SA Business Integrator - Volume 7 l Issue 1 - April 2021

A B U S I N E S S I N T E R A C T I O N P U B L I C AT I O N

Volume 7 | Issue 1 | April 2021

Driving

entrepreneurial growth through

Is collective phobia the reason organisations struggle with

mentoring

transformation?

There are more opportunities for SMME’s in 2021 than in 2011 sabusinessintegrator.co.za April 2021 | R75.00 Incl. VAT

21001

9 772411 292008

Current Affairs

COVER STORY

Sibusiso Raphekwane

founder and director of The Transformation ma Legacy Economic Development

Business Integration

SME financing 101: Knowing your options is key to survival When President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the nation on the country’s response to COVID-19 on Monday 1 February 2021, small and medium enterprises (SME) owners across the country gave a unified sigh of relief, as certain lockdown restrictions were eased. Yet despite this easing of restrictions, SMEs have been under pressure for some time thanks to a sluggish economy, which the pandemic only served to compound.

T

his is according to Jeremy Lang, Regional General Manager at Business Partners Limited (BUSINESS/PARTNERS), who urges business owners to be realistic about their expectations and plans for the year ahead, but not to give up hope; “While we still have a long road to recovery, the extended curfew and the lift on the ban on alcohol sales is a positive step, especially for the hospitality sector. We implore SMEs who might be tempted to throw in the towel to reconsider their financing options.”

New institutions and types of financing are introduced each year, and there is a whole host of financing products available from the private and public sector. This financing mainly consists of grants, risk free and risk-based finance where either grants, debt or equity investments are made available.

Financiers include commercial institutions such as banks and SME focused financing institutions, development finance institutions, angel investors, crowd funding, enterprise development funding and private equity firms, amongst others. At present there are also relief programmes specifically designed to help SMEs weather the COVID-19 storm.

Unfortunately, a lack of awareness around available financing as well as a lack of business compliance and knowledge are proving to be a major barrier to SMEs accessing the support they need. “Thus, accessible financing is key to the survival of SMEs – which will, in turn, only assist the country’s economic recovery,” says Lang.

Before applying for financing, he advises a few factors that SMEs should consider:

Get your ducks in a row Most financiers require 12-24 month projections and need to get a clear understanding of how further expenditure will produce a better income for the business, which is why it is vital to detail how the business loan will be spent and how this will influence the projections.

“Strict criteria for most finance applications require statutory compliance and financial statements to be completely up to date, so make sure that the administrative function of the business is well managed,” says Lang.

Determine the life stage your business is in Lang explains that each financing option has different features that could be beneficial for businesses at various stages in their lifespans. “During the early stage of any business, it is most difficult to source financing due to the higher risk involved for the financier – which is why the majority of entrepreneurs rely on financiers like family or friends to provide the necessary funding to open or expand a business.”

As the business grows and matures, more capital may be required to maintain business operations during tough times, but a lower risk profile also means more financing options become available.

Customise every application According to Lang, the local financing landscape can be tricky to navigate because different financiers have different mandates and objectives in terms of social impact, employment or commercial returns.

“Generic applications may result in a higher failure rate, so it pays to do your research on all potential financiers in order to determine not only whether the business matches the specific criteria of the investor and speaks to their investment preferences, but also that the proposed financing agreement ensures a fair deal for both the entrepreneur and investor,” he advises.

Seek additional specialist input Financiers have become strong advocates of SMEs, especially over this tough period. According to Lang, there is a strong correlation between a business’ success when it receives financing along with technical assistance and mentorship. “Experts in their field can help SMEs to avoid costly mistakes and improve processes within the business.”

In conclusion, Lang adds, “The good news is that, while financiers’ and banks’ lending criteria have become increasingly stringent over the years, interest rates are currently low in South Africa, and as a result, monthly instalments have decreased, increasing affordability by SMEs. While it might seem like you are out of options, there is financing still available for SMEs - sometimes it’s just a matter of finding the right financing fit and knowing how best to approach it to increase your chances.”

About Business Partners Ltd. Business Partners Limited (BUSINESS/PARTNERS) is a specialist risk finance company for formal small and medium owner-managed businesses in South Africa and selected African countries. The company actively supports entrepreneurial growth by providing financing from R500, 000 to R50 million, specialist sectoral knowledge, business premises and added-value services for viable small and medium businesses. Since establishment in 1981, BUSINESS/PARTNERS has provided business finance worth over R19.5 billion in over 71 600 transactions facilitating over 651 000 jobs. BUSINESS/ PARTNERS was named the 2019 Gold winner in the SME Bank of the Year – Africa category at the recent Global SME Finance Awards*. Visit www. businesspartners.co.za for more information. *BUSINESS/PARTNERS has had remarkable results within the SME segment in Africa as a financier, even though it does not conduct the business of a bank.

Editor's Note

The pandemic has caused enough havoc – it's time we got back to the 'real normal' So, 2021 is here, yet everything still feels uncertain when we were hoping for business to be more lucrative and everything back to normal. Waiting for a predicted third wave of the pandemic and holding back on promoting your business is causing more damage to your brand and the economy.

Remote working now seems to be the new normal, but I must admit I don't agree with it – working in your own private space at home at your own pace isn't very productive. I'm sure not everyone agrees, but from my personal experience, I know that I was less productive in the comfort of my living room during hard lockdown.

Working together in the same space to achieve greater things, is by far the most productive way of conducting the business of the day, taking into account that we still need to practice safety protocols to avoid spreading COVID-19 in the workplace. After all, human interaction is an important factor and positive interactions create good feelings, increase morale and improve work satisfaction.

Working on your own can sometimes be daunting because your personal life might catch up with you negatively, creating confusion, anxiety, uncertainty and adversely effecting your work efficiency and company productivity.

However, I do know that for businesses who were tech-driven prior to the pandemic, were far more productive and could easily track each employee’s daily work input. However, for some it was and still is impossible to work remotely.

Once again, talking from experience, I find it is so much more difficult to get business decisions fast enough to meet deadlines than it was prior to the pandemic, which is causing a major delay in productivity across the entire corporate sphere.

Unfortunately, for many corporate, parastatals and government departments, often more than one signature is required for final approval of any business deal. So, in my opinion, let’s get back to work and continue doing what we are used to, to save the economy – because this virus will not be something of the past soon enough.

On a more positive, we are very thankful for each and every contributor in this edition of SA Business Integrator. Without your support, it wouldn’t have been possible to have published this edition – also our first on the shelves of major retailers around the country.

May the rest of 2021 be very productive for you. Stay safe!

Regards

Elroy van Heerden editor@sabusinessintegrator.co.za

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Contents COVER STORY:

The Transformation Legacy

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COMMENTARY:

SA economy signals stronger post-COVID bounce than estimated

14

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE:

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ADVERTORIAL: SME Warrior – A serious path of business change dynamic

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Sharpen customer experience focus? Good idea. How?

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ADVERTORIAL: Arum Wealth Creators – Igniting wealth creation & sharing

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DEBT RELIEF:

Struggling consumers need better information about their options

DIGITAL TRAINING:

Why digital training is increasing globally

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ECONOMY:

E-COMMERCE:

On-demand delivery on the rise

ENTREPRENEURSHIP:

The ‘made it’ stories are doing us a disservice

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ADVERTORIAL: MTN – MTN SA Foundation accelerates e-learning support to ensure children’s hopes and dreams can be realized

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MENTORSHIP:

Driving entrepreneurial growth through mentoring

PEOPLE:

Synergy’s transformation journey accelerates There are more opportunities for SMMEs in 2021 than in 2011

SMMEs:

Five risk trends affecting SMMEs Chemical SETA donates over R1.6 million to public universities to support groundbreaking projects, cut youth unemployment

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SUSTAINABILITY:

39

TRANSFORMATION:

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EMPOWERMENT:

Businesses must use their B-BBEE deliverables to create interventions for economic growth

Is collective phobia the reason organisations struggle with transformation?

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74 78

82

90

TAX ISSUES:

Make use of the free and impartial services of the tax ombudsman

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Sustainability leads the way for the future of waste management 86

60 4

58

Break out of the inbox with smart brand messaging

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EMPLOYEE BENEFITS:

One-size-fits-all employee benefits aren’t doing your business any favours

Good CEO’s build a business; great CEO’s leave a legacy

SKILLS DEVELOPMENT & TRAINING:

INTERVIEW:

Petroleum Agency SA – Focus is on supporting exploration activities to accelerate discoveries

LEADERSHIP:

54

SMALL BUSINESS:

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Another recession unlikely for now, but we still need to take our medicine to achieve sustainable growth

Remote working: Bringing the human back into Human Resources

MARKETING:

Why an effective continuous improvement programme is essential to good CX

CUSTOMER SERVICE:

HUMAN RESOURCES:

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Credits

A B U S I N E S S I N T E R A C T I O N P U B L I C AT I O N

South African Business Integrator @ SA_Business_Mag A B U S I N E S S I N T E R A C T I O N P U B L I C AT I O N

Volume 7 | Issue 1 | April 2021

EDITOR

Elroy van Heerden editor@sabusinessintegrator.co.za

Driving

entrepreneurial growth through

Is collective phobia the reason organisations struggle with

mentoring

transformation?

There are more opportunities for SMME’s in 2021 than in 2011

9 772411 292008

Current Affairs

Tessa O’Hara tessa.ohara@gmail.com

CONTENT MANAGER

Wadoeda Adams artwork@mediaxpose.co.za COVER STORY

Sibusiso Raphekwane

sabusinessintegrator.co.za April 2021 | R75.00 Incl. VAT

21001

COPY EDITOR

founder and director of The Transformation ma Legacy Economic Development

Business Integration

Cover image: The Transformation Legacy

LVD Brand Brilliance Image credits: 123rf.com

EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS Reza Hendrickse Nathalie Schooling Maja Smith Benay Sager Maarten Ackerman Antonio Bruni Paula Walker Rajan Naidoo Divya Vasant

Sandra Crous Desiree Gullan Andrew Weinberg Phetego Kubheka Clayton Ellary Yershen Pillay Kate Stubbs Johan Kruger Judge Ngoepe

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Distribution: ON THE DOT

Anja Bramley artwork1@mediaxpose.co.za

ADVERTISING SALES MANAGER

Rashiedah Wyngaardt rashiedah@sabusinessintegrator.co.za Published by:

ADVERTISING SALES CONSULTANT Bruce Crowie bruce@mediaxpose.co.za

SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR 6 Carlton Crescent, Parklands, 7441 Tel: 021 424 3625 Fax: 086 544 5217 E-mail: info@sabusinessintegrator.co.za Website: www.mediaxpose.co.za Disclaimer: The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher or its agents. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information published, the publisher does not accept responsibility for any error or omission contained herein. Consequently, no person connected with the publication of this journal will be liable for any loss or damage sustained by any reader as a result of action following statements or opinions expressed herein. The publisher will give consideration to all material submitted, but does not take responsibility for damage or its safe return.

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Kyla van Heerden social@mediaxpose.co.za

DISTRIBUTION & SUBSCRIPTIONS

Shihaam Gyer distribution@mediaxpose.co.za

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Shaun Mays accounts@mediaxpose.co.za

RECEPTION

Daniëla Daniels receptionist@mediaxpose.co.za

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COVER STORY

The Transformation

Legacy

SA BUSINESS INTEGRATOR spoke to Sibusiso Raphekwane, Founder and Director of The Transformation Legacy.

"The organisation exists to create a new narrative of thriving small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) that grow from strength to strength, remain sustainable, and are able to create jobs and thus make a positive contribution to the economy," Raphekwane explains. "To ensure that we achieve this, we implement enterprise and supplier development programmes that are holistic in their approach. Our programmes focuses on ensuring that business owners reach a certain level of personal mastery which would allow them to have the right mind-set to thrive as entrepreneurs. " The Transformation Legacy is an entrepreneur development company providing impact-driven Enterprise & Supplier development (ESD) programmes and initiatives that are geared towards empowering small businesses to significantly grow their enterprises.

"We are a team of passionate experts specialising in developing and supporting SMMEs to propel their businesses to become sustainable enterprises. We do this through business mentorship and practical training programmes that are aimed at providing entrepreneurs with the necessary skills and support to build their businesses," says Raphekwane.

The company focuses on empowering entrepreneurs and ensuring the have the right skills, knowledge, tools and information required to grow their businesses into

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COVER STORY

enterprises that can outlive the founder and transcend from generation to generation.

The Transformation Legacy provide services to corporate, government and small business development institutions to design and implement impact driven enterprise and supplier development initiatives that can lead to the organization meeting their objections and thus making a meaningful contribution. The contribution made towards the development and implementation of effective enterprise and supplier development programmes can effectively lead to more sustainable SMMEs. Businesses that can grow to employ people and thus lead to improved economic power which would in turn benefit all the players in the economy.

The following services are offered: • Development and implementation of enterprise and supplier development initiatives.

• Skills Development Programmes: SETA accredited NQF Level 4 Business Skills training to train and upskill unemployed individuals.

• The Transitioning Entrepreneur Programme: Reskilling of retrenched individuals aspiring to start their own businesses.

• Socio-Economic Development Programmes: mentorship and business skills training for unemployed individuals in the township and rural areas.

The Transformation Legacy's service offering to entrepreneurs includes: • Business mentorship and coaching • Business skills training • Start-up business development support programmes • SMME Consultancy services: Creation of business plans, strategic plans and marketing plans "We are a 100% black woman-owned and led company that also seeks to empower women by providing them with platforms to exercise their potential and expertise," says Raphekwane.

"We have over 30 years' collective experience in enterprise development and are a Services SETA accredited training provider offering an NQF Level 4 New Venture Creation Course. We are also a COMENSA registered coaching provider."

Tell us a bit about yourself and previous work and entrepreneurial experience

I am from a township called Temba in Hammanskraal.

Throughout my childhood, I was exposed to entrepreneurship because my father ran various small businesses both on a part-time and full-time basis. When my father left employment to go into business full-time, I saw how our lives transformed and our standard of living improved.

I’ve always liked the independence and self-efficiency that comes with being an entrepreneur; so, from a very young age, I dreamt of running a successful business.

I started my first business in my second year of varsity at the age of 19. I was passionate about fashion designing and started a business designing and selling fashionforward clothing. During that time, I was studying towards a B Com Accounting degree at the University of Pretoria.

This is where my journey as an entrepreneur started. After completing my degree, I worked in the retail industry as a fashion buyer and gained immense experience. I also worked in the marketing and communications industry before finally taking the leap of faith to operate my clothing designing business on a full-time basis.

I made a lot of mistakes in the business and learned a lot in the process. I eventually got so frustrated with the challenges in the business and decided to enrol for an entrepreneurship course. The idea was to gain as much knowledge as I possibly can so that I can expand my business. I completed my Masters in Entrepreneurship from the University of Pretoria; and whilst studying for the course, one of the assignments was to develop and implement a turnaround strategy for a business in distress. In the very first business mentorship session, I realised immediately that I would like to mentor businesses.

It all started making sense; the frustration I had when I saw the high number of small businesses that closed down in my community. It was in that moment that I realised that what I really want to do is to empower people to build successful businesses. I then went on to pursue business mentorship. I started off doing this on a voluntary basis and went on to work for enterprise and supplier development organizations in business mentorship, training, programme development and at senior executive level, leading teams of programme managers and business mentors.

In the various roles I have held, I’ve come to recognised that I am a mentor at heart – mentorship is what comes naturally to me. I love imparting knowledge to others and making people realise that they have the capability to build businesses that are sustainable and can leave a legacy that they can be proud of as entrepreneurs.

I am passionate about transforming lives and seeing entrepreneurs really use their strengths, talents and capabilities to achieve their dreams. My goal is to significantly contribute to building successful entrepreneurs, particularly those coming from disadvantaged backgrounds and to get to a stage where the majority of small businesses succeed, thrive and make a positive impact to the growth of our economy in South Africa and the rest of the African continent.

I would love to see businesses started in the township or rural areas growing, thriving, evolving and ultimately existing for 50 years and beyond; thus, inspiring individuals from

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COVER STORY

Maximize your BEE compliance and improve your competitiveness in the market whilst impacting the sustainability of small businesses.

the same background that it is indeed possible to build a legacy business when you have the right skills, knowledge and tools.

I live by the motto ‘’Be the change you want to see in the world, by Mahatma Ghandi’’ – this is my key driver on a daily basis; to lead the transformation that I want to experience in our society.

What is your career background and your role at the Transformation Legacy?

I started The Transformation Legacy in 2017, with a clear goal to make a significant impact to the success of entrepreneurs from previously disadvantaged backgrounds through effective enterprise and supplier development initiatives that ultimately lead to making a lasting difference in the entrepreneurs’ businesses. The vision of the company is to be a leader and game changer in the mentorship and development of entrepreneurs by implementing initiatives that lead to growth and sustainability of small businesses.

We live with the sad reality that the majority of small businesses fail within the first few years of operation. In most cases, this is due to a lack of business management skills, general understanding of how to grow a business and not much experience in how to operate and grow within an industry. All of these can be mitigated through the interventions that we offer; there is no reason businesses should fail if you have the necessary skills, knowledge and tools.

I am the founder and CEO of the company and my role involves the development of impact-driven mentorship programmes resulting in sustained business growth for entrepreneurs; providing leadership to the team; overseeing the alignment of operational activities with company vision and strategic objectives; development of entrepreneur development frameworks and content; and business development and client relationship management.

