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Local & International Articles of Interest

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How do People Know You're in Business

Wendy McClelland ? 2004

One of the most important things to do now that you've started a business is to TELL THE WORLD! But HOW? It can be very expensive and time consuming if not done properly. Here's some inexpensive publicity and marketing ideas to help you get recognition for your new venture.

You've picked a great name for your company, made a list of your potential clients, incorporated your business and you're ready to go. What next? Well, you need to find as many ways as possible to tell people you're in business, and why they should do business with you!

One of the first things to do is to get business cards printed up and carry them wherever you go. Hand them out to everyone you know; it always amazes me how many people forget to give their cards to friends and family. Even if you "think" your family knows what you do - you might be surprised to find out how little they really do know. Besides, they may have a friend who needs exactly what you offer, and it's much more professional for them to offer a business card than a scrap of paper with your name and number scrawled on it.

Please click here to view the full article.

Setting Fees for Your Services

Wendy McClelland ? 2004

Many people assume that since you work from home you should charge less. I disagree - when you consider that most home based business people are supporting families, paying their own benefit package including medical and dental, and have increased liability in terms of insurance and licensing - I think home based businesses should charge close to or the same as other businesses.

Home based business can offer that's unique is personalized, customized service that may not be available from a larger company. These extra touches are well worth paying for in my opinion.

In figuring out how much to charge for your services you can do a number of things to set fees:

Please click here to view the full article.

Quick and Easy Ways to Boost Sales

Wendy McClelland ? 2004

Are you looking for some new ways to build your bottom line this month?

First of all - keep in touch with your customers! One of the best ways to do this is with a newsletter. Today it's easier than ever to have a newsletter - use email. If you don't have your customer's email addresses already, start asking for them when they pay for something at the cash register. Give them an incentive for signing up for your free newsletter - maybe a free gift or a small discount or even a prize draw they can be entered into. Use your newsletter to let customers know about sales in advance, extend special invitations to past customers only and open the store during non-regular hours. A popular sporting goods store where I live does this twice a year - and the lineups to get in weave through the store parking lot and people talk about the sale for weeks - before and after it happens! This is a GREAT publicity AND sales tool. Add other incentives in the newsletter like: a 10% discount for past customers on a new product line, or offer an old customer a 5% discount on their next purchase if they bring a new customer to a special sale. Give customers a gift for every referral they send to you.

Please click here to view the full article.

Have We Learned Nothing About Managing Change?

Carol Kinsey Goman, Ph.D.

Patrick, the baby of my extended family, started kindergarten last week. As a graduate of pre-school, we thought he'd be right at home in his new class. But after the very first day, he firmly announced that he wouldn't be going back to school. When questioned about this decision, he admitted that the teacher was nice enough, and all his friends were glad to see him, but (and to Patrick, this was the deal breaker) there was no naptime.

No naptime! In Patrick's school, 5-year olds are being asked to "pay attention" from 8 am to 3 pm without an opportunity to rest and recharge. Have we learned nothing about educating young children?

Which started me thinking about my work . . .

I've spent the past twenty years helping individuals and organizations thrive on change. Yet, recently, I've seen leaders making some of the same mistakes I noticed two decades ago. Have we learned nothing about managing change?

Please click here to view the full article.

Women and the MBA

Many women claim they have to work twice as hard as men to prove themselves in the workplace, particularly when moving into senior and executive positions.

Ad?le Thomas, director of Wits Business School, says for the many women still battling to penetrate the glass ceiling, an MBA can help raise their profile.

?An MBA may give women, who feel they have to fight to be heard in the boardroom, the leverage they need to make others sit up and take notice,? she says. ?Many women in senior positions confirm the MBA has given them in-depth general management knowledge, the ability to develop in areas where they can add value and the confidence to lead others.?

Why, then, aren?t more women pursuing MBAs? A few South African business schools report that the percentage of women MBA students has increased radically in the past five years, in some cases by as much as 10%. However, many maintain that their representation has remained fairly stable, hovering around the 25-30% mark. Schools that offer both full-time and part-time MBAs report a slightly higher percentage of women on the full-time programme.

Please click here to view the full article.

Sisters are doing it for themselves

While the gender rights demanded by our world leading constitution might not reflect yet in the reality of our boardrooms, pioneering women are nevertheless leading the way in redefining the identity of our fledgling democracy by empowering themselves politically, culturally and socially.
Added Value is a strategic marketing consultancy that has helped build many of the world's top brands, largely through a commitment to discovering the truth behind what ignites peoples' relationships with brands. In celebration of Women's Day, they share some of the trends and truths they have uncovered about women in South Africa - and what this means for marketers.

The last 10 years have seen fundamental changes for all South Africans, and women are no exception. Today, women make up 52% of the adult South African population and although the majority of these women still live in poverty without access to employment and empowerment opportunities, a new generation of women is emerging.

From the new doyennes of business like Bridget Radebe and Maria Ramos, to the women in the townships raising their children while juggling a career, women are doing it for themselves and each other.

Francesca Duffy and Caroline Rait, Insight Specialists at Added Value, have met a remarkable array of women in the course of their research for the consultancy. According to Duffy, women are playing a crucial role in redefining and creating a vibrant new culture for South Africa. "Women are emerging from traditionally patriarchal societies (across all cultures) to become more and more independent, both financially and emotionally. Women are in fact supporting each other in building up a shared set of resources through education and experience to enable their individual independence and self-reliance."

Rait adds that this condenses into the concept of 'Sisterhood'; a new tribe of bold and bonded women who are confident, committed to self-empowerment, ambitious and driven, women who will stand by their 'sisters' through thick and thin.

Duffy and Rait say that women's focus on the family is also still important, but that women have come into their own. They no longer solely define themselves in terms of their role in the family and are actively taking control and making substantial contributions to both their own lives and the lives of those around them. They are optimistic about the future and aspire to progress, both in terms of personal and career development, whilst remaining classy, feminine and sophisticated.

Finally, women are spending more on personal care and clothes, as their projected image becomes a key point in their definition of self.

Development particularly is a common goal for all South African women. Women's education is subsequently becoming a potent agent for change. Increased education among women means more women are entering into formal employment, have more income and a greater power to decide what to buy. Similarly, entry into formal careers is delaying marriage and indicators suggest this means women are also having fewer children.

Duffy and Rait conclude that this presents some significant opportunities for brand owners.

The emergence of this professional, empowered, workingwoman creates a whole new audience for products like technology in the workplace (i.e., cell phones as fashion accessories) and personal and home security, not to mention ready-to-eat meals, home cleaning products and child care services.

But, Duffy and Rait warn that South African women want to be real and true to themselves, they want honesty and simplicity in their lives above all else and they do not want to be compartmentalised by their gender, job or family role.

Brands that celebrate women, that help women empower themselves and each other, that enable women to run their careers, families and homes with greater simplicity and ease, these will be the brands women want.

What women want

Biz-Community

Recently published results of the 'Women24 Female National Survey' - devised by strategic creative agency RIOT - show an unparalleled response by South Africa's female population. Thousands of women answered questions ranging from political to personal interests.

Women24 briefed RIOT to conceptualise a promotional campaign that would drive more consumers to their site. Rebecca Woodhead, Strategic and Client Liaison Director at RIOT, felt that the brief called for much more than a straightforward promotional campaign. "This was the perfect opportunity for Women24 to position themselves as an authority on women and to find out what women think and want; what turns them on and off," says Woodhead.

With the goal in mind of asking questions that women would want to answer RIOT designed a 20-question survey. Questions ranged from "Do you believe in the institution of marriage?" "Could you do a better job than President Mbeki?" "Do you wear the pants in your relationship?" "Would you walk out on an abusive partner?"

Women24 hosted the survey for four weeks. The approach was simple, "We wanted to present Women24 with a concept that would ultimately have a continued life span," explains Woodhead, "There is so much value in this campaign as it will be repeated and expanded each year." The survey was supported by a radio campaign on 5fm.

Russell Atkins, Marketing Manager of Women24, says, "We are thrilled with the success of the survey. We increased awareness of the site and the survey ensured that we communicated with our consumers on a personal yet non-invasive manner."

On Relationships
28.55% of women think that they wear the pants in their relationship.
16.37% believe that their husbands rule the roost.
41.14% believe their husbands like to think they are in charge, but wives actually rule.
9.37% believe that whoever is the breadwinner should have the final say in the home.
4.56% say that their kids rule the roost.

HIV/AIDS
22.84% of women think that their circle of friends protects them from HIV/AIDS.
8.53% are aware of HIV, but can't promise that they always use a condom.
24.97% would categorically not sleep with someone without a condom or a test.
43.66% feel HIV is a real threat for everyone in South Africa and one should always play it safe.

Women want to be President
23.05% of women believe they could do a better job than President Mbeki.
2.87% believe that they could do a better job with their eyes shut.
6.13% agreed "How hard can it be, the aides do all the work, the President just gets wined and dined around the world".
14.79% would hate the post of President because it's a difficult and thankless job.
52.98% felt it must be the hardest job in the country because you can never please everyone.

The Law
24.59% of women admit to breaking the law on a regular basis.
8.40% agreed with the statement, "Find me someone in South Africa who hasn't broken the law!"
3.71% have at least one nasty skeleton in their closet and hope that it will stay there.
1.48% felt it's a dog-eat-dog world out there and you can't get what you want in this country by abiding by the rules.
61.82% feel you have to set an example in life, there is no need to sink to anyone else's level.

On Work
19.30% of women would love to be housewives, taking care of their family.
3.54% feel a job's a job.
52.66% feel very fortunate to have a job with such a huge unemployment problem in this country.
5.59% would rather be at home.
24.50% say that their current job is a stepping-stone to a better one.

Visit www.women24.com to view all the results.

Women - the Untapped Resource!

Yvonne Finch, eveology network (pty) ltd

In South Africa today:

Women make up 52% of the adult population
41% are working
1.3 million of these women are either employed or have their own business and fall in the LSM groups 7 to 10
Of these 221 hold directorships on the main board of JSE listed or state-owned companies
From these ONLY 11 hold chair of the board positions and there are only 7 female CEO's / MD's in this group!

Interestingly the average female intake at 2 major universities over the past six years is 48% of the total and of these 26% graduate.

So we ask, "Where Are These Women?"

Many are "buried" in dead-end jobs, grateful to be working at all
Some have used their initiative and have started their own company
A few have voluntarily opted "out" and exchanged a career for marriage
A percentage work in "middle" management, knowing that they have the potential to offer more but will never be given the opportunity
Thousands sit at home frustrated because choosing to have a child has forced them to leave a promising career

Why explore this subject at a BEE conference when the needs of women have been acknowledged?

Fact
In the business environment today BEE policies have brought a new fear into the workplace - that of at worst, "retrenchment" and at best, "stagnation". Yet the need for an established BEE policy is obvious.

Also obvious under the previous employment equity directive is the need for employers to recognise the valuable contribution already being played by women and the contribution that can be played by women in the work place.

Why then do we need to "legislate" for things to actually "change"?

Fear!

Fear from established norms being changed and challenged and fear that the preciously small "job market" will be overrun by the previously disadvantaged to the negative impact of the previously advantaged. A normal, recognisable fear and one that is completely understandable but how does it impact on the employment potential for those coming from the previously disadvantaged groups?

In the case of women, some are being thrust into senior positions without any recognition of their qualifications and personal ambitions just to satisfy "quotas". This has inevitably led to criticism of many of them as individuals, and of the entire gender if they do not meet expectations. Not to say how much the individual suffers from not achieving and having to deal with the day-to-day stress of trying to cope.

Is this pro-active sensible handling of BEE policies? If it isn't then we have to ask why are we risking businesses and reputations?

Why are women not being offered more genuine opportunities to climb the employment promotion ladder?

Security!
It's very easy and very comforting to look at an individual who is performing well and to choose to do nothing with her because to offer a new challenge could mean leaving a hole in the position she was filling - and filling with exceptional ability!
A greater understanding of the part that woman could play in the business and a greater understanding of how the evaluation and repositioning of a deserving candidate could save the employer substantial recruitment / replacement costs would be of measurable overall benefit.

Concern!
that the female employee will not cope with handling male employees, particularly when she is younger than them
that her family commitment will take priority over the needs of the company
that she is driven by her emotions and will only make decisions based on her feelings not on common business sense

It is therefore imperative that employers become brave enough to fully explore and analyse the reality of their own personnel structure within their business and the part current women team members' play so that female team members can be offered career opportunities

In doing this employers need to recognise the real cost of staff replacement including:

the frustration of other team members during the replacement process
the roll-on effect that losing a valuable person has on the morale of the entire team
and, more importantly, the interruption in workflow that results

But that's OBVIOUS!
If it is, why are we continually seeing more and more women who have been employed by the same company for a number of years entering the job market because they feel maligned and underrated? Let's look at a couple of case studies?

Case study ONE
A Managing Director's PA who has been with her employer for more than ten years and who has finally acknowledged the burning need that she has to bring her VERY unique business idea to fruition because she has increasingly become bored with her job. She has spent the past five years acknowledging her dream but that is all it was - a dream.
Now through understanding more about herself she is working hard to bring that dream to reality.

We know that her journey - even with the support of her entire family - will be long and hard because financial institutions still haven't worked out how to assist in these circumstances (but that's ANOTHER presentation!). However what is irrefutable is the fact that her idea was born out of a need to be in a more stimulating environment.
Her job has become routine - her salary at the ceiling it can be and career promotion out of the question - she is too valuable where she is.

Case study TWO
A 29 year old who was at the very top of her particular tree in a financial institution. She was there NOT by default but because she had earned the right to be there and was acknowledged as being extremely efficient and competent. BUT she has now decided to start her own business (well away from anything in the financial world) because she was sick and tired of the politics surrounding her day-to-day achievements.

She told us that she just couldn't take the continual backbiting from male colleagues and as the ONLY woman in her entire department it was a very lonely existence.
So she has walked away from a salary in the R800 000 per year bracket to go it alone. Mad? ?.. or extremely brave?

Neither - just actively acknowledging a desperate need within herself that she should not have to continually justify her abilities to fight for her existence. She explained that all she wanted was to be able to go to work, be accepted and be allowed to achieve BUT she was constantly faced with having to justify everything she did and every new idea she proposed - something that wouldn't have bothered her if the SAME requirements had been demanded of her male counterparts. Her take was that her bosses felt that they had to justify her to the other male team members!

Solution?
Wake up and smell the coffee! Conducting an in-depth profile analysis of the female team members will offer employers a real insight into the person behind the team member they employ.

With this powerful knowledge women team members can be offered career opportunities geared to their emotional and psychological abilities as well as their educational qualifications thus allowing both employer and employee career positioning best tailored for optimum value.

Obvious? Maybe ???
BUT - it isn't happening - the numbers prove this. Employers emphatically state that human resource departments DO properly assess their ENTIRE employment portfolio that discrimination is NOT happening, yet the latest census, released only a month ago, demonstrates that women ARE still second-class citizens in MOST companies and WOMEN are constantly telling US that the reason they are leaving stable jobs is because they are frustrated and unfulfilled as our case studies show.

SO! What isn't happening in practice?
Capable women are not being encouraged to apply for promotion and are usually overlooked because employers are concerned for the gap that will be left by the ascending female employee. Concern that she will not be able to handle the responsibility will often pre-empt a decision about promoting a woman.

