing on a particular issue or hold governments to account. Leaders in this sector certainly require special abilities in dealing with the constant political and social changes. High levels of systems thinking and broad contextual awareness are only two of those abilities. Those who have been nominated deserve our gratitude and encouragement for their services.

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regional

Winners

South Africa Peter Bruno Emmanuel Druchen National Director

Druchen has served within a number of leading roles in his professional career such as Director and National Youth Co-coordinator. At present, he is a National Director for DeafSA. In addition, Druchen has been Chairperson for the South African Disability Alliance for four years and he is also a Trustee of the Disability Empowerment Concern. The 47-year-old played a significant role when he helped develop the disability sector strategy for HIV and Aids in South Africa and securing funding for SASL Interpreter Training, SASL Deaf Relay Interpreter Training and Social Auxiliary Workers Training. He has also addressed Parliament on the Editorial Policy on the Broadcasting Bill in 2000 and the University of Kent in Belgium on the research on SASL in 2007, to name a few.

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COUNTRY

Winners

From Cameroon Mbenja Clovert Anamani President/Founder

The Cameroonian-born entrepreneur is one of the few individuals that have managed to start a company from the ground and he has quite a few of qualifications that has shaped and paved a way in the making of the person he is at present. He holds a Master of Art in Monumental Heritage and MSc in Science Education and Bachelor of Education in Curriculum Studies and Teaching History. He also has a certificate in Equity-Focused Evaluation and National Development Capacity for Country-Led-Mand E systems. He is currently the president and founder of Rising Hope Foundation for Change.

One has to work their way up and Anamani’sstory is no different. He has worked as a volunteer for Citizen Climate Lobby Europe and Africa Branch.

From South Africa Carl Queiros Chief Executive Officer

Queiros enjoys working with others to serve those in need, building a better society for all and being a relationship builder, strategist, leader, negotiator and aspiring others. The 50-yearold is an educated man who holds an Honours in Industrial Psychology from University of South Africa and a BA degree from University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa. With his qualifications, he has paved his way-up and demonstrated that hard work pays off when one is committed. He has been able to deliver in management roles constantly. He has worked as a Regional Director, PR and Communications Director, Program Development Director, Development Director and he is currently a Chief Executive Officer at CHOC Childhood Cancer Foundation of SA.

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COUNTRY

Winners From Kenya Onesmus Mlewa Programs Director

Kalama is a trained public health professional with professional training skills in demography and biostatistics from the University of Nairobi. He has more than 12 year’s progressive experience in Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation Research and Learning.

Kalama has several qualifications to his name such as a Bachelor of ARTs, Master’s in Public Health, Graduate certificate on Global Leadership and Management, Masters in Population Studies and Research and a Graduate certificate on Epidemiology Data Management and Analysis. With his skills, knowledge and experience he has served in numerous companies, holding life-changing positions that many would die for.

He has worked as a Monitoring and Evaluation Manager, Research Associate, Monitoring and Evaluation officer, Project manager. At this moment, he is a Technical Director of Programs at Kanco.

From Kenya Nicholas Wichenje Orito Founder

Nicholas Orito is the founder of NikkoFitti Ltd, a fitness company that he build to inspire and train people to lead healthy, fit and fulfilling lifestyles through Zumba training.

Nicholas is a professional fitness coach who believes that sport and physical wellbeing is a unifying factor for children, adults, families and communities both poor and rich as well as the world in general irrespective of their backgrounds. He is passionate and enthusiastic about Zumba fitness and uses it as a way of mentoring the youth. Through his hardwork, Nicholas has been featured on the National Television and several leading daily newspapers as a fitness model. He is also an instructing member of the East Africa Celebrity Fitness Instructors and the Olympic Christian Centre.

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KENYA

Inland tour is the way to go!

by Abigail Moyo

The Chalbi desert is located in northern Kenya. The desert is located east of Lake Turkana otherwise called the Jade Sea. Lake Turkana is the largest permanent desert lake in the world.

The desert is elevated 370 metres above sea level. Chalbi is a Gabbra language that means ‘bare and salty’, it is salty pan surrounded by volcano and lava flows. The desert does not have a distinct temperature condition; it has a semi-arid type of climate. February is the warmest month in the desert with temperatures reaching more than 36 degrees while July is the coldest with temperatures dropping as low as 18 degrees.

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halbi desert and Lake Turkana are perfect places for someone who is adventurous and outgoing.

When you choose to tour to the Chalbi desert, prepare yourself for a bizarre landscape edged by rocky lava flows, cracked earth and a sandy mixture of white salt and clay across which your guide carefully drives through.

