MIW Regional Digital Magazine 2017

A f r i c a ’ s

M o s t

I n f l u e n t i a l

WOMEN B u s i n e s s

a n d

e x p a n d

b u s i n e s s

G o v e r n m e n t

Regional Edition 2017/2018

i n

y o u r

Global

h o r i z o n s

Without You… Leadership Development Partner

Auditing PARTNER

While the present socio-economic and political climate looks gloomy at best, I would contend that the world, and Africa, is on the brink of exciting times. The ‘Fourth industrial Revolution’ has become a buzz topic at many business tables. I dare say that, the imminent ‘revolution’ will be the greatest and most significant that the world has ever seen, and Africa, blessed with a vibrant population and vast natural resources, will be at the centre of it all. These are exhilarating times because individual nation states and the continent are undergoing a leadership shift. The continent is moving away from the colonial era political leaders while on the economic front the tech age has led to the birth of a new calibre of leader. This is an innovative leader that endeavours to stay one step ahead of the pack to ensure success. These are leaders who will be the main driving force vis-à-vis Africa’s role in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. These are African leaders at your door step.

As we present our next generation of leaders at your doorstep, one needs to be mindful of the fact that age, race, colour or ethnic background are not characteristics of these African leaders. These are people, who, in their own communal and work spaces, have decided to take the fate of our continent onto their own hands. The best interests of the motherland at heart are what spur them on to always innovate and pull our continent out of the socio-economic and political abyss that dogs us. I would contend that these little celebrated leaders, whom we are honouring this year, are everyday heroes whose gems of ideas blossomed into profitable business concerns which have benefited and transformed communities continent-wide.

We may not yet say the actual date or time when the Fourth Industrial Revolution will hit our African shores. But one thing for certain is that everywhere around us, all the developments show that we are edging even closer. The leaders at your doorstep we are presenting are those that have ensured that Africa’s seat at the table of global decision makers is secured in this regard. It is these torchbearers who have ensured that foreign direct investment flows into our respective economies. The frontrunners at your door step will stop at nothing to ensure that, for all, tomorrow’s landscape is better than today’s. As we embark on this year’s journey of celebration, I would like to urge every African to look for, and celebrate, the African leaders at their doorsteps. Never again shall Africa be referenced to only in negative descriptors because the time for that is no more. Africa has arrived and is here to stay. Africa will drive the Fourth Industrial Revolution on an enormous scale. In the driving seat will be the [African] leaders that we are bringing to your doorstep today.

Annelize Wepener Chief Executive: CEO Global

Continental Flight PARTNERS

Framing PARTNER

Venue PARTNER

Publisher CEO Global (Pty) Ltd Tel: 0861 CEO MAG Fax: (012) 667 6624 Tel: 012 667 6623 info@ceomag.co.za www.ceomag.co.za

Chief Executive Annelize Wepener annelizew@ceomag.co.za

who’s who in the zoo

of Shared Prosperity

2017/2018

Power The

GLOBAL Expand your business Horizon

Director: Strategic Development & Editor in Chief Valdi Pereira valdip@ceomag.co.za Director: Corporate & Financial Services Carl Wepener carlw@ceomag.co.za Manager: Office of the Chief Executive Anne Anderson annea@ceomag.co.za General Manager: Global Services George Wepener georgew@ceomag.co.za

General Manager: Global Media Services/ Head of Production Channette Raath channetter@ceomag.co.za Designer Heather Stobbe heathers@ceomag.co.za

Journalist Andrew Ngozo andrewn@ceomag.co.za

Intra-African trade accounts for a paltry 16 per cent of the continent’s trade volumes. And that is before discordant standards codes and other barriers come into the mix. All this is supposedly done in the name of national interest and sovereignty. Yet experience teaches us otherwise. Far from creating islands of prosperity, years of protectionism have led to a slow but gradual decline for everybody.

South Africa, arguably the most advanced economy on the continent, is today struggling, with a youth unemployment rate close to 30%. Yet it remains largely closed to the rest of the continent, even as it seeks to trade there. A way forward is for African leaders to realise the value of shared prosperity. Contrary to what many believe, intra-African trade can give the continent a healthy degree of insularity from global shocks. The numbers speak for themselves. Intra-African trade is a $6 trillion opportunity in the near term and more than USD12 trillion over the horizon.

But this is going to require transforming existing mindsets, bringing down trade barriers and easing the movement of people between states. Rwanda offers a good example of the benefits of opening up. A small landlocked country in the heart of Africa, it was an early adopter of initiatives such as concessional trade. Rwanda is one of the most open countries in Africa to foreign workers, bridging critical skills gaps. The national economy has continued to expand, industrialisation is gathering pace and more importantly, the national budget is edging towards parity.

Continental Project Administrators Rumbi Chanda rumbic@ceomag.co.za CEO Class Administrator Mandisa Mnguni mandisam@ceomag.co.za

Manager: Corporate Support Raymond Mauelele raymondm@ceomag.co.za

* No article or part of an article may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the prior written permission of the publisher. The information provided and opinions expressed in this publication are provided in good faith but do not necessarily represent the opinions of the publisher or editor. All reasonable efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication. However, neither the publisher nor the editor can be held legally liable in any way for damages of any kind whatsoever arising directly or indirectly from any facts or information provided or omitted in these pages, or from any statements made in or withheld by this publication.

02

Capturing the Light Browsing through a portfolio of professional photographer Brenda Biddulph’s work, makes me want to grab a camera and take a photo.

Attempting to create a visual moment like the many she has created is not easy.

Brenda established her own photographic business four years after graduating from the National School of Photography in Pretoria.

She had gained experience in advertising, corporate photography, weddings, school photography and publications. Today her business, Monsoon Photography, has a faithful following of diverse clients who entrust Brenda and her team with repeat business.

Putting a person at ease is an accomplished skill. Even the most senior executive can be a reluctant subject when a camera is pointed in their direction.

Monsoon Photography has become a popular name to call among organisations needing photos for annual reports and events.

The Monsoon Photography team has the ability to charm a smile out of the most world-weary executive. “We ignite with a jovial professional approach,” says Brenda.

Brenda’s special love is vibrant fusion photography and experimenting with her “fascination for light”. The recipe for success behind Monsoon Photography is simple. “Our enjoyment of the profession

and passion for people attract clients to call on our services again and again,” she says.

Monsoon Photography works on site and in studio, depending on the client’s requirements. Their studio, situated in the eastern suburbs of Pretoria, is perfect for family portraits and for shooting music videos.

The experienced studio and on-line photographers that comprise Monsoon Photography share two things in common: a fascination for light and an eye for detail. With clients as diverse as Deloitte, Sasol and The Land Bank, Monsoon Photography adds a creative and professional touch to whatever the occasion.

Contact 083 452 4530 www.monsoonphotography.co.za

CONTEN

2017/2018

The

Leading Edge

Leading Edge

Case in Point

Artform Framing Factory- Ushering a New Era for Artform Bombela Concession Company: True Leadership Starts with Accountability Sefa- Mission: Job Creation

X andY Factor

The

Without You Annelize Wepener: On a Personal Note Meet the Judges Yvonne Finch: Women Shifting Norms Commander Tsietsi Mokhele: Unwavering Servitude to South Africa Maintaining Strong Relationships

Winners& Finalists Quick Guide

Lifestyle

Pros and Cons of Online Shopping Key Life Insurance Trends BMW 5 Series: An Elegant Athlete Mercedes Benz SLC 43 AMG Roadster

14

74 128 166

1 6 8 36 37 38

39

156 167 178 186

NTS Sustainability

How to get your Business Noticed Surviving ‘The Conversation Age’ Business Lessons from World-Leading Brands Tips for Handling Difficult Customers Cybersecurity and Corporate Boards Rewards of Entrepreneurship Outweigh Risk Want Ethical Responses to a World of Trouble?

Success Insights from Maverick Mattress Business

Corporate

51 60 67 75 112 118 148 152

Governance 90

Ethics in the Workplace

Skills Transfer

Streamline the Hiring Process to Attract the Best Talent Higher Education is more than Vocational Training Towards Improved Customer Expewrience Conflict and the Workplace Workplace Violence: Recognising Warning Signs

Empowered

52 78 88 106 193

Leadership

Beatitudes of Leadership How Leaders Build Effective Teams Take a Trip to the CEO Island Developing Leadership Athleticism The Empowered Woman Insights from a Corporate and Consulting

82 94 105 123 136 142

X&Y

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

X&Y

On a

Personal NOTE She will be the first to admit that easily, these are most difficult times that South Africa, for one, has faced in the post democratic dispensation. But ever the optimist, Annelize Wepener, the Chief Executive Officer of CEO Global says that South Africa and the continent, in general, should be mindful of the good that is all around us. For example, she mentions the many business people who opt to pursue their dreams in the form of opening a business with the potential risk of losing everything. Such people are among the African jewels that are being celebrated in 2017. Even then, Annelize believes that annual awards alone are not enough because running a business is not child’s play.

A

nnelize should know after all because she is one such person who left a corporate career job in order to start her own company, CEO Global which was then known as CEO Communications. The award winning business woman reflects that the journey thus travelled has been filled with many highs and lows but she has not strayed from her path. “I still believe that I have more to offer to South Africa and the business world in general. The awards recognition programme is my small token of appreciation to fellow business people who know that running a business is often an experience filled with challenges and many obstacles,” she notes.

The entrepreneurship world is not for people with little perseverance, Annelize notes. “If that were the case then I doubt that there would be so many people whom we honour annually across the continent. On that thought, I should point out that I feel blessed to be African. Our continent is full of possibilities and we have not even scratched the surface yet. Going forward, I think that those who come after us have their work cut out for them if we are to take our place at the table of world economic power,” she says. Annelize says that this statement should make sense to any African because Africa is blessed with vast natural resources and a fairly young and tech savvy population. “For far too long we have been exploited and our resources enriched other foreign countries at our expense. Poverty, unemployment and strife are rife in Africa but I believe that is because many of our economies are still in the formative stages. Once we mature, Africa will truly rise. Thanks to the efforts of the people we are celebrating this year, that shall soon be a reality,” she concludes.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Judges Adeola Osundiran

Adeola Osundiran, is a business analyst whose expertise and exposure ranges from Container Ports evaluation, Tenders management, Maritime research, Logistics and Corporate social responsibility. She partners with transport and logistics firms to provide a comprehensive full supply chain solutions hence supporting growth. With over a decade in the transport and logistics industry, Adeola continuously works on adding value and impacting the transport sector.

She is particularly interested in maritime research that ensures development and improvement of Seaports in Africa. Prior to this, Adeola has an M.Phil. (Cum Laude) in Maritime studies and an M.comm logistics Management (Cum Laude), from the Stellenbosch University, South Africa. In addition to her extensive Transport and Logistics experience, Adeola loves to mentor, teach and work with children and young adults. Adeola Osundiran is happily married with children.

Alexandra McDonald was born and schooled in Pretoria, matriculating at Afrikaans Hoer Meisieskool in 1986. She further studied B. Com. Marketing at the University of Pretoria. In 1988 Alexandra I began her working career in banking, which served as the backdrop to her financial acumen. By 1996 she become the assistant to the Ambassador at an Embassy in Pretoria. Thereafter she applied and became an International Finance Manager at a Global Consulting firm. Today she is happily employed by Qualibooks Group Pty Ltd as Financial, Operations & Logistics Manager. She has developed a keen sense of social consciousness as the company’s core business is to help improve literacy among our children, by establishing libraries in school and communities countrywide. Alexandra is a cat person and parade her pedigreed cats at the annual Cat Shows held in Johannesburg. Other hobbies include travelling and reading and she is passionate about education.

Arend du Preez

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Alexandra McDonald

Arend Jacobus Du Preez is the Managing Director of Crossroads Distribution Proprietary Limited. Crossroads, a subsidiary of Community Investment Holdings (CIH), was inaugurated in the early 1930s. The small beginning was the impetus for initiating solutions and creating businesses to meet changing and challenging market and socio-political conditions of the day. Crossroads is a diversified domestic and regional services group with associated capabilities internationally, owning an impressive blue chip customer base in its sector. Arend practised as an attorney for 10 years before becoming the legal adviser of South African Airways and GM: finance and administration at KWE. His philosophy of life is: Do what you do to the best of your ability. He has been a managing director at many organisations in the past.

These include at KWE, Bollore Africa Logistics and as the deputy managing director at SDV SA Pty Ltd.

Cristal Peterson

Cristal Peterson business experience includes 15 years in higher education ranging from specialist to executive. She currently heads the Communication and Marketing Directorate of the UNISA Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL) responsible for Public Relations, Communication and Alumni Relations. She is further responsible for the strategic direction as well as the execution of the strategy of the International Relations Office of the SBL and focuses on international and local partnership opportunities to establish a sustainable income for the business school. She is a member of the Extended Management Committee of the SBL and serves on the Advisory Committee of the business school.

Her academic qualifications include a Masters’ degree in Linguistics and Bachelor of Arts (Language & Culture) awarded by the University of Stellenbosch as well as a National Diploma in Language Practice from the Cape Town University of Technology.

Elizabeth Malumo started her banking career 37 years ago in Zambia. She moved to South Africa with her family in 1993 and joined FNB in 1995 as a trainee manager. On completion of the programme in 1996, she was appointed as a customer service manager at the Southdale Branch – a position she held for two years. As part of a professional development programme, Elizabeth spent six months during 1998 in New York working for JP Morgan on Wall Street, this while she attended strategic management university classes on weekends at New School University in New York. In January, 2016 Elizabeth joined Barclays Africa, Business Banking as Provincial Head for Gauteng North. Elizabeth has sat on two Boards namely, Enablis South Africa and South African Women’s Entrepreneur Network (SAWEN). Elizabeth is passionate about assisting female entreprenuers and has assisted a number of women over the years.

Elsa Wessels

Elizabeth Malumo

Elsa Wessels was born and bred in South Africa and has a track record of standing in the field of Education and Training cum Business. Amongst other talents Elsa is a wintered Lecturer cum community developer and ‘stimulator’ of entrepreneurial activities. She worked in most of the rural areas with various projects in communities around South Africa. Elsa is a very good operations and organising talented person to have around, she is an adaptable person and copes in most any environment. She is a Leader, who leads by example because she is hardworking. One of her exceptional personality traits is the wonderful manner in which she thrives in an educational environment on all levels from pre-school to College and University. Having retired as Principal of an In-Service Training College for Teachers (Promat College), being an Educationist at heart, Elsa started her own business and worked from home.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Jaresh Maharaj

Jaresh Maharaj, Chairman and CEO of Indra SA, a Spanish technology and integration company, is well known in government, for his turnaround of the Department of Home Affairs in his position of Deputy Director General between 2007 to 2009, His name is also synonymous with the security upgrades at City of Joburg. Over the past 32 years, he has accumulated an impressive database of contacts throughout the SADC region in the public and private sectors within the fraternities of IT, Mining, Telecoms and Internet ISP. His early life as an IT expert guided him into major leadership positions of IT Operations Manager at DeBeers and Siemens and recently the General Manager at the Naspers group under the banner of Mweb. He is also a director on the Spanish Chamber of Commerce. He holds an Msc. Information Systems (USA) and a host of local and international IT qualifications.

Johan Roos has more than 13 years’ experience in the Wholesale and Retail sector. In 1978 Johan started working as a Clerk at Barclays, Vereeniging and later joined the / First National Bank in Pretoria. Johan has occupied various positions at First National Bank for close to 16 years, and served in different departments from just a Clerk to positions such as Branch Administrator, Departmental Head, Monitoring Team Leader, Approver, Portfolio Manager; Commercial Business Banking. In August 11 in 2011 he became a pensioner, thereafter served on the First National Bank CBS Risk Management for a three years. Johan is a businessman in his own right having tried his hand at selling and trading eastern jewellery.

Makwe Darrel Ngwato

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Johan Roos

Makwe Ngwato started his career in Marketing in 1997 after obtaining a Graduate Diploma in Marketing from the Institute of Marketing Management. His knowledge and expertise in the field of marketing was applied when he started his career with one of the Advtech colleges known as IMD College, which is now Rosebank College. He moved on to gain further experience with Monash University, Tsogo Sun, Absa Bank, Sail Sports and Entertainment and Mace Promotion. Makwe is currently the Group Executive; Marketing and Communication for the Jasco Group. What sets Makwe apart is his passion for marketing which has seen him work for companies across various industry sectors as he believes that the principles of Marketing can be applied in any industry. He is also passionate about enhancing the leaners’ skills in Mathematics.

Marna Van Der Walt has been the Chief Executive Officer, Excellerate Property Services Group (EPS) since October 2012. She began her career at Gensec as a senior internal auditor in 1996. This led to her eventual appointment as a CEO in November 2003. The company value quadrupled over the latter three years. Among many achievements, Marna was the first person that held the position of president for both the South African Council of Shopping Centres (SACSC) and the South African Property Owners Association (SAPOA).

According to her, people development is critical because it is the only true legacy that one can ever leave. “It is not about me but all about the growth of the team,” she notes. With more than two decades in the property industry, she sits on various panels and boards.

Stephen Master Mahlobogoane

Marna Van Der Walt

Stephen Master Mahlobogoane is the Executive Chairman - Agrimegalo Consulting where he provides strategic direction. He takes care of the day to day management and administration of the organisation; liaises with clients about the projects; negotiates and signs contracts/deals on behalf of the company with both the clients and service providers; collaborates with other companies in pursuing common interests through consortiums or sub consultancy arrangements in pursuance of managing sustainable good relationships with clients and markets the products that the organisation offers. Prior to his role, Master was aa project manager. He is a member of various professional organisations which include the Secretariat of Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC – African Union civil society advisory body) SA Chapter and was the Deputy General Secretary of the South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) from 2002 to 2008.

Nothemba Gqiba has been in the Development Finance sector for 10 years. She is a seasoned brand developer, communications and marketing practitioner. She is very passionate about entrepreneurship, development and growth of SMMEs and Cooperatives, moreover about the improvement of the lives of ordinary South Africans. Her career started off in the private sector where she spent the first years of her working life at McCarthy Motor Holdings and the Clicks Group. She is currently the Head of Department for Marketing and Communication at sefa (Small Enterprise Finance Agency). As the first HOD of marketing and communications at sefa, she has been responsible for building the sefa brand and ensuring its visibility nationally. In her current position she is tasked with giving strategic direction with regards to the implementation of the marketing and communication strategy to ensure sefa’s wider reach to more SMMEs and cooperatives throughout South Africa.

Nothemba Gqiba

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

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South African Medical Research Council Professor Glenda E. Gray, CEO and President of the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC)

People

at the Centre It is not often that a South African is listed on the Times Magazine Top 100 list of the most influential people in the world. Professor Glenda E. Gray, CEO and President of the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) has been named one such individual, hot on the heels of the former Public Protector of South Africa Thuli Madonsela. She discusses the health care sector and ponders over whether the world may eventually become an HIV/AIDS free place. Professor Gray has pioneered advances in preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV, which has saved thousands of lives.

She is an alumna of Wits Medical School and established the Wits Perinatal HIV Research Unit at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in 1996.

She is currently President and CEO of the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) and involved in HIV vaccine research.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

You are a member of various health boards in the world. In your view, what are the most pressing issues in so far as global health issues are concerned?

There is no one health issue more pressing than the other. The life of each person matters and is invaluable.

This is the reason why the conversation about the investment into research and development, for us as decision makers, is so important. Responsive medical research is at the heart of my conversation. Science has the power to change the trajectory of our present day and articulate a better future for our children.

You were named as one of the Times top 100 most influential people in the world in 2017. What does this recognition mean to you both on a personal and professional level?

It highlights the importance of science, and the recognition of science as a measure of influence. This is important for me as a scientist, to know we can be agents of change and influence.

What do you mean by “placing people at the centre of health research is the fuel for ensuring impact”?

I think that many people look to fulfil a purpose in life. When that purpose is found it becomes imperative to rely on fuel that keeps you pressing on, when at times, the odds may be stacked against you, as is the case in HIV research. We have been wrestling with a formidable foe. HIV, like many other disease profiles, requires us to think innovatively and do medical science that will take affordable health care solutions to scale. There is impact when people’s lives are changed for the better. This is the fuel I refer to.

The life of each person matters and is invaluable. This is the reason why the conversation about the investment into research and development, for us as decision makers, is so important.

Under your leadership, the SAMRC has managed to obtain three consecutive clean audits. What factors attributed to this success?

I am first and foremost a medical doctor and then a medical researcher. People remain at the heart of my profession. Leading South Africa’s premier medical research organisation is an opportunity to influence the research agenda for the disease profiles that our people grapple with. The primary ingredient to this success is being afforded the privilege to conduct research about people, with people and for people. Secondly, it is the opportunity to direct strategy in the capable hands of a reliable and competent team.

We have become an effectively run organisation because we have the ability to articulate and institutionalise strategies that address the operational drawbacks identified in our internal and independent auditing processes. We understand the importance of optimally utilising public funds. Our interdependent working relations with key stakeholders such as the Departments of Health and Science and Technology as well as global partners afford us the opportunity of cementing public private partnerships without which there would be an impediment on responsive medical research.

How do you intend to elevate the research agenda to build the next generation of black medical scientists in the country?

Growing the next generation of black scientists is not as much about race as it is about the principle of redress and the strategy to afford previously marginalised groups of people with an opportunity to become a leader in medical research. This is about the agenda to promote

diversity to reflect our country and to understand beyond a reasonable doubt that intellectual acumen is not defined by colour, but by a commitment and hard work to interpret the world through the production of evidence based research.

We have strategically prioritised a transformation agenda in the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC).

Part of our strategy was to transform our research capacity development programme to fund scientists to better reflect the demographical profile of our country. More than ZAR 30 million was invested into funding medical research at historically under resourced universities. The two-fold objective aimed to empower these universities to be brave and venture into medical research by investing funds and secondly become part of the knowledge economy of the country by publishing new research.

Responsive medical research is at the heart of my conversation. Science has the power to change the trajectory of our present day and articulate a better future for our children.

In your view, is an AIDS free generation possible in the near future?

It is important to think about this question. Of more importance is knowing that there are more than 1 000 newly diagnosed cases of HIV in South Africa each month. This means that we have many unanswered social, economic and medical research questions in the quest for an AIDS free generation. We need to keep advocating for the investment into research and development. Solutions taken to scale are a reality when we are prepared to journey to a point when no person is affected or infected.

Are there any other thoughts/perspectives that you would like to share with stakeholders/readers?

Be passionate in what you do, and most of all love what you do, and the rest is easy!

Leading South Africa’s premier medical research organisation is an opportunity to influence the research agenda for the disease profiles that our people grapple with. The primary ingredient to this success is being afforded the privilege to conduct research about people, with people and for people. Secondly, it is the opportunity to direct strategy in the capable hands of a reliable and competent team.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

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Jesus Is Alive Ministries Bishop Margaret Wanjiru Kariuki, the presiding bishop of Jesus Is Alive Ministries and director at Logistics and Energy Africa Limited

Lead

Called to

by Andrew Ngozo

From humble beginnings Bishop Margaret Wanjiru Kariuki, the presiding bishop of Jesus Is Alive Ministries and director at Logistics and Energy Africa Limited is now a respected cleric and, business person and politician. She discusses her being and says that she started from the very low rungs on the corporate space and she is proud of what she has achieved in her life. At the core of her work is a mission to serve the community at large with she helps in many forms. In all her social endeavours she ensures that those are at the receiving end are also involved in one way or the other.

Can you please share a brief history about yourself?

I was born on 22nd December 1961 in Nairobi as the third child into a very poor family of casual workers. Despite the many challenges that come with poverty, my hard working mother was able to put me through both primary and high school while instilling the discipline necessary to excel in life.

I worked hard in my pursuit of a better future and, by the time I was 17 years old, I was paying my way through college by working numerous jobs. I worked as a house girl, hawker, a toilet cleaner, car cleaner and office cleaner.

On graduation from college I earned myself a position as sales girl.

My discipline and determination to succeed resulted in rapid promotions and various accomplishments until I became a sales and marketing executive for a multinational firm in the city. I later went on to form my own business in the city, excelling, both as an entrepreneur and single mother to my two sons and one daughter.

You were once a cleaner and street preacher. You must be proud of your life’s journey...

I am happy for what God has done for me. There is a time I couldn’t feed my family or even pay bills. When my son who is now a member of parliament went to high school, I couldn’t afford school fees or uniforms, and had to be helped out by friends. But that didn’t stop us from walking with God.

What is the current state of affairs in your life?

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Later on in life I gave my life to Jesus Christ and became a born again Christian. Thanks to my determination to serve the Lord Jesus Christ and great leadership skills, I am the founder and presiding Bishop of the Jesus Is Alive Ministries (JIAM), an international Christian organisation with headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

Today, with one of the fastest growing churches in the continent of Africa, JIAM is becoming a ministry to the world with offices in many nations, touching many hearts and changing many lives through its various departments.

I worked hard in my pursuit of a better future and, by the time I was 17 years old, I was paying my way through college by working numerous jobs.

I suppose that I have been used mightily by God. I oversee a massive congregation and my dynamic ministry has transformed nations especially through the media television programme entitled ‘The Glory Is Here’. I am an author of many Christian books and also oversee a monthly magazine, the ‘Faith Digest’.

How has your national leadership career evolved?

I have, for a long time, been actively involved with matters of national concern. As a leader I have, for years, been a vocal participant in governmental policy and leadership issues across the board. Politicians have for years called on the Kenyan churches when elections are near on a vote seeking mission only to soon after renege on their every promise to the people of Kenya. My call to national leadership (politics) is as a result of the people demanding better leadership and representation in government. In 2007, I was elected as a Member of Parliament for Starehe Constituency in a hotly contested election in one of the most challenging constituencies in Nairobi the capital city of Kenya.

I now have the opportunity to not only continue pursuing better governance for the Kenyan people but to also be a key participant in the policy making and implementation process as we work together towards a better Kenya. In 2008, I was appointed into the cabinet as an Assistant Minister for Housing.

As a bishop and politician, what do you regret most?

I don’t have any regrets. Even when I made a wrong move, I never came out empty-handed. I have learnt a lot from my mistakes. You should always consider life as an opportunity to learn, no matter what.

Can you please share any special achievements that you have accomplished in your sector?

JIAM was started on the streets. I have moved the organisation from the streets to rented facilities and to later acquiring assets which include buildings within the Central Business District. This became an example to many religious organisations and served as a pioneering achievement within the sector.

During the global economic meltdown, L&E Ltd. Suffered its share of economic shake up. I managed to captain the organisation out of all financial challenges at a very difficult business season and, I must say, we survived the global economic meltdown and came out profitable despite the tough times. This was a great achievement.

My call to national leadership (politics) is as a result of the people demanding better leadership and representation in government.

Can you please share what you are doing in your personal capacity to “give back” and what outcomes do you seek to achieve with your social responsibility involvement?

The Good Samaritan Project is one of our departments which we use to give back to the community. We facilitate for the less fortunate people of our community to access education (by paying school fees, buying uniforms and books), medical facilitates (by paying medical bills and providing medicine), food and clothing. We also sponsor many sporting and financial empowerment activities for the youth and women (business capital or boosting business growth). Sometimes we source for jobs for the jobless. Recently in Kenya we had heavy rains with floods. Many poor people especially those leaving by the riverbanks were left without shelter. We moved in to provide building materials for temporary shelter and basic things like blankets, food, clothing’s, utensils etc. Most of the time we give because we love giving, we don’t expect anything back. To us it is not a marketing strategy but it is extending a helping hand and we don’t expect anything in return.

When my son who is now a member of parliament went to high school, I couldn’t afford school fees or uniforms, and had to be helped out by friends. But that didn’t stop us from walking with God.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

THIS ADVERT IS NOT ABOUT CLEANING UP OUR STREETS. Well…it is. But mainly it’s about our dedicated fieldworkers who work tirelessly to protect southern Africa’s environmental surroundings and who need your support. Visit www.ewt.org.za to find out how you can help to protect another precious resource – our people.

AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Buf Coffee

Epiphanie Mukashyaka, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Buf Coffee

AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Mission: Women

Empowerment

by Andrew Ngozo

It is not often that we are told of stories of personal tragedy that have turned into inspiration. Epiphanie Mukashyaka, the founder and chief executive officer of Buf Coffee is one such inspiration. Her story has been evolving since the tumultuous days of the Rwandan genocide in 1994. She lost a husband, a child and many members of her family. As strong willed as she is, her personal grief spurred her on to establish a business in order to sustain the livelihoods of the remaining members of the family.

Today, Buf Coffee is a household name in the high end coffee market. Epiphanie has empowered many farmers and women in her village and continues to, annually, provide employment for her compatriots.

Can you please provide a background on you and your company?

I founded Buf Coffee in 2000. I now manage the company with my sons, Samuel and Aloys, who have taken an active role in running and expanding the business. The name ‘Buf’ derives from ‘Bufundu’, the former name of the region in which our washing stations are located.

I lost my husband, a child, and many extended family members in the horrific genocide in 1994. I was faced with the responsibility of caring for my seven surviving children and rebuilding their life. With a limited education and little money or support, I decided to focus on coffee, and set about rebuilding and developing a business, and, with it, the local community. My late husband had been a coffee farmer. I started to learn more about speciality coffee with the assistance of the USAID-financed Partnership for Enhancing Agriculture in Rwanda through Linkages (PEARL) project, a transformational programme aimed at switching the focus of the Rwandan coffee sector from a historic emphasis on quantity to one of quality—

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

and so opening up Rwanda to the far higher-earning specialty coffee market. The programme and its successor, Sustaining Partnerships to enhance Rural Enterprise and Agribusiness Development (SPREAD), have been invaluable in helping our small-scale coffee farmers rebuild their production in the wake of the genocide, and the world coffee crash, of the 1990s.

I went on to establish Buf Coffee, and decided to build a washing station, with the help of the PEARL programme and a loan from the Rwandan Development Bank. I came up with the idea to build this and nothing was going to stop me.

I established Remera Washing Station in 2003 and Nyarusiza in 2005, and was the first woman in Rwanda to hold a privately owned company and produce specialty coffee. My aim with the washing stations was to improve the quality of coffee by shifting the focus from producing commercial coffee to producing high quality specialty coffee. In doing so, I intended to add value to my processed coffee in order to secure higher and more stable prices for coffee farmers in the region. As a result, I not only improved the livelihood of my own family, but also improved those of my neighbour farmers and the wider community, directly by increasing their income (through higher prices paid for their cherry) and, indirectly, by bringing important services like safe water and electricity to their villages via the establishment of washing stations.

Today Buf Coffee buys coffee cherries from as many as 7 000 smallholder farmers, including five different local cooperatives. Buf has very strong links with the local communities that supply it, providing jobs for hundreds of locals during peak harvest (May–June/July) and 10 permanent positions year-round. Buf Coffee’s exceptional quality has been recognised year after year. It was awarded a prize in the 2007 Golden Cup; and placed in the Cup of Excellence in 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2014.

Can you please elaborate on what drives your strength, determination and vision?

My key focus points are to love and focus on what I am doing, to always learn from others, and improve knowledge for better practice. Moreover, I allow people to develop because by developing people you allow them to have different alternative options of improving their livelihoods, and those of their households. A community where people have good livelihoods is both socially and economically sustainable.

How have you overcome your personal adversities to make a success of your life and business?

What values do you hold dear to you and how do you ensure that these transcend on to those whom you lead?

I have overcome my personal adversities by following the business that I enjoy and I understood. Moreover, when my husband died in 1994, I had seven children to raise by myself; so I needed to move forward in order to maintain my family. Basically, doing the business that I enjoy, my seven children and the eagerness to improve the surrounding community have been my great motivation into being successful in my life and business. I still believe that life will continue, albeit filled with challenges. However, I become a stronger person everyday such that now I am convinced that there is no adversity that I cannot overcome.

I value the sustainability of the economy, environment and social well-being of my community. I offer training sessions and hold events and workshops in my community to educate and sensitise my values into my community. I am aware that my mode of operation may not be the best for the next person but I have seen it work, and successfully so, in my life that I think that anyone who makes use of my principles will be on a firmer footing and on the right path to achieve success.

In your entrepreneurship journey, what have been the key business lessons that you have learned?

The key lesson learnt is to learn by doing. If an employee has a new idea on how something can be done better that we used to do it, I allow the employee to implement the new idea. By using the try and error method we arrive at identifying efficient ways of working. Moreover, we offer regular trainings to our employees and organise field visits for them to learn from others.

What drives your passion for the sector that you work in?

My passion is driven by helping my community improve. There are many initiatives that I am involved with, all intended to uplift my community. In particular, I invest more of my resources to projects that would empower women. I provide loans to women in the village who have better projects that can raise their household livelihoods, and I mentor them along the process of implementing those projects. Each year, I provide employment, in coffee production, to more than 120 women in our village which allow them to generate income for meeting household needs and investing in small businesses.

It is my vision to reach a point where each of our women members’ household can generate, at least USD450 each month in the coming five years. This can either be through sales of coffee and other available source of incomes. I organise social community events that gather my employees and coffee farmers’ women, such as forest trees plantation, rehabilitation of roads, construction of terraces to fight against erosion, and renovating the houses of the most vulnerable people. Again, I sensitise and facilitate women in our community to integrate social saving groups through which they can easily access funds to finance their business.

What challenges have you faced in your career path and how have you used the same hurdles to spur you to achieve greater success?

I faced several challenges when starting my company.

Firstly it was insufficient finance at a time when I was seeing many opportunities to grow. But I joined different banks for loans to overcome this challenge. Secondly, working in the industry where the price is determined internationally was a big challenge, but building partnerships with specialty coffee buyers has, to some extent, stabilised the coffee prices, which has reduced the price risk.

Do you have any tips for up-and-coming women in the industry?

Women who would like to come into coffee industry should have an idea about the general ins and outs of the coffee industry first. This will serve them in good stead as, and when they decide to take the giant leap into being fulltime coffee producers. This is not an industry for people who want to get rich quickly. A lot of work needs to be done before one can say that they have made it. As such, I would urge anyone interested in following this path to take whatever they do very seriously. They must be patient and not wont to give up very easily. Lastly, they must always remember that it is all about the customer and the community around you.

Are there any other thoughts/perspectives that you would like to share with stakeholders/readers?

Coffee is not only a cash crop but it is also a social crop. Its production sustainability relies mainly on the improvement of coffee farmers’ livelihoods. This sustainability is about improving farmers’ skills on the application of good coffee agriculture practices, diversifying farmers’ social income, investing in their children’s education, and ensuring that farmers and the family members are healthier.

