I recently spent 20 minutes with one remarkable individual after the next as fellow judges and I assessed finalists in SAICA’s Top 35-Under-35 chartered accountants for 2017. Though varying evaluation criteria guided the process, one metric stood out for me: integrity. I often reflect on the challenges facing South Africa’s leadership at present and the…
The importance of high endeavour Given today’s rapidly changing world and the unpredictable nature of many industries, companies are having to rely more and more on financial and operational data to inform strategic decisions. Finding a financial reporting solution that meets the business needs of today – and responds to the still-developing requirements of tomorrow…
The world is your oyster Patricia Scott (née Galbraith) has been living in New Zealand with her Kiwi husband for four years and thoroughly enjoys the laid-back Kiwi lifestyle, except perhaps when the traffic lights take forever to turn green. Patricia is currently lecturer and tutor for first-year accounting students, doing her part to ignite…
This article isn’t directed at the large multinationals with vast security resources but is meant for the individual who is keen to protect his privacy and small businesses who want to make sure they are protecting their information Over the course of the last decade, a new economy has come to dominate global markets; similar…
My previous article, ‘Debilitating Inflation’ in the July 2017 issue of ASA, was a warning not to assess growth in absolute rand terms but rather in percentage growth. Despite this, I found myself falling into this trap again. We’ve acquired a couple of new neighbours in the last year and being the sociable street that…
There may be times when you need to co-present with two or three other people as part of your talk. In order for you and your team to present with impact, follow the steps below. Present as a unified force: A group presentation is one presentation with a number of presenters delivering it. It is…
These are the four words that Parmi Natesan CA(SA) lives by. Besides her prestigious position as Executive: Centre for Corporate Governance at the Institute of Directors in Southern Africa, Parmi Natesan recently received a Rising Star Alumni Award from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality (NMMU). She took time out to respond to our questions The…
Unhealthy lifestyles are clearly linked to serious long-term health problems as well as significant short-term wellness impairment. The answer is behaviour change, but this is not happening In the South African financial services sector, some 55% of people are overweight, 60% do not exercise, 20% smoke, and 20% report serious stress problems … the list…
For the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Organisation of African Unity (now the African Union), African leaders adopted Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want – a vision for a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development. One of the defining features of this agenda is the structural transformation of African economies…
Why transformation efforts fail Over the past decade, John Kotter has watched more than 100 companies try to remake themselves into significantly better competitors. Here is what he has to say … These have included large organisations (Ford) and small ones (Landmark Communications), companies based in the United States (General Motors) and elsewhere (British Airways),…