Fear that filling the gap with a capable woman will lead to that position becoming vacant again when she gets married or has a family - so why risk all that training? And it has been said by a male colleague of his equal standing female partner that his feelings of guilt taint the way he deals with her on a daily basis - because he is all too aware that when he returns home the house is clean, the laundry is complete and dinner is on the table and yet for his female counterpart those responsibilities are also on her shoulders and he has trouble handling this knowledge!

Talk to any woman and she will tell you that her choice to have a career has been made whilst acknowledging the responsibilities she carries in the home. A fulfilled career woman will avoid changing anything about the way she copes in her life at the expense of her job. Her decision to push ahead with the demands of being wife, mother and fulfilled career woman was a choice SHE has made and is prepared to live with.

This is not about empowering women at the expense of men, rather about SAVING MONEY by avoiding the many costly pitfalls that arise when a workforce is not utilised to its best. An unfulfilled employee becomes unreliable, aggressive and disruptive and costs many hours in wasted time through the disciplinary process before they are finally on their bicycle.

OR they will do a GREAT job in the area they are working in order to get "recognised" but in the process are so good at what they do they are ALWAYS overlooked for promotion because nobody wants to rock, what appears to be a stable boat. The reality here is that many excellent employees will sit tight for only so long before they seek the promotion they so deserve elsewhere. The employer now has to spend a lot MORE cash on the replacement process.

Why is business NOT doing something about the real empowerment and advancement of, particularly women, in the workplace?
Arrogance - in believing from the lofty platforms at the top of the tree that their company IS doing everything they can to be fair to ALL employees.
Fear - because in making radical changes to employee advancement policies may rock a boat that will land them in the water!

What can be done now?

Create Opportunity
Employers need to ensure that all employees going through the regular revue process are given ample opportunity (and this may need guidance from the HR personnel) to express their AIMS and AMBITIONS

Monitor Qualifications
There are few HR departments that continually monitor employee qualifications in spite of the Skills Development act and align these with current employee ambitions.
Most will look at qualifications and life ambitions at the original interview and then promptly overlook them in the ongoing review process.

This is not to say that our ambitions don't change and evolve as we progress through life but unless we continually offer the female employee an opportunity to REALLY express her feelings AND frustrations (without the alarm bells going off from HR to management) companies will forever continue to spend unnecessarily on disciplinary and replacement costs.

The latest buzzwords are "personal branding"! New "mumbo-jumbo" or real "empowerment tool"?

We believe that if you know who you are (and this PARTICULARLY applies to WOMEN) then she will stand more chance of being the best she can be in all aspects of her life. Giving her this opportunity will release potential that can be fully utilised to the benefit of the employer and the woman in her private life. It will release her full potential, save the employer money and ensure a fulfilled committed workforce who will always "speak the speak" and be the company's best ambassador. And yet there will be continued resistance to this empowerment.

Why?
Because there is always a fear that the empowerment of the individual gives them the control. Changing this power base has proven to work very positively for companies (usually the small to medium sized companies) who try it. These businesses have overcome the fearful myth that empowering the personnel will result in more people leaving to seek better opportunities.

The reality check is that empowered people working in a stimulating, inclusive, informed environment will NOT seek their fortunes elsewhere all the time if they are happy where they are. So, all the employer has to do is create this environment and let the profits flow in from this empowered and integrated workforce.

Still cynical? Then take a closer look at the working environment your company creates for its' team, because if people are leaving through being empowered then the company should look to its own laurels.

For those emancipated companies for whom empowerment is part of life, the few employees that leave to seek new pastures can be seen as a feather in the achievement cap for the company. The few replacement opportunities will be filled quickly with cream of the crop people who want to become part of this empowering stimulating environment
And all this is possible if companies take a closer look at the women they already employ!

PLEASE don't let your female team members be part of the "Untapped Resource"!

MANAGER AS COACH, WHY COACH?

Cathy Yuill, MD Cathy Yuill Unlimited
BWA Chairperson

What are the benefits?

Instructing and directing by leaders in business has been the preferred style of management for some time now. The limitations of this style have been recognized and more and more organizations are exploring ways and means of adopting a coaching culture.

Managers need to develop coaching skills.

There has been a positive shift in management, from seeing people in their team as empty vessels that need to be filled with information from the outside, to recognizing that people have all the potential that they need to be great in their own area of choice and talent.

Coaching is so very logical as a management style. There is no mystique about it. While it is easy to learn, it must be remembered that it is a practical skill. It cannot be learned only from a book.

It requires practise. I have certainly noticed that as I work on myself, so my coaching results improve. I have realized that I can only take people as far as I have taken myself.

I would like to share with you, some of the many benefits of adopting a coaching culture in your management style, both for you, your team and your business.

Benefits of Creating a Coaching Culture

Improved performance and productivity

It stands to reason that bringing out the best in individuals and teams and truly believing in them, will deliver this benefit. This is something that instructing could never achieve.

Improved Learning

A coaching style of management recognises how adults truly learn. Adults learn in an environment that respects their ability, their individuality, and their diversity. They learn experientially. Coaching 'fast tracks' the learning process and adds the essential elements of fun and retention to learning.

Individual and Team Development

Developing people does not mean sending them on a two day course twice a year. Ongoing coaching to facilitate the assimilation of knowledge is essential for retention. That is where the true learning and application of that learning takes place. This can be done in-house by the manager.

Better Relationships

A telling style does not improve relationships. It's a one-way street. Creating a thinking environment, quality listening and asking good questions, gives people a sense of being valued. Mutual trust, respect and support naturally follows.

More Creativity

A coaching, thinking environment encourages creative suggestions from all members of the team. It eliminates the fear of ridicule. Creative ideas stimulate more creative ideas.

Improved quality of life for everyone

All of the above successes will enhance energy levels, self-esteem levels and general levels of happiness and fulfilment for every member of the team.

Greater access to skills and resources

People have all the resources they need, they just need a working environment that allows them to access these resources. The people who carry out the task regularly usually have the solutions to the practical problems.

These are just a few of the numerous benefits of building a coaching culture in your workplace.

What Women Want

Issued by: Markinor

Biz-Community

The traditional role of the female and traditional notions of femininity and motherhood are increasingly under threat, according to the latest qualitative research conducted by Qualitative Intelligence in joint venture with Markinor.

"I am woman, hear me roar,
In numbers too big to ignore
I am strong, strong
I am invincible, invincible"
? lyrics from Helen Reddy's hit 1972 song "I am woman"

This is the message women all over South Africa are sending according to the latest qualitative research conducted by Qualitative Intelligence in joint venture with Markinor. The tri-phasal study, consisting of desk research as well as qualitative and quantitative research (still to be conducted) aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the South African female market identifying essentially what women want.

The new breed of ambitious females reveal a level of contempt for traditional roles and are quite literally, throwing the baby out with the bath water.

Although women across all segments celebrate their womanhood; there is every indication that women are by no means truly emancipated. While females have grown in power, confidence, self-belief and strength, the backdrop against which they play out their lives is less pliable and accommodating: The younger black cosmopolitan sector struggles to relate to their elders, who are seen as out of touch and dogmatic. In addition, males either struggle to understand female aggression and snubbing or rail against the new order.

Within the black society the battle between the sexes is particularly fierce; females are highly reactive, resentful and often disrespectful of the faltering patriarchy. While some males get the wrong end of the stick, others quite literally brandish it.

Female empowerment along with the everyday difficulties of motherhood, wifehood and career lead to a great deal of strain with women not feeling appreciated by society and men, in the particular. Females do still want to play out their more traditional emotionality and vulnerability with men, yet they are uncertain how to manage this within the context of their newfound independence.

The qualitative results will be interrogated later this month after a comprehensive quantitative study into what women want.

For any further information of subscription to the study, please contact Anneke Greyling, Associate Director, Political Analyst on (021) 680 9200 or 083 777 0161.

BEE charter-beaters have the edge

Issued by: Integrated Communications.bmc

www.biz-community.com

Alert companies are not waiting for industry empowerment charters. They are taking a proactive approach to Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) as the process is already seen by growth-minded companies as a source of competitive advantage.
The trend to proactive BEE engagement has been identified by EmpowerLogic, BEE measurement rating and strategy development consultancy.

So far, only three industries have "active" BEE charters in place - the oil, mining and financial services sectors.

Yet Prince Booi, of EmpowerLogic, says an increasing number of business enquiries about compliance measurement and BEE acceleration come from enterprises that operate outside the charter-driven industries.

Says Booi: "This is a sign that go-ahead companies already recognise that BEE compliance creates a competitive edge. They are not waiting for industry charters to be drawn up. The competitive battle-lines have already been drawn. To steal a march on their competitors they are eager to boost their BEE status and improve their strategic position."

"The message is clear for reactive companies who don't seem to 'get it'... it's a mistake to use slow-moving industry-wide consultations as an excuse to sit tight, wait and see. It's in your own interest to take the initiative and improve your BEE profile ahead of your industry peers. If you don't, your competitors will."

Experience at EmpowerLogic indicates that strategic advantages can be achieved in terms of new business gains (specifically from tender processes involving government and quasi-government enterprises), staff motivation, the corporate skills-base and consumer insight as companies become more representative of the markets they serve.

In some cases, companies concerned about compliance find they already have a solid BEE foundation, though a thorough investigation is needed to determine their precise BEE status.

EmpowerLogic uses standardised processes and broad based BEE balanced scorecard to establish the "AS IS" BEE score first. Its consultants then engage in scenario planning with senior executives of client companies to explore optimum BEE outcomes, timeframes and investments.

Says Booi: "Empowerment will soon cease to be a novelty. We will then enter a scenario in which BEE status by itself will no longer differentiate a company. The key differentiator then becomes when a company embraced BEE and the quality and pricing of their products. Companies that moved along with everyone else will simply be saying 'Me-Too' while the BEE winners will be pointing to their early-adopter status. This is why a proactive BEE stance is so vital."

My Budget - Maria Ramos

By Quentin Wray

Business Report, 19 February 2004

Transnet chief executive Maria Ramos felt a keen sense of loss this week as the team at the national treasury, which she was instrumental in putting together, put the final touches on what would have been her eighth budget.

Late last year Ramos, widely credited as the architect of the new-look department, resigned from the treasury to take over at transport parastatal Transnet.

Although she would not discuss what she wanted from the budget, as she was still at the treasury while it was being drawn up and knew what she was going to get, she said she missed the buzz of being part of the team that was putting it together.

"It is a big loss; I can't pretend otherwise ... for seven years it was my life."

Ramos described the build-up to the budget as "incredibly intense", with staff sleeping at the offices in the weeks before budget day.

She recalled her first budget in 1997. The documents had been printed in Pretoria and flown down to Cape Town the day before the budget was due to be tabled. There was a mishap but the books met their flight, only arriving very late.

Then disaster struck.

"Going through the speech I realised there was a mistake with one of the numbers. We had to print corrections and paste them into each copy of the speech that was due to be handed out."

"Each member of parliament gets a copy.

"I don't think anybody would have noticed but I couldn't let it go knowing it was wrong. I'm not sure I would do the same thing again now but at the time we were a very new team and we wanted it to be perfect. At the time nobody even thought we were capable of putting a budget together."

Looking back at her years at the treasury, Ramos says she is most proud of having collected a world-class team that she says is capable of meeting the challenges that lie ahead and of having implemented reforms that have secured South Africa's fiscal sustainability.

"This was an investment that the country will get returns from for a long time to come," she says.

IF WOMEN ONLY KNEW WHAT THEY KNOW

Carol Kinsey Goman

Years ago I met with the management team of a California company that was relocating out of state. A few days later, the president of the company telephoned to talk with me about his administrative assistant.

"She is probably the brightest, most creative person I've worked with," the president told me. "Problem is, she can't move her family out of state. I was wondering if you would see her for a private counseling session, so that when she applies for a new job, she'll come across just as terrific as she really is. I'll gladly pay for the session."

I looked forward to meeting this talented woman.

"This is a real pleasure. I've heard so many nice things about you," I said when we met. "Tell me about yourself. What is it that you do exceptionally well? What would you most want a prospective employer to know about you?"

The woman was silent for several seconds. Finally she sighed and said, "I really don't know. I do a lot of things well, but when I do them, I don't notice."

The problem was clear. She simply didn't know what she knew.

My book, Ghost Story: A Modern Business Fable, is about collaboration
and knowledge-sharing. And, after surveying 200 mid-level managers regarding the state of knowledge-sharing in their organizations, I found women to be at a distinct disadvantage. They are less likely to speak up in meetings, less likely to believe that their contributions are valuable, and more likely to personalize failure while externalizing success.

The heroine of Ghost Story is a character who doesn't participate in team meetings because she believes she has nothing to contribute. Dot (short for Dorothy) possesses what educators refer to as "unconscious competence." Like my earlier client example, she too doesn't know what she knows. And, because she is outranked and intimidated in all team discussions, Dot believes her input has no value. (In the end, of course, it is her courage, strength, and innate wisdom that save the day. But that -- quite literally -- is another story.)

If, like many women, your challenge is to develop "conscious competence," there are a number of strategies to help do this:

First: Focus on your strengths.
Everyone has areas of lesser and greater talents, and although it can be helpful to acknowledge weaknesses and seek guidance or training to develop those areas, there is nothing more frustrating than striving vainly to excel in areas where one has little or no natural ability.

While you're doing that, talents you have overlooked may atrophy. And weaknesses -- regardless of how much effort you put into trying to improve them -- will never match your natural strengths. Management expert Peter Drucker advises, "Don't focus on building up your weaknesses. Understand your strengths and place yourself in positions where those strengths can best be employed. Your strengths will carry you through to success."

Second: Own your successes.
I was coaching an executive in a utility company. After a particularly productive session, the executive complimented me. "You really know a lot," he said. "In addition to great communication skills, you have good common sense."

Unprepared, I answered, "Oh . . . I've just worked with a lot of talented people."

And in that moment, I completely retreated from my success.

What I should have said then is the same thing I'm reminding you to say under similar circumstances: "Thank you."

Third: Publicize your successes.
Notice (and record in a weekly "success log") when you do something exceptionally well. Then tell others about it!

One woman I know came up with a creative solution to the oft-heard lament that her boss seldom noticed accomplishments. She put a hand-painted sign on her desk and jokingly displayed it whenever she had a significant achievement.

What started out as an office gag is now her favorite ritual. The sign reads, "I just did something wonderful. Ask me about it!" She spends a lot of time these days answering questions.

Fourth: Take advantage of all opportunities to discover (and develop) your abilities.
The Office Support Network (OSN) is an organization of office and clerical workers at S.C. Johnson Wax that reports to the head of Human Resources. OSN has a 10-member steering committee and nine subcommittees that address the growth and development of office staff.

When I spoke at the network's annual dinner meeting, the chairwoman of the steering committee (also a library clerk) hired me and made all the financial and travel arrangements for my engagement. Her experience with OSN greatly enhanced her opinion of her abilities: "This program has given me a whole new view of myself. I now know that I can conduct meetings and give speeches. For the first time, I feel that I'm a true professional with a lot to offer."

Fifth: Recognize the value of what you bring to your organization.
The more organizations need teamwork and collaboration, the more valuable are managers and team leaders who can create an environment that encourages knowledge-sharing. And it is here where women often excel.

