SEIFSA ANNUAL REVIEW 2018
CHIEF FINANCIAL
OFFICER’S REPORT
OVERVIEW OF OPERATIONS
F
or the year under review, SEIFSA continued to operate with a primary focus on collective bargaining, lobbying and advocacy, whilst simultaneously having a secondary focus on generating revenue from consultancy, training and the sale of publications such as the SEIFSA Price and Index Pages, Industrial Relations Advisors and The State of the Metals and Engineering Sector Report. The primary source of revenue was generated from fees levied to Associations, with the other revenue streams being the sale of products, services and publications offered by the following Divisions: • • • •
Industrial Relations and Legal Services; Human Capital and Skills Development; Economics and Commercial; and Safety, Health, Environment and Quality.
SEIFSA has also continued to offer accounting, administration and management services to 19 of its affiliated Associations and the SEIFSA Training Centre continued to focus on developing high-calibre artisans to meet the needs of employers and address the skills shortage in artisan development that faces the country. Over the past years, SEIFSA has steadily increased the revenue generated by the Divisions in order to maintain the competitive pricing of its membership fees and the price of its products and services. Continuous product innovation and marketing tools have assisted in increasing traffic to the Federation’s website and the take-up of our service and product offerings. The economic climate improved marginally from the previous year and continues to follow a very slow upward trajectory. The threat of a trade war led by the
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United States (US) also created an environment of uncertainty and panic in certain circles that exported their products to the US. Here at home, the political climate showed signs of improvement after the election of President Cyril Ramaphosa, but the sector has yet to show sustained material improvement. As the majority of the Federation’s customers are from the metals and engineering sector, these external factors seriously impact on the sector, which then impacts on the Federation’s ability to generate revenue and retain or grow its membership base. Notwithstanding this fact, the Federation managed to promote and market the uptake of its product and service offerings. As readers will recall, the Collective Bargaining Levy agreement lapsed in December 2012 and the Federation subsequently made significant strides in making up for this lost revenue by offering products and services which add value to its membership and other customers. SEIFSA has worked hard throughout the year to hold onto its membership in the course of the year, notwithstanding the harsh economic climate. A continuous effort to optimise costs has been maintained, without compromising service delivery. The Federation operated at full operational capacity for the majority of the year.
OVERVIEW OF FINANCIAL RESULTS The approved budget for the year was one of a surplus after a break-even budget in FY2016/17. Having met the budget in the previous financial year, every effort was made to meet the budget for FY2017/18. The year started off well, with SEIFSA falling behind budget in
