Please visit the Cape Town gallery to view photos of the functions listed below.
CHARITY LUNCH REVIEW
Date: 18 November
Venue: BMW Pavillion
On 18 November, Businesswomen’s Association (BWA) Cape Town hosted the annual year-end charity lunch at the BMW pavilion. BWA in Cape Town, hosts two key events per annum; the Regional Achiever awards and the End-of-Year charity lunch. The event served three purposes:
-Raise funds and hand over 1,400 toys to Ikamva Labantu
-Introduce the BWA’s new national campaign with the Heart Foundation in promoting women’s health
-Create a social event for our members to thank them for their support for the year
We were joined at the lunch by a delegation from Inwent, CHANCE (ladies from literally almost all over the world!)
Our members did us proud! Not only did we received enough present for all 1,400 children (unbelievable!!!) but we also raised almost R11 800.00 in raffle tickets to assist Ikamva Labantu with their running costs. Ladies, thank you to each and every one of you! We were humbled by your generosity and spirit!�
We would like to thank the BMW pavilion and all their staff (serving and in the kitchen for their wonderful service and food. What a pleasure to support such a top class establishment.
One again, a big thank you from the BWA Cape Town. We wish you and your family a happy and safe holiday period and look forward to seeing you in 2011.
BWA Fashion Show in Collaboration with Pick n Pay
Date: 30 October 2010
Venue: Pick n Pay Office Park, Kenilworth
DONATION OF FUNDS TO THE SUNFLOWER FUND
Our sincere thanks to you, for your generous donation R 9 700 from donations and a raffle at your recent Business Women’s Association Pink Fashion Show held in Kenilworth recently. We are truly blessed with people with generosity such as yours. Your funds will be used to pay for the testing of more people to become bone marrow stem cell donors.
Thank you for helping us make a difference. We appreciate your support.
The Sunflower Fund (Friends of the South African Bone Marrow Registry) is a non-governmental, non-profit organisation. Regrettably the Foundation receives no government funding and exists solely on donations from the public at large. Tissue typing is a very costly procedure, costing R300 or R1 000 per donor. There are currently just over 64,000 donors on the register in South Africa and we need at least 100 000 donors (representative of all ethnic groups) to make it a register which will work and find donors for those suffering from leukaemia and other life-threatening blood disorders. We appreciate all donations.
Thank you so much for being prepared to “Share a Little, to Save a Life”.
Yours sincerely
Chris Moir
PR Coordinator – Western Cape
021 701 0661
BWA 30 Year Birthday Breakfast
Date: 29 September 2010
Review - Millcentt Wolmarans - Premium Consulting
On Wednesday 29th October 2010, the BWA celebrated its 30th year in style. During the past three decades the BWA has made a huge impact by inspiring, motivating and empowering truly wonderful businesswomen. This achievement clearly demanded a celebration.
A spring breakfast was held at the Crystal Towers Hotel and all guests were requested to wear a hat representing the advent of the flower season. This was an invitation many accepted with enthusiasm. The display of hats was elegant, vibrant and colourful. Three winners were eventually chosen, with the difficult task of choosing given to the Manager of Crystal Towers.
Our Master of Ceremonies for the morning, Nina Joubert, (Regional BWA Chairlady) wore an elegant black hat with silver lace. As always Nina handled her role with ease and grace.
Ten ‘special guests’ were invited to mingle with other guests to share their experiences and life stories. These included Suzanne Ackerman-Berman, Dr Susan Vosloo, Les Aupiais, Maureen Hargraves, Truida Pekel, Gita lison, Rosalind Messenger, Ferose Oaten, Caroline Mack and Nina Joubert.
The breakfast served was tasty and enjoyable and exceeded expectations. The morning celebrations also included an exhibition by various companies who were invited to display and showcase their goods and services.
During the breakfast Cheryl Steyn (BWA Branch co-ordinator) was given an opportunity to provide feedback on her recent trip to Ghana as well as to inform the guests about the new membership drive.