My research indicates that women are more likely to take the time and effort necessary to make people feel safe and valued. It also shows that women are more inclined to emphasize people's strengths, encourage the sharing of mistakes and lessons learned, set clear expectations for outcomes and clarify individual roles, and help all members recognize what each of them brings to the team.

The best of these female leaders model openness, vulnerability, and honesty. They tell stories of group successes and personal challenges. They understand the necessity of building trust among team members. Most of all, they respect and acknowledge everyone's contribution.

And, hopefully, they know how well they're doing it.

PREPARING FOR CHANGE

Carol Kinsey Goman

The best time to discuss the forces of change is well in advance of the organization's response to them.

People need to know why they are being asked to change, and the earlier they understand the reason, the more time they have to get prepared. In most organizations we "Braille the culture," as one professional trend spotter, Faith Popcorn, put it. We run our fingertips along trend bumps as they speed by and try to "read" where we're going. One of the most vital roles of leadership is to anticipate the corporation's future and its place in the global arena, and then to formulate strategies for surmounting challenges that have not yet manifested.

But leaders can't succeed alone. Employees, too, should be scanning the business environment. Everyone in the organization should have a realistic appreciation of the precursors of organizational transformation - the impact of globalization, market fluctuations, technological innovations, societal and demographic changes in the customer base, new offerings by competitors, new government and regulatory decisions.

Here are some ways that organizations are "setting the stage" for change:

Direct experience

More and more leaders are recognizing the need to design a workplace event that enables people to experience for themselves the need for change. When Rubbermaid held a product fair in its headquarters town, it displayed storage bins, kitchen items and other plastic housewares, each with a label that detailed what it cost to make and what it sold for. Sounds like a run-of-the-mill corporate event except for two things: the fair was open only to Rubbermaid employees and the products were not Rubbermaid's, but its competitors'. Rubbermaid wanted its workers to see for themselves what they were competing against.

Outside expertise

The commercial organizations of Bayer used an "IMS year in review" presentation to in order to show Bayer's position/wins/challenges in perspective with the industry. (IMS is a company that tracks information on the Pharmaceutical industry and then sells it back to companies.) This gave employees an opportunity to see how they stacked up against the competition - and to ask questions from an unbiased external source.

Business literacy

When Jack Stack arrived at International Harvester's factory in Springfield, Missouri, the engine remanufacturing plant was losing $2 million dollars a year on revenues of $26 million. Stack and the 119 employees of the now independent Springfield Remanufacturing Corporation initiated an amazing turnaround. Ten years after he bought the company, SRC had sales of $73 million and the firm hired almost 600 additional workers. How did he do that? By increasing all employees' business literacy. Stack created a system called "The Great Game of Business," which was designed to teach every employee about the entire business -- including the finances of the company. From the "Root Learning Maps" used by Sears and Pepsi, etc. to courses offered by financial services consultants, business literacy is a tool many organizations use to prepare people for change.

Customer feedback

Few strategies are as valid a stimulus for change as responding to customer feedback. At Ritz-Carlton Hotels, employees continually create change in order to solve customers' problems. Here's how it works: if a particular hotel has, as its primary customer complaint, a problem with room service taking too long, the manager would inform employees in that department and ask for volunteers to form a committee to find the root of the problem in the room service system and to change or create a different process that solves the problem. By the same token, if two different departments have a conflict -- say waiters are dissatisfied with dishwashers because the banquet service isn't ready on time -- then members of both departments form a cross-functional team (as internal customer and supplier) to find the process problem and solve it.

Shared background information

To prepare the organization to position itself for the future, Planned Parenthood started out by commissioning a research project. Consultants interviewed experts in all of the different fields that PP had an interest in -- everything from reproductive healthcare to gender and population issues to politics. And they used this research to provide background information for everybody throughout the organization who requested it. In this way, participants were prepared by the time they got together for their first big meeting to discuss the need for a new vision.

Future scenario planning

Rather than protecting people from outside threats, leaders need to expose workers to the complaints and changing needs of customers, the new products of international competitors, and the financial reality of costs and profits. Instead of stifling conflicting opinions, leaders must encourage employees to join a constant questioning of the prevailing business assumptions -- and to be ready to act upon new opportunities early in the game to maintain a competitive advantage.

A few questions to get you started

What would happen if our current forms of distribution were inaccessible to us?
What government regulations could "change the rules" of the industry?
What new demands/needs could cause our customers to stop buying our product or service?
What kinds of technological innovation would most drastically affect our product or service?
What changes (in pricing, services, process, etc.) could the competition introduce that would cause us to rethink the way we do business?
What companies that aren't our competitors now could become competitors in the future?
What current competitors could become partners in the future?
What are the global trends that could most affect our market - both positively and negatively?
What changes would we have to make to take advantage of these possible challenges?

LIVE AS IF YOU ARE DYING!

Jackie Psannis

Performance Presenter, Motivator, Writer

Firstly, we are a safe distance away from the beginning of the year, which undoubtedly held a few scary New Years resolutions. Today either finds us patting ourselves on the back for having maintained those resolutions for the past two and a half months, or finds us deep enough into our year to completely forget about those insane promises we made to ourselves anyway!

Secondly, the mere fact that we are reading this confirms that we are ALIVE! Reason enough to celebrate, don?t you think?

Sadly most of us simply forget to celebrate our life. We take for granted the fact that we've got to wake up this morning. That annoying alarm clock (even if it is a polyphonic cell phone tune) is seen as a reminder that we have to get back to a host of things we don?t want to.

Okay, so this is starting to sound a little soft for those of us who have busy-rush-around-get things done now, kind of life. Indeed, but the message here is simple. We are all dying. This is no profit of doom message but simply a reality check. We are not on this planet, with the people we love, doing the work we are doing FOREVER.

Think about the following statements we regularly make: ?Tomorrow?s another day? ?I don?t have a choice? ?That can wait, I am too busy? ?It?ll never happen to me? ?They?ll understand I had to work and couldn?t be there for them?.

The words on their own are not that dangerous, it?s the impact these beliefs are having on our lives. We are running around fighting fires, getting stressed, ignoring our loved ones and simply forgetting that we are the captain of our own ship. This ship is called Lady Life and we need to ensure our journey is full and happy before it throws its final anchor overboard. We have choices to make every minute of this day and if we choose not to make them, then unfortunately someone else will make them for us!

Let?s push pause for just 30 minutes in our day today and look at the different areas of our lives. Let?s be brutally honest with ourselves when we do this (no one else need ever see this, it?s our secret). When doing this we need to ask one simple question of every single point we write down under the different headings and that is:?Would we change this if we were told we were going to die in seven days?? If we wouldn?t change it then we need to kick it off of our worry list and focus on the things we choose to change.

The areas of our lives which are important to us vary dramatically, and only we know what areas need some urgent attention - the kind of attention we would only give if we were told we were dying remember, or things we would definitely find time to do if we knew that by doing them we would be guaranteed of another few happy years on this planet! A sample list below may help spark some individual choices to start living like we are dying:

Health

Go for that mammogram, de-stress massage or Pap smear
Go to gym
Give up smoking or drinking

Family

Mend that relationship which has been damaged for so long that the cause of the damage has been forgotten
Take that one hour out a day to colour in or read with the children
Invite your somewhat vexing, but kind hearted elderly aunt out for tea (it need only be for 45 minutes once a week!)

Career

Ask for that raise or opportunity to be in line for that long sort after position
Study that course which will advance this career
Start a home business

Financial

Start that savings account ? even if it receives an ?enormous deposit? of fifty bucks initially
Re look at old useless insurance policies, negotiate bank charges (we are allowed to I learnt!)
Get a written WILL in place

Personal Growth

Read that dusty self help book which has been crying for attention
Join Toastmasters to learn how to speak in public

Social

Invite those old friends around - irrespective of what the garden, carpet or mangy dogs look like
Join that dance class, book club
Stop being my own worst judge and jury

We all have our ?one-day-when-I-have-time? lists. The reality is that the only day we truly have is TODAY. We will never have this day again. Tomorrow morning (if we are lucky enough to be given another day to share with the planet), we will again only have control over that day ? yesterday has gone forever.

The sporting giant Nike says ?Just Do It?, which is a wonderful life motivation, but there is one better than that and it is: ?Just DONE it!? There is no better feeling than having put into action, something which has been shelved for so long ? as if we are on this earth for ever and ever.

As women we tend to take on so much, which ultimately isn?t ours to be taken on. We do the Superwoman thing a little too well and the planet believes we are taking it all in our stride. The problem with this amazing ability to multi task is that we end up doing ourselves enormous damage. We expect of ourselves more than the people around us expect of us. We see ourselves as the golden goose that is expected to lay golden eggs at every sitting, however we forget to feed the goose and make sure it is in good physical and mental health in order to keep churning out the golden eggs. We forget that the goose is not going to live forever and when the goose is dead the eggs stop. So let?s focus on the goose for a while and start living with the wonderful reminder that NOW is all we have.

This reminder that we are not on this planet forever is a huge motivation to start living as opposed to simply existing. Let?s not wait until it?s too late and we end up saying things like: ?I wish I had learnt to say no earlier? or ?I should have spent that mere 60 minutes a day with her?

Today is a gift packed with opportunities to grow, choices to make and the time to look after the goose!

EAR TO BRAIN - CREATING A THINKING ENVIRONMENT

Cathy Yuill, BWA Durban Chairperson

Managing Director, Cathy Yuill Unlimited

I recently spent a week in Cape Town on an intensive course, based on Nancy Kline's book "Time to Think." Margaret Legum presented it. She is an amazing 70 year young woman, and a deep thinking, inspirational person (wife of the late well known political correspondent Colin Legum).

I am on a major learning curve at the moment. Apart from my current studies for my master's degree in Coaching, I attend courses that I believe will help me in my coaching practice. I can honestly say that this course on 'Thinking', simple as it may sound, has had a profound effect on my 'thinking' and the profound value that I place on helping people to improve their thinking environment .

Nancy Kline has identified 10 behaviors that form a system called a "Thinking Environment". She teaches a model of communication that focuses on improving the way that people think. This consequently improves the way people work and liaise.

In this course, all we did was learn how to think, and I mean how to REALLY THINK. We learned how to prize each other's minds above all else. I learned how to help other people to think for themselves. I learned how to help people to have more productive meetings, to solve business problems, to create clear and effective business strategies and how to enhance interpersonal relationships by exploring many possibilities. This requires quality thinking and deep listening.

Please click here to view the full article.

The business world is snappy, competitive and hierarchical??..we can't think straight. The key to transformation of the highest quality is to be working in a thinking environment. Listening- the quality of people's attention for each other - is the core of this method. Good listening allows for a person to produce his or her BEST THINKING.

Thinking for 'oneself' is a radical act. My personal story had me growing up where the formal school system discouraged independent thought. I was told what to think?.."Take out your history book, turn to page 25 and digest that information without question. Regurgitate it verbatim in your exam and woe betide you if you get it wrong," I can still hear my teacher say. For me it was not exactly conducive to "best thinking". Then there was the military service?? and our political situation. Even today, the hierarchal environment that we often find in the South African Workplace persists. Quality thinking suffers as a result.

Business Meetings and a Thinking Environment
In my coaching travels, I have done an informal survey to try to understand the dynamics of a South African business meeting. My observations seem to indicate that often a thinking environment is not present in meetings.

What have I noticed?

Interruptions - people finish other people's sentences, or chip in while an idea or opinion is being expressed
Conversations go round and round - no solutions are reached
People become side-tracked or they waffle
Conflict is ignored - not acknowledged
The chairperson takes sides
Dominant personalities dominate the meeting, others don't speak
Poor (or no) consensus
People don't listen to each other - result no learning
The agenda is not followed
There is no agenda
Poor (or no) chair management
Poor record keeping
Some people have personal agendas
Some people are ignored
There is early closure on important issues
Poor time keeping
Work with first issue and get no further
Poor decision making

How do your business meetings rate?

These and many more issues can be overcome by, very simply, creating a thinking environment.

HOW TO DRAW UP A BUSINESS PLAN

Louisa Jury
Training and Events Specialist, Business Zululand

What is a Business Plan?

It is a detailed action programme outlining every conceivable aspect of your proposed business venture. It is a comprehensive, self-explanatory plan of:

What you intend doing
How you intend doing it
When you intend doing it
Why you believe your idea is viable.

It is a structured guideline to achieving your goals.

The Importance of a Business Plan

It is of the utmost importance that you spend quality time thinking about your business plan for the following reason:

It forces you to arrange your thoughts in a logical order.
It forces you to simulate reality and anticipate pitfalls before they occur.
It should be your working action plan, or guideline when your business is up and running.
It is an essential aid when applying for finance or trying to sell your idea because it will assist you in determining the viability of your business.
It can eliminate potential fatal flaws in your idea.
It is an essential decision making tool.
It can be useful when tendering for contracts.
It can assist you when recruiting new staff.
It can assist when trying to obtain credit terms with suppliers.

What should your Business Plan contain

Personal details

Name of business
Name of owner/s
Address and telephone numbers of the owner of the business.
Logo or emblem if you have one.
Date presented.

Mission Statement
Vision
Introduction
This should be concise, stimulate interest in your proposition and contain the following information:

A description of the service or product you intend selling or manufacturing for resale.
Why you believe your venture is variable.
Your short, medium and long term business goals and objectives.

This is a very important aspect of your Business Plan because without specific goals that are realistic, achievable, measurable and have definite target dates, you planning becomes a futile exercise.

Provide a comprehensive description of your proposed business venture.
It should contain the following information:

The type of business ownership you selected
Any legal requirements like licensing, permits and tax regulations.
A comprehensive outline of your products or service(s) or service(s). If you intend producing or manufacturing a product, explain in detail the processes involved, machines you intend using etc.
A technical outline containing details and capabilities of your machinery and equipment.
A description of your location, features, floor layout, proximity to competitors, leasing and purchasing conditions etc. (enclose a floor layout plan if possible).
A comprehensive outline of your educational qualifications, work experience and training courses attended.
A comprehensive and objective SWOT analysis of your business

Outline the:

Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats

Indicate what you are going to do about each of these four factors (SWOT).

A description of your competitors and their products.

Comprehensively outline your proposed marketing plan and strategy

You have described exactly what you intend doing in Step 5 and your marketing plan and strategy should now explain what and how it will be done. This is one of the most critical areas that all financial institutions look very closely at. It should contain the following information:

A description and substantiation of your specific target market or customers. (Who do you plan to sell to? i.e. race, sex, age groups, income groups, geographical areas, etc).
What percentage (or rand value) of the market share do you intend capturing in the short, medium and long term and why? (What is your projected turnover)
A description of your competitors marketing strategy, their weaknesses and the potential effect on your business.
A description of your purchasing, costing, pricing, selling and sales promotion strategy.

Comprehensively outline your financial plan and strategy.

One of the most important things in business is finance (i.e. the flow of money in and out) and even the most brilliant marketing plan will never allow a small business to break even if financially it is unable to do so. So spend a great deal of time working out a detailed financial plan. Be realistic. A small business takes time to become established so do not be over-optimistic in your projections.

Your financial plan should contain the following information:

A detailed Income Statement or Profit and Loss account for a projected period of 12 months. (By this we mean a monthly account of all your sales and expenses as well as the profit or loss you expect to make.)
An indication of what your breakeven point is. (By this we mean how much you have to sell to cover all expenses before making a profit.)

