30% CLUB SOUTHERN AFRICA STRATEGY DOCUMENT
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INDEX VISION, MISSION, VALUES PART 1 : GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE PART 2 : SOUTHERN AFRICA STEERING COMMITTEE 30%CSA INITIATIVES • Members’ Dinner • Gender Mainstreaming Awards • The Board Walk • Frost & Sullivan GIL • The Connected Workplace • Gender Mainstreaming E-zine • Business Communique • Lean in Circles • Participatory Gender Reviews • Business Schools • International Speakers • Research • Collaboration BECOMING A MEMBER
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Our belief is that, as more women join boards without the imposition of quotas, the more they can demonstrate the value they can add. By the time we get to 30%, the system will be selfperpetuating.� Helena Morrissey, CEO, Newton Investment Management and 30% Club founder
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OUR VISION The 30% Club believes that gender balance on boards not only encourages better leadership and governance, but diversity further contributes to better all-round board performance, and ultimately increased corporate performance for both companies and their shareholders.
OUR MISSION The 30% Club aims to develop a diverse pool of talent for all businesses through the efforts of its Chair, CEO and Senior Partner members who are committed to better gender balance at all levels of their organisations. Business leadership is key to our mission, taking the issue beyond a specialist diversity effort and into mainstream talent management.
OUR VALUES The 30% Club approach - collaborative, concerted business-led efforts - can help accelerate progress towards better gender balance at all levels of organisations. The 30% Club does not believe mandatory quotas are the right approach. Instead, we support a voluntary approach in order to realise meaningful, sustainable change. 30% Club efforts are complementary to individual company efforts and existing networking groups, adding to these through collaboration and the visible and voluntary commitment of senior business leaders.
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PART 1 GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE 6
INTRODUCTION The 30% Club launched in the UK in 2010 with a goal of achieving 30% women on FTSE-100 boards by end 2015 - as at January 2016 the figure stands at just over 26%, up from 12,5%. Accelerated progress has been achieved through the leadership of Chairs, Senior Partners, CEOs and our members. In addition to the critical recognition that better gender balance leads to better results, five factors created a replicable formula for success: • a measurable goal with a defined timetable • political consensus that the status quo was unacceptable • change driven by those in power • openness to collaborate • a concerted and consistent series of actions and programmes, from schoolrooms to boardrooms. Since the launch in the UK, the 30% Club has expanded into an international organisation located in the UK, USA, Canada, Ireland, Australia, GCC, Hong Kong, Italy, Malaysia and of course Southern Africa. Further launches are planned for Germany, India, Portugal, Singapore, Switzerland, Turkey and Chile. Over 600 global members of the 30% Club include; An impressive 26 Chairmen of FTSE 100 companies; Peter Grauer, Chairman Bloomberg LP; Bob Bechek, Worldwide Managing Director Bain & Co., Warren Buffett, Chairman & CEO Berkshire Hathaway; Mike Corbat, CEO Citigroup; Leigh Clifford, Chair QANTAS Airways Ltd and Rick Holliday-Smith Chair ASX Limited to name but a few. For a full list of international members please see www.30percentclub.org
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OUR STORY – THE GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE In November 2009, a focus on diversity at Goldman Sachs in the UK brought Helena Morrissey and Mary Goudie together. The event, on balancing gender diversity at an executive level, showed that however hard any one company tried, there was little sign of a breakthrough and only 10–15% of senior roles were being filled by women. The two decided to follow up, and gauge whether there was appetite for a concerted push on the issue. Despite many efforts being made to encourage women and to develop awareness of the importance of diverse teams, Helena realised that there was no measurable goal. Research suggests that 30% is the proportion when critical mass is reached – in a group setting, the voices of the minority group become heard in their own right, rather than simply representing the minority. The idea of the 30% Club was born – initially focusing on corporate boards and engaging the chairs of the boards who had the power to change the shape of their own boards. Both Sir Roger Carr, then of Centrica, and Sir Win Bischoff, then of Lloyds Bank, immediately pledged their support, expressing some frustration that having recognised the positives of a more balanced board, they had found it hard to make that happen through the normal recruitment process. In November 2010, with seven founding chairmen supporters, the 30% Club was officially launched. The Financial Times’ ‘Women at the Top’ conference was held in London that year and we remain grateful to them for reporting on the launch with a cover story. Lord Mervyn Davies published his Women on Boards review in February 2011, in which he set out 10 recommendations forming a blueprint for voluntary,