This was once again a stunning event. Here’s to another 30 years for the BWA. May it continue to grow in stature and strength.
Review by: Tillie Smit - Blue Goose Promotions
If you put 120 business women in a beautiful setting like the Crystal Palace Hotel, ask them to each put on a funky “spring hat”, feed them deliscious food and let them mingle, what do you get?
Well the answer to that question is quite obvious : a morning to remember for a very long time!!
The festive atmosphere was a perfect background to all the ladies who seemed to be talking all at once. Business cards were handed out faster than lightning and information regarding everyones’ businesses were exchanged and discussed, and advice and encouragement was given where needed. One lonely ex-Gautenger who admitted to still being lonely and heartbroken, was promptly offered a few shoulders to cry on!
It was a very insightful experience to be able to talk to the various business women icons, asking them questions and listening to their stories. One thing that came out very clearly, is the fact that they were all women who saw an opportunity, had a dream, and went after it with all their heart, not stopping even at phoning up Buckingham Palace! Another thing that I thought about afterward, is how I enjoyed being able to mingle with all kinds of businesswomen, some who have come a far way already and made big successes of their businesses, some who are getting there slowly but surely, and then some who is just at the edge, ready and eager and afraid to take that final step...
I thoroughly enjoyed putting up my exhibition table (not so much getting up at before five to be able to do so!!) and seeing the other exhibits and talking to the various people that came to look at my exhibition and asked me questions about my products and services.
Thanks BWA for creating this platform for all of us!!�
Your Greatest teacher may just be a horse
Date: 15 September 2010
Reviews by: Isable Meyer
What I know about business leadership, I learnt from a horse
What an interesting experience. On Wednesday, 16 September 2010 we set off on a journey with Yolanda Sing and fellow BWA members. It was a new experience, going to a business seminar in our jeans and hiking boots, having been told that we should be ready to get right down and dirty.
We started off by introducing ourselves and I got reminded of what a great networking opportunity each of these events are. Each of us gave a bit of information about our backgrounds and then with some nervous giggles also what our experience in the “horse” field was. Luckily Yolanda quickly assured us that no experience was needed. Yolanda gave us a bit of her background and we quickly realised that she had “been there, done that” when it came to corporate politics and tough business environments.
And off in the midst of rain falling softly (and sometimes not so softly), we went to meet our “teachers”. Rocky( Horse handler), introduced us to the horses.
While feeding them, we could carefully watch their behaviour and perhaps recognise a bit of ourselves in them. Ice was the assertive one, and sometimes the bully. With her white mane, everyone knew who was the boss around there and scrammed when she arrived at the hale bale. Rocky actually had to bully her back to get her to back off and give the others a chance to eat. Then there was Lady. She was more of the peace-maker/ negotiator. Able to stand her ground, eating peacefully next to Ice, but also accommodating Heidi and Parrot. Parrot was the scaredy cat… running off whenever Ice just looked in her direction.
It was interesting to how we recognised some of the leadership or follower qualities in the horses and could relate. It also made you think of the influence your actions had on others, and how it is perceived, getting reminded that the line is sometimes very thin. Assertive and pushy lay very close to each other, and so were leading and bullying. It gave us each a fresh look at how we react towards others and perhaps how we would like to react.
Finally the rain got the better of us, and we went off to the stables. In a large area, we got divided into four groups and shown how to rub down a horse and how to clean its hooves. Yolanda explained that it was all in the approach and that a horse would sense whether you’re at ease, or nervous and would respond accordingly. We got taught how to lean in against the horse, so that it would pick up its leg for you to clean its hoof and let me tell you, that bit of trusting the horse was a bit daunting.
We were told to read the horses’ “body language”. Pulling back it’s ears and waving its tail excessively was not a good sign and meant one should just become a bit more relaxed and step back, so that the horse could return to its “peaceful” state. I felt a bit like the owner of a bad dog in the “Dog Whisperer”, having to take control, but not being aggressive.
