Jongilanga Creche Christmas Hand Over
5 December 2007
Jongilanga Creche, Masangwanaville, Bew Brighton
Review by: Gail Hawes, The Oliver Foundation
Miriam was trying to speak but she was overcome with emotion... “I don’t know how to say thank you enough". After a big hug she said “I can’t tell you just how much this means to these kids and their families".
This was after the Businesswomen’s Association and Father Christmas who arrived on the back of a bakkie, had delivered over 80 beautifully wrapped gifs to the children of Jongilanga Creche in Masangwanaville, New Brighton. Father Christmas, his helper and women of the BWA were welcomed to the creche by the singing of ‘We wish you a Merry Christmas’ newly learned by the children for the occasion. Their eyes couldn’t believe it as the presents were taken into the hall and Father Christmas took his place.
One by one, and with a boisterous round of applause each child was invited up to meet Father Christmas, receive their gift and a scrummy goody bag of treats. Their faces were a treat as you can see from the photos!.
This area of New Brighton is particularly impoverished with very high levels of HIV/Aids, orphans, abuse and poverty. Many of the children who attend the creche free of charge have been identified by the voluntary community workers of Jongilanga as particularly at risk, so a Christmas gift with bright wrapping means even more to them. Big thanks go out to all the BWA ladies who very generously bought gifts to their Christmas event for these children.
Year End Function
16 November 2007
The Feathermarket Centre
Review by: Christelle Verwey, Corporate Fleet Sales
I had an absolute ball at the BWA Year end function, recently held at the Feathermarket Centre. I invited 6 of my clients to the event and we all had a phenomenal time – great fun and a great atmosphere. I can't say that the main course met the standard of the entertainment and the presentations, although it did not detract from the festivities. The venue was great and I was very, very happy to have won a suit from SMAT Clothing to the value of R600. It was the last day of my leave and it was a wonderful way for me to end it.
I learnt a lot from the presentations by both Loanda Blewett, of Chata Romano and Sue Matthews of SMAT Clothing. Their method of conveying information was very informative…. Not to talk about the dish who did the singing and really got us ladies going.
As I always respond on my valuation sheet : Keep doing what you are doing!
Businesswoman of the Year Luncheon
2 November 2007
The Kelway Hotel
Two of the country’s top women in business were the keynote speakers at the recently held BWOYA luncheon in Port Elizabeth on the 2nd November. The 2007 award winners in the Corporate and Entrepreneurial category, The Jupiter Drawing Room CEO Renee Silverstone and Hewlett Packard CEO Thoko Mokgosi-Mwantembe, are phenomenal women whom shared their rise from humble beginnings to their major successes with the audience.
With Nedbank being the official financial sponsor of BWA, listening to the success stories and experiences of both Thoko and Renee certainly demonstrated that there is an upward trend of the number of women occupying leadership positions in both the private and public sectors and we are most proud to be strategically aligned as part of the progress that is being made in the advancement of women.
Silverstone contributed passion and a good team to her successful business and according to her “ if you don’t love what you do, you won’t be great.” This passion resulted in a dream becoming reality when The Jupiter Drawing Room won several local and international awards and was rated the top agency in several ad agency surveys. Interestingly, Renee also placed great emphasis on the team effort that made it possible to achieve these aspirational moments in the history of advertising and one can certainly conclude that people management are also key to her style of leadership and that people are at the heart of her entrepreneurial spirit to acclaim. Testament of the phenomenal growth of The Jupiter Room which was launched 18 years ago can be witnessed by the fact that the company now has 50% BEE ownership, 50% of the company has an equitable representation of black generic staff and 65% are women.
Mokgosi-Mwatembe was born in Sophiatown but grew up in Swaziland. Her academic orientation saw her launching her career by means of bursaries that allowed her to earn her MSc in medical chemistry. She also shared that while teaching maths and science she had sewn clothes to sell to help her save money for a one way ticket to London to study. Her appointment at Hewlett Packard was the opportunity for her to bring about transformation related changes and also enabled her to implement a comprehensive human resources strategy. Both women concluded by agreeing that every company has a responsibility to manage talent and to increase the pool of talent so that we do not recycle talent from the same pool in the future and this would also address the problem of skills shortage.
This inspirational talk really enabled the audience to leave with a sense of energy and belief in not only themselves but also in the ability to take their own businesses from GOOD to GREAT. Nedbank remains truly proud to be partnering with BWA and we will continue to commit to championing the empowerment of women and to recognise these excellent achievers in business.
Quick Connections
12 October 2007
Magnetic Storm
Review by: Bev Gold
If you have never been to a BWA Quick Connections Function I suggest you book immediately for the next one scheduled. Quick Connections is a form of “speed dating” except that the “dates” are prospective business opportunities and relationships rather than romantic ones.