Additional Source: https://soulcityroasters.com; http:// bufcoffee.com

Buf has very strong links with the local communities that supply it, providing jobs for hundreds of locals during peak harvest (May–June/July) and 10 permanent positions year-round.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

We celebrate

LIFE

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QVC/2013/AEH/01

Air Mauritius Carla da Silva, Regional Director: Southern Africa & Latin America, Air Mauritius

AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Success The Story Behind

In this interview Carla da Silva, Regional Director: Southern Africa & Latin America, Air Mauritius shares her perspectives on the challenges women face in the corporate world and reminds us that behind every person we meet, lies a personal story which is important to understand from both an individual and professional viewpoint.

Despite the large number of women who make up the travel and tourism workforce, unfortunately there are still very few women at the top. Why do you think this is the case and what can be done to level the playing field?

The Travel and Tourism Industry in South Africa is run by women but led by men. I have witnessed how men and male colleagues are promoted based on potential, their gender and relationships with other gentlemen whereas women are promoted based on past accomplishments and a proven track record.

Today there are 195 independent countries, how come only 17 are led by women? Of the Fortune 500 CEOs, why are only a meagre 4% women? How come globally women only hold 20% of the seats in parliament?

From my perspective, more women need to put up their hands for growth and development opportunities and women who are already in senior and key roles need to ensure that they take other women along with them.

We have grown up in a society where men are the providers and the women are to be homemakers. It is unfortunately still very alive today and my proof is that if our society was truly an equal one, we would find half our countries and companies run by women and half our households run by men.

Women too are their own obstacle in achieving gender equality. We too are responsible for a revolution in standardised thinking within our society. After all, it isn’t enough to talk about individuality, one must believe in it and work at it.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

You are a formidable force in the travel and tourism sector. How did you get to the top and what has your path been like?

I can certainly attribute my leadership roles in this arena to my accomplishments, proven track record and established relationships.

It has been a very challenging journey. I have had to work extremely hard at establishing relationships, putting my hand up and taking on responsibilities pro bono, to learn and develop.

From a young age in my career I established relationships with the giants in my industry, learning from great mentors and coaches who are both men and women.

I volunteered to do many different tasks and projects to get the exposure and truly understand the leadership drivers required to effectively run with a P & L. The journey has not been easy, but it has indeed been inspirational and rewarding when I look back on my journey in the travel and aviation arena. Hard work, perseverance, grit and focus is really what it is all about.

The travel industry is constantly changing. What are some of the most significant changes you have witnessed and how have you faced these changes and challenges?

The world is a global village, adapting and constantly embracing change is how business is run today.

Just about every factor affects and impacts travel and aviation today. Remaining relevant and constantly adapting is key.

Technology is one of the most significant changes I have witnessed and the way one books travel today is completely different to how it was booked 5 years ago, mobile technology, e-commerce and social media have impacted travel and technology significantly. Innovation is critical to survival.

Fifty years on for Air Mauritius, what have been the significant milestones for the airline?

Air Mauritius celebrated 50 years of flying on the 14th of June 2017. The company has played a major role in the

Behind every piece of luggage and person is a story and if you pay attention with an open heart, you’ll hear a piece of that story.

lives of people for half a century while fulfilling its mission as the national airline of Mauritius.

Air Mauritius was established in June 1967 and its first flight took to the skies on the 13th of September 1972 with a Piper Navajo to Rodrigues. Today Air Mauritius flies to 27 destinations across the European, African, Asian and Australasian continents.

In the last financial year, ending March 2017, Air Mauritius recorded a record profit of EUR 26.9m.

On the 13th of February 2017, Air Mauritius announced the future addition to its fleet of 2 new Airbus A350-900, by the year end. The company has also ordered 2 Airbus A330 which will be delivered in 2018. Six other A350-900 will join the fleet by the year 2023.

In 2018 the existing aircraft will undergo major renovation to bring them in line with the latest industry norms.

How important do you feel is the role of travel technology and what have been its effects on the growth of the aviation industry?

Technology is extremely important and has impacted the travel and aviation space tremendously from an e-commerce, mobile technology and social media perspective. The distribution and customer channels have changed and the consumer today is well travelled, price sensitive and very value driven.

Do you have any tips for up-and-coming women in the travel industry?

It is difficult to put together a finite list of approaches that will guarantee success because we are all unique individuals who work in different environments that are rapidly changing in response to technological developments and emerging consumer trends.

That being said, I think the following holds true for most individuals and environments:  Whenever and wherever possible, pursue your passion.  Work hard consistently and continuously.  Surround yourself with winners by adopting great mentors and coaches (both men and women).  Never compromise integrity, whether it be your own or others’.  Take other women along with you on your journey.  You cannot develop as a leader if you do not embrace people.  Always stay humble.  Find ways to give back, get involved with making a difference in the lives of others by ensuring social responsibility is part of the strategic agenda.

The world is a global village, adapting and constantly embracing change is how business is run today.

Are there any other thoughts/perspectives that you would like to share with our readers?

Aviation is about fulfilling hopes and dreams. Behind every piece of luggage and person is a story and if you pay attention with an open heart, you’ll hear a piece of that story.

Let’s face it, working in the airline business is a pretty hard way to make a buck, or a profit. It is a struggle for those who must engage in the cut-throat competition for market share, for those who work to fill the planes and still leave enough room for the last-minute passenger.

What makes it worth it for me, is that our business is about helping people, fulfilling their hopes and dreams. We transport refugees fleeing persecution; immigrants in search of a better life; business people who spend half their life on our planes in pursuit of their dreams; people visiting distant friends and family who they care enough about to spring for airfare; unaccompanied minors shuttling between divorced parents and cargo that is the end-product of many people’s sweat and inspiration.

More women need to put up their hands for growth and development opportunities and women who are already in senior and key roles need to ensure that they take other women along with them In many businesses, having ethics is frowned upon or thought of as a negative subject.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Dawid Mocke Four-time World Surf Ski Champion

Colour could save your life.

Wear a life jacket and bright colours when out paddling.

Mulungushi University

Zambia

Professor Hellicy Chakosamoto Ngambi, Vice Chancellor of Zambia’s Mulungushi University AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Villager A

at Heart

by Andrew Ngozo

Professor Hellicy Chakosamoto Ngambi, appointed the vice chancellor of Zambia’s Mulungushi University in 2012, has been a pathfinder her whole career. Now the first woman to lead a public university in her home country, she previously was the first black, female executive dean of the 145 000-student College of Economic and Management Sciences at the University of South Africa (UNISA). “The funny part is I’ve never really worked hard to be first,” Professor Ngambi says. “That has never been on my agenda.”

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

“W

hat has been on my agenda is adding value in every place that I am. How can I make sure that other people are benefiting from my leadership approach?”

Professor Ngambi brought to her post a leadership philosophy she calls RARE: responsible, accountable, relevant and ethical leadership. The RARE model is premised on the following four values:  Responsible behaviour of leaders, employees and citizens towards one other and all stakeholders, not at the expense of others but in mind of the future state of the institution, nation and the continent at large.  Accountability to each other and the other stakeholders, taking ownership of decisions and avoiding the blame game and scapegoating and making excuses for toxic behaviour instead of owning up to the consequences of choices and decisions.  Relevant engagement in a value-adding way towards one another and all stakeholders, and being of service to the community.  Ethical behaviour that advocates honesty, integrity, openness and trust.

Professor Ngambi argues that the framework is particularly relevant in Africa, which is resource-rich but remains poor. “It is my view that without leaders and managers who exhibit RARE character, we will remain poor despite our wealth,” she says. At UNISA, she introduced a required course on “Sustainability and Greed” for all students in the College of Economic and Management Sciences. She hopes to either obtain permission to teach the course at Mulungushi or to create something similar there. “At the end of the day, you want to have a graduate who thinks about the consequences of their actions,” she says.

Mulungushi University, which enrols 3 500 students in online and residential programmes, became one of three public universities in Zambia in 2008. It was a college before. The 2011 United Nations Development Programme

Professor Ngambi is a sought after speaker and has made numerous local and international presentations.

Report for Zambia describes large challenges confronting the education system, including a startling lack of capacity in the higher education sector. While the estimated number of young people who could potentially participate in tertiary education exceeds one million, Zambia’s higher education institutions only take in about 5 000 students per year. The report also notes that the quality of higher education suffers from a shortage of skilled professionals.

Professor Ngambi cites the skills shortage as one of her greatest challenges – that, and her mandate from the Ministry of Education to bring the university to financial self-sufficiency. Mulungushi’s students pay fees: about USD4 500 per year for residential students (a figure that includes tuition, room, and board), and USD1 400 per year for distance education students. Professor Ngambi also expects to be active in fund-raising. She concedes that this will be a challenge in Zambia, which lacks a tradition of private giving to higher education, but says she will be drawing on what she’s learned from U.S. higher education in this regard.

Before coming to Mulungushi, Ngambi spent 18 years in faculty and administrative positions at UNISA, and previously lectured at the Universities of Botswana and Zambia. She holds a doctorate in business leadership from UNISA, as well as master’s degrees from Ball State and the University of South Florida. In 2008-9 she completed a fellowship in university leadership with the American Council on Education, shadowing M. Lee Pelton, then the president of Willamette University, in Oregon. Pelton has since moved on to the presidency at Emerson College, in Boston.

“She has a distinct leadership quality about her,” Sharon A. McDade, the director of the ACE Fellows programme, says of Professor Ngambi. “She has a demeanour that makes you realise that she really sees the big picture, and she has a way of communicating her passion about the big

picture and the values of higher education. I think that she could be president or chancellor at any college or university in any country,” adds McDade. “I could only say that about a few people.”

A Rich History Prof Ngambi is a full professor of business leadership.

She served in various management positions at the University of South Africa for over 15 years. These positions include, Deputy Executive Dean; Executive Director and CEO of Unisa’s Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL); and finally as the Executive Dean of the College of Economic and Management Sciences, the largest on the African continent with a student population of over 200 000 and staff compliment of approximately 900. In all these positions she was the first woman and black person to be appointed. She

To earn the privilege of being educated, her mother would sell produce and anything else she could. was previously the Principal and Managing Director of the Academy of Business Management in Botswana from 1988 to 1994, a private university college she founded.

She started her lecturing career in 1984 at the University of Zambia (now Copperbelt University). She has also lectured at University of South Florida (USA), the University of Botswana and Unisa’s graduate School of Business Leadership. She was one of the founding resource persons on the Thabo Mbeki African Leadership Institute (TMALI) where she developed and taught the leadership module. She holds the following degrees: a doctorate in Business Leadership (DBL), Unisa; a Master of Science in Management (MSc, Cum Laude - and obtained the Beta Gamma Sigma Award), USF, USA; a Master of Business Administration (MBA, Marketing), BSU, USA; a Bachelor of Arts degree with merit (BA-Econ) UNZA, Zambia; Chartered Institute of Marketing Certificate (CIM) and International Teachers’ Programme (ITP) certificate, LBS-UK, and an American Council on Education (ACE) fellowship.

She commissioned the first morale survey in the college, pioneered the development of a college service charter and provided leadership that led to the initiatives that saw college research outputs increasing.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

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Ethel Cofie, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of EDEL Technology Consulting and founder of Women in Tech Africa AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Blessing A

to a Generation

by Andrew Ngozo

In an industry where men outnumber women, the tech scene in Ghana has seen some tremendous growth over the years. From software development, training, influencing, blogging, engineering, to leadership roles with top global information technology giants, women in this sector are blazing the trail for women in this space in Ghana.

They are influencers and role models, not just for young women aspiring for a career and impact in the tech space but any young person aspiring to reach the skies in tech in Ghana. One such pioneer is Ethel Cofie, the chief executive officer and founder of EDEL Technology Consulting, an IT Consulting Company in West Africa and Europe (I.T Consulting Firm of the Year-Ghana Telecoms and IT Awards) and founder of Women in Tech Africa (Africa’s Largest Tech Group) with members in over 30 African countries and in the diaspora and growing. Ethel has been named as one of the top five women impacting IT in Africa.

E

thel also created the Women in Tech Week, a global event which started in 2016 and impacts over 10 000 women globally. She’s been featured on BBC and has had her opinion pieces published on CNN on topics of technology in emerging markets, and women leadership.

When Ethel is not running EDEL or Women in Tech Africa, she advises and consults on technology growth in emerging markets. She sits on a number of boards across the continent.

Former U.S first lady, Michelle Obama believes that: “Ethel is a blessing to her generation.” Not only is she making waves with the innovation she creates for the business community through her EDEL Technology Consulting, she is helping propel more women in tech to succeed. It is this that puts her on the map as a catalyst in the African tech space.

Ethel says that her journey in the industry started when she in love with the computer. “I fell in love with the computer the first time I saw it growing up. I was interested in understanding how it works and what makes it tick. I guess that’s where it all started,” she says. Ethel has gone on to start her own software company after her Bachelors and her Masters in Distribution Systems in the United Kingdom (UK). “I took a rather audacious move to return to Ghana after my education in the UK. I packed my bag and baggage left my well- paying job and headed for Ghana to start my own company. How naive I was!” she states. Ethel saw opportunities in the tech space back home and decided to come take them. Little did she know the surprise that awaited her! “My first business failed. I did not have clients and I had little experience. My

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first business failed miserably.” Looking back at those days, she recounts, with much humour now, what the feeling was like. “It’s a funny feeling waking up to a zero balance in your account. That was rock- bottom for me. I wondered if my decision to come down to Ghana was a good one.”

Valuable Lessons It was then that she joined Vodafone. But before Vodafone, the CEO of EDEL Technology Consult worked with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Ford Foundation, all of which taught her some valuable lessons that will come in handy in her second attempt at entrepreneurship. “I got a job at Vodafone Ghana as Head of Commercial Solutions for Vodafone Ghana. That’s the last job I did. This role gave me the much needed experience and a more stable ground to launch on a second attempt at entrepreneurship. I learned the lesson that it is much easier when you have some customer base to start from.

Vodafone gave me the opportunity to showcase what I could do. Clients knew me, so it was much easier.” That was how EDEL Technologies as it is known today started. They had a simple value proposition: “To provide customised software for companies and businesses that will increase profitability.

Here we either minimise cost or maximise revenue, whichever way, our software are tailored to improving the profitability of our clients.” Ethel’s business has been growing steadily over the past few years, delivering value for high calibre clients who then refer her services to peer companies.

Ethel saw opportunities in the tech space back home and decided to come take them. Little did she know the surprise that awaited her!

What has actually brought Ethel to the limelight is her attempts to empower and captivate women to reach commanding heights of Africa’s tech space with her Women in Tech Programme. “Women in Tech is a programme that pools together women in the tech space all around Africa to share resources in improving each other and encouraging more into the space. We are now in Nigeria, Kenya and the UK. We are looking to move into many more countries.

Men meet on the golf course to play golf and in the space of that two or three hours, deals worth several hundreds of thousands are made. I believe women in tech need a similar thing, where they can form bonds and help catapult each other to the next stage,” she says.

An African Tech Icon In Ghana, Women in Tech Africa, which is an informal networking group, focuses on enhancing women’s careers by sharing experiences and lessons learned. All these make her a tech icon, not just in Ghana, but on the continent as a whole. Recently the women had an elite invitation from Ethel to a “Kelewele” (a Ghanaian delicacy made from fried riped plantain) and wine networking session. It was the talk of the business community for weeks.

Why the need to fight a course for more women representation in tech? What exactly is keeping women from tech? According to Ethel: “It the same thing about competence. Some people don’t believe that women can be competent software engineers or IT experts. It’s simply a man’s world.” Hence the strategy of Women in Tech is to showcase successful IT women to a younger generation of girls in order to motivate them. “We want to give young girls an option. That apart from their liberal arts, they cans also excel in IT, they can build apps too,” Ethel notes. She adds that she expects to make a more meaningful impact in the sector in Africa. “We are looking to make a more meaningful impact. We are looking to increase the revenue streams of many more businesses, help them cut costs and improve

operations. We will do more customised software for clients.

For Women in Tech Africa, we are looking to get into more countries on the African continent and create a much bigger and resourceful platform for women in tech to connect and leverage on opportunities to grow,” she points out.

Personal Aspirations for Women in Tech When Ethel first started Women in Tech Africa, and when she reflected on her own personal journey in the tech sector, she says that one of the first things she did was to conform in the business tech, male dominated environment in which she was working. “When everyone in the male oriented office wore jeans and hoodies, I quickly realised that if I was to get any kind of respect I felt I needed to be like them. Looking back when I tell people about this approach, I am not sure in retrospect it was the right thing to do, but I did it at the time because I wanted to fit in and be taken seriously by my colleagues,” she explains. So, Women in Tech Africa it was started out of her very personal need to start a ‘girls club’, as an antidote to what had been a ‘boys club’ in the tech sector for so long. She had learned successfully how to integrate and become part of the ‘boys club’ in the tech sector, “but I wondered if we could create a women equivalent ‘club’ in the sector, where women could be part of something groundbreaking, where they could be themselves, not to have to conform, and still be great at their jobs.”

There are so many women in tech groups now across Africa, with women teaching girls how to code or on the other side of the spectrum working with women who are in the industry, and everything in between. “I think Women in Tech Ghana as an organisation has now matured enough and I can take a step back from it because everyone involved knows what they are doing, the group is working well. For me, Women in Tech Africa is about bringing together all these groups of women in the industry under a loose umbrella whereby we can look at issues not simply from a country level, but instead from a continent wide perspective. I would like to see more women involved as part of Women in Tech Africa, but importantly, I would also like to see women work better with one another. One often hears the conversation in the industry that women don’t necessarily work well together.

So for me, one of the challenges is to see women working better with one another, meaning that we understand the dynamics around us that make us compete with one another which can bring tension,” says Ethel.

They had a simple value proposition: “To provide customised software for companies and businesses that will increase profitability. Here we either minimise cost or maximise revenue, whichever way, our software are tailored to improving the profitability of our clients.”

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

X&Y

Chatting to women that are having a significant influence on their business world, a consistent dilemma faced by them in their formative leadership years was, “be loveable and liked or strong and not popular”. Many debated if it was possible to be effective if they were seen as “nice, but soft” or whether they would make faster progress if they became “strong and demanding”.

Making

a Significant Difference

T

o be an influential force within the world of work, it is easy to see why the debate never subsides.

However recent studies indicate that a significant key to having influence is when people project warmth. Research by Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman shows that leaders who are rated low on likability have about a one in 2 000 chances of being regarded as effective. Only after they’ve achieved likability should they focus on displaying competence, an equally critical characteristic. Those that project strength first, risk creating a fear based working community surrounding them.

The women on the continent that are making their mark as one of Africa’s Most Influential Women in Business and Government have walked the hard roads that pave the way to success, but all share the sincerity and warmth so necessary to maintain credibility in today’s fast paced and ever changing business world. These motivators can be working in the entrepreneurial, professional, and corporate and government worlds but all recognise that the route to sustainable success is through cooperation. And they view the many benefits that will arrive objectively not competitively.

Award winning is important in any sector, but these awards allow for the

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influential women on the continent to be recognised for the significant work they are doing. Receiving any award is a sign of excellence - an acknowledgment that peers agree that this individual excels in what they do.

As chairperson of Africa’s Most Influential Women and Titan’s Building Nations my responsibilities incorporate ensuring that each judge, in all of the panels, is aware of what is expected from them. I am there to collate the marks of each panel member and facilitate any discussion that might ensue. As the only individual to sit on every panel, ensuring that the final results are reached through a fair and unbiased methodology is key to the overall credibility of the awards. I don't have a vote and I cannot express an opinion – even when asked!

In 2017 the nominations received from throughout the continent were wide ranging in age, achievement, focus and awareness and were of a high calibre so that every judging panel member was hard pressed to allow any nominee to be set aside.

In today’s disruptive business world remaining relevant remains a consistent challenge for all leaders. Our winners this year, are proving that in this digital world they are making a significant difference to their sector and their communities.

Yvonne Finch

X&Y

H

aving been part of the recognition programmes since before they went continental, the Commander is in awe of just how many leaders in Africa are helping to transform ordinary people’s lives through their respective business ventures. He notes that the awards get better each year, more especially since a new type of leader is emerging continent-wide. This is a young leader who thinks on their feet with the help of technology. He says that it is this type of leader that is envisioned to take Africa into the future. This is particularly apt because the continent has been tipped to be the bedrock of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He adds this is what will place Africa on a pedestal in this regard, as she has a fairly young population which is agile and can get things done quickly.

As the patron of the recognition programmes, Commander Mokhele believes that Africa is yet to scratch the surface in so far as its leadership potential is concerned. He believes that it is such recognition programmes that should be encouraged across the continent to showcase Africa’s potential. According to the Commander, the recognition programmes can only grow from here on because new industries are being birthed in Africa. A maritime officer at heart, the Commander says that the maritime sector is one such sector that holds vast and untold potential and should be used to revitalise the sluggish African economy.

As CEO Global honours the winners in various sectors in 2017, Commander Mokhele states that it was not an easy judging process for the respective judging panels. They were often faced with the dilemma of who goes through to the next round and who does not. The 2017 nominees were that good. However, he is quick to point out that nothing should be taken away from those who did not go all the way because they are exceptional individuals and business persons in their own right.

Africa’s

Future Greatness

Commander Tsietsi Mokhele is largely regarded as the man who is behind the transformation of the South African maritime sector for the better. On the global front, the man, affectionately known as The Commander, is known for putting the local industry on the global map in so far as maritime and shipping are concerned. Until recently, Commander Tsietsi Mokhele was the chief executive officer of the South Africa Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA). That too, is an organisation that he helped to turn around since 2008 when he assumed the role of CEO. The Commander is the patron of the Africa’s Most Influential Women in Business and Government and Titans: Building Nations Awards.

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X&Y

H

er business experience includes 15 years in higher education ranging from specialist to executive. In her current role Cristal is responsible for Public Relations, Communication and Alumni Relations. She is further responsible for the strategic direction as well as the execution of the strategy of the International Relations Office of the SBL and focuses on international and local partnership opportunities to establish a sustainable income for the business school. She is a member of the Extended Management Committee of the SBL and serves on the Advisory Committee of the business school.

Her academic qualifications include a Master’s degree in Linguistics and Bachelor of Arts (Language and Culture) awarded by the University of Stellenbosch as well as a National Diploma in Language Practice from the Cape Town University of Technology. She also completed a Diploma in Public Relations at the Public Relations Institute of South Africa. Before her current role, Cristal was corporate communications specialist for the SBL while she was previously a language and and communication specialist at the office of the Auditor-General South Africa. She also worked as a

Relationships Maintaining Strong

Many people on the African continent aspire to be an alumni of the prestigious University of South Africa’s Graduate School of Business Leadership (UNISA SBL). But for Cristal Peterson, this is not only an aspiration because she gets to meet Africa’s business leaders on a regular basis due to her work as the head of the Communication and Marketing Directorate of the UNISA Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL). Cristal is the programme director of the 2017 Africa’s Most Influential Women in Business and Government and Titans: Building Nations awards ceremony.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

communication specialist at AVBOB and was a marketing and language specialist at the Stellenbosch University.

Integrity, commitment and a diligent work ethic are attributes which Cristal values highly. “I pride myself in my ability to develop and maintain strong relationships with our stakeholders ranging from CEOs, human resource executives to ministers and diplomats of foreign embassies.

Over the past years, I have grown an extensive network of businesses in both the public and private sector including executives from various international business schools in various other African countries, Europe and Asia. My professional competencies and skills include a comprehensive understanding of executive education, management development and protocols pertaining to the international environment,” she concludes.

Quick p40

p54

p62

p70

Guide

Lifetime Achievers Partner - CEO Global

Dr Elizabeth Mary Okelo, Bishop Margaret Wanjiru Kariuki, Prof Margaret Kobia, Nancy Wakarima Karigithu, Grace Loumo, Maya Sewnath, Brigitte Marie-Françoise Driver, Uma Devi Kowlesser, Prof Hellicy C Ngambi, Edna Freinkel, Graça Machel, Wendy Ackerman, Carol Brown, Prof Marilise Smurthwaite, Bennie Saayman, Prof. Glenda Gray, Dr Nkugcina Mhlophe, Visolela Rosalinda Namises, Dr Juliette Modupe Tuakli

Agencies & Regulatory Authorities Partner - CEO Global Country Winners: Miriam Musindi Akayombokwa Chiyaba, Patience Gandiwa, Dr Boitumelo Mogome-Maseko Regional Winners: Vikashnee Harbhajan, Jane Okot P'Bitek Langoya, Roza Madaro Mbilizi, Jacinta M. Nzioka

Agriculture Partner - AGRI SA

Country Winner: Teija Marika Lublinkhof Regional Winners: Judith Bakirya, Adri Kitshoff-Botha, Dr Felister Wambugha Makini, Nkiru okpareke, Jyoty Soomarooah

Arts & Culture Partner - Artform

Country Winners: Selmor Mtukudzi, Patricia Otoa Ayo Regional Winners: Katrin Caine, Molemo Moiloa Gapare, Faith M. Kabende, Ayeta Anne Wangusa

p76

Automotive & Components Partner - Toyota SA

p62

Building & Construction Partner - CEO GLOBAL Regional Winners: Tim Immaculate Bih, Vino Govender

p84

Business & Professional Services Partner - BCX Country Winner: Eng Farai Mavhiya-Bhiza Regional Winners: Michelle Adelman, Sujata Hanif Jaffer, Madhavi Ramdin-Clark, Patricia Veringa-Gieskes, Carol Weaving

p92

Chemical, Petrochemical & Pharmaceutical Partner -

p96

Education & Training: Academic Partner - UNISA SBL

p102

p108

Regional Winners: Valentia Hobbs, Florence Sempebwa Makada

Shell SA Regional Winners: Dr Ebere Igboko Ekpunobi, Doreen Kosi Country Winner: Stylish Magida Regional Winners: Dr Bernadette Judith Johnson, Aline Mpinga Kabanda, Dr J. Anitha Menon, Shella Marie Mohideen

Education & Training: Private Partner - SMAB Country Winner: Emma Kakona Regional Winner: Stacey Diane Brewer, Dr Faith Kudakwashe Nyamukapa

Financial Services Partner - KPMG Country Winner: Kaunapaua Ndilula Regional Winners: Imalaambaal Kichenin, Dr Mampiti Elizabeth Matete, Grace Muradzikwa

Government – Employed Official Partner - CEO Global

p114

ICT Partner - CEO Global Country Winners: Pfungwa Chamanga, Dr Shikoh Gitau, Regional Winner: Dr Madelise Grobler, Chimuka Malawo Moore

p120

Logistics & Shipping Partner - PANAVEST

p124

Manufacturing & Engineering Partner - CEO Global Country Winners: Noble Catherine Coffie, Karen Elizabeth Scott Regional Winners: Maidie Elizabeth Ayele Arkutu, Tendesi Stella Makunike, Dr Ngalula Sandrine Mubenga

p132

Media Partner - CEO Global Country Winner: Tsitsi Grace Madhodha Regional Winners: Edith Dankwa, Julie Gichuru, Faith Margaret Musonda, Amy Ngwangunu Banda Youmbi

p138

Medical & Veterinary Partner - Monsoon Photography Regional Winners: Dr. Lynda Decker, Appadoo-Leelah Meera, Marissa Nel, Pester Siraha

p144

Mining Partner - Crossroads Regional Winner: Dikeledi Nakene

p150

Public Enterprises Partner - CEO Global Regional Winners: Patty Karuaihe – Martin, Ayanda Noah

p154

Small, Medium & Large Enterprises Partner - sefa Country Winners: Grace Mumo Mlimo, Harmony Seyram Attise, Sheila Anuntaba, Mary Naa Adoley Bruce, Munira Twahir Regional Winners: Awurabena Okrah, Annet Ayamba, Jennifer Nafula Barassa, Ngo Yetna Augustine Audrey Chicot, Karen Evans Halm, Marie Pascale Sandy Sharon Marion, Adv Fariyal Mukaddam, Namucana Catherine Musiwa, Nisha Maharaj

p158

Sport Partner - CEO Global Country Winners: Dorah Vuyelwa Mngwevu Regional Winners: Dr Melanie Jacobs, Lana Vroublevskaia de Morelos

p170

Tourism & Leisure Partner - The Premier Hotel OR Tambo

p174

Welfare & Civil Society Organisations Partner -

p182

Finalists 2017

p190

Regional Winners: Magdalene Ewuraesi Apenteng, Her Excellency Usha Dwarka Canabady, Rose Nunu Seretse, Dr Rolene Wagner

Country Winner: Volana Harimanitra Regional Winners: Nomsa Nontsikelelo Mataka Mumba, Fatima Sullivan, Fazillah Tajoo

Country Winner: Jane Wanjiru Macharia-Gituto Regional Winner: Wendy-Ann Alberts, Mary Consolata Kalikawe, Irene Nalwoga, Daniella Payet-Alis BUSINESS LEADERSHIP SOUTH AFRICA Regional Winners: Louise Driver, Jennifer Kabura Karina, Martha Khonje, Joyce Namirimo Tamale

SECTOR FOREWORD Lifetime Achievers Africa is the fastest emerging economy in the world. Everyone, and anyone, wants a piece of the rich African cake and they dare not be left behind. On a continent where nearly 90% of international trade happens by sea, several African ports are in the race to be their respective regional shipping hubs.

Lack of infrastructure and long ship waiting times continue to hamper productivity for the African shipping and logistics sector, but a wave of new investments looks set to drive growth over the medium-term, according to a new report from research consultancy SeaIntel.

Based on media reports, China, Africa’s biggest trading partner will be at the forefront of those investments as well as drive the shipping and logistics sector.

CEO Global would like to thank all the women in the shipping and logistics sector. They have shown that they are determined to see the motherland prosper through their endeavours in the shipping and logistics sector.

Lifetime

Achievers

From South Africa Wendy Ackerman

Wendy Ackerman joined her husband, Raymond Ackerman, in Pick n Pay when he acquired the company. Whilst raising a family of four, she has been totally involved in the group’s development, employee benefits and their welfare. She was appointed a Director of Pick n Pay in 1981, and is responsible for employee liaison, staff benefits and welfare. Wendy has been and is very involved in promoting furthering education amongst the needy and underprivileged of South Africa. She is a Trustee of the Ackerman Family Educational Trust Fund which assists students from all over the country with bursaries for tertiary education.

Wendy has always had a great love for the cultural arts and has personally assisted several needy individuals to further and establish their musical and singing careers.

From Ghana Dr Juliette Modupe Tuakli Dr Juliette Modupe Tuakli, MD, MPH, has been a leader in women’s, children’s and public health for three decades. For the past 10 years, at the helm of CHILD Accra Medical Group, she has managed the organisation’s expansion from a small paediatric clinic into a recognised regional medical conglomerate providing medical care, public health research and policy development and medical training for workers, students and researchers in Africa, England and USA. Her work has ranged from covering the health of women, children and families to tackling neglected tropical diseases. She has contributed her expertise to international agencies such as the World Bank, USAID, UNICEF, and others, and has created an acclaimed CHILD HEALTH in AFRICA curriculum used in several public health programmes in the United States of America and Africa. She is also an author.

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Lifetime

Achievers From South Africa Carol Brown

Carol Brown is the director of Curate.A.Space where they curate exhibitions of art and history in various venues specialising in museums. They curated the art collection for the Moses Mabhida stadium for the eThekwini Municipality, consulted to the Constitutional Court of South Africa art collection and also curated a historical exhibition for University of KwaZulu Natal centenary. The Ifa Lethu Foundation which repatriates art is also a client as is the Durban ICC. A recent exhibition was a tribute to internationally renowned architect Rodney Harber, shown at the Durban Art Gallery City Hall.

Exhibitions and consultation have included cities such as London, Paris, Nantes, Los Angeles. Exhibitions concerning HIV/Aids are an ongoing commitment. Carol facilitates the work of emerging artists through training and exhibition in order to ensure the continuity of artistic heritage.

From Mauritius

Dr Brigitte Marie-Françoise Driver Dr Brigitte Marie-Françoise Driver is an Associate Professor at the Department of Agricultural Production and Systems, Faculty of Agriculture (FoA) of the University of Mauritius (UoM). For the past 26 years, she has built upon the core mission of the University she has been actively involved in ‘training human resources and fostering intellectual development and research in the agricultural and food sectors.’ She has served the FoA as head of department, and dean of faculty. She has developed skills in curriculum development and engaged with stakeholders for the development of industryrelevant curriculum. She has trained many cohorts of students who have grown into bright alumni serving the agricultural sector, in many capacities – leadership, research, production. She has engaged in industry-led research, where research funds have been obtained from the Mauritius Research Council.

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From South Africa Edna Freinkel

In 1958 Edna Freinkel became actively involved in helping her mother, Rebecca Ostrowiak, to write down the method she had researched for the previous thirty years. She is the coauthor of the series Teach Any Child or Adult to Read, which was first published in 1965. Edna is the founder and consultant of Readucate, an NGO that fights crime through prevention, by teaching teachers how to teach reading so children do not drop out of school and into crime and reduce crime through rehabilitating offenders by training literate ones to teach their illiterate inmates a multidisciplinary approach to reading and life skills. She has not only personally taught hundreds of children and adults to read, but has also given lectures and run workshops for teachers on a local and international scale.

From South Africa Prof Glenda Gray

Professor Glenda Gray was recently nominated as one of the most influential persons by the Time Magazine in 2017. She is the president and CEO of the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC).

The SAMRC is a public entity of the National Department of Health and is the country’s premier medical research organisation that has both national and international stature and credibility.

The SAMRC has a lifespan of more than three decades delivering services through laboratory investigations, clinical research and public health studies. Research at the SAMRC focuses on the ten highest causes of mortality in South Africa and includes TB, HIV, chronic diseases, alcohol and drug abuse, and women’s health. Professor Gray cofounded and led the internationally renowned Perinatal HIV Research Unit, based at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto.

Lifetime

Achievers From Kenya

Nancy Wakarima Karigithu Nancy Wakarima Karigithu is the principal secretary at the Ministry of Transport. The Department of Maritime and Shipping Affairs has the mandate to formulate and implement policies geared towards the development of Kenya’s Blue Economy. Her responsibilities as the principal secretary include the formulation and implementation of an enabling framework for the maritime sector, capacity building, and creation of wealth and jobs for a bulging youth population. She has been the consummate champion of the little understood maritime sector which has from time immemorial been confused with the port industry. Nancy vigorously engaged both government and the private sector to introduce integrity and a higher level of service delivery in the sector, bringing the industry together to commit to a community service charter, thus bringing understanding of the impact of the sector on the economy.

From Kenya

Bishop Margaret Wanjiru Kariuki Bishop Margaret Wanjiru Kariuki is a hard working woman with many years of experience in management and transformative leadership.