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business-led change. Lord Davies’ decision not to recommend mandatory quotas in the UK resonated with us. By the time of the Lord Davies review the 30% Club membership had increased to 24 Chair supporters and its neutral, non-commercial status had helped it to gain traction and to become a ‘voice’ on the issue. The 30% Club held its first major seminar, at Cass Business School, in July 2011 with the Home Secretary, Rt Hon Theresa May, MP, then also Minister for Women and Equalities guest speaker. One of the major new points to emerge from that seminar was made by Martin Gilbert, CEO of Aberdeen Asset Management, who suggested that if institutional investors really got behind this issue, it would take only a year to see meaningful change. Our first Investor Seminar, ‘Diversity and Stewardship’ in early 2012, attracted 150 attendees drawn mainly from the fund management community. By July 2012 we had reached 50 chairman supporters with the then Business Secretary, Rt Hon Dr Vince Cable MP, speaking at our celebratory event. During 2012 the 30% Club worked hard to demonstrate the success of a business-led approach to change, to answer the threat of a legislated quota imposed by the European Union. We submitted a number of responses to the EU Consultation on Gender Imbalance in Corporate Boards on behalf of the overall 30% Club, our Investor Group and a significant number of supporting chairmen who contributed their own submissions. Our campaign to prevent the
introduction of a mandatory quota intensified and we were delighted when the EU Justice commissioner, Viviane Reding, moved away from a legislative approach in October 2012 to return a month later with a less onerous proposal. With better gender-balanced boards in the UK clearly in the spotlight, we turned our attention to the development of the executive pipeline. The 30% Club’s initial formal event on the subject, ‘Transforming Business Culture’, was kindly hosted by the London Stock Exchange on 30 November 2012, where the 30% Club also opened the market. During the morning, we explored the need for more radical changes to business working practices, not just to benefit women, but to attract and retain future generations of talent from both genders. A number of professional services firms approached the 30% Club to help with their specific challenge of high female graduate intake but very few female partners. Management consultant McKinsey kindly facilitated a pro bono project with 17 such firms and the initial output was presented in late 2012. This project has now been formalised and is a key workstream within our overall programme. In 2013 the 30% Club focused on three main objectives, recognising firstly that there remained much to do to reach the goal of 30% women on UK boards, especially given a noticeable slowing in the pace of female appointments; not surprising as the pace of change had previously been very rapid and a number of previously all-male boards had moved quickly to appoint female NEDs. Secondly, we continued to focus on the pipeline
of senior female talent. And thirdly, we worked to help the launch and development of 30% Clubs in other countries – this is clearly a global issue. We have devised some basic protocols to help ensure the message is globally consistent. The 30% Club’s proactive, positive and collaborative approach shows there is a better way forward than either imposing a legislated quota or doing nothing. The pipeline efforts were intensified during 2014 with our focus extended to encompass earlier stages of career and education. We officially launched our Cross-Company Mentoring Scheme and set up a Career Strategy group aimed at providing practical workshops for women in the early stages of their careers. Our international reach broadened thanks to 30% Club launches in the US, Ireland and Southern Africa. 2015 saw us focus on the formalisation of a series of working groups, and the launch of our Technology group and our Sport & Business group. We began an ongoing relationship with Speakers for Schools focussing on the younger end of the pipeline, and furthered the development of our Higher Education Working Group. Finally, as we look to stay focused on our stated goals, we have streamlined the working structure of the UK chapter to ensure that we aren’t “overstretching” ourselves as we launch into the next phase of the campaign. This new arrangement simplifies and collapses our ongoing efforts into 4 core pillars, namely: • boardroom efforts; • pipeline efforts; • research; and • international expansion.