I am passionate about mentorship and coaching and still mentor a small pool of entrepreneurs. I also do this to ensure I always understand the challenges that entrepreneurs face and really love being part of the development process.

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What are your long-term goals for The Transformation Legacy?

We have a head office in Johannesburg and a satellite office in Cape Town. To date, we have worked in Gauteng, Western Cape and Free State. Our plan is to extend our work across all provinces in the country and then expand to the rest of Africa, starting with five countries in the next 10 years.

We are also in the process of launching an entrepreneurship academy which will offer practical and experiential entrepreneurship education. The objective is to influence young people to select entrepreneurship as a feasible career choice.

We see ourselves becoming a leader and significantly achieving directional influence in the enterprise development sector. Our organization seeks to be known for leading change in the SMME development market.

What, in your opinion, are the biggest benefits of partnering with The Transformation Legacy?

We are passionate about the work we do and genuinely want to see our clients succeed. Clients can trust us because we become an extension of their organization and see their problems and challenges as our own. We therefore go the extra mile because we know that their success is our success and their failures become our failures. It is therefore important to give our very best in every single thing we do because we want to see our clients succeed.

Clients should partner with us because our services are personalised and customised to meet their needs. We are a growing team; this makes us very agile and flexible. This is very important when operating in a market with everevolving needs and demands.

Our interventions are impact driven and this is supported by robust monitoring and evaluation tools, and processes which we implement for all the clients we have on board.

We are known by our clients as thorough, professional, passionate, compassionate, efficient, transparent and highly involved. We are truly invested in the work we do and constantly strive for excellence.

How big a role does The Transformation Legacy play in the development of SMMEs, and how can that impact future economic growth?

The future of our economy highly depends on the success of small businesses. This was further reiterated in the State of the Nation speech delivery this year. Our country needs thriving small businesses to grow our economy sustainably.

There have also been many jobs that were lost over the past few years and unfortunately the labour market

COVER STORY

cannot absorb all the individuals that are unemployed currently. We need individuals to start their own businesses to create a sustainable livelihood for themselves.

However, it is not good enough for people to just start businesses; we need those businesses to grow, thrive and become sustainable. This is what will create sustainable economic growth. This is where we come in as The Transformation Legacy; we exist to empower entrepreneurs to develop and grow their businesses into sustainable enterprises that can make a positive contribution to the economy of our country. Our work has an invaluable impact on the future of our country’s economy.

What are the main challenges facing entrepreneurs in today’s economy, and what future plans does The Transformation Legacy have to overcome those obstacles?

Entrepreneurs are currently fighting for the right to exist in the market. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on many small businesses and highlighted the importance of building a business for future sustainability.

The nature of business has changed and there is a need for flexibility and the ability to diversify services or products in line with market demand. The challenge for many entrepreneurs is how to adapt to these market changes with minimal and sometimes non-existent resources to do so, and at times just not knowing how to operate a business during times of uncertainty and adversity.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we wanted to assist entrepreneur to navigate their way through uncertainty, so we launched bi-weekly webinar sessions where we host a panel of subject matter experts to share their insights on various topics, from managing cash flow, generating sales, digital marketing, and people management etc.

These sessions have continued, and we are proud to have reached many entrepreneurs who would not ordinarily have access to this critical information. The webinar sessions are free to the public and this is our contribution to ensuring that entrepreneurs have the knowledge required to mitigate obstacles and thus continue building their businesses to become sustainable.

We have also seen the importance of being able to evolve our service offerings and be able to operate comfortably in the digital space. We launched a digital presence intervention which now forms part of our enterprise and supplier development programmes. The aim is to assist entrepreneurs to significantly improve their presence online, which is where business now takes place.

Over and above this, it is important for entrepreneurs to have automated business processes and optimize technology to enhance their business offering. At this

stage we are exploring how we can integrate this effectively in our development programmes.

What has been the impact of COVID-19 on The Transformation Legacy with regards to its preand post-pandemic plans?

The COVID-19 pandemic has really highlighted some important lessons for us. The ability to adapt and evolve in line with market demands has been a big lesson.

We were able to adapt by facilitating our training and mentorship online and found ways to still achieve impact without the in-person interactions.

We have also seen a shift in the mindset of many entrepreneurs and corporate companies as most of these businesses have gained an appreciation for sustainability, financial prudency and stability. Corporate companies have really done amazingly well during the pandemic by extending their assistance and wanting to further contribute to the survival of small businesses. Whilst small businesses have shown an appreciation of the need to build a business for sustainability. All this has cemented the importance of the work we do and the interventions we offer, and reassured us that our work plays a significant role in the economy.

What support do The Transformation Legacy provide to SMME’s? And what would the criteria be to apply?

We provide the following support for SMMEs: o Business Mentorship and coaching o Business Skills Training o Business Diagnosis & Assessments • SMME business consultancy: • Business Plan Development • Business Strategy Development • Business Processes Development • Marketing Strategy Development

Gaining access to our services is very easy; SMMEs can book a session with us so we can assess their businesses and see the type of support they need. They can do this through various platforms; our website and Facebook page, where they book a session with us directly from the page, or contact us to learn more about our offering.

We also have free resources that SMMEs can access on our website, all they need to do is visit our website at www.transformationlegacy.com, access the ‘resources’ page, register and get free tools and information they can use to grow their businesses.

We also run free webinar sessions on a bi-weekly basis, every second and last Friday of the month from 10:00 to 11:30. Our social media platforms have more information on the webinar events.

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What would the best advice be that The Transformation Legacy can provide to start-up SMME’s?

Starting a business can be very daunting as there are so many factors that an SMME needs to take into consideration, however, success is not impossible. It is important to first establish why you are starting the business, clarify the purpose and set the vision of the company. Once you are able to define these three aspects, it gives you better clarity on how to go about building your business, getting your product or service to your customers and building a business model that leads to the achievement of profitability.

It is also important for SMMEs to equip themselves with the knowledge and skills they need to grow their businesses. Most entrepreneurs start businesses with no business management acumen or background, this leads to missing very important steps when building their respective operations. SMMEs need to identify a business mentor and coach to assist them to navigate the early stages of their business and attend the relevant business skills training which will equip them to navigate the complex world of entrepreneurship.

How do big corporates get involved and what benefits do The Transformation Legacy offer to these corporates?

Corporates can come onboard by contacting us for a free assessment on their current Enterprise and Supplier Development initiatives, which is the first step we take prior to developing their customised enterprise and supplier development initiatives. Organizations can also sponsor some of the SMME development initiatives we facilitate.

The benefits of working with us is that we have a hands-on approach to the implementation of Enterprise and supplier development initiatives. We have extensive experience in enterprise development and absolutely love what we do, which leads to us going the extra mile. We become a partner and are highly invested in corporates achieving their enterprise and supplier development objectives.

We believe in our initiatives leading to impact; therefore we have great monitoring and evaluation tools which help us track the performance of SMMEs that take part in our initiatives.

Customer testimonials The Transformation Legacy has a unique offering. They are committed to making a meaningful impact in the businesses that they grow. Their services extend beyond just being an ESD service provider as they grow businesses, thereby creating socio-economic impact. ~ Fiona Ally| Group Lead: Enterprise & Supplier Development| Momentum Metropolitan Holdings

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I am excited that the programme speaks directly to my business needs and not a one-size-fits all approach. I have attended various business development programmes, and this is one of the best. A bonus for me is to deal with people who are open minded, accommodative and understand my thinking regarding the direction I want to take to grow my business. ~ Bongiwe Monakedi| Founding Member| Monabo Hygiene Services The biggest mind set shift for me, was that it’s not only about the bottom line! The programme has taught me the importance of strategy and analysing and reviewing every component of my business. ~ Nthateng Seleka| Director| Octavian Group This programme is by far one of the best enterprise development programmes that we have gone through as a business. The main reason being that it is not a one-size-fits-all solution but was designed to address our areas of concern and development needs. As such we believe that we have been given the necessary tools which we can use to turn around our business into a global successful organization. We would recommend this program to anyone who would like to take their business to the next level. ~ Pitsi Mnisi| Director| Lynshpin Cedar The Transformation Legacy is the epitome of Black excellence, I am honoured and proud to be part of their programme. ~ Mamela Luthuli|Director|Take Note Information Technology.

The Transformation Legacy is very professional and prompt when they say they will do stuff. Overall, as a business owner, I have become a lot better at the business side of the business, whereas I used to just be technical. We believe the business we are building now is a lot more sustainable than what we had when we started. ~ Nicholas Nyamhondoro| Director| Alpha Innovate The programme is worth all the time and effort. It feels like a practical MBA. Thank you to The Transformation Legacy. ~ Bashi Makhafola| Director| TIC IT Telecoms 

E info@transformationlegacy.com W www.transformationlegacy.com T +27 (0)10 023 0508 +27 (0)10 005 5753 +27 (0)87 153 2143

Are you aware of the exciting opportunities for you to support small businesses?

Partner with us in supporting small businesses to scale and grow their businesses.

The Transformation Legacy is an Enterprise Development company providing impact-driven Enterprise & Supplier development (ESD) programmes and projects that are geared towards empowering small businesses to significantly grow their enterprises whilst improving your BEE compliance as a corporate partner.

OUR OFFERING TO CORPORATES:

OUR OFFERING TO ENTREPRENEURS:

• Development and Implementation of Enterprise & Supplier Development projects.

• Business Coaching & Mentoring.

• The Transitioning Entrepreneur Programme: Reskilling of retrenched individuals aspiring to start their own businesses.

• Skills Development programmes: SETA accredited NQF level 4 Business Skills training to train and upskill individuals. ‘’Maximize your BEE compliance and improve your competitiveness in the market whilst impacting the sustainability of small businesses”

• Business Skills Training.

• Start-up business development support programmes.

• SMME Consultancy services: Creation of Business Plans, Strategic Plans and Marketing Plans.

30 Years’ collective experience in entrepreneur development | NQF Level 4 accredited Business Skills Training | BEE Level 1-100% Black-women owned.

Contact us on +27 10 005 5753 or +27 87 153 2143 | info@transformationlegacy.com Constantia Square Office Park, 16th Road, Randjespark, Midrand, 1682 www.transformationlegacy.com

COMMENTARY

SA economy signals stronger

post-COVID bounce than estimated The South African economy rebounded further in the final quarter of last year, with Gross Domestic Product (GDP) expanding 6.3% quarter-on-quarter (seasonally adjusted annualised). Third quarter growth was also revised higher, from 66.1% to 67.3% quarter-on-quarter (seasonally adjusted annualised), signalling a stronger post-COVID bounce than initially estimated.

By Reza Hendrickse, Portfolio Manager at PPS Investments For the full year, the SA economy contracted 7.0%, severely impacted by the pandemic lockdowns, during which economic activity ground to a halt. Although last year was the worst in decades, growth has in fact surprised positively, with initial forecasts having predicted an even deeper recession.

Of the three main economic sectors, the secondary and tertiary sectors (which relate to manufacturing and the services industries) showed the strongest growth.

Drilling down deeper, eight out of the ten industries measured delivered positive growth, with manufacturing and trade together contributing around half of this quarter’s growth in economic output.

Manufacturing was driven largely by

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COMMENTARY

food and beverages, motor vehicles, and metal and steel production, all of which benefitted from continued normalisation in production and demand patterns. Similarly, trade was boosted by sectors exposed to retail and motor vehicle trade as well as catering and accommodation, which were all amongst the sectors hardest hit by the COVID-19 restrictions. Along with manufacturing and trade, the construction industry also rebounded particularly strongly, with all three of these posting double-digit growths over the quarter.

load shedding will probably continue to hamper growth in the near term, but any growth ahead of expectations will be well received, and will also make the job of National Treasury easier, as they work to maintain debt sustainability.  Visit www.pps.co.za for more information.

Potential for a positive near-term surprise Looking ahead, we expect the SA economy to continue on the path of gradual internal repair, while also benefitting from the tailwind of accelerating global growth this year. Although longer term we still consider the economy to be a structurally low growth one, there is some potential for a positive near-term surprise, given how low expectations currently are.

Confidence should continue to rebound, particularly as the vaccine rolls out, while the strong performance of the mining sector should trickle through to other parts of the economy, as related sectors benefit. It will take some time for the local economy to get back to pre-COVID-19 levels, and

Reza Hendrickse, Portfolio Manager at PPS Investments

PPS Investments, established in 2007, is the investment manager within the 80-year-old PPS Group, South Africa’s largest multidisciplinary society of graduate professionals with around 150 000 members.

PPS Investments offers a comprehensive range of competitive investment solutions designed to empower investors at all life stages to plan, protect and provide for their financial goals. Having been the forefront of progressive, transparent investments since inception, the dynamic asset manager carefully designs its investments with the input and feedback from the graduate professional market – a client centric approach which both graduate professionals and general investors can benefit from. Its flagship is the PPS Portfolio range which offers diversification across optimally combined, complementary asset managers. PPS Group is mutual financial services company and shares 100% of its profits with its members. Thus, when PPS members invest with PPS Investments, whether in its single- or multi-manager funds, qualifying members benefit from increased profits into the PPS Profit-Share Account. www.pps.co.za/invest

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CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

Why an effective continuous improvement programme

is essential to good CX

By Nathalie Schooling. CEO of nlighten, Customer Experience Specialists

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CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

We live in a world of increasing customer expectations. As a result, businesses are spending more than ever before on customer experience. Between 2012 and 2017, global spending increased threefold. In the last year, companies spent a whopping $508 billion on CX. This is projected to increase to $641 billion by 2022.

Much of this funds major CX initiatives – overhauling online interfaces, introducing customer-friendly in-store technologies, and the like.

While these can offer a solid return on investment (ROI) if done properly, what’s even more important is developing a culture of continuous improvement when it comes to CX. Here, the focus isn’t on grand schemes, but ongoing incremental change to existing systems and processes.

While perhaps less sexy than a major overhaul, an effective continuous improvement program typically offers better ROI, especially over the long term. In a world of increasing customer expectations, this is the only sure way to maintain an edge over competitors.

The core principles of continuous improvement The thinking behind continuous improvement in an organisational context emerged out of the world-beating Japanese manufacturing industry of the 1980’s.

There are a number of different continuous improvement methodologies – for marketing geeks, names like Lean, Kaizen, and Six Sigma will ring a bell. I’ll spare you the details, but needless to say, they all share the same core elements.

Each involves a cycle, running through stages from identifying opportunities to planning for and implementing change, measuring its impact, and making adjustments accordingly.

It’s important to emphasise the cyclical nature of the process. Once initiated, the intention is that it will continue indefinitely, such that businesses are constantly looking for things they can do better, planning and implementing reforms, assessing the results, and tweaking where necessary.

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CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

How to continually improve customer experiences Customer experience gurus Comm100 have devised a continuous improvement strategy for CX based on the Six Sigma methodology.

Their framework is broken down into the following stages: • Plan for change • Make the change • Evaluate the change • Make modifications to further improve the change The first stage requires insights into how customers feel about their interactions with your business. Customer journey mapping is useful here, helping to define each customer touchpoint.

When it comes to finding out how customers feel about these touchpoints, there’s only one place to start – ask your customers!

Ideally, you need a combination of quantitative and qualitative data. The former can be gathered using metrics such as the Customer Satisfaction Score or the Net Promoter Score (NPS). I recently wrote a think piece about the NPS where I discussed its limitations and the need to complement it with in-depth, qualitative research. This can be done through surveys, questionnaires, or focus groups. Alternatively, rich insights can often be acquired by mining your social media accounts.

Once any pain points in the customer journey are identified, the next step is to address them.

Never underestimate the capacity for small adjustments to have a big impact. Amazon’s introduction of one-click ordering on its website – a direct response to customer feedback – is thought to have generated billions in extra sales.

After carefully planning for change, the

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next stage is implementation. Too many good ideas fail at this point due to poor execution.

To succeed, it’s critical to have buy-in from responsible departments and stakeholders.

The same tools that provided your insights at the planning stage are then re-applied in evaluating the change. A comparison between client satisfaction scores before and after will be useful, but again, qualitative data is essential for a deep understanding. Particularly when it comes to tweaking the change for further improvement.

Happily, the endpoints of CX and continuous improvement strategies are perfectly aligned.

Both aim to achieve permanent cultural change.

Once this is achieved, the cycle of constantly identifying customer pain points before tweaking systems and processes to bring about improvements becomes self-sustaining.

For the customer, this means constantly improving service, for businesses, an invaluable competitive edge. 

Nathalie Schooling. CEO of nlighten, Customer Experience Specialists

ADVERTORIAL: SME WARRIOR

A serious path of

business change dynamics SME Warrior was born out of client problems we encountered during servicing our small business clients in Nemesis Accounting. Over the years it became more apparent that business failure and instability was not merely due to lack of money/funding but more to do with the actual business owner and their lack of skills, financial literacy, money management, planning and execution and a strong values/belief system.

Our philosophy is based on neuroscience. Being a Master NLP Practitioner (neuro linguistic programming), it dawned on me that the mind-body connection was not the only connection that mattered. The connection between the brain and emotion was the missing component. Looking at the four components enabled me to get to the root cause of the weakness in the SME sector

SME warrior is on a serious path of business change dynamics, financial and educational. Being in 4IR, crypto currencies, new age everything, we need to bring business innovation to the masses in order to enable a new, sustainable economy to emerge, just like a phoenix from the ashes. There is great power is the correct use and application of knowledge and skills. The time is now and we are ready to do just that.