Recommended formula for calculating breakeven:

Total Expenses

Gross Profit %

A detailed Cash Flow for a projected period of 12 months. (By this we mean a monthly indication or budget of how cash flows in and out of your business.)
A detailed Balance Sheet for a projected period of 12 months. (By this we mean a snapshot of all your business assets and liabilities at a particular point in time.)

Scenarios (sensitivity analysis) showing what would happen if business was:

Good or excellent
Average
Poor
Own financial contribution (e.g., money, stock, vehicles, equipment, etc.)
Financing required and what for (e.g. Stock, machinery, equipment, working capital, etc)
Security available (e.g. Fixed property, cession of life policies, sureties, fixed deposits, etc.)- All reasonable forms of security are generally acceptable.)

NB In the case of an existing business, financial statements for at least the last two years are desirable and should be included as well.

Comprehensively outline your business structure or operating plan and strategy.

The following should be included in your plan:

A description of how many staff you intend employing, why, where and how you intend recruiting them.
A description of your management and staff, their qualifications and experiences and what their job description and remuneration packages will be. (Enclose an Organogram or organisational chart if possible, i.e. A diagram showing who will be doing what).
A description of your administration or bookkeeping system.
A description of your staff policy regarding work hours, fringe benefits, overtime, sick leave, medical aid, unions, etc.

End off with a positive and motivating conclusion.

Just as your introduction should be interesting, so your conclusion should be positive and motivating. It should be:

A summary of why you believe your Business Plan will succeed.
Why you believe finance should be granted.
A motivating factor for other people to have faith in your proposed venture.

Final impressions are often lasting impressions, so make your conclusion interesting and positive. It is your way of selling your idea or plan and yourself to others.

SELF ESTEEM AND PEAK PERFORMANCE

Cathy Yuill, BWA Chairperson
Managing Director of Cathy Yuill Unlimited

If one person has 100 poker chips and another has 10, who is most likely to take the most risks? Confidence in what we have inside is the key to maximising our potential. Success and fulfillment in life is all about opening ourselves to opportunities by stepping out of our comfort zone and taking risks. Research indicates that two out of three people have low self-esteem. This can get in the way of our confidence to pursue our visions and goals.

How does low self esteem affect performance?

Low self esteem says, "I am not okay, unless I have lots of toys around me."
It means living in the competitive side instead of living our possibilities
People with low self esteem are more likely to abuse food, drugs, alcohol, sex or become workaholics
Low self esteem says "I am not okay, so no-one else is okay either."

All of the above can be a way of numbing the pain, of not being who we really are.

What scaffolding can a coach contribute to building self-esteem?

People need to be attended to.

This is a basic human need. It is possible to spend all day at work and never once be the centre of anyone's attention. To have a non-judgmental, genuinely interested person, asking questions that stimulate thought and ideas is a great gift.

People need to be listened to.

Listening is the most powerful tool that a coach can bring to a relationship. It's a skill that takes learning, practice and fortitude.

People need to be respected and trusted.

The key factors that underpin a coaching relationship are mutual trust and respect. Companies who know how to build a system of mutual trust and respect will eat the competition for breakfast. Conflict is part of the system. A mutual trust and respect makes the difference between conflict being constructive or destructive.

Workplace Diversity Management to be handled with Sensitivity

Daily News Workplace
17 March 2004
Khadija Mohamed

Workplace diversity management whilst difficult to manage, is not an impossible concept. All that is required to drive this process is sensitivity.

With trade liberalisation, there is a vast fusion of cultures and religion, clans and races. People have increasingly started interacting with each other at all levels. Much of an individual's day is spent at work. It is therefore important that the surrounds are conducive to a happy and productive work environment. South Africa re-entered the international economic community only after the country's first democratic elections in 1994.

Workplace diversity is a multi-faceted concept that continues to evolve as more industries move toward a global marketplace. The belief that every human being is of equal worth, entitled to the same privileges and opportunities, without regard to race, gender, disability or age should be a fundamentally shared value. However supremacist views and old habits, required legislation to springboard equality in the workplace.

This has led to changes in management practices primarily relating to the recruitment, training and retention of employees who reflect the changing face of the South African workforce. In order to understand the necessities and benefits of managing workplace diversification, the concept must be fully explored.

What is diversity? Can it really be managed? Mariane Vorster, has done research in this area of workplace diversity. She shared the findings of her research with a group of mainly women at a meeting in Durban last week. Vorster's study revealed that South Africans displayed a high level of tolerance for differences amongst different cultures. In the broadest sense, she says the management of diversity is a business's reaction to rapid cultural and sociological changes. What is missing today is understanding of differences and using these differences to leverage competitive advantage.

Vorster found that when people need to survive, they tend to rely on people of the same cultural background for support. The researcher cited an example of the Portuguese communities that were ousted from Mozambique in the 1970s. They fled south and settled in Bez Valley in Johannesburg. Here they sought refuge by living amongst other Portuguese people. They worked hard and rebuilt their lives. Once they had moved from the physiological stage of having a need to the psychological stage where they could survive on their own, they started being more comfortable about interacting with other cultures.

Vorster also spoke about the death rituals amongst the various religions, namely Christians, Muslims, Hindus, the African tradition and Jews. An interesting debate followed amongst the delegates present about differences and similarities of death rituals and the sensitivity which organisations should display towards their staff in grief and those who wish to support colleagues in their grief.

What Vorster's study revealed was that when taking the question of diversity to the workplace, the hard truth, however, is that inequalities exist for employees within the organisations due to stereotyping and preconceived ideas about a person based on race, gender, religious or cultural origins, age, physical or mental limitations and more. Racism, sexism, homophobia, and so on, can not be managed away. It is precisely these beliefs and perceptions that necessitate managing diversity at all.

Affirmative Action and Employment Equity came as a political response to the social outcry over the racial and social injustices that limited equal access to the workplace. One of the problems with affirmative action is that it began to be perceived as a public relations scheme more concerned about quotas than about individuals. Managing workplace diversity strives to ensure that when an individual is hired, they should be able to trust that they have been chosen because of their unique qualifications, not because of gender or ethnicity.

Internally, diversity management means providing a climate where all employees feel that they are valued by and contributing to an organisation. This requires more than just throwing people together who have different backgrounds and did not grow up together or have few shared memories, and expecting them to get on with it. There needs to be effort exerted by both organisations and individuals to increase their understanding of differences. Externally, it means that organisations are flexible and astute about changes occurring in world markets.

Diversity consciousness cannot be simply mandated into a system, integrated into a corporate culture, or prompted by financial incentives. It is reflective of an attitude that organisations and their staffs must adopt that allows them to change their basic concepts about workers and converts "them" into "us".

What is Work and Family Balance? And How do I Get It?

By Sandi Epstein

Balance is experienced differently by everyone and can be identified by some or all of the following feelings:

You have enough time for family and work
Life "flows" and feels relatively effortless
When something in your life breaks down (baby sitter gets sick, the car breaks) you have the resources to cope
You are on the path you want to be personally and professionally for the future

Balance has some characteristics:

It is not a constant, it comes and goes as things change in life�
It has to be worked at�
The process of seeking balance can be stimulating and a true learning experience about what is important to you

How do you get balance?

There are many components to finding balance, many that you know consciously and unconsciously. Here is my "top ten" components to finding balance. Add your own and put this list in the back of your mind to help guide you in this difficult process.
Recognize that balancing roles as mother and business person is truly work in itself, it requires appreciation of your work (a pat on the back)

Take time to think about balance and how to get it this week
Apply your best analytical and creative thinking to problem solve this task
Remember yourself, your needs, your wants, your happiness - this is the ultimate barometer of balance
Have faith there is a way - don?t put barriers in front of possibilities, you can make it work
Flexibility is important - what works this week may be out of whack next week - stay open to new solutions
Know the signs of imbalance, including resentment, fatigue, overwhelm, depression, unhappy family members, dissatisfaction with work
Revisit your core values and live them, know what is most important to you today
Remove, delegate the things that interfere with the important stuff
Find the joy in the process

A Multimedia Marketing Tool that fits into your pocket.

Daily News Workplace
17 March 2004
Khadija Mohamed

Business Cards - an important marketing and networking tool. It is just as much a part of you as your diary. After the preliminary introductions, it is part of the corporate foray to exchange business cards, often in the hope that some business deal will emanate from the exchange. This of course if these fancy, coloured, soft pieces of cardboard are not forgotten in some remote part of the briefcase.

What does your business card say about you?

Marie Wallace, a librarian says that business cards are little and quiet but at the same time very powerful communicators. What does yours communicate about you? Chances are the only time you look at it is when you make a job change. And event then, you can scan it with a proof reader's eye.

Pull out your card and really look at it. Is it memorable? Does it tell you who you are and what you do? Does it look like a clone of your professional colleagues except for the name and address? What are its hidden messages?

If these questions raise some queasy feelings or you already sense you could use a better "silent ambassador", here is where to find out about a business card makeover:

Body Language
Build a Better Card
Put Your Card to Work

This "next generation" business card is actually a CD-ROM capable of delivering your business message interactively. CD-ROM business cards are multimedia marketing tools that fit into your pocket.

Imagine your business card as a tool with unmatched promotional power. These business card-sized discs can deliver your video, audio, PowerPoint presentations, Flash....all via your computers CD-ROM drive. Add a web link to your content and your CD business card drives traffic to your website with speed and power.

Most important, makes sure your business card works for you.

MAKE A CONNECTION

Lisel-Erasmus Kritziger

Daily News Workplace

26 November 2003

Networking is the ability to make the right business connections and to make them pay off. It is about using all possible opportunities to build relationships which will create lasting sources of information, support and friendship, relationships that are benefiting all parties involved and that will pay dividends in a variety of contexts.

According to Sunny Stout Rostron, author of Accelerating Performance, networking is one of the most effective marketing tools in business and a crucial communication skill for a professional woman. Women make excellent networkers and naturally so, because women are good communicators, sociable and people-oriented.

Annemarie Mostert, PR Manager: Absa, and president-elect of the Johannesburg Rotary Club, has the following advice on how to make the right business connections, and make them pay off. For businesswomen, networking is something which should become a way of life. Not something which is done only within a business context or between nine and five. View any social situation as an opportunity to build friendships which could lead to mutually beneficial relationships. This "social situation" could include a visit to the dentist, interaction with your garden service, a business breakfast or an international conference.

If your goal is to create a networking base that will lead to exciting new business opportunities, use the following building blocks:

Step 1 - Answer the 4Ws and an H

Who do I network with?
What is my networking goal?
Where do I go to network?
When is the best time to network?
How can I make this networking plan happen?

Understand your goals and write down on paper what you want. Develop true win-win relationships.

Step 2 - Do research to identify and understand the opportunities.
Remember that when you meet with people you also have to bond, become friends in order to meet your networking goals. Find out as much as possible about who you are likely to meet; such as their interests, needs and backgrounds. It is imperative that your networking plan is organised, thorough and creative.

Step 3 - Answer the question:
"How do I make myself valuable and in that way benefit professionally and personally from this relationship?" and "What can this person do for me?". The most important thing to achieve when meeting people is to convey a sense of honesty and trust. People do not want to do business or build friendships with individuals who come across as using the encounter shamelessly for their own gain, or who are not trustworthy and credible.

It is important to show people that you use good judgment, that you are not solely interested in personal gain and that you want both parties to benefit. You need to instill the feeling in people that you are trustworthy. This obviously takes time. A reputation that says your word is as good as gold is hugely valuable. It is also important to be dependable. The networker must show up on time and must not break appointments.

Mostert offers the following practical advice:

Exchange contact details! Always carry business cards (with correct info) and ask for a business card of a person you feel will add value to your business or activities in return.�
Connect! Make personal contact within 12 hours after meeting him/her and set up an appropriate follow-up appointment.�
Communicate! Stimulate discussion in order to know the person better (preferences, interests, career, background, family, home) and to identify opportunities for adding mutual value - this will assist with future invitations or to identify activities.
Write it down! Diarise special dates, birthdays, religious holidays, special acknowledgements - act timeously and appropriately (sms, letters, cards, call, flowers).�
Keep it up! Encourage regular interaction and new introductions to broaden the networking base.�
Look the part! Image is important - first impressions count. Be yourself, be honest and try to act naturally.
Don't hand out business cards without purpose.
Don't promise what you cannot deliver.
Don't be guilty of name-dropping for effect.
Don't break trust - with private cell numbers, confidences etc.
Don't misuse contacts for your own self gain.

Sunny Stout Rostron, author and business consultant, has the following tips for successful and sincere networking:

Make networking, for example going to one event or meeting one new person a monthly goal. You will be surprised at how your confidence and database grows!
Be prepared. Prepare a few opening ice-breaker statements beforehand or have something to say about a current social or political issue.
Approach someone who is alone - they will be grateful that you have rescued them and you will have someone to talk to.
Introduce people to each other. If you know someone else at a gathering, introduce him or her to the person you have just met.
Never waste contacts! If you exchange business cards at a social event, take a moment after the event to write further details on the back of each card you have collected. Include information such as where you have met the person and how you plan to follow up. Then do so! If you feel that a name is not worth adding to your own database, pass it on to someone who will benefit from this relationship. Spreading the benefit is what networking is all about.

FLYING HIGH, FEELING LOW

Lindsay Ord
Lifestyle Network-Business Health
The Mercury
11 February 2004

Frequent flyers have learned what works and what doesn't when it comes to long-distance travel. Yegas Naidoo gives her tips on what to take, what to eat and what to do.

Yegas Naidoo, MD and Marketing Officer of a Furniture Manufacturing Company in Port Shepstone

"I travel outside of Southern Africa every six weeks to Britain, Ireland, Sydney, Mauritius or New York. I now have packing down to a fine art. I always travel with two suitcases as opposed to a single cumbersome and heavy piece. I pack colour-coded outfits on hangers, encased in ordinary laundry plastic sheeting. They arrive crease-free and ready to wear.

My standard travel kit consists of a medium-sized handbag and a matching envelope-style document holder. Excessive hand pieces are not only a bane for yourself, but also for other passengers. As a safety precaution I always lock my suitcases. I always carry jewellery, travellers cheques, foreign cash and keys in my hand luggage.

Travelling in comfort does not mean being sloppy. I would rather be groomed and formal than casual and shabby, especially if I am having a meeting at destination immediately on arrival. Aiming to look as fresh as you did on departure is not always easy, but an adequate supply of cosmetic products - and a fresh uplifting citrus fragrance - in a make up bag usually suffices. As an optimistic traveller, I do not pack an 'emergency kit'.

Regarding jetlag, I have found that if your state of mind before departure is not beleaguered and frazzled with business and domestic dilemmas, then this augers well for a peaceful flight. If there is a drastic time difference that needs to be accomodated then follow activities dictated by the local time at destination. A refreshing glass of champagne before a flight and landing also does not go amiss.

I generally eat what is on offer during the flight, but as breakfast is generally at some unearthly hour, I generally don't eat it. On a long flight, take adequate reading / studying or recreational material. Do not depend on your neighbouring passenger to entertain you and as a rule, only speak when you are spoken to."

GROW YOUR BUSINESS & MAINTAIN BALANCE

Cindy Norcott

BWA Durban Entrepreneur of the Year 2003

Owner of Studentemps & Proappointments

It's been said that we teach what we most need to learn. Talking to you about growing a business is easy for me becuase this has been my single-minded focus for the past ten years. On the other hand, talking to you about balance is a different story as this is something that I strive for but find difficult to achieve.