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WHAT WE DO • Globally the 30% Club runs a number of very specific and targeted initiatives that look to broaden the pipeline of women at all levels, from “schoolroom to boardroom”. Whilst each chapter undertakes their own initiatives based on the specific local requirements and available resources, Gender Mainstreaming remains the common theme. The 30% Club is working to bring about real transformation by: • Encouraging and supporting chairmen, CEO’s and Senior Partners to appoint more women to their boards; • Providing information and help for businesses trying to improve their diversity at all levels - sharing innovations that work and devising new collaborative actions; • Working with other related groups. We believe that collective, concerted effort can achieve much more than individual initiatives and are ‘open source’ in our approach. We are driven by our objective, rather than by any ‘ownership’ of the issue; • Keeping the spotlight on the issue through our ongoing role in the public debate, on TV and radio and through social media; • Staging events to develop momentum and to evolve thinking around the issue; • Tracking progress towards the 30% target.
WHAT MEMBERSHIP MEANS Membership is open to Chairs, CEOs, Senior Partners and equivalents, usually of listed companies, “blue chip” non-listed companies or leading professional services firms. Our Members lead by example and join in their personal capacity, although it is assumed that they will use their influence to bring about change in their own organisations. Members: • lend their name to the Club and commit to publicly support increasing numbers of women on boards; • support initiatives to build the pipeline of women for executive and non-executive roles; • actively assist in recruiting and spreading the word to other Chairs and key influencers; • if they desire, assist in various events and publicity/press opportunities; • are invited to events to build awareness of the benefits of increased diversity and to support key initiatives. By joining the 30% Club, our Members publicly indicate their support for the notion that it is good business practice to have women holding 30% of board seats and share the aspiration to collectively reach this goal. We believe businesses and senior business leaders should drive this change. There is no requirement for Members to have 30% women on their boards or management committees - the under-representation of 10
women at senior levels is a global phenomenon, so better gender balance is usually an aspiration rather than a reality. Importantly this is not a quota initiative and does not require the setting of specific goals and we do not measure our Members’ performance against our collective aspirational goal. In signing up, our Members agree to be publicly listed as members of the 30% Club, and for this membership to be included in 30% Club’s communications campaigns. There is no requirement to commit specific amounts of time to the initiative. All Members of the 30% Club will be invited to events as they are held - we warmly welcome participation, but attendance is strictly voluntary.
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PART 2 SOUTHERN AFRICA 12
INTRODUCTION TO SOUTHERN AFRICA Business Engage Association NPC launched the 30% Club Southern Africa (30%CSA) on 11 September 2014 at a private dinner in Sandton with Baroness Scotland, the UK Trade Envoy to South Africa and former UK Attorney General, as the keynote speaker. The founding members of 30%CSA are; • Monica Singer, CEO : Strate Ltd. • Wendy Lucas-Bull, Chair : Barclays Africa • Maria Ramos, CE: Barclays Africa • Shirley Machaba, Chair : PwC south Africa • Nikki Webb, Partner : Hogan Lovells • Gert Schoonbee, MD : T-Systems Other current members include; • Birgitta Cederstrom, Global Commercial Director GIL Program : Frost & Sullivan • Catalina Fajardo, Partner : Bain & Company • Ephy Motlhamme, Group Company Secretary : Telkom • Faith Khanyile, CEO : WDB Investment Holdings • Grace Dipale, Group Human Resources Executive : Business Connexion • James Formby, CEO: Rand Merchant Bank • Lynn Gunning, Sales Director Africa, Frost & Sullivan • Regional Head, Southern Africa : Bloomberg • Marina Bidoli, Partner : Brunswick • Mary Sina Bomela, CEO : Mineworker’s Investment Company • Megan Nicholas, Managing Executive: Sales and Distribution : Telkom • Parmi Natesan, Executive Centre for Corporate Governance: Institute of Directors Southern Africa • Peter Crawley, Citigroup • Robyn de Villiers, Burson-Marsteller
• Sally Hutton, Managing Partner : Webber Wentzel • Sbu Gule, Chair: Norton Rose • Sheldon Scott-Halcrow, Nedbank Private Wealth • Sipho Pityana, Chair: AngloGold Ashanti • Sneha Shah, MD: Africa Thomson Reuters • Stephen Kose , CEO: Investec • Tom Creamer, Telesure Services Group • Trevor Brown, Chairman : Deloitte Africa The following companies and organisations joined as Associate Members; • African Women Chartered Accountants • Brand SA • Manpower SA • Novate Legal • SA Women in ICT • Search Partners International • Tuesday Consulting • Vuma Reputation Management In line with the global strategy noted above as from February 2016 “Associate Members” will be redesignated as “Supporters”. Location To date the focus in Southern Africa has been South Africa. During 2017 other Southern African countries will be bought into the fold. We
have recently been appointed as custodians in East Africa as well. New members are constantly being encouraged to join the 30%CSA and we are currently engaging with 40 companies.