One by one, we each had a chance to rub down the horse, first with a harder type brush and then with one that looked like a hairbrush. It was quite entertaining to see that the front of the horses definitely got the most attention and that the flanks and the back, were definitely approached with a lot more respect.
Our group had to tend to Ice, and having seen her stubbornness and cheekiness, as well as her sheer size, I have to admit was quite daunting. However, to my delight she lifted up her hoof first time when I leaned into her.
Afterward Yolanda asked us what we had learnt and how we could apply it to our day-to-day work. Some felt that they realised that they had to move with confidence, as the more nervous they were, the more nervous the horse became. Others said that it was interesting to realise that you had to work with the horse, and trust her to lean into her, so that she could lift up her hoof for you. Reading each other and working together was really important. My lesson for the day was that you have to be firm, but at the same time not hold the leash too tight, as that made the horse nervous and non cooperative. We also learnt that guiding with empathy earned the respect and acceptance of authority from the horse. One or two of the ladies came to the conclusion, that even though the lessons were good, they’re just not quite horse people ?
By this time the horses were getting really anxious as part of the first exercise meant that they were not fed proper breakfast. I had fallen in love with Ice by this point in time and was quite willing to bring her home with me… which might have created a bit of a problem for the neighbours in my complex ?
All in all we left, richer for the experience, and surprised about what one can learn about oneself and group dynamics, by spending time with an animal.
On the Couch with Pieter Dirk Uys
Review by: Marelize Van Rooyen of Nationlink Plattekloof
Date: 27 August 2010
Upon the arrival at the 'On the couch' session with Pieter-Dirk Uys, I was dismayed to see the small number of seats placed around the room - in the end, this resulted in one of the most inspirational sessions I have attended in quite a while.
The fact that we were a small number of people made the whole event so much more intimate, it cultivated much more interaction and enabled us to ask questions and probe on issues we otherwise never would have had the opportunity for.
I thought I knew a quite a bit about Pieter-Dirk and all his various persona's beforehand since we have a house in Yzerfontein and a trip to Darling is a highlight on every visit, but the extent of his work in this small West Coast town and the rest of the country for that matter is so much more than what meets the eye. Evita se Peron and the theatre restaurant and boerasic park that goes with it are well known, but his community involvement stretch much wider than just this establishment - and I think that is what made the lasting impression with me, no matter how small - each one of us can make a difference not only in the life of 1 child or person, but in any community if you put your mind to it.
I must be honest, I would most probably never have thought of putting a swimming pool next to a clinic to lure the children in and take the stigma away, nor would I have had the vision to see that a young toothless boy standing on a make shift stage in a small South African dorpie would be able to make it big one day in the international music arena - and yet all of this had a very delicate Uys hand in it, without shouting it out to the world and insisting on the recognition for it.�
I cannot imagine that I would have the guts to take a controversial topic like HIV and AIDS and to develop it in a training program for children, one that have changed the world of thousands (if not millions) of children in our country - and one that have given them the message that it is perfectly OK to say NO, and that it is even more OK to tell if somebody is touching you or hurting you. It is especially the latter that I think touched me the most out of everything that has been said amidst a lot of laughter and also many lumps in the throat, because it is only if we heal the hurt in our childrens lives and if we give them the education that they require on all aspects of life - that we will be able to build a better and brighter future in this beautiful country of ours.
Thank you Pieter-Dirk, for an truly awesome 'on the couch with' experience and for inspiring me once again to do more for others ...
Dinner Connections
Reviewed by: Avita Davids from Pick n Pay
Thank you to all the women who attend the BWA Dinner Connections on July 14th 2010 at the Crystal Towers hotel in Cape Town.�
What an inspiring evening! As a new member of BWA, the dinner was the first event I attended and I had no idea what to expect. I remember feeling a bit nervous as I walked towards the dining area. Those nervous feelings soon disappeared when I walked in to find smiling and welcoming faces seated around a dinner table.