The vision was to enable every business owner / entrepreneur who walked through our door, to be awakened, hence “ awaken the warrior within” became our slogan – because that’s exactly what we do.

Should you want a free consultation with us, the please visit our website to complete the form or email: shani@ nemesisaccounting.co.za.

We launched three (3) houses in our business under the “ Game Changing Academy” : House of Business, Financial Literacy & Entrepreneurship, House of Legal and House of People Performance and Development.

This Academy will bridge the skills, knowledge and experience gap that is needed by so many businesses. Through the Academy we teach, mentor and develop people potential, latent and existing using neuro-educational techniques and methodologies.

These can then be implemented by the business owner in his/her everyday life and he/she can continue to experience life-changing results that truly matter. We encapsulate “Maslow’s Hierarchy Of Needs” into the business training and people development.

We also own a financial franchise: Smart Money, an online learning platform that teaches financial literacy from basic level to investment and retirement level. We have incorporated the “sound money” aka crypto space into our methodologies.

I’m blessed to come from the accounting, tax and compliance industry because coupled with NLP, I am able to dig really deep when analysing and problem solving with clients. Deep introspection enables me to gain an in depth insight into the clients thinking, actions and root causes of their stagnation. Once we achieve the break-through, the client is amazed and ready to take the necessary action required to succeed on their chosen path.

Another harsh blow for small businesses is the lack of business legal skills and know-how. Through our House of Legal, we are able to close the gap with simplistic teaching, workshops and services.

You can find more information about me and the companies I’m involved with by reading the following magazines in which I was featured: Opportunity Magazine – August 2020 edition – focused on women in business Leadership Magazine – November 2020 edition – focused on SME’s Cover Profile SA Profile – March 2021 edition – focused on Aurum Wealth, Nemesis Accounting and SME Warrior.

Shani Naidoo

SME WARRIOR

W www.smewarrior.biz

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CUSTOMER SERVICE

Sharpen customerexperience focus?

Good idea. How?

Listening to your customers and colleagues sounds simple enough. But achieving lasting improvement in performance demands major, even disruptive, shifts, writes Maja Smith, Customer Experience Manager at Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa.

Virtually every enterprise claims it puts customers at the centre of its business, but only a few can, with hand on heart, really say they have achieved this. That’s because becoming truly customer-centric requires a radical shift in many core business operations, and that’s easier said than done. This is especially so in larger ‘legacy’ organizations where bureaucracy has been built over many years, even decades.

At Ford we are not spared that. We have faced significant challenges. But we’re committed to learning from our experiences and have achieved some major improvements as a result.

Ford has operated in SA since 1923 when it began assembling Model T cars in a disused sheep-shed in Port Elizabeth. It was the first Ford operation outside North America. After 97 years, Ford contributes more than 1% to SA’s GDP. We recently announced a R15.8bn investment in expanding our SA operations that will enable us to increase our annual output capacity from 168 000 to 200 000.

Customers want transparency, expertise and care

We know how to build cars that people love, but if we’re going to walk the talk in customer experience,

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we need to pay as much attention to the complete ownership experience as we do to manufacturing and selling cars.

Our research tells us that our customers value proactive after-sales communications and service.

They also want human interaction handled with transparency, expertise and care. And above all, our customers – like all of us – want to be treated with respect.

We’ve done a lot of introspection over the past few years and examined what stood in the way of delivering those needs.

We found that, like many legacy organizations, we had disparate IT systems across the business. We also realized our key performance indicators could be too inward looking. We needed to hold ourselves to the same standards that our customers hold us to, rather than striving to meet internal performance objectives.

We also acknowledged the risk of 'death by data deep-dive' or 'analysis paralysis', where data trumps action and, like many larger organizations; we spent more time talking about the problems than fixing them.

Hold yourselves to the same standards that your customers hold you to We took all these insights and countered them

CUSTOMER SERVICE

with several interventions: First, we introduced APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) that allow us to harness data from numerous sources and disparate IT systems to give us a dashboard: a single view of what’s happening in our service and repair centres.

Second, we shifted our criteria for measuring and rewarding performance from being inward looking to focusing on customer feedback.

Third, and linked to that, we incentivized behaviour change in our dealer network as opposed to focusing only on sales targets. Fourth, we set up 'war rooms' to develop solutions across different departments, breaking down the silos that can develop within big organizations over time. Finally, we introduced a 'shot-clock' approach to resolutions and accountability: essentially a time-window for an optimal response.

Those steps all seem pretty straightforward. But the collective impact has been greater than the sum of their parts: a two-thirds reduction in days that vehicles are off the road and halving turnaround time for major repairs has meant a significant reduction in customer inconvenience. In turn, customer satisfaction increased.

The 2020 Ford Corporate Reputation report conducted by Harris Insights & Analytics found that the overall impression of Ford in South Africa grew from 37% in 2018 to 46% last year. Over the same period, trust grew from 53% to 56%, and public perceptions of honesty and quality grew from 53% to 62%.

In short, perhaps most important of all, the Harris Report showed that our customers are starting to trust us again.

only on introducing new technologies or incentivizing our staff differently. Our senior management supports a consultative process with internal and external stakeholders, clear evidence of progress on CX because recent historical data suggests that this was not always the case.

That progress is exemplified in the creation of a ‘safe to fail environment’ that empowers all levels of the organization. Positioning a failure as an opportunity to move the business closer to treating customers like family, without sacrificing accountability? Not easy, but it’s the only way to ensure a long-term shift in corporate culture that improves performance, and, ultimately, reputation.

In the economic devastation wrought by COVID-19, that focus has never been more crucial.

Customers are prudent about their spending power and will punish brands which they believe take their customers for granted. Businesses that hope to prosper during what’s likely to be a long recovery will need to ruthlessly hone and sustain their customer focus, and do so authentically. 

‘Safe to fail environment’ that empowers all levels of the organization

Those findings are gratifying. But as stated, reputation is never simply about perception: Socrates said, “The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavour to be what you desire to appear.” So, any effort to improve one’s image is worthless without authentically improved performance.

That’s why the shift towards good CX is not based

Maja Smith - Customer Experience Manager at Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa

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ADVERTORIAL: AURUM WEALTH CREATORS

Igniting wealth creation & sharing As the CEO of Aurum Wealth Creators, I can tell you that we are on a path of igniting the new in terms of financial literacy, wealth creation, financial products for the new age including crypto currencies (sound money), financial freedom and an all encompassing drive and passion to see wealth created and shared with those who are willing to learn, understand and reposition themselves.

For most people, what they know and understand about money is very limited. Identifying the problem is easy…

Finding the solution is a little more difficult. But at Aurum Wealth Creators, we provide the ideal solution suited to your problem. These solutions comprise of financial leveraging, debt management, passive income generation, and a host of other related products that would service personal and business financial needs. Two (2) of our core products being: The Expense Buster and Debt Review, are specifically designed to eliminate debt and encourage smarter money management. With these type of products released to our nation, we automatically introduce them to a better way of life and healthier money habits.

Wealth creation, once only reserved for the elite, is now available to everyone, like you and me. It’s a bit different to finance, yet still includes financial concepts that need to be understood. So, a person would need to talk to people who know, understand and are involved with these areas of business if they wanted to learn and become more aware of these concepts, especially if they wanted to improve the financial quadrant of their lives.

Business mentoring of the SME sector is one such area that is very critical to sustaining and improving our economy.

Ultimately, it’s up to the private sector and companies like Aurum Wealth Creators, who have the skills and expertise to significantly contribute to the business sector to support the economic rebuild. A strong economic foundation means greater leverage to do more and improve livelihoods. Ultimately, this is how financial freedom is created. This is the foundation of the Aurum Wealth Creator’s methodology.

Dial-A-Mula Administrators (Pty) Ltd is a sister company of Aurum Wealth Creators. It’s a company that has launched a dialler product that facilitates income generation for the lowerend and unemployed market through the use of a cell phone and network marketing. The aim here is to teach basic financial literacy, how to start a small network business and ultimately contribute to alleviating poverty and unemployment. The prelaunch occurred on 3 February 2021 in Alexandra. The product goes live in the second quarter of 2021, around 1 May 2021.

Dial -A-Mula had a community outreach on 3 February and

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20 February 2021 at Alexandra Community Centre. This allowed the residents of Alex to be introduced to this life-enhancing product and financial tool. There will also be an office set-up and operated later in this year in Alexandra to service the residents who want to participate in the Dial-A-Mula offering.

Specifically designed to teach and enable financial growth, to stimulate a higher vision and purpose for the people and to create a mindset of ‘not having to settle’ in our people. The Dial-A-Mula product is able to facilitate stokvel communities that wish to participate in the offering thereby encouraging community development and upliftment. Encompassing improved livelihoods, financial sustainability and to teach people how to live their best lives now. Through hi-tech integration and app methodology, the dialler will also enable university and school students to attend virtual classes via their cell phone. This is an educational drive that we are very passionate about.

For more information about us and what we do, kindly contact us.

Shani Naidoo

Aurum Wealth Creators T +27 (0)11 267 0500

M +27 (0)83 597 2772

E info@aurumwealth.org or shani@aurumwealth.org

DEBT RELIEF

Struggling consumers need better information about their options Debt counselling is an effective way of helping South Africans who are struggling with debt, but a lack of understanding about the process, misinformation and concerns about being stigmatised mean some consumers don’t seek help or leave it too late.

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DEBT RELIEF

To address the problem the National Debt Counsellors’ Association (NDCA), which counts among its members most of the largest debt counselling companies in South Africa, is embarking on a campaign to better inform the public about debt counselling, challenge the misperceptions and create an understanding that if you’re in financial difficulty, getting help is the responsible thing to do.

NDCA chairperson, Benay Sager, says distortions about debt counselling have gone unchallenged for too long.

“Many people who could have really benefited instead had to try and manage their financial situation themselves, potentially getting deeper into difficulty and ultimately risking their homes and cars being repossessed. All because they didn’t understand the process, heard some rumour or were too embarrassed to speak to a reputable debt counsellor.”

He says South Africa’s debt counselling sector is world class. It’s well structured, highly regulated and it works.

“By way of example the number of debtclearance certificates just one of our members issued grew by 69% a year between 2015 and 2019 – almost a tenfold increase in four years. Last year it granted nearly 5 000 certificates to clients who had successfully completed the process.”

As well as a media awareness campaign, the NDCA is investing in a new consumer-focussed website where people can access easy-to-tounderstand information about debt counselling, a step-by-step guide on what to expect if they decide to undertake the process and find answers to commonly asked questions.

While in the past individual debt counsellors have done some financial education Sager says it is now time for a concerted industry effort.

“We face an unprecedented situation, where the COVID-19 lockdown has severely impacted an economy that was already in difficulty. The resultant contraction, job losses and salary cuts will mean that many more people will face financial stress and we need to be sure that they can make informed decisions based on facts, not hearsay or scare stories.”

The process On contacting a debt counsellor, consumers should be given a free debt assessment to determine their level of debt and whether debt counselling is a potential solution.

If the assessment determines someone is overindebted, they can then decide whether to formally apply for debt counselling. Once they do so, the debt counsellor does most of the heavy lifting by informing all creditors and credit bureaus that the person has applied for and is undergoing debt counselling. This helps alleviate a lot of stress as creditors should then deal with the debt counsellor rather than the consumer.

As part of the process the debt counsellor negotiates reduced monthly payments on all credit agreements that fall under the National Credit Act. This restructuring of debt is done within industry parameters and strikes the balance between the consumer’s ability to pay and their overall debt levels. It is not something that most people can easily or efficiently do on their own.

Once more affordable repayment rates are negotiated, the consumer’s rearranged debt is approved at a court or National Consumer Tribunal to ensure the renegotiated rates are fixed for the duration of the debt counselling.

Consumers make one affordable payment each month via a debit order or debicheck payment which is distributed to the creditors included in the

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DEBT RELIEF

debt counselling for the duration of the plan – thanks to the efficiency of the system, over 90% of this renegotiated debt repayment goes directly to the creditors during the debt counselling process.

All the relevant monthly fees are included in this single monthly amount, which is paid to an independent payment distribution agency, also regulated by the National Credit Regulator.

The debt counsellor’s client-service staff are available throughout the process to offer advice and support.

Three to five years to be declared debit free Debt counselling usually lasts for between three to five years, depending on the amount of debt, the arrangements the debt counsellor is able to negotiate with creditors and what the consumer can afford to repay each month.

Should the consumer’s financial circumstances improve they can increase the monthly payment or pay a lump sum to reduce the period or end the process. This is encouraged.

When the repayment plan is successfully completed, the debt counsellor will issue a clearance certificate confirming that all the accounts listed under the debt counselling agreement are paid up.

Home loans are the exception. These do not need to be fully paid but must be up to date. The debt counsellor will ensure that credit bureaus receive the certificate.

As well as a media awareness campaign, the

NDCA is investing in a new consumer-focussed website where people can access easy-tounderstand information about debt counselling, a step-by-step guide on what to expect if they decide to undertake the process and find answers to commonly asked questions.

An interactive social-media campaign will support this.

“As things evolve, we want to use the feedback to better focus on concerns or aspects of debt counselling people don’t fully understand. It’s as much about listening to what people want to know as it is providing information,” says Sager. 

Benay Sager - Chairperson of NDCA

About the National Debt Counsellors’ Association Established in 2017 the NDCA represents some of the largest and most experienced debt counsellors operating in South Africa and which are able to draw on local and international best practice.

Its aim is to uphold and maintain standards, improve and transform the sector through knowledge sharing and education and inform the public about debt counselling.

Members include National Debt Advisors (NDA), National Debt Counsellors (NDC), DebtBusters Consumer Debt Help, and Pioneer Debt Solutions, which collectively make up 40% of the sector in this country. For more information, the NDCA website is www.ndca.org.za

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DIGITAL TRAINING

Why digital training is

increasing globally

Digital learning is the future. As more organisations use technology to make learning and training more convenient for their employees, the shift from classroom to online is well on the rise. Even before COVID-19 swept across the globe and forced organisations to work from home, some businesses started increasing their digital learning and training budgets to keep staff upskilled, engaged and motivated.

The World Economic Forum reports that in 2019, more than US$18 billion was invested in language apps, virtual training, video conferencing tools and online learning software, to improve digital training. And since the pandemic erupted, digital training has become even more crucial as organisations quickly realised the key benefits digital learning and training offers employees and stakeholders. These include: More flexibility: Employees can learn in their own time, at their own pace with tools they already have.

Increased information retention: With learning moments presented interactively, learning is more

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fun and easier to remember than static workbooks and traditional testing strategies.

Less time: Digital learning means no travelling or all-day learning sessions, which are time-consuming, costly, demanding on staff, and which can, in the short term, reduce productivity.

Cost-effective: Digital learning cuts expenses linked to in-person learning and training, such as printing of material, travelling and accommodation costs.

Organisations can save money and enjoy the benefits of increased employee productivity ultimately resulting in higher profitability.

“We have seen the increased demands for digital learning and training, and the G&G ADVC solution

DIGITAL TRAINING

meets these needs,” said Michael Gullan, co-founder and Managing Director of G&G ADVC. “Recognising that people are time-strapped, we’ve introduced learning moments, or Content Capsules™, that can be digested in bitesized experiences. This empowers employees and stakeholders to personalise their learning opportunities, to decide how much they want to learn at any particular time,” he added.

Although access to Internet services still lacks in many parts of the developing world, the popularity and effectiveness of digital learning and training will continue even after the pandemic is over.

Here are the top trends creating a surge in digital learning and training:

Platforms are easily accessible: It’s crucial for employees to access digital learning and training opportunities easily. Platforms that offer flexible access from any device, at any time, meet the needs of employees with busy schedules. Digital learning considers that individuals learn at different paces and accommodates employees to learn at their own pace.

Interactive content is a must: Informative content is no longer enough. Content has to be interesting and interactive so that employees can have an engaging and better learning experience as they navigate through the material. This interactive content can include quizzes, polls, audio clips and videos.

Learning analytics: While employees and stakeholders navigate digital learning and training platforms, organisations can monitor their progress and engagement across the programme. This will offer valuable insights and allow organisations to evaluate the success of the platform. These insights also inform decisions on how to improve learning opportunities to achieve business outcomes.

Digital learning and training trends are focused on making the experience easier and more valuable for employees and organisations. As technology advances, digital learning will only get better as technology based learning solutions respond to market needs. 

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INZALO INZALO INZALOUTILITY UTILITY UTILITYSYSTEMS' SYSTEMS' SYSTEMS' GENTLEMEN GENTLEMEN GENTLEMENOF OF OFCHANGE CHANGE CHANGE Just Just Just 33years 3years years ago, ago, ago, Inzalo Inzalo Inzalo Capital Capital Capital Holdings Holdings Holdings was was was unheard unheard unheard of. of.of.

The The The brainchild brainchild brainchild ofofof Sihle Sihle Sihle Ndlovu Ndlovu Ndlovu and and and Sbonelo Sbonelo Sbonelo Mazibuko, Mazibuko, Mazibuko, Inzalo Inzalo Inzalo Capital Capital Capital Holdings Holdings Holdings acquired acquired acquired the the the majority majority majority share share share ininSouth inSouth South Africa’s Africa’s Africa’s leading leading leading smart smart smart water water water management management management company, company, company, Utility Utility Utility Systems.