Guests are seated in two rows opposite one another and are given two minutes each to detail their product or business to the person sitting opposite them before moving seats, on cue, to the next “date”. This gives each person a perfect opportunity to get to the point quickly and network through a room full of fellow BWA members and guests. The objective is clear and uncluttered with the usual necessary and acceptable social etiquette. We don’t usually go up to a relative stranger and, within two minutes, detail them on our product, exchange business cards (and even get a sale!) But this is the norm at Quick Connections! And it’s such fun! The most difficult thing was to get “partners” to move along - Jane Stevenson had to beat an improvised drum almost to death until we did so - and to hear each other speak over the cacophony of excited chatter.
To top it all there was a lucky draw of four tickets to the Oprah Tea on 6th November which was generously sponsored by Old Mutual and I won one – what a bonus. (Thank you so much!) I also took a number of orders, made new friends and contacts and found a couple of potential suppliers - yes, it works both ways.
We hope to see you at the next BWA Quick Connections Event!
Hurdles & Help: The Art of Networking
Wednesday, 9 May 07
Review by Anneke Anker, Business Link Magazine
Jane Stevenson and Michelle Nagar
Jane has done it again! With a phenomenal & very insightful talk Jane has shaken each & every one of us out of our "comfort zones". Gone are the days were we thought that networking is chatting to old friends, sitting comfortably at an event & wait for the host or hostess to call all for the event to start.
O no! There is a definite art to networking effectively & we have been taught these skills at BWA. Here are some reminders & notes of what Jane has shared with us.
So how do you create a good First Impression?
* Your handshake needs to be strong & firm
* Your facial expression in important ? smile & make eye contact
* Show interest in the other person
* Overall attentiveness is important ? ask the other person about them
* Dress code is vital
How to make networking work for you
* A sense of humour is always attractive
* Get out of your comfort zone
* Be brave & use the platform wisely
* Nose around a little - work the room (Don't get involved in ONE conversation)
* Pass & collect business cards. Good tip is to make notes at the reverse side. Use the business cards effectively
* Make sure you are memorable ? also make sure it is business related
* Be sincere - falseness stands out
* Accept & embrace diversity
* Don't be quick to judge
* Watch body language
* Be positive & people WILL remember you
Commandments of networking
* Thou shalt Listen
* Thou shalt drop the "what's in it for me" attitude
* Thou shalt build a relationship
* Thou shalt share my network with others
* Thou shalt focus on the individual
* Thou shalt attend appropriate events
* Thou shalt know thyself
* Thou shalt follow up within 24 hours
Keep on practicing these skills & remember your 15 second "elevator speech".
Keep on Networking
BWA / Old Mutual Golf Day
Friday, 20 April 2007
Golf day - Line Up
A novice's experience
Michelle Nagar, Nalithuba Training & Development
What's all the fuss about golf anyway? How much fun can it really be to chase after a little white ball with a thin little iron? It seemed rather silly.
The critic in me was rather bowled over on Friday, 20 April 2007 when Old Mutual and BWA hosted the Ladies Golf Day. It was such a fun day that it really changed my perceptions about golf.
Before we hit the greens, Old Mutual delivered a revealing presentation on insurance and assurance for women. Statistics show that women are the most under-insured and with the startling numbers of breast cancer sufferers, women are encouraged to ensure that they have sufficient cover against dreaded diseases.
Resident PE Golf Club coach, Graham Whale, gave a brief talk on networking on the golf course. I found his tips particularly useful since most of my client base is rather hooked on golf. He pointed out though one can certainly get to meet and talk to potential clients, it is equally important to understand golf etiquette. As much as you can delight or impress your client with a golf day, you can also peeve them off with poor golf manners! Quad biking - with the golf cart - on the golf course is definitely out of the question.
Graham and his cute helpers then escorted us to the driving range so that we could start with the basics. There was so much anticipation and trepidation at that point. We needed the security of knowing that none of us were masters there and that we all had to learn.
Starting off with the basics meant that we needed to get our grip and posture correct. From there we could move on and attempt to hit the tee out of the ground. That proved to be hilarious. I missed so many times and Graham's motivation was that we needed to get it right before we could move on to the ball.
Getting the ball to fly was not as easy as I thought it would be. They make it look so easy on TV. Every time we got the ball up and away there were shrieks of triumph and I haven't heard so many yeses in a long time!
The putting competition was very tense and so much pressure. Accuracy and concentration is needed to get the ball into the hole from even under a metre! My AHA moment was that golfers are not just being prima donnas when they hush the crowd as they prepare to make that put 30 centimetres from the hole!
At the end of the day the ladies present all agreed that it was very cool despite the sore limbs and achy palms. It would be great to network on the golf course more regularly!