After everyone was introduced and shared information on themselves and their companies, the conversations intensified! As I listened, I realized and felt the diversity, passion and enthusiasm of the women around me. The food soon arrived, and as we ate our food and drank our wine, we were absorbed in conversation discussing everything from careers, our families, politics to our favorite TV shows. Before I knew , it was already after 11 pm.
�
It was an amazing evening of good food and fantastic company and left me feeling more confident about myself as a woman and wiser than I walked in. I realized that we all face similar challenges and share the same concerns in both our professional and personal lives. Organizations like the BWA provide the platform to share our experiences and skills, and afford us the opportunity to learn from each other. Once again thank you to each of you amazing and vibrant women who attended, I had a superb time. A special thank you to Janine Nel for hosting the dinner, the organization was impeccable from the food to parking, as well as Tillie Smit for sponsoring the gifts. I look forward to our next event.�
Creative Networking
Date: 9 June 2010
Reviewed by: Bridgette Worrall of tbsp// beyond the line
My first BWA event and wow what a fantastic occasion. Not only did I get to meet and network with like-minded businesswomen but I also learnt the Diski dance. Well ‘learnt’ may be a bit of an exaggeration. ‘Tried- really- hard’ may be a better depiction of what I accomplished even with an enthusiastic and brilliant teacher in XXXX. To get our energy levels up, we started with delicious snacks and cooldrinks. We then all gathered for the ‘dancing’. Luckily we were given a few breaks between lessons not only to catch our breath but also to mingle and chat to our fellow ‘dancers’. So will I be back for the next event, you bet.
Strategy Workshop
Date: 26 May 2010
Venue: PricewaterhouseCoopers
Reviewed by: Claudia Brandt
Claudia Brandt is a personal life coach with a strong business background specialising in coaching women in business. Check out her website at www.brandt-coaching.co.za
Is your ladder leaning against the wrong wall?
It's incredibly easy to get caught up in an activity, in the busy-ness of life, to work harder and harder and climb the ladder of success only to discover it is leaning against the wrong wall. It is possible to be busy – very busy – without being effective.
Brian of Afriversity used this quote by Stephen Covey early on in our workshop on strategy development and in a sense this was what the workshop was about for many of us: Where am I heading with my business? And is my busy-ness effective?
These can be scary questions and many of us like to leave them lurking in the dark and just get on with all the other tasks that seem so much more pressing. However, it was a relief to tackle these questions with Brian. Not only is he very knowledgeable on the subjects of strategies and entrepreneurship. But he also eased us into the workshop with his humor, relaxed facilitation style and his many illustrative anecdotes and helpful cribs.
Brian introduced us to the two very basic types of business: the lifestyle business and the business as asset for future harvesting. And surprisingly we had a lot of discussion right there. We talked about the thrills and toils of entrepreneurship. Some of us confessed that they do not like to handle staff and management issues but rather run a very small business and concentrate on their product or service. Others were running a bigger company and had questions around exit strategies, crisis and finance management. It is the size of business that basically determines which type of ladder you are busy climbing and what your daily work consists of. You need to make a conscious choice right here.
And this is the point we came back to often during the workshop: Know yourself and build your business from there. In order to be a successful entrepreneur in any kind of business you need passion, perseverence and motivation. These are sourced from your strengths, needs and wants. Concentrate on what you are good at. As an entrepreneur you get the chance to build a business – every single aspect of it - around yourself. Isn't that a liberating thought? I think it can make strategy planning an exciting challenge.
Brian very generously left us with a lot of material and food for thought on how to develop a strategy. What I enjoyed most were the passionate discussions we had, the questions that were asked and the insights we shared. Thank you to all the courageous entrepreneurs who participated and thank you, Brian.