I'll start with the easy part.

I want to share 5 tips with you on how to grow your business, based on my experience:

Work ON your business and not IN your business. I have made the mistake of seeing myself and my business as one. Over the years I have realised the importance of having a vision for my business. Think strategically. Challenge the way you do things.
Confidence - many women lack confidence. The main reason is they don't go into their own business. I've learnt to believe in myself and back myself and my business.
Passion - would you be happy to do the work that you do, even if you didn't get paid. Absolutely! Passion gives you energy. Energy gives you enthusiasm, which is contagious.
Set goals. I live by this. I write everything down and monitor everything. "We get what we inspect". Set your sights high, you can't go any futher than you think. Push the limits out. Never be satisfied.
Network. 80% of our business comes from word of mouth. As business owners, we need to ask ourselves "How many people know me?". Its been researched and proven that the defining characteristics for success of a small business in South Africa is the size of your network.

We are in a new era in business. We can throw out the sales techniques. This is an era where women are at a huge advantage to men - its relationship marketing. Women are natural communicators, we value personal relationships. We need to be ourselves, get to know our clients and staff. There's a saying in the Recruitment Industry "Be seen, be liked, be involved".

I think these factors are essential to growing your business. Now, as you grow your business, there are numerous advantages but also a few drawbacks -

Your business is like an insatiable sponge - if you allow it to, it will take up your most valuable resources, such as your thoughts, your time and your energy. The vehicle that you have created to ensure your freedom has become a cage.
Most successful business owners are focused on their businesses. They invest their energies into their business and because of this determination and drive, they achieve the results in the area of their business life, but often at the expense of other areas of their life. If you ask most successful business owners if they are perfectly balanced, you would get a resounding "NO!".
"Most great men and women are not perfectly rounded in their personalities but are instead people whose one driving enthiusiasm is so great, it makes their faults seem insignificant". Charles Cerami.

Why is the issue of having a balance in life so important to me and to every other businesswoman I know?

As businesswomen we have many roles to fill and many responsibilities and demands on our time. We tend to spend most of our lives rushing from one committment to another, often doing what we HAVE to do, rather than what we WANT to do.
As businesswomen, we want it all. We don't want to choose between a family and a business. We want both. We don't want to live to work, we want to work so that we can have the best life possible. We often push ourselves so hard that each day is a challenge to get through - treadmill mentality.
Every successful businesswoman I know is a brilliant multi-tasker. As a result, we take on an inordinate amount of responsibility. If we aren't around the business or the home for a single day, things come to a standstill!
Pleasers! We don't like to say NO and hurt people's feelings and we tend to take on things that shouldn't be our responsibilities.

So How do we Find the Right Balance?

Realise that the quest for a balance in our lives is never-ending. I am always suspicious of people who say they are balanced. It takes a lot of effort. I see it as a BALANCING ACT - something that requires effort and planning.
Prioritising & Planning:
- What are the most important things in my life - that is where I will spend my time.
- Each year I write down goals for all areas - health, family, personal, development, community.
- Each week I ask myself "What can I do during the coming week to take me closer to my goal?" Managing yourself is managing your time.
Say goodbye to Superwoman - what are you doing that you don't want to do but feel obligated to do? Such as sitting on committees, running a lift club etc. Don't be the only one to volunteer.
Write a list of things you are going to say NO to. Decide that for everything you say YES to, you will say NO to something else - empyting your suitcase.
Make time for No. 1 - book time in your diary for you. Stop the manic rush!
Set limits on yourself if you are imbalanced. E.g I will stop work at 5pm daily. I will not bring work home.
Be kind to yourself - spoil yourself with back massages, facials, dates with friends or a good book. Ask yourself "What do I love to do? What is stopping me?"

"Some people in trying to earn a living, forget to have a life" - Don't be one of those!

BE SUCCESSFUL IN YOUR BUSINESS & STAY MARRIED

Susan Abro

BWA Durban Professional of the Year 2003

Divorce Attorney

William Shakespeare in Sonnet MXVI

"Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments.
Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds, or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark that looks on tempests and is never shaken; it is the star to every wandering bark, whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.

Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks within his bending sickle's compass come:
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, but bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved".

The romantic notion of love in the time of Shakespeare.

Today there is quite a different picture - almost 50% of marriages end in divorce. There are over 80 pages of reference on the internet with the words "marriage - business - success ". The articles on the internet range from advice in relation to religion & marriage, to business & marriage, to partners & marriage working together as partners in business, to businesses marrying each other. And as many articles as there were, so were there different theories and levels of advice.

I think the starting point for a topic such as this one, is that the attitude towards the institution of marriage has changed since the days of William Shakespear. In the times when divorce was not an acceptable social institution, parties married each other with the attitude of "Till death us do part" - if there are problems we will work on them to save the marriage. Today, the attitude appears to be, we will get married, if it does'nt work out, we will get a divorce. I would suggest that this is a starting point for any couple who intend to have a successful marriage in conjunction with a successful business.

Azriela Jasse in Fortune Magazine talks about success being a strain on a marriage and says that couples who have made it through the tough times often do not know how to survive the good ones. She suggests that the reasons for failure of a marriage after success in business are as follows:

The couple does not know how to discuss financial issues.
The spouses suddenly discover they have radically different values.
Some individuals are deeply uncomfortable about wealth.
Money is symbolic of deeper conflicts in the relationship.
Wealth allows time to fight.

So what do you do if sudden wealth starts interfering with your once happy marriage?

Do not waste energy trying to prove to your partner that his/her ideal way of spending money is stupid and you have got the superior plan, says Ms Jasse. When you do so, you are criticizing your partner's core values. Instead, brainstorm how you can use your money to satisfy both partners values.

Did you hear the story about a businessman who was being interviewed about his life and career when the subject of his wife of 30 years came up.
"To what do you attribute the success of your marriage?" asked the interviewer.
"Well", replied the businessman "you know that saying behind every successful man there is a
woman?"
"Yes".
"Well, behind every successful man's woman is a prenuptial agreement".

James C Dobson, PhD says the following:
"Don't permit the possibility of divorce to enter your thinking. Even in moments of great conflict and discouragement, divorce is no solution. It merely substitutes a new set of miseries for the ones left behind".

He goes on to list a number of factors which can negatively influence a person's marriage:

Other commitments and physical exhaustion. Do not try to go to University, work full time, have a baby, manage a toddler, fix up a house and start a business at the same time. It may sound ridiculous, but many young couples do just this and are then surprised when their marriage falls apart. Why wouldn't it? The only time they see each other is when they are worn out!
Excessive credit and conflict over how money will be spent.
Selfishness
Interference from in-laws
Unrealistic expectations
Alcohol or substance abuse
Pornography
Gambling and other addictions
Sexual frustrations, loneliness, low self-esteem and infidelity
Business failure
Business success
Getting married too young

There are numerous articles about how to succeed where couples who are married commence business together, with success stories such as Millard and Linda Fuller who are the co-founders of Habitat for Humanity.

In my personal life I have my parents to hold up as an example. They celebrated their fortieth wedding anniversary in December 2003. They are both employed at Wakefield's, my father is a Director and the Manager of the Berea Branch and my mother is an estate agent who works for the Berea Branch, so effectively, my father is my mother's boss. I think, from observing their relationship, one of the things, which struck me most, is the fact that they take an inordinate pride in each other's achievements. Where one partner in a marriage is threatened by the success of another partner, rather than being proud of it, that would certainly be a factor which would contribute to the break down of the marriage.

Some interesting statistics:

Marriage contributes to longevity: - Long marrieds have significantly high rates of mortality, 50% higher among women and 250% higher among men.
For men, staying married boosts the chances of surviving to age 65 from about 2 out of 3 to almost 9 out of 10.
The unmarried are far more likely to die from all causes, including coronary heart disease, stroke, pneumonia, cancer, automobile accident, murder and suicide.
Being married improves the mental health for both men and women - there is someone to talk to. Spouses discuss their worries, dreams and disappointments with their partner, which helps relieve stress and anxiety.
The longer people stay married, the greater the wealth accumulation.
Spouses have better health and life insurance coverage.
Married men and women report less depression, less anxiety and lower levels of other types of psychological distress than do those who are single, divorced or widowed.
Widowed and divorced persons are about three times as likely to commit suicide.
Marital status is one of the most important predicators of happiness. 40% of the married say they are very happy with their life in general, compared to just under a quarter of those who were single or co-habiting.

Predicted divorce factors by John Gottman, PhD:

More negativity than positivity.
Repair attempts fail or are not received well by the partner.
Perceive partners negative actions as a character trait.
Maintaining a running score of wrongs and/or gifts and favours.
Male stays vigilant, aroused and feeds the stress, maintaining thoughts after an argument.
Don't take breaks or if they do, the male uses the time to rehearse the stress maintaining thoughts.
Male has heartbeat over 100 beats to a minute even when resting after an argument (inability to self-sooth or receive soothing from her).
Male does not have good "marital poop detector" (high negativity threshold).
Male refuses to accept influence from female, often due to a fear of losing control, resulting in his emotional withdrawal or controlling with defensiveness and contempt plus either belligerence or domination.
The existence of criticism, contempt, defensiveness and/or stonewalling.
Negative Affect Reciprocity; eg, anger escalating to criticism/contempt etc, best divorce indicator.�
Distance and isolation cascade occurs: Flooding leads to seeing problems as severe, leading to a pattern of working out problems alone, leading to living parallel lives, ending in loneliness.

John Gottman goes on to state the characteristics of a stable marriage as being:

More positivity than negativity (5 : 1). This means for every negative statement there are 5 positive statements or behaviors.
Repair attempts (attempts to get back into a living intimidate interaction) received often.
Perceive partners negative actions as an addity.
Keep no record of wrongs.
Know how to sooth each other and self-sooth, especially the male self-soothing after a fight.
Take breaks (physical or emotional) from an argument when reach an intense arousal state.
And believe it or not, there are even scientific tests which can predict the success of a marriage based on an analysis of hormone levels.

The data shows that women, in particular, register much higher levels of stress hormones than men do, in times of conflict. These high levels of stress hormones do not go away. They are elevated during more routine interaction, and are even elevated at night when they are sleeping.
Dr Kiecolt - Glazer stated that "It is not genetic, as far as we can tell. It looks like it is simply a reaction to the presence of the spouse".

A little boy was attending his first wedding. After the service, his cousin asked him, "how many woman can a man marry?".
"16", the boy responded.
His cousin was amazed that he knew the answer so quickly.
"How do you know that?"
"Easy", the little boy said. "All you have to do is add it up, like the preacher
said: 4 better, 4 worse, 4 richer, 4 poorer".

And to end I would like to leave you with this thought, a quote by Charmaine Greer, the well known feminist, "a successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person".

COACHING IN A SOUTH AFRICAN CONTEXT

Cathy Yuill

"If we did all that is in us to do, we would truly astonish ourselves" - Thomas Edison

The word "Coaching" appears more and more in our South African business circles. It is a relatively new concept here in South Africa. It tends to be interpreted in different ways. This, in itself is confusing, particularly when some interpretations are misleading.

Coaching in the workplace embraces a very specific set of skills. It is not mentoring or teaching or counseling or consulting, although a skilled coach will know when to bring these elements into a coaching relationship. There are no quick fixes in business. A coaching relationship will set a client on a journey of self-discovery that will tap into their best thinking and the creativity that may have been lost in the rush and the stress.

Definition of Coaching

Coaching is the art and science of improving performance and developing self-awareness in others. Coaching creates conditions for continuous development, helping individuals and teams to define and achieve goals and to recognize their own strengths.

Development is not a linear issue. It is rather like the Rubik cube. There are many ways of finding the correct solution. Coaching helps us to creatively explore all options and helps us to learn how to learn.

A coaching relationship can unleash astonishing potential in people.

In our ever-changing, pressure-cooker business environment, it is often difficult to access our best thinking and make good decisions. The pressure is on for people to perform at their very best. I believe that there has never been a greater need for effective coaching, particularly in South Africa.

I will draw information and stories from my personal coaching experience; the experience of my coaching colleagues and the broader coaching profession. I will also draw my learning from my current academic studies on coaching. I will reflect the views of people in our South African workplace, who must somehow find ways of managing problems arising from the frightening speed of change, technically and politically.

Is Coaching a new thing?

NO! If not new, where has it been hiding? And more interestingly - WHY NOW?

This question is of particular interest for me as it evokes issues such as:
The speed of change vs. human nature's natural resistance to change.
- "He won over against his will, is of the same opinion still".

Coaching goes back as far as Socrates who said that there's no such thing as teaching, only learning, and wanting to learn.
I invite you to become actively involved by sharing your stories and your concerns about your experiences in the workplace. Coaching is partly a focus on performance and partly a focus on development and transformation.

So let me describe coaching by describing a daily experience that we can all relate to...

Routinely, we get up in the morning and drag ourselves to the bathroom and begin the challenging task of looking presentable. Shaving or applying make-up or combing or styling our hair.

We meet ourselves in the bathroom mirror. The mirror makes no judgment. It simply reflects and helps us to reach our goal; which is to look good (or at least presentable). It doesn't say "I don't like that style" or "that doesn't work." It reflects what is happening so we can make an informed decision on the outcome.

A good coach responds to us in a similar way, simply reflecting what she / he sees in order to help us develop a stronger, deeper sense of self. This "Self-Awareness" is essential for helping us to recognise more choices for moving our lives forward.

A good coach creates the environment in which one is encouraged to THINK (a rare gift) and to speak without interruption or judgment; to reflect, and to learn from that reflection.

Each of us is a coach in some aspect of our lives, providing a mirror to help others to see where they are going. Coaching will benefit everyone. Let's learn together how to build a coaching culture into our workplace and into our lives. I believe that such a culture is the key to supporting the ongoing success that is the miracle of South Africa.

'Let women run the world'

New York

Media mogul Ted Turner has taken a small step to demonstrate his belief that women should run the world because men have "mucked it up" with too much warfare and military spending. The UN Foundation he established six years ago to distribute the $1 billion he pledged to UN causes, has a new female-dominated board of directors. "I've said it for years and I'm really serious about it: men should be barred from holding public office for a hundred years. Men have run the world for thousands of years and they've mucked it up something awful".

The CNN news network founder says if women were in control "it would be a more peaceful, prosperous, equitable world in a very short period of time. You'd have a huge shift period away from military budgets and into education and health care".
What's more, Turner has put his money where his mouth is: there are now six women and five men on his foundation's board. The newest member is Gro Harlem Brundtland, Norway's first female prime minister and a recent director-general of the World Health Organisation.

"We don't know of another major organisation in the world that has a female majority on its board of directors, says Turner.

SAPA-AP

Communications Deal

7 November 2003

HRH Princess, Zenani Dlamini Acquires 26% Of Tin Can In SA's First Medium-Sized Women's BEE

Johannesburg - 7th November 2003 - HRH Princess Zenani Dlamini has purchased 26% of Tin Can Communications, creating what is believed to be SA's first black empowered 100% women-owned medium-sized agency. Dlamini has also been appointed Chairman and will be actively involved in business development and assisting with the development of PDI staff in the business.

"This deal represents a major stride for black business women entrepreneurs in the communications industry, where there is currently very little representation," says Dlamini. "The immediate chemistry between Debby and myself, her entrepreneurial spirit and the agency's energetic culture were all major considerations in finalising the deal. Tin Can is a highly regarded agency, known for its delivery of innovative, brand-focused, integrated communications programmes backed by thorough market intelligence and proprietary methodologies."