She has had tremendous international exposure and experience within marketing, trade and business environment. The bishop was called by God into christian leadership as a clergy specialising in evangelism, church planting, growth and leadership. Her second calling is in politics. She has great skills in people development coupled with a highly motivated approach and strong interpersonal skills. A servant leader and determined to positively impact the lives of our people, she is currently the presiding bishop of Jesus Is Alive Ministries and director at Logistics And Energy Africa Limited. From 2008 – 2012 she was appointed by the President of Kenya as an assistant Minister in the Ministry of Housing.

Lifetime

Achievers From Kenya Prof Margaret Kobia

Professor Margaret Kobia is the Chairperson Public Service Commission (PSC). She is an Associate Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship. Prof. Kobia holds a PhD Degree in Human Resource Education from University of Illinois, MEd from Kenyatta University and a B.Ed. from University of Nairobi. She received her ‘O’ and ‘A’ level education at Alliance Girls’ High School. Prof. Kobia’s role is to provide leadership on policy direction on Human Resource Management and Development in the Public Service. Prior to joining the Public Service Commission, she was the founding Director General of Kenya School of Government. Between 2005 and 2012, she served as the Director/CEO of Kenya Institute of Administration and made a profound contribution in transforming the institution into a truly modern School of Government.

From Mauritius Uma Devi Kowlesser

Uma Devi Kowlesser is the registrar of the Mahatma Gandhi Institute. She holds regular weekly consultations with her team of section leaders and whenever they have a new assignment they work together. Recently, in line with good governance principles, they had to work on a code of conduct for all staff.

The team had three working sessions and they were able to produce a concise document that addresses all levels of staff.

Secondly, she occasionally brings together all administrative staff to share a lunch so as to be able to connect and share.

They work in an institution that is spread over 29 acres of land in different buildings. This opportunity of sharing a lunch binds everyone together.

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Lifetime

Achievers From Uganda Grace Loumo Grace Loumo has been a social worker for over 30 years where she has been a project co-ordinator reporting to the board of directors and the lead agency. Grace Loumo is AWARE Executive Director.

She is a registered nurse from Lira Hospital Medical School and possesses a diploma in human rights and gender studies, a certificate in peace and conflict resolution from peace and security Uganda, a certificate in community health, a certificate in food security and a certificate in economic empowerment among others. She has had training in social rights which she has been practicing for 30 years. Grace has had over 200 advocacy community sensitisations, 300 dialogues, 200 open focused discussions, on GBV,EVAW, RHR, child rights, women rights, women land and property rights.

From South Africa Graça Machel

Graça Machel is one of the world’s leading advocates for women’s and children’s rights and has been a social justice and political activist for many decades. She established the Graça Machel Trust in 2010 as a Pan-African advocacy organisation focused on child health and nutrition, education, women’s economic and financial empowerment, leadership and good governance. Over the last five years the Trust has worked to “Multiply the Faces and Amplify the Voices” of African women and children. Through our collaboration with partners, at all levels, we have helped promote and strengthen women and children’s networks to drive social and economic change. The Graça Machel Trust acts as a catalyst, working across the continent to advocate for the protection of children’s rights and dignity, and amplify women’s movements by harnessing and promoting their contributions to the economic, social and political development of Africa.

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From South Africa Dr Nokugcina Mhlophe

Dr Nokugcina (Gcina) Mhlophe is the executive director of Gcinamasiko Arts & Heritage Trust. She founded the Gcinamasiko Arts and Heritage Trust (GAHT) on the back of the success of her story telling and acting prowess. The Trust is committed to enhancing the culture of reading, providing writing and story-creation opportunities and promoting African writers and the heritage of story-telling within the education institutions, especially those who have poor access to resources, and in the public arena of South Africa through their edutainment programme. Her career started in 1982 as a writer and actress. The Market Theatre in Johannesburg was her springboard into the greater world. Workshop theatre soon became her strong point and has over the years loved creating brand new works with up and coming artists in different communities in South Africa and abroad.

From Namibia

Visolela Rosalinda Namises Visolela Rosalinda Namises is the national director of Women Solidarity Namibia. Women Solidarity Namibia works to establish economic stability and personal safety for abused women and serves as an instrument of peace in a country where domestic violence is a norm. The Opportunities Centre project seeks to assist women in breaking the cycle of violence by providing the education, resources and community collaborations necessary to make a lasting difference in the lives of individuals, social groups and the country as a whole. She provides one-on-one talks with people specifically women and children to give them the confidence that they need to be reminded they matter and that she is interested in their story. She states that she always puts together groups to speak together and share their problems.

Lifetime

Achievers From Zambia Prof Hellicy Chakosamoto Ngambi Professor Hellicy Ngambi is the Vice Chancellor at Mulungushi University in Zambia where she is the first woman to be appointed in such a position in the Republic of Zambia. She served in various management positions at the University of South Africa (UNISA) for over 15 years. These positions include, deputy executive dean; executive director and CEO of Unisa’s Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL); and finally as the executive dean of the College of Economic and Management Sciences, the largest on the African continent with a student population of over 200 000 and staff compliment of approximately 900. In all these positions she was the first woman and black person to be appointed. She was previously the principal and managing director of the Academy of Business Management in Botswana from 1988 to 1994, a private university college she founded.

From Kenya Dr Elizabeth Mary Okelo Dr Elizabeth Mary Okelo is the chief executive officer of The Makini School Limited. The main business aspect of Makini Schools and College is education. She is the CEO and responsible for the vision and overseeing daily operations of the institutions. This involves strategic planning, policy development, curriculum development and delivery, performance appraisals, staff development etc. Known as a trail-blazer since high school she is trained and experienced in leadership, management and organisational skills. She has the ability to mobilise, motivate and give clear direction, to strengthen and develop competencies. Dr Okelo is innovative and creative, analysing policies, practices and emerging needs as well as sharing best practices with other institutions. They have a record of nurturing students’ gifts and talents. Consequently, their alumni are recognised leaders in the society.

Lifetime

Achievers From South Africa Bennie Saayman Bennie Saayman’s organisation the Western Cape Netball Federation of which she is the chairperson is affiliated to Netball South Africa and is an affiliate of the South Africa Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC).

As an experienced netball administrator it is her duty to promote sport at the provincial level. This involves ensuring that local structures are operative in all districts which include players at provincial, club and school level. Her responsibilities include strategic planning to ensure that the code is active at all these levels. This includes administration structures, active leagues and the establishment of resources. The organisation creates opportunities for athletes not only as players, whether for social recreational purposes, but also as professionals as coaches, team managers, umpires and professional administrators.

From Mauritius Maya Sewnath Maya Sewnath is the managing director/marketing director of SSS Furniture Co Ltd. The main activity of the business is in the manufacturing sector of wooden furniture as well as a line of personalised furniture for children (kids and babies). This activity has been extended to tailor made furniture for individuals. Her main responsibilities are marketing and finance. In addition she handles all strategic decisions and issues pertaining to the company.

Each year Maya has to prepare a business plan which includes all forecasted issues related to the company as well as all the action plans to be followed. Parameters are set and all through the year along these criteria are followed to be met.

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Lifetime

Achievers From South Africa Prof Marilise Smurthwaite Professor Marilise Smurthwaite is the Academic Dean and Acting Registrar at the St Augustine College of South Africa. This is a private, Catholic tertiary institution offering postgraduate and undergraduate degrees. Her responsibilities include teaching MPhil business ethics students; supervising postgrad students research, own research; publications; managing staff; chairing or attending committee meetings; accreditation and liaising with the many regulators/outside bodies who require accountability and information from private providers (e.g. DHET, CHE, HEQCIS, SAQA etc.); overseeing various administrative and academic processes etc. Her skills presumably equip her to do these various jobs; good interpersonal skills and organisational and administrative ability, ability to do many different tasks which span the interpersonal, management, academic, teaching, research and organisational domains and so on. She has been at this College since it began in 1999.

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How

Sustainability

to Get Your

Business Noticed

!

Many people will tell you that to get your website noticed you need to 'optimise' your site for the search engines. You are then led up a path where you have to keep changing your web site as the search engines change their ways of listing things. As fast as you 'optimise' your site, Google and the others have moved the goalposts, meaning you have to keep optimising over and over again. This can be a very expensive way of marketing your business.

N

ow consider some facts. Most people in the world are not users of the Internet. Let's repeat that. The vast majority of people who you want to reach don't use the Internet. It doesn't matter how well you optimise your web site, they simply will never find it.

Here's another fact. Some of the best Internet marketers make most of their sales 'offline'. They sell their books, videos, CD-ROMs and so on at seminars, workshops and conferences. Indeed, for many 'Internet marketers' these 'offline' sales represent the bulk of their income.

So what do these facts tell us? They show us that 'offline' promotion is more important than online promotion. You may be able to optimise your web site to get high rankings in a search engine. But that doesn't mean you'll reach the vast majority of people who could buy your product or use your information.

This was confirmed recently by one study that showed most people go to an Internet address (URL) after having read it in a newspaper or magazine, been given it by a friend or colleague, or having heard it being mentioned by someone speaking at a meeting or on TV. In other words, it seems that significant numbers of people who get to your web site will do so having heard the URL somewhere outside the Internet.

You can get many people visiting your web site, even if you are not ranked highly by the search engines. You can do this in two main ways:  Write articles for use in regular publications - newspapers, magazines and so on. Always include your URL in the article and you'll get millions of people to notice your web site address.  Speak at every opportunity. Make presentations to business clubs, chambers of commerce, local societies you name it, you should speak at it. Every time you speak, announce or your web site address.

Mail catalogues, flyers, letters or brochures regularly.

Direct-mail is still a very effective way to reach potential customers. There are several direct mail companies that provide targeted list of prospects to help you zero-in on your best potential customers. You should also be sending direct mail pieces to your customer base on a regular basis. This is a great way to generate repeat business.

Although these are the three principal ways of gaining offline publicity and new customers to your website, don't neglect your business stationery, posters, car stickers, cards and so on. The more your web site address is visible outside the web, the more visitors you will get regardless of how kind the search engines are to you.

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Streamline

THE Hiring Process

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AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Skills Transfer

Best Talent

to Attract the

by Patricia Lenkov, Founder & President, Agility Executive Search, LLC

The need to hire varies from company to company. Maybe your organisation is just starting out, and you’re at that exciting point where you are building your dream team. Perhaps you’re expanding, and you’ve recognised that the demand for your product and services is now greater than the output of your current workforce. Or have you just lost a valuable member of your team and now need to fill the position that was recently vacated?

W

hatever the reason why you are currently hiring, you may already know how challenging it can get finding the right person to fill the role. You want someone who not only meets the requirements but also fits into your company culture. And you certainly want to find the right candidate in the quickest time possible without having to interview hundreds of applicants and waste time on unqualified leads. To get the attention of the best talents, you need to streamline your hiring process.

Hiring the right recruiter is always an option (the best in my humble opinion!). However if this is not possible for any reason, here are some tips to guarantee that the perfect person for the job finds you and signs that job offer:

Attracting the Right Applicants with a Great Job Advertisement Once you’ve defined the role that needs to be filled, it’s crucial to write a specific yet unique job description that will attract the right applicant. Avoid too much industry jargon but do speak the language of your company’s culture. A candidate who is the right fit for your team will be able to relate to your style and tone. A great job ad should speak directly to the right candidate while filtering out the unqualified ones.

Reaching the Right People by Posting in the Right Place If hiring from within is not an option or your preference is to hire externally to gain someone who can contribute their best practices to your team, you will need to promote your job opening across other networks. Cast the widest net by posting your job ad online. Paid job board ad platforms may get you more serious job applicants than free job boards.

If your company has social media accounts on Facebook or Twitter, be sure to post your job there as you will attract people who are already interested and involved followers of your organisation.

For specific skills, look for job niche boards where specific industries gather and engage. For example, those seeking job opportunities in the technology sector will most likely search on Dice.com while job

seekers in the finance industry will be looking for jobs on efinancialcareers.com. Other job niche boards include HealthcareJobsite.com for those in the healthcare sector and Mediabistro.com is for job postings in advertising, social media, TV, and radio.

Save Time by Refining Your Screening Process Know exactly what you are looking for. Set up a screening process that doesn’t waste your time or the candidate’s. If the position is more technical in nature, have applicants take an online exam proving their declared skills before having them come in for a face-to-face interview. If the role requires a lot of engagement with customers, set up a video conference call instead of having them wait in your company lobby with dozens of other applicants only to realise they are unfit for the role. Know what your red flags are, move resumes that contain those into a separate ‘pile’ and proceed to the next. Recognise your ‘green lights’ and organise to meet with those candidates first.

Ask the Right Questions Every job seeker has already perfectly rehearsed what they are going to say when asked what their biggest strengths and greatest weaknesses are. Instead of asking the questions that have appeared in every article ever written about how to prepare for a job interview, ask the specific questions that will showcase the candidate’s personality, skills, and if they will fit into your company.

Hit the Target by Making the Right Offer You’ve found the perfect candidate! But don’t exhale and start celebrating just yet. One of the deciding factors why you chose this candidate may have been their eagerness to join the team. But present them with a job offer that is less than attractive than what they were expecting and that fire will die down very quickly. The job offer is about compensation, benefits, and the pride that comes with being part of your company. Be clear but be enthusiastic. Practice how to deliver the offer so that the candidate will look forward to working for you, with you and will feel that they will be a valuable member of the team.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Agencies and Regulatory Authorities For ages, women in our midst have always been regarded as the voice of reason and the yardstick of society. In the broader economic sphere, in the public sector to be specific, such women exist in the various agencies and regulatory authorities that serve to monitor various sectors.

Women in this sector are [normally] thought leaders in their areas of expertise as they would have to supervise and provide guidance to entities under their watch. Should they fail to do so, it may mean that an entire sector can collapse and there is no telling what the dire consequences will be for a country.

Regulatory authorities and agencies deal in the areas of administrative law, regulatory law, secondary legislation, and rulemaking; codifying and enforcing rules and regulations and imposing supervision or oversight for the benefit of the public at large.

The existence of independent regulatory agencies is critical because of the complexity of certain regulatory and supervisory tasks that require expertise, the need for rapid implementation of public authority in certain sectors, and the drawbacks of political interference.

It is these guardians of the fabric of our economies to which CEO Global pays tribute at this juncture as we urge you to keep growing from strength to strength in your fields of expertise.

Regional

Winners

From South Africa

From Uganda

The regional and country winner in the Agencies and Regulatory Authorities sector Vikashnee Harbhajan was admitted as an attorney of the High Court of South Africa on 19 May 1997 and was later admitted as a conveyancer of the High Court of South Africa on 08 September 2000. Vikashnee is the executive director of Master Builders KwaZuluNatal. She believes that human capital is the biggest asset in any organisation. Continuous staff development, staff wellness programmes, training, team and capacity building are integral to the success of a business. Inclusivity of people, their ideas and thoughts assist in running a successful business. She says the trick is to understand the people you work with, develop them in unsatisfactory areas, recognise and harness their strengths and skills for their optimal success.

Jane Okot P’Bitek Langoya is the deputy registrar general (Registries) at the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB). URSB is the Government Registration Services Agency. She supervises the registries and participates in mobile clinics to move businesses from the informal to the formal sector. The main target is the youth, women and SMEs. Jane’s administration and management skills are brought to bear in the outreach programmes where services are taken to the people and businesses are registered instantly.

There are outreach programmes so that the targeted group that will usually not want to come to the office are actually sensitised and assisted in the registration especially of utility patents. Jane’s target is stopping child marriages within the customary marriage setting.

Vikashnee Harbhajan

Jane Okot P’Bitek Langoya

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Regional

Winners From Malawi

Roza Madaro Mbilizi

Roza Madaro Mbilizi is the deputy commissioner general of the Malawi Revenue Authority. She is a country and regional winner. The core business of Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) is tax administration i.e. collection, assessment and accounting for taxes on behalf of government. Her responsibility is to give strategic direction to her colleagues to ensure that they not only meet the revenue targets but achieve optimal budget implementation through provision of best taxpayer services in a transparent and fair manner. Her presence is the unique distinctive impression that she carries with her and it speaks volumes about her confidence, credibility and determines her ability to influence her profession in the environment she works in. This is through self-consciousness in terms of the energy, boldness, appropriateness, power and viability of her ideas.

From Kenya

Jacinta M Nzioka

Jacinta M Nzioka is an accomplished and transformational executive with over 15 years of domestic and international experience in managing projects within the tourism and travel business. She is the first and only African in the Advisory Board of the World Tourism Forum, Lucerne. Jacinta has excellent experience in tourism marketing in liaison with both local and long haul market players in development and growth of business for Kenya.

She is competent in strategic leadership, public administration, public/private project management, partnerships, sustainable development, institutional governance and national capacity development. As the director of marketing at the Kenya Tourism Board, she is responsible for the destination’s brand development, business development, management and provision of strategic marketing focus for the tourism industry as well as the management of research studies in the source markets, and application of the same in strategic planning.

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Country

Winners

From Zambia Miriam Musindi Akayombokwa Chiyaba Miriam Musindi Akayombokwa Chiyaba is the director and chief executive officer of the Zambia Qualifications Authority. The Zambia Qualifications Authority Act No. 13 of 2011 was enacted by the Government of the Republic of Zambia to “provide for the development and implementation of a national qualifications framework; establish the Zambia Qualifications Authority; provide measures to ensure that standards and registered qualifications are internationally comparable; and provide for matters connected with, or incidental to the foregoing’.

Miriam is a Chartered Accountant, Administrator and Arbitrator currently employed as director and chief executive officer responsible for the day to day oversight of the Zambia Qualifications Authority.

From Zimbabwe Patience Gandiwa

Patience Gandiwa’s experience ranges from conservation science, project implementation, monitoring and evaluation, implementation of multilateral environmental agreements, transboundary conservation initiatives and administering partnerships for sustainable development. Patience has also written several technical reports from national to regional documents and has significantly contributed to the review and writing of four Protected Area Management Plans in Zimbabwe. She has worked with non-governmental international organisations (The African Wildlife Foundation, International Union for Nature Conservation, The Nature Conservancy, Frankfurt Zoological Society and Peace Parks Foundation) and public sector institutions (Ministry of Education and Parks and Wildlife Management Authority). She is a country winner.

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Country

Winner

From Botswana

Dr Boitumelo Mogome-Maseko Dr Boitumelo Mogome-Maseko is a highly motivated veterinarian and meat scientist that has a strong vision, unquenchable thirst and enthusiasm to achieve successful outcomes for the food industry. This vision includes leading with passion, devising innovative ideas and cultivating a culture of high performance that is customer satisfaction oriented. She has demonstrated a high degree of planning, project management and team motivation. These unique capabilities will be an asset to any organisation seeking to be a competitive player in the food industry. Dr Mogome-Maseko is the executive manager of compliance of the Botswana Meat Commission.

THIS ADVERT IS NOT ABOUT THE PLANTS. Well…it is. But mainly it’s about our dedicated fieldworkers who work tirelessly to protect southern Africa’s environmental surroundings and who need your support. Visit www.ewt.org.za to find out how you can help to protect another precious resource – our people.

Sustainability

Surviving

by Merilee Kern, MBA

‘The Conversation Age’

“Blah…Blah…Blah…” This is what most consumers hear when exposed to marketing messages no matter the medium through which it’s delivered. Today’s consumer demands more than catchy slogans and slick ad campaigns. But, in what’s evolved into an overwhelmingly egregious disconnect, most companies struggle to communicate even the most essential messages that will differentiate their brand in today’s crowded, confusing and expectation-laden marketplace.

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ith technology making it easier than ever for consumers to block and otherwise avoid advertising and marketing messages as they go about their online and offline lives, companies ubiquitously scramble for solutions—ultimately turning to content marketing to help them make and maintain meaningful connections with the marketplace...to the tune of an estimated USD50 billion spent by U.S. businesses for 2015. However, like many marketing innovations that are incubated to solve problems, content marketing could quickly lose its impact.

According to Kevin Lund, CEO of T3 Custom—a lauded content marketing firm that helps brands “speak human” to maximise content marketing ROI, “Those who are wildly successful at content marketing understand the strategy is not just starting a blog and creating social media accounts.

It’s a disciplined approach to communicating with a target audience—one offering ample opportunity to tell a simple, human story that will educate, inform, entertain and, most importantly, compel customers in a way that fully captures mind–and market–share through messaging that truly resonates.”

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“Companies must completely re-imagine their approach to connecting with customers by simply communicating with them instead of talking at them,” Lund urges. “Specifically, speak human.

This is not just in a given ‘handshake moment,’ but rather it is a continual friendly engagement with a consumer, or the marketplace at large, that is built primarily by trust and performance.” Below are three of Lund’s strategies that can help you make and maintain meaningful connections and create a lifetime value with customers in ways that will set your brand apart in a crowded marketplace, tell an authentic story, foster maximised marketplace engagement and breed brand loyalty:

Recalibrate Low-Level Communications We have long struggled with linear, low-level or one-way communication. It is a completely timeless human phenomenon that is at the core of every conflict or stalemate, from the ones we experience at home, work and in our communities. We focus on transmitting information, but lose sight of the critical need for feedback, response or an actual “human” exchange of emotions or ideas. However, for decades this was our only way of receiving communication from advertisers and many consumers “stomached” it because there was no alternative.

Sustainability Then, leave them alone to make the choice. Why not influence the decision making process with endearing, enlightening and empowering messages? Speaking human is about engaging with someone for a mutual benefit: you need this information and I must deliver it in a way that you understand while you need to ask me questions in a way that makes sense. We’re having a conversation. We’re speaking human. When the conversation takes place on social channels, participate in the exchange in such a way as to achieve the coveted ‘handshake moment.’ How do you get there? What do you say to influence them to engage with your brand, your business? It’s all about cutting through the jargon, the clutter that clogs the communication pipeline.

It’s not about selling your soul. It’s about them.

Give Them Something to Talk About

Today’s social networking tools can effectively and surreptitiously disguise “reach” with “results,” often only perpetuating linear, low-level communication. For example, you’re on Twitter and Facebook and you’re tweeting and posting five times a day, and perhaps growing a fan and follower base on each like clockwork, with your ‘strategic’ ad buy. But your zealous, disciplined approach doesn’t mean you’re doing it effectively. Who, exactly, are all those followers, friends and fans?

And are you really ‘speaking human,’ creating content or telling an authentic story? It might be that you are simply tweeting and posting just to check it off your task list, and that your followers are re-tweeting or ‘liking’ you for the exact same reason. If that’s the case, then they’re not really followers or actual ‘friends’ at all.

‘Speaking human’ involves more than just opening a communication channel for that channel’s sake, or doing social media just because someone at some seminar told you that you should. Your ‘handshake moment’ is where people actually discover the essence of who you are as a brand for the first time.

If that’s the case, what are they going to find? Will they be greeted by a sales pitch? A slogan? A press or media kit? Or are they going to find a real person—someone they might want to reach out to and greets them with a warm hello? If you’re not asking these questions, let alone answering them satisfactorily, chances are your content is simply traditional advertising disguised as substance wearing a new outfit.

Master Conversational Media Conversational media insists that we don’t just sell ourselves, but rather, share ourselves. And further, it informs the listener who we are, rather than what we are. We must learn the signals that tell us when to drop the jargon, cut the B.S. and simply talk, authentically and truthfully, to those we hope might buy our product or service. Yes, we sell things, and so we must provide essential information about policies, performance and the like, but good content marketing is about providing information and education. Brands shouldn’t have to sell themselves.

An effective mix of messages includes telling people what you do, how you do it, and even why you do it. Then, you draw them in to your embrace with a story that is compelling and authentic.

In this new economy of conversation, marketers must master the art of facilitating the relationship between the business and its consumer. For example, the company wants to run a campaign to advertise a specific product offering. The consumer is looking to meet a need or discover an innovation.

Content marketers bridge the gap. They create the information the business needs to share and provide the information customers want to receive. The job of today’s content marketer is to work both in the world of traditional media as well as conversational media.

The goal is not bullying, but inviting. Not grabbing attention, but earning and holding attention. Naturally you want audiences to take action. But, it’s the rare brand that understands how the content and story must interact to add real value versus merely seeking to sell a product or service.

Storytelling is an essential human activity and must be the cornerstone of any meaningful content strategy. If story is the nest, content becomes the baby starlings that grow strong and fly off carrying compelling messages. A story can instantly communicate your history, values and beliefs, and gives people something to talk about. Unless you have a real story, loyalty is unlikely.

“The Conversation Age finds brands in the midst of an evolutionary process,” Lund continues. “Social media and the overarching digital landscape have afforded them the ability to engage in a transactional dialogue, often giving them the bigger platform and louder voice. This new power forced modern companies to become completely transparent in their brand storytelling. Thus, the Conversation Age requires modern businesses to educate, inform, even entertain their customers, all the while telling a story.”

Today, learning how to use conversational techniques in commerce to touch the heart of the customer must be a top priority for modern marketers in any field. No longer is it effective to merely ‘shout’ at consumers through the one-way megaphone of traditional advertising such as TV and radio spots, and billboard and print ads. Nor, frankly, will consumers stand for it! Instead, sophisticated, modern consumers are demanding transparent, honest and authentic dialogue.

Source: https://contently.com/strategist/2015/02/04/studyhow-much-of-your-content-marketing-is-effective/

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SECTOR FOREWORD Agriculture Combined, agriculture and women have been the bedrock of Africa’s economic and societal sustainability and development. Needless to say, easily, we live on a continent that is blessed with rich land which is wanted by all and sundry from across the world. However, the heavens haven’t been so kind to some parts of the continent in recent years with some countries having to rely solely on foreign aid due to the lack of rain.

According to the World Bank, women’s large overrepresentation in agricultural tasks, combined with the existence of a gender gap in agricultural productivity and the need to boost Africa’s agricultural output is motivating increased attention to raising female agricultural productivity. Women make up only about 50% of the population and are already tasked with a host of other domestic duties. However, they do 60-80% of the work in agriculture giving rise to such questions like: how can the women in rural Africa be more empowered to be masters of their own and Africa’s destiny?

Instead of waiting for answers from policy makers, some women have taken the ‘bull’ by the horns and fervently turned their agricultural ventures into thriving businesses. It is to these women that AGRI SA says “Halala! to the breadwinners of society.”

Regional

Winners

From Uganda

From South Africa

Judith Bakirya is the Director of Busaino Fruits and Herbs, and an Award winner, “National Best Farmer 2014”. She holds a master’s degree in health and development from Birmingham University, United Kingdom. She has a passion for agriculture and her talent is always going that extra mile in whatever she does. Judith introduces herself as a ‘farmer’, and ‘Senga Namaz’ to bring honour to the farming profession and also counsellors of girls and women. From a young age, Judith helped out on the family farm, rising early to dig vegetables for meals, fetching water from the village wells, and collecting firewood from the forest. But unlike many girls from her district, she and her sisters were sent to school along with the boys.

Country and regional winner in the Agricultural sector in the SADC South, Adri Kitshoff-Botha is the chief executive officer of Wildlife Ranching South Africa, a membership-based organisation, representing the interests of the wildlife industry, related to the sustainable breeding, conservation, production and marketing of wildlife in South Africa.

As the CEO, Adri attends to the organisation’s strategic focus areas namely demand creation, protecting organisational reputation and credibility, market development/membership growth, transformation, as well as creating unity in the industry. “It is important to pay attention to governance and values, legislation, applied research and our organisation’s capacity, capabilities and funding,” she states. Adri has served as the CEO of at least three organisations and held the position of chair, vice chair and secretary-general of various industry, government and international organisations/forums.

Judith Bakirya

Adri Kitshoff-Botha

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Regional

Winners From Kenya

Dr Felister Wambugha Makini Dr Felister Makini holds a BSc in botany and chemistry from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, MSc in plant pathology from Georgia State University, United States of America and a PhD in plant pathology from the University of Greenwich, United Kingdom. She is the deputy director general, crops in the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO) that was established after the merger of Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), Coffee Research Foundation, Tea Research Foundation and Kenya Sugar Research Foundation. She is responsible for crops research that includes technology development and transfer, promotion of the establishment and strengthening of strategic partnerships along the research development to utilisation continuum and along the agricultural product value chains (APVC), an approach adopted by KALRO. Prior to her current position, she worked as the deputy director outreach and partnerships in KARI.

From Nigeria Nkiru Okpareke

Nkiru Okpareke wants to leverage her world-class work experience, academic background, passion for excellence and deep rooted motivation to add-value to any firm she works in. She is the chief executive officer of Enviro Gro Farms/Enviro Gro Services.

Driven by a passion to make Nigeria a dominant producer and exporter of high quality vegetables rather than an importer and a determination to make food production into an efficient, vertically integrated and profitable business, Enviro Gro Farms has invested over USD500 000 in vegetable production systems that ensure all year round production of premium vegetables by leveraging on cutting edge technology and global best practices in food production. Also, due to our expertise in horticulture, the Lagos State government has partnered with them in the area of training.

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Regional

Winner

From Mauritius Jyoty Soomarooah

Jyoty Soomarooah is a performance driven senior finance operations management professional with 30 years of experience in currency risk management and hedging strategies, general risk management, sensitivity analysis, funding and strategic management, financial accounting and internal control and auditing. She has an inquisitive and analytical mind, creative thinking, and good organisational skills and is flexible and has a detail oriented attitude. Jyoty is deft in capital and financial budgets, debtor and creditor management and building strong relations with banks and other lending institutions and streamline business operations that drive growth and increase efficiency. She is chief finance and administration officer Mauritius Sugar Syndicate, Port Louis, Mauritius. She was a member of the board and acting as a secretary to the board accountable for leading the finance and administrative department.

Country

Winners

From Zambia Teija Marika Lublinkhof

Teija Marika Lublinkhof is the founder of Marika’s Coffee, Coffee Roastery specialising in high quality Zambian Coffee. In last eight years Marika’s Coffee has captured large portion of roasted coffee market in Zambia and is now roasting two brands, Marika’s Gourmet Coffee and Munali Coffee. Marika’s also does coffee equipment and barista and cupping trainings.

Marika is the managing director of Peaberry Coffee Roasters Ltd which was registered in 2015 and roasts Marika’s Coffee, Munali Coffee and new international Peaberry Coffee. She also supplies coffee solutions for café’s, restaurants and hotels.

Sustainability

Business Lessons from World-Leading Brands

by Merilee Kern, MBA

It’s rather shocking to know that fully 96% of businesses fail within 10 years of existence, but what’s even more distressing is that many of these failures are entirely avoidable. Even oncemighty corporate America behemoths are not immune to preventable peril, as exemplified by a glut of high-profile implosions with untold others currently struggling to adapt and stay agile within the digital age—an era where business dynamics on multiple fronts are a fluid, ever-elusive target.

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hile many business and franchise owners embrace information technology such as cloud computing, ecommerce, cybersecurity and emerging robotics, many also make the erroneous assumption that innovations capable of boosting safety and digital defences, operational efficiency and bottom line-impacts related thereto are financially out of reach. Indeed, often discounted or overlooked is the opportunity to significantly reduce, or even entirely eliminate, omnipresent and recurring expenses in both the short and long term.

Yet others either underestimate or entirely disregard how powerful, whether enriching or debilitating, a company culture can be and even how issues like workplace safety play a key role. Multiple millions of non-fatal workplace injuries needlessly occur each year, resulting in absenteeism and workers’ compensation claims that chip away at a company’s profit margins. And then there are brand identity, perception, reputation and service issues wreaking marketplace havoc, as both small and large companies, alike, fail to ‘speak human’ and meaningfully connect with their constituents.

While such concerns are nothing new, technological innovations and other modern and strategic means of contending with these issues is a landscape that changes monthly and weekly, if not daily. Solutions, both physical and ideological, are available that can readily result in far smarter, safer and more efficient workplaces that also enhance morale, reduce staff churn, bolster profitability and elevate industries at large.

With this in mind, I sought insight from c-suite strategist Jeff Kiesel—a former GE executive and current corporate CEO of Restaurant Technologies, Inc. who’s earned a reputation as a business innovation voice of authority. Given that his firm boasts a roster of multi-billion dollar customers that includes titans of industry like McDonald’s, KFC and Marriott Hotels, I asked if he could share some of the key business lessons he’s learned from working with worldleading brands. This is what he had to say:  Customer Insights: World-class companies make many of their business decisions based on laser sharp, analytics-driven insights that veritably impact the activities of all departments in the organisation to one extent or another. They’re keenly aware that offering, and ultimately selling, a product or service is

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the net result of having first built a strategically-crafted, risk-mitigated relationship—one that continues to be honed based on key data points well after a deal is closed. Their own internal sales activities aside, the best companies in the world also demand tangible evidence demonstrating how their offerings, as well as their vendor’s offerings, are impacting their customers.

Successful companies know, in specific terms and even from various viewpoints, facts that are germane to the kind of solution they offer. Things like if their offering is saving customers money; how its impacting employee, customer and vendor retention and referrals; if it’s increasing operational efficiencies, productivity or creating a safer work space. Such profiling of both prospects and existing customers—or perhaps even lost accounts to the extent possible—can be a determining factor that sets your operation apart from its closest competitors. In today’s market where competition is typically neck and neck, activities are best driven by data-induced insights that are optimally developed with a robust CRM software solution. The best run companies in the world vigilantly maintain a true and holistic understanding of the value they proffer within the marketplace.

Large successful corporations purposefully and deliberately focus on strengthening employees relative to both relationships and skill level.  Embracing Adaptability: Changing paradigms in any industry is often viewed as a huge risk factor. However, global corporations know that the business practices, equipment and other assets they have been relying upon, perhaps for years and maybe even decades, can and probably should change. They understand today’s environment of adapt or die. They embrace emerging technology and breaking proverbial new ground with fresh thinking from everyone and anyone that may very well ‘build a better mousetrap’ and increase efficiencies that boost bottom lines. They curate a culture of ingenuity, seeking input at every touch point—from the inside, out and the bottom, up—revising best practices with customers and employees seemingly in real-time.

Global brands know that complacency kills and take proactive measures to stay agile and mindful of shifting standards.

Sustainability World-class companies make many of their business decisions based on laser sharp, analytics-driven insights that veritably impact the activities of all departments in the organisation to one extent or another.

 Technology Innovation: Much of the technology found in the food service industry centres around reducing costs, improving efficiency and service quality, and helping managers better handle their teams. However, this technology is viewed with an eye toward what will provide the best return on investment and improve an operation’s bottom line. To achieve this, the highest calibre operations focus on technology that’s easy to implement, scalable and also provides metrics that are of primary interest to executives–things like customer visits and staff costs as well as employee retention through job satisfaction. The analytics must be easily discernible, providing exact numbers and trend patterns on what it costs to continue operating the old way versus what it would cost to implement new technology.