Time Management
29 March 2007
Brazilian Coffee Shop
Review by Suzette Meyer, Casa Mia Spa
I don't know if it was the smell of the roasted coffee beans, the biscotti and cappuccino or just to meet with everybody again, but to me this meeting was a great success.
I could relate to each of the situations that were mentioned, from starting up a business till desperately trying to delegate and to manage my time, between my work, children, husband, meetings and myself. To delegate in easy, but you need to delegate to the right person with the right amount of knowledge, otherwise your business will not grow without your input. May be this is one of the reasons why new entrepreneurs are battling to delegate, first share your knowledge, pass it on, and then you can stand back and relax a bit with other women in business.
The speakers were knowledgeable and their presentations were a bit short but met my expectations. There were more than enough time for questions and answers and even there I learn from other ladies being all in the same boat as I was. The networking opportunity was good and this is always an excellent opportunity to meet new members.
Time Management Tips:
Prioritise:
Shorten your "to do" list to the top five priorities that have the biggest impact on your life. Do the most important things first. Sometimes it is worth spending money rather than time e.g. hiring an au pair.
Delegate:
When prioritising, identify the things that could be done by someone else. Don?t do everything yourself. Delegate and build a team around you. Empower and mentor people around you to grow.
Confront your fear:
Don't procrastinate the things you don't like. Break big tasks down into smaller manageable, tasks - building blocks to a bigger milestone. Do the tough ones first.
Perfectionism:
Don't fiddle with detail - just do it.
Motivate yourself:
At the end of each week, look at your "done list" instead of just your "to do" list. This will create a sense of achievement, will motivate and inspire you.
Admit that multi-tasking is bad:
Kill distractions, don't multi-task too much. Switch off the TV, the phone, close your e-mails and limit working on e-mails to one to two hours a day.
Keep an activity log:
Log what you do - this will identify where time is going and identify the black holes/unproductive times. Log energy levels/most productive times - mornings or afternoons or evenings.
Manage meetings:
Avoid unproductive meetings, especially regular/routine ones. Get people to come to you for meetings
Create reading time while driving:
Buy audio books to listen to while driving to utilise your time productively. Exclusive Books sell these.
Manage yourself first:
Unless you are OK in body, mind and soul, you cannot help other people.
Allow yourself stress relieving time.
Have a good cry every now and again.
Map your meetings:
Schedule meetings and activities around the same area.
Lize Hayward, Goodyear SA
A day at the Races
2 March 2007
Arlington Race Course
Review by Mimi Rupp, Smartstone
The only way to describe it is: good food, good company and LOADS of fun and laughter!
I booked a table of 10 and set about finding some guests to join in. I decided to use the opportunity to entertain our clients and each of them received a 'goodie bag' containing a few corporate gifts, champagne, chocolates, a betting "know how" list and some money to bet with.
The excitement was immense - attending the races was a first for most of my guests. I must admit, the event proved to be quite hard work in between all the networking, betting on the various races, plus sharing tips around all the tables, watching the race and collecting our winnings - AND eating in-between.
I?m thrilled to say that only one person from our group of 10 lost money. The rest of us all went home with a bit of pocket money.
Needless to say, the day was a huge success and excellent value for money. What a way for me to entertain my clients! I have already reserved a table for the next BWA race Day. There will however to one small change next time. My guests have suggested that each person contribute a gift to the 'goodie bag' with their business cards attached - thereby taking our contacts / networks even further. Thank you BWA for such great functions!
Hurdles & Help: Goal Setting
27 February 2007
The Kelway Hotel
Review by Cheryl Reynolds, CRC Communications
I always try and remember one key point from any workshop or presentation that I attend, and the Goal Setting workshop held by the PE branch of BWA in February certainly didn't let me down. In fact, it would be difficult for me to choose which key point to highlight, as there were so many.
Laura Bekker, Principal of Riebeek College and BWA Committee member, gave an incredibly entertaining and informative presentation on Goal Setting. Who would believe that a school principal could teach us how to set goals, and allow us to have fun while going through the process? It's also amazing how we often KNOW what to do, but we tend to 'forget' to implement these actions for ourselves, e.g. the typical carpenter never fixing the cupboards in his own home. Laura's presentation taught us how important it is to set goals, not only in terms of our professional lives, but in all aspects of our lives. She also taught us how to set SMART goals in order to ensure that all goals are realistic and as close to attainable as possible. She didn't leave out the most critical element of any action, which is monitoring and measuring our progress in order to ensure that all results are sustainable.
Laura certainly got me thinking about my goals and the process that I need to go through in order to ensure that I deliver on all of these. Thank you to BWA and to Laura Bekker. I?ll consider sharing my millions with you once I've earned them?! And that will be very soon ?