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STEERING COMMITTEE 30%CSA is run by a steering committee made up of representatives of the Members and Supporters. These meetings are chaired by Business Engage and since inception have met monthly excluding December. Focus groups have been established, namely; • Membership • Events • Research • Communication • Mentorship • UN Women Initiatives The Steercom will meet every second month, with the focus groups being tasked to progress in the various areas. The focus groups will be added to or revised as the need arises.
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30%CSA INITIATIVES 30%CSA has introduced a number of unique initiatives since it was launched in September 2014. The majority of these initiatives are designed to amalgamate and provide a holistic approach to gender mainstreaming.
MEMBERS’ DINNER It is accepted that Gender Mainstreaming is still quite a new topic in the boardroom globally and Southern Africa is no different. In order to spread the word and give feedback to the Members, once a year 30%CSA hosts a Members’ Dinner. The purpose of the dinner is to introduce business leaders to the fact that gender mainstreaming is good for business and to allow those who have bought into the process to intermingle over a pleasant evening with those who wish to know more about the ramifications before deciding on whether to join the journey. This dinner is open to members and selected invitees who are not members. The inaugural Member’s Dinner was hosted by T Systems and they graciously agreed to also host the second dinner on 1st March 2016. The feedback received from both the first and second dinners are hugely positive with the attendees enjoying the content, networking opportunities and relaxed atmosphere. It is the intention to continue hosting this high quality event annually.
THE 5TH GENDER MAINSTREAMING AWARDS www.genderawards.co.za
The annual Gender Mainstreaming Awards have been developed by Business Engage to encourage private sector and government to buy-in to achieving more meaningful representation of women in the mainstream of organisations, and to reward companies that understand the business case for gender diversity and have started their programmes. The Awards are quickly becoming the premier event in gender diversity in South Africa with the fourth event successfully held at the Vodacom Dome on 1 September 2016 for 580 attendees. Keynote speaker was Ms Rania Anderson from Kansas, USA. Founder and CEO, The Way Women Work Foundation. 30%CSA became strategic partners of the awards in 2015. This enables 30%CSA to promote the brand and align itself with a very credible awards programme.
In 2017 another category has been added : Gender Reporting by JSE listed companies.
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The ten private sector categories are: • Women on Boards; • Women on Executive Committees in Multinationals; • Equal representation and participation award; • Diversity and transformation award; • Women empowerment in the workplace award split into JSE and non-JSE listed companies; • Economic empowerment award; • Mainstreaming gender and disability award; • Women empowerment in the community; • Investing in young women; • Gender Reporting by JSE listed companies. The Gender Mainstreaming Champions: 2013 - PPC 2014 - T-Systems South Africa 2015 - Business Connexion 2016 - Vodacom
THE BOARD WALK A common complaint amongst those tasked with looking for new board talent is the lack of expertise outside of those currently in board positions. Likewise, those individuals seeking board positions bemoan not being able to gain experience due to being unable to meaningfully engage with existing board members on topical issues and not being able to lever themselves onto a board. The King 3 recommendations to rotate non-executive directors, which in theory should provide women with a foot in the door has, according to 30%CSA research, proved totally ineffective in practice at JSE listed company level. Whilst there are many credible “Woman on Boards” and “Women in Leadership” programmes these may only serve to provide more frustration than relief once the women involved hit the proverbial brick wall. In order to alleviate this problem 30%CSA developed “The Board Walk”.