Systems.

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Sihle Sihle SihleNdlovu Ndlovu Ndlovu Sihle Sihle Sihle Ndlovu Ndlovu Ndlovu ACMA, ACMA, ACMA, CGMA, CGMA, CGMA, holds holds holds aaMasters Masters a Masters ininBusiness in Business Business Administration, Administration, Administration, an anadvanced an advanced advanced diploma diploma diploma ininManagement in Management Management Accounting, Accounting, Accounting, aanational national a national Diploma Diploma Diploma inin in Cost Cost Cost and and and Management Management Management Accounting, Accounting, Accounting, aadiploma diploma a diploma ininAccounting in Accounting Accounting and and and Finance, Finance, Finance, and and and isis is aa member amember member ofofof the the the South South South African African African Institute Institute Institute ofofof Professional Professional Professional Accountants.

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Since Since Since 2014, 2014, 2014, Sihle Sihle Sihle served served served atatIlembe at Ilembe Ilembe District District District Municipality Municipality Municipality and and and Ilembe Ilembe Ilembe Enterprise Enterprise Enterprise Development Development Development Agency, Agency, Agency, which which which has has has cultivated cultivated cultivated his hishis desire desire desire totosee to see see municipalities municipalities municipalities advance advance advance towards towards towards aafinancially fianancially financially independent independent independent future. future. future.

Sbonelo Sbonelo SboneloMazibuko Mazibuko Mazibuko Sbonelo Sbonelo Sbonelo Mazibuko Mazibuko Mazibuko holds holds holds aa Masters aMasters Masters inin in Public Public Public Administration, Administration, Administration, an anan honours honours honours inin in BSocSc: BSocSc: BSocSc: Government, Government, Government, Business Business Business and and and Ethics, Ethics, Ethics, and and and has has has extensive extensive extensive experience experience experience inin in fiscal fiscal fiscal resource resource resource Management, Management, Management, asasas well well well asasas budget budget budget and and and policy policy policy atataat aprovincial provincial a provincial level. level. level.

His His His tenure tenure tenure asasDeputy as Deputy Deputy Director: Director: Director: Provincial Provincial Provincial Budget Budget Budget and and and Policy Policy Policy Management, Management, Management, produced produced produced Sbonelo’s Sbonelo’s Sbonelo’s desire desire desire totosee to see see self-sufficient self-sufficient self-sufficient administrations administrations administrations throughout throughout throughout the the the country. country. country.

PASSIONATE ABOUT THE PRESERVATION OF THE WORLD’S MOST VALUABLE RESOURCE ...

WATER

Sihle and Sbonelo, heading the Inzalo Group, are committed to changing the face of municipalities from the ground up. Their vast knowledge and experience from working in government structures far surpass that of their competitors. Inzalo Utility Systems and Inzalo Amanzi Meters, are leaders in the field of smart water metering.

Both companies are BBBEE Level 1 contributors, all design and manufacturing are done in accordance with ISO 9001: 2015 certification and IEC 62005-41 and 62005-51 standards, as well as Legal Metrology. Their innovative solutions provide Water Service Providers with accurate data paramount to the structuring of efficient billing systems and early leak detection.

Inzalo Amanzi meters have been leaders in locally manufactured water meters in South Africa since 2012. A Proudly South African Manufacturer and Supplier, Inzalo Amanzi Meters have been manufacturing the Amanzi Meter, as well as a variety of meter boxes that can be seen all over South Africa.

Coupled with the WMD from Inzalo Utility Systems, the brand has become a formidable player in the South African Water industry.

With Municipalities across South Africa facing challenges caused by inaccurate meter readings and lack of resources to rectify this, Inzalo Utility Systems have launched their IoT offering, designed to streamline the water billing systems without altering much of the infrastructure already in place.

By utilising IoT technologies, the original Inzalo Utility systems’, STS approved, remote communication electronic Water Management Device (WMD), is transformed into a data powerhouse, transferring usage data via secure cloud to municipalities. The WMD, instrumental in the water management project that saved the City of Cape Town from Day Zero, is the same technology that municipalities can use in order to recoup revenue which they desperately need. The ability to configure allowances, detect tampering and be able to be used as part of a prepaid water solution, makes this the ideal solution for municipalities across South Africa.

When asked about the Inzalo vision, Sbonelo Mazibuko said, “We, at Inzalo, are committed to helping municipalities across South Africa source innovative solutions that will assist in enhancing service delivery, release optimal revenue, and conserve our most precious resources.” www.utility-systems.co.za enquiries@utility-systems.co.za 031 700 4143

ECONOMY

Another recession unlikely for now, but we still need to take our medicine to achieve sustainable growth

By Maarten Ackerman, Chief Economist and Advisory Partner, Citadel

The GDP print for the fourth quarter of 2020 has come in better than expected, seeing markets respond positively in terms of rand strength and bond yields. Year-on-year GDP fell by 4.1% compared to the expected 4.6% decline, while on a quarter-on-quarter, annualised basis we saw a very strong 6.3% versus an expected 5.6%. The annual number, at -7%, was also slightly better than National Treasury’s forecast last month of -7.2% and was significantly better than the -8% to -9% that most pundits expected towards the middle of last year.

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ECONOMY

Clearly, these numbers show that the recovery continued in the final part of the year, in line with the economy opening up further.

Additionally, these figures show the benefit of the global economy also opening up, paving the way for better growth entering into 2021.

Looking at the quarter specifically, 6.3% is very strong growth and much better than expected. But note that we are measuring off the third quarter which was itself is a revised +67.3% quarter-onquarter annualised growth in GDP. So all in all, these numbers are very positive.

No double dip To place these numbers in context, consider that we were already in a recession when we entered the pandemic, with four quarters of negative growth which caused the 7% decline – the biggest contraction in a century. The last time we saw a similar number was in the 1920s.

These latest figures mean that we have now seen our second positive quarter following 12 months of economic contraction, meaning that fortunately, we have remained in expansion mode. We therefore expect positive figures for each quarter for the rest of the year, especially coming off a low base.

This means that, for now, we should be able to avoid a second-dip recession, despite our structural issues largely still unaddressed.

Mining off, but manufacturing positive Most industry sectors made a positive contribution, but unfortunately mining still came under pressure during the quarter with a small decline. This, despite the fact that the global economy is picking up and we are exporting more, but the sector remains under pressure as a result of structural issues.

Most positively, manufacturing was up 21%, a significant step forward given that this is one of the key job-creating sectors within the economy.

Second to that was the construction sector which

grew some 11% and then trade which was up around 9%. Agriculture also rose another 6% after an already solid year, and it’s good to see its recovery continuing into this quarter.

Government addicted to employment, which is still growing The government increase of 0.7%, resulting largely from an increase in employment in civil services, remains an issue because it’s out of line with the February Budget Speech’s tone and talk of addressing the public sector wage bill, the public sector head count and government’s self-stated commitment to aggressively cut back expenditure.

Despite that, every time we look at the GDP numbers we notice that nothing has been done to that effect and the bulk of the increase in government expenses is, in fact, a result of an increase in employment in the public sector.

In terms of expenses, there was a massive 52.4% rise in imports, which indicates an economy which is getting back to business. We typically run a current account deficit, and last year’s surplus was an exception rather than the rule because of the substantial increase in exports as the global economy reopened and a significant decline in imports given the local economic lockdown.

Additionally, South Africa exported products to new markets within countries in Europe, as these countries looked to diversify away from a reliance on Asia. Many of South Africa’s agricultural products in particular went to Europe, owing to the region’s high demand for citrus and vitamin C given the pandemic background. Australia’s trade tension with China also created the opportunity for us to export more wine and raw components to the Asian market.

The Rand may come under pressure In line with the finance minister’s budget comment that our current account surplus was likely to be short lived, imports were higher than exports for the quarter. While exports remain healthy, we are likely

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33

ECONOMY

to return to a current account deficit this year, which will see the currency come under pressure.

It is encouraging to see household expenditure rise by 7.5%, indicating that the housing sector is also getting back to business. Gross fixed capital formation also came in at a very strong 12% growth.

We often say that we need to see that number turn positive and remain positive to pave the way for future growth and, looking at the trend; there have been three very poor quarters on this front followed by two very strong quarters now.

This is certainly part of the economic recovery

throughout 2021. So we are likely to get to a 3.5% growth number for 2021.

Unfortunately, most of that is a base effect that’s coming through. And as a result we shouldn’t get too excited about this number because it won’t be sustainable. As the minister also pointed out in the Budget Speech, that number will revert back to about 1.6% in three years’ time. And this, unfortunately, is simply not enough to fix our structural issues.

It’s hard to believe that I am still saying the same thing, but so much work still needs to take place

and, while there is some way to go before we return to earlier levels, we are heading in the right direction as we lay the foundation for more infrastructure development.

from a reform point of view in order to realise growth north of 3% on a sustainable basis.

Some baby steps have taken place, which hopefully will lead us to the big steps towards the kind of growth this country needs in the years to come. Many of the reforms and infrastructure programs that have been addressed at this point will take time to filter into the economy – it doesn’t happen overnight or over quarters, and we will only see the benefit of these decisions playing out over a number of years. We therefore need to be patient and to realise that these actions will only be reflected in the data in years to come – and only if we continue down the right path. 

The annual picture shows a challenging environment If we look at the 2020 year as a whole, then only the agriculture and government sectors made a positive contribution to the economy. Agriculture contributed a robust 13% to the economy given that the severe drought is behind us, the record crop seasons, and huge demand for some of our agricultural products. The government also gave a positive contribution of 0.7% but then for the balance of the sectors, it was not such a pretty picture with many industries being locked down.

2020 was quite a challenging environment – to say the least.

We will carry on muddling along until we take our medicine Looking ahead to 2021, it is clear that the dramatic base effect of Level 5 lockdown should support above-capacity growth this year. Q1 2021 will see some headwinds return including load shedding and Level 3 lockdown restrictions in place from 29 December 2020 to 1 March 2021, but despite these, the first quarter should still print a healthy positive number, paving the way for the recovery to continue

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Maarten Ackerman, Chief Economist and Advisory Partner, Citadel.

WHEN YOU’RE ABOUT TO SURF A FORTY-FOOT WAVE, JUST HOW IMPORTANT IS THE SIZE OF THE LED HD TV YOU OWN?

At Citadel, we always think about the long-term. So, when we partner with you, we ask the big questions. What do you want your wealth to achieve? What life goals do you still want to reach?

What kind of legacy is in place for your family? And then we invest accordingly. There will always be surprises ahead; unlucky bounces, strange days. With the right plan in place, though, you can stay focused on your financial future. w w w.citadel.co.za

Citadel Investment Services Proprietary Limited is licensed as a financial services provider.

E-COMMERCE

On-demand delivery

on the rise

By Picup CEO, Antonio Bruni

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E-COMMERCE

On-demand delivery is gaining a lot of popularity as a result of the current business and economic challenges and many businesses are expanding their operations by jumping on the digital bandwagon.

To expand their business reach, traditional brick and mortar stores have launched new

apps and e-commerce sites. Retailers have also acted quickly by reconfiguring their delivery models, especially with an array of new cost efficient on-demand delivery models that are available at the click of a button.

Online shopping will fill the vacuum that has been created by permanent closures of physical shops. This has given rise to virtual selling platforms that showcase products and engage consumers, providing a much richer customer experience.

Convenient click-and-collect services are being offered to consumers, increasing curb side pickup and delivery services for general merchandise and electronics has increased. As a result, there has also been a significant increase in online grocery orders.

As the digital and in-store world’s merge, ecommerce innovations happen faster, and this has led to an enormous evolution in the delivery space.

On-demand delivery The market for fast, innovative delivery has grown considerably as consumers transform and become more tech savvy. Shoppers place a premium on same-day or faster delivery and are willing to pay for quick grocery deliveries.

However, on-demand delivery models require advanced delivery systems and a sophisticated

software to manage the new store-to-door delivery approach. It’s important to implement a frictionless solution that ensures scale. Other considerations include a re-prioritisation of staff to manage order fulfilment and on-time dispatching.

These changes are here to stay, online shoppers plan to continue shopping online. So traditional retailers have to change their business models or risk becoming obsolete.

Customer demands Modern day customers expect exceptional customer service and have huge demands, including express deliveries with accurate arrival times. But can retailers offer these services without increasing costs?

These changes are here to stay, online shoppers plan to continue shopping online. So traditional retailers have to change their business models or risk becoming obsolete.

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E-COMMERCE

The only way to reduce the time spent in the last mile is by adopting innovative technologies like Picup. Its on-demand delivery solution not only calculates the fastest routes for its driver but has the ability to order merge trips on the fly, optimising both efficiency and costs. It also reduces fuel and maintenance costs for the driver network.

Crowdsource delivery Picup is different from conventional couriers because its advanced technology and fleet management tools enable companies to deliver using their own fleet, a third party courier or its own crowdsourced driver network.

Crowdsourcing is the answer to these expectations and is one of the largest opportunities for on-demand delivery companies today. 

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Antonio Bruni, Picup CEO

INTERVIEW: PETROLEUM AGENCY SA

Focus is on supporting exploration activities to accelerate discoveries SA Business Integrator spoke to Dr Phindile Masangane, Chief Executive Officer of Petroleum Agency SA, about the agency’s mandate and development plans.

Petroleum Agency SA promotes exploration for onshore and offshore oil and gas resources and their optimal development on behalf of government. Please give us some more details about the agency’s mandate.

PASA has three main functions: The first is to attract

special projects, as directed by government.

From the above, it is clear that the Agency is the regulator for South Africa’s oil and gas upstream industry. However, the Agency by no means sees its role as only reactive. On the contrary, it is one that is proactive, and the Agency’s purpose is to facilitate

investment to South Africa’s oil and gas upstream

and regulate oil and gas exploration to achieve

industry, in other words, investment into exploration and

production of indigenous oil and gas. This will

production of oil and gas in South Africa. We have a

ensure energy security and bolster economic growth

team of geologists and geophysicists who interpret data

and play a strong role in addressing the eradication

gathered through past exploration activity to determine

of poverty on South Africa.

the viability of prospecting and use this to attract exploration companies to South Africa.

The second function is to regulate the upstream

What are the Agency’s focus and development plans for 2021?

industry in terms of the Mineral and Petroleum

South Africa’s upstream oil and gas industry is still

Resources Development Act, its regulations and other

at its infancy in spite of the country having excellent

applicable legislation. The Agency has staff responsible

petroleum resource prospectivity. In 2021, we want

for ensuring legal, technical and environmental

to focus on supporting our operators to accelerate

compliance as organisations enter into contracts with

their exploration activities so that we can have

the state to explore for oil and gas.

more discoveries. We will also be supporting Total

The third function is to act as the national archive

and its JV partners to efficiently move to the next

for all data and information produced during oil and

stage of their programme following the discoveries

gas exploration and production in South Africa, and to

in Brulpadda and Luiperd. It is of paramount

curate and maintain this data for use and distribution.

importance to the Agency that we move to the

Other functions include advising government on any issues pertinent to oil and gas as well as carrying out any

next era in terms of upstream oil and gas industry development.

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INTERVIEW: PETROLEUM AGENCY SA

Considering the environment, what issues are considered during the exploration processes?

become more expensive, and exports less valuable

The Agency has a role to ensure that exploration and

and domestic commodities and investment, leading to

production activities are carried out such that the

a drop in GDP.

environmental right entrenched in the Constitution of

national income reduces demand for both imported

Different sectors are likely to be impacted differently

the Republic of South Africa is not violated, that is a

depending on their dependence on oil and oil products.

right to a clean and healthy environment. Exploration

In the oil and gas sector, higher oil prices result in

activities such as seismic surveys and drilling of wells pose various potential impacts on the environment, ranging from water contamination, noise and air pollution, to loss of biodiversity.

The nature and significance of the potential impacts vary depending on the exploration method employed. Our experience, based on the environmental impact assessments undertaken at a project level, indicate that the majority of the potential environmental impacts range from very low to low significance with mitigation. So, before any right or permit is granted or refused, the applicant is required to apply for and obtain an Environmental Authorization (EA), which is an instrument used to ensure that any potential impacts are identified, their significance assessed, and mitigation measured.

Increases in oil prices can depress the supply of other goods because they increase the costs of producing them.

Does this affect the GDP growth rate and economic performance of the oil and gas industry in South Africa?

Oil price increases have significant impacts on the economy’s level of real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and economic performance in South Africa. As a net importer of oil, the country is highly vulnerable to oil price increases.

Higher oil prices translate into a higher import bill. Imports

40

and consequently real national income drops. Lower

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INTERVIEW: PETROLEUM AGENCY SA

reduced aggregate demand for petroleum products.

have regulatory alignment to ensure a sustainable

The reduction in aggregate demand induced by the oil

development of oil and gas.

price rise leads to a loss of output and consequently

and therefore capital returns in the sector, which will

What projects are currently being explored and how will these be escalated during this year?

inevitably result in reduced business confidence and

The Agency is concentrating on developing a gas

subsequently investment in the industry. These will

market through the attraction of qualified and

ultimately reduce the sector’s economic performance

competent companies to explore for gas in South

and contribution to GDP.

