FROM THE PEN The People Issue At a recent Q&A session at a risk management media briefing, I was ceremoniously told by a fellow media colleague that the people, the voters should start to take ownership of the fact that, as a country, we have a serious skills shortage. And that it was not, as…
FROM THE PEN Who Googled Africa? In this issue, we deal extensively with the question of managing people within the business, and how this has a direct impact on a company’s financial performance (see the articles on page 14 and 16 respectively). In fact, both the authors portend that in order to ensure a company…
Die ekonomie is nie vlak water waarin niks aangaan nie. Elke liewe dag is daar veranderinge, soos ‘n mens sou verwag in diep onstuimige poele van buite af, in die markte, en natuurlik in die politiek. Selfs met ‘n oorlog in Irak, baie hoë oliepryse, ‘n huismark in Amerika wat lyfstraf ondergaan, ‘n kredietskok wat…
The challenges facing Africa’s political growth and socio-economic development are daunting. Yet over the past few years, there has been increasing evidence showing that Africa’s tide of despair is turning. With eyes set on a vision of an Africa free from poverty, free from conflict and fully integrated into the global economy, governments, businesses, development…
The death was announced recently in the United States of Leona Helmsley, pejoratively known as The Queen of Mean and famous for her dictum that “only little people pay taxes”. A hatter’s daughter from Brooklyn, in 1972 she became the second wife of Harry Helmsley the “King Kong of New York real estate.” Helmsley divorced…
Why the New Generation column? The placement, development and empowerment of the new breed of Chartered Accountant CA(SA) represents a material percentage of employment nationally. It is clear that this generation, with their specific way of dressing, communicating and acting are entering our corporate world and climbing the corporate ladder at a fast pace. Having…
The modern financial leader’s role includes making a strategic contribution to the business. Every financial leader should therefore understand globalisation. The facts, and the fiction. For starters, one should notice that the map of the world has changed. The new map does not have Europe at the centre. The reality is that the four largest…
In September 2001 the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) added to its agenda the performance reporting project (later renamed the financial statements presentation project) with the aim of enhancing the usefulness of information presented in the income statement. In April 2004 the US Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) joined the IASB in working on this…
In the 2003 film Lost in Translation, Bill Murray’s character experienced an acute culture shock when confronted with the differences between American and Japanese culture. This feeling must be shared by financial managers when forced to navigate the jargon surrounding the valuation of Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) transactions. Yet, it is critically important for the…
What is the purpose of business? How does management meet that purpose? Most people would probably answer ‘increasing shareholder value’ and proceed to a convoluted explanation of increasing productivity, while gearing up, cutting costs and gaining market share. Michael Porter, in his paper ‘What is strategy? (Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec 1996)’, states that a major…