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The Concept; The Boardwalk is an initiative that has been created to nurture the development of aspiring directors who are currently in senior management positions and help them to unlock their future potential in a very practical manner. It aims to expose these individuals to existing directors (both executive and nonexecutive) and senior partners during an interactive networking breakfast that will encourage meaningful engagement and dialogue. Role models are a very necessary component in leadership development and accessing those potential role models plays a large part in the sustainable development of the pipeline. The Name; While “The Board Walk� derives its name and paints the picture of a promenade or walkway, it holds an underlying meaning of the bridge that an aspiring director needs to cross to become Board ready, as well as the journey that needs to be embarked upon. As they take their first steps down this path of opportunity, these aspiring directors will benefit from those already sitting in the higher echelons of corporate South Africa who will offer their guidance and share their insights and challenges. The Format The format is based on the very successful Business Engage Hot Tables concept. Hot Tables has been running for ten years now and allows Entrepreneurs to meet and network with various experts. The networking is held over a three course dinner with the hosts remaining at their allocated tables whilst the entrepreneurs switch tables after each course. The Board Walk is held over a breakfast with the hosts remaining at their tables and the attendees moved tables twice during the morning. Business and other leaders are invited to host a table of between eight and ten people. The job of the host is to impart knowledge, experience and words of wisdom to the table, while directing the conversation. The topics may be either specific or general as the host and the table pleases. A guest speaker will add to the occasion.
Success Through this process we have enabled appointments of new candidates to JSE Listed boards.
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FROST & SULLIVAN GROWTH INNOVATION LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE (GIL) - AUGUST 2017 A renewed 12 month partner agreement has been signed between 30% Club Southern Africa and Frost & Sullivan Africa for their regional flagship event Growth Innovation Leadership aka GIL 20167Africa. This agreement will position the 30% Club as a “go to” partner for organisations looking to increase the participation of women in the economy. For close to a decade, Frost & Sullivan together with members of their Growth Alliance Partnership spanning private, public, non-profit, government, and educational sectors have been committed to the launch and on-going support of a very unique global network of CEOs and their management teams, referred to as “GIL Global.” The Global Community of Growth, Innovation and Leadership’s mission is to provide a 365 day continual feed of best-practice tools and strategies which empower and support its members and their organizations along their individual “Journey to Visionary Innovation” by looking at ways in which we can leverage innovation as a resource to address global challenges, growth our companies and our careers. http://ww2.frost.com/about/ Today, GIL Global spans more than 18 countries around the world, with direct access to critical, best practice-based trends and insights across more than 42 market sectors and 10 functional areas of the CEO’s “Growth Team.” Their impact runs the gamut of delivery media: online forums; interactive think tanks; an annual schedule of worldwide events; monthly newsletters; and growth thought leadership from renowned industry visionaries, innovators and leaders, including an array of best-in-class growth solutions from an array of technical and non-technical solution providers which support and address challenges commonly faced throughout the business world. By having direct interaction with other members of the GIL Community, there will be many opportunities, new ideas and innovative ways for us to partner and leverage thought leadership from other business solution providers globally, reinforcing our position as an innovative visionary industry leader.
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THE CONNECTED WORKPLACE There has been much debate globally about gender mainstreaming in the private sector over the past decade, and that debate has to continue. “The Connected Workplace” is a cross-corporate conference and the topics discussed are those that are at the core of what South Africa has to face in terms of gender mainstreaming in order to remain globally competitive and give meaning to the National Development Plan. The Connected Workplace is held once or twice a year with Members hosting the conference. Two events have already been held, the first hosted by KPMG and the second by Investec. The topics are varied with high quality speakers / panellists. Dr Len Konar Chair Steinhoff, Stephen Koseff CEO Investec and Brand Pretorius to name but three. This is an excellent opportunity for inter-company debate and networking.