Top-tier operations will parse this data in droves to glean key learning on multiple fronts. In doing so, the most successful companies are able to demonstrate the value of a tech-driven solution within 30 days of deployment.  Operational Excellence: Companies successful at a global level also ensure that their management teams at every level, from the c-suite to the front-line, understand their role in ensuring their teams and departments are trained, enthused and working cross-functionally while adhering to standard operating procedures (SOPs).

They have a lot on their plate, needless to say. It can be an uphill battle for sure. However, high calibre companies utilise proven technologies and protocols, and implement methodologies allowing managers to establish a simpler operating environment where they can focus more on cultivating people, both employees and customers, and less time on administrative tasks.  Strengthening the Workforce: World-leading brands understand that thoroughly on boarding team members into a company’s culture, with an understanding of its history, purpose, vision and strategy as well as job-specific training, is mission critical. A one-to-one relationship based on trust and candour establishes a path to on-the-job achievement and even growth as staffers evolve in the organisation, taking on bigger and more complex roles. For the employee’s part, ongoing training and education as well as an investment in active listening, understanding and ideation is key for proffering

loyalty and attaining career advancement. Large successful corporations purposefully and deliberately focus on strengthening employees relative to both relationships and skill level. Cultivating an employee base that’s enthusiastic, well-trained and well-equipped to do their jobs, also understanding why they are doing any given task, creates an environment of respect that will foster higher accountability and ownership by employees.  Corporate Citizenship: Successful corporations worldwide understand the extent to which their company impacts its community–whether that community is the municipality where it resides, or the industry it serves. The news cycles are faster than ever before, with social media driving demand for information at a rapid pace. This creates a heightened need for a focused work culture that, while talent-driven, carries with it a ton of heart. These companies take corporate social responsibility quite seriously. As an effective way to fulfil this need, they consistently participate in philanthropic projects. Whether that be establishing and continually contributing to an educational foundation offering merit-based college scholarships to employee family members, donating goods or providing services pro-bono, or literally picking up litter in the neighbourhood park, successful global companies wholeheartedly embrace corporate citizenship and make it a foundational pillar of their organisations.

Kiesel’s takeaways from working with top global brands makes clear that a holistic approach to business—one that keeps talent cultivation, character and efficiency top-of-mind—creates team loyalty and support and fosters increased market share. As well, Kiesel is eager to underscore that a company’s culture is nothing short of imperative for building a successful, growth-oriented operation, noting, “The investment is in the long-term success of our clients, for sure, but in gaining the loyalty of our people within the company, as well.” Indeed.

Branding, business and entrepreneurship success pundit, Merilee Kern, MBA, is an influential media voice and lauded communications strategist. She’s a revered brand and consumer product trends voice of authority who spotlights noteworthy marketplace change makers, movers and shakers.

SECTOR FOREWORD Arts and Culture More than being a source of entertainment, the arts and culture industry has evolved to be one that is providing jobs and a source of livelihood for many across the entire continent. Although in the years gone by, it was characterised by a large number of male players, the arts and culture sector has seen a growing number of women making their mark in the sector.

Otherwise known as the creative industry, arts and culture owe their being to the African continent. According to the South African Department of Arts and Culture, the sector, with women at the centre, can help improve economic and other development opportunities for South African arts and culture nationally and globally through mutually beneficial partnerships in order to ensure the sustainability of the sector. The same applies to other nation states across the motherland.

ARTFORM lauds the women in this sector; for their efforts have ensured that the sector not only creates jobs but the continent and its people stay at the forefront of the entertainment industry in the world.

Regional

Winners

From Mauritius

From South Africa

Katrin Caine is a singer and vocal coach who is passionate about making children and amateurs as well as professionals discover classical music, musical theatre and singing for themselves. She is the director of Rainbow Voices. She is one of the three people who created Opera Mauritius in 2008 with the intent to bring opera to Mauritius.

Since then they had a number of opera festivals held on a regular basis on the island. This is done with the purpose of exposing local people to western culture like opera, as well as creating an exchange for western musicians since the Mauritian culture has a lot to offer. In general she trains all her students in weekly lessons, be it solo or as a choir.

South African Molemo Linda Moiloa Gapare is both a country and regional winner in the Arts and Culture sector of Africa’s Most Influential Women in Business and Government Awards.

She is the director of the Visual Arts Network of South Africa. In her position as director of VANSA she oversees the curatorial vision, strategic direction and everyday management of the organisation. VANSA is a multifaceted small nonprofit organisation that primarily relies on grant funding for its work. Over the past few years the organisation has built a stronger governance structure, better policies and procedures and a clearer identity and programme framework for deeper and clearer work. Their programmes are focused into three key areas: decentralisation (support to practice happening outside of the two major art cities), study (co-learning, critique and evaluation.

Katrin Caine

Molemo Linda Moiloa Gapare

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Regional

Winners From Zambia

Faith Mulenga Kabende

Faith Mulenga Kabende is a self-made fashion designer with over ten years in the fashion industry. She has made traditional shirts for the current president and all the former presidents and dressed the first ladies. Faith has also dressed celebrities in the creative arts industry and a number of political leaders. Her clients include both people living within Zambia as well as the diaspora. She has received and honoured orders from as far the US, the UK and France. Faith has exhibited at fashion shows in Paris, London, South Africa, Algeria, Nigeria and Zambia. She started the business in 2008 with one machine in her living room with one tailor. She has since retained the workshop at home but also opened up two sales outlets.

From Tanzania

Ayeta Anne Wangusa

Ayeta Anne Wangusa is the executive director of Culture and Development East Africa (CDEA), a creative think tank in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Her role is to steer CDEA’s core business in the area of research, policy analysis and advocacy and creative economy incubation and acceleration, focusing on co-creation, co-learning, community building and commerce for artist and creative entrepreneurs. She is also the Africa Regional Coordinator, for the International Federation of Arts Council and Cultural Agencies (IFACCA). Ayeta’s responsibility is to provide high level advisory, networking and administrative support to IFACCA and its members in Africa. She is also currently a member of the UNESCO Expert Facility for the 2005 Convention (2016-2017) and has provided capacity support to the government of Zimbabwe.

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Country

Winners

From Zimbabwe Selmor Mtukudzi Selmor Mtukudzi is a multi-award winning musician, and actress. Her music has won her numerous awards in her home country, Zimbabwe and abroad in the United States of America and nominations in Nigeria and the United Kingdom. Selmor started singing at a tender age of 10 which saw her appearing in local films and dramas such as, I Am The Future, which featured at local cinemas. After completing school, she went to work as a sales representative for Adam and Sons. The latter sold school uniforms. Her passion would not fade away but, in contrast it only increased and she committed to following her dreams.

From Uganda Patricia Otoa Ayo

Patricia Otoa Ayo is the chief executive officer of OP Events and Fashion Limited (OP Clothing). She is a fashion designer and entrepreneur having founded the business OP Events and fashion a brand that focuses on African clothing while embracing the urbanisation trend currently sweeping most African countries.

Because she opened this business with minimal financial and human resources, her individual participation and the existence of a highly competent team to support her has been essential to ensuring the efficiency that delivers quality, brand recognition and subsequently growth and profit.

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Case in Point Art Form Factory

Ask any business person that you know about how they conduct business and they will tell you that the traditional way of conducting business is out. In a digital era, Monalisa Molefe, the managing director of the Art Form Factory says that one either has to adapt or face the inevitable death. These are apt words form the entrepreneur who took the helm at Art Form Factory in 2016. Naturally, one can say that it was a bad decision on a her part given the uncertain economic times that South Africa and the world in general are faced with.

Monalisa believes differently and confidently states that, despite the challenges, Art Form Factory was the best decision and investment choice she could ever make.

Art Form Factory is changing its mode of operation and charting its way into new waters that open up vast business opportunities for the company,” she explains. In order for this to be a reality, Monalisa explains that building and maintaining relationships is going to be key for her and the business. “Thinking out of the box is crucial in this regard because as we speak, we are shifting focus from focusing on individual clients but are talking with corporate entities in the sports sector in order that we can custom make framed memorabilia for them. This is a work in progress and we are on the verge of striking it big in South Africa. So I am positive about our future and spot in this industry,” she notes.

Explaining the logic behind customised framed memorabilia, Monalisa indicates that memories last forever.

“Our view is that these rare moments that one captures can

Ushering a New Era for

Art Form

by Andrew Ngozo

Monalisa Molefe, Managing Director of the Art Form Factory

M

onalisa justifies her sentiments thus: “Walls will always need to be adorned with beautiful art forms that need to be framed. At the Art Form Factory, we fervently believe that there will always be a need for our services until eternity. Our artefacts are considered a luxury but we believe that they are one necessary luxury. Therefore,

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be framed to last forever. In that respect, no one does it better than The Art Form Factory. Collectively, the master craftsmen at the factory have decades of experience and our clients can never go wrong with us. My staff is dedicated to their craft in order that they [can] provide the greatest service and product to our clients,” she notes. Monalisa concludes that clients and prospective customers should expect new and exciting collaborations between The Art Form Factory and young and upcoming designers whose works are the art of creativity.

Sustainability

Tips Home-Based Business for Managing a

Running a business from home is a tricky thing because, on one hand, you have decided to work from home for the flexibility; while on the other hand, everyone (including you, sometimes) seems to think working from home means a vacation with a computer. Taking advantage of the flexibility of working at home does not mean that you must answer to everyone’s beck and call, or be distracted by each little thing. This is easy to say, but hard to do when you are in the moment. At the moment, if the phone rings and you must choose between finishing a business-related email or answering the phone, the phone may seem more pressing. In order to increase your productivity, it is important to run your business like a business, and not like a hobby that you do after rolling out of bed.

F

irst of all, do away with wearing pyjamas to work. Whoever said that what you wear doesn’t matter is a lie. What you wear reflects the way you are feeling, to a large extent. This doesn't necessarily mean that you should wear a suit around your house – unless, of course, your clients are coming to your home office for appointments. It just means that, by wearing your pyjamas and sweat pants all the time you will not feel as though you are really in the mood to put forward your most productive self. Shower in the morning, put on some clothes that do not have jumping sheep on them, and sit down at your desk feeling like a professional.

Next, think about the time you do your work as a schedule that you need to plan out. If you find that you are planning your work around doing everyone else’s dirty work, then you are not dedicating yourself to your job.

Your schedule should include the time you get up, when you will start working, and when you will take your breaks.

Make sure that the time scheduled for work is fairly uninterrupted. This may mean investing in a second phone line, and moving your home office away from the television or other parts of the house where you may be distracted.

Make sure that the people you are committed to understand that you are on a schedule. If someone calls to ask you out to a leisurely lunch, think first about whether or not you would be able to do this if you were working a regular job. Scheduling leisure time on schedule days off means that you are putting time and effort into your work, and this will be reflected in your income.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Automotive and Components South Africa’s automotive industry represents a significant part of the country’s manufacturing base. While the sector is not without its challenges, it exemplifies the way that value chains can link local production with global markets.

The country has had some success in fostering a regional assembly hub for the global automotive industry. This has evolved from completely knocked down assembly operation in-country, where cars are assembled from imported parts, to South Africa becoming an important component manufacturer. But the industry has had a foothold in South Africa since the early 1920s, with Ford Motor Company and General Motors being the first to establish production presences in the country. The industry developed under a series of Import Substitution Industrialisation (ISI) programmes, with high levels of protection based on local content promotion.

Having evolved into the giant it is today for almost a century, the automotive industry owes much of its success to the women in this sector. It is to these women that Toyota SA toasts.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa

From Uganda

Regional and country winner Valentia Hobbs is the marketing director of Volvo Group Southern Africa.

She says that she empowers other people and allows them to grow by giving them exposure and working independently as well as part of a team. “I encourage my team to always learn and always put a development plan in place, whether it is personal or business development,” she says. Valentia has been a vital cog in the operations of her organisation. She reveals that she was instrumental in the setup of a subsidiary company which was developed to assist the obligation of them paying off their shares towards their commitment to black economic empowerment obligations. She has been part of a team that launched commercial vehicles in the market. Since the launch, the market share of the company has grown by five percent.

Florence Sempebwa Makada is a highly successful chartered accountant (FCCA-UK, ICPA-UGANDA) with excellent knowledge of financial reporting/ management and accounting with over nine years’ experience at senior management level.

Her greatest strengths are her ability to meet all financial reporting deadlines and to ensure the highest levels of financial integrity in any management reporting, lead the finance team and delivery of finance strategy. She is honest, punctual and passionate for work and excellent with monitoring processes, advise change where necessary to safeguard company assets. Florence has strong analytical, logical and problem solving skills and excellent knowledge in handling accounting systems. Florence is an excellent wellorganised team member.

Valentia Hobbs

Florence Sempebwa Makada

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d e v o r p m I s d r a w To r e m o t s u C rouche

by David Ha

Retailers around the world are focused on creating an enhanced shopping instore experience with passionate sales associates who have intimate knowledge of products and drive engagement on the shop floor. This investment in time and resources are done with the understanding that increasing sales relies on increased customer satisfaction and experiences, units per transaction, visual merchandising and product knowledge.

Y

et why do some retailers spend millions on payroll for training programmes then neglect the crucial final step – determining which associates actually completed the programme, and how well? Similarly, they broadcast video communications and key directives about in-store tasks, price changes, promotions, etc., but don’t or can’t easily, assess employee receipt and accountability. Retailers in particular have a lack of analysis when it comes to training and communications receipt, completion, and understanding of the programmes. The ability to analyse and measure these key areas empowers companies to steer initiatives more productively while saving time and money.

Industry-wide, training completion hovers at roughly 30% for associates whose individual engagement and results are not visible. Once field managers have the ability to follow and assess individuals, progress in the rate of training completion can exceed 90%. Without regular reinforcement and confirmation, even well thought-out initiatives could end up being ignored.

What are the key benefits of measurement? Real-time data results provide the visibility field managers need to:  boost training participation and accountability;  ensure directives and communications are delivered;  measure and coach employees who need improvement; and  refine programmes by regional, district and/or store level.

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Skills Transfer

e c n e i r e p x E communications, and represents the future of delivering When field management is empowered with real-time data about their team’s progress and results, they drive participation an enhanced in-store experience. The next-gen apps being built include publishing tools that allow field and and take ownership of the results. Associates’ increased corporate administrators to publish content that can be participation in learning and communications creates a more delivered to associates while they’re on the floor – avoiding engaged, accountable and knowledgeable workforce, which costly payroll for backroom training. Imagine a video of directly impacts store results. Cloud-based data enables a company’s CEO or VP of Operations discussing new managers to access the information they need from any initiatives, or new product launch, that are provided to location with a laptop or smart-phone – with live results. Store all employees in just minutes, with full tracking of who operations can identify and recognise top performers, as well watched the video - and measurement of comprehension. as top-performing stores, regions and districts.

Arming sales associates with the knowledge they New mobile brand training tools specifically are designed need to stay a click ahead of tech-savvy experienceto support store operations in improving KPIs. Flexible, mobile solutions deliver custom, targeted brand training to The next-gen apps being built include publishing tools that allow on-floor associates, whose individual learning may be field and corporate administrators to publish content that can be confirmed and assessed delivered to associates while they’re on the floor – avoiding costly remotely. Remote visibility into payroll for backroom training. training and communication completion allows store hungry consumers is imperative for the success of operations to leverage the span of control – from field, district physical stores. There is no replacement for stellar inand regional managers to their VP – to assess individual and store experiences. Unless training and communications group performance then correlate results to their KPIs. can be delivered on-the-floor and measured, companies A new, interactive, tablet-based Mobile Associate will be wasting precious resources. The new category Communication Platform category (mACP) has emerged Mobile Associate Communication Platform (mACP) helps in response to the growing demand for on-the-floor retailers reach this new level of measurement quickly and communications. The mACP category marks a major cost-effectively. shift in professional development and mobile enterprise

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SECTOR FOREWORD Building and Construction The construction industry tends to be a consistent provider of jobs in many countries. It boosts job creation, and also encourages entrepreneurship. However, participation by women in the construction industry remains low. Support for women-owned construction businesses is now a matter of urgency.

It is hoped that such initiatives will not only empower existing players in the sector but encourage those who are yet to make up their minds to take a giant leap into the building and construction industry in order to dispel the myth that it is a sector only for males.

While such initiatives are truly honourable, there are women who have been thriving in the building and construction industry for ages; working hard to dispel the myths and notions that the sector is a man’s world. CEO Global would like to take off their ‘hard hats’ to you as you build the continent one brick at a time.

Regional

Winner

From Cameroon

From South Africa

Tim Immaculate Bih is the founder and chief executive officer of Immaculate Construction (ICON) Co. Ltd. ICON is a Social Enterprise offering services in areas of civil construction. As a civil engineer, Tim believes in addressing infrastructure challenges to improve development in communities, and bridging the gender gap in engineering. Founded in 2010, she had successfully controlled among other projects the construction of 35 classrooms and 40 ventilated improved pit latrines in local communities in Bamenda - Cameroon. Since 2013, she was a project engineer for all construction projects of an international organisation Nouvelle Planète Switzerland in Cameroon. Tim strives to provide leadership opportunities for women in the construction industry and has uniquely dedicated her services to community development. She is a regional and country winner.

The managing director of LA Consulting Engineers (Pty) Ltd Vino Govender says that she did not expect to be the managing director of a consulting engineering firm employing over 30 staff. “The built environment is a male dominated space and to be able to infiltrate that by maintaining strong interpersonal skills and loyalty has proved both rewarding and challenging,” says the regional and country winner. She adds that today, she is able to meet with giants in the industry and make a positive difference by providing sustainable living solutions to communities by introducing Agrihubs into projects. LA Consulting Engineers (Pty) Ltd is committed to service excellence through the implementation of a world class Business Management System (BMS) in line with internationally accepted standards. The company recently achieved ISO 9001:2015 certification.

Tim Immaculate Bih

Vino Govender

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Empowered Leadership

Leadership Beatitudes of

by Greg Smith

James O’Toole, a leadership expert said, “Ninetyfive percent of American managers today say the right thing. Five percent actually do it.” Today’s complex and changing business environment requires a special style of leadership. Like yesterday’s newspaper, traditional leadership styles are outdated…no longer effective. Everyone today, no matter what job they hold must improve their leadership skills. Whether you are a meeting planner, an association executive or the CEO of a large corporation, leadership is the key ingredient to organisational success.

T

he most critical ingredient needed in all organisations today is actionoriented leadership based on a whole new set of attitudes. Uniquely equipped for this task is the innovative leader who possesses the Beatitudes of Leadership.

Be Bold and Challenge Status Quo Conformity and status quo are the first steps down the staircase of business ineffectiveness. People become comfortable doing the same things the same way, copying everyone else. The innovative leader is always looking for ways to improve what is being done, never satisfied with just being good. In today’s chaotic business environment, good is no longer good enough.

Be a Risk Taker The innovative leader understands progress depends on change and change is risky. The leader creates an environment allowing people freedom to experiment and take risks without fear of reprisal. The innovative leader provides support and encouragement to his or her people even if a person fails in trying to do something new.

Be Authentic and Approachable Creating an open and supportive environment is important if you want your people to become innovative. One way to make yourself approachable is to talk openly about your own mistakes and your limitations. Once viewed as taboo and poor leadership, but now is more acceptable and no longer thought of as a sign of weakness. In fact, many people find it a sign of strength and authenticity, a way to gain respect and trust from your people. After all, who doesn’t make mistakes-it’s only human.

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Empowered Leadership

Be Inspirational

Be a Role Model The old saying goes, “Actions speak louder than words.” This saying is truer today than ever before.

Change begins at the front office, the top floor, the corporate boardroom.

Workers are not fooled by posters, slogans, and speeches such as, “People are our most important asset” or “Quality comes first.” Management’s actions show the people in the organisation what is truly important. You must walk the talk.

Be Out and About In this high-tech, non-stop world, meetings and conferences become vampires slowly draining the life out of the business. Change occurs so rapidly that by the time a problem is brought to a staff meeting, it’s too late. Both solutions to problems and innovative ideas are found on the front line with the workers. Leaders must get out of the office and spend time talking to workers and customers in and about the business.

Horst Shultze, the former CEO of Ritz-Carlton Hotels delivered one of the most inspiring and motivating talks ever heard. The vision for his company unfolded like an artist painting a canvas. He spoke of his dream of creating, not just good hotels, but the best hotel chain in the world. He recounted how his workers told him what the hotel industry needed, what was important, and how to do it. The audience seated in the auditorium became part of the transformation process. They felt the workers’ pride and enthusiasm. They could see the difference this leader brought to his organisation.

Throughout his talk he kept the audience sitting on the edge of their seats. He did not read a prepared text written by some speech writer but he spoke from his heart.

The difference in his talk and other ‘speeches’ was that you could feel his commitment and caring. It wasn’t the words he used, but the tone of his words and his physical movement that made the difference. He was passionate, he was inspiring, and he planted a seed in all of the people present. It was clear to the audience that Horst Shultze possessed all the beatitudes of leadership.

Greg Smith’s cutting-edge keynotes, consulting, and training programmes have helped businesses reduce turnover, increase sales, hire better people and deliver better customer service. As President of Chart Your Course International he has implemented professional development programmes for hundreds of organisations globally. He has authored nine informative books including Fired Up! Leading Your Organisation to Achieve Exceptional Results. For more information, visit ChartCourse.com

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SECTOR FOREWORD Business and Professional Services Easily, this sector is the most vital cog in the working world. They open doors which would otherwise be permanently locked. The business and professional services industry focuses on companies and individuals that provide services [mainly] to other corporate entities or public bodies. It is a broad industry, spanning a number of sectors, including professional services, human capital services, business services and infrastructure services.

In an ever changing environment, the business services market faces a complex environment - a continued trend towards outsourcing but with huge near term pressure on providers, especially from government - the key customer to many. Against this backdrop, suppliers require a clear strategy, an effective bidding process, efficient operating models and robust management information.

For having to deal with such a seemingly insurmountable task of keeping the economic glue together, BCX would like to congratulate you.

Regional

Winners

From Botswana Michelle Adelman

Michelle Adelman is the managing director of Accite Holdings Pty Ltd/Langdon Organic Pty Ltd as well as a country and regional winner in the Business and Professional Services sector in the SADC South region. Accite is a boutique project development and private capital firm focused on investing in technology-led, sustainable projects that create economic diversification and youth employment.

Accite’s investment philosophy marries proven technologies with localised business models to create pioneering businesses. The combination of best-in-class technology, international experience and a focus on local youth development significantly de-risks projects and creates a new attractive asset class for foreign investors into Africa, says Michelle. Based in Botswana, she has made a strategic and financial commitment to hire only young Batswana into her organisation and places them in critical management positions.

From Tanzania Sujata Hanif Jaffer

Sujata Hanif Jaffer is a managing partner at Nexia SJ Tanzania. Sujata specialises in the audit of public sector, banks and financial institutions and insurance companies. She has considerable experience in risk management consulting with particular experience in investigative audit. She has over eight years’ experience in managing financial investigations, designing and implementing financial control systems for large organisations and internal audit.

She led ‘value for money’ investigations in many of the enterprise’s key processes. She also led two large fraud investigations that resulted in dismissals of senior managers, widespread changes to financial management systems and significant cost savings. Other roles included carrying out operating system and control audits where she advised senior management on how to improve controls so as to minimise fraud and run their business more effectively.

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Regional

Winners From Mauritius Madhavi Ramdin-Clark

Madhavi Ramdin-Clark is highly motivated and focussed, with good interpersonal and communications skills and an outgoing personality. Her professional experience has linked up with academic studies to enable her to develop leadership, decisionmaking and problem-solving aptitudes, with an ability to work under pressure and achieve results and targets. Her international exposure has allowed her to enhance her expertise in the fields of management, communication and marketing, whilst using her linguistic skills as assets. She has equally gained commercial awareness and the capacity to work in teams. Madhavi can effectively manage her time and adapt to change. Her professional experience and social activities have also enabled her to build up self-confidence and strengthen my analytical, planning and negotiation skills.

From DRC

Patricia Veringa-Gieskes As Dutch-Congolese, Patricia Veringa-Gieskes is the founder and CEO of The Job Factory. After 15 years of professional experience in various fields in the Netherlands, Belgium and South Africa, she decided to live in the Democratic Republic of Congo from 2003.

In 2004 she joined the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a United Nations agency. Wanting to participate in the economic development of the country through the labour market, she decided to leave her position as acting head of mission at IOM , to create her own company, a recruitment and placement firm, seconded by a vocational training centre, that she has been running for over 10 years now. Following her active participation at the Employer’s Organisation, the Federation of Congolese Enterprises (FEC) she was appointed a board member in 2010.

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Regional

Winner

From South Africa Carol Weaving

Regional and country winner Carol Weaving is the managing director of Reed Exhibitions. She says that she brings to Reed Exhibitions a diverse working background in the business, tourism and events industry. For more than 30 years her career has expanded through many sectors within the industry, and her knowledge and expertise spans across marketing, exhibition management, events, conferences as well as venue and facility management. After growing up in the United Kingdom and working as the marketing manager for a Radio Station, Carol pursued her dream of living in South Africa, and became the youngest Director (age 29) of the Automobile Association at the Kyalami Racetrack which equipped her with the skillset she would soon need to start her own company, international exhibition consultants.

Country

Winners

From Zimbabwe

Engineer Farai Mavhiya-Bhiza Eng. Farai Mavhiya – Bhiza (Pr. Eng) is a qualified chartered engineer by profession with over 18 years of engineering experience. Farai studied for a BTech Hons( Electrical Engineering) degree at the University of Zimbabwe and is a holder of an ACCA Certified Diploma in Accounting and Finance. She is a Quality Assurance Internal Auditor (ISO 9001:2008). Farai has served as an Engineering Council of Zimbabwe councillor since 2009. She is also a Board Member of the Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers (ZIE) and Deputy Chairperson of the Acts and Regulations Committee.

Farai is currently an Associate Director at Arup Zimbabwe (Pvt) Ltd. She brings to the council excellent engineering consultancy and project management skills. She is married to Fumai and the couple is blessed with a daughter.

Skills Transfer

Higher Education is more than

By John Brennan, Emeritus Professor of Higher Education Research, The Open University

Vocational Training

Universities Australia recently announced a joint initiative with business groups to get graduates “work ready” through vocational workplace training. This is to be welcomed but it is also to be questioned – about what it should mean in practice, how it should be applied, and what the respective roles of universities and employers should be in providing it.

S

ome years back I was at a meeting about higher education and employment, attended by a number of employer representatives. I recall one employer, who had spent the whole of his long career in the motor industry, remarking: “Over the years, I’ve been responsible for hiring something in the order of 3 000 graduates for the different companies I’ve been part of. And what I was wanting and expecting, of each one of them, was that by the time they left the job I had recruited them for, they would have changed the nature of that job.” Rather than being concerned with how recruits would fit into existing organisational arrangements and master existing ways of doing things, here was an employer who expected graduates to change existing arrangements and ways of working. Rather than being concerned about whether the graduates had the right kinds of skills and competencies, the point this employer was making was that he didn’t know what skills and competencies his workers would need in a few years’ time. The very point of hiring graduates was that you hoped to get people who would themselves be able to work out what was required and be capable of delivering it.

Of course, starting any job requires some work-specific knowledge and capability. This may be merely working out how to fill in time sheets and make holiday arrangements or matters more technical. When recruiting staff, graduate or non-graduate, employers have a responsibility to provide suitable induction and training. The responsibilities of higher education are different. They are about preparing for work in the long term, in different jobs and, quite possibly, in different sectors. This is preparation for work in a different world, for work that is going to require learning over a lifetime, not just the first few weeks of that first job after graduation.

The Universities Australia initiative sets out a perfectly reasonable set of objectives for the ways in which higher education can help prepare students for their working lives. But much will depend on the interpretation and on recognising who – higher education or employer – is best equipped to contribute what.

The Universities Australia initiative seems to focus on “vocational training to improve

graduate employability”. This needs to be interpreted quite broadly. All higher education is vocational in the sense that it can help shape a graduate’s capacity to succeed in the workplace.

Many years ago, Harold Silver and I wrote a book entitled A Liberal Vocationalism. It was based on a project we had just completed on the aims of degree courses in vocational areas such as accountancy, business and engineering. The book’s title intentionally conveyed the message that even vocational degree courses were about more than training for a job. There were assumptions about criticality, transferability of skills, creating and adapting to change and, above all, an academic credibility.

I can still recall the argument made by the head of a polytechnic accountancy department who we interviewed for the project. He emphasised that it was essential for accountancy students to take courses in the philosophy of science. What could be more central to the job of accounting than being able to recognise “truth”?

Studying different subjects and preparing for different jobs all require different things. Some of these are known at the time of study. Others are not. Degree courses in subjects such as history and sociology are preparations for employment as much as vocational degrees such as business and engineering. But the job details will not be known at the time of study. Indeed, they may not be known until several years later. Thus, the relevance of higher education to later working life for many graduates will lie in the realm of generic and transferable skills rather than specific competencies needed for a first job after graduation. The latter competences are not unimportant but the graduate’s employer is generally much better equipped than a university to ensure that the graduate acquires them.

Work experience alongside or as part of study can also help a lot. The emergence of graduates from higher education without any employment experiences is neither in their own nor in their employers’ interests. Higher education is about preparation for working life, not for a specific job in the first couple of years after graduation. Graduates who have studied the more academic subjects will require a longer transition period into employment than those who have studied more vocational degrees. The transition may well entail further training in a professional field, which either the employer or an educational institution may provide. All types of graduates are likely to change their jobs several times over their working lives. Higher education is for the long term. Universities, employers and students should realise that.

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Corporate Governance

by Samantha Barnes

in the

Workplace

Ethics are about making choices that may not always feel good or seem like they benefit you but are the right choices to make. They are the choices that are examples of model citizens and examples of the golden rules. We’ve all heard the golden rules: Don’t hurt, don’t steal, don’t lie, or one of the most famous: Do unto others as you would have done to you. These are not just catchy phrases; these are words of wisdom that any productive member of society should strive to live by.

I

n our personal lives, most people try to do exactly that.

Ethics are thought of by many people as something that is related to the private side of life and not to the business side. In many businesses, having ethics is frowned upon or thought of as a negative subject. This is because business is usually about doing what’s best for number one, not about what’s really the right thing to do.

You probably are already feeling uneasy just reading this.

A Good Example

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Take ENRON, for example. Were the actions of ENRON CEO a good example of ethics? No. But, what they were was a classic example of two things: One, those actions displayed how ethics were not used in any way. Two, their actions painted a grim and realistic picture of what can happen when

Corporate Governance

ethics are neglected. Had ethics been considered in the first place by the leaders of the company, there would have been no scandal. If ethics were used on a daily basis in every company, there would never be scandals.

Martha Stewart comes to mind when speaking of ethics.

Again, there is a feeling of uneasiness when dealing with

unethical act. Computers were new at the time and no one had ever been able to do such a thing before. With new times comes new technology and new ways of doing things. Ethics will still play a part of it all and refreshing ethics training only strengthens what has already been learned, when new ages come about.

Ethics are making a comeback. To begin with, more and more corporations and businessmen and women are now realising that ethics are not checked at the door when entering the workplace.

this topic. But, why is it like that? Ethics are supposed to improve our lives and invoke good feelings. Perhaps the reason ethics is such a sore subject is because they are so often poorly used, if used at all.

A New Way Ethics are making a comeback. To begin with, more and more corporations and businessmen and women are now realising that ethics are not checked at the door when entering the workplace. Ethics have every bit as much a place in the public as they do the private. How is it that there should be separate sets of ethics, depending upon whether it is your personal life or your work life? The answer is that there should not be a separate set and in light of recent events that we see on our television sets as of late, more and more companies are realising this fact.

Some companies are incorporating ethics into their training. It is a subject that can go hand-in-hand with business and when employees and CEO’s alike understand what ethics are about, business can improve. Not only will the community take note of the ethical nature of a business but also so will customers.

Periodic re-evaluations are suggested in ethics training as well, since times change many things that some would never consider ethical or non-ethical. For instance, when the first computer hacker sent a worm into a university computer system and crippled the entire network, it was considered a prank more than an

In the end, it’s all about what a person understands about ethics. Many university curriculums are now heavily applying the teaching of Ethics and for good reason.

Young minds will take this information into the workforce and understand that ethics need to be applied there as well as in the private sector. Corporations will be able to avoid embarrassing scandals that are presented all over the news. Small business will be able to keep and attract more clients and customers. Negotiations between businesses could be accomplished with more consideration for the other company in mind, which would only help both.

Above all, a high level of ethics in your business should be in place at least for the customers. If anything, it is the customer that should be considered the most when it comes to ethical business practices. In the long run, a company will reap great profits from a customer base that feels it is being treated fairly and truthfully.

Training improves workplace ethics. Protect your organisation from unethical behaviour, devastating lawsuits, negative publicity, wasted time, loss of money, and low employee morale by offering your employees ethics training on a regular basis.

Myron Curry is the President and Founder of Business Training Media, a global provider of human resources and business management training programmes for employee development.

His company has provided corporate training solutions to many organisations from start-ups to high-profile companies.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Petrochemical The African chemical sector is of considerable economic significance to the continent. It contributes about 25% to the manufacturing sector and 4% to GDP and impacts on the development of other industrial sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, clothing and textile. It is also a source of employment for many people.

The South African Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) has classified the sector into 11 sub-sectors, namely: liquid fuels; commodity inorganic chemicals; commodity organic chemicals; fine chemicals; pure functional and speciality chemicals; bulk formulated chemicals; pharmaceuticals; consumer formulated chemicals; rubber products; plastics products; and primary polymers and rubbers. This is the most appropriate classification of the sector in terms of strategic and business perspectives.

Shell SA is extremely grateful for the efforts of the women in this sector. It is due to their tireless efforts that Africa is becoming the giant that it is today and cementing its place in the future.

Regional

Winners

From Nigeria

From South Africa

Dr Ebere Igboko Ekpunobi is the managing director and chief executive officer of Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals PLC. She was appointed as the acting managing director/CEO of Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals plc in November, 2015 and became the substantive MD/CEO of Neimeth plc from March 1, 2016. Dr Igboko Ekpunobi graduated from the University of Nigeria in 1985 with a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree and obtained a Master of Science degree from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana USA in 1989. She went on to earn a PhD. degree in Pharmacy Administration with emphasis in pharmaceutical marketing and pharmacoeconomics, from Purdue University in 1992. She is a registered pharmacist and has been a member of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, American Pharmacists Association, American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists, and Federation of International Pharmacists.

Doreen Kosi is an executive at Adcock Ingram.

She is a country and regional winner in the sector.