Africa, as well as the monitoring and regulation of

employment in the sector.

At a micro level, this translates into reduced profits

For South Africa, the biggest driver of GDP is

their activities. A major area of focus is the increasing

investment (capital formation) which is dependent

inclusion of HDSA-owned entities in the upstream

on business confidence. Higher oil prices reduce

industry. South Africa needs large discoveries of

aggregate demand in the economy, drive down

indigenous gas as well as fair access to opportunities

business confidence and investment which ultimately

and social license to develop a healthy gas market.

reduces economic performance of all sectors in the economy including the oil and gas sector.

To achieve sustainable and inclusive growth by 2030, South Africa needs to invest in a strong network of economic infrastructure designed to support the country’s mediumand long-term objectives. What is the Agency's targeted development plan towards this goal?

Total and its partners are currently assessing the recent deep-water gas condensate discoveries and the feasibility for development. We are also expecting drilling in the short term in shallow water off the west coast and deep water off the east coast.

How consistent is the Agency with the government’s objectives?

Our corporate objectives flow from the medium-term strategic framework objectives of government and

The Agency is a regulator and does not undertake

the policy positions as well as strategic objectives of

any infrastructure developments. Our role is to ensure

the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy in

that exploration and production petroleum companies

particular.

are licensed efficiently to progress their investment projects. The 2030 goal for the country’s energy mix is to have an additional 3 000MW gas-to-power and our role as the Agency is to enable the indigenous production of that gas.

For the future of the oil and gas industry in South Africa, what are the current challenges faced by the Agency and what processes are in place to overcome these?

In addition to the global economic uncertainty, the African continent is faced with a critical shortage of appropriate infrastructure. What infrastructure and technologies are in place to execute the Agency’s mandate?

As a regulator, the Agency should have the appropriate technology to efficiently execute its regulatory obligations. We are continuously

Upstream oil and gas projects are capital intensive

modernizing and improving our technology to be able

and have long lead times. Our biggest challenge

to operate in the digital environment that the rest of

(which is also an opportunity) is to make sure that we

the world is in. 

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EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

One-size-fits-all employee benefits

aren’t doing your business any favours From unlimited leave to flexible hours to on-site gyms; to attract and retain top talent, companies are getting more creative with their employee benefits. While these may add overall appeal, risk and retirement planning remains a strong employee value proposition and when it’s done right, can be as attractive as a weekly neck massage!

According to Paula Walker CA(SA), an Advisory Partner at Consolidated Wealth and Director of Consolidated Wealth Employee Benefits, companies are using their risk and retirement schemes to differentiate themselves. Rather than offering one-size-fits-all schemes, many businesses now offer their employees bespoke plans.

“From just starting out to nearly retired and every age in between, your workforce is made up of people who are at vastly different stages of their lives. An increasing number of companies are recognising this and working with financial planners; they are tailoring their risk and retirement portfolios

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to develop solutions that better reflect their employee’s financial goals,” she explains.

Walker lists the main reasons why companies are opting for bespoke risk and retirement benefits:

1

Appropriateness

Pooling employees together and offering them the same scheme affords the greatest economies of scale. However, a far wider range of options that are tailored to the individual’s life stage are available. By segmenting the workforce into categories according to their life-stage, appropriate cover can still be achieved at affordable rates.

This benefits the business as employees feel valued

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

when their needs and circumstances are considered in defining their group benefits. For smaller businesses looking for bespoke options, financial advisors could suggest an umbrella offering where a number of companies share the same scheme. This spreads the administration costs so that affordable, tailored benefits can be offered.

2

Group Life Cover

Depending on the age of your employee, the life cover required will be different. A young, single employee may have fewer financial obligations, while someone with a family will need sufficient cover to ensure their family is financially secure, pay off their bond and take care of their children’s education. Bespoke planning will take this into consideration, offering the employee greater flexibility in choosing the multiple of salary required as life cover.

3

Dread Disease

4

Retirement Planning

With the rising cost of medical treatments, dread disease cover is imperative. In the event of critical illness, most medical aid groups and gap cover provide capped lump sum payments that will probably leave some bills unpaid. Dread disease cover, therefore, gives the employee peace of mind that they have a breadth of cover that could assist them should they face this scenario. In our experience, few employee schemes offer this benefit, so it can be a key differentiator.

In a group scheme, there is generally a set amount that both the employer and/or the employee contribute monthly. Usually, these schemes do not offer members a choice of the underlying funds they wish to invest in. Bespoke schemes, however, allow members to make additional voluntary contributions according to their individual circumstances. For example, a youngster just starting out has a different investment horizon

to a professional who is two years from retirement.

A tailored retirement plan will cater for this by offering members a choice according to age, personal circumstances and appetite for risk.

5

Employee Education

Most employees think that their monthly payments towards their retirement will give them enough money when they retire. Well, this isn’t necessarily the case, especially when it’s a set fund.

It’s up to the individual to ensure they will have sufficient money to maintain their lifestyle into retirement. At Consolidated Wealth, we offer a group consultation with the entire workforce, as well as one-on-one engagement with every individual on the scheme to assess if they are on track to be adequately funded or if changes are required.

Walker says that the advantages of bespoke employee benefits will add to your workforce wellbeing and can even contribute to your success.

“Offering solid benefits that recognise your employees’ individual financial goals demonstrates that you are prepared to invest in them, contributing to a stable and secure workforce that knows you have their best interests at heart.” 

Paula Walker CA(SA), an Advisory Partner at Consolidated Wealth and Director of Consolidated Wealth Employee Benefits.

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EMPOWERMENT

Businesses must use their B-BBEE deliverables to

create interventions for economic growth South Africa is in trouble. Before COVID-19, the economy was already teetering at the edge of a fiscal cliff with two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth and the expanded unemployment rate at a frightening 42%. Then COVID turned South Africa and the world on its head, fast tracking an unprecedented global slow-down that infiltrated every crevice of economic activity.

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EMPOWERMENT

The harsh reality is that South Africa was dealt a severe blow – and it’s going to take years to restore our struggling economy and reduce our national debt burden.

But Rajan Naidoo, the Managing Director of EduPower Skills Academy, believes there is hope.

He says the tenets of B-BBEE are a catalyst that can be used to guide and co-ordinate South Africa’s economic recovery.

“Government cannot legislate our economy out of the recession but through B-BBEE it can create conditions that allow for growth to occur in the private sector,” Naidoo explains. “The solution lies with the large corporates that have within

their power and resources huge reserves in their balance sheets, some of which now needs to be invested in stimulating small businesses and essential job creation.”

Much of this SME development is already being facilitated by B-BBEE through mechanisms such as preferential procurement, but Naidoo says that efforts need to be multiplied exponentially: “Prior to COVID, SMEs accounted for 98% of the businesses in South Africa providing 25% of all jobs and contributing 39% of the national GDP. But 40% of these businesses have been forced to close their doors and many people have lost their jobs as a result,” he says.

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EMPOWERMENT

Boosting SMEs is a crucial step towards growing the South African economy “Boosting SMEs is a crucial step towards growing the South African economy. Corporate human solidarity should instinctively and voluntarily drive the private sector to support smaller businesses, assisting the nation to rise out of this economic quagmire and in doing so, strengthen our market and economy.”

The natural starting point for this recovery begins with another B-BBEE priority element, skills development. South Africa’s extended youth unemployment rate is over 65% but most of these 18- to 34-year-olds have stopped looking for jobs as they don’t have skills the market requires. Naidoo believes the solution for upskilling the youth is learnerships.

“Job creation starts with skills development so let’s get as many unemployed youths into learnerships as soon as possible so that we can start building the skills our country needs,” he explains. “These learnerships can culminate in options for absorption into long term employment.

This is something that we are already doing at EduPower and we have a proven model that works.

As a nation, we just need to start applying this on a much wider basis.”

EduPower’s innovative absorption model ensures that when unemployed learners complete their qualification, they are placed into permanent jobs in small companies. Instead of adding this salary burden for the SME though, these jobs are funded

in the short-term by large companies through their enterprise or supplier development budgets.

“This is a great example of a co-ordinated process that culminates in permanent empowerment and thus delivers on the true intent of B-BBEE,” says Naidoo. “The learners receive long term employment (and experience); the SME owner gains a skilled labour force that helps his business grow so that he can hire even more unemployed learners, and the corporates gain invaluable points for their B-BBEE scorecard.”

Rolling this out exponentially on a nationwide basis would be straightforward as the mechanisms are already in place. Naidoo believes the economy could benefit even more if industry specific strategies were applied as the impact of COVID has been different across market sectors.

Naidoo concludes with a call to action: “The stimulation of the private sector and the declaration of certain supply chains as national strategic imperatives will force and support the development of the sectors of the economy that will provide jobs and growth. This development needs to happen immediately, and it starts with skills development and absorption. Let’s use B-BBEE to get our nation and our economy working.” 

Job creation starts with skills development so let’s get as many unemployed youths into learnerships as soon as possible so that we can start building the skills our country needs.

Rajan Naidoo, Director of EduPower.

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Tsalena_151462_01-2021 Tsalena_151462_01-2021

YOUR VISION, OUR COMMITMENT. YOUR VISION, OUR COMMITMENT. You have a vision and you have worked hard to turn it into reality.

You have a vision and you have worked hard to turn it into reality.

At ubank, we have made your vision, our priority because we believe in you as much as you do. That is why in our 45 years of existence we have become banking unbanked continue to work around theinclock to At ubank, we have made your vision,trailblazers our priority in because wethe believe in youand as much as you do. That is why our 45 make sure that we we grow with you every step of the way. Wethe have built product portfolio to that is all-inclusive, making years of existence have become trailblazers in banking unbanked and continue work around the clock to sure that we recognise the potential of our youth by starting them young with the Youth and Student Transactional make sure that we grow with you every step of the way. We have built product portfolio that is all-inclusive, making Accounts, tailor-made to fit their growing financial needs. them Moreover, service SMMEs providing business sure that we recognise the potential of our youth by starting youngwe with the Youth and by Student Transactional accounts that will help elevate theirgrowing businesses to theneeds. next level.

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP

The

'made it'

stories are doing us a disservice

To us, entrepreneurship is a way of being. It’s an energy, a relationship with your gut, a resilience from being a survivor, a respect for the cycles of creation, destruction and re-creation and most importantly, a spirit that has allowed us to not only survive the last few months but birth our new Virtual Knowledge Hub, our new Incubation opportunity for women, our new digitized customer experience and grow our community of collaborators who believe in us and our mission.

By Divya Vasant, CEO at AMAZI The founders of AMAZI are determined to share the reality of what they’ve gone through to establish their organisation – a social enterprise founded to progress the economic inclusion of women, and how for a founding team of young, black women, a lot of their experience has been traumatic.

“We’re constantly fighting our internal self-doubt, insecurities, and feelings of inadequacy. We’re confronting the bias our society has about us not being

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP

credible and we face this every day with banks, insurance companies, landlords, suppliers and service providers who either don’t offer us any opportunity to work with them or make the way they price their offering so unaffordable we’re excluded anyway,” says Lisa Mgcotyelwa, AMAZI co-founder and COO. Existing for women entrepreneurs is a fight.

There’s nothing glamorous about it. Divya Vasant, AMAZI co-founder and CEO shares that: “the pressure to present stories of ‘making it’ does a disservice to the very real fight women, especially

black women, take up when we set up businesses in a country and an economy that does not know how to include us.”

Free toolkit shared practical insights AMAZI’s founders share practical insights and tools they’ve learnt along their journey in a free toolkit available on their website at www. amazibeauty.co.za/knowledge-hub/ to empower young women with the realities of entrepreneurship rather than perpetuate the myths that mostly prevent them from even trying.

Here are 4 insightful learnings from their toolkit:

1

Starting is not as complicated as you may think

“Write a business plan, apply for financing, hire a team, rent some space and get going”. How many of us have read articles, books, or attended talks or events where we’re led to believe that these are the steps we should take to get our idea off the ground? Lisa Mgcotyelwa shares that “there’s so much false advertising around how to start bringing an idea to life. AMAZI started with none of these things. We started with conversation, in particular, conversation with the market of women we wanted to design solutions for.

We asked questions to get a better sense of the problem’s women faced so we could better design solutions that met these problems”.

When we are asked why we want to start our business or create a product, we often start our answer with “I am passionate about…” Your passion is important but it’s not enough to make your idea viable. The AMAZI team shares that a viable business solves a real problem faced by the market it wants to serve. They suggest that when you phrase your business idea as the solution to the problem you are solving, you take an important first step in an ongoing conversation with your market to understand the problems they face. If you aren’t clear on the problem you are solving, put together a survey that asks a few simple questions that you can circulate to your circle and use that feedback to articulate 'the problem' and “your solution'.

2

Pricing isn’t about fancy finance

If you have an idea for a product or a service, thinking about how to price it is daunting. For many of us, the word 'price' brings up long formulae and complex financial concepts that most of us feel out of our depth to figure out. One of the most valuable insights AMAZI shares in their toolkit is that pricing isn’t about fancy finance.

It’s the combination of conversation with your customer market to understand how much they are willing to pay for what you want to offer and your suppliers to understand how much it would cost to put together the things you need to take that offering to your market. It’s also a conversation that you can’t just have once.

You have to keep getting this feedback so that you know the range you need to consider pricing at.

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3

Your earning needs to be incorporated into your costing

One of the biggest mistakes we have made and we see so many women entering entrepreneurship making is not including the cost of your personal survival in your costing exercise leading up to setting your price. Most of us know to research the costs from suppliers, service providers and landlords to get a sense of the total cost of creating the product or service we want to offer but, in this initial exercise, we often forget to include our own earnings.

When we don’t include how much we need to earn to survive in this cost breakdown, we set a price that covers the operating costs of producing this product or delivering this service without taking into account that we are key to that operation. So from day one, we struggle to earn from the thing we create. The AMAZI team urges us to "include in your original costing breakdown, what you need to earn to survive so that when you look at setting your pricing, you create the space for you to at least survive”.

4

Scenario planning is your viability framework

Scenario planning forces you to identify the 'levers' that make your idea viable and then play around with them to see how it changes viability. Costs, capacity, price, if you start changing these for different scenarios, you start getting an idea of what is doable and what isn’t.

The AMAZI team believes that “it’s a great compass to measure progress. If you know what happens when your costs increase beyond a certain point and how that affects your viability or what happens when your pricing drops too low, you can use these guidelines to navigate what you can and cannot afford to offer customers and to pay to suppliers”. It becomes am important decision-making framework to keep drawing yourself back to especially when you have so many things to think about that decision fatigue sets in and you need to take a moment, remember how everything connects, think bigger-picture and then look at how to decide your next steps.

For more insights on how to get your idea off the ground head to (link to module on website) and if you’re keen to get into more detail, check out the modules the AMAZI team has put together on their Virtual Knowledge Hub. 

The pressure to present stories of ‘making it’ does a disservice to the very real fight women, especially black women, take up when we set up businesses in a country and an economy that does not know how to include us.

Divya Vasant, CEO at AMAZI

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A BETTER B-BBEE SOLUTION FOR ALL

IT’S A BALANCING ACT OF MAXIMISING THE OUTCOMES OF B-BBEE REQUIREMENTS WHILE REDUCING THE COST IMPACT AND PROVIDING INCREASED VALUE TO STAKEHOLDERS. Over the past decade, we have perfected a sustainable and compliant solution.

Increased B-BBEE levels Through Preferential Procurement, Skills Development and Socio-Economic Development Reduced financial impact Through savings on skills development spend No additional administration A 51% black-owned, Level 1 B-BBEE and SAQA Accredited organisation, Atvance Academy is creating a better South Africa, one learner at a time.

Partner with us to reduce youth unemployment while gaining business growth.

Contact us today to be a part of the change. +27 (0)10 786 0223

academy@atvance.co.za

www.atvance-academy.co.za

HUMAN RESOURCES

Remote working:

Bringing the human back into Human Resources The last year has seen organisations across the board rapidly switch to remote working. Although this mass migration went reasonably well, there were a few pitfalls that business leaders had to consider. After all, the implementation of remote working across an entire organisation is more complicated and indepth than most of us realise. To be successful in the long term, a supportive, structured, and human-centric approach is required.

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HUMAN RESOURCES

Many tech-based companies had already begun scaling up before the pandemic struck and would have found it easy to switch from an office environment to remote working.

For forward-thinking companies, working remotely could already have been the longterm plan, so those who were tech-driven and people-centric would have sat with their staff and asked them what they wanted, and how they saw their roles and working situation moving forward.

PaySpace did exactly this, and what emerged from those conversations was that a staggering 98% of employees said they would prefer to remain working remotely, with the ability to engage when required with their teams, and still be able to touch base and connect with their colleagues on a social level too.

Human interaction an imperative for employees “Human interaction turned out to be imperative for employees, regardless of their individual circumstances,” says Sandra Crous, Managing Director of PaySpace. Many companies, including PaySpace, saw an increase in performance and productivity during the initial lockdown because employees could sit down and focus on their work.

As there was no traffic-congested commute to contend with, it gave employees the opportunity to focus their energy on things that mattered.

Instead of feeling stuck between work and life, where both contend for attention and time, remote working allowed work and life to co-exist.

Employees could now manage their personal and professional priorities outside the restrictions of an eight to five office environment.