GENDER MAINSTREAMING E-ZINE
GENDER MAINSTREAMING E ZINE As a country, we are internationally recognised for our propensity for unity in diversity and are well positioned to take our rightful place as a standard bearer for the empowerment of women in the workplace, especially in the higher echelons of the private sector. We do not do it because it is “the right thing to do”; we do it because “it makes good business sense”. Globally the most enlightened and forward thinking companies are not only reaping the rewards of gender mainstreaming, they are also telling the stories that go with it. In line with the strategy of the 30% Club to ensure that the story is being told, we have undertaken to publish an ongoing e-zine publication that both builds awareness of gender diversity with articles and showcasing companies that are succeeding in their efforts to mainstream the gender discussion. The publication will; 20
• Acknowledge the Gender Mainstreaming Awards winners and finalists; • Send a clear and unequivocal message to customers, employees and suppliers of the companies are taking gender issues seriously; • Feature editorial on where South Africa sits in relation to other countries with regards to Gender Mainstreaming; • Consider potential new initiatives; • Highlight current selected initiatives; • Profile individuals committed to gender mainstreaming; • Sound a call to entries for future awards thereby increasing awareness. The publication will further stimulate debate as to what is needed for the private sector to be truly world leaders in tapping into the full spectrum of the resources that it has available.
BUSINESS COMMUNIQUE www.bizcom.link 30%CSA has identified a need for an electronic platform that brings together business women and men together with the corporates for mutual benefit and to advance the gender cause in the private sector. Business Communique will meet that need well into the future. It will, over time, be the most comprehensive database of women in the private sector, what they are doing. If you like, a pipeline “Who’s Who”. The platform will comprise of; • A members accessed database of women (and men) having reached a certain level and are on the move in the private sector / academia / public sector. • Event details, both 30%CSA and member organisations. • Current news desk • Forum (Monitored) • Articles. • Services, Products and Promotions • Speakers Corner • Women in Media
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A members’ section will allow access to the database whilst there will be enough public view to hold the interest of the reader. Once a reasonable sized database has been acquired this will allow 30%CSA to conduct meaningful research. The platform will be populated using existing database / networks and member organisation’s contacts. There is no cost for membership.
LEAN IN CIRCLES 30% club Southern Africa has launched a new initiative called “lean in circles”. Lean In Circles are small groups from across different industries who meet regularly to learn and grow together. Circles are as unique as the individuals who start them, but they all share a common bond: the power of peer support. 30% Club Southern Africa have started a number of these groups and welcome new participants in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. The aim of these groups is to develop confident leaders in corporate South Africa, inspired to grow and make a tangible impact on the business community.
PARTICIPATORY GENDER REVIEWS (PGR) A PGR is an International Labour Ogranisation (ILO) tool and a process based on a participatory methodology. The ILO process has been amended by Business Engage based on over two years of research on global trends and thirteen years local experience in gender matters. Business Engage acts as leaders to train, support and capacitate employees nominated within the reviewed entity to undertake the PGR themselves as facilitators. It promotes organisational learning on mainstreaming gender practically and effectively. The PGR benchmarks where the entity is in order that it may define its aspirations, develop strategies and implement plans and programmes whilst systematically being able to report on progress and challenges. It is further particularly designed to integrate with existing processes and systems within the entity to minimise any perceived burden.
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As part of our ‘schoolroom to boardroom’ continuum, the 30% Club globally has broadened its activities to include a number of key pipeline initiatives including one with business schools. Graduate management education and executive programmes act as accelerators to promotions and ultimately to senior leadership roles. However, female representation on many of these programmes remains low. Globally the 30% Club has developed partnerships with a number of leading business schools to offer scholarships to women for Senior Executive Programmes, MBAs, Executive MBAs and other Masters Programmes. To date, the30% Club works with Cambridge Judge, Henley, Imperial College, the Irish Management Institute, London Business School, SAID Business School at Oxford University and Queen’s Schools in Canada. In South Africa the 30%CSA has obtained sponsorship from GIBS for their Accelerate programme. This eight-day programme assists with the fast-tracking of the careers of high-performing individuals. This programme equips these high-performing individuals with the leadership and management tools necessary to advance their careers. They emerge from the course challenged, enthused and inspired to drive their career development and tackle more responsible management and leadership positions with confidence. The normal cost of the course is in the region of R50,000.