Doreen is involved in mentorship programmes for women in various levels, including leadership, in corporate, government and in communities. She also does a lot of coaching for leaders of Nongovernmental organisations and communities, over and above coaching colleagues as well as young and old women in church. She recently completed a course in Women in Leadership through Witwatersrand University. This has further sharpened her leadership skills. Doreen always promotes the culture of communities actively participating and doing things and finding solutions for themselves with her guidance and support. She also supports them to identify new opportunities and assists them with tools to design projects that are sustainable and life-changing for their own circumstances.

Dr Ebere Igboko Ekpunobi

Doreen Kosi

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Empowered Leadership

Leaders Build

How

Effective Teams

by Myron Curry

Leadership is a big word. It means more than what it appears to be and is written about in millions of books around the world. Leading a person or a group of people is an infinite responsibility. Of course, we have different kinds of leaders and people are constantly looking for leaders who can create more leaders than followers. At work, in business, in families and within friends, leaders are important because they just don’t show directions but help people identify their strengths and bring out the best in them.

S

upreme quality work is one of the main attributes of management or leadership. Quality management is crucial for the people involved as it is for the end result of any work. Managing the quality of the team does not always have to do with work. It also means maintaining a healthy, cheerful, enthusiastic and result-oriented atmosphere within a team. Great managers always focus on creating a code of honour for the team before they get started. It is an excellent, result-oriented and an effective way to lay rules that everybody in the team must play by. It is unspoken on many occasions but firmly agreed by all. It is largely true that when there are no rules, people come up with their own.

This is perhaps the most deterring factor between good and great quality management.

Quality management is a vital aspect for any team improvement. Quality management deals with empowering people and encouraging open communication at all times.

Of course, the code of honour pre-sets how issues and concerns within the team must be addressed constructively.

Empowered Leadership

As for work, clear and sharp communication helps members of the team comprehend the true reason for their presence and how their work affects others’ and the team as a whole.

No two people are alike in a team and therefore the approach to handle each of them and their work must be different too.

Where there are people, there is bound to be friction however here are some basic recommendations for improving quality management within a team.

Consistent Improvement: Time is more important and valuable than money. This cannot be stressed enough. In the world of finance, a golden rule explains that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar tomorrow. Similarly, in the team management, the quality of the team’s work along with interpersonal relationships must improve on a consistent basis. Everybody appreciates an overnight success but unless it is a consistent story, nobody wants to own it. The dynamics of people, the quality of the commitment towards work and team work must improve at regular intervals.

Continuous improvement shows the capacity of the team to withstand pressure.

Customer of the Mind: If it was not for the customer, there would be no business. Without business or work, any of this would not make sense. Quality is a feeling more than it is a tag. Teams need to be made understood that when any customer receives a product or service or even interact with the staff, he or she must feel the quality. Quality is present in all that can be done and all that cannot be done. As long as team members can put themselves in customers’ shoes and feel the difference, positive changes are limited. A simple greeting can stand out for quality and get the conversation going. When

teams have customers on their mind, accountability and sense of pride helps them deliver only the best.

Get Involved: A feedback mechanism is one of the best ways to take appropriate actions. When quality work is the focus, it is always beneficial to get all members of the team involved. Typically, the people who interact with the customers are the best to give the feedback about what the customer wants. Customers are always giving feedback with their emails, gestures, attitudes and voices. Only the best trained quality obsessed teams can identify and act on that feedback. Involving everyone will broaden the possibility of getting more solutions and ways to improve quality within a team.

Recognition: When a member of a team goes out of his/ her way to help resolve a customer issue, be present in place of another team member or stand for the mission of the team, recognition is mandatory. Just like businesses appreciate great financial results and reviews by top notch companies, team members also appreciate being recognised for their efforts. Lack of recognition can lead to discouragement and affect the morale of any great bonded team.

Quality management is largely based upon how the leader views it, the team members view it and how the management views it. As long as these three entities are in sync with their definition and belief about quality, the business will continue to thrive under the most severe of circumstances.

Myron Curry is the President of Business Training Media, a leading provider of teamwork training videos for improving management and employee productivity.

SECTOR FOREWORD Education and Training: Academic The South African Constitution of 1996 enshrines the right to basic education, including adult education and to further education, which the state, through reasonable measures, must make progressively available and accessible. Education and training have been identified as some of the key vehicles that can be used to overcome the injustices of apartheid.

Since then, significant progress has been made in education legislation, policy development and curriculum reform; the allocation of educational resources has clearly been directed by considerations of equity and redress. In South Africa, this is a sector that has been beset by many challenges and even more criticisms recently. The outcry has, largely, been that stakeholders are not doing [nearly] enough to support the sector in general.

Yet, there are those in the Education and Training: Academic sector who keep forging ahead despite all the odds stacked against them.

It is to these women that Unisa SBL toasts as they ensure that future generations have a solid grip on their destinies.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa

From Rwanda

Regional and country winner Dr Bernadette Judith Johnson is the director of Phoenix Project Management (Pty Ltd) and was previously executive director of Vaal University of Technology. Currently she works for Phoenix Project Management. “I consider myself to be a knowledge partner. I provide support to people in Management and Leadership at any point of the Policy Management Cycle including from concept. My anchor contract is currently with the Southern African Research and Innovation Managers Association (SARIMA) as the Research Management Project Management. In this contract, I draw upon my experience at the VUT as Executive Director Research Management. With the knowledge and skills I have gained I am now able to serve universities and research management in South Africa and into the region,” she says.

Aline Mpinga Kabanda is a seasoned executive manager with five years’ experience in strategic organisational management in line with key objectives, partnership management and systems development. She possesses unique ability in building effective and motivated teams. Aline is particularly skilled in project management, human resources, youth and women empowerment. She is the country director of the Akilah Institute for Women, Rwanda. As the Akilah country director of Akilah, she is responsible for the management and oversight of the whole: Institution in alignment with our key strategic objectives. She provides leadership for the development and implementation of all programmes in admissions and recruitment, finances, human resources, career development, external relations. This, while building an organisational culture that inspires and motivates staff, community partners and board members.

Dr Bernadette Judith Johnson

Aline Mpinga Kabanda

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Regional

Winners From Zambia

Prof Jayasree Anitha Menon Prof Anitha Menon is a faculty member in the Department of Psychology, University of Zambia and the chairperson for University of Zambia Committee on HIV and AIDS. Prof Menon holds Master’s Degree in applied psychology and psychological services from University of Madras, India; and a PhD. in Health Psychology from University of Nottingham, UK. For more than 20 years Prof Menon has been actively involved in various researches and service related projects pertaining to areas on public interest, as well as having a number of peer reviewed publications. Her major research interest pertains to the issue of HIV and well-being and psychological well-being of adolescents, Sexual harassment and Communication Skills of Health Practitioners. She is a member of the editorial team for the Journal of African Social Research; Journal of Psychology in Africa and Zambian Papers.

From Seychelles

Shella Marie Mohideen

Shella Marie Mohideen is the Dean of Faculty at the University of Seychelles. She is the Dean of the Faculty of Enterprise and Professional Development of the University of Seychelles. The main objectives of the faculty is to champion entrepreneurship development, ongoing professional development for the new Seychelles, in partnership, contribute to public sector reforms. She has a master’s degree in educational leadership and has done professional training in strategic management, performance management and strategic negotiation. She is responsible for strategic planning and development of the faculty. Shella is also responsible for the implementation of the faculty development policy, preparing faculty budget, participating in the recruitment of staff, monitoring and evaluating staff performance and participating in the University senior management committee.

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Country

Winners

From Zimbabwe Stylish Magida

Stylish Magida is the National University of Science & Technology deputy dean of students. The National University of Science and Technology is an academic institution whose mandate is to offer formal tertiary education at both under- and postgraduate levels. In her capacity as deputy dean of students, she is responsible for advising the chief executive Officer on policy matters related to student welfare; acting for the dean when the dean is absent from the University; participating in the development of strategic directions within the University’s planning framework and overarching strategies and assisting the dean in development, implementation and monitoring of the progress of the university strategic plan.

Contact Details Tel: 011 018 5500 Fax: 011 018 5587 Website: www.nda.org.za

SECTOR FOREWORD Education and Training: Private The growing demand for private schools and ongoing challenges in public education system including poor governance, lack of infrastructure, shortages of teachers and many others present a golden opportunity for entrepreneurs in the education sector.

Enterprising entrepreneurs can play a role in the construction, and running of high demand private facilities, and ultimately help to improve the country’s education system.

Gerrie van Biljon, executive director at Business Partners Limited, says that entrepreneurs have the opportunity to provide additional facilities and services to aspiring learners and thereby increase the country’s and continent’s knowledge and skill set base.

Van Biljon says education remains a major challenge in South Africa and has a direct impact on the current skills shortage in various facets of the local economy.

According to him educating the country is everyone’s responsibility.

CEO Global lauds all the achievers in this sector. They have shown responsible citizenship as they realised that they are the government and the government is the people.

Regional

Winners

From South Africa

From Zimbabwe

The chief executive officer and cofounder of Spark Schools is the regional and country winner in the Education and Training: Private sector in the SADC South region. Spark Schools, says Stacey, is a network of low cost private schools in South Africa which boasts of introducing blended learning for the first time in Africa. She says that in a high growth environment in which they operate in, it is vital that you attract and retain the best personnel. According to Stacey, the best form of growth is through self-development where colleagues are encouraged to expand their knowledge horizons. She says that she is proud to see that her seed of an idea a few years ago has germinated into a flourishing business that has grown by as much as 2 400% and counting.

Dr Faith Kudakwashe Nyamukapa is the xecutive director/founder of KinderCare Zimbabwe, a private registered organisation whose purpose is to help bridge a gap between the community and the preschools/junior schools that exist in Zimbabwe. They provide child related information to the public through raising awareness of various preschools in Zimbabwe and holding capacity building workshops. Through capacity building workshops, they strive to develop and educate mostly the female entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe running preschools and junior schools. They have been operating since 2011 and have been involved in different programmes. They recently partnered with Child Care UK for an online training programme for ECD staff and teachers to allow them to be better equipped for their jobs. This is their first partnership for Southern Africa through us KinderCare Zimbabwe.

Stacey Diane Brewer

Dr Faith Kudakwashe Nyamukapa

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Country

Winner

From Namibia Emma Kakona

Emma Kakona is the executive director of Amazing Kids Private School & Academy. She is a finalist in the Education and Training: Private sector for 2017. She says that she is an educator, leader, trainer, motivational speaker and is at the helm of the Amazing Kids’ success. “I serve, lead, manage, educate, empower, train, counsel and mentor,” she elaborates. Emma is a passionate educator with vast and rich experience in both private and government education. This enables her to be a positive influence to everyone especially girls and women. “Individuals are not defined by their backgrounds, colours and creed. We are all geniuses, we just need to claim it through our will power and cement it with dedication and diligence,” she states.

CEO Island Taking a Trip to the

H

ave you ever experienced a day on the CEO Island? I expect you have. Your decisions impact peoples’ lives. Your board, your employees and your customers place a great deal of faith in your ability to deliver on the company vision, to secure necessary capital for investment, to establish the right priorities for the company and all stakeholders. You understand it is part of the job and most of the time, you are comfortable with the responsibility that you carry.

Sometimes, every leader, even and particularly very successful leaders, experiences some self-doubt, questions the progress of the company, the strength of the management team and if they are making the right decisions. When you find yourself in this spot and do not have some readily available confidantes to ask for advice, you are on the CEO Island. This is not a bad thing; it is simply the natural outcome of holding a senior leadership role and the accompanying accountability.

By virtue of your position, you may also find yourself somewhat isolated from feedback or challenges to your thinking. This can also place you on an island and there are some downsides to a lack of external input. Later in this article I identify some of the effective ways to step off the island.

For many C-suite executives there can be an inverse correlation between the scope of your responsibility and the number of times someone says to you: “I do not agree with your approach” or “Why are you pursuing that goal/ decision/strategy?” The more senior you become, the more reticent people are to hold your feet to the fire. If you are running a small or mid-sized business, your spouse or partner is a likely sounding board. If you are leading a Fortune 500 company, you may seek the counsel of a board member, one to two close colleagues and possibly your spouse. If you are fortunate, these trusted confidantes both support you and on occasion, delicately confront your assumptions or path forward.

Tips for taking a trip off the CEO Island  Ensure some of your colleagues are people who will boldly challenge you.  Select and promote people who think differently than you do. Leverage the benefits of diverse thinking. It is the stimulus for innovation.  Seek informal feedback from your direct reports, your manager and/or trusted board members.  Ask tough questions such as, “What is one thing I am doing that is getting.in the way of your success?”  Ask, “What do you know about me that you don’t think I know about myself?”  Gather feedback in a structured manner.  On an annual basis, conduct 360-degree surveys or gather

By Lorraine Moore

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externally administered feedback from your direct reports, colleagues and your leader or select board members.

Identify the 2-3 most commonly noted strengths and at least one blind spot. (You can identify the blind spots by feedback that is surprising to you or inconsistent with how you see yourself.)

Look for trends on a year over year basis. Are you closing the gaps on areas cited for improvement?

Publicly commit to a trusted confidante a coach, board member, direct report or your manager - one action you will take to further leverage your best skills. This increases the level of accountability and creates shared commitment.

This could include: bi-annual meetings with employees in customer facing roles, creating development plans for your potential successors, taking more rapid action with direct reports who demonstrate performance gaps, etc.

Join a peer group There are a variety of options available so research the one that will be best for you. Some place the greatest emphasis on business issues and shared learning. Others offer equal amounts of socialising with discussing business challenges.

Participating in an association can offer networking and peer sharing but it may not be extensive enough to provide you maximised benefits. Consider participating in a group with members outside of your immediate vicinity and industry. I chair two CEO peer forums with members from various industries and geographies.

The participants benefit from the diversity. While every industry has its unique opportunities and also issues, most strategic issues cross geographic borders and industry verticals. I also participate in a peer group. Our group has participants from Canada, the UK and across the US. We all serve different industries and geographies.

In the best peer groups, participants will respectfully challenge each other while also applauding others’ big wins.

Seek advice from a mentor or trusted advisor The best mentors hold up a mirror to the professional gains you have made. They will advise you to step forward with courage if they see you holding back from taking a risk or pursuing a path that is not in the best interests of your business and personal life. They have your best interests at heart and will offer counsel from their success and misses.

Make courageous choices Demonstrate the leadership courage that is the hallmark of growing and evolving leaders.

Conduct the appropriate due diligence when you may be selecting the less travelled path. Seek guidance from those you trust. In the end, demonstrate conviction in your judgement and take the path you believe to best for the company.

Skills Transfer

Conflict and the

Workplace

by Myron Curry

The workplace is your second home. In fact, some of you probably spend more time at work than you do at home. You are indeed fortunate if you have the opportunity to work in a job which you find challenging and interesting. But, however satisfying your job is, there always seem to be some type of conflict. Workplace conflict happens regularly between team members, departments, managers, suppliers, vendors and sometimes customers. If you are a manager, then the problem of workplace conflict becomes a major issue as you are confronted with it on a regular basis. As one manager complained, it seemed like they were spending more time mediating between people who behaved like spoiled children rather than creative and productive individuals.

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onflict in the workplace can be defined as a strong difference of opinion that occurs in the workplace. It may start out as a simple complaint or just a difference of opinion. In many cases, such issues are either solved gradually or they die a natural death. However, statistics show that these differences are consuming a large portion of a manager’s time and happening more frequently.

These situations may escalate to such a degree that the two concerned parties can no longer work together. They begin to object to the ideas and functions of one another purely on the basis of personal bias. The spirit of open minded camaraderie that is so essential for a productive environment is completely lost. The concerned employees suffer; the manager has to spend time mediating between the two sides instead of focusing on more productive management responsibilities. The employees involved in the conflict may feel uncomfortable working together and the performance of the entire team suffers as a result.

The dynamics the workplace is somewhat unique which makes workplace conflict different. Before starting to tackle the issue of conflict in the workplace, you have to keep the following characteristics in mind:  While some people work because they love the job and truly care, many others need stronger motivation to put in their full effort in the job.

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 You do not get to choose your colleagues. Yet, you have to spend a lot of time with them, often in a high pressure situation. This is definitely a recipe for conflict.  The work environment is a hierarchical structure and employees are interdependent with one another. So, perceived inefficiency on the part of one employee is going to affect the job quality of others.  There are a number of dynamics operating in the workplace. Interdependence exists between colleagues, between the employee and the manager, the employee and the customer as well as the employee and outside suppliers. Whenever this delicate balance is upset, workplace conflict is the inevitable result.  Increases in the volume of interactions accompanied by a lack of open and definite communication are another vital ingredient in workplace conflict.  People with different personalities, cultures and styles must often work together in an interdependent way. Personality clashes as well as a clash of ideas consequently set the ground for workplace conflict.

The result of all the above factors can cause a disruption of work environments and the creation of the workplace conflict. The fact is that workplace conflict can arise from a series of reasons including differences in work-styles, background and gender, personalities, and skill level. When these types of conflicts go unresolved, they may turn into a

Skills Transfer

much bigger problem down the road. The ability to address workplace conflict in the early stages is an important component to resolving the issue. Unanswered or unmanaged conflict can escalate can disrupt an organisation’s growth as workers start spending more time entrenched in conflict than they do working on organisational goals.

Handling Workplace Conflict - Myths and Reality Workplace conflict is much more common than you probably think. Yet, it is nothing to be ashamed of or something to be swept under a rug. To truly understand workplace conflict, you need to understand some basic facts about the myths and reality of workplace conflict. The myths about workplace conflict are: It is not nice to have conflict. This idea is ingrained in our psyche. From childhood, you are taught that it is not nice to have conflict and you should always put a smiling face on it.

Therefore, it is simply wrong to have conflict.

Conflicts will resolve themselves over time, so there is no need for me to get involved. This is one of the more common approaches taken by managers. It’s a hands-off approach to dealing with conflict.

A true team would never have any conflict. When true team spirit prevails, there would be no conflict or even a chance for it. All is sweetness and light in a good team. ……. And now for the reality:

It is not nice to have conflict - If it is not nice to have conflict, is it better to grind your teeth and suffer in silence?

You get to be the nice guy, but you are probably heading towards a major meltdown.

Conflicts will resolve themselves over time, so there is no need for me to get involved - This is probably one of the most common myths about conflict and one that produces disastrous results. If a manager fails to address workplace conflict head-on, they will find themselves dealing with a much bigger problem in the future. Most conflicts that involve minor disagreements or matters that are trivial tend to resolve and work themselves out over time. Larger disagreements or conflicts tend not go away without some type of intervention.

A true team would never have any conflict - A team without conflict is one where the team members have nothing of value to contribute and no passion for their job.

It is a group working according to the direction of the leader and with no scope for any creative ideas to emerge.

You should realise that conflict is inevitable and working out a solution is the major task of the manager.

One of the main keys to handling workplace conflict is to stay focused on the problems and not the personalities of the individuals involved in the conflict. A good way to avoid dealing with larger conflicts later is to confront them in the early stages.

SECTOR FOREWORD Financial Services Thanks to the financial services sector, money does, indeed, make the world go round. South Africa is one of the most promising emerging markets in the world today, and boasts a vibrant financial services sector. It is acknowledged that emerging markets are becoming increasingly important sources of growth for financial services entities in mature economies, which expand their businesses and investments to these markets.

Amid such positive outlooks, the sector is one that has to thrive on the back of technological advances which have resulted in many financial crimes. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers cybercrime risk appears to be increasing as about 45% of financial services organisations have suffered economic crime, compared to only 34% across all other industries.

KPMG would like to congratulate the torch bearers in this industry. It is thanks to their endeavours that South Africa has one of the most solid financial services sector in Africa and the world.

Regional

Winner

From Mauritius

From South Africa

Imalaambaal Kichenin is the JurisTax Ltd – Director, chief executive officer and money laundering reporting officer. Kichenin is a law graduate from the University of London and an Associate member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (UK). Before joining the global business industry in 2004, she spent eight years teaching law, corporate administration and corporate secretarial practice.

She also acts as a resident director on several global business companies in Mauritius including Collective Investment Scheme, CIS Manager and Investment Dealer. She is a member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators; Institute of Directors; Association of Trust and Management Companies and the International Fiscal Association.

Regional and country winner in the Financial Services sector Dr Matete is research analyst: environmental and social sustainability at the Land and Agricultural Bank of South Africa (Land Bank). She is an environmental economist by training and was originally employed by the Land Bank, in April 2012, as the lead economist: economic research. Immediately after she resumed duty, she noticed a gap, in the lack of strategic commitment by the bank to the environmental and social sustainability (ESS).

She then developed the ESS concept and presented it to the bank’s management. The concept was approved and was followed by the development of the ESS Strategy and Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS), implementation plan and requirements.

ESS is now part of the Banks strategic focus areas that it is being implemented.

Imalaambaal Kichenin

Dr Mampiti Elizabeth Matete

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Regional

Winner

From Zimbabwe Grace Muradzikwa

Grace Muradzikwa is the chief executive officer of NICOZDIAMOND Insurance Limited. She holds a Masters in Business Administration and Bachelor of Administration degree from the University of Zimbabwe.

In addition, she is an Associate (AIISA) and Fellow of the Insurance Institute of South Africa (FIISA). She also holds an IPM Diploma in Personnel Management. She has been at the helm of NicozDiamond for many years and has over two decades of insurance experience spanning all facets of short-term insurance and reinsurance. Grace holds directorships in various local and regional companies and is a member of different professional affiliations. She has received awards such as Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce Business Woman of the Year, 2009 IOD Director of the Year 2013 Megafest Leadership Award and 2014 Megafast Award. She is a non-executive Director of Buy Zimbabwe, Africa University, Bindura University and CFI.

Country

Winners

From Namibia Kaunapaua Ndilula

Country winner Kaunapaua Ndilula is the managing director of business financial solutions in Namibia.

Kauna, previously SME national manager at Bank Windhoek, established the Namibia Procurement Fund in 2010. NamPro’s Fund Manager is owned by Business Financial Solutions (BFS), a wholly-owned Namibian company, South Africa-based Transafrica Capital (TAC) and Enterprise Fedha Finance Company (EFFCO), owned by the Southern African Enterprise Fund (SAEDF) registered in Botswana. Kaunapaua set up BFS in 2008. “I recognised the need for more flexible support tailored to SME needs - of both a financial and business development nature,” Ndilula says.

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Sustainability

Cybersecurity and Corporate Boards

By Patricia Lenkov, Founder & President, Agility Executive Search, LLC

Vigilance is not enough

Mention cybersecurity these days and reactions vary from concern to all out dismay and anxiety. We are living in an era of extreme technological transformation whether it be due to the emergence of the cloud, increased mobile use, social media, or the growth of the ‘internet of things’ or as it has sometimes been called, ‘the internet of everything.’ The side effect of this proliferation of our digital life is increased risk and the need to protect the immeasurable data that sometimes feels like it is simply ‘out there.’

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Sustainability

It is critical for every organisation to go beyond a mere discussion in the boardroom of the probability of cyber-attacks to the actual implementation of a comprehensive cybersecurity governance framework that addresses all of their cybersecurity requirements.

T

hese challenges are confounded by the fact that there is little to no precedent. We do not have guidebooks, or veterans who have seen it all before. Witness the recent attack which has come to be known as ‘Wanna Cry.’ It has been estimated that this cyber-attack held computers hostage in at least 99 countries. Computers infected with ‘Wanna Cry’ malware became locked until a ransom was paid. If this is not enough, did you know that all of the following companies had data breaches that affected the privacy of their customers or employees: Target, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Home Depot, EBay and JPMorgan (to mention just a few).

Leaders in government and all types of organisations must have a strategy to deal with this risk. They must plan, anticipate and prepare accordingly. Within the context of business as well as non-profit and educational institutions, boards of directors or trustees need to lay the groundwork for a cybersecurity framework that will protect their organisation and if they can’t protect - then they must have a plan to react so that devastation can be contained.

In 2016, the Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated that cybersecurity is the biggest threat facing the financial system. “Adversaries including organised crime groups, terrorists, and nation-states, are constantly seeking to access organisations’ most sensitive and valuable information through remote-access attacks.

Boards of directors and the C-suite must acknowledge and recognise this business risk, and work to detect and respond to them quickly to mitigate the consequences. The leadership must set the pace for the rest of the organisation, and it starts with awareness of the threat and a sense of urgency to respond. Anything less is unacceptable,” said Shawn Henry, CSO of CrowdStrike Inc., a cybersecurity company based in California.

The weight of the responsibility to keep an organisation safe from cyber threats is placed on the CEO, CIO/CTO/ CSO, and the executive team. However, in the 2016 Deloitte Board Practices Survey respondents (members of the

Society for Corporate Governance) “ranked cyber as the number one risk their boards are focused on.”

It is critical for every organisation to go beyond a mere discussion in the boardroom of the probability of cyberattacks to the actual implementation of a comprehensive cybersecurity governance framework that addresses all of their cybersecurity requirements. Boards must be well versed in the most up-to-date issues and cyber challenges.

They must be able to properly assess threats as well as the plans, programmes and talent being engaged to contain them. Earlier this year the US senate introduced The Cybersecurity Disclosure Act of 2017 (or S. 536). This legislation requires companies to explain in their SEC filings whether cybersecurity expertise exists on their boards and if not why the expertise is unnecessary because of other steps taken by the company.

As more organisations rely on computers for everything, cyber criminals are invariably looking for lapses in security.

Advances in technology are not limited to those on the right side of the law and there are new threats constantly. It is not enough for a board to simply listen to a report by the company’s CIO or CTO at a quarterly board meeting. Cyber planning must be an integral part of strategic planning and risk management. And by the way, the rate of obsolesce in technology is swift so even if a company has a cyber-expert on their board they must ensure that their knowledge and skills be kept up-to-date.

Boards and the companies they serve must not only be aware of the flurry of cyber threats but they must be proactive and strategic in dealing with them. They cannot afford to sit idly and wait for something to happen.

They must be educated and prepared. Procrastinating on this issue can have some pretty grave consequences.

SECTOR FOREWORD Government Employed Official Easily governance and governments are under siege in Africa. At a time when there should be more efforts and resources directed at service delivery, in tough economic times, the media is awash with public officials who siphon off funds from the public purse for personal enrichment.

However, there are still those among the public servants who believe that being a government employee means that you are a servant of the people. As such they would go to any lengths to ensure that the respective governments that they are part of indeed do deliver on their mandate to deliver services despite all odds. Although increasingly becoming rare, such Africans do exist in our midst.

CEO Global would like to congratulate the rare jewels in the Government-Employed Official sector. Thanks to them, Africa is working!

Regional

Winner

From Ghana

From Mauritius

Magdalene Ewuraesi Apenteng

Her Excellency Usha Dwarka Canabady

Magdalene Ewuraesi Apenteng holds a post graduate degree (M.A.) in economic policy management from the University of Ghana and also an MSc. in Financial Management from the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University of London, United Kingdom. She started her career in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning in 1988 and has been there ever since. She served as the head of the aid and debt management unit and also served as one of the directors in charge of the non tax revenue unit. Currently, she is the director responsible for the public investment division and supervises four units including the public private partnerships unit, the project financial appraisal unit, public entities unit and the strategic projects unit and serves on the board of the public procurement authority.

Her Excellency Usha Dwarka Canabady is the secretary for foreign affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade. She says people are the most important part of the organisation and also the most challenging part of the work as they deal with transient staff, always on the move for postings overseas and return to Headquarters. There are thus important gaps in institutional memory of what happens at headquarters and similarly as regards the experiences of diplomatic missions overseas.

They are facilitating a project of E-diplomacy aimed at facilitating communication between headquarters and missions so that all feel they are part of decision making. Other actions have included decentralisation of decision making and allowing staff to take initiatives.

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Regional

Winners From Botswana

Rose Nunu Seretse

Rose Nunu Seretse is the director of the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime. She was previously the DCEC director also serving in recent months as acting director. Rose started her career in the public service in 1991 at Kgatleng District Council as a technical officer (Buildings) after graduating with BSc in construction engineering and management from Michigan USA. She was transferred on promotion to Lobatse Town Council where she served until 1997 when she joined the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime as a senior corruption prevention officer. Among her duties at the time included looking at corruption in the construction Industry. She has served within the different divisions of the DCEC at various levels including being the performance improvement co-coordinator.

From South Africa Dr Rolene Wagner

Dr Rolene Wagner is the CEO of Frere Hospital as well as a country and regional winner. Frere Hospital is a 900-bedded academic tertiary hospital with an operational budget of approximately R1.2 billion rand and a staff complement of around 2 000 employees; it provides specialist care for a population of 2.8 million people. Her qualifications of MBCHB (1996) and MPhil Public Health (cum Laude; 1993) together with 15 years’ experience at senior management level prepared her for her current role where, with the team, she spearheaded the publicly acknowledged turnaround at Frere in patient outcomes and overall satisfaction with the experience of care. These successful outcomes and associated expertise have been acknowledged through local and national awards and invitations to speak on various business, academic and community platforms.

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Celebrating 70 Years of Collective Bargaining

The Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council (MEIBC) is a statutory body created under the Labour Relations Act to provide for the co-regulation of stable and productive employment relations in the metal and engineering industries in South Africa.

Contact Details: The Metal and Engineering Bargaining Industries Bargaining Council (National Office) Physical Address Postal Address 1st Floor PO Box 9381 Union Corporation Building Johannesburg 2000 77 Marshall Street Tel: 011 639 8000 Johannesburg 2001 Fax: 086 636 8690 www.meibc.co.za

Sustainability

Rewards of Entrepreneurship Outweigh Risks

by Samantha Barnes

We have businesses, and then we have businesses run by women. So what, you ask? Well, when there are expressions like ‘sorting the men from the boys, first port of call, and so on’, it becomes clear that, in many respects, it still is a man’s world.

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Sustainability

Women in the Spotlight

Gaining Entry to Opportunities

August being Women’s Month, the South African Supplier Diversity Council (SASDC) extended an invitation to businesswomen and to the media. The SASDC promotes the added value inherent in sustainable supplier diversity through targeted procurement and black supplier development.

The invitation to the event sported an attention-getting title: Positioning the Black Queen on the Chess Board of Industry. The focus would be on how black women can position themselves strategically within industry in order to take advantage of the opportunities associated with the recent strategic focus by the Department of Trade and Industry to create 100 black industrialists in the next three years. Would this be another talk shop?

“The construction sector is still very male and whiteoriented,” says Mokoatle. “They have built a wall around them, so, to penetrate them, you must be very muscular.”

She is intent on finding another industry in which her business can diversify its interests. Further, she upholds the notion that it is dangerous to put all your eggs in one basket. Ideally, she would like to find a line of business aligned to her business, like supplying pipes.

But whatever business she is in, Mokoatle maintains that it is essential that women stand up against the control of others. She sees no reason why, as a woman operating a business in the corporate world, she cannot have the same as others. “Every nation is built by economically empowered individuals,” she explains.

She is aware of where her business stands in terms of its growth path. “We are past the mentorship stage, yet we are not reaping the fruits. We are at the stage where we need to acquire,” she notes.

We Can’t Do It Solo Lijeng Mokoatle was the keynote speaker at this gathering of the SASDC. She is one of those people with that endearing mix of charm and ‘street smart’ – and she knows what she wants and goes out to achieve it: no excuses. A quantity surveyor by profession, she is familiar with the challenges that go hand in hand with being a woman in male-dominated terrain.

Mokoatle is a managing member of Lettam Building and Civils and a Construction Excellence Award winner.

As a qualified quantity surveyor, she has over 20 years’ experience.

If the wording on the invitation sounds intimidating, Mokoatle isn’t. She soon disarms her audience with her candour and warmth. “When I looked at my role as a queen in the house, you must protect the king. We must honour our sons, husbands and business associates for this to work. We can’t do it solo,” she says.

She understands men more than she does women.

Mokoatle has worked for the likes of Group Five, Stocks and Stocks (as it was known then) and Murray & Roberts. She has big ambitions and states them boldly. “I personally would like to acquire a company as big as Sasol,” she states.

When the Going Gets Tough “What helps us is the relationship that we have built.

Three years ago, we had financial problems. Government was not paying us for many, many months. I felt like we were going down. We couldn’t collect money. We attended training here at Barloworld. I met a financial man here in the corridor and told him that, if we don’t get paid at the end of the month, we will have to close shop and go home.”

Thanks to the timeous assistance that Lettam Building and Civils received from Barloworld, Mokoatle is now able to say with confidence: “Financial freedom is inevitable when you go into business. It is difficult. It is risky. But the rewards are more than the risks.”

Other Voices The panellists at the event are dynamic, articulate businesswomen and share stories that many can relate to.

Some are feisty. Besides having five degrees, Dr Renee Horne is a senior lecturer at Wits Business School and a former SABC war correspondent. She was once told to blow-dry her hair. “So you look calmer!” recalls Dr Horne. She recommends that women ask – and fight – for what they want.

Donna Rachelson is CEO of Seed Engine and Incubator and the author of Play to Win – What Women Can Learn from Men in Business. “The game of men was invented by men. Let’s understand the rules by which men play business,” she urges. Rachelson perceives South Africa as being very prejudiced in redressing inequalities regarding women. She cites a startling statistic: 21% of corporates have no women in management.

A Way to Go Asked whether the SASDC has been successful in leveraging corporate supply chains, the question is met with a resounding no from the members present. On the other hand, the observation is made that black suppliers are not adequately marketing themselves. Those present agree that women could better leverage their potential by embracing the approach that men have towards business.

Rachelson shares the example of a woman thinking of phoning a business connection she hasn’t seen in six months. “As women we tend to think: ‘What is she going to think of me?’ A woman thinks in terms of relationships, whereas a man thinks in terms of winning or losing.”

Patience is called for as much as the will to make things happen. She recommends that businesswomen think in terms of giving rather than getting. There is wisdom in that.

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SECTOR FOREWORD ICT The low representation of women in the information communication and technology (ICT) sector’s leadership and general workforce is a growing concern according to South Africa’s Commission for Gender Equality (CGE). Thus, there is an urgent need for more women to come on board in order to diversify the ICT sector by bridging the gender divide.

This is imperative as women are underrepresented in the ICT sector, despite opportunities being available. Statistics show that women in South Africa only make up 20% of the ICT sector workforce as opposed to a 56% representation globally. South Africa and the continent generally don’t have a good story to tell in this sector because males are still dominating. It is widely thought that should more women come on board, especially at top or senior management level, then they would be able to serve as an inspiration for others to follow ICT careers.