Even though the desert may be a barren world, you could still be lucky to see a shadow emerge in the distance, as Ostriches, Grevy’s Zebras, Oryx’s and other adapted animals are often observed in the desert.

The Chalbi desert though does have an amazing secret - on the northern edge is a gorgeous area of oasis with groves of palm trees that attract sand grouse and other birds including vulturine guinea fowls.

Other striking complement landscapes in the desert are the Huri hills and Mount Forole to the north, at the Kenya/ Ethiopian border, where temperatures are slightly lower and the wilderness is much greener affording you a private escape from the desert heat while still enjoying expansive views of the hottest location in Kenya.

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Attractions and places to go The Turkana County stands out as a Historical and heritage site; hence it has great potential as a tourist destination. The county has a number of attractions that one can enjoy and these are:  Lake Turkana This is the world’s largest permanent alkaline desert lake located in the north-western part of Kenya and covering an area of 6 405 square kms. Its northern tip crosses into Ethiopia and is fed by three rivers – the Omo of Ethiopia, the Turkwel and the Kerio. The lake is also called the Jade Sea because of its azure-green colour from algae in bloom.

LIFESTYLE Activities • Sport fishing • Sailing • Island hopping  Loiyangalani Desert Museum The museum on a hill overlooks Lake Turkana.

Opened in 2008, it focuses on the lives of the eight communities living in the area and on the natural environment in this harsh country. The eight communities are Turkana, El-molo, Rendille, Samburu, Gabbra, Watta, Boran and Dassanash (Merillle).  Sibiloi National Park Dubbed “The Cradle of Mankind,” lies on the northeastern shore of Lake Turkana about 800km from Nairobi. The semi-desert ecosystem was established to protect its petrified cedar forest, wildlife and the unique prehistoric and archaeological sites linked to the origin of man.

The park is waterless except for the alkaline lake. It is nonetheless rich in wildlife such as zebra, giraffe, hippo, crocodile and numerous bird species such as flamingos, pelicans and ducks. Other attractions are the preserved wildlife fossils, which include the Giant Tortoise and the 20-foot long crocodile.  Eliye Springs – “an oasis in the desert” At Eliye Springs Resort time becomes timeless as every moment goes by unnoticed. This is an amazing destination to get lost in as you reconnect with you inner-self, surrounded with date palms that provide much-desired shade.  Turkana Boy Skeleton Monument finding site in Nariokotome In 1984, the world-famous Turkana boy was found in Nariokotome, a 1.5-million-year-old, near complete Homo-erectus skeleton. Homo erectus is generally regarded as a direct ancestor of Homo sapiens – present day humans. Since recently, a monument and a brass replica of the skeleton can be visited at the finding site.

The oldest ever traced stone tool with an estimated age of 3.5 million years is just another one of the many significant discoveries in Turkana which made it to the international headlines.

 The Route From the heart of the “green city in the sun”, well known as Nairobi, which is the capital city of Kenya, via Kitale where the National Museum of Western Kenya is located, you can take a brisk stop through to this natural museum before you continue with your 700km road journey. Along the 700km journey between Nairobi and Kitale is a 380km tarmac road that will make your drive a blast.

Turkana Lake via the Chalbi desert is only accessible via the Kitale County which makes this route a very busy one but exciting too, since you get to see and pass people from different nations, cultures and ethnic groups.

Although the road route between Kapenguria and Lodwar is exciting and adventurous, that is not the only route you can use to access Lake Turkana. This amazing destination can also be accessed by air. Two flights namely Fly540 and ALS operate daily flights between Nairobi-Kitale-Lodwar. Fly540 operates through the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport while ALS operates through Wilson Airport in Nairobi. Both airlines fly into Lodwar Airport. This tour ends in the Chalbi desert where the world’s largest and oldest permanent desert lake and the world’s largest alkaline lake is found.  Traditional handcrafts are a must go for when shopping The Turkana people are well known for their basket weaving skills. These beautiful baskets and many other uniquely made crafts are available in the villages, shopping centres and some towns surrounding the county. Lodwar County has several supermarkets including Naipa and Kassmatt that serves shopping needs to its people and visitors coming to explore the county. Shopping in the supermarkets is not the only thing that one can get up to, one can also join the several livestock marketing centres along the main highway linking Kenya and South Sudan.  Health Related Requirements Make sure that you go for your routine vaccinations along with the Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccination before you travel. Always carry your health certificate showing that you have had all the necessary vaccinations required. A yellow fever and cholera vaccination can also be added if you know that you are going to reach areas that have both cholera and yellow fever transmission.