INTERNATIONAL SPEAKERS 30%CSA is always attentive to engaging with visiting individuals who can add value to the gender debate. 1) Cherie Blair 2) Rania Anderson Through the auspices of one of our members, Strate Ltd., we have in 2015 hosted three events with Rania Anderson. Rania, who resides in the USA is a thought leader in the professional advancement of women in 24
emerging economies. She is an international speaker, executive business coach and former senior corporate leader and the author of the first career advice book expressly written for women in emerging economies: Undeterred: The Six Habits of Women in Emerging Economies. Such was the success of the 2015 events that 30%CSA, through the sponsorship of Telesure and Rand Merchant Bank, invited Rania to do a return visit for more events in September 2016. More international experts will be sought as appropriate.
RESEARCH There are two aspects to the research, global and local. Global research will be highlighted on the Business Communique platform. Local research 30%CSA has undertaken research titled “Gender Movements in South African Business Leadership� on the opportunities afforded women by the King 3 recommendation to rotate non-executive directors. Further local research will be undertaken once the Business Communique platform has been launched.
A partnership also exists between 30% Club Southern Africa and Bain to do Gender Parity research in South Africa. Launch of report is end May 2017. Global Research Whilst there is a large amount of global research and information on the issue of Gender Mainstreaming and associated matters, access to these documents is scattered and haphazard at best. Global research25 will be able to be accessed via the Business Communique platform once launched.
LEGISLATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS The Minister of Women in the Presidency is currently reviewing existing legislation that has an impact on gender in the business environment, in particular the Promotion of Equality & Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act 4 of 2000. At the appropriate time 30%CSA will give input into this process. Likewise, King 4 has been commented on. JSE-LISTED companies have less than a year to report on what steps they have taken to increase female representation on their boards. The policy was introduced in August last year and now forms part of the listing requirements of the bourse. Listed companies have until January 1, 2017 to comply.
COLLABORATION Collaboration is considered a key component to the success of 30%CSA. This collaboration extends past the Members and Supporters to all stakeholders involved in whatever way with gender mainstreaming in the private sector. 30%CSA does not intend to get involved in areas where other organisations have a successful presence, other than by way of support as and when deemed desirable. Government 30%CSA has an excellent working relationship with the current Minister in the Presidency Susan Shabangu and we are one of the “go to” organisations that the government relies on for comment regarding legislation and other issues effecting women in the business community. Additionally, 30%CSA has a good relationship with the South African Human Rights Commission and intends forging closer links with the Commission for Employment Equity. UK Foreign Office 30%CSA has a good working relationship with the current UK High Commissioner Dame Judith MacGregor who helped launch the 30%CSA. The new Director of Trade and Investment Emma Wade-Smith is looking to follow in the footsteps of her predecessor Andy Henderson in lending much valuable support to 30%CSA. These links will be utilised to engage with UK companies operating in South Africa and it is hoped that other nation’s foreign offices can engaged likewise. The Commonwealth Whilst many people would consider the Commonwealth a relic of the past it still has 53 countries as members with a population of 2.2 billion people. The new Secretary General of the Commonwealth, and the first woman to be appointed is Baroness Patricia Scotland. In a checkered career Patricia was previously the UK trade envoy to South Africa and the only women ever to hold the post of Attorney General in the UK, a position that goes back to the year 1315. We were honoured to have her as guest speaker at the launch of 30%CSA. The Commonwealth are currently looking at a combined gender strategy for the 53 commonwealth countries and that she would be looking to the 30% Club Southern Africa to play a part in providing input 26
into that strategy based on her interaction with us so far. We look forward to that engagement.