CEO Global applauds the women honoured in this sector. They have successfully told the African ICT story from a woman’s perspective.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa

From Zambia

Dr Madelise Grobler

Chimuka M Moore

Regional and country winner Madelise Grobler is the managing director of Bytes People Solutions, a professional provider of talent management services, a leader in skills development and a trusted advisor to a large number of organisations in South Africa. Madelise obtained her master’s degree cum laude at the University of Pretoria and received a bursary to study at the University of Delft in the Netherlands where she completed her D.Com Informatics degree. After lecturing for 7 years at the University of Pretoria in the Informatics department she started her own company in 1996 which focused on IT training. Three years later the company was purchased by a larger IT company and she was appointed as the managing director of the learning division. It was then purchased by the Bytes Technology Group in 2004 and she continued to occupy the position of managing director which become Bytes People Solutions.

Chimuka M Moore is a dynamic business savvy strategist with proven skill in communication and cross-cultural team management. She is a result oriented leader with over 18 years entrepreneur experience and is an excellent negotiator, strategy developer and implementer with great analytical skills, experienced networker and facilitator with strong people skills. She is the chief executive officer, Telplus Communications Limited, Zambia.

Telplus Communications Limited, Zambia, is dedicated to satellite communication equipment in Africa. Telplus was established as a dedicated route to market satellite communications division.

It represents satellite communications equipment from Inmarsat Thuraya and Iridium, however with added benefit of ‘local’ knowledge and support. The company prides itself on providing the African market with expertise on the right satellite equipment for the right job.

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Country

Winners From Zimbabwe Pfungwa Chamanga Pfungwa Chamanga is the ICT head at the Trust Academy. Specialising in ICT Technology is the main aspect of business the institution she works for is involved in. She is responsible for staff recruitment, allocation of ICT resources and timetabling lecturers.

Pfungwa chairs faculty meetings, moderates examination question papers, answer scripts and continuous assessment of students. She served as an ICT national coordinator for Zimbabwe within the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development. She was responsible for ICT educational standards.

From Kenya Dr Shikoh Gitau Dr Shikoh Gitau is a strategic, results-driven leader with proven ability to create new organisations, spearhead change, and conceptualise and execute innovative, impactful and sustainable initiatives. She is a passionate, compassionate and gregarious personality with excellent interpersonal and communication skills, dedicated to fostering a working environment that engages, motivates and encourages collaboration and optimises team performance. Dr Gitau is highly focused, self-driven and self-reliant, sets aims and targets and leads by example, with a consistent track record of successfully delivering full lifecycle implementations to tight time scales and within budget.

She is the Technology and Innovation for Inclusive Growth lead at the African Development Bank.

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Empowered Leadership

Developing

Leadership Athleticism

By Lorraine Moore

Many of us are drawn to executive roles for the variety afforded by the intellectual and mental challenges, the ability to make a meaningful contribution, the prestige, and the influence we can wield. These are demanding roles typically requiring long days, attendance at community events, socialising and, in many cases, frequent travel. In the same way that athletes best perform when they sustain consistent healthy habits, so it is with high-performing leaders.

B

ut what is Leadership Athleticism and how do you develop it? Leadership Athleticism has the following hallmarks: resilience, speed, flexibility, and mental acuity. Each component contributes to a leader’s performance and their continued success.

Resilience Resilience is the ability to sustain energy, mental attention, tolerance, and optimal health for extended periods of time, particularly during exceptional times. Any one of the following could test a leader’s resiliency: A hostile takeover, numerous employee layoffs, severe economic constraints such as the 2008 global financial crisis and plummeting oil prices commencing in 2015, or a brand damaging and ethical crisis such as a large-scale safety incident.

Speed Leaders may be called upon to meet increased demands with little or no warning. This requires the ability to make important decisions rapidly and sometimes without all the facts.

Flexibility Leaders must be able to change the course quickly, without lamenting for long the lost career-making deal, the failed acquisitions, or the disappointing product launch before identifying your new course of action.

Mental Acuity Most professional jobs and certainly all leadership and executive roles require complex mental functioning. Mental acuity is required to most effectively process the considerable volume of information and data at your disposal and the varying opinions provided internally and externally. This is not only a measure of intelligence, but also your ability to concentrate, focus, and understand. Mental acuity is heightened with sufficient sleep, physical exercise, mental breaks, and creative pursuits.

Leaders can develop their Leadership Athleticism using a variety of methods, including:  No pretend time off (PTO)  Maintaining excellent physical health  Live the examined life  Energy management

Keep it fresh Take some time and evaluate your Leadership Athleticism. Where are you strong? What areas are you ignoring or not paying enough attention to?

If you would like some additional help with examining your Leadership Athleticism, please feel free to contact me. My clients accelerate their results – increasing profitability, leadership performance, innovation, and accountability. I would love to discuss how I might contribute to your success.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Logistics and Shipping Africa is the fastest emerging economy in the world. Everyone, and anyone, wants a piece of the rich African cake and they dare not be left behind. On a continent where nearly 90% of international trade happens by sea, several African ports are in the race to be their respective regional shipping hubs.

Lack of infrastructure and long ship waiting times continue to hamper productivity for the African shipping and logistics sector, but a wave of new investments looks set to drive growth over the medium term, according to a new report from research consultancy SeaIntel.

Based on media reports, China, Africa’s biggest trading partner will be at the forefront of those investments as well as drive the shipping and logistics sector.

PANAVEST would like to thank all the women in the shipping and logistics sector. They have shown that they are determined to see the motherland prosper through their endeavours in the shipping and logistics sector.

Regional

Winner

From Zambia

From South Africa

Nomsa Nontsikeleo Mataka Mumba is the regional country manager – Zambia and Mozambique of FedEx Express Zambia Ltd, one of the biggest express courier companies in the world. She is an energetic and highly dynamic, financial services and logistics executive with experience in managing international organisations. She possesses highly strategic sales and marketing skills and has proven her abilities by playing a significant role in the establishment of two new businesses. Nomsa is one of the few women that hold an active leadership role in the logistics sector in Zambia. She believes that when one is empowered, it is then incumbent on you to empower those in your midst, especially the youth and women. “I empower the team to implement innovative solutions to meet the ever-changing logistics environment in our region,” she states.

If these are not the words of a true winner then nothing is.

Regional and country winner Fatima Sullivan, vice president of customer services for DHL Express Sub-Saharan Africa believes that while you can measure Customer Service key performance indicators daily, the most value is derived from direct customer feedback. Initiatives such as the Net Promoter Approach (NPA) management tool and their Regional Mystery Shopper programme are key to success. “My job is to make sure a customer experience is filled with positive ‘WOW’ moments!” she says. Fatima is particularly passionate about people development. There is nothing more rewarding than investing time in people and seeing them prosper. “One of my CS regional team members was given the opportunity to take on a stretch rapid assignment and through coaching, mentorship and on-the-job training, he is now a Country Manager in one of our Top 10 markets in Sub Saharan Africa,” she says.

Nomsa Nontsikeleo Mataka Mumba

Fatima Sullivan

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Regional

Winner

From Mauritius Fazillah Tajoo

Fazillah Tajoo is the customer service performance excellence manager East And Southern Africa at DHL Express. DHL Express is a logistics company operating in 220 countries across the globe. She is responsible for the customer service teams for the Southern and East part of Africa. Her role is to ensure their customers’ experience are top notch, through their motivated people by developing each team member, driving high performance, shaping direction as well as consistent team development. Her responsibilities also include working with the countries to ensure they achieve the highest level of standard for their global customer service reviews, for which she is also an assessor. Fazillah has 24 years’ experience in customer service and this has allowed her to develop strong interpersonal skills and excellent communication skills.

Country

Winner

From Madagascar Volana Harimanitra

Volana Harimanitra has been working for DHL International for almost 15 years, starting as an customer service advisor, then managing a team from four members till around 30 people recently. She is leading, developing and motivating people correctly.

She has a history of achieving cost savings, enhancing quality of service and applying the right process and is a strong leader with demonstrated ability to work effectively with individuals at all levels and in all functional areas. Volana has experience in managing a full project lifecycle from requirements gathering to final implementation.

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Case in Point Bombela Concession Company

Leadership

True

by Andrew Ngozo

Starts with Accountability Kesagee Nayager, Marketing and Communications Executive for Bombela Concession Company

Case in Point Bombela Concession Company

Connecting three metropolitan cities of the African continent’s economic hub, the Gauteng Province, the Gautrain project is not only a first for Africa but is one of the biggest and most ambitious yet on a continental scale. On an operational front, the public transport service provider boasts of a train service availability of 99.73% and a train service punctuality of 98.34%! In this regard, says Kesagee Nayager, Marketing and Communications Executive for Bombela Concession Company, Gautrain has been lauded as world class. In addition, it is clean, safe and reliable. Underpinning all of this operational excellence, customer service, says Kesagee, is at the fore. “Without that, success would be elusive. The success of the Gautrain depends on our ability to provide an operationally sound service that has the ability to attract and grow its passenger numbers.

Thus, ensuring that we provide our passengers with a great customer experience is core to what we do,” she indicates.

T

he Gautrain story has been evolving since the early 2000s when the Gauteng provincial government mooted the idea of a world class rapid rail public transport system. However, the real Gautrain tale came into its element when the first rapid rail transport system ferried its maiden cohort of passengers in 2010. The brand has never looked back since then. “We have done well despite the fact that we are a fairly young brand. Gautrain remains in a continuous cycle of learning because we believe that we can always do better,” says Kesagee. Over the past few years, no resource has been spared to improving customer service. According to her, the research conducted monthly by an independent company helps them to “determine a Net Promoter Score (NPS) as well as scores against other key business imperatives such as safety and punctuality”.

Used effectively, like the team at Bombela Concession Company has done, these scores allow an organisation to effect desired change and vastly improve the quality of service. In a world where social media platforms are a driving force, Kesagee declares that they are riding the social media wave making information almost instantaneously available to passengers.

Kesagee is a career executive who has gained experience in many high profile positions in the South African corporate landscape. Needless to say, being part of the team behind one of the world’s magnificent innovations, Kesagee has the magic touch. She is quick to stress that she does not owe her success to her gender and the same will not influence the world’s trajectory into the future. “I believe that a woman can play any key role much like a man can do,” she quips. According to her, a leadership deficit exists in the business sphere in Africa and the world over.

“In my view, the discrepancy has less to do with the gender of leaders than it has to do with leadership attributes. It is up to both men and women in every leadership role to demonstrate leadership of the highest quality; to place firm value on ethics and good governance; to take accountability for their actions and to do right by not only the current generation, but the generations to come,” she advises. She urges women in leadership to focus on the mammoth task at hand: building and maintaining their credibility. This, in contrast to focusing on their gender.

Africa is a blessed land Kesagee believes. She says that capable female and male leaders abound on the continent and each, especially women, must take credit where it is due and celebrate their achievements. She states that: “When one looks at the many roles played by women across Africa, and how hard they toil, it becomes evident that what these women need is opportunities. Hard work by itself will, unfortunately, not translate into the various freedoms that are so desperately needed by these women. It is up to leaders in Africa, and across the globe, to work tirelessly to create these much-needed opportunities,” she notes. Kesagee firmly asserts that women must shape the stories that are told about Africa. “At the same time, we must not shy away from telling our own stories because no one can tell our stories more authentically than we can,” she emphasises.

Africa on a Firm Footing With the current crop of female leaders continent-wide, Kesagee contends that Africa is on a firm footing. However, more still needs to be done by those women who have managed to break the proverbial glass ceiling, in so far as those who follow in their footsteps are concerned. “Women need to develop a habit of overcoming that which is deemed to be a barrier. Hurdles are meant to be jumped over; so they should be seen as such rather than as obstacles that one cannot get beyond.” In Kesagee’s opinion there is not only a need to identify talent but to also create meaningful opportunities for talented people so that they can grow and flourish. “A mentoring process is critical and helps to ensure that the next generation of (women) leaders is adequately prepared to take the baton and continue the relay. For me, leadership is not an individual race but rather a relay, so our success must be measured by our ability to successfully prepare the next generation of leaders to take over the baton from us. Sadly though, far too many leaders today become

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reluctant to hand over when the time comes. The true test of good leadership is therefore to be measured by the number of leaders that we have groomed and more importantly, to whom we have handed batons over to,” she observes.

Getting personal, Kesagee says the principle of accountability is perhaps the most important to her. “I am not afraid to make mistakes and when I do, I ensure that I am accountable for my actions. Taking ownership of our shortcomings affords us the opportunities to learn to do things differently and better, the next time around. The act of negating accountability is tantamount to denying oneself the opportunity to learn, grow and improve. Accepting accountability also speaks volumes about one’s integrity,” says Kesagee. It is no wonder then that she is at the apex of success. She shares that she has taken care to build sound and mutually beneficial relationships with key stakeholders.

“It is crucial to take time and to understand each unique stakeholder so that you can tailor the way in which you engage with them. By taking accountability, being consistent and honest in terms of what I say and what I do, and making it clear about what I can and can’t do, it becomes easier to work effectively with a host of different stakeholders. They know what to expect of me, and I equally know what is

expected of me. It’s also important to be available and I place emphasis on availing myself, be it to the media, or to the contact centre who may need guidance in terms of how to handle a customer complaint,” Kesagee states.

Shifting Focus If the uptake of the Gautrain by Gauteng residents is anything to go by, the rapid rail transport system is surely going places. The ground work has been laid; and successfully so. Kesagee says the focus for Gautrain now shifts towards growing airport ridership in the short-to-medium term. “To do this, we need to consider strategies to ensure that our service offering remains appealing or attractive, affordable, and achievable. We may need to extend ourselves into new market segments originally not thought of and we would need to continuously look for opportunities that may well exist within our internal and external environments.” With the continuous stream of positive feedback from many happy customers, there is no iota of doubt that the Gautrain will surpass even its own expectations. With a person like Kesagee on top of her game on the communications front, the world shall surely know what is brewing at Bombela Concession Company. Watch this space; that will happen sooner than you can blink!

Empowering South Africans  The Gautrain connects three metropolitans in Gauteng, namely, Tshwane, Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni.  To date Gautrain has transported more than 60 million passengers on their trains and have operated in excess of 380 000 individual train trips.  The Gautrain is not only a greener, safer and more efficient mode of transport, but is also currently one of the most reliable commuter train services in the world, with an average train service availability of approximately 99.73%  Gautrain is committed to providing not only a world-class transport system to Gauteng, but also to help reduce South Africa’s carbon emissions, thereby rendering South Africa greener, safer, more connected and more efficient as a nation.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Manufacturing and Engineering With growing literacy levels, Africa has seen a rise in women’s contribution to its national economies. Women have become leading industry players in their different sectors including manufacturing and engineering that was, for long, a preserve of men.

African women have become incredibly business savvy, determined and resilient. Many have created a name for themselves in the business world. While some have succeeded by moving up the corporate ladder, others have made it through entrepreneurship.

The latter is critical, today, because it is widely accepted that the only way that our economies can grow and create employment is to ‘think out of the box’ and tread where no one else has trodden before.

It is kudos to the women honoured in this sector. For defying stereotypes and showing the world that you can come into your own, CEO Global pays tribute to you.

Regional

Winner

From Ivory Coast

From Zimbabwe

The Vice President of UFA & executive director of Unilever CDI Maidie Elizabeth Ayele Arkutu is dynamic and result oriented with a strong passion for delivering consistent and profitable business growth. She is a great team player with natural leadership qualities as well as excellent and effective communication and strategic influencing skills. She has major strengths in strategy development, leadership and marketing.

Maidie thrives in dynamic environments that require change and new ways of working. She has delivered double digit top line growth every year since 2013 and over 70% of their turnover continues to win market share year on year.

Tendesi Stella Makunike is the chief human resources officer – Global of Savanna Tobacco Company. Savanna Tobacco Company is a manufacturer and marketer of Africa’s finest cigarettes; they aim to be Africa’s second largest cigarette manufacturers by 2020. They believe that people in the business are our recipe for success for maximising shareholder value. Her mandate is to ensure that people deliver business objectives from both profitability and business growth perspectives.

This involves acquiring the right talent with emphasis on attitude; talent development to meet shortterm business objectives and future business requirements. This involves upskilling potential and providing guidance in professional and personal development. Her duties also include driving a high performance culture through a discretionary mix of rewards, sanctions, goal stretching and honest feedback.

Maidie Elizabeth Ayele Arkutu

Tendesi Stella Makunike

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Regional

Winner

From DRC

Dr Ngalula Sandrine Mubenga Dr Ngalula Sandrine Mubenga is an experienced electrical engineer with area of expertise in renewable energy systems, photovoltaic systems design and integration, energy management and energy efficiency. She has 15 years’ experience in electrical engineering and designed, approved and interconnected 50MW of solar photovoltaic systems.

She is the founder and CEO of SMIN Power Group, LLC and currently helps manage a yearly USD15million energy budget for the University of Toledo. She is the founder and past-chair of the IEEE Toledo Graduate of the Last Decade Group, a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), general conference chair for the IEEE PES Power Africa Conference, IEEE Women in Engineering, Golden Key International Honour Society, and Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) 2016 conference reviewer.

Country

Winners

From Malawi Karen Elizabeth Scott

Karen Elizabeth Scott (nee Viljoen) is a country winner. She is the general manager of Capital Foods Limited. Capital Foods Limited (CFL) is situated in Malawi; manufacturing quality wheat flour FLOURICH. As the general manager she is involved in managing people assets and co-ordinating, overseeing and mentoring the management team. With over 20 years of experience in the business environment and her work-ethic of self-motivation, she encourages her team members to emulate, shows them by example that having a spirit of excellence towards everything you do results in personal and professional success.

From Ghana Noble Catherine Coffie

Noble Catherine Nana Esi Anowah Coffie, is an exceptional fashion designer and a business oriented person. She holds various certificates in Business Administration, Marketing, NGO Governance and Export Promotion at the African Centre for Enterprise Development (ACED). She also holds a certificate in Governance and Leadership from the Leadership Resource and Strategic Consult. She established the Enterprise Training Centres for technical and vocational training in the Greater Accra and Ashanti Regions; founded the Excellence Assurance Academy for academic remedial sessions for both JHSs and SHSs in the country in 2006. She has been involved in the development of youth programmes for African countries such as Mali, Nigeria amongst others through the African Business Roundtable (ABR). She is a proud member of the African Business Roundtable for the past seven years.

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W

TheEm

powered

By Val Nichas, owner and managing director of VBN Consultants

oman

Modern women struggle with multiple roles and responsibilities. At work, they are expected to exercise leadership and be productive. At home, they are expected to be nurturing mothers, supportive wives, and caring daughters.

At the same time, national policies encourage women to have more children because of the declining birth rate.

W

ith all these demands, expectations, and responsibilities, it’s easy to get overwhelmed.

Yet, there seems to be a small but growing group of successful women leaders who have managed to find balance and alignment in all the disparate roles they need to juggle – the Empowered Woman.

“I MUST WIN.” or “I MUST BE RIGHT”. For me to win you must lose or for me to be right, you must be wrong.

Both mind-sets function from the premise of satisfying the ego – it doesn’t come from a powerful place where you first serve others or put the needs of the organisation above yours.

An Empowered Woman vs. a Superwoman

How Can Women Be The “Right You”?

An empowered woman’s happiness isn’t tied to any one role or identity; working professional or stay-home-mum.

Their happiness is connected to what makes them feel fulfilled or whether they are living out their purpose in life.

An empowered woman isn’t a superwoman; trying to do everything equally well in every area of their lives so that they will be considered successful. No, the empowered woman declares that she is a blessed, successful woman first. Because of that belief in an overflow of blessings in her life, she is able to give and contribute, becoming a blessing to others as well. Instead of building your life around working endlessly to pursue success, build your life around being the right you, the authentic you, and let success find YOU.

Being the right you is about authenticity. And the first step is to be aligned with who you are. As you align your strengths and purpose in life, other aspects of your life will fall into place effortlessly.

What Empowered Women Do Differently They understand that leadership doesn’t come from a title or position. They understand that leadership is influence and that the ability to influence others and be a leader is born out of leading themselves first. Empowered women think differently.

They know that there are three mind-sets to avoid if they ever want to gain credibility as leaders.

“I MUST BE COMFORTABLE.” Practicing self-leadership requires a woman to step up, and step out of her comfort zone.

If you are a junior executive, you may have to express your views in a meeting despite your natural tendency to keep your views to yourself.

As you expand the size of your comfort zone so too will you grow as a person.

“I MUST BE LIKED.” Seeking the approval of others or the other extreme – intentionally rebelling against others’ opinions in order to be liked is not purpose-driven, but opinion-driven.

These five questions will help you on your journey to discovering your purpose: 1. What do you do best? It could be natural talents or skills that you feel confident and at ease with.

2. What makes you feel good? What do you enjoy doing?

What makes you feel fantastic about yourself? When you engage in a particular activity, be aware of your response to that activity. Do you feel fulfilled, or is it merely something you do out of obligation?

3. Ask for feedback. Those who are closest to you know you best. They know how you will react to a situation, your highlights, and your blind spots. Try asking your spouse, family, working partners, or mentors to describe you in five words and they don’t have to be glowing testimonials to how fabulous you are! Ask them to be honest in their assessments.

4. Define and refine. Once you discover your purpose, it’s important to define and continuously refine your mission. Don’t expect changes overnight, because it will take some time to reap the benefits of the new you.

Ask yourself, if I am the CEO of my own organisation, would I follow me?

5. Set accurate priorities. Determine and define the most important things you need to accomplish each day. The first daily priority has to be you! Once you begin your days focusing on you, you gain clarity on how to align your day with your purpose and mission.

“I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies and had teas, but what I decided to do was to fulfil my profession, which I entered before my husband was in public life.” - Hillary Clinton

SECTOR FOREWORD Media Women in the media have come of age. There are not just a few significant women dotted about; they are now in most key positions and growing. Some own their own media companies who are forces to reckon with in the industry. However, industry experts say that there is still an under representation of women in this sector.

For instance, according to research company Media Tenor, women are remarkably underrepresented in both South African and global television news media with only 14% of the protagonists in the sector being female. Breaking the glass ceiling is not just a struggle for women in their professional development, but also transcends to their global relevance.

For breaking the glass ceiling in the media sector, CEO Global celebrates women in this sector. May their endeavours keep telling the story from a female perspective.

Regional

Winner

From Ghana

From Kenya

Edith Dankwa is the CEO of the Business Financial Times. Business Financial Times is Africa’s leading source of credible and relevant business information to the business community, policy makers, investors and the international community through their newspapers as well as other media forms and events. Edith is involved in the executive/strategic management of the Business and Financial Times organisation. Her responsibilities include administering the group’s business and/or day-to-day operation to be in line with the objectives, articles of association, policies, rules, regulations instructions and resolutions of the board of directors meeting and/or shareholders meetings. They also include managing the group’s business operations in line with the companies’ policies, business plans and budget, and to meet financial goals as approved by the board of directors and ensuring the group’s overall business growth in accordance with the objectives and business plans of the group.

Julie Gichuru is an entrepreneur and media personality with investments in media, fashion retail and entertainment sectors. Julie is an independent director on the boards of Brand KENYA board and Acumen Communications Ltd and is a Fellow and Trustee of the Africa Leadership Initiative EA. Julie’s career in the media over the past 15 years has seen her work across the fields of broadcast, print and digital media. Julie has also pioneered an impressive number of television shows, from the first Kenyan investigative TV series, The Inside Story on KTN to various current affairs shows at NTV including political and current affairs programs Showdown, On the Spot, You The Jury and The People’s Voice, and the celebrated news program Sunday Live and peace and reconciliation program Fist to Five at Citizen TV.

Edith Dankwa

Julie Gichuru

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Regional

Winners From Zambia

Faith Margaret Musonda Faith Musonda Chitulangoma was born in Lusaka, Zambia. She began her career in media and public speaking 15 years ago on the national broadcaster, Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC).

Faith received special training in Public Speaking and International Protocol from Jasper Alliance London Institute for Learning and is currently working as manager for the creative and promotions team at the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation.

Her professional interests focus on developing media content in business and financial markets locally and globally and her current projects include producing and presenting the Standard Chartered Banks’ Business Review TV programme which has featured numerous interviews on African Development Bank (AfDB) Projects in Zambia.

From Cameroon

Amy Ngwangunu Banda Youmbi Amy is CEO of AB Consulting, Above and Beyond challenges, conceives and implements vibrant and innovative ideas for change of mindset. Communicating for SABC (on their new product MANYAN), Asset Management Services Group, TAMCO, I Speak Languages and Shalom Biz, customers show satisfaction over timely services in Corporate Communication, Public Relations, Journalism and Digital Marketing. She organised Inspiring Moments with Amy in which women from all walks of life meet to inspire, celebrate and empower one another for growth. She organised the Phenomenal Series of discussions with influential, enlightened ladies willing to share their experiences with other women for empowerment. Amy provides leadership and vision to the youth and a cross section of individuals across the continent willing to keep the asset peace, by assisting with the development of short term and long range personal commitments.

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Country

Winner

From Zimbabwe Tsitsi Grace Madhodha

Tsitsi is the managing director of CMedia Africa. CMedia Africa is a Zimbabwean creative media production company, with a mandate to transform the media services industry by providing an unmatched quality service. CMedia is a strategic business unit under Celebration Ministries International. With studios that have been operational for seven years, CMedia has gained vast experience in the local and international media industry. Tsitsi holds a Bachelor of Media Studies degree (Public Relations and TV Production major), with over 10 years of experience in broadcasting and television production. Amongst other roles she has been in the management of CMedia since its inception in 2011.

Empowered Leadership

Insights from a

Corporate and Consulting

By Val Nichas, owner and managing director of VBN Consultants

Working for various corporates throughout my career and now working with corporates and SME’s, I reflect on patterns of doing business and my personal observations, and conclude that in every business environment (large or small, corporate or entrepreneurial) one finds the common denominator….people. All with similar habits, patterns and behaviours, regardless of the size of the organisation, industry of choice or nature of the business model.

The purpose of most ventures, revolve around people and relationships.

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ur primary focus is always the customer and how we strive to satisfy their needs and wants to deliver a product or service experience that generates a bottom line. Relationships with our sponsors, or company owners who we need to deliver value to, and our teams who we rely on to make it happen. Every one of these initiatives is simply about relationships and how well we thrive or fight to survive. These four themes encapsulate insights gained over the past years as a woman in business:

CONflict to CONversation As we all strive to deliver the best we can, pride and ego sometimes get in the way of constructive discussions.

In many teams we will observe personal agendas getting in the way of company deliverables. Sometimes to the extent where company values and good business practice are overshadowed by people’s inability to be humble. To know when it is time to say ‘we made a mistake’, ‘it was the wrong decision’, or ‘I am sorry’.

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The benefit and value of a courageous conversation is of critical importance. This ensures that the focus is on the facts and not on the people, it allows for the issue to be placed on the table and addressed in an adult manner. Courageous conversations allow for synergy to develop, for solutions to be found and for all parties involved, to maturely and unemotionally discuss and reach agreement.

Where there is no dialogue, there is no communication.

Where there is no communication there simply cannot be a relationship. This applies in all aspects of business: the need for communication and deep dialogue with our target market, regular contact with our team members and robust and strategic discussions with our executives.

Conversation can eradicate conflict every time and build sustainable and meaningful relationships.

INterrogate to INnovate Most brands that keep the lead in their respective industry/ category have a culture of innovation. They have a spirit

Empowered Leadership of trialling, testing and experimenting. They not scared to fail. They create a working environment and an innovation process that allows for creative thinking and new ideas to flourish. Innovation that impacts performance is focused on the customer. It is best designed from the customer point of view and ensures that new ideas, concepts or methods, make the customer’s journey more pleasant, meaningful and memorable.

Innovation can be a big step to change or a simple enhancement that adds value to the customer’s experience with your brand/company.

Innovation can include business process improvement, cost saving and customer added value and is often influenced by the changing operating environment, increasing use of technology and shifting consumer needs. Remaining curious and asking the right questions guarantees continuous improvement and the introduction of meaningful innovations.

are

WINdow Dressing to WINning In most businesses we work closely with business partners, associates and a network of suppliers and vendors. In the franchising industry, in particular, the relationship between the franchisor and franchisee is of paramount importance. The two are inseparable and rely on one another to succeed.

In essence the franchisor is the brand builder and the franchisee, the brand operator. Often in this relationship we see a power struggle and an element of mistrust. One or the other party might on occasion, try and ‘window dress’ and cover up instead of operating with absolute transparency and authenticity. Once both parties remember why they got into this franchise business relationship in the first place, and see the value of collaboration, consultation, and communication and the intention for a win-win result, there is no turning back.

Many franchise brands have succeeded with this mind-set, and window dressing to cover up bad business practice or poor decisions, is simply not entertained. The basis of any constructive negotiation, business venture and sustainable growth partnership, has to result in a fair win for both parties.

EXistence to EXpansion This insight focuses on the ordinary versus the extraordinary. Leaders, who set themselves apart from the conventional mundane operator, are the ones who expand their mind-set, who are constantly self-aware and strive to improve their leadership capability. These are the guys or women who are continuously learning, reading and exploring new channels to enhance their knowledge and understanding of business and team dynamics. These leaders are usually the transformational leaders that go beyond just managing a business and keeping it afloat.

These are the leaders who by expanding their minds, improving their skills and surrounding themselves with a

strong and capable team, have the ability to expand the business, increase market share and deliver shareholder value.

The drivers for expansion are leaders and companies that understand the value of courageous conversations, know the importance of keeping the lead through innovation and who thrive on winning amongst sustainable business partnerships and growth ventures.

These patterns of success are evident in dynamic corporates, medium sized teams as well as with an independent restaurant operator. These patterns revolve around the dynamism of people and relationships. Whatever we do in business has a human factor….thankfully!

On a personal note and from my own business experience, the learning has been immense and most valuable.

Surviving and thriving in any business environment has been underpinned by an ethic of hard work, creative thinking, collaboration and communication with customers, teams and suppliers. The personal reward and business results from these insights confirm that it’s all about authenticity and integrity in every business move you make.

Founder and originator of VBN Consultants in 2012, Val is a respected leader and visionary with solid business experience spanning nearly 30 years. Her career track record includes but is not limited to Marketing Director for Edgars and Debonairs Pizza; Senior Vice President (Company Strategy, Sales, Marketing & Innovation) Rich Products Corporation of S.A.; MD of Tequila/TBWA and Managing Executive of Wimpy, Steers and QSR Brands - the Famous Brands division responsible for over 600 Steers, Fishaways, Giramundo and Blacksteer stores.

Val has been involved in Executive Coaching since 2004 and it is her ability to develop and mentor high-performance individuals and teams that motivated her to start VBN.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Medical and Veterinary As the only health discipline with expertise across multiple species and ecosystems, veterinary medicine in Africa plays a vital role in protecting and enhancing human and animal life. Throughout the ages humans have depended on animals for service, food, and companionship. In modern times, animals have even played a crucial role in research settings where diseases are studied and drug therapies are developed.

Health care in Africa varies from the most basic primary health care, offered free by the state, to highly specialised, hi-tech health services available in the both the public and private sector. However, the public sector is stretched and underresourced in places. While the state contributes about 40% of all expenditure on health, the public health sector is under pressure to deliver services to about 80% of the population. The private sector, on the other hand, is run largely on commercial lines and caters to middle- and high-income earners who tend to be members of medical schemes. It also attracts most of the country’s health professionals.

Monsoon Photography would like to urge on the medical and veterinary professionals in this sector for they are the proverbial givers and nurturers of life in all its forms.

Regional

Winners

From Mauritius

From South Africa

Appadoo-Leelah Meera is the quality manager at Green Cross Medical Laboratory. As the quality manager she is responsible for the day to day operations of the clinical laboratory, including clinical, operational and financial procedures. She ensures that data results from the lab are accurate and that the personnel follows safety and quality assurance procedures, seeing to it that employees are properly trained and always complying with necessary rules and regulations. The skills required are a combination of analytical, communication and reasoning skills to accurately and efficiently run the laboratory. Prior to this position, she worked as an animal welfare officer and education coordinator who taught children and adults about compassion and the importance of being good and helpful to each other. She also worked in a brewing industry as a laboratory technician and then in a medical laboratory.

Regional and country winner Marissa Nel is the CEO of Marissa Nel and Associates. Marissa Nel & Associates is a full service orthotic and prosthetic facility, which endeavours to deliver the highest quality orthotic and prosthetic care to the physically challenged communities they serve. With 24 years’ experience in medical orthotics and prosthetics she has positioned Marissa Nel and Associates as a leading orthotic and prosthetic service delivery company. Her continuous commitment improves the quality of life of people with physical disabilities. She manages seven branches stretched throughout South Africa and Mauritius with a staff compliment of 43 team members. Her responsibilities includes, financial management, logistical planning, team development, human resource management and all marketing relating to the business whilst actively participating in patient care throughout South Africa, Mauritius, Malawi and Mozambique.

Appadoo-Leelah Meera

Marissa Nel

Regional

Winner

From Zimbabwe Pester Siraha

Pester Siraha is the Director of Programmes and External Relations, one of the key personnel for USAID project on improving family planning services. She is hard working, highly committed, results oriented, highly professional and an astute manager; leader; public health practitioner and was the interim country Director for PSZ for seven months.

She stabilised the organisation following the departure of the country director and deputy country director at the same time. She provided strategic guidance and direction for the programme for the period 2015-2020 strategic planning process. Pester has over 21 years’ experience working in the Zimbabwe public health system of which 12 years were with the development sector at senior management level and seven years at a city health department (public/ community health) with a special focus on sexual reproductive health.

From Ghana Dr. Lynda Decker

Lynda’s career and work have been dedicated to ‘the art of possibility’ in the Ghana health service context: bringing state of the art, consultative general medicine through a closely managed and carefully curated network of dedicated and best in class providers. Franklyn Medical Services provides premium clinical services, through a modern medical centre (Franklyn Medical Centre) and Health Services support for other practices through our Placement and Recruitment Services for health Professionals. From a humble start, she has created a sought after bespoke, patient centric and high touch clinical model with a connected ‘hub and spoke’ philosophy which provides seamless access.

Quality is in the detail Art is in the soul Michel Herbelin has for generations captured the spirit of French elegance and the innovation of Swiss Technology.

From the Newport Yacht Club Collection, a carefully crafted ladies Stainless Steel timepiece with Rose Gold PVD Plating featuring a Swiss Movement. Water Resistant to 100M. Luxco Importers | Tel 011 448 2210 | www.luxco.co.za

Want Ethical

Responses to a World of Trouble?

By Adrian Evans, member of the Law Institute of Victoria and the International Bar Association

Focus on Character

We read a lot these days about corruption, self-interest and personal tragedies. The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for the first time explicitly considers climate change as an ethical challenge. Increasingly, our globalised 24/7 cultures seem to offer little in the way of secular hope in the face of all this. Has it struck you how odd it is that most of us brighten at the thought of having children, when we know (or ought to know) that more kids (multiplied a gazillion times over) must mean most of them have little chance of having decent lives if we persist on our current course?