Dlamini adds that Tin Can has already made impressive headway with its commitment to promote equal opportunities and advancement to re-address previously disadvantaged individuals in South Africa. "This is reflected in the firm's staff complement which comprises 96.1% PDIs. It is our stated intention to increase the BEE shareholding to 50,1% within two years."

Tin Can founder and CEO, Debby Reader, who set up Tin Can over eight years ago, says the deal represents a significant move in women entrepreneurship. "South Africa is lagging behind the US where women-owned businesses employ more than the Fortune 500 combined and own a third of all US firms," she says.

Reader believes the combination of Tin Can's existing reputation and the new partnership will assist the firm to realize its goal to become the number one South African communications agency in billings, client profile and reputation within three years.

Tin Can was ranked 9th largest PR agency in the Financial Mail's 2002 Adfocus survey, and was ranked number five in The Media's 2003 survey in terms of billings.

She adds that Dlamini can add a lot of value to Tin Can with her many years experience in marketing and business management. Dlamini was previously a director of communications company Suzanne Weil & Associates, where she managed major events and PR projects. Before this she was on the management team of the Africa Media Entertainment Group, responsible for major events at the MTN Sundome. Prior to this she was director of road traffic safety at the Automobile Association of South Africa.

Reader, who received the Business Women's Association (BWA) entrepreneurial Business Achiever Award for 2001, attributes Tin Can's substantial growth of an average of 80% per annum to skills development, adapting to market demands and diversification. Tin Can has diversified from offering conventional PR and reputation management consulting, to strategic marketing services, and entertainment management.

She says Tin Can's strength comes from its strategic business focus, top-level involvement with its clients and its team who, every day, work passionately to achieve award-winning returns, such as the 2002 Arts & Culture Publicist of the year Award.

Looking to the future, Reader believes the secret for continued growth and on-going success will be to continue improving the recipe that is working, while adapting to changing market demands and identifying opportunities to ensure revenue growth.

About Tin Can - Established in 1995, Tin Can Communications provides reputation management and integrated marketing communications and brand communications consulting services. Services include publicity, media training, event management, media placing, reputation management, investor relations, market audits and research. Tin Can, winner of the 2002 Arts and Culture Trust Publicist of the Year Award, has just launched its celebrity and entertainment division and publishing company.

LA FEMME FINANCIAL

Nicky Newton-King

By Erina Botha

Photographer: Gisele Wulfsohn

Aptitude, attitude, mental latitude: Nicky Newton-King, deputy CEO of the JSE Securities Exchange, has a perfect recipe for success in the office and on the homefront. Last year she received a mention for innovation from the Wall Street Journal. This year she's BWA Businesswoman of the year.

On 28 August, at a gala dinner at Gallagher Estate in Johannesburg, the Businesswoman's Association (BWA) announced that Nicky Newton-King, deputy CEO of the JSE Securities Exchangehad won the 2003 Businesswoman of the Year Award. As was the case with her predecessor Kim McFarland, chief operating officer of Investec Asset Management. Nicky was selected not only for her outstanding career chievements, but also for her success at balancing career and home life - in an effort by the BWA to acknowledge role models whose lives refute the myth that business success can only be achieved at the cost of family relationships.

In a revolutionary agreement between the JSE and the London Stock Exchange (LSE), which came into operation in May 2002, the JSE now shares the LSE's technology, while the LSE is required to market JSE data. The agreement, which also makes provision for cross membership and dual listing, has been hailed as one of the top five technological innovations of 2002 by the European version of the Wall Street Journal.

One of the main architects of this visionary idea was 36 year old Newton-king who developed the arrangement together with executive committee colleagues during 2001. In the same year Nicky was also the initiator and prime sponsor in a joint venture between the JSE and the FISE, the global index provider, which resulted in the first live calculation of JSE indices by the FISE only six weeks after the LSE/JSE securities electronic trading system (Secs) came on line, thereby totally changing the basis on which the JSE operates.

A prolific achiever, Nicky has left a distinctive imprint on the JSE since she joined its ranks in 1996. Well aware of the challenges faced by the JSE as the world's 14th largest exchange, trading over R1.3 billion a day, Nicky is constantly looking to develop new strategies to ensure that the JSE remains globally and locally relevant, and continues to be recognised as a leader in trading systems and technology. She was one of the primary drafters of the Insider Trading Act, a world leader for this type of statute, since it provides for people who have suffered loss as a result of insider trading - to receive compensation. She has also conceived and is currently driving the JSE's introduction of a Socially Responsible Investment Index. She sits on the board of the JSE, is a member of the Standing Advisory Committee on Company Law and the Financial Markets Advisory Board, serves on the Financial Centre for Africa's strategy committee and contributed to the King committee on corporate governance.

No newcomer to awards, Nicky attended the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos in January this year, as one of three South Africans selected for the WEF's 100 Global Leaders for Tomorrow for 2003.

A few minutes in Nicky's company makes it apparent that her long list of achievements is due, in no small measure, to her friendly attitude and unassuming manner. Her warm smile and openness makes one feel immediately at home in her company, and she gives you her full attention. It comes as no surprise that she chooses as her greatest achievement her ability to put together and build up strong teams that are highly respected internally and externally. She clearly embodies the principle that magnetic people attract dynamic achievers to themselves.

Nicky confirms the importance of attitude in achievement. "For more women in South Africa to realise their potential, it is essential that women lose their victim mentality. People unconsciously treat us the way we see ourselves."

While Nicky has great appreciation for the way in which accolades like the BWA's 2003 Businesswoman of the Year Award help to inspire aspirant women achievers, she regrets the fact that business awards so seldom give recognition to teams. "I couldn't call up all my team members to share the limelight with me, but I will certainly use this platform during the year ahead to convey the message that no lasting achievement is possible without the support of a good team."

Equally important stresses Nicky is to be focused strategically and to know where you are going, leaving more energy free for creativity

Creative, out-of-the-box thinking is not possible in a rigid environment. "I am focused on creating and environment at the workplace where people are encouraged to challenge everything they do every day to see if there are ways of doing it better, it is vitally important to have that balance between being focused atrategically and always keeping an open mind to finding better ways of getting where you're going. The best way to achieve this is to have tight-knit teams and regular brainstorming sessions."

At the JSE, strategy days take place almost every three months and teams are encouraged to have additional brainstorming sessions in their own work streams.

Nicky's advice about putting together a winning team is threefold: Choose the best people, don't constantly look over their shoulders, and make sure they maintain a balance between work and home.

A BA LLB graduate from the University of Stellenbosch, Nicky was a partner in the financial service unit of Webber, Wentzel Bowens, one of the largest law firms in South Africa, prior to joining the JSE in 1996. "From the start I deliberately set out to complement my legal background with people with strong financial and technical skills and expertise. Surrounding myself with people who are better than me technically has probably been one of the most important factors in enabling me to achieve my goals."

Nicky has been schooled by JSE Russell Loubser about the importance of not sacrificing sufficient quality time with family for business achievement ever since he first appointed her to the JSE's Executive Committee as JSE lawyer in 1997.

"Russell set the example that staff should never be called after hours, unless there is a genuine emergency, and I have followed his example. During my maternity leave period with each of my two boys, Russell insisted that I do not contact the office for the entire four months, and I took his advice.

I have no problem in allowing my team members to take time off during a working day to go to the dentist, or attend to the needs of their children in an emergency. In my experience, showing them that I care about their personal lives without getting entangled in them has not led to them abusing the flexibility, but rather to increased levels of productivity and creativity."

Innovation, creativity and initiative have not only been hallmarks of Newton-King's career. Her home life is also pretty unconventional. Her husband Eckhardt Ficinus is a home executive and entrepreneur, who manages the Newton-King/Ficinus household alongside running his water aerobics business from their home base.

"Eckhardt is one of my strongest supporters. His encouragement has made it so much easier for me to apply myself in my career without having to be concerned about the care of our children during working hours."

In addition to their sons, Alexander (4) and Nicholas (1), Nicky and Eckhardt are also foster parents to Many Moloi, the 16 year old granddaughter of Nicky's childhood nanny Hazel Moloi. Their household is completed by Christine Kune, their son's nanny, whose own son Nicky and Eckhardt are supporting through university.

At home Nicky loves to relax with biographies, which she can devour at a rate of three a month when time allows. She is also an adventurous cook who enjoys opportunities to cook for family and friends. Swimming is her favorite way of keeping fit, but she also gets to the gym whenever she can.

Newton-King's clear commitment to not letting her work overshadow her private life is one of the reasons she was chosen by the BWA as the winner of the 2003 award, says BWA president and director for human capital services at the SABC, Dr Namane Magau.

"Business success at all costs is definitely not the kind of message we would like to convey to women who are aspiring to make important contributions to business innovation, productivity improvement and economic growth. South Africa has already paid a high enough price with the high number of broken homes and dysfunctional family relationships. Our young people need to be nurtured with love and attention if we want them to grow into confident, secure and creative adults and leaders of tomorrow," says Namane, herself a mother of two aged 24 and 26.

The Businesswoman of the Year Award has grown in stature since its inception in 1980 to become the premier event of its kind in the country, and a notable part of the South African business calendar. This is reflected by the calibre of the judges who selected this year's winner. Apart from Dr magau, they were pearl Mashabela, CEO, publisher and shareholder of Nothemba Media, Cyril Ramaphosa,executive chairman of Millennium Consolidated Investments and Services, Edwin Jay, CEO of Moneyweb, Francois van den Berg, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers Incorporated in Johannesburg, Richard Buchholz, head of the business banking division of Nedbank Corporate, Hixonia Nynsulu, director of Nedcor, Carol Scott CEO of Tourvest Limited, and last year's winner Kim McFarland, COO and chief financial officer of Investec Asset Management.

Nicky Newton-King has joined the ranks of such dynamic past winners as Maria Ramos, newly appointed CEO of transnet (2001) and Irene Charnley of Johnnic Holdings (2000).

Dr Magau says the award focuses on three important elements, which have remained consistent over the years.

"Firstly it exists to recognise and honor the achievement of South African women business leaders. Secondly, it helps to create a cadre of women role models. Lastly, it makes a tangible and sustainable contribution to the next generation of women business leaders, as all proceeds of the annual gala banquet go the BWA Bursary Fund. Since 1988 the Bursary Fund has assisted more than 45 women to further their postgraduate business studies."

The BWA searched for a sponsor that shared its vision of a wide ranging award system, and found it in Nedbank. The bank agreed not only to sponsor the organisation and its annual national award, but to also fund a series of regional awards for women entrepreneurs and professionals, making the BWA awards system a year long country wide process, rather than a once off event.

A graduate of Harvard University, former vice-president for human resources at the CSIR, a member of several business boards and currently part of the SABC's executive team, Dr Mngau herself a high achiever who is set to enhance the impact of the BWA during her presidency.

She recently spearheaded a strategic session which looked at the role of the BWA in providing inspiration and support to business women and promoting awareness of the need to fast track the development of women business leaders.

"We are currently working on a survey in partnership with Catalyst, the leading businesswoman's organisation in the USA, to be the South African leg of their global census of women on corporate boards and executive councils. We will be collecting a whole range of useful data which will help us to advise corporations on how to speed up the process of advancing women into senior management and high level decision making positions."

Mngau says it will be useful for South Africa to have comparative figures in relation to the rest of the world. "The visibility that the BWA provides to women throughout the country is vitally important. I am already noticing a change in the attitude of men who are becoming more committed to developing their daughters. During my grandfather's time the focus was only on the careers of the boys. Today you hear many fathers referring with pride to the academic and career achievements of their daughters."

Mngau is not a proponent of aggressive transformation management that turns people into objects. "As we focus on enhancing women, we are taking great care not to create new disparities where men are left behind."

One of the important future roles Mngau sees the BWA playing is in giving women access and insight into all aspects of business and the economy. Along these lines a short seminar is currently being put together with Harvard Business School for next year. It will demonstrate how the global economy works and how women can make their own businesses a part of it.

"We are also talking to Nicky about a course to illuminate the operations of the JSE and the international stock and securities trading environment to women."

Another project aimed at fast tracking women to top management and decision making positions is the National BWA/MTN Brains Trust, which was registered earlier this year with sponsorship support from MTN. The purpose of the trust is to heighten the profile of emerging women opinion leaders, by positioning them as spokeswomen for the BWA and to facilitate the mentoring of emerging women achievers by linking them up with prominent, established achievers. In the first pilot project for Gauteng, seven trustees from various sectors of the economy have been selected and linked up with mentors of their choice, including the likes of Wendy Luhabe, Gill Marcus and george Bizos. The project will be running for a year and will then be assessed with the aim of rolling it out countrywide.

NEWTON-KING SE DEAURBRAAK IN 'N MANSW?RELD

Die Beeld

9 September 2003

Sy kan in 'n oogwink die boom van die bas onder-skei. Sy weier om skuldig te voel omdat sy lang tye werk en haar man na die kinders omsien. Me. Nicky Newton-King, die Businesswomen's Association se sakevro van die jaar, is passievol oor die JSE, haar gesin en haar span.

"Hier kom sy, hier kom sy!" Me. Nicky Newton-King (36), adjunk-uitvoerende hoof van die JSE Sekuriteitebeurs (JSE), kondig uitbundig haar aaankoms - waar Sake in haar kantoor in die JSE-gebou vir haar wag - aan.

Die kantoor ruik soos 'n Blommewinkel en lyk soos een dansky al die ruikers wat sy ontvang het na haar aanwysing as die Businesswomen's Association (BWA) se sakevrou van die jaar. Haar handdruk is ferm. Haar lang, vinnige tre? verklap hoe sy die lewe be-nader - gefokus en vasberade. Sy glimlag breed toe sy opmerk dat n?g ruikers opgedaag het terwyl sy die grootse deel van die dag by raadsvergraderings was. "Ek is 'n gelukkige meisie," s? sy met haar neus in een ven die bosse blomme. Sy is gemaklik aangetrek in 'n klinknaelbroek en oorhanghemp. Dit is immers Loslitdag en sy is nie skaam om te wys dat sy omgee nie.

Sy het twee seuns en is ook die pleegma van 'n 17 jarige meisie.

Newton-King s? haar aanwysing as sakevrou van die jaar was vir haar 'n skok. "Waarom sou hulle my wou benoem?" vra sy. Die antwoord is eenvoudig. Sy stel 'n voorbeeld aan ander jong vroue en mense volg haar sonder day sy dit moet maak gebeur. Sy is 'n natuurlike leier en gee 'n stewige pas aan. Di? wat byhou, ag hulself gelukkig.

Newton-King was nog skaars 30 toe sy aangestel is in die raad van direkteure van die JSE. Dit was net vier jaar nadat sy haar by die JSE as regsverteenwoorgiger aangesluit het. Sy en 'n kollega was die eerste twee vroue wat di? deurbraak in die voorheen mansbeheerde w?reld gemaak het.

Newton-King het in die voetspore gevolg van haar pa, mnr. Pierce Newton-King, en in die regte gestudeer. Hy is in 'n ongeluk dood kort voordat sy begin het met haar klerkskap by die regsfirma Webber Wentzel Bowens, waar hy as konsultant gewerk.