OTHER ORGANISATIONS There are a number of organisations currently active in South Africa who either have similar objectives with a different focus or wish to add gender to their portfolio. AWCA 30%CSA has entered into an agreement with the African Women Chartered Accountant (AWCA) to cooperate with gender based initiatives. AWCA has a number of excellent and well established programmes which attends to the needs of the individual more so than the company. There is much synergy between the two organisations and very little, if any, conflict. Thomson Reuters Apart from being a member of 30%CSA Thomson Reuters globally has developed an innovative event mobile app for a scalable, robust and interactive event experience. Thomson Reuters has made this app available to 30%CSA at no cost. 30%CSA is the first organization in South Africa to be actively utilising this app. GIBS In addition to the bursary that GIBS has sponsored, GIBS and 30%CSA organised an informal dinner on 4th April 2016 with the view of exploring opportunities between the two organisations and also to start a debate on future leadership requirements. Novate Legal 30%CSA has partnered with the legal firm Novate who provide services for larger owner-managed enterprises. It goes without saying that good governance through a formal board process is critical to business growth. Moving these enterprises from “family run” to “business run” can be daunting. 30%CSA has identified this environment as a good starting point for women looking for board experience. Women who are participants on the Board Walk are invited to apply for non-executive positions within these ownermanaged enterprises. Women Corporate Directors WCD members are among the world’s most powerful and influential women in business today- the global business elite, who are at the top of their organisations - serving as directors, CEOs, COOs, divisional presidents, and other executive positions. WCD members are on boards of public and/or large privately held companies, as well as large family businesses. WCD strives to educate and enrich women leaders on the challenges facing directors and their companies. Information and insights are shared in order to put best practices into place and help problem solve these challenges. 27
BECOMING A MEMBER Why become a Member? It is widely accepted that gender mainstreaming has become a topic of note in the boardroom globally over the past decade, and it will continue to be so. In its simplest form the 30% Club is a collaboration of board Chairs and CEOs and Senior Partners committed to achieving better gender balance at all levels of organisations, because they believe this will make businesses and boards more effective. Reasons for becoming a member include; • Joining a distinguished roster of existing Chairmen, Chief Executives, Senior Partners and Senior Executives globally who support the 30% Club campaign. • Signalling to the public and all
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stakeholders, both internal and external, your organisation takes seriously its commitment to inclusion as part of its talent strategy at the highest levels. • Access to the 30%CSA initiatives for your company and your employees; • Recognition from your peers; • Marketing and branding opportunities; • Invitation to events as they are held and are appropriate - we warmly welcome participation - but attendance is strictly voluntary and there is no obligation. • Cross company networking. In addition to the above, in joining it is assumed that the member would use his or her influence to bring about change within the organisation.
What is required from the member? The member would be publicly indicating his or her support for the notion that it is good business practice to have women holding at least 30% of board seats and that he or she, as a key member of the business community, shares the aspiration to collectively reach this goal. There is no specific requirement to have 30% women on the organisations’ board or management committees. This is not a quota initiative (we believe businesses and senior business leaders should drive the change), does not require the setting of specific goals for the organisation and we do not measure our members’ performance against our collective aspirational goal.
colleen@businessengage.co.za and she will gladly provide you with whatever information that you require. Costs There is no mandatory cost involved in joining 30%CSA. However, in order to provide a professional service and continue to deliver on the initiatives we do request a R65,000 p.a plus VAT. contribution. This may be in the form of cash or services rendered or provided by the organisation i.e. hosting of events. This may be discussed with Colleen Larsen prior to the organisation making any firm commitment.
The member would be agreeing to be publicly listed as a member of the 30% Club, and for this membership to be included in 30% Club’s communications campaigns. Neither the member nor the organisation would be required to commit specific amounts of time to this initiative. Where possible we would ask that the member actively assist in recruiting and spreading the word to other Chairs, CEOs, Senior Partners and key influencers and – should he or she wish - we would welcome his involvement in publicity/press opportunities where appropriate. How do I go about joining? The member initially signs a participation agreement. A black and white photo is required for the member to be loaded onto the global 30% Club website (www.30percentclub.org). The member further appoints one or two employees of the organisation to represent the organisation on the Steering Committee which is tasked with driving strategy and operational direction. For organisations thinking about joining you are more than welcome to contact the 30% Club Southern Africa Custodian Colleen Larsen on 084-353-9865 or e-mail
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The 30% Club Southern Africa
Members’ Dinner; 8 March 2017
Sponsored by :
CONTACT : Colleen Larsen 084-353-9865 colleen@businessengage.co.za www.30percentclub.org 32