Afriversity is a not-for-profit organisation founded to train, support and assist promising entrepreneurs. Brian runs regular courses to train entrepreneurs. Check out his website at www.afriversity.org
GET THE CAMEL OUT YOUR TENT
Date: 29 May 2010
Reviewd by: Claire McTaggart - RECRO Business Consulting
Get the camel out of your tent is an intriguing title for a talk about procrastination, which was well put together by Tracey Foulkes of Get Organised for the Business Women’s Association.�
Many of us, including myself, a self-proclaimed expert procrastinator, were eager to hear any tips for overcoming this seemingly common problem. Tracey used the analogy of the camel getting into ones tent as what happens to all to many of us letting the clutter and unfinished tasks pile up which leaves us eventually literally sleeping out in the cold, not using all our furniture for its intended purpose, and in a similar case – my sister was actually sharing her single bed with a number of her medical textbooks at one stage!
Tracey explained that procrastination is either behavioural or decisional and largely self-sabotaging, we all know the feeling of something hanging over us waiting to be done. She went into the three top reasons that it occurs being fear of failure, success or finishing; misaligned priorities, leading to non-commitment and the perfectionist habit among us of gathering more & more information resulting in avoiding the decision; and also being so overwhelmed by the task that we get stuck in our concern over possible failure and disappointment. The payoff of procrastination is that we can blame someone/something else (usually time/boss etc) instead of taking responsibility and looking at ourselves. I’m sure we can all relate to more than one of these and apply these in our lives right now.
Perhaps the most helpful section of the talk was the tips for overcoming procrastination, which Tracey is an expert at assisting people on including visualisation of the end result and how one will feel when the task is completed; brainstorming the project & breaking it into bite-sized chunks; making a public commitment or holding yourself accountable to someone else; committing to just 10 minutes of the project (often starting is the hardest); realising that not all tasks need 100% effort some tasks only need 70%, leaving one with more energy for the 100% required tasks; tossing a coin for menial decisions which seem waste time; getting someone else to help one with the bigger picture and focusing on the end result not on the ‘how to’ details.
We all gained a lot of valuable insight from the discussion and left another Business Women’s Association event feeling inspired, motivated and with a little bit more perspective on getting over procrastination and getting on with living a freer life.
Thank you to Cheryl for organising & Tracey for the informative talk.
RBAA Gala Dinner
Date: 13 May 2010
Reviewed by: Phumeza Mgxashe
BWA in Western Cape honours top achievers
The annual BWA’s Regional Business Achiever Awards (RBAA) gala dinner, held on Thursday, 13 May 2010, lived up to its reputation for glitz and glamour as the top women achievers in the Cape were honoured. The delightful hosts of the function, namely, Nina Joubert, chair of the BWA in the Western Cape and Sumaya Adam, Head of Business Banking at Nedbank, pointed out that it was a special night for the BWA in the Western Cape as this was a 10th consecutive annual awards function.
An array of phenomenal women had been nominated; by family, friends and business associates; in the entrepreneur, professional, emerging entrepreneur, corporate and social entrepreneur categories. The night was the finale after an intense judging process that included an interview with an equally accomplished judging panel.�
The judges, Ryland Fisher (author and former Cape Times Editor); Aden Thomas (breakfast host for CapeTalk); Yvonne Finch (past Vice-President of the BWA and convener of the judges); Carol Bouwer (TV personality and businesswoman), Julia Fourie (HBD Venture Capitalists), Ferose Oaten (Businesswoman and Vice-President of the BWA) and Anita Stemmet (PriceWaterhouseCoopers); all spoke about how daunting and challenging it was to pick a winner for each category and all felt humbled and privileged to have been part of the process.
The winners on the night were:
Corporate Category:
Ariella Kuper
Head of New Business Development
Director
Auction Alliance
Professional Category:
Elaine Rumboll
HOD Executive Education
Graduate School of Business
UCT
Entrepreneur Category:
Tracy Foulkes
Founder and Managing Director
NoMU Brands (Pty) Ltd
Emerging Entrepreneur Category:
Helga Steyn
Oaktree Marketing Solutions
Social Entrepreneur Category:
Ester Watson
Gender/Disability Coordinator
George Municipality
Also, on the night, Kim Baxen, a post graduate Tourism studies student at UCT was awarded the annual BWA bursary to further her studies. The BWA in the Western Cape also managed the raise over R19 000 towards a bursary for 2011, through a raffle ticket sale and an auction of a lunch with two prominent Cape personalities and RBAA judges, Aden Thomas and Julia Fourie and a big thank you to BWA members, Rowena Hey and Thando Takane who kept the auction going to the point where R4100 was raised. Rowena Hey, previous winner of the RBAA Entrepreneur category, promised to report back to the BWA on the lunch.