B

ut unless we have more or less given up and think mostly about My Kitchen Rules, the AFL or the next Netflix download, we cling to hope that a way will be found to survive it. Perhaps, somehow, common sense will prevail and world leaders will implement all sorts of things like significant renewable energy targets, first-rate education for girls and global health promotion, instead of exponential rises in spending on so-called personalised medication. What stands in the way of true progress here?

Obviously, a lot of interconnected and short-term selfinterests. This has always been so. So is it not naïve to think there might be a way of alleviating the global despair about what is turning into a race to find safe countries, safe currencies, safe water, and safe anything?

Character-Building Works Perhaps it is not naïve. Within overseas aid networks and countless United Nations Development Programmes, it has long been recognised that the so-called strength-based approach to human happiness works better than any other when the objective is sustainable change and development.

Such programmes grow the capacity of individuals and groups to decide for themselves to make real changes in their lives.

They take time and patience and involve interior, reflective changes, but they are there and working. They strengthen character by focusing on building the virtues of courage, resilience, compassion and integrity.

What has not been attempted so far is the extension of this proven approach into key wealth-creation and professional

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sectors – such as business management, law, medicine and education. The professional occupants of these sectors control what is developed, what resource is exploited, who benefits and who does not. Regardless of national governments, their members will also decide if we are ever to take planetary notice of the fact that our population is about to do the same as the Easter Islanders did to themselves.

If the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are to have any hope of success, we need to find a way of strengthening key professionals’ capacity to support sustainability rather than undermine it through tacit or overt participation in conflicts of interest, corruption, bribery and tax evasion, as well as the chaos of increasingly unstable economic cycles.

Have we fully accepted that the condoned greed of certain financiers, entrepreneurs and lawyers triggered the 2007-08 global financial crisis? Would the GFC have been less likely if the character of just some of those players had been intercepted earlier in their careers and reinforced with appropriate character-development initiatives? We already know how to strengthen personal character, thanks to the work in positive psychology of Christopher Petersen and Martin Seligman, among others. We know how to apply their insights in conventional aid and development environments.

Raise the Bar for Decision-Makers We try to train up managers, lawyers and medical professionals to be conscious of codes of ethics and all sorts of rules with, it seems, only some effect. But we don’t

Sustainability Perhaps, somehow, common sense will prevail and world leaders will implement all sorts of things like significant renewable energy targets, first-rate education for girls and global health promotion, instead of exponential rises in spending on so-called personalised medication

seriously attempt to build character capacity in those sectors where the most important and long-term global agendas are at stake. How would we strengthen personal character enough to deal with these humungous challenges? Are we, in fact, faced with a species-imperative need to regulate for character? That goal may be almost impossible unless a way is found to assess an individual doctor, lawyer or business manager in their progress towards character strengthening.

No such assessments have been developed, although most educators know that education without assessment is incomplete. No attempt has been made to develop a mechanism that strengthens and assesses personal character, as a condition of continued licensing.

We suggest education, testing and licensing for character as nothing less than a central priority in global sustainability.

Let’s develop exercises and psychological tests to energise character awareness and measure virtues in our future doctors, business managers, lawyers and educators. These tests or scales can be developed specifically to strengthen honesty, integrity and sensitivity to conflicts of interest and promote those who show, over time, that they can be trusted.

Some will say virtue cannot be assessed or that the process is oppressive, but that remains to be seen. Character regulation, in itself, appears to us as a fundamental sustainable development goal. It is perhaps the only one that will truly make a difference in the time we have left to act.

Co-authors: Cristina Neesham, Lecturer, Department of Management, Monash University; David Griggs, Director, Monash Sustainability Institute, Monash University; Helen Forgasz, Professor of Education, Monash University and Justin Oakley, Professor of Philosophy, Deputy Director Centre for Human Bioethics, Monash University. Source: The Conversation

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SECTOR FOREWORD Mining Since time immemorial, mining has long been the bedrock for many African economies. South Africa’s economy is a continental giant that it is because of the fruits that are contained in the underbelly of the country. The mining sector has taken a knock in recent years but industry players are confident that it will weather the storm.

According to Women in Mining South Africa, there are an increasing number of women joining the mining industry in South Africa.

However, the challenge is not to increase the number of women in mining due to historical target setting but because it makes good business sense and the mining industry has become a great place for women to work.

Many women have excelled in this sector of choice. They are richly blessed, much like our motherland and they want to exploit our mineral resources for the good of our communities, country and motherland.

CROSSROADS lauds all your efforts in this regard.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa Dikeledi Nakene

Dikeledi Nakene is the chief financial officer and ex officio board member of Palabora Mining Company Limited. She has previously served as chairperson of the audit committee for Food and Bev SETA. Dikeledi served as executive general manager of systems quality at Business Partners Limited She has 5 years of service experience. Ms. Nakene is a C.A. in South Africa and also a C.I.A. She holds a B. Comm (Accounting) Cum Laude (University of the North); B. Compt Honours (University of South Africa); and a Higher Diploma in Taxation Law (Wits).

In addition to this, she is a member of several professional organisations including the Institute of Internal Auditors and the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants. She is a country and regional winner.

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Sustainability

s

Success Insight

by Merilee Kern, MBA

from Maverick Mattres Busines

When a brand sets an entirely new benchmark, you know they’re on to something big. Very big!

This is the case with Nolah, an entrepreneurial, technology and cause-driven mattress company spurring a marketplace movement with a distinctive—and decidedly successful—business model that’s resonating in today’s modern, more empowered marketplace. This ‘sleeper’ turned industry pioneer is shaking up industry complacency, single-handedly changing both the way consumers shop for mattresses and the makeup of the merchandise, itself—all disrupting a stagnant and exorbitantly overpriced industry that, as Nolah asserts, “hasn’t seen any real ingenuity the past 40 years but has fleeced consumers with reckless, unmitigated abandon.”

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Sustainability

N

olah’s founding team, award-winning serial entrepreneurs and inventors Anna Hjoellund and Daniel Galle, first gained acclaim in Europe for inventing the first-ever washable silk filling for comforters and pillows called SilkFX. Their background in sleep material science, coupled with nearly 20 years of combined experience designing and marketing innovations in the sleep space, has resulted in sleeping products that have helped over 1 million happy customers worldwide rest easy.

In recent years, upon realising how confusing, inconvenient, expensive and risky the process of buying a mattress can often be for consumers, these

one of the following ‘pillars’ as important as the next in their bespoke business model mix. To inspire and inform other businesses similarly seeking to make waves in their respective industries, below is a breakdown of these six pillars that, in combination, are perpetuating Nolah’s remarkable grassroots success.

Pillar 1: Modernise for a Best-in-Class Solution impassioned inventors set out to “build a better bed.”

And so they did. They knew that, with their leading-edge proprietary materials, engineering methods and overarching expertise within the sleep products industry, and in tandem with their keen understanding of the modern-day consumer mindset, they could develop a foam mattress far superior to any other on the market and avail it to consumers in a far more convenient and cost effective format. And so Nolah was born; ushering in a brazen new breed of sciencebased, budget-friendly sleep technology solutions that are actually making the world a better place.

Nolah’s new-fangled approach for foam mattress provisioning largely utilises a six-part formula—with each

Nolah studied materials and approaches used for mattress manufacturing and determined the extent to which both latex and memory foam are outdated materials, entirely inferior to today’s most advanced foam technology.

This is a truth not largely known throughout the consumer marketplace, if at all. Being a technology-driven company, Nolah employed leading-edge tech to invent what they proffer to be the industry’s very best all-around foam mattress. After testing hundreds of foam formulations and mattress constructions through science-backed R&D, the company launched its flagship Nolah AirFoam mattress.

One primary distinguishing feature of this invention is that it’s fully 100% temperature neutral, since it doesn’t contain heat-sensitive ‘viscoelastic’ chemicals as every form of

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SECTOR FOREWORD Public Enterprises Creating the conditions to unlock the full potential of women to achieve their economic goals is a complex and difficult challenge.

At a macro level, there is significant potential to raise the labour participation rates of women across the continent. Unlocking the potential of Africa’s successful transformation requires concurrently removing barriers to women’s leadership and participation in state owned enterprises.

The development of the continent is inherently interlinked with the progress of its women. According to the African Development Bank, the continent must bring women on corporate boards through programmes to fast track women through middle and senior management in the private sector for us to break the glass ceiling. Kenya and South Africa already have government mandates for women’s representation on the boards of state-owned companies.

Although there are still very few women at the top in our state owned enterprises, they have represented their peers well. CEO Global thanks you for all your endeavours in the sector in this regard.

Regional

Winner

From Namibia

From South Africa

Patty Karuaihe-Martin is the managing director of Namibia National Reinsurance Corporation Limited. Prior to joining Namib-Re on 1 October 2014, Karuaihe-Martin served as the head of the project management office at tax reforms at the Ministry of Finance. Prior to joining the ministry of finance in 2013, she was a tax and advisory partner/ leader at Pricewaterhouse/Coopers Namibia. She has gained broad experience in internal audit and investigations through her exposure in the public and private sector over the past 23 years as well as having been a director at various organisations. She has been a director of Namibia Power Corporation (Proprietary) Limited since January 1, 2014. She has a BCom Accounting degree and two Honours BCom degrees specialising in accounting, auditing and tax obtained from the University of Western Cape and the University of KwaZulu Natal.

Ayanda Noah is the group executive for customer services at Eskom. She was the first woman in Eskom to head distribution, and was in this position for seven years. She is an electrical engineer by qualification. She joined Eskom in 1992 as an engineer-in-training and worked her way up the organisation, as opportunities became available. Ayanda states that she has been honoured to have been part of the team that brought electricity to millions of South African citizens. While she headed distribution, she led the team that electrified close to a million customers during her sevenyear period as the head of distribution. Ayanda was also key in delivering critical distribution infrastructure that facilitates economic growth, job creation and social transformation. She has been a finalist in the Business Woman of the Year Award in 2014.

Patty Karuaihe - Martin

Ayanda Noah

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&

Pros

Cons

of Online Shopping

There are numerous incredible purchases on the web, price comparison companies that help us bore down to the best costs, delivery and tax advantages, and the benefit of not needing to leave home. However now and then the deal that looks incredible misses the mark of what has been advertised. Imparting disappointment can be troublesome online versus retail purchase and regularly takes huge patience and tolerance to attain satisfaction.

T

his brings about challenges on whether should one stick to the traditional mode of shopping which entails a physical appearance at a retail store or should they rather takje the leap of faith and shop conveniently online and then deal with any ramifications later? It goes without saying that shopping online makes sense in this tech era. However, it becomes a bit trickier when one is shopping for electronics online. Here are few pros and cons of online electronics shopping:

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By Gaurav Gosain

Preferences of Shopping Online  Saves Time In the event that you know what you’re searching for, shopping online can save you a lot of time. With simply a couple of clicks of the mouse, you can submit your request and proceed onward to different things.  Cost Comparisons While shopping on the web, it is not difficult to do cost examinations for an electronic gadget. When you have figured out what you need to buy, you can check whether you are getting the best price with simply a couple of clicks. Also making it considerably simpler, there are many search engines particularly intended for price comparisons, and these sites will regularly even calculate and incorporate any transportation charges, so you get to look at the genuine, total expense of the thing.

Lifestyle

 Saves Fuel Fuel costs have been all over as of late, however regardless of how costly or cheap fuel may be at any given time, shopping online does not require any driving, so it doesn’t use any fuel, regardless of what the expense.  Bigger Inventory With online retailers, it is much less demanding to discover the electronic thing, model number, colour, style, and size you need. You can likewise rapidly figure out if the thing is “in stock” or not. Additionally, internet shopping does not limit you geographically- the pool of items and accessible stock for you to browse is bigger than those available to you by means of nearby retailers inside driving distance.  Shop All Day, Every Day Online stores are accessible 24-hours a day, seven days a week, for the duration of the year. The same case can’t be made by most (if any) retail stores.

Internet shopping permits you to shop electronics at whatever point you need, whenever the timing is ideal.  No Waiting At the point when buying online, there are no long lines that you are compelled

some patience after you submit your request, while you hold up for your request to be stuffed, transported, and delivered to you. Unless you are acquiring digital goods that can be “downloaded” promptly, you will need to hold up a couple of days for your request to arrive.  See It, Touch It, Feel It A few customers like to see and feel the electronic item, and to test it or attempt it before buying it. By really seeing the thing, and having the ability to physically feel and review the thing, the buyer can frequently make a significantly more sensible evaluation of the quality. This is hard to do on the off chance that you are simply taking a look at an online photograph of the thing.  Individual Data Some individuals are worried about the potential security dangers of putting away and offering of their individual information and Visa numbers with online retailers. While this danger is additionally an issue for local retail shops (and some security masters say a much more serious danger), numerous individuals feel that purchasing online is an included security hazard that they are simply not eager to take.  No Relationship and Support When you buy on the web, you seldom have the chance to assemble a relationship with the dealer. Then again, local retail shops are significantly more inclined to form relationship with their clients, basically on account of the individual interaction in the middle of purchaser and vender. Online help may be restricted, or even nonexistent, for things acquired on the web.

Online stores are accessible 24-hours a day, seven days a week, for the duration of the year. to remain in line just to make a purchase. Actually, when you buy on the web, your hold up time will essentially be the time needed to show the site ordering page.

Disadvantages of Shopping Online  Transportation Costs Unless you buy digital items, there will in some cases be an extra cost to ship your electronics. The delivery expense will regularly rely on upon the size and the weight of the electronic good. Numerous online retailers offer “free” delivery, yet just if the total cost of your order achieves a certain base sum. The extra shipping expenses can make the general cost of buying online, particularly for bigger and heavier things, a great deal less attractive than purchasing from a local shop.  Absence of Instant Gratification Unlike to retail shops, buying electronics online will oblige

 Defective Items At the point when attempting to deal with damaged things bought on the web, regularly the main choice is to pack the thing up and ship it again to the online retailer for a refund or exchange. What’s more the client is frequently in charge of any return transportation costs and the overall process is very time consuming.

These above disadvantages can be avoided if you choose to purchase your electronics goods from reputable online retailers. In an age where everyone is trying to make a fast buck on the back of a ‘lazy’ consumer, online shoppers must take extra care, especially when it comes to buying electronic gadgets which are wont to be defective and will need to fall under warranty for a certain lent of time after the purchase. It is always wise to make use of discount codes and shopping coupons to avail tempting deals and discounts on your electronics purchases.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Small, Medium & Large Enterprises According to a Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (STET) Women’s Report, an estimated 126 million women were starting or running new businesses in 67 economies around the world. In addition, an estimated 98 million were running established businesses. Across the regions, Sub-Saharan Africa exhibits the highest average intentions, with 52% of women possessing the intention to start a business in the next three years.

South Africa, however, still does have a long way to go when it comes to developing female owned businesses and entrepreneurs.

According to the GEM Women’s Report, the Total Entrepreneurship Activity rate in South Africa is rather low when compared to neighbouring African economies. The country needs to create an environment within South Africa which encourages females to embrace opportunities, develop successful businesses and see entrepreneurship as a viable career option.

For taking the entrepreneurship route less travelled into in the Small, Medium & Large Enterprises sector, sefa celebrates these brave lionesses.

May you serve as an inspiration to your peers and be the creators of employment.

Regional

Winner

From Uganda

From Kenya

Annette Ayamba is a teacher by profession; she practised and went further to lecture at a university, but she was not content. There was a longing within her to do and achieve much more.

She wanted to create jobs and live a better life.

She decided she would not just sit around and wait for a miracle. She moved to Kampala, ready to bring her dream to reality. The now-established businesswoman says she did not give up. She had done the maths and had come to discover that she could make money out of her new venture.

Being a teacher, Ayamba did not think she was good enough to carry out business exceptionally well. She, therefore, studied and acquired skills such as book-keeping, marketing and human resource, among others.

Jennifer Nafula Barassa is the founder and chief executive officer of Top Image Ltd, the leading below the line advertising agency in East Africa with a presence in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Cote D’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Cameroon, Benin, Niger, Zambia, South Sudan, Nigeria Guinea Conakry, Senegal and Congo Brazzaville and soon to be in South Africa. Jennifer is an innovative and resultsdriven leader focused on achieving exceptional results in highly competitive environments that demand continuous improvement. Jennifer is an accomplished marketing and advertising professional and entrepreneur with over 36 years progressive experience, of these 30 years have been at senior management level and with board experience at National Council of Women of Kenya (NCWK), Kenya Women Finance Trust (KWFT), Organization of Women in International Trade (OWIT) and Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCC&I) among others.

Annet Ayamba

Jennifer Nafula Barassa

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Regional

Winners From Cameroon

Ngo Yetna Augustine Audrey Chicot Audrey Chicot is studied in Douala and attended secondary school at ESC and TC BONADOUMBE where she began to mark the life of her country by becoming the first woman cooperative president in school at 16 years. After she obtained her advanced level in accounting, she completed several training courses in mechanic manufacturing which permitted her together with the help of her husband to open MSMI in 2003 that exists today as the leading sector manufacturing and maintenance of industrial materials in Cameroon. Today she is the only female entrepreneur of this sector in Cameroon. She was invited to participate in various forums notably PROMOTE(Cameroon 2009-2014), welcome EUROPE (2014-2015), UNIVERSITIES OF GICAM (Cameroon 2014.2015), JICA (Japan in February, September 2015), HANOVER MEETING(Germany 2015), Green energy show (Israel 2015), MIDEST(France 2014.2015), JIA (2014.2015) and PMEXCHANGE(2015).

From Ghana

Karen Evans Halm

Karen is an entrepreneur graced with creative, communication and organisational leadership abilities. She is a product of Aburi Girls’ Secondary School, where she studied visual arts and received multiple prizes including Professor Allotey’s special prize for excellent performance in mathematics during her senior secondary school education. She continued to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, where she studied architecture for six years, graduating in 2005 with BSc. Hons., Architecture and a Post-graduate Diploma in Architecture. Karen further pursued a Master of Science Degree in Architecture conducting a detailed research into the Urban Landscaping of the central business district of Accra gleaning some lessons from Singapore where she stayed for weeks to gather relevant and authentic data. She taught interior design, computer aided design and landscape architecture at the Central University College for four years.

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From South Africa Nisha Maharaj

Nisha Maharaj is the managing director of Niche Integrated Solutions Pty Ltd. The company is a woman owned and run with the executive team possessing more than 25 years of senior exco experience in ICT and financial services.

They purposely have a team of women ownership and management to make a statement in the technology field which is otherwise dominated by men. Not only do they have a company in ICT, but they now also have a startup company in furnishing and décor, and create the most radical furniture at a cost that is conducive to South Africa.

The company has less than six employees because it started off with no funding and IT resources are too expensive. They therefore use consultants as opportunities arise.

From Mauritius

Marie Pascale Sandy Sharon Marion Marie is the AgencePresse Media Ltd. Director. AgencePresse Media is a local company which has been in existence for 10 years. The business is divided into two poles: web and communication. They are the pioneers of community management in Mauritius. As director of an SME, Marie brings along her various working experiences in Mauritius and Madagascar. She shares skills and knowledge, values and beliefs with her team. “Without the people we cannot grow, without hard work and dedication we cannot progress. That humility is the best of strategies that we should always share what is given to us. We do not have customers, we only have business partners,” she says.

The organisation has four dedicated staff members spread across the business units.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa Adv Fariyal Mukaddam

The chief executive officer of 4AX – 4 Africa Exchange Adv Fariyal Mukaddam is a winner in the Financial Services sector. As the CEO, her sphere of oversight encompasses all areas of the business. She says a CEO is responsible and accountable to ensure that the business is established and operating in a manner which delivers returns to the shareholders. She adds that leaders are no longer measured according to the financial performance of the entity only, but are also required to report on other aspects such as those affecting people (internally and externally) and planet.

Starting up a stock exchange, and committing to do so in a sustainable manner in an emerging market is not an easy task. Obviously, the technical skills required are not negotiable, she notes.

From Ghana Awurabena Okrah Awurabena Okrah is the chief executive officer of Winglow Clothes and Textiles. Her new business idea, Winglow Fashion Academy, offering convenience, flexible, innovative modular short courses will address a great interest that many Ghanaians have, to learn to sew. Traditional apprenticeship and other existing fashion and technology training modules take one to three years. This makes it impossible in their current time -conscious, money- seeking world, for those interested to learn this trade to make time to do. She also identified the need for more creativity in Ghanaian embroidered clothes during her ‘Made in Ghana’ fashion export campaigns.

Regional

Winner From Zambia

Namucana Catherine Musiwa Namucana Catherine Musiwa is the chief executive officer of Career Prospects Limited. Career Prospects Limited (CPL) is a human resource (HR) consultancy firm that specialises in the recruitment of staff in executive, support, and artisan positions. The organisation also provides advice on HR matters and labour legislation. In addition, CPL also provides staff training in Customer Care, Supervisory Skills, Total Quality Management, Labour Laws, Performance Management, Negotiation Skills, Collective Bargaining, Secretarial Skills and Team Building. CPL is the pioneer, in Zambia, of a course entitled human resource management skills for non-HR managers.

CPL has earned itself a place in the Zambian labour market as an institution that designs professional CVs and provides interview coaching services.

Country

Winners

From South Africa Grace Mumo Mlimo

Grace Mlimo is an entrepreneur providing a gateway to showcase Africa’s luxury brands on the continent. She is the chief executive officer of Luxuria Lifestyle Africa. Positioned as the gateway for luxury brands in Africa, the Luxuria Lifestyle Africa online digital platform gives luxury brands and service providers of luxury across Africa an opportunity to list their brand and showcase their offering on an international online platform that is represented in eight regions globally, giving brands maximum exposure. “Africa is underserved with international luxury brands, yet Africans have risen to be consumers of luxury internationally, travelling far and wide seeking for luxury outside of the continent,” she states. Grace is a country and regional winner.

Country

Winner From Kenya Munira Twahir

Munira Twahir is the CEO of Inteco Kenya which deals with sanitary pad distribution to allow women a flexible, convenient and accessible purchase of a single sanitary pad. Munira is in charge of Strategy Conception and Implementation. She also assists in product innovation and logistics. She has a background in business administration and is an advocate for open discussions in sexual reproductive health issues through school meet ups and introduction of sexual reproductive health providers. Armed with a business proposal and a lot of enthusiasm, she began knocking on doors trying to get investors aboard.

From Ghana

Harmony Seyram Attise Harmony is the founder and CEO of Commec Ghana Ltd. The company provides exclusive small business solutions to start-ups and growing businesses. As the CEO of Commec Ghana Ltd, she oversees and delivers the company’s performance, considers key business decisions for the future of the organisation, provides proper resources for the organisation, ensures that the company has appropriate systems to enable it conduct its activities both lawfully and ethically, while also ensuring effective internal controls and management. She is also active in ensuring that the company maintains high standards of corporate citizenship and social responsibility wherever it does business.

From Ghana

Mary Naa Adoley Bruce Mary is involved with an innovative business. As a result of the high cost of gold and silver, Cazabella creates exciting new opportunities for affordable alternatives like Swarovski, Qubic zi rconia, Rhinestone, Mother-of-Pearls and Black Onyx. Designs are not repeated and the jewellery are far more affordable than gold and silver.

The business is targeted at the middle class and upwards, corporate organisations, as well as people who have an eye for beautiful things and have disposable income. Products are not sold on a retail basis but rather on a direct marketing basis.

Country

Winner From Ghana Sheila Azuntaba

Prior to setting up Innovative Finance Ltd (now Innovative Microfinance Ltd), Sheila Azuntaba was an Assistant Vice President of Citigroup’s Global Transaction Services Unit in Nigeria where she was responsible for the marketing and sales unit. In her role, she developed the various marketing and sales models, new products and services and tailored them to suit the Nigerian market. Sheila with her experience in originating and executing various deals and developing relationships with top tier corporate’s, has provided her with valuable industry insight and experience.

Sheila has an MBA in Finance from The Strathclyde Business School, Glasgow and a BA (hons) in marketing from the University of Westminster, London. Sheila currently resides in Ghana, and plays an active role as CEO in the dayto-day management and operations of Innovative Microfinance Limited.

From Ghana

Mary Naa Adoley Bruce Mary is involved with an innovative business. As a result of the high cost of gold and silver, Cazabella creates exciting new opportunities for affordable alternatives like Swarovski, Qubic zi rconia, Rhinestone, Mother-of-Pearls and Black Onyx. Designs are not repeated and the jewellery is far more affordable than gold and silver. The business is targeted at the middle class and upwards, corporate organisations, as well as people who have an eye for beautiful things and have disposable income.

Products are not sold on a retail basis but rather on a direct marketing basis. Mary understands the challenge people face when trying to become financially independent and her business provides job opportunities to young women, unemployed graduates, housewives and corporate women.

Nothemba Gqiba, Head of Marketing and Communications at the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (sefa).

Mission:

Enterprise Finance Ltd and the small business activities of the Industrial Development Corporation. It is tasked with fostering the establishment, survival and growth of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and Cooperatives and facilitating poverty alleviation and job creation.

To ensure that sefa products are relevant and serve the market they are intended for, many innovative products such as customised loans for disabled entrepreneurs have been introduced to cater for the diverse market.

Outreach programmes to educate stakeholders on how to access finance are held nationally. Invitations to these sessions is mainly done through business chambers and local economic structures to ensure that all entrepreneurs have access to information. sefa further takes an advantage of all the platforms given, like invitations to exhibit or

Job Creation Nothemba Gqiba who is the head of Marketing and Communications at the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (sefa) believes that the agency will continue to bring hope to entrepreneurs with viable business plans but had lost hope in taking those ideas beyond a concept phase due to the lack of funding.

A

s funders of last resort, sefa is committed to ensuring that SMMEs and Cooperatives that qualify for business loans have access to funding to start or grow their existing businesses. The products offering covers loans up to R5 million and, the agency continues to introduce new products to respond to the needs of the market.

“Before applying for a sefa loan, entrepreneurs need to have well researched ideas and put together a strong business plan that can be funded. It is important to instil a sense of hope and to communicate clearly to the enterprise what is needed to have their application successful”, says Nothemba.

The agency was established in April 2012 as a result of a merger between the South African Micro Apex Fund, Khula

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address entrepreneurs. The community media is also utilised so as to reach out to the grassroots levels.

“I must acknowledge though that this is not true for everyone. Our rural communities are still struggling to access information and opportunities. Information does not travel as swiftly as we would like and, that is a serious challenge we are faced with”, concludes Nothemba.

Nothemba Gqiba has been in the financial development sector for more than 10 years. She was first introduced into the sector under SAMAF (South African Micro Apex Fund) where she headed up their Marketing and Communication Unit from inception till the merger into sefa. She now heads marketing and communication at sefa since 2012.

Lifestyle

Trends

Key Life Insurance

by Merilee Kern, MBA

New laws, emerging technology, fiscal uncertainty and changing marketplace perceptions are making big impacts on the life insurance industry, changing the landscape for employee benefit programmes and end consumers in many ways. This includes everything from how both group and singular policies are obtained and the way applications are filled out to how quickly group and individual coverage can be acquired to evolving rules surrounding drill down topics like marijuana procurement and use.

“G

iven the copious complexities, far too many businesses put off offering, and individuals from ultimately buying, life insurance or revising a current plan,” says field authority Brian Greenberg, founder and President of the innovation-driven TrueBlueLifeInsurance.com agency. “Frustrations include high premiums and a glut of red tape among the reasons many shy away from presenting, purchasing or modifying a policy.

However, some key common barriers and challenges that once blocked shoppers from securing great employee group or individual coverage benefits with ease—and at affordable prices—are a thing of the past. Other changes impact one’s ability to garner coverage at all.”

Specifically on both fronts, here are Greenberg’s top five trends affecting life insurance consumers internationally—be they business owners, employee benefit managers or endusers, as well as life insurance agents, themselves:

No Medical Exam Policies Gain Ground Amid Enhanced Access and Affordability No medical exam policies have always been popular, but consumers traditionally paid from 20 to 50% more than they would for policies requiring a medical exam. But no more, as equitably priced options are entering the market. As just one example, Savings Bank Life Insurance Company (SBLI), one of the most competitively priced term life insurance carriers, recently came out with a no medical exam option at the same exact price as their fully underwritten policies in the USD500

AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

Lifestyle

000 and below bracket.

As many other major insurance companies follow suit, the rest of the industry is realising a “domino effect” whereby those offering no medical exam policies are lowering their prices in this same USD500 000 and below bracket in order to compete. In addition, no exam policies are being issued least 50% faster than those requiring a medical exam, safeguarding consumer interests at a more expeditious pace.

Life Insurance Companies Engage In More Extreme Vetting Especially without the benefit of a medical exam, insurance companies are looking to other sources for information as they consider a new policy application. In addition to vetting practices like checking the prospective insured’s motor vehicle department report, Medical Insurance Bureau (MIB) report and pharmacy report, there’s another somewhat surprising background information source insurance companies are utilising: a credit report.

In greater numbers, life insurance companies are running financial checks with the mind-set that a person’s financial background is a major factor in their life expectancy. Credit score, bankruptcy and tax liens are some of the fiduciary factors that can cause an application to either be declined outright, or to result in a policy being issued at a higher premium. When insurance companies can access a more holistic information set that includes financial records, they can make far quicker underwriting decisions—for better or for worse.

On the upside, this is increasing the incidence of same day policy turnaround. Industry-leading life insurance outfits like North American Life Insurance Company, Mass Mutual and Fidelity are now offering applicants same day issue life insurance policies, and this year yet more companies will be making instant underwriting decisions for prospective customers.

Aside from the ease and instant gratification benefits in general, this is especially good news for those who need life insurance quickly—whether to secure a business loan, finalise a divorce, or other financial or legal reason. As underwriters have become more resourceful in gathering applicant data and with intra-industry technologies allowing them to analyse and process that data more efficiently and accurately, agents are enabled to provide streamlined services to customers—a trend that’s fiscally benefitting the marketplace and the trade, alike.

Medical Marijuana A Non-Issue The legalisation of medical and recreational marijuana in

several states is causing major changes in how life insurance companies rate and cover applicants. While ratings and premiums vary among insurance companies, overall there is a strong trend toward not rating marijuana users—whether medical or recreational—the same way as they do cigarette smokers. This is great news for marijuana users, since insurance rates for smokers basically double or even triple the cost of life insurance. As one noteworthy example, Prudential Life Insurance Company now regards marijuana, especially prescription-based, the same as any other type of medication. Their ratings are based on a person’s underlying health condition rather than this, or other, treatment course.

The key point to remember is that life insurance companies are looking at a given health condition, not the medication used to treat the condition. This means that, especially with marijuana-friendly life insurance companies, you could conceivably use marijuana without it impacting your ability to obtain great ratings by life insurance carriers.

However, keep in mind that not disclosing marijuana use that turns up in a urine sample you’re required to supply will usually cause a decline in rating.

Ageism Is No Longer a Barrier to Entry Don’t make the mistake of thinking that once you’re past a certain age, you can no longer get affordable life insurance.

Regulators have revised life-expectancy projections - known as mortality tables - for the first time since 1980. A man who is 40 years old today can expect to live to be 78, not 73, as was the expectation 25 years ago. Because of this, an 80-year-old male can get a 10 year term policy and an 85-year-old can still get a fully underwritten whole life policy.

As we get older we experience more medical issues.

Anyone over 50 or someone with known medical issues can work through an experienced agent to handle their life insurance needs. This agent will contact underwriters of multiple insurance companies to discuss the nuances of your particular application before applying in order to avoid the client being declined or adversely rated in the MIB. This agent-driven process also allows for insurance companies to compete against each other to get the best rate. An independent agent or brokerage can also best ensure flexibility and customised service.

Policyholders Leveraging Life Insurance Plan Benefits While Still Alive Today’s new living benefits riders enable you to use your

Lifestyle life insurance policies while you are alive. For example, the accelerated death benefit rider allows you to use up to 75% of your coverage amount if you have a terminal illness. The chronic illness rider allows you to use up to 90% of the policy’s death benefit if you are unable to perform two of the six daily living requirements of bathing, continence, dressing, eating, toileting, and transferring. This is very similar to a Long Term Care Policy. There is also a critical illness rider which allows you to use up to 90% of the death benefit of your policy if you suffered a critical health condition such as cancer, heart attack, stroke, a major organ transplant, end stage renal failure, ALS, blindness, or paralysis of two or more limbs.

Life insurance companies realise people are living longer. This is good news for everyone. No longer are great benefits only for the young or for those willing to pay high premiums and jump through multiple hoops. The insurance industry has listened and has responded to the needs of the consumer in order to streamline the application process and deliver benefits that make sense. Now not only can you get life insurance at any age, but you can also enjoy those benefits during your lifetime. It doesn’t get much better than that.

“While some of these new benefits are wonderful, they are still very new,” Greenberg underscores. “State regulators are still reviewing some of these benefits and some of them may even be required for free in some states, like California. For example, waiver of premiums

Especially without the benefit of a medical exam, insurance companies are looking to other sources for information as they consider a new policy application. due to disability has been under scrutiny in various regions. So, it’s important to capitalise on these benefits while they are in play. Gaining access to insurance benefits while the insured is living stops unscrupulous businesses from buying insurance policies from sick people for pennies on the dollar. Using life insurance to fund long term care is a great idea for some, though an estate planner can advise regarding the best solution based on personalised needs. Accelerated death benefits, chronic illness riders, and critical illness riders are outstanding considerations and should be discussed.”

No matter if you’re a business seeking group coverage, a consumer desiring an individual policy or a life insurance agent seeking to sell, today’s modernised life insurance processes and policies are far more accessible, affordable and adaptable than ever before, as well being quicker and easier to transact. Industry enhancements and innovations are transforming the life insurance landscape at a rapid pace, largely with a warm reception by all.

Sources: Mountain Club of Uganda, Uganda Tourism Board, Ugandan Wildlife Authority

SECTOR FOREWORD Sport Africa’s women in sport and sportswomen, have for decades, been given the crumbs of sport administration, funding and sponsorship and media allocation by those who control the sport industry and all its mechanics of operation. Sportswomen have complained and spoken out against gender inequalities and discrimination. However, the voices are too few and too soft.

Sportswomen the world over are increasing their voice against gender inequality in sport, against the crumbs dished out to sportswomen, against the battles encountered by women in sport while men in sport receive huge sponsorship pay-outs and salaries Against the backdrop of such a dire state of sector affairs, there are women who keep at their craft with the sole aim of achieving glory.