Dit was 'n uiters emosionele tyd vir haar en n? 'n jaar in die buiteland het sy saam met mnr. Peter Leon, broer van mnr. Tony Leon, gewerk as adviseur vir die JSE by Webber Wentzel Bowens. Daarna het sy 'n jaar aan die Universiteit van Cambridge gestudeer en by haar terugkeer 'n vennoot geword.

'n Koppesneller van die JSEhet haar weggerokkel. Mnr. Russell Loubser, uitvoerende hoof, was instrumenteel in die vordering wat sy by die JSE gemaak het. "Hy het nie ervaring gesoek nie, maar potensiaal. Hy glo in mense en gee hulle die vryheid om te doen wat hulle wil en kan doen." Sy en 'n kollega was die 'hoof-argitekte' van die ooreenkoms wat twee jaar gelede tussen die JSE en die Londense aandelebeurs (LSE) gesluit maak van die Britse beurs se tegnologie. Dit het gelei tot kruislidmaatskap en dubbele noterings wat van die LSE vereis om die JSE se inligting te bemark.
Die logistiek vir die verbinding tussen die twee beurse het in Mei verlede jaar op dreef gekom en is sederdien deur die Wall Street Journal Europe erken as een van die top-vyf tegnologiese uitvindings van 2002.

Haar aspirasie vir die JSE is om dit vir die meeste Suid Afrikaners toeganklik te maak. Dit moet minder kos, s? sy ernstig.

Haar visier is nou op die algehele herontwerp van die JSE om dit internasionaal mededingend te maak.

Sy is opsigtelik hartsogtelik oor haar werk. Sy kan regtig nie in die oggend wag om by die werk te kom nie. Sy beskryf haar as die "begunstigde van geluk" met die gawe om die groter prentjie met gemaak te sien.

Moelike en vreemde konsepte is vir haar intellektuele pitkos. "Ek snap taamlik vinning en sukkel nie met lang leerkurwes nie. My hand is gereeld in die lug... maar ek het ook geleer dat harde werk en toewyding nodig is om bo uit te kom." Sy s? dit sonder geveinsde nederheid.

Haar persoonlike aspirasie is om hard te werk. Sy dink nie in terme van tyd oor haar loopbaansukesse of mislukkings nie. Dit is pure plesier en genot wat haar aanspoor. As dit die dag nie meer daar is nie, is dit tyd om te gaan, s? sy.

Newton-King erken ruiterlik dat haar skuldgevoeldrempel besonder hoog is. "Ek dink skuldgevoel is 'n vierletterwoord. Mans vertaal dit as plig. Dit is 'n vierletter-woord."

Met haar twee seuns, Alexander enNicholas, het sy elke keer vier maande kraamverlof geneem en nie een keer skuldig gevoel nie. Sy het geen kontak met die kantoor gemaak nie.

"My ma was geskok en wou weet wat nou van my loopbaan. S? nou daaar is nie meer plek vir jou as jy teruggaan nie." Dan moes sy nooit daar gewees het nie, was haar antwoord. Dit is ongelooflik om te sien hoe mense groei as jy nie daar is nie, s? sy. Sy is openlik trots op haar span en beskryf hulle as skrander en geregspekteerd. Hulle is gesog in al die sleutelprojekte van die JSE.

Sy beskryf haar as 'n 'empatiese bestuurder' en werk Baie hard daaraan om di? titel gestand te doen. Daarom pla sy nie haar span n? werktyd of oor naweke nie. Sy is nie skaam daaroor dat sy haar selfoon afskakel nie. Sy werk wanneer sy moet.

Sy was agt jaar oud toe haar ouers 'n plaas in Somerset-Wes gekoop en haar ma, Jean die lewe van 'n sosiale vlinder vaarwel geroep en 'n professionele boer geword het.

"My ma het my gewys ek kan wees wat ek ook al wil. Sy het 'n voorbeeld gestel met haar keuse om 'n boer te word wat harde en uitputtende werk is. Alles hoef nie altyd akittermooi te wees nie."

"Geslag was nooit 'n bepalende kwesie in ons huis nie. Dit het nooit by my opgekom dat daar enige grense is nie."

Haar eie gesin is 'n weerspie?ling hiervan. Sy werk en haar man, Eckhardt Ficinus, sien om na die kinders en sorg dat hulle by die tandarts, patytjies en maatjies uitkom. Hy is die 'huisman' wat sorg dat alles vlot verloop. In haar kantoor is 'n reeks foto's van hom en die twee seuns.

Sy lag uitbundig op die vraag of sy gholf speel. "Nee wat, daarvoor is ek heeltemal te mededingend. Ek speel muurbal en swem, maar is gek daarna om na gholfspelers te kyk. Ek word geinspireer deur die spelers se konsentrasie en fokus. Dit is soos om na internasionale intellektuels in aksie te kyk."

Women!

www.go.co.za - East London's Community Newspaper

14 August 2003

SISTERS DOING IT: Left, Mamsie Kekana, organiser of PriceWaterhouseCooper's Woman's Day lunch last week, with speaker councillor Sandiswa Gomba.

The group of more than 20 women heard how seldom women were prepared to nominate other women for top posts in either the corporate world or in committees.

The councillor, who is on the special projects committee and is a panel member of the Premier's Good Governance awards, also spoke about the march on the Union Buildings in 1956 that led to the annual commemoration of Women's Day.

Wendy Luhabe - Picture by LEW ELIAS

WENDY LUHABE may be one of South Africa's top businesswomen but she hasn't forgotten how hard life was for earlier generations of women.

"I remember when I grew up that most of our mothers did not have a voice," Wendy told a Business Women's Association meeting in East London on Women's Day last week.

Wendy wants women to be strong enough to change that for themselves.

Wendy grew up in Cradock and later spent years visiting East London.

"I have been coming here for more than 10 years because this is where my mother lived before she died of lung cancer last year."

She watched her mother's generation struggle. "Women were expected to look after everyone else except themselves."

It was a little easier for her own generation, as more were able to study. "We became nurses or teachers or social workers - again looking after each other."

By the 1980s, women were starting to qualify in South Africa in traditionally male-dominated fields such as medicine -- "the first generation to break out of the mould".

Women started buying cars, owning houses, marriage was no longer a priority and "we became visible".

By the 1990s, women were becoming entrepreneurs.

Wendy herself is the current chairman of Vodacom, the Industrial Development Corporation, Alliance Capital, Women's Private Equity Fund1, Vendome Distributors (Pty) Ltd SA and a director of Cycad Fund Managers. She has received awards for her pioneering roles both in South African and internationally.

There's more than being top in business, says Wendy.

"The real breakthrough came when women began to be appointed as ministers in government," she said, saying this was particularly so when women were appointed to traditionally male portfolios like minerals and energy.

"Our greatest power lies in our self-respect and integrity... Ultimately the experience of our life is a reflection of our attitude," said Wendy.

Providing the finishing touch

The Zululand Observer

11 August 2003

A confident jet-setter who has landed herself two major coups in the local business fraternity, Annette Ellis has fast-tracked her way to the top in the blink of an eye.

In the space of a month Annette was elected Chairperson of the prestigious Zululand Businesswomen's Association and she and her husband Keith have purchased the sought-after Quay Walk Conference Centre at the Tuzi Gazi Waterfront.

A down-to-earth yet sophisticated combination of doting mom, loving wife and driven businesswoman, Annette is also the Business Relations Manager and first woman on the Executive Management committee of Coal and Mineral Technologies. The best of both worlds, she calls it - working for and contributing to a fantastic, growing company, while owning and running your own business - all in the same building.

Sweetening the deal further is the fact that the view of the small craft harbour from her office is her favourite view in the world, her favourite restaurant, maritino's, is downstairs and her husband runs their new enterprise just upstairs.

Raised in the Carletonville mining community, Annette gravitated towards that industry in all her jobs. From Anglo Gold to Alusaf to Coal and Mineral technologies, she has lived in Johannesburg and Richards Bay and has launched gold mines in Tanzania and Mali.

Challenges do not faze Scottish-born Annette - "the more you do, the more you can do", she says.

Her new position as chair of the BWA is her current challenge. Being a member adds tremendous value to women, who have common problems that they can share with each other, said Annette. We are all unfinished diamonds; when we meet and network, the proverbial rubbing of shoulders has the effect of polishing each other, she said.

This gem of a woman whose best gift from her parents was that of confidence and empowerment in the environment she was raised, now aspires to ensure that the BWA grows in numbers. It must be truly reflective of the demographics of Zululand - we need to uplift the small businesses run by rural women and polish those diamonds; after all, the meshing of business and community is what Zululand is really about, she said.

What women want

Business Times

10 August 2003

By Niven Postma

Please Note that this article is in response to an article that appeared in the edition of 3 August 2003, this article was not published online and could be found in the print edition of 3 August 2003.

Competition is not all there is to work, writes Niven Postma , chief executive of the Businesswomen's Association, in response to last week's article on men at work. Relationships, she writes, are more important.

On a number of points, the Economist article that appeared in last week's Business Times was spot-on for the world and work as it currently exists.

Generally, men do compete harder than women. Women do underplay their individual contribution and stress the value of the team, and traditionally these factors have not been a recipe for women's success at the highest levels.

The implicit conclusion of the Economist article was that women simply need to learn to be more like men - they need to learn to compete more, negotiate harder and reprioritise work relative to the rest of their life.

While this is certainly one answer, it is not one with which I agree.

Firstly, I think that it is fairly apparent by now that this is not going to happen - women don't act like men and largely don't want to.

The debate on women's advancement has been going for years, and the pat answer that "women should be more like men" hasn't taken women - or men - very much further than when this debate first started. This is despite the fact that the environment in which the debate takes place has changed considerably.

Legislation has made it illegal to discriminate against women when it comes to being hired and/or remunerated. Considerably more women have high education today than was the case 10 years ago, and more and more women are reaching the top of the corporate ladder but, fundamentally, things haven't really changed at the top.

While there are many remarkable women who are at the top of their fields - Carly Fiorina and Anne Mulcahy internationally, and Kim McFarland, Maria Ramos and Irene Charnley in South Africa, they are not there in the numbers that one would expect.

Some figures not included in the article reinforce this point - globally, only 1% of chief executive positions are held by women. In South Africa, less than 5% of all directors at JSE-listed companies are women.

A second reason I disagree is because as much as this was not the answer for the world in the past, even less is it the answer for the changing world in which we live. The answers that used to apply don't any more - this is true not only for business but also for the roles that women have in business.

The Economist article touted competition as the only way to succeed - as an individual and as an organisation. This may have been true in the past, but increasingly it is a view that is changing. Competition can certainly be healthy but, too often, it is not.

The process of finding a replacement for Jack Welch of GE is an example given by Graeme Codrington, South Africa's generational guru, of the potential for damage in this kind of approach.

This process lasted the best part of a decade, starting with hundreds of initial candidates. One of the conditions given to the final set of candidates was that they had to resign from GE if unsuccessful, since only the final, successful candidate would remain.

As a matter of pride, GE reports that they produce more CEOs for other companies than any other company in the world. As Graeme points out, "this certainly says something for GE's internal mentoring and leadership development programmes, but what a loss to the company of such talent".

At the same time, the agendas of companies are changing. With the wave of corporate scandals that has hit companies locally and globally, corporate governance and the dynamics that underpin effective corporate governance, are increasingly finding their way to the top of global business agendas. Again, this is an area where women have been found to add considerable value.

Recent research by Ernst & Young reveals that women are, across the board, more likely to detect and report fraud in organisations than are men. The reasons for this are complex but I would argue that it is due to courage. This is clearly a strength that should be recognised and maximised.

It is also due to a more holistic and broader worldview, as opposed to narrow commercial gain. In the same vein, 2002 saw Time Magazine without a Man of the Year.

Instead it featured "People of the Year" - three women who had exposed some of the largest corporate governance scandals the world has recently seen.

I highlight this not because I think that this is an either/or issue - either you're a woman and collaborative and occupying a higher moral plane or you're a man and competitive and prone to corruption.

Clearly, that is an over-simplification and a generalisation that is hardly helpful.

Instead, I highlight this case because I think it is becoming clear that women do bring real, tangible, and different value (and values) to organisations.

And so the answer is more about recognising that women do things differently and that this is something that needs to be capitalised on, rather than managed out of existence or into the status quo.

It has long been acknowledged that women have a different style of corporate and personal development. The Economist sees "inability to compete" as a drawback, but I disagree. Women are able to compete, but they prefer not to.

As economies change and become more about relationships, a new way of doing things will become more dominant and relationships will be the basis of competitive advantage, rather than efficiency, products and services or information.

Again, a point made by Graeme Codrington is that in the industrial era (1700s-1950), employees rose to the top by gaining experience and by being competitive and politically astute (in many cases, manipulating). In the information era (1950s-1990s), the "clever" people rose to the top - people with an inspiring strategic vision . In the emerging relationship economy in South Africa, emotionally intelligent people will rise to the top. Again, women hardly have a monopoly on emotional intelligence, but they do have a stronger inclination towards collaboration than competition - a hallmark of EQ.

The Economist article stated that women want opportunities, as opposed to a life dominated by work. I disagree.

Men might still feel the need to say this, but consulting work done by Catalyst, the leading businesswomen's organisation in the US, seems to indicate differently.

Catalyst is often engaged by leading US companies to advise on improving the recruitment, retention and promotion of women within company ranks.

Often, since the turnover rate is higher for women than for men, it is assumed that by implementing changes that make it easier for women to manage the work/life balance better, the workforce will become a better place for women to work.

In fact, what is found is that by instituting work/life balance programmes throughout the company, the turnover rate for women does drop, but it often shows an even higher decrease for men - companies become better places for everyone to work, which in turn increases productivity and competitive advantage.

As this way of thinking becomes more entrenched, I think that not only is the definition of success going to continue changing, but more women are going to be successful - and in ways that, for the first time, make sense to them.

A recent article in the Harvard Business Review, Executive Women and the Myth of Having it All, points out that there are still significant trade-offs women need to make to succeed in the workforce that men don't.

These include permanently depressing their earning power if they leave their career at any stage to have children, and having to make a choice between family and work.

There are companies making huge leaps in maximising the contribution that women make. And the trend can be expected to continue.

Making the right choices

Dispatch Online

8 August 2003

In recognition of Women's Day, Keshina Thaver spoke to some of the regional finalists in the Businesswomen's Association Woman of the Year awards.

Jill Fish - Owner of Jill Fish Properties

What were some of the difficulties you experienced?

I did not buy a franchise and thereby the instant credibility that should come with this method of starting a business. Our value has been earned over the past year.

However the main difficulty has been to educate the sellers of homes to the fact that buyers are not loyal and will buy from whichever agency effectively offers a property for sale.

Did you find support from other women in business?

Yes, particularly from the Businesswomen's Association, women like Jay from PG glass, Lynn Corby and Patti Graham, who perhaps, sometimes even unknowingly, encouraged and supported my endeavour. The BWA also offered me an extensive network. One of my biggest supporters has been my mother-in-law, Joan Fish, a remarkable woman.

How supportive is your partner?

John, my husband, believed in Jill Fish Properties before we even opened the doors! They say that behind every successful man stands a woman - but I now believe that next to every successful woman stands an exhausted man.

What are some of the issues that you had to consider?

Besides the obvious - premises, financing, target market and the like, I think one of the biggest issues was what commission I would charge and still be able to afford to provide the services a seller expects and deserves when selling their home.