In the wake of the pandemic, those who planned on carrying on with the ‘new normal’

gave staff members the option of working from home and downscaled their offices. The office now serves as a central meeting point to maintain the sense of community, coming together, and connecting with colleagues.

Maintaining a healthy ethos is critical in remote working situations Many organisations hold their company culture in high regard, and maintaining a healthy ethos is critical in remote working situations. It is vital to continue collaboration and social activities too, as this time nurtures the culture of the business. With COVID-19, many companies found it a challenge to keep that culture alive while maintaining a healthy team dynamic and camaraderie.

There are, however, many ways to address this challenge. You could encourage safe, and protocol followed team meetings, irrespective of where they are held. You can also implement a ‘cameras on’ policy to ensure employees maintain contact with the people they’re dealing with. Being able to connect – to read body language, to see a smile – is very important.

It is also a good idea to encourage staff to take 10 minutes a day and have a virtual chat over a coffee with their colleagues, as this is something people would often do in a normal office environment. It is all about bringing humankind back into the relationship while adapting to a remote environment, to maintain a presence, make an impact, and show that you care.

In terms of human resources and payroll specifically, companies need to adapt the way they interact with employees to maintain a strong culture and still foster a personal connection.

Payroll, for all organisations, would need to adapt to using a cloud solution. With cloud applications you can carry out payroll tasks from anywhere, and in a remote working world it has become the

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HUMAN RESOURCES

norm. Cloud technology has opened up a world of possibilities.

Adjusted performance metrics The pandemic drove many organisations to adapt and look at new ways of managing HR. Most companies cater for the traditional way of work with, for example, various types of leave.

Organisations need to realise that remote working doesn’t necessarily mean working from eight to five every day. Employees now have family around them and children home from school, so trying to do a full day’s work while managing a household presents a huge risk of burnout.

“A good idea is to offer colleagues adjusted performance metrics. Instead of working on a set ‘hours per day’ basis, work on objectives, results and deliverables,” says Crous. In this way, staff can balance work and life and still achieve what they need to. In addition, if you’re giving employees the freedom to deliver outcomes, you need to give them the freedom to work when they want to. If they deliver on their outcomes, it shouldn’t matter if they take time off.

There’s no question that COVID-19 hit the world with a vengeance. The silver lining for companies who already had ‘future proofing’ on their minds

and planned to change to remote working in the future, is that they realized the value of remote working early on. The key is maintaining a peoplecentric environment along with a high-performing culture. Making sure employees are still treated as individuals will aid their wellbeing and will also help to maintain a healthy work/life balance. 

Sandra Crous, Managing Director of PaySpace

About PaySpace PaySpace is a true cloud-based HR and Payroll solution established in 2000. As one of the brands that fall under the Insight IT Group umbrella, PaySpace is the leader in online Payroll and HR solutions and services across Africa and abroad. With an integrated, real-time, SQL platform offering unified HR, payroll, and Human Capital Management (HCM) across 40 African countries, PaySpace offers embedded analytics, manager and employee self-service, therefore, enabling businesses of all sizes to run a fully tax and legislative compliant, ISO/IEC certified, cloud-based people management solution.

PaySpace is the only HR and Payroll solution in Africa with International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 27001 certification, a testament to PaySpace’s commitment to safe and secure protection of data. PaySpace was awarded 2019 Payroll Software Supplier of the Year at the Global Payroll Awards in addition to achieving the 2019 Top 25 HR Software Award via The Software Report.

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Process your payroll from...

POFADDER Work from any device.

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Remote work is the future: 98% surveyed prefer remote work Skip the commute Allow work & life to co-exist

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+27 87 250 2500

LEADERSHIP

Good CEO's build a business;

great CEO's leave a legacy Three strategies that business leaders can use to impact economic transformation

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A crucial part of any CEO’s legacy is the financial health of their company, but they are also responsible for ensuring that sustainability is embedded throughout their organisation, that business plays its rightful role as a lasting force for change in society.

Rajan Naidoo, Managing Director of EduPower Skills Academy, believes that CEO’s looking to create this legacy have a powerful tool in their business: B-BBEE. “B-BBEE can be seen as racially divisive or as a great equaliser and the attitude a company adopts is often driven from the top,” Naidoo explains. “If it is viewed by the CEO as an exercise in tick-box compliance, that’s all B-BBEE will ever be. But those visionary leaders who see B-BBEE as an instrument for empowerment are creating opportunities that will benefit everyone in our society, either directly or indirectly.”

Naidoo believes that B-BBEE has the potential to enable a strong middle-income group that will positively impact South Africa’s economy and the social fabric of our nation. “B-BBEE is about empowering fellow members of our society to rise out of poverty so that they can play an active role in our economy,” he explains.

To strengthen the development of this much-

LEADERSHIP

needed middle-income group, Naidoo encourages CEO’s to implement the following three tactics in their B-BBEE strategies:

1. Skills Development Every developing economy is striving to build a foundational middle-income group as it is a stepping-stone for society to focus on scientific, technological, artistic and recreational endeavours that are otherwise constrained. Skills development, a priority element on the B-BBEE scorecard, is the easiest way to create available skills in our society.

It provides previously unemployed individuals – especially South Africa’s youth – with the opportunity to access relevant occupation-specific training and practical work experience of which they can start building sustainable careers. This creates meaningful change where it really matters.

2. Enterprise Development While many companies are already sponsoring learnerships, the true intent of skills development is that the qualification will result in full-time employment. In the current economic climate, however, most businesses are not in a position to offer their learners employment when they complete their qualifications. As a solution, EduPower’s innovative absorption model ensures that when unemployed learners graduate, they are placed into permanent jobs in small companies.

Instead of adding this salary burden for the SME though, these jobs are funded in the short-term by large companies through their enterprise development budgets.

operations, they can be supported through supplier development funding as corporates add these fledgling businesses to their supply chains and use them to procure goods or services.

Naidoo says this simple model to support small businesses and incentivise employment can build economic momentum by raising more South African’s out of poverty. Not only does this benefit society as a whole, the resultant larger middleincome group provides a wider market for goods and services.

“A healthy economy underpinned by a solid middle-income group serves the interest of every member of our society and therefore B-BBEE must be viewed as empowerment in its broadest sense,” he adds.

He concludes by saying that success as a leader has changed. “Integrating responsible practice into business strategy at a senior level ensures that empowerment through B-BBEE becomes a shared vision. Sustainability is a long game and it is those leaders who understand this whose businesses will be profitable, survive and thrive, while also having a positive impact on people and society – and this is surely the ultimate legacy for any CEO.” 

3. Supplier Development As the SME has a sponsored, skilled labour force, the chances that it will thrive during the first year of operations are far better. And as they grow, these organisations will employ more learners to boost their ranks, creating additional job opportunities.

As these SME’s mature into year two of their

Rajan Naidoo, Managing Director of EduPower Skills Academy

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MARKETING

Break out of the inbox with smart brand messaging

By Desirée Gullan, co-founder and Executive Creative Director of G&G Digital

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MARKETING

In the digital era, it's never been more difficult for brands to break through the deluge of information and penetrate consumer’s ever-decreasing attention spans. Your brand messaging is one of the most important aspects of a marketing communications strategy. From the language used, to the tone it is delivered in, successful brand messages will result in your target audience resonating with your brand, and be more open to receiving your content.

It takes between five and seven points of contact for a brand to make an impression. Here’s some ways you can make sure your brand impressions last.

Be customer-centric Before planning and crafting your brand’s key messaging, make sure you view your brand as a consumer would. Use survey data and qualitative intelligence to better understand your target audience. You will probably find they’re looking for relatable, relevant content that adds to their experience, without being too hard sell.

Be clear about your brand’s why Take the time to introspect on your brand’s vision and mission. This should raise questions on where you see your brand in the next two, three and five years. Understanding your brand’s short- and long-term progress will mean you can apply that in your brand messaging, ensuring your brand stays relevant.

Break out from the competition Study your competition thoroughly. What are they doing, where are they going, and who is their target audience? Understanding this will empower you to craft unique and authentic content rather than more of the same.

Make channels work Use channels that are relevant for your budget, your brand and your target audience. More consumers are staying home, which means the most important place to reach them is online. From Instagram to TikTok, people are looking for spaces to connect without the risk of contracting COVID-19. This gives you the opportunity to meet your audience on a platform they resonate with.

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MARKETING

Four tips to crafting brand messages that resonate

1.

Be consistent: Make use of all relevant platforms,

With effective brand messages, you can go from inboxes to check out and from social media to visits to your website. What’s more, you can forge lasting

keep your brand message consistent and

impressions and transform your customers into an

tailored to each audience. This will show your

army of brand advocates. 

target audience that your brand will deliver on its promises with the same consistency as your messaging.

2. Show why you’re unique: If a competitor can safely say the same thing you’re saying, your brand is not unique and there’s not much compelling reason for your target audience to choose it. This means it’s time to dive deep and find out what sets your brand apart, then go on to tell your target audience about it in a compelling, honest and creative way –– all aligned with your brand tone of voice.

3.

Prove you’re unique: Ensure that any and every claim you make is true. Avoid outlandish statements that make you “the best in the world”, rather focus on what truly makes you different and better.

4.

Be noteworthy and memorable: Consumers look for memorable communications and experiences that inform, uplift, entertain and inspire. Make sure your brand delivers on their desires in a way that is personable and relatable to your audience.

Desirée Gullan, co-founder and Executive Creative Director of G&G Digital

G&G Digital is an award-winning digital agency that creates breakthrough solutions for local and international brands. The team at G&G have a passion for producing quality, strategic digital solutions to assist organisations with their digital brand strategies and communications. All solutions are founded on deep consultation, strategic insights and data. G&G aims to surprise, delight and exceed clients' expectations.

Award-winning co-founder and Executive Creative Director of G&G Digital, Desirée Gullan, and has been pivotal in producing many breakthrough digital communications based on deep, strategic insights. From strategy to creative direction, Gullan drives her agency to produce outstanding work and results-driven campaigns that add value to G&G's clients and their consumers.

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DIGITAL EVENT 8 - 10 June 2021 Your inclusive guide to the energy transition. enlit-africa.com

Enlit Africa in partnership with ESI Africa, invites you to discover new products and services, learn from and engage with industry leaders across our 3-day, not-to-be-missed digital event. Register on Enlit Africa-Connect, our 24/7 digital platform, do a deep dive and gain strategic insight via our Future Cities; Finance, Investment and Strategy; Smart Energy, Grid and Data and New Energy Landscape content themes and engaging live sessions.

Join our 365 community Enlit Africa-Connect, our new digital platform will enable our community to engage with the best thought-leaders and innovators in the energy sector, 365 days a year, allowing you to be in attendance from anywhere, anytime.

Connect. Inspire. Evolve.

Join our community and register for our digital event: www.enlit-africa.com/digital

ADVERTORIAL: MTN

MTN SA Foundation accelerates e-learning support to ensure children’s hopes and dreams can be realised

By Kusile Mtunzi-Hairwadzi, General Manager: MTN SA Foundation

The impact of rampant vandalism, theft and break-ins at schools is having a chilling effect on the hopes and dreams of children across the country. Thousands of Computer Application Technology (CAT) pupils will not be able to access the digital tools they need to succeed unless urgent support and greater access to technology is provided on a large scale.

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ADVERTORIAL: MTN

In May last year, Timeslive reported that more than 1 500 schools were hit by vandalism and theft during the SA national lockdown, with computer laboratories the hardest hit. The situation has not improved early in the New Year, with more than 42 computers stolen at just one school south of Johannesburg during early January.

Through our Foundation, we see first-hand the ripple effects this criminal activity is having on our future generations. It is truly devastating to see the impact on learners. These children had just been given access to computers for the first time in their lives, and to have them taken away is heartbreaking.

To date, MTN SA Foundation’s flagship project within the e-Learning offering has been the provisioning of multimedia centres in schools, institutions of higher learning and communities across the country. However, as many as 34 of the schools that were connected between 2014 and 2017 have, sadly, reported burglary,

theft, or some form of vandalism during the past three years. The 34 schools represent over 26% of the total schools connected over the past three years.

Visiting the schools targeted truly lays bare the broad impact these crimes are having. Grade 12’s, for instance, were using the multimedia centres to apply to university and for bursaries, while free access to data and computers was opening the door to a myriad opportunities for learners and teachers. Hundreds of Grade 10’s had also just started their studies in Computer Applied Technology (CAT), and there is a risk many schools and their learners may not be able to do the practical work needed to pass their exams, or may be unable to continue with their subject at all. This will leave them to enter the job market unprepared for the digital world, which will only widen the digital divide and take away future opportunities from the children.

Teachers and their ability to keep up with curriculums will also be hindered as they use the labs to research and formulate lesson plans. Not only that, but entire communities also lose out, as the multimedia centres established at many schools were being used by all members of the community, giving them access to the benefits of the digital economy and connected world.

There is no doubt futures and dreams of these children are being placed in jeopardy by these unacceptable actions.

The torching of schools has, of course, further hampered progress as it normally takes time to repair vandalised school buildings.

With the education system as fragile as it is at the moment, working to weather the COVID-19 storm, digital solutions for children in remote or disadvantaged areas, who may not be able to access physical classrooms, teachers, textbooks or computers, is more critical than ever.

While MTN is saddened by the devastation wrought at many of these centres and schools, we stand steadfast in our commitment to support vulnerable children and schools.

Important that barriers for learners are removed As the Fourth Industrial Revolution ushers in exciting opportunities, it is important that barriers for learners are removed. Learners simply cannot be exposed to computers for the first time when they enter university. It is imperative that the class of 2021 receives support to close the gaps in accessing online tools and learning.

This year again, together with key partners, MTN SA Foundation will work to help these and other children, teachers and educational institutions overcome the hurdles that have been placed in their path, and continue

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ADVERTORIAL: MTN

to drive greater access to education across South Africa as children head back to classrooms.

The 2021 MTN SA Back-to-School programme is focused on increasing learner’s school performance and access to e-learning, building on the Foundation’s pivotal work during the COVID-19 school lockdowns. The programme aims to assist those in need, and especially children who may not enjoy the benefits of textbooks, teachers, or even properly functioning schools.

Several interventions and offerings of e-education and virtual schools will leverage the existing MTN technology solutions.

This is critical as the pandemic has shown how crucial it is to drive seamless connectivity and support to help improve learning outcomes, no matter how challenging the situation may seem. For instance, during the ongoing COVID-19 storm, MTN’s 96% LTE connectivity is enabling e-learning and virtual classes in previously unreachable areas.

In the Eastern Cape alone, 72 000 SIM cards were pre-loaded with mobile data and provided to the Eastern Cape learners, in addition to the zero-rating of educational websites, and provision of equipment for modern multimedia centres, across the country.

Working with the Siyavula Foundation Working with the Siyavula Foundation, the MTN SA Foundation has invested into the Siyavula e-learning platform that offers textbooks, practice software and exam preparation content. This investment is ensuring that SA’s Grade 10 to 12 learners across South Africa have access to world-class Mathematics software and online textbooks for CAT and IT. Education is a right and a crucial opportunity. It holds the key to a better life for all children and adolescents worldwide, a life with less poverty, better health and an increased ability to take their future into their own hands and succeed in whatever they set out to do.

Our primary focus on education seeks to drive reach and access to information using technology as an enabler.

Therefore, key consideration will be placed in creating an MTN e-school that will use virtual platforms to provide access to curriculum aligned information to the target audiences.

Through ongoing collaboration and support with like-minded partners in the public sector, aligning to the strategic intent of the National Department of Education, Department of Social Development (DSD) and Department of Basic Education (DBE), in 2021 and beyond, we will continue to assist with brightening the futures of children and communities, despite the obstacles being placed in their way.

This work will be ramped up even further this year as we continue to bring the benefits of the modern, connected life to more people.

ABOUT MTN GROUP Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a leading emerging markets operator with a clear vision to lead the delivery of a bold new digital world to our 240 million customers in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East. We are inspired by our belief that everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code “MTN”. We are pursuing our BRIGHT strategy with a major focus on growth in data, fintech and digital businesses.

Visit us at www.mtn.com or www.mtn.co.za Follow us on Twitter @MTNza

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Image supplied by Energas Techologies (Pty) Ltd

| |

MENTORSHIP

Driving entrepreneurial

growth

By Andrew Weinberg, CEO of 2Engage

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through mentoring

MENTORSHIP

The rise in the amount of knowledge sharing and mentoring by businesspeople through partnerships with SMEs and entrepreneurs to help them survive and succeed, has been, and continues to be, a silver lining in the overwhelming COVID-19 cloud. It’s a new reality that needs to be encouraged to grow across all sectors of business.

The significant number of jobs losses in South Africa in 2020, now means there are more people who need to find some way to bring in income – many will become entrepreneurs and will start small or even medium enterprises.

A significant proportion of business survivors in this pandemic are themselves entrepreneurs.

From the outset, they had reduced operational costs, they understand their markets, and were able to streamline and adapt to the rapidly changing economic environment.

For instance, in a local street in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg, out of five eateries that existed before the pandemic, one has survived – the one that was the most popular before the crisis.

There are valuable learnings to be shared here that could make a difference to struggling SMEs or start-ups.

If a few thousand successful businesspeople take it upon themselves to advise, mentor and support just 10 entrepreneurs or potential small businesses each – according to their own time availability – and those mentored entrepreneurs then each partner with 10 more, ad infinitum, the number of successful and growing businesses would escalate exponentially.

Entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs Personal experience with the international Endeavor organisation, a high-impact entrepreneurship movement of ‘entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs’, created to multiply the impact of its invited membership of entrepreneurs, has proven the value of knowledge sharing many times over.

The Endeavor model is designed to search for, select and scale up entrepreneurs with the greatest potential for large-scale success, then spread their stories and resources to sustain lasting economic and social transformation in their home markets and beyond. In 2018 and 2019, the 26 SA Endeavor Entrepreneurs created over 4 500 new jobs and an

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MENTORSHIP

incremental R2 billion in annual revenue.

2Engage was privileged to be selected for the Endeavor International panel in 2017, after it reached the finalist stages of the FNB Innovation Awards. Since then, I have been in a position to share knowledge and experience with aspiring entrepreneurs, both through Endeavor and on other SME-building platforms in South Africa, on a partnership rather than on a ‘teaching’ basis.

From the start of the pandemic, it has been inspiring to see a definite and strong growth in the willingness by businesspeople – corporates and entrepreneurs – to work with smaller companies, building new partnerships, networking, encouraging innovation, and driving growth in those businesses.

This form of ‘paying it forward’ makes sound business sense – every business is part of the local community and economic environment where it survives and thrives. If that environment is struggling, the business in turn will struggle.

The Endeavor model is designed to search for, select and scale up entrepreneurs with the greatest potential for large-scale success, then spread their stories and resources to sustain lasting economic and social transformation in their home markets and beyond.

Getting involved in contributing to the growth of small businesses and entrepreneurs, will serve the business well into the future.

Just a glance at South Africa’s economic status now is enough to remind every businessperson with something of value to share the value of sharing.

Growth is imperative – and businesspeople are at the heart of that potential. 

Andrew Weinberg is one of South Africa’s seasoned entrepreneurs. Having started his first two businesses in his second year of university, Andrew has conceptualized, grown and sold more than six businesses in the past 19 years. He currently heads up 2Engage, a leading customer engagement and incentive solutions business which has a presence in over 150 independent retail stores nationwide, more 1.5 million consumer members, and operates in eight African countries.

Andrew has been highly recognised for his achievements and was awarded the coveted title of Entrepreneur of the Year in 2019 by South Africa’s premier annual entrepreneurial platform The Entrepreneur of the Year competition. He has also been a selected member of the esteemed Endeavor International organization since 2018 where he is very involved in mentoring SME’s and fellow entrepreneurs throughout South Africa and the world - something he is extremely passionate about.

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PEOPLE

Synergy’s transformation journey accelerates Leading exhibition and event organiser, Synergy Business Events, is proud to announce the directorship appointment of Phetogo Kubheka who will join Director Martina Komane and Managing Director Tiisetso Tau on the company’s executive team.

“Phetogo Kubheka’s appointment is testimony to the incredible value she brings to the company. Despite her young age, she is a natural leader and has risen to every opportunity that has come her way," says Tau. "Synergy Business Events has always had a succession plan to nurture up-and-coming talent – and specifically black female talent – to take up executive posts and make their mark in the MICE space. We look forward to seeing how she will take on her new role and help our business grow and thrive into the future.”

Kubheka’s 15-year career path is rich with MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) experience, having worked across its value chain. Her previous positions exposed her to the inner workings of conferences, corporate events, exhibitions, incentives and venue hire and marketing. However, she has always returned to her first passion – exhibitions and events.

In this space, she has taken on roles like International Shows Manager and Foreign Pavilion Manager for prominent trade shows such as WTM London, ITB Berlin and Asia, IMEX Frankfurt, and EMITT Istanbul. It was here that she honed her organisational brilliance and impressive skills for relationship management.

After being head hunted to join Synergy Business Events in 2017 as Sales Manager, Kubheka was quickly promoted to Account Manager,

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followed by Head of Operations. During this time, she worked on key accounts such as South African Tourism’s two trade exhibitions, and this is where her abilities shone brightest. She sold out the 2018 Meetings Africa and Africa’s Travel Indaba in a third of the time each of the shows normally require, while also exceeding Africa’s Travel Indaba’s previous year’s exhibitor numbers by 10%. These exceptional achievements were acknowledged with a Top 40 Women in MICE Award that same year.

“I am humbled by the promotion and excited for my new role that gives me the opportunity to contribute to the direction and growth of the company. I am grateful to have been under the mentorship of Tiisetso Tau, who has paved the way for those who are to come after him and ensured a strong foundation had been laid in transforming the industry,” says Kubheka.

Driving transformation is integral Driving transformation is integral to how Synergy Business Events operates. Since its inception in 2010, and under Tau’s guidance, the business has evolved from a majority white-owned and managed joint venture called Scan On Show, to now being 100% black owned and run, with a proud level 1 B-BBEE achievement.

“I’d like to give my thanks to Justin Hawes for stepping down as director and giving Kubheka this opportunity,” says Tau. “Succession planning

PEOPLE

was always our intention from the very beginning, with a long-term view to transformation through mentorship and creating opportunities for the next generation. It has been a ten-year journey to get here, and I am immensely proud of our achievements, but this is only the beginning. We need more Kubheka’s of the world to step up.”

He adds that his plan is to grow Kubheka into the position of managing director in the next three to five years.

Kubheka has also taken on the task of mentoring

signed an MOU with Rwanda Convention Bureau to manage the African Coffee & Tea Expo 2021 in Kigali.

“Despite the disruption that the COVID pandemic has had, and continues to have, on our sector, we are optimistic about the future. The African market is hungry to reopen, and we are ready to reignite the MICE industry,” Tau adds.

and coaching within her team. The company culture of knowledge sharing, enrichment and growth has helped Synergy Business Events consistently uphold its values of service excellence.

can also visit synergybe.co.za.

For more information, please contact Tiisetso Tau on +27 11 476 5104 or ttau@synergybe.co.za. You

Repeatedly proven its capabilities for managing high-profile events While blazing a trail for what authentic black economic empowerment can look like, the company has also grown aggressively and repeatedly proven its capabilities for managing high-profile events. Its portfolio includes the World Congress on Healthy Ageing 2015, Meetings Africa 2018-2020, Africa’s Travel Indaba 2018-2019, GovTech 2019, Lilizela Tourism Awards 2019 and the Comrades Marathon Expo 2020.

More recently, Synergy Business Events has expanded its footprint into Africa, having just

Phetogo Kubheka, recently appointed director at Synergy Business Events.

Synergy Business Events has been a trusted partner in local and international events and exhibitions since 2010. Our extensive experience with a highly skilled team extends across some of the biggest exhibitions and events in Africa, including Comrades Marathon Expo (2020) GovTech (2019), The Lilizela Tourism Awards (2019), and newly secured Africa’s Coffee and Tea Expo.

Our commitment and continuous growth have managed to establish Synergy Business Events in the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) Industry. As a proud Level 1 BBBEE Company, we boost credentials of having hosted some of the country’s largest events and exhibitions.

Our ability as an organization allows for us to be scalable and provide best of breed technological platforms for our events. This includes an integration of physical and virtual events through social media and meeting platforms.

The 2020 COVID pandemic has meant that we provide our clients with business events solutions to meet the new way of managing Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions.

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SMALL BUSINESS

There are more opportunities

for SMMEs in 2021 than in 2011

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SMALL BUSINESS

Businesses stand to gain from opportunities created during the pandemic, if they adopt important learnings from 2020 and put them into practice this year. The high levels of stress and pressures on a small team to maintain a competitive advantage could, however, threaten to derail SMME success.

“There is no doubt that there is more opportunity for small business now than there was 10 years ago,” says Mike Anderson, founder and Chief Executive Officer of the

National Small Business Chamber (NSBC).

“There is a global shift towards supporting small, medium and micro-sized enterprises (SMMEs), that has been enthusiastically embraced in South Africa with prospective customers increasingly ordering online since the start of the national lockdown. Consumers are now more than ever attracted to supporting local small businesses.

“The digital world has changed how we do business, and SMMEs can now compete with any big business. In addition, big companies across the board are now obliged to build their SMME supplier base. The future of job creation is coming from the SMME sector. In 2021 and beyond SMMEs will, more than ever before, be the mainstay of our economy,” he says.

Cost cutting should never be at the expense of employee benefits, because these give businesses the edge in establishing and maintaining a highly productive team.

Retaining talent is crucial to SMMEs’ survival and prosperity.

The NSBC offers the following survival and growth tips for SMMEs • Prioritise building up liquid cash savings, reducing debt and trim non-essential spending.

• Remain agile and adaptable to weather storms in the future.

• Out-of-the-box thinking to prepare for a worstcase scenario.

• Look after the staff you rely on to keep your business at the top of its game.

“Having a ‘Plan B’ can help improve every business’s odds of surviving and eventually thriving again during tough financial times,” Anderson advises.

“The team within an SMME is generally quite small and these businesses have invested an enormous amount of time and money into these employees. Unlike the corporate world, for many small businesses it only takes a few key employees for an SMME to survive and prosper. This means that there is much more at stake for the overall productivity of a small business if an employee is unable to perform at their best.

“Small businesses experienced many challenges last year, and too few were able to seize relief funding. The enormous stress of these factors unfortunately contributed towards poor performance at the most crucial time for many, which only compounded their difficulties.”

Dr Jacques Snyman, clinical development expert for Agility Corporate, says that an integrated approach is needed to best manage human capital risks.

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SMALL BUSINESS

“Key members of an SMME team often have specialised skills and understanding of the business, and small businesses can ill afford for such individuals to be incapacitated due to preventable causes. In a small team, this can be devastating for all concerned and may be catastrophic for business survival,” he says.

Pre-empting risk and optimising productivity “Our approach is to proactively identify and assist at-risk individuals to better manage health conditions to avoid absenteeism, as well as to meaningfully reduce the likelihood of the person suffering a serious health event, such as a stroke or heart attack.

“As Mike rightly points out, the pandemic has been stressful for employees and employers alike, and we know that mental wellbeing and physical wellness are deeply interlinked and significantly influence productivity. When staff members can access the wellness tools and healthcare they need, businesses feel the benefits of improved productivity and a more engaged workforce,” Dr Snyman notes.

With one point of contact, Agility Corporate offers businesses of all sizes a health and employee benefits solution to cover the needs of employees at every level within the business. This seamless and hassle-free service is tailormade to suit the business’ individual needs and circumstances encompassing a full range of Health Squared medical scheme options, primary healthcare products for lower income staff, group risk benefits and retirement fund solutions.

This is underpinned with an industryleading rewards programme and employee wellbeing programme, which provides access to a psychosocial helpline offering invaluable telephonic counselling support to staff members including trauma counselling, legal or financial advice to support their holistic wellbeing and

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optimal productivity.

According to Anderson, the National Small Business Chamber’s research shows that an attractive employee benefit programme, no matter how small to start with, is imperative for attracting and retaining top talent.

“Cost cutting should never be at the expense of employee benefits, because these give businesses the edge in establishing and maintaining a highly productive team. Retaining talent is crucial to SMMEs’ survival and prosperity,” he says.

“My advice to small businesses this year is learn from 2020 and prepare well for the next crisis, whatever it may be. Think big and go big, but adopt the magic of tiny steps. Eliminate what doesn’t work in your business and do more of what has proven to work,” Anderson advises.

“Your talent, like cash-flow, is the life-blood of your business. Do whatever you can to take care of them now if you want your business to prosper and grow.” 

SMMEs

Five risk trends affecting SMMEs The world certainly looks very different a year later, and nowhere is it more apparent than in the Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMME) space. The sector has faced more than its fair share of obstacles during the COVID-19 pandemic amidst a contracting economy and lockdown measures that reduced income streams to a trickle.

The SMME sector is critical to South Africa’s economic growth, employing around 80% of the African continent’s workforce. It is also the sector that has been hardest hit by the pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns, making it crucial for SMMEs to identify the trends impacting their businesses and finding ways to leverage new opportunities.

Aon South Africa, risk advisors and insurance brokers, delves into the top five trends affecting the SMME sector:

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SMMEs

1

Changing consumer buyer behaviour

The key factor in demographics is not just how the world’s population will grow, but how consumer buyer behaviour is changing amidst an upended world. Failure to innovate and meet customer needs was one of the top ten risks, rated at number nine in Aon’s "2019 Global Risk Management survey". The pandemic shifted the importance of this risk into top gear. Many companies had to scramble to reimagine their product delivery and consumer-purchasing journey in a pronounced shift into a digital world that is likely to remain long after COVID-19 has abated. In fact, 86% of respondents in a PWC Global Consumer Insights Survey 2020 said they are likely to continue to shop online when social distancing measures are removed.

According to Clayton Ellary, from Aon South Africa’s Commercial Risk Solutions Division, innovation is a necessity, not an option. “It also means that disruptive technologies, such as artificial intelligence, blockchain or the Internet of Things may be the key to transforming the current playing field. Start-up companies tend to be more agile in their efforts to meet the changing needs of consumers. The fine line between success and failure is defined by an organisation’s ability to reinvent itself in an ever-changing market where disruption is fast becoming the norm.”

2

Technological reliance

3

The rise of intellectual property

As companies become more reliant on technology, technological developments and increases in data and analytical power create unlimited opportunities for business; however, they also bring risks around cyber security and data privacy.

Cyberattacks on South African organisations show no signs of abating.

“Whether a large or small business, a cyber breach has the potential to inflict enormous reputational damage, cause major interruption to normal business operations and income potential, and can also have legal ramifications if personal and financial information is compromised in context of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECT) and the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPI),” says Ellary.

“South Africa will continue to see large-scale ransomware attacks that target administration credentials to gain access to and infect, wider networks – often targeting SMMEs and contractors to gain access to larger client corporations. With the expected increase in ransomware attacks designed to spread through a network, organisations of all sizes and industry sectors need to take steps to protect their networks and ensure that their risk management and insurance programmes are fit for purpose to protect them in a worst-case scenario,” urges Ellary.

A misalignment on the value of data, information and intangible assets, such as IP of a business could have dire consequences.

“We currently find ourselves in a business environment where a huge shift is taking place from tangible to intangible assets, making it crucial for companies to identify what its value-producing assets are and to re-evaluate its risk and liability in this space,” says Ellary.

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SMMEs

4

The resilient workforce

5

Liquidity

In a world of work that has been largely affected by the COVID-19 crisis, ensuring that your people strategy enables employees to adapt to change, maintain motivation and face adversity now and in the future is imperative to business success. Wellbeing is critical; it is the difference between a business surviving and thriving, especially to SMMEs where the skillsets of its people are so intrinsically linked to the success of the business.

According to Aon’s 'Rising Resilient' report, businesses will need to recognise the impact the pandemic has had on their employees’ physical, emotional and financial wellbeing. For employers that get wellbeing right, the effort can help their teams perform more effectively and productively, and foster resilience — bringing adaptability to change, sense of belonging and ability to reach one’s full potential.

“Recognising the pandemic’s various impacts on employees and helping address them should be part of any overall strategy for guiding an SMME through, and beyond the crisis,” says Ellary.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major catalyst to a host of serious business challenges that led to greater levels of insecurity and business failures. SMMEs face greater risks, possibly even closure, if a major debtor defaults as their balance sheets are often not strong enough to pull them through a major and extended financial crisis.

The question that trade credit insurance answers is whether you are dealing with a potential bad debtor, which is crucial in a financially strained environment.

“SMME’s would be foolhardy not to have payment protection in place, given the tough trading conditions we find ourselves in at present,” says Ellary.

The key premise of credit insurance is to protect your debtor’s book, and in turn ensure that cash flow remains in the case of a bad debt. It also allows management to get a deeper understanding of their debtors’ book due to the extensive credit vetting done by the insurer.

Understanding the trends to make the right decisions The trends that will reshape the world — and business — should inform the decisions SMEs are making today about their future.

“It is a task best undertaken with the assistance of an expert broker by your side. A comprehensive risk assessment will establish how prominently new trends feature in your business, so that you can make informed decisions that will guide your business strategy beyond the pandemic,” concludes Ellary. 

Aon plc (NYSE: AON) is a leading global professional services firm providing a broad range of risk, retirement and health solutions. Our 50 000 colleagues in 120 countries empower results for clients by using proprietary data and analytics to deliver insights that reduce volatility and improve performance.

W www.aon.co.za

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Clayton Ellary, from Aon South Africa’s Commercial Risk Solutions Division.

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SKILLS DEVELOPMENT & TRAINING

Chemical SETA donates over R1.6 million to public universities to support groundbreaking projects, cut youth unemployment

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SKILLS DEVELOPMENT & TRAINING

The Chemical Industry Education and Training Authority (CHIETA) will be providing two major South African universities with R1 647 500 million in funding in 2021. The funding is designed to support the two learning institutions’ research, innovation and work-integrated learning initiatives and to contribute towards curbing youth unemployment in the era of COVID-19.

Every year the CHIETA, a body whose mandate is to facilitate skills development and training in the chemical and manufacturing industries, makes it part of its strategic objectives to extend financial support to tertiary training institutions for workintegrated learning. The SETA also provides grants to learning institutions, designed to help them prepare their students for the chemical industries’ job market. Ultimately, the SETA wants to ensure that it can play its part in addressing South Africa’s high levels of poverty and unemployment particularly amongst the youth and women.