Sources: https://www.africanmeccasafaris.com; https://www.journeykenya.com /; dumaafrikatreks.com/www.50treasuresofkenya.org/ ; https:// en.wikipedia.org/ ;https://www.encyclopedia.com/ ; uniglobeletsgotravel.com; https://www.nation.co.ke

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FINALISTS 2018 Finalists

FINALIS

Agencies & Regulatory Authorities South africa Nico Pienaar, Director

Agriculture Uganda Emanu Georwell, Chief Executive Officer

Zambia Pherguson Miti, Sales Agronomist

Arts and Culture Gabon Alaine Pierre Ndong-Mba Meyong, Lead Singer

South Africa Francois Theron, Artistic Director

Uganda Yakuze Ivan, Chief Executive Officer

Zimbabwe Prosper Ngomashi, Comic Pastor

Zimbabwe Michael Mahendere, Managing Director

Automotive and Components Ghana Bright Kubuafor, Parts Manager

Aviation Kenya Ibrahim Sebit, Quality Manager

Business/Professional Services Ghana Daniyal Karim, Managing Counsel

Ghana Martin Ankrah, Director, Business Development

South africa Sibusiso Msomi, Partner

South africa Waheed Adams, Chief Executive Officer

South africa Zacharias Hartingh, Managing Director

Uganda Robert Julius, Managing Director

Uganda Laban Muwungwe, Managing Director

Zambia Bongani Kumar, Managing Director

Education & Training: Academic South africa Pumelele Mgolomba, Dean

South africa Damtew Teferra, Leader Higher Education

South africa Simon Dhlamini, Associate Proffessor

Uganda David Olanya, Dean

Uganda Michael Masanza, Senior Lecturer

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FINALIS

FINALISTS 2018 Finalists ICT

Medical South africa

Mixo Ngoveni, Chief Executive Officer

Uganda Tumiisime Wahabu, Technical Director

Uganda Morris Kabuye, Chief Executive Officer

Logistics & Shipping Rwanda David Kaswara, Branch Manager

Manufacturing and Engineering

Nigeria Charles Yomi Obgunbesa, Head of Finance

Tourism and Leisure Nigeria Christopher Ezekwe, Chief Executive Officer

Ghana Nathan Ansong, Managing Director

Welfare & Civil Society Organisations South Africa Kenneth Thlaka, Executive Director

Zimbabwe Narottam Somani, Chairman

Mining Ghana

Media Ivory Coast Selay Kousay, Meida Boss Africa

South africa Mbogeni Mbingo, Managing Editor

Kenya Kevin Gitonga, Creative Director

Kenya Augustine Dundos, Chief Executive Office

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Is the Customer Always Right Why it Pays to fire Toxic Clients

Despite the cliché about customers’ inviolability, every businessperson knows there are times when customers are wrong and at times when it makes sense to pull the plug on a customer.

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he fact is that some customers are bad news, and your business is better off without them.

These customers generally fall into three categories: Those who expect you to act in a way that is illegal, unethical or unprofessional.

Those who cost more than they are worth.

Those who are rude and/or abusive to your employees.

Under the “always right” maxim, customers can demand just about anything since they’re right by definition. However, sometimes customers are simply just flat-out wrong.

There are also the customers who are just not worth the hassle, and there are others who are simply toxic to your business.

Siding with unreasonable customers over employees, over company policy, over reasonable expectations or over common sense is a very bad idea.

Employees are not serfs and should not have to tolerate abusive customers.

When it’s a choice between supporting employees who work with you every day and make your product what it is, and placating an irate, unreasonable, demanding jerk, your loyalty should be with your employees.

Jettisoning a customer should always be a last resort, but it is sometimes necessary and can actually be good for your business.

Pruning your client base of low-margin, highdemand, time-consuming customers allows you and your staff to focus on customers who matter - the loyal, repeat buyers and promising new prospects.

Customer Service Tips for Success Ensuring the customer who keeps you in business is satisfied is crucial. Here are some simple tips on how to maximize your customer service: Keep in mind the quality of customer service can never surpass the quality of the people who provide it. Keeping those who work for you happy will improve the quality of service your customers experience.

Do for your customer as you would want to have done to you. It’s an easy principle really, knowing that your Employees take their cue from management. If you the employer don’t set the services expected by example, you are not going to find your employees doing as you would like.

Don’t just tell them how, show them. Customers will notice it too.

Remember you regulars. Remember to acknowledge those who make regular visits. They appreciate it when you have an understanding of

who they are. Their regular attendance pays your wages. Treat them with the respect they deserve, you will keep them happy and returning again.

Make a good impression. When your regulars come in, they will seek you out again and again. Your good service makes them want to return for your service. There’s a sense of trust and contentment knowing you’ve been a good representative of the company to them. Your smile and kind words will leave a lasting impression, an impression that will ensure they return.