For keeping at your craft regardless of the unconducive industry conditions, CEO Global commends the winners in this sector.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa

From Mauritius

Dr Melanie Jacobs is the past first vice president of Jukskei South Africa as well as the regional and country winner in the Sport sector. She has been a participant in Jukskei for more than 50 years, as player, later administrator and then a member of the Executive Committee. Her responsibilities were to initiate the development of the Jukskei SA (JSA) Academy and then specifically develop material to train officials and participants. During the past 25 years she has served on various task teams and committees to design and develop material to enhance the sport Jukskei. She represented the JSA team in Bangkok at the World Traditional Sport and Games in 1996, and served Jukskei SA on several tours to Namibia as the senior coach, and tours to the United States of America and Tafisa World Conference.

Iana Vroublevskaia de Morelos is a Director and coach at SportDance Ltd. In 2012 SportDance Ltd was created in the absence of a Gymnastics Federation in Mauritius, She was employed to promote and develop a new to Mauritius discipline − Rhythmic Gymnastics which was non-existent prior to her arrival. During 2012-2015 she implemented and completed the following objectives and tasks: preparation and presentation of the business plan to develop Rhythmic Gymnastics in Mauritius to the Ministry of Sport and Olympic Committee; research and analysis of the current situation of female sports in Mauritius and sport facilities that could accommodate gymnastic disciplines as well as meetings with teachers and owners of existing local schools of classical and modern dance.

DR Melanie Jacobs

Iana Vroublevskaia de Morelos

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Country

Winner

From South Africa Dorah Vuyelwa Mngwevu

Dorah Vuyelwa Mngwevu is Athletics South Africa/ Lasa/ Department of Justice Constitutional and Development board member and court interpreter respectively. She says that her primary role is to present a good image of the brand on the field and off the field. “I always place my duties first when resolving problems of the most affected within athletics, and advocate good governance of my sporting code,” she says. Dorah is a country winner who says her wish would be to see more female sportspersons participate in more sporting disciplines and that “athletics is an individual sport but we play together hence team spirit is important”.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Tourism and Leisure South Africa is one of the top leisure destinations in the world. With its rich diversity and culture, and picture perfect scenery, the country has a lot to offer avid travellers. Every year, the spotlight falls on the tourism sector and focuses on its social, cultural, political and economic value.

Tourism contributes about 9% to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and it contributes to job creation. These are the two critical areas of the sector’s contribution. Going forward, the Department of Tourism would like to contribute half a trillion rand into the South African economy and create an extra 225 000 jobs by 2020. These targets were set in the National Tourism Sector Strategy (NTSS), which aims to position South Africa as one of the top 20 tourism destinations globally by 2020.

With efforts from the winners in this sector, The Premier Hotel OR Tambo believes that the targets set by the Department of Tourism are well within reach. We commend you.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa

From Tanzania

The country and regional winner in the Tourism and Leisure sector, Wendy-Ann Alberts is the chief executive officer of the The Restaurant Association of South Africa. The Restaurant Association of South Africa is a leading organisation in the food and beverage sector, successfully managed under her leadership and mentorship. She has in-depth knowledge on every conceivable aspects of food, restaurants, franchising and pure people and she business development in the hospitality sector has played a major role in the success of RASA. Wendy promotes a pro-restaurant agenda on critical restaurant issues like smoking, liquor legislation, food safety, and employment practices. Through their members Wendy diligently engages and tackles anti-restaurant initiatives while promoting responsible business practices within the same.

Wendy is unquestionably passionate about and dedicated to her role.

Mary Kalikawe is the managing director of Kiroyera Tours Ltd. Formerly unknown on any tourist map, Mary invited tourists and locals to visit nearby islands, ancient rock paintings, spice farms, waterfalls, scenic beaches and various cultural attractions in Bukoba. In order to expand income generation and create more jobs she linked and took tourists from Bukoba to visit Tanzania premier attractions of Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Mt Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar as well as the Gorillas in Uganda. She influenced the Tanzania Tourist Board of which she had become a board member, to celebrate World Tourism Day 2006 at national level in Bukoba town. This opened the door for Bukoba to get recognition as a tourist destination in Tanzania. She was invited to work with the Dutch organisation SNV to develop tourism around Lake Victoria in Tanzania from 2008 to 2010.

Wendy-Ann Alberts

Mary Consolata Kalikawe

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Regional

Winners From Uganda Irene Nalwoga

Irene Nalwoga is an entrepreneur, with strong quantitative and qualitative skills. Beginning initially at technician level, Irene’s progress and urge to do better is very big. She resigned from the bank to start up her own companies in Uganda at the age of 25 years.

She has continuously worked hard, faithfully served her clients and kept a very good team at Renewills Tours and Travel, and Women Tour Uganda. Irene believes that if you are to get something in this world you have to work hard for it. She has excellent communication, analytical, organisational skills. Above all she is highly self-motivated, smart, hardworking and a great team player to promote organisational excellence and career development through high performance. She is a country and regional winner in the Tourism and Leisure sector.

From Seychelles Daniella Payet-Alis

A well-known face and name in the tourism industry for over 32 years, Payet-Alis is the Director of four companies based in Seychelles, France and United Kingdom. She has been Vice Chairman of the Seychelles Hospitality Tourism Association (SHTA) in 2005 and 2012 to 2014. Payet-Alis is responsible for the Creation of Travel Agencies in Africa – France in the 1980’S to 1990’s and has set up her own travel agency in France and then became a tour operator specialised on the Seychelles destinations on the French speaking market in Europe in the 1990’s. She is actively involved in the marketing of her family’s three Hotels de Charme running in Seychelles and also manages an Online Central Reservation dedicated for the Seychelles destination.

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Country

Winner

From Kenya Jane Macharia-Gituto

Jane Macharia- Gituto is the Managing Director, Shian Tours & Travel Ltd. Shian Tours and Travel Limited strive to provide you with superior service which makes for a truly memorable trip. Jane set up a tours and travel agency in October 2003 with a starting capital of Sh300 000 and one employee. With her wealth of experience in the airline industry where she rose through the ranks to serve as sales manager at Air France, she was determined to be her own boss. This is how Shian Travel was born, a firm that offers ticketing, tour packages and travel solutions. The business now grosses more than Sh500 million in revenues, has employed 18 people and has two offices in Nairobi and another in Thika. She is a regional and country winner.

Lifestyle

by Carl Wepener

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5

BMW

Series:

An elegant athlete

Lifestyle

The seventh generation of the BMW 5 Series Sedan will cut a sporty, elegant and stylish figure Already the BMW 5 Series is walking away with accolades worldwide and I do not foresee that it will be any different in South Africa. The new BMW 5 Series Sedan therefore has all the tools it needs to continue the remarkable success recorded by its predecessors; around 7.9 million BMW 5 Series cars were sold across its first six generations. I’m in no doubt that the new BMW 5 Series will set new benchmarks technologically, but also have huge emotional appeal. It remains the epitome of the business sedan,” says Harald Krüger, Chairman of the Board of Management at BMW AG.

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he changes made, especially the automated driving advancements are on the forefront of technology. Cosmetic changes has taken a back seat and I can only really see the difference in models when the outgoing model is parked next to the new model. The interior is also updated, modern but not very different from the previous model and the technology is where the real differences are found.

Driving the different cars is as expected, only different in its performance as they are all luxury premium vehicles.

The new 5 Series is aimed at the executive, hands on person, who likes his or her luxuries but enjoys driving themselves. Thus the new 5 is focussed around excellence and enjoyment for both the passengers and especially the driver. With its technological advances I have found most of the systems, as tried, simpler to understand and to work and was amazed at the intelligent start stop function of the models. A wealth of assistance systems are on hand in the new BMW 5 Series to offer the driver unbeatable support – not only at critical moments but also in less demanding situations at the wheel, such as traffic jams, slow-moving traffic and monotonous stretches of highways. To this end, it is fitted as standard with a stereo camera, which teams up with optional radar and ultrasound sensors to monitor the area around the car. New features in the BMW 5 Series alongside the evasion aid and Crossing traffic warning are the Lane keep assist with active side collision protection. The latter keeps an eye on the lane markings and the area around the car, and actively helps the driver to avoid looming collisions by applying corrective steering inputs. The BMW 5 Series also takes another step towards automated driving with extended functions for the optional Active Cruise Control (ACC) system and Steering and lane control assist. These include adoption of speed restrictions, which drivers can select as part of the Speed Limit Assist option. Drivers can confirm adoption of a speed restriction and make an adjustment of +/– 15 km/h in the system settings. From rest to 210 km/h the car assists the driver with distance-keeping, accelerating, braking and lane control. This increases comfort significantly – in particular at low speeds and in slow-moving traffic on clogged up highway sections. The intelligent Auto Start Stop function now adjusts its responses to the route as well as traffic conditions and therefore offers even greater driving comfort.

The new BMW 5 Series is equipped with the latestgeneration iDrive system. In top specification, it displays navigation, telephone and entertainment features, plus vehicle functions, on a high-resolution 10.25-inch screen.

The system can be operated using the iDrive Controller, by voice command or gestures, or by touching the display controls directly, as the driver wishes. The large, tile-style panels can be arranged as desired and show the content of the underlying menus in constantly updated form.

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All headlight variants specified for the BMW 5 Series Sedan come as standard with LED technology. Available as an option are Adaptive LED Headlights with variable light distribution including adaptive roundabout lights and BMW Selective Beam anti-dazzle high beam with a range of up to 500 metres.

The new BMW 5 Series also offers a compelling proposition in terms of connectivity. Extensive BMW ConnectedDrive features are joined by new services which lavish business travellers with extra comfort and save them time. These include the optional Park Assist, which parks the vehicle automatically. The optional Remote Parking system allows the BMW 5 Series Sedan to be manoeuvred into even the tightest parking spaces remotely using the car key. And smartphone integration has been further improved – from Apple CarPlay (which, in a first for a carmaker, has been incorporated fully wirelessly) to inductive phone charging.

Although fuel consumption is not near to what the manufacturers claimm it is near, if not the best, in its class.

My average consumption on the 3 litre diesel was an average of 7.7 litres per 100kms and that is with fast and aggressive driving. The pearl of the 5 Series is the BMW 520d with fuel consumption of 5.9 litres per 100kms. Being in any of the models is pure pleasure and every expectation is met. I loved the power of the 530d but enjoyed the silence and the agility of the 520d. What also surprised me was that the BMW 530d was cruising at 160kph and the revolutions of the engine registered 2000 revolutions per minute.

The highlights of the BMW 5 Series are:  The new BMW 5 Series model range is the seventh generation of the world’s most successful business sedan.

AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

 Slight increase in exterior dimensions to 4,935 millimetres in length, 1,868 millimetres in width and 1,466 millimetres in height. Generous feeling of space with greater headand legroom in the rear and more boot space (530 litres).  BMW EfficientLightweight construction concept lowers the vehicle weight by up to 100 kilograms over the outgoing model.  A drag coefficient as low as Cd = 0.22 sets the sedan benchmark.  Driving dynamics unmatched in its class, thanks to features including Integral Active Steering.  All models send their power as standard through an eightspeed Steptronic automatic transmission with optimised internal efficiency and a gear-change strategy assisted by navigation data.  Exceptional display/operating concept; latest-generation iDrive system with 10.25-inch touchscreen. Vehicle systems operated using the controller, touchscreen, voice commands or BMW gesture control. Large control tiles display the content of the underlying menus in constantly updated form and can be arranged as the user desires.  Full-colour third-generation BMW Head-Up Display with 70 per cent larger, high-resolution projection surface.  Other new assistance functions like the Crossing traffic warning and Lane Keep Assist with active side collision protection. Networked BMW vehicles flag up approaching dangers.  Display Key enables functions such as remote-controlled parking to facilitate the use of very tight parking spaces.  LED daytime driving lights come as standard. Adaptive LED Headlights with variable light distribution and BMW Selective Beam anti-dazzle high beam with a range of up to 500 metres are available as an option.

 New interior acoustic concept including sound absorbers integrated into the headliner and acoustic glazing for the windscreen.  Optional multifunction seat with 20 air chambers offers eight massage programs.  Fully wireless integration of smartphones via inductive charging.

Model variants at market launch: February 2017.

BMW 530i: Four-cylinder petrol engine, eight-speed Steptronic transmission.

Capacity: 1,998cc.

Output: 185 kW at 5,200 – 6,500 rpm.

Maximum torque: 350 Nm at 1,450 – 4,800 rpm.

Acceleration (0–100 km/h): 6.2 s (6.0 s).

Fuel consumption, combined: 5.5 l/100 km (6.0 l/100 km)*.

CO2 emissions, combined: 126 g/km (137 g/km).

BMW 540i: Six-cylinder petrol engine, eight-speed Steptronic transmission.

Capacity: 2,998cc.

Output: 250 kW at 5,500 – 6,500 rpm.

Maximum torque: 450 Nm at 1,380 – 5,200 rpm.

Acceleration (0–100 km/h): 5.1 s (4.8 s).

Fuel consumption, combined: 6.5 l/100 km (6.9 l/100 km)*.

CO2 emissions, combined: 149 g/km (159 g/km).

BMW 520d: Four-cylinder diesel engine, eight-speed Steptronic transmission.

Capacity: 1,995cc.

Output: 140 kW at 4,000 rpm.

Maximum torque: 400 Nm at 1,750 – 2,500 rpm.

Acceleration (0–100 km/h): 7.7 s/7.5 s (7.6 s).

Fuel consumption, combined: 4.2 l/100 km / 4.1 l/100 km (4.5 l/100 km)*.

CO2 emissions, combined: 109 g/km / 108 g/km (119 g/km).

BMW 530d: Six-cylinder diesel engine, eight-speed Steptronic transmission.

Capacity: 2,993cc.

Output: 195 kW at 4,000 rpm.

Maximum torque: 620 Nm at 2,000 – 2,500 rpm.

Acceleration (0–100 km/h): 5.7 s (5.4 s).

Fuel consumption, combined: 4.5 l/100 km (5.0 l/100 km)*.

CO2 emissions, combined: 118 g/km (132 g/km)

BMW has yet again succeeded in placing the new BMW 5 series right up front with its competitors.

Although the new 5 Series is not a Wow factor in its new design format it is definitely a damn good looking BMW that is a pleasure to drive and to enjoy.

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SECTOR FOREWORD Welfare and Civil Society Organisations At present, South Africa has an extensive and lively nongovernmental sector which boasts roughly 100 000 registered nonprofit organisations (NPOs) and an estimated 50 000 unregistered ones. The country’s large non-profit sector is the product of a diverse society including a variety of ethnic groups and a history that has informed the way in which South African society operates as a whole, as well as the way in which the non-profit sector conducts its operations.

Presently, the South African welfare and civil society organisations sector is characterised by two types of organisations; the first being service driven, and the second being organisations that focus on human rights, advocacy and monitoring. The former fulfils the role of providing much needed social services to underprivileged communities, and the latter performs the role of social ‘watchdog’. Therefore, the need for a healthy and active civil society in South Africa cannot be overemphasised.

For being the society’s watchdog and carer for the most vulnerable members of the community, BUSINESS LEADERSHIP SOUTH AFRICA commends the winner and finalists in this sector.

Regional

Winner

From South Africa

From Kenya

The country and regional winner in the Welfare and Civil Society Organisations sector, Louise Driver is the chief executive officer of the Children’s Hospital Trust.

The Trust raises funds to improve child healthcare in South Africa and the continent through the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital. Her main role is to manage the Trust’s activities, setting strategic direction and ensuring all fundraising and financial targets are achieved. Furthermore, the role involves enhancing the image of the Trust and liaising with all stakeholders including the Board of Trustees, hospitals, government, media, and donors. Louise also plays an advocacy role both in trying to improve child healthcare services as well as improving services for the non-profit organisations in South Africa. She is also actively involved in working with other non-profit organisations.

Jennifer Karina serves as the chief commissioner of the Kenya Girl Guides Association since 2012.

Kenya Girl Guides Association (KGGA) is one of the largest girls only organisations in Kenya. The Association has been active in Kenya since 1920 and is a multi-racial, multi-religious, non-political and non-profit-making organisation. She served as an assistant honorary treasurer and chair fundraising committee for the period, 20032010. She is passionate about empowering girls and young women to exploit their full potential and become responsible citizens. Jennifer was introduced to guiding by her mother who was a guide teacher. Jennifer’s professional training is in business administration and psychology.

She holds a Master of Arts degree from Durham University, New Castle, UK and is pursuing a PhD. in Educational Psychology.

Louise Driver

Jennifer Karina

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Regional

Winners From Uganda

Joyce Namirimo Tamale

Joyce Namirimo Tamale is the Chief Operating Officer of Population Services Kenya. They are in the business of improving health of Kenyans by providing services, products that address major health challenges afflicting most Kenyans and addressing behavioural issues hindering people from adopting healthy behaviours such as preventing HIV through use of condoms and testing, use of family planning methods to space children among others. She has 11 years’ experience in public health managing large scale national health programmes in Maternal, Child Health, Malaria, Reproductive Health, HIV and noncommunicable diseases. She provides strategic direction, health programme development, technical oversight and managing a team of over 300 staff. Joyce is also a social franchising expert who has shaped the landscape of social franchising for health in Kenya.

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Lifestyle

43

The new Mercedes

AMG SLC Roadster

I have always liked the Mercedes Benz SLK 55 with its V8 engine. Its replacement being the SLC 43 Roadster with 3.0-litre, 270 kW, V6 biturbo engine and 9G-TRONIC sports transmission, is nothing short of great. It is powerful, fuel efficient for a sporty roadster, and it handles like a dream with precis steering, road holding and damping, especially when having a nice winding and curvy road.

Yes, the sound is not that of the V8 but it has an exhaust sound track that is nice to listen to especially when driving with the top down.

by Carl Wepener

“T

he new Mercedes-AMG SLC 43 unites the classic virtues of a roadster with exemplary efficiency. Weighing less and with lower fuel consumption, the new SLC 43 delivers a similar performance to the SLK 55 on the race track. This vehicle provides typical AMG driving pleasure in a compact open-top two-seater in line with the needs of today’s market”, says MercedesAMG chairman Tobias Moers.

I can only but agree. The new SLC 43 represents the entry point into the current roadster world of AMG. As well as being renamed from SLK to SLC, the open two-seater features the new AMG nomenclature. The 43 here stands for the 3.0-litre V6 biturbo engine. The Mercedes-AMG SLC 43 is therefore the first V6 model from Affalterbach to feature the new nomenclature. This will gradually be introduced across the future AMG model range.

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With its maximum power of 270 kW and peak torque of 520 newton metres, the 3.0-litre V6 biturbo engine can deliver impressive performance: sprinting from rest to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds, its top speed is electronically limited at 250 km/h. The 9G-TRONIC transmission is specially matched to the demands of the SLC 43. By specifically adapting the software, the AMG developers have been able to shorten the shift times significantly. The multiple downshift allows even faster short bursts of speed, while the doubledeclutching function in the “Sport” and “Sport+” transmission modes makes for an even more emotive driving experience. In “Sport+” mode, partial ignition interruptions provide even faster gearshifts.

With the five DYNAMIC SELECT transmission modes “Eco”, “Comfort”, “Sport”, “Sport+” and “Individual”, the driver can change the characteristics of the SLC 43 at the tap of a finger. The available range

extends from efficient and comfortable to extremely sporty. This modifies key parameters, such as the response of the engine, transmission, suspension and steering. The modes are selected using a button in the centre console control panel.

AMG DYNAMIC SELECT at a glance  “Eco” transmission mode: all parameters are programmed for maximum efficiency. The ECO start/ stop and gliding functions (overrun mode for fuelefficient driving) are activated.  “Comfort” transmission mode: comfortable and fuel-efficient driving, e.g. thanks to early upshifts.

Suspension and steering are set up for an emphasis on comfort.  “Sport” transmission mode: sporty characteristics thanks to a more agile response to accelerator commands, shorter shift times, earlier downshifts and

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Lifestyle

more emotive gearshifts owing to double-declutching.

A more dynamic set-up of suspension and steering.  “Sport+” transmission mode: extremely sporty characteristics thanks to an even more agile throttle response, increased acoustic emphasis on doubledeclutching on downshifts as well as selective torque control on upshifts with cylinder suppression for optimal shift times. Increased idle speed for faster pull-away. An even more dynamic set-up for suspension, steering and drivetrain.  “Individual” transmission mode: personalised setup of drive, suspension, steering, air conditioning and ECO start/stop function.

Independently of the DYNAMIC SELECT transmission modes, the driver has the option of pressing the “M” button to switch directly to manual mode, in which gearshifts are executed exclusively using the shift paddles on the steering wheel.

Further personalisation of the driving dynamics is possible by means of the ESP® button, which offers a choice between three control strategies for the Electronic Stability Program:  ESP® “ON”: early system intervention without adversely affecting the sporty character  ESP® “SPORT HANDLING MODE”: late system intervention for a sporty driving style  ESP® “OFF”: system deactivated for an extremely sporty driving style on closed racing circuits.

The key data: Mercedes-AMG SLC 43 Engine V6 biturbo Displacement 2996 cc Output 270 kW at 5500-

6000 r/min Peak torque 520 Nm

at 2000-4200 r/min Fuel consumption – 10.7/6.2/7.8 l/100 urban/extra-urban km combined CO2 emissions – combined 178 g/km Efficiency class D Kerb weight 1520*/1595** (according to DIN/EC) Acceleration 0-100 km/h 4.7 s Top speed 250 km/h*** * Ready-to-drive condition (fuel tank 90% full, not incl. driver and luggage); ** Ready-to-drive condition (fuel tank 90% full, incl. driver (68 kg) and luggage (7 kg)); *** Electronically limited AMG design with specific front and rear aprons, exhaust tailpipes

Pricing Mercedes-AMG SLC 43

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R1,037,400

The new SLC 43 AMG Roadster also looks modern and looks much more like its bigger brothers than like the old SLK. Please note that the new SLC models from Mercedes-Benz come exclusively with a four-cylinder powerplant. The SLC 43 AMG as tested was the sixcylinder engine and is reserved for the SLC 43 from Mercedes-AMG. That being said the SLC 4 cylinder is no slouch and is as delightful to drive as the AMG. The new SLC 43 also meets the personal wishes of the driver when it comes to acoustics: the standard-fit sports exhaust system comes with two automatically map-controlled exhaust flaps. In the “Eco” and “Comfort” transmission modes, the flaps remain closed most of the time, this resulting in an acoustically restrained note from the six-cylinder biturbo engine. In the “Sport” and “Sport+” modes, the exhaust flaps open earlier and more spontaneously, especially if the driver prefers a dynamic driving style.

Numerous design features immediately identify the new SLC 43 as a member of the Mercedes-AMG family.

With an emphasis on width, the front view is dominated by the air deflector in brand-typical “A-wing” form, which is in high-gloss black. The large outer air intakes come with silver chrome fins and are edged by black flics.

Down below, the silver chrome front splitter ensures an optimal flow of air to the cooling modules. It also makes the roadster appear to hug the road more closely. The side view is dominated by high-sheen 18-inch AMG multi-spoke light-alloy wheels painted in high-gloss black. The exterior mirror housings in high-gloss black act as additional distinguishing features. The front wings come with a silver chrome fin as well as “Biturbo” lettering. With its AMG spoiler lip, the rear end also boasts characteristic highlights with two chromeplated tailpipe trim elements featuring a four-pipe look to convey an especially sporty note. The diffuser-look rear apron trim is in silver chrome.

The unique selling points of the car within its competitive field include a diversity of available roof variants. In addition to the standard vario-roof, there is a choice between the panoramic vario-roof with a large glass element and the panoramic vario-

Lifestyle

roof with MAGIC SKY CONTROL selectable brightness control. The interior reinforces the consistently dynamic bias of the new SLC 43 with numerous specially designed details. Ideal for a committed driving style, the multifunction sports steering wheel in black nappa leather features a flattened bottom section and red contrasting topstitching, with the perforated grip area lying especially well in the hand.

The contoured sports seats give the driver ideal lateral support, including when a dynamic driving style is adopted. The upholstery in sun-reflecting nappa leather/DINAMICA microfibre with model-specific seat layout, red piping and topstitching meets the highest standards in terms of material quality, look and feel.

The perforations in the shoulder area and on the seat cushions stop the driver working up a sweat. The seat design is complemented by the door centre panels in ARTICO man-made leather/DINAMICA microfibre. In the optionally available Exclusive nappa leather version, the instrument panel, beltlines and door centre panels are covered in high-grade leather.

The AMG instrument cluster delivers all relevant information in a clearly arranged layout optimised for a

dynamic driving style. An authentic sports car look and feel is provided by two tube-shaped round dials, 11.4 cm (4.5-inch) multifunction TFT colour display, RACE TIMER and 280 km/h scale in “Chequered Flag” design.

Suitability for everyday use is additionally enhanced by intelligent comfort functions such as optional AIRSCARF neck-level heating, operation of the varioroof while driving (up to 40 km/h, initiated below 5 km/h) and automatic closing of the boot separator.

The new SLC 43 offers even further scope for individualisation with a selected range of further options, such as the Handling package, which comes with features designed to support an ambitious driving style on the racing circuit.

They also include the mechanical rear-axle limited-slip differential and an additional engine radiator at the front.

The vehicle’s proximity to motorsport is visually underscored by red-painted brake callipers, a Performance steering wheel in nappa leather with DINAMICA microfibre in the grip area and red topstitching, and an analogue clock in IWC design.

The SLC 43 AMG roadster is a serious sports car that is fun to drive and to be enjoyed for every day driving.

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Semi-

Finalists

2017

Business & Professional Services

Education & Training: Academic

South Africa - Dr Nathalie Beatrice Chinje

Zimbabwe - Prof Maud Muchuweti

South Africa - Ms Erna Basson

South Africa - Ms Roxanne Page

SME

South Africa - Ms Sheila Afari

Tourism & Leisure

Sport South Africa - Ms Martine Nseya Mwa-Mwembie

Welfare

Kenya - Ms Lorna Seela Nabaala South Africa - Ms Sandy Wood

South Africa - Ms Muleya Mwananyanda

Finalists Agricultural South Africa - Ms Preline Carmen Swart

Arts & Culture Kenya - Ms Joy Akoth Mboya Mauritius - Mrs Aadilah Budullah Zambia - Ms Clare Whitehead Mateke Zambia - Ms Agnes Ng’ambi Yombwe South Africa - Ms Thandi Ntuli South Africa - Ms Lorraine Maisel

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South Africa - Dr Kathleen Mary Hurly

Finalists Building & Construction South Africa - Ms Molebogeng Mashoto Leshabane

Business & Professional Services Tanzania - Ms Stella Ndikimi South Africa - Ms Babalwa Fatyi South Africa - Ms Hilda Lunderstedt South Africa - Ms Sonja de Klerk

Education & Training: Academic Kenya - Ms Milly Mbelesia Kizili Zambia - Dr Christine Phiri Mushibwe South Africa - Prof Ruth Simbao Mauritius - Associate Prof. Manta Devi Nowbuth Rwanda - Dr Laetitia Nyinawamwiza

Financial Services Zimbabwe - Mrs Edna Mukurazhizha

Zambia - Dr Alice Phiri Shemi

Education & Training: Private South Africa - Mrs Mishje Cooper

Zimbabwe - Ms Agnes Nyondo Chakonta South Africa - Mrs Hanlie Kroese

Goverment: Employed OFficial

Maritius - Dr Nalini Devi Luckheenarain

Mauritius - Ms Nirmala Nababsing

South Africa - Ms Martha Mbombo

South Africa - Ms Tuletu Ntombomzi Njengele

ICT South Africa - Ms Madelein de Beer

South Africa - Ms Puleng Kwele

Manufacturing & Engineering SME

Ghana - Ms Noble Catherine N.E.A Coffie Ghana - Ms Hannah Bertilla Acquah

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2017

Finalists Media

Medical & Veterinary Zambia - Dr Musonda Rosemary Sunkutu

Ghana - Ms Belinda Baidoo

South Africa - Dr Pauline Jean Smith

SME Kenya - Ms Evelyn Mumbe Kasina

South Africa - Ms Matshidiso Portia Mngomezulu

Mauritius - Ms Nadine Catherine

South Africa - Ms Linda Dlova

Ghana - Ms Jacqueline Adwoa Kessie

South Africa - Ms Cara Nortman

Ghana - Ms Rita Kusi

Ghana - Hannah Bertilla Acquah

Sport South Africa - Ms Liz Addison

Tourism & Leisure South Africa - Ms Reboneng Meisie Nkosi Tanzania - Ms Prema Lalji

Mauritius - Ms Bomika Devika Ghunsam

South Africa - Ms Helen Hansen

Welfare & Civil Society Organisations Kenya - Ms Caren Wakoli Kenya - Ms Joyce Wanderi Maina South Africa - Ms Manyara Angeline Munzara South Africa - Ms Lungile Zakwe

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Workplace Violence: Recognising

Warning

by Greg Smith

Signs

Michael Staver, a Jacksonville, Fla. corporate and executive coach who used to work as a psychologist in a mental hospital, recalls the time a marketing director lost it at a firm where Staver was coaching. The man, known for sporadic outbursts, approached the receptionist and demanded to see the CEO. The receptionist said that was impossible because the boss was out of the office until the following day. “What are you talking about?” demanded the marketing director. “We have to meet; he knows there is a deadline!”

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he receptionist suggested the man calm down. In response, he swiped his hand across her desk, knocking everything to the floor. Then he grabbed a Mont Blanc pen and flung it across the room, hitting a glass partition and chipping it.

Though no one was physically injured, says Staver, this was a typical example of violence in the workplace, a chronic if thankfully not commonplace problem that sometimes spins out of control and results in death. Like the 28-year-old Spanish teacher who was fired from Episcopal High School in Jacksonville on Tuesday morning, and then returned to the school that afternoon with an AK-47 in a guitar case, and killed the head of the school, and himself. Staver, who wrote the 1995 book, How to Defuse Anger and Calm People Down, says it’s almost certain that the Spanish teacher has some sort of psychiatric disorder, and he guesses it would have been very difficult to know that he was likely to commit murder.

AFRICA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN 2017/2018

But Staver, who has been coaching and speaking about workplace anger management since 1992, says there are ways to detect that a colleague will engage in less dramatic forms of violence, like the marketing director who hurled the pen. It’s also possible that keeping on the alert for signs of mounting tension could serve to help a troubled colleague before he gets to the point of committing a violent act.

Staver breaks the escalation to violence down into three stages: an initial event that triggers anger, the escalation of emotions, and the crisis or violent act. Sometimes these occur in rapid succession; at other times they unfold over a long period. Here’s what he thinks employees should watch for: Excessive complaining or whining: This can be the first warning signal that a co-worker or colleague has had a triggering event that might escalate to anger and violence, especially if he is usually content at work.

Withdrawal from others: A co-worker who completely retreats into his shell could be demonstrating that he is having trouble coping.

Variation from typical behaviour: If your colleague is usually reserved and introverted, and suddenly starts chattering and socialising, or if an extrovert retreats and grows silent, that can be a signal that something is wrong.

Obsessive thought patterns or conversations: If an employee starts ranting against “the machine” or talking incessantly about the unfairness of the world, it could be a warning sign.

Dramatic and unreasonable demands: When a worker becomes impatient and insists on an immediate response when he knows a task takes time, like the marketing director who demanded to see the CEO immediately, such behavior could demonstrate that he is troubled.

Personal insults: If an otherwise respectful colleague flies off the handle and attacks, that can mean his anger is building.

Threats: It may seem obvious, but Staver says this is the most potent sign that violence could occur. If your co-worker starts saying, specifically, that he wants to hurt someone, that’s a red flag, he says, especially if the person expresses a plan, the intent to carry it out, and the means to see it through.

Staver has suggestions for each stage. Though it may be counter-intuitive, he says do not negate or disagree with a colleague’s seemingly irrational thoughts or behaviour. If your colleague is complaining excessively, listen to what he has to say. Don’t try to talk him out of it. Avoid clichés, like “everything happens for a reason.” You can empathise and validate someone’s feelings without agreeing with him.

Never tell someone who is upset to calm down. That will only make him escalate. Staver likes what he calls “suggestive solutions.” For the marketing director, that could have meant the receptionist saying, “since the CEO isn’t here and you can’t talk to him, let’s give you the earliest possible time to meet.” If the person is getting upset in a group situation, it can be helpful to move away from the crowd. Once the anger has escalated to a threat, Staver says, the most important thing to do is to report it to human resources. Many people think that reporting a threat will make it worse, but HR people are trained to deal with these situations.

It can also be helpful to buy time, which may help the

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person calm down. In the case of the marketing director, the receptionist could have said, “Why don’t you give me 10 minutes and I’ll try to track down the CEO?” Then she could have gone back to the man and said, “I know you’re frustrated and I agree you should meet with the CEO as soon as possible. Let’s schedule a time.”

Staver says he encountered a man recently who was spinning out of control during a break in an anger management seminar Staver was leading. During the break the man, whose eyes were dilated, started ranting at Staver that he didn’t belong in the meeting and it was his boss who was at fault. Staver asked the man to step aside from the group and said he knew the most frustrating thing is feeling that things are out of control.

Staver also told the man he could leave if he chose. After the second half of the talk, the man approached Staver again. This time he was smiling and happy.

Violence in the Workplace Once upon a time, work place killings were extremely rare; in fact, they were practically unheard of. But now it seems as if we hear or read about one happening somewhere every week.

Sometimes they’re seemingly random, where a person just “snapped,” but most of the time there were warning signs long before the actual incident.

Being safe at work requires you to know who you’re working with and, as much as possible, to get along with them. People who are deeply troubled or are constantly looking for a fight or an argument can make your work life unsafe and miserable, even if they never go off the deep end and resort to violence.

And sometimes they do resort to violence.

If you’re having trouble with a particular co-worker and you fear that they could become violent, burying your head in the sand and ignoring it is not the answer. Neither is hoping that things will somehow just “work themselves out.” Everyone has a right to a safe work place, and that includes you. Don’t ever ignore an actual or implied threat, or downplay it as a joke.

Threats aren’t jokes. If you’re in a situation like this, you need to report it to someone who can do something about it. If possible, bring witnesses. If your direct supervisor or manager won’t deal with the problem, go to the next level of authority. If no one will do anything about the situation, you may just have to find another job. That’s not ideal, but it’s far better than working around unsafe people.

As we said, you should try to get along with everyone you work with as much as possible.

Try to avoid heated discussions and arguments about religion, politics, personal habits, etc.

And don’t offer personal criticisms about people.

You may think someone is a lousy parent or has bad personal hygiene habits, but there’s no need to share your opinion with them or anyone else at work.

GROWING THE NEXT GENERATION OF SCIENTISTS CHANGING THE LANDSCAPE OF MEDICAL RESEARCH

THE SOUTH AFRICAN MEDICAL RESEARCH COUNCIL

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