CHIETA CEO, Yershen Pillay, says that the organisation’s 2020-2021 university partnerships are unique in that they come at a time when the world is battling the COVID-19 pandemic, which has been battering economies for over a year, driving unemployment to new highs.

"As an organisation, we are excited to be part of such ground-breaking initiatives aimed at uplifting our society during this tumultuous pandemic. We are determined to ensure that these partnerships as well as our various other interventions will succeed and benefit our communities,’’ said Pillay.

Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University COVID-19 has also elevated the role of research in the global efforts to find vaccines and a cure for the virus, as well as helping the world population to cope with the various changes brought about by

We must cement new and lasting partnerships that will allow us to put the chemical industry on the fasttrack to adopting 4IR and to continue to innovate, in our quest to eliminate poverty, reduce inequality, while spurring the economic development of our country.

the pandemic. In this regard, the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University was granted R387 500 for its work-integrated learning programmes.

The university will partner with pharmaceutical companies to offer work-integrated learning for undergraduate students, who are studying towards pharmaceutical related qualifications.

These students will be able to complete their qualifications and gain workplace experience, creating a pool of graduates for absorption into South Africa’s increasingly important pharmaceutical sector.

Vaal University of Technology Vaal University of Technology (VUT) has received R510 000 from CHIETA to produce nanotechnology from waste glass. VUT’s project involves the collection of waste glass bottles for recycling and conversion into Nanoscilia.

“The project will make use of non-returnable bottles that would be sourced from townships in the

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SKILLS DEVELOPMENT & TRAINING

Vaal region. It will benefit unemployed youths in the townships, who will be collecting and recycling the glass bottles,” Pillay continued.

Nanoscilica products produced from the project will benefit tyre manufactures, pharmaceuticals and plastics industries, which is set to boost South Africa’s exports.

VUT has been allocated a further R750 000 for an electric car project that involves the design and fabrication of a fuel stack with a sulfonated chitosan membrane. It is envisaged that this project will contribute immensely to research capacity building

challenging requirements of electric motor engines in the transport industries. The membrane is developed from chitosan materials that is modified with chemical to improve hydrogen transport for electricity production,” says Deputy Vice Chancellor for VUT, Professor John Odiyo.

at this previously disadvantaged institution.

The programme will also help Master’s degree students to develop a chitosan membrane for electricity production, which will be used in the development of fuel cell batteries for electric cars and teach students Fourth Industrial Revolution skills. ‘’The fuel cells membrane project forms part of the call for the development of alternative energy to replace the use of fossil fuels. The project also promotes knowledge creation to meet the

especially from previously disadvantage sector, who are eager to progress with advance studies. The potential student identified is a female student who will study to the level of PhD. This initiative also supports South African government’s pledge for Women in Engineering.’’ Professor Odiyo adds.

VUT will also be partnering with PET Industrial where students will use the firm’s facilities for membrane development. The project will benefit the chemicals and energy industries, especially in the promotion of renewable energy. ‘’We are very proud to be part of this innovation as a SETA and we will fully support and take advantage of such new technologies in a modern and fast-changing world to improve and develop our sector,” Pillay says.

He also applauded the SETA’s commitment to forging ahead with its various interventions to stimulate the country’s economy, through the strength of its new and existing strategic partnerships in both the private and public sector.

“We must cement new and lasting partnerships that will allow us to put the chemical industry on the fast-track to adopting 4IR and to continue to innovate, in our quest to eliminate poverty, reduce inequality, while spurring the economic development of our country. Let us work to collectively position CHIETA as an innovation leader in the education and training sector,” Pillay concludes. 

Yershen Pillay, CHIETA CEO

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Human capacity development improvement “The objectives of this programme is to address some of the national and VUT development plans, that is, to create knowledge and for human capacity development improvement, and to assist students

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SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainability leads the way for the future of waste management We can no longer look at waste management with a linear view. We now are seeing national, as well as global leaders placing more focus on awareness around the ‘throw away culture’ that many businesses, individuals, and households have – and for good reason.

By Kate Stubbs, Group Marketing Director at Interwaste South Africa generates over 122 million tons of waste each year and with 90% of this waste being disposed to near over-capacitated landfill sites – do we have what it takes to change this figure and make a difference? What if a waste crisis occurred – could we manage?

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Waste is a universal issue given the broader challenges it brings, affecting both human health and livelihoods. It has a negative impact on the environment and ultimately economies, when not examined and managed correctly. If we take that over 90% of waste in low-income countries is merely

SUSTAINABILITY

being discarded or burned, not only are we seeing valuable resources being lost, but the environment is affected as well. This means it is now crucial for industries to look at 2021 as a year of exploring innovative and sustainable solutions, where resilience is at the forefront of its decisions.

Of course, locally we are seeing new technologies and legislation beginning to transform traditional operations within the industry; however, how this is managed will become key to their ability to remain resilient.

As a result, I believe countries, governments and companies alike will have to focus on five important aspects if they want to find the most strategic approach to managing their resources and waste.

More importantly though, is turning this waste into a sustainable resource and actively creating alternatives from existing waste streams to reduce and reuse them?

1

Circular economy is key

If we really want to encourage the ‘nothing wasted’ mindset, investing in a circular economy model must be taken seriously. Whilst still a relatively new concept in Africa, this model offers significant opportunities to truly deliver far more inclusive growth for the economy and includes an increase in job opportunities as well as positive environmental practices – all of which are needed for sustainable growth.

As more consumers become more aware (and concerned) about product sustainability, the need for companies to demonstrate how the full life cycle of their products – including how these products can be either reformative, restorative, or regenerated within the system – will be at the forefront of business strategy. And that is the circular economy.

It means business must examine how to strip out all unnecessary waste materials, energy losses and related carbon emissions – across their supply chain

and find solutions to ensure these materials, energy, and resources can be ‘fed’ back into the cycle.

This must start now! So, this year I truly believe many businesses will be examining ways to ‘design’ waste out of an economic system to deliver continued life on their products beyond (and following) its initial use.

2

The digital evolution

We know the pandemic has fuelled many industries into a Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) world at a rapid pace.

As a result, it has become essential for our industry sector to stay focused on achieving sustainable and innovative solutions to remain competitive through these unprecedented times.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) will likely lead the way when it comes to shining the light on inefficiencies that exist across the value chain. As an example, AI applications are able to identify various waste types that are presented and structure the information, through analytics, to increase transparency and automation in recycling and other alternative processing solutions, in real-time.

Digitisation also has the potential to reshape South Africa – and those organisations that do not drive their own digital business transformation, will be left behind. The waste sector is no different where we will see digitisation of waste collection becoming more relevant, providing important benefits, like being able to efficiently guide waste collection routes, making collection of waste as well as recycling materials fuel efficient and, more importantly, reducing the use of energy. Today, so many complex industrial processes can be automated, and we must embrace this.

3

Tackling the mounting plastic waste

2021 will see an increase in plastic pollution. With the pandemic encouraging single-use plastic, as

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SUSTAINABILITY

well as the massive increase in PPE, this has all contributed to a significant rise in waste – on an already mounting problem.

With South Africa only recycling 10% of its waste, the 'zero waste to landfill' goal becomes ambitious.

However, through minimisation, recycling, reuse, and recovery of this waste, as well as beneficiation technologies, we can still build a circular economy and really tackle this challenge. However, central to this is the diversion of 90% of waste from landfills.

Of course, the catalyst will be creating facilities that can deal with valuable waste in a more efficient

energy crises faced by the country – but to curb waste issues as well.

While nuclear power continues to be debated, there are alternative solutions. For example, the conversion of waste to energy through repurposing waste, which can’t be recycled or reused, is an energy source alternative that can, and must, be done. Think of the benefit of 500 tons of waste being converted to 12.6-megawatts of energy – reducing reliance on landfills and helping solve South Africa’s energy crisis at the same time? If we consider that by 2050 the

manner.

country’s energy needs will be more than double, then alternative solutions are critical.

The waste sector today goes far beyond traditional recycling. In fact, as the year progresses, our industry will become more focused on resilience and long-term sustainability.

Certainly, if we encourage stronger adherence to global standards and tackle these with a longterm view – we will take South Africa’s waste industry into a greener and more profitable future. 

4

Government efforts

We are seeing legislations such as the new Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulation being implemented, where manufacturers, those that ultimately produce waste, are now required to take responsibility for these products following the sale thereof.

This means that even from the production stage, the producer must put strategies in place to reuse, recycle and recover energy from the product.

Furthermore, carbon tax and carbon credits will also lead the way in this – where we know carbon credits will be sold to carbon taxpayers to reduce their carbon tax liability. These efforts are good, but we need more, and we need the support of the private sector.

5

Renewable energy

South Africa’s looming energy crisis has been on the agenda for several years now and with the recent statement indicating that load shedding will continue until September this year, and electricity prices are set to rise, alternative options need to be considered.

As a result, the conversation around renewable energy is a critical one – not only to help tackle the

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Kate Stubbs, Group Marketing Director at Interwaste.

TRANSFORMATION

Is collective phobia

the reason organisations struggle with transformation?

By Johan Kruger, Head of Context at Consulta

Transformation… probably one of the most contentious topics in modern organisations. What comes to mind when you think of transformation? To simply use the word ‘change’ seems a bit lightweight as transformation definitely implies significantly more than just change. We change our attire on a daily basis. Weather changes on a seasonal basis. The examples of change are plentiful.

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On the other side of the transformation spectrum, we find words such as ‘metamorphosis’, a change of the form or nature of a thing or person into a completely different one. The key words there are ‘completely different’. The obvious image that comes to mind is the worm(larva) hatching from the egg, changing into a pupa, and later becoming a colourful butterfly.

Deeper studies into metamorphosis in nature reveal a number of miracles. Scientists nowadays agree that during the pupa stage, the caterpillar’s

Habitat tracking: Organisms who used to reside in a particular setting are looking for surroundings like the habitat in which they used to reside. This often happens when brands expand to other markets or world regions. Domestos is a household cleaning solution produced by Unilever. While the product goes by its original name in most countries, the brand had to reinvent itself to survive in some specific countries. Domestos is known as ‘Domex’ in the Philippines and India, while in Japan is sold as ‘Domesuto’. You can also buy it as ‘Glorix’ in countries like the Netherlands, Russia, and

old body dies and a new body forms inside a protective shell.

Which example is most applicable when we think of organisational transformation? Is it merely a change in season or is it as severe as death and rebirth as in metamorphosis?

Bulgaria, or ‘Vim’ in Argentina, Brazil, and Vietnam.

Three modifications occur with environmental shift Darwinian theory has impacted science on an unmeasurable level and remains one of the hottest debated topics among intellectuals across the globe. Interpretations of Darwinian theory are plentiful. Discussions are also characterised by eclecticism – selecting and holding on to what is acceptable in one’s mind and discarding the rest.

Many people summarise Darwinian theory as the ‘survival of the fittest’. Technically this is not correct and Darwin himself, way back in 1809, attempted to create a better understanding of his ideas when he said: “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.”

This reference to responsiveness is firmly imbedded in Adaptation Theory that proposes that there are three modifications that occur with environmental shift: Habitat tracking, genetic change and extinction. All three of these are 100% applicable to modern organisations.

Genetic change: Genetic change is the process of

natural selection that enables the organism, with minor mutations to superior, to endure in a setting relative to the other species in a specified region.

Who could have foreseen that back in 1994 when Jeff Bezos started an online bookstore in his garage in Seattle, his idea would go on to become the largest internet retailer in the world? Amazon has taken the world by storm and it all started with an offering billed as ‘Earth’s biggest bookstore’.

Since then, the tech giant has definitively changed the way we consume. Fresh food online? Done.

Same day delivery or even within the hour?

Absolutely.

Extinction: When species are unable to adjust

or migrate to a new setting and discover a fresh atmosphere in which to reside, they ultimately drop out and become extinct. Think of Nokia. There are very few mobile phone users who did not have a Nokia at some stage. Today, the number of people who are still using a Nokia phone are hard to find.

One of the reasons for the demise of this excellent brand was that it could not adapt to the changing environment. Although the quality of the product itself and the usability of the application were undisputed, the company lost contact with the growing needs of mobile phone users to design

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TRANSFORMATION

and customise their own interface through the various Applications platforms.

Reactions/Responses/Resistance. Whether it is

a fourth occurrence or merely a characteristic of how the process of change and adaptation takes place in humans is not important, what is important is that it is a given that there will always be reactions/responses/resistance to change. In fact, psychologists have identified a condition known as Metathesiaphobia.

Metathesiophobia is the fear of change or changing things. The origin of the word Metathesiophobia comes from Greek ‘meta’ meaning change and ‘phobos’ meaning fear.

Metathesiophobes often feel that they have no control over their lives owing to constant change.

Their phobia makes them unwilling to move, to progress or to change anything from the routine.

This can severely impact one’s professional and personal lives.

Does leadership in organisations induce collective Metathesiophobia?

The question can rightfully be asked if leadership in organisations are not perhaps inducing collective Metathesiophobia. Let us go back to the extreme process of change described in the example of metamorphosis. Each of the phases in the process is well-defined and predictable. The tiny worms hatch from the eggs, they grow into gourmand caterpillars, change into a pupa, and develop into a butterfly.

How clearly are the stages in organisational transformation defined? How predictable is the next phase? And, lastly, but more importantly: Is there absolute clarity about the aspirational state and is everyone convinced that the change is for the better?

Transformation without a relentless effort to imbed the changed state into the hearts and minds

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of every employee will only ignite a process where the unknown is over-analysed, with a highly likely realisation of a lack of control as an unavoidable consequence. Sure, there are various personality types in every organisation and there will also be the adventurers and the explorers who thrive on the adrenalin brought about by journeys into the unknown. However, these crusaders are in the minority.

Not acknowledging the possibility of a collective paralysing phobia in your organisation may constrain and even damage the transformation in your organisation.

Consulta recently joined forces with Bhubesikazi, local licensee holders of Leadership Management International (LMI). For decades LMI has been developing leaders and organizations to maximize their full potential, whether it be on a personal, family, or organizational level. Backed by over 50 years of global experience, LMI offers several products and services supported by a proven system that can make a measurable impact on both individual and company performance, as well as the profitability of any business. 

Johan Kruger, Head of Context at Consulta

TAX ISSUES

Make use of the free and impartial

services of the tax ombudsman As a result of the huge demands on the fiscal because of the COVID-19 virus pandemic, we have possibly entered a period during which tax collection dynamics are going to change, in particular, between the taxpayer and the revenue collector, the South African Revenue Service (SARS).

Understandably so, a lot of money is going to be needed. Delayed payment of tax refunds and failure to adhere to set timelines for attending to objections and appeals are just some of the problems taxpayers sometimes encounter when dealing with SARS. The Office of the Tax Ombud (OTO) is ready to help resolve such issues. The OTO reminds taxpayers that it continues (even during COVID-19 lockdown restrictions) to provide free and impartial assistance to taxpayers who have tax complaints against the revenue collector, and calls on them to use the service.

Tax Ombudsman, Judge Bernard Ngoepe, says taxpayers should comply with and respect South African tax laws. However, when taxpayers find that they are not being treated fairly by SARS, they should not hesitate to lodge their complaints against SARS with the OTO. He reiterates that the OTO will continue protecting taxpayers’ rights by ensuring that their legitimate complaints are attended to and resolved promptly.

“Many taxpayers generally feel intimidated

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and accept substandard services from SARS, often losing millions of rands as the fear lodging complaints with the OTO; this should not be happening especially when this office is there to assist them," says Judge Ngoepe. "Just two months ago when we launched the Tax Ombud Annual Report 2019/20, we revealed that we had helped secure over R116 million for the top 10 tax refunds, money that could have been unfairly lost to SARS. We are committed to ensuring that taxpayers only pay what is due and not a single cent more.”

“We have helped reverse unfair decisions made by SARS on numerous cases, including the lifting of stoppers on taxpayers’ bank accounts and ensuring that the revenue collector attends to objections and appeals timeously, fairly and professionally. We urge taxpayers to utilize our services to see what difference we make to their lives, as we have done for thousands of others we assisted over the past seven years,” adds Judge Ngoepe.

Recently the OTO secured over R73 million in

TAX ISSUES

refunds and R6 million in interest payments from SARs on behalf of a taxpayer who had lodged a complaint with the OTO. Judge Ngoepe says this case and many others illustrate that the services of the OTO are vital in helping improve the country’s tax administration system.

"Although we have a fruitful working relationship with SARS, we have no qualms about making findings against the revenue collector, as we have done many times in the past; equally, we do not shy away from making a finding against a taxpayer where appropriate. We are impartial. We are encouraged that SARS respects our decisions and about 97% of the time implements our recommendations. We are committed to ensuring that there is a healthy balance between taxpayers’ rights and obligations on the one hand, and SARS’ powers and responsibilities on the other hand," Judge Ngoepe says.

“We urge taxpayers with tax complaints against SARS (not against their employers or other parties) to lodge them with our office so that we can assist them,” he adds. 

Tax Ombudsman, Judge Bernard Ngoepe

Taxpayers can contact the Office of the Tax Ombud on 0800 662 837 or complaints@ taxombud.gov.za or visit their website on www. taxombud.gov.za for more information about when and how to lodge a tax complaint. Walk-ins to the office are suspended until further notice.

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