The annual gala function was at recently-opened and exquisite Crystal Towers Hotel in Century City which proved a perfect venue that warmed up the 200 guests on a cold and wet Cape winter night.
BOOK CLUB
Date: 6 May 2010
Reviewed by: Phumeza Mgxashe
Great conversation, lively debate, wine, delicious snacks, cross-cultural interaction and ….books
The BWA Book Club held its monthly meeting on a chilly winter evening on the 6th of May 2010 in its usual joint at Lion’s Kloof guest house in Higgovale.
Once the pleasantries of greetings and orders of the first round of drinks out of the way, the Book Club travelled down memory lane recalling the days of meetings packed with members and guests.�
It was then that a re-branding plan was hatched and am pleased that the BWA Book Club will revamp itself in order to increase attendance at its meetings. Many ideas were brainstormed and the club is ready to re-launch itself. Watch this space.
Later in the evening, the business of books was the order of the day. It was quite pleasing that “Something on my mind” the biography on the life of Kate Jowell, now has a few fans and people keen to read it after the a different light was shed on it.
Paulo Coelho remains a big hit with the Book Club as a favourite author, and perhaps he should honour the Club by coming to Cape Town to spend time with the members. Better still, he could pay for all of us to visit his homeland of Brazil.
I would really encourage anyone who feels the need for relaxed networking, cross-cultural interaction, lively debate and is prepared to gain different perspectives on the big and small life issues, to pay the Book Club a visit.
The next book club meeting will be held at the same place on Thursday, 3 June 2010. We look forward to seeing you.
On the Couch with Kader Asmal
Date: 15 April 2010
Reviewed by: Phumeza Mgxashe
Kader Asmal – cricket, thrillers, SA politics, Ireland and more…
On a cold autumn Thursday evening in Cape Town, Professor Kader Asmal warmed up BWA members with tales about Ireland, academia, thrillers, politics and neighbourliness.�
Never the one to shy away from expressing his take and views on a variety of topical and current affairs in South Africa and Cape Town, accompanied by his wife Louise, Asmal talked about his childhood in the rural town of Stanger in KwaZulu Natal, his interactions with his mentor, the Nobel Prize winning Chief Albert Luthuli and the years spent in academia in Ireland. In fact, he says had 1990 not happened he would still he would still be in Ireland.
As one of the brains behind the South African constitution, he holds it in high regard calling it the best guarantee for the future for our grandchildren. He went on to point out groundbreaking developments in South Africa including the fact that the country has a homosexual, HIV positive, white male judge serving in the highest court in the land and also the fact that we have a High Court judge who is openly gay who had instituted and won a legal challenge to certain aspects of the law that discriminated on the basis of sexual orientation. “We have 14 million people who are able to access social grants and in the old order, these people would be languishing in poverty,” he added.
When asked about the enormity of the problems in our education system, he cited the fact that in 1994, the government had to integrate 18 apartheid era government departments of Education. He said that to this day, the country has not been able to achieve a national school ethos catering to all communities.
Interestingly, Professor Asmal regards himself as a private person and says “the time spent in exile was not a sacrifice but necessary because both my marriage and membership of the ANC meant that I was involved in illegal activity”.
His interests are cricket and reading thrillers, newspapers, especially the Irish Independent which he says on average boasts four pages of book reviews, quipping that in most SA newspapers, one could argue that the book review section is regarded as the “kindergarten” section.�
He bemoaned the lack of social cohesion, especially in Cape Town, which he said was largely due to the apartheid spatial geography. “We live in silos and have very few opportunities for social interaction,” he stressed.