What are some of the issues that you did not take into consideration?

I underestimated computer technology! Much of the past year has been devoted to upgrading my computer skills and equipment. Since we recently sold a house on the Internet for just under a million, I have become even more convinced that the impact of this technology is not to be taken lightly.

How has being a finalist in the BWA awards validated your efforts?

I do not have a 'head office' which would probably hand out awards, certificates and the like at the end of each financial year if one had achieved a high level of service and sales. This recognition validates our efforts not only by the community in which we operate, but has the added bonus of the kind of publicity which money literally cannot buy.

Debi Godwin - owner of Independent Executor and Trust

How difficult was it to start your business?

Having come from a large, secure, corporate world, initially the hardest part was having the courage of my convictions and accepting that I was about to take the plunge of a life time, on my own, with no corporate back-up or safety net.

My business is largely based on trust, this was no easy task and has taken years to build.

What are some of the issues that you had to consider before starting?

I believe that the most successful business people have a belief in what they do for a living. If they are providing the same product and service as their competitors, they must have an inner belief that in some way their product or service is superior. If they don't, and it isn't, then they are in trouble.

What are some of the issues that you did not take into consideration at the beginning?

I never considered that the goalposts of satisfaction keep moving. Sometimes in all the excitement of this perceived success we lose sight of the original plan. It is always worthwhile going back to basics every so often.

Probably the most important quality for a business person is determination, I hadn't even thought of that at the outset, but determination is what keeps you going.

How has being a finalist in the BWA awards validated your efforts?

I am honoured to have been a finalist. All of us need recognition for what we do. It is also fantastic to have the recognition of your peers and I am deeply touched that they have recognised my struggles in this way.

What advice do you have for young women going into business on their own?

It has been said that success was only just an idea away, which is right of course about the idea, but it is what you do with the idea that really matters. You also have to have a bit of luck. Every business has problems but whatever it is it will be magnified if you don't sometimes stand back and look at the whole picture in perspective.

Tracy Dutton - Owner of Tracy Dutton Architect and Interiors

How difficult was it to start your business?

For me it was a natural progression. My specific interests in the world of architecture and design led me to open my own practice, because in that way I could direct my focus to the projects that I find inspiring. It also allowed me to offer my clients the service of marrying the interior and exterior of buildings.

What were some of the difficulties you experienced when starting?

I was most fortunate in my career choice in that you learn so many of the skills you need to be an architect at university. As a woman in the profession, I have had to prove myself capable of handling many situations thought to be only within the realm of men. I have had to earn the respect and trust of clients, fellow professionals, contractors and others in the building industry.

How supportive is your partner?

As a child I was charged by a rhino in the Kruger National Park, and ever since I have had a great fear of them. A few years ago, my husband, Luke, gave me a beautiful photograph of a little girl kissing a rhino. He has always supported me and encouraged me to reach out and "kiss the rhino". He continually inspires me.

What are some of the issues that you had to consider?

I had to consider the financial costs of setting up a practice as well as the personal costs. Regarding the personal costs, I had to consider how I would manage my time between a demanding career and personal commitments.

What are some of the issues that you did not take into consideration?

Some of my projects may run for a year or longer. I did not realise the impact that this would have on planning my personal life.

Donna-Mae Peenz - owner of The Blue Ribbon Hospitality School

How difficult was it to start your business?

Not difficult at all. Having had the experience and expertise, it was relatively easy to begin the Blue Ribbon. I saw the gap in the market and took the chance. The niche that I saw required a school of excellence offering courses in hospitality and cookery education that would allow students to be placed in the industry.

What were some of the difficulties you experienced?

No real difficulties. I had to work as a waitron for the first year to help cover the cost of equipment required for the pupils.

Did you find support from other women in business?

Most definitely. Standing out above all other was Penny Vickers of Boston College who inspired me to the heights that we have attained.

What are some of the issues that you had to consider?

None really. I knew that it would take a toll on my family initially but that is where my husband played such a vital role. This was a project that I knew I had to tackle.

What are some of the issues that you did not take into consideration?

Maintenance of the property that we had moved into. It is a spectacular venue but it required a lot of work. The costs involved in bringing the place up to scratch did make me gasp at times.

What advice do you have for young women going into business on their own?

People, especially women, should be prepared to take more risks in life. Women have begun to take the bull by the horns in order to develop and make South Africa a great country. More women should be encouraged to take the plunge into the world of business.

As to the pitfalls; there are not many to be totally honest. I have found that East Londoner's do not tend to support ventures until they are a proven success. This needs to change. We have a dynamic society in our town who have the means to support and encourage such ventures.

The public should be encouraged in this regard.

Colleen Martin - Owner of Kumon Masterminds

How difficult was it to start your business?

"Business" and "teaching" are generally not mentioned in the same sentence and I definitely approached this from a teaching perspective, rather than a business one, to begin with.

This perhaps explains the difficulty I experienced in starting this business - my mindset needed a major re-adjustment. Together with this, I lacked business skills in financial, administrative, personnel and marketing matters.

What were some of the difficulties you experienced when starting?

When I began my centre just over seven years ago, there was one Kumon centre in East London with 50 students in attendance. This meant that nationally, East London was not truly on the map and was very far from the Kumon head office, based in Gauteng, to receive any real support. We had to get on and 'do it'.

How supportive is your partner?

I could not have walked this path without the incredible, unflinching support and belief of my husband in me. He recognised that this was my niche and that for my own fulfillment, I needed to do it. He has supported, mentored, listened, advised and encouraged, all the way!

What are some of the issues that you did not take into consideration?

I did not anticipate the exponential growth of my centre (which did set a national record). This had all sorts of consequences because along with the increased volume of students came the increased paper work, the need for staff and eventually, changes in venues, as well.

How have you found owning your own company has developed you?

Had I not walked this path, apart from experiencing my primary reward of being a small part of so many students turning their lives around, I would not have had the opportunity to develop so many areas of my life. It has brought financial freedom and independence.

This whole experience has given me a sense of self-worth. I have been on a learning curve 'second to none'! And I would do it all over again.

How has being a finalist in the BWA awards validated your efforts?

Receiving the nomination was a wonderful moment for me. I am so buried in my teaching and my work that this nomination really took me by surprise. It was truly encouraging and uplifting to have my business considered worthy of this award.

What advice do you have for young women going into business on their own?

Entheos is the Greek word from which 'enthusiasm' is derived. It means, 'God within'. I believe that as long as you are working your passion, you will do it with conviction, enthusiasm and dedication.

Maretha Bergh - owner of The Health and Skincare Clinic

How difficult was it to start your business?

It is never easy to start a business. It takes market research, product research and a suitable location to enter (in my case) this highly competitive market.

What are some of the issues that you had to consider?

Making my business attractive by offering clients something different from my competition. In this case, giving my clients professional, knowledgeable and honest advice, selling them products that are proven based on the latest medical facts. Also giving them the best beauty treatments by highly trained staff.

How have you found owning your own company has developed you?

It made me a stronger, more confident person and most of all it gave me self-respect as a woman.

What advice do you have for young women going into business on their own?

Market research is of cardinal importance. Work hard and never give up, no matter how difficult it gets. Business is tough and only the toughest survive, but the reward is oh so sweet.

With Congratulations to Sandra Africa:

FEARLESS WOMAN BUILDS ON SUCCESS

The Sowetan

5 August 2003

Sandra Africa, a former house-wife is making inroads into the male-dominated word of construction. Africa pulled on her gumboots and entered the construction industry in order to convince role players in the industry that the people of Dysseldorp, near Oudtshoorn, were employable.

Sandra Africa

On Thursday, this dazzling entrepreneur won the Business category of the Shoprite Checkers - SABC2 Woman of the Year Awards. She received her award at a gala to celebrate women in South Africa, held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

She has since registered Corporal Construction, a company that has been subcontracted by construction giants such as Group Five and Grinaker.

As a major construction player in the area, Africa has put Dysselsdorp on the map, and her company's involvement in building projects has brought employment and a better quality of life to the majority of the town's 23 000 residents.

Africa has assisted community members in everything from getting their drivers' licences to opening their own businesses. She says she believes in giving everyone an opportunity to prove themselves, no matter what their background.

Her building, civil and road construction company has landed a number of contracts in the Oudtshoorn area and she often manages contracts worth several million rand.

From her early days of buying one bag of cement at a time and owning a hammer and a screwdriver, Africa now plays a key role in the region's development.

The words of acclaimed business-woman Felicia Mabuza-Suttle often ring in her ears. "Felicia once said 'people will often throw stones, but you must use these stones to build your foundation', and as a result my foundation is very solid."

Business category judge, Nomonde Mapetla, said of Africa's contribution to her community: "She is a fearless woman who braved a world of men to empower herself and her community. She empowered herself first by learning and familiarising herself in a totally strange industry, and she believes in giving everyone within the community the opportunity to improve their own conditions. Ms Africa constantly ploughs back into the community and is involved not only on a business level but also involves herself in counselling and mentoring projects."

The Shoprite Checkers - SABC2 Woman of the Year Award is now in its eighth year. It is an annual major initiative for National Women's Day.

Where have all the women gone?

Business Times

4 August 2003

By Marcia Klein and Adele Shevel

Apart from the long servers like Carol Scott, Joan Joffe, Wendy Lucas-Bull and Pam Golding, how many other women are well known in South African business circles?

There are some relative newcomers, such as Irene Charnley and Wendy Luhabe who have high profiles, but they are few and far between.

Statistics from Empowerdex show that in December 2002, just 29 women held a total of 51 positions in companies listed on the main JSE board. There were three chair positions, three executive directors and 45 non-director positions. In all spheres of business, from workers (39% of the paid workforce) to board members (6.6%), there are relatively few women around.

This is not unique to South Africa. In the most recent issue of Fortune, it is reported that only one of the 25 most powerful people in American business is a woman: Hewlett-Packard's Carly Fiorina. None in the top 25 people in business outside the US is a woman. Other figures show that in the US women occupy only 13% of top positions in Fortune 500 companies.

Yet women are a critical element of the US economy. Nedbank says that women control more than 50% of commercial and consumer consumption in the US and women own 42% of the New York Stock Exchange.

Female business owners dominate growth in the US and the number of such businesses has doubled to more than 9-million in the past decade.

In South Africa, while women are by no means representative, there has been an increase in the number of women edging their way into business. Nedbank's statistics show the number of small and medium-sized companies owned by women has grown to 39.5% this year from 35% in 2001. Empowerdex shows that women now occupy 17% of senior executive management, 25% of senior management, 24% of middle management and 28% of junior management.

Rue Bateman, head of market segmentation at Nedbank, says it is not so much that there aren't women in business, but that they are not profiled enough. "We keep going back to the same women. We need to lift the profile of others and celebrate their successes." She says an interesting change is that women are moving out of their traditional areas, like human resources, into other areas, including heavy manufacturing.

She says women are often a better financial risk, as they "put so much more on the line". She believes that with more women in high positions and with different views coming across around boardroom tables, companies will become less patriarchal.

Companies are changing in an attempt to retain skilled women.

This includes the introduction of flexitime. "There is a clear shift to measure on output rather than time," Bateman says.

Businesswomen's Association chief executive, Niven Postma, says there are a number of reasons why a relatively smaller proportion of women occupy top positions. Women often have different priorities, including the responsibilities of bringing up children and maintaining households.

There is a culture in business that forces women to make tradeoffs, because companies don't look at the issues women face, Postma says.

"My big bugbear is that in South Africa diversity is hammered home through affirmative action and employment equity, but people are not buying into these initiatives because it makes good business sense, but rather for political reasons."

But there is a strong business case for diversity. If nothing else, it costs more than 100% of a person's salary in turnover costs when he or she leaves a company - and there are many more women leaving than men.

If changes were instituted, the company would probably become a better place for both men and women to work. This is especially important in South Africa, where there is not an infinite pool of skills on which to draw.

Despite the small numbers, an increase in the number of women at top levels is evident. This year's Businesswoman of the Year finalists reflect the rise of new faces in business.

Finalists are National Productivity Institute executive director Yvonne Dladla, Flight Centre MD Susan Garrett, Impala Platinum Holdings corporate affairs director Cathie Markus, JSE deputy CEO Nicky Newton-King and Ogilvy & Mather RSTM executive chairperson Nunu Ntshingila.

Businesswomen's Association president Namene Magau says, "The dynamic evolution of the role of women in business, although supported by legislative transformation, has come about mainly through individual dedication and perseverance."

She says last year there were 100 000 more women than men registered at tertiary institutions in South Africa.

Women are Vital BEE Ingredient

Sowetan Business

23 June 2003

Siyabulela Qoza

Siyabulela Qoza of Sowetan Business spoke to Dr Namane Magau, president of the Businesswomen's Association.

Magau is also director of human capital services at the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Dr Namane Magau

Is the push for Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) benefiting women?

When you look at BEE you need to reflect on people's expectations because the economy has, for many years, kept the majority out of the mainstream economy. Therefore BEE consists of a number of building blocks to deal with structural barriers. There is a need to manage competition with collaberation. Entrepreneurs need to crack both the local & international markets. In the BEE push, the gender equality struggle should not overshadow historical disparities. We cannot grow the economy if we create new disparities.

Black males are striking most of the BEE deals. Where are the black women?

We need business & black males to understand that it makes business sense to empower black women. There have to be special programmes to manage the mainstreaming of women into the economy. Government's current policies are providing an enabling environment. Representation of women in government is encouraging. Business needs to make sure that women are placed in environments that allow them to use their potential to make an impact. Empowering women should not be presented as a threat. For BEE to be successful it has to empower men & women. It will have failed if it does not enable women to interact with men in a constructive way.

Do women have more barriers than their male counterparts?

Business is still a man's world & the challenges faced by women reflect that. The business environment is very competitive. The Businesswomen's Association is trying to promot closer collaboration with partners for the development of women in the economy. The development of women should not be handles as if they were developed for a different world.

How is the association developing women in business?

We are sponsoring Masters of Business Administration students to enhance their capacity to participate in the economy. We also encourage the need to learn from each other. The association links up students with successful businesswomen for mentoring & this creates an opportunity for sharing economic lessons. Development of women needs a helping hand in a constructive way.

What partnerships do you have with males?

Some of the mentors are males & some are white. This is because men have acquired their skills in the business jungle. It is right that they invest in the development of women. This is part of creating a new cadre of business people to harness entrepreneurship in the country. Such partnerships can even lead to business deals & joint ventures.

Should men play a more prominent role in the development of women?

When we talk of women development we tend to focus on the negative. There is a lot that men are doing to empower women. There is a focus on small & medium sized businesses & this will go a long way to fasttracking the development of women in the economy.

Are women facing the same problems as they faced nine years ago?

A professional qualification alone may not be enough. There was a serious problem of skills shortage among women nine years ago. Now the skills are there & the problem is placing qualified women in areas where they can be effective. There is a need to make diversity work for us.

Does the remuneration gap between men & women exist?

Men are still earning more because women are not placed in areas where they can make an impact. Women need to be represented at executive board level & be rewarded. Leadership roles are held largely by men. This may change as the community invests more in women & expectations change.

Are women empowering themselves?

Increasingly women are coming together to form consortia. They are championing the the development of women themselves. It should be celebrated that women are supporting each other. Women are hungry for success. They are shaped by the tough environment they have to operate in to achieve great success.