Go the extra mile. Customers appreciate feeling like VIP’s when they are being served. Giving them your attention and any ‘special’ treatment will go a long way on how they view the service they received.

Ensure you always thank the customer for their business and a smile can go a long way.

Are your customers greeted when they walk in the door or at least within 30-40 seconds upon entering? Acknowledging your customer with a welcome and a hello, accompanied by a smile will have a huge impact on the rest of your service. If a customer feels ignored they will leave and give their business to another company.

Give customers the benefit of the doubt. The customer is always right attitude goes a long way. Even when you believe they are mistaken, give them the courteously of listening to their complaint. Then do what you can to resolve their concerns.

I f a customer is looking for something specific, it goes a long way if you can go out of your way to ensure you can provide their request. For instance a customer really wants an outfit you have in the store, but their size is sold out. Making efforts to bring in that item will really impress your customer.

This will in turn bring about repeat sales.

Training staff on the proper customer handling procedures so all are on the same page will add an overall good impression of the customer service you have in your store.

Talk to your customer, if you know a few things about them, you may be able to suggest items they could use in addition to the products they are considering. Don’t be pushy, just suggestive. Keep in mind that the big money isn’t as much in winning customers as it is in keeping your customers.

Source: Business Training Media is a global provider of workforce training solutions for employee development. www.businesstrainingmedia.com

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Angels &

Demons:

what to know when negotiating equity funding for your start-up

by Daniel Van Zuydam

Getting your start-up off the ground and scaling it up usually requires an injection of capital to ensure that you can get past the lean years.

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any a start-up has been left to starve in the proverbial desert seeking the promised land of an equity funding raise and many start-ups have drunk from the poisoned chalice of a poorly aligned investor relationship. It is important that you don’t treat equity funding lightly. A few key points are discussed in this article for you to consider.

Hold onto your equity, it is precious Equity may seem like an attractive way to raise funding for your business, it is easy to “create” and it doesn’t really require that much effort to exchange it for funds, but remember that with each share you give away, you are giving a little more control and value in your company away.

At first, this may not seem significant, but the more funding rounds you go through, the more you are going to wish that you had held on to more equity, especially if your company’s growth is in line with your aspirations!

Ideally, an equity raise should be one of your last options for raising funds until you have at least developed your ‘minimum viable product’. An equity raise should only be used if you are really in need of funds to keep going or to jump your production to the next level; even then, only give away as much equity as you need to.

Know what stage your business is at This is really a simple principle. If you are pre-revenue and trying to create a minimum viable product, if you have to raise funding, you should seek out “Angel” or “friendly” investors who are willing to give you very favourable terms generally at a high valuation (meaning you give away less equity and control), these are often friends or family members. If you are post-revenue, you may wish to seek out venture capital funds or institutional investors to invest in your company.

He’s just not that into you Make sure that your investor is serious about investing into your company. For institutional investors, the way that you will know when they are serious is when

you receive a letter of intent or “term sheet” from them. It’s the venture capital equivalent of asking you on a date. They are trying to say that they’d like to see how things go, but they are not committing to anything serious just yet. If after a few months of discussion, you do not get a letter of intent, move on, there are more fish in the sea.

Know who you are doing business with It is better to struggle through months or even years of bootstrapping than it is to have an investor relationship with someone who is completely incompatible with your business or who is going to add no value other than money.

An investor relationship can make or break your company.

Don’t simply hand over your equity to the first bitcoin millionaire with a Colgate smile who approaches you. Look for investors who want to invest in your industry and who have good connections in that field, this can be more valuable than the money that the investor is putting into your company.

Get good legal and commercial advice It’s important to remember that an institutional investor is just as much a business as you are. They are always going to be biased towards getting the best return on their investment no matter how altruistic they may come across. This means that the commercial and legal terms, if left to them alone, will be weighted in their favour.

You may be tempted to avoid the expensive lawyers and commercial advisors, but too many start-ups make the mistake of being penny wise and pound foolish here.

Unfortunately, commercial investment terms can be very complex and it is always advisable to have someone on the commercial and legal front sitting squarely in your corner.

In short, equity is an effective arrow in the start-up’s quiver to use when raising funding, however, it is not the only one available. If you do decide to let it loose, don’t do so aimlessly, pick a target and aim it in that direction. The more strategic you are in negotiating your equity fundraising, the more likely you are to get favourable valuations and investment terms.

This article was originally written for entrepreneurmag.co.za by Daniel van Zuydam, who joined Dommisse Attorneys in 2017 as an associate in the Transactional Team.

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