Having moved town and country means that he has lost touch with many of his friends as he acknowledged that friendship depends on regular social contact.�
His closing remarks were “Do good by stealth” and encouraged BWA members and guests to seek opportunities for racial integration as this will yield collective good.
WRITE RIGHT
Date: Thursday, 18 March 2010
Reviewd by: Junita Duncan
A fun filled, interactive evening where a diverse group of business woman got together for an interesting talk delivered by Deborah Glover from Business Presentation Group to "WRITE RIGHT".
Since 2000 Deborah is a valued member of a team of facilitators with BPG, her key area of expertise being Communication skills. She draws on her experience as a Speech and Voice Teacher.
The discussion started on a good opening note with Deborah’s high energy and great sense of humour. Everyone interacted, discussed and voiced their opinions on different writing skills / techniques.
This interesting debate created:
silence as we all were glued to our seats and listened attentively
learning at the same time
laughter while we compared old fashioned writing styles to more modern way of writing
She concluded that writing should:
CAPE TOWN AGM
Date: Monday, 1 March 2010
Reviewed by: Phumeza Mgxashe
BWA branch in Cape Town gathers for the 2010 AGM.
The BWA Cape Town branch held its AGM on Monday, 1 March 2010 at Atlantic Imbizo at the V&A Waterfront.
There was an impressive turn-out of 45 members and with 12 proxy votes, sent by some of those who could not make it; a quorum was declared the AGM proceeded.
Both the minutes of the previous AGM and Treasurer’s reports were tabled and adopted. The outgoing Chair, Ferose Oaten, tabled the Chairlady’s report detailing activities and programmes embarked on in 2009.
Ferose Oaten who has chaired the Cape Town branch for three years and is also Vice-President of the BWA, announced that she will be stepping down at the next Committee meeting. She said she will continue to serve on the Committee and will still oversee the Regional Business Achiever Awards process and event, a flagship of the organization.
Ferose was given a standing ovation by the meeting delegates and was thanked by Nina Joubert, currently vice chair of the Cape Town branch, for her leadership and dedication.
Upon the completion of the AGM, the meeting was then addressed by international speaker Vanessa Hall, the Founder and Director of Entente Pty Limited, Australia. Ms Hall spoke about trust, which she defined as our ability to rely on a product /person /organization/people to deliver a specific outcome. She went on to present a model on trust that has been seen by over 300 psychologists globally. She mentioned that she’d surveyed over 600 Australian on the subject of trust before coming up with the model.
Judging by the impromptu conversations on the subject after the presentation, one could tell that Ms Hall had struck a chord and had managed to capture her audience on what most people would have assumed was a routine and almost boring topic.
Ms Hall is an award winning author, speaker and advisor to business leaders and individuals alike. Her business and personal experience has ignited an unstoppable passion that has made her an outstanding entrepreneur and globally recognised thought leader on trust. Ms Hall’s award winning book, The Truth About Trust in Business, has set a new standard as to how any successful business should be operated.
BWA BUSINESS SPEED DATING
Date: Friday, 12 February 2010
Reviewed by: Lizelle Louw of Conference Complete
The thought of speed dating makes most women break out in a cold sweat, butterflies suddenly appear in our stomachs and our insecurities become detectable. As a newcomer to the world of Business Speed Dating the anticipation of the day had the same averse effect on my physical form.
How very wrong I was. I walked in to find a diverse group of woman energetically exchanging ideas, sharing their experiences and showing a genuine interested in each others growing businesses. As a young business woman I found the warm welcome of more experienced woman inviting and reassuring.
My objective for this session was to network with every person at the event. The Business Speed Dating activity ensured that this goal was met. I did not only meet potential business acquaintances but also met woman that would be able to enrich my life on a personal level.
This event was well organized, informative and exciting. I look forward to future BWA Business Speed Dating events!