Читать книгу Broad-Based BEE - Jonathan Goldberg - Страница 29

Key considerations and ingredients in real broad-based BEE implementation should include:

•great leadership;

•strong enterprise ethic;

•assessment of the future business needs rather than the past successes;

•a high level of trust between the parties;

•long-term investment horizons for broad-based BEE participants;

•the empowerment must be genuine – no window dressing;

•all parties need to be creative and go the extra mile to focus on creating and measuring value;

•avoid complex structures – in other words, keep it simple;

•each party should bring something different but essential to the partnership;

•what each party brings to the table and its ongoing measurement should be documented;

•commitment by all stakeholders to the broad-based Elements of the Scorecard and not focusing solely on the ownership Element;

•understanding the moral and business imperatives of BEE;

•being explicit in your communication goals;

•focus on what you have in common rather than what divides you;

•not waiting for others to change first;

•not agreeing to a position you have reservations about without articulating your reservations;

•determine the qualifying basis for measuring broad-based BEE;

•perform a detailed assessment using the applicable scorecard;

•develop a broad-based BEE implementation plan to optimise the entity’s scorecard points;

•give priority to meeting the needs of the business and acting in its best interests;

•develop a creed or code of conduct for owners;

•owners and business leaders should meet informally/socially sometimes just to talk and get to know each other;

•embrace change and have a great attitude towards each other, ensuring it is constructive;

•have separate roles and areas of responsibility, within the context of transparency and accountability;

•measure successes and failures, ensure accountability and take decisive action;

•adopt a mentoring approach towards sharing knowledge and experiences;

•match new broad-based BEE participants to mentors, including senior executive managers and staff. Opportunities for team-building, job rotation, cross-training, information flow, involvement in business processes and special developmental opportunities should be sought;

•balance the need for stability and control with the need for change and innovation;

•it may be necessary to embark on a broad-based BEE journey that is less than perfect but nevertheless heading in the right direction – particularly where there is no clear and engaging workable future scenario.

Legally there are no requirements for a business to pursue black economic empowerment; in practice, however, there are strategic imperatives and influences driving the process, including market, social and political requirements, and ultimately because genuine empowerment initiatives make good business sense. The new Codes focus unashamedly on ownership and there is the temptation of entering into potentially adversarial short term deals to secure business; possibly leading to more failed ventures, and less long-term sustainable transformation.

Vukhuzakhe – wake up and rebuild yourself – is the message for both business and government as they wrestle with rolling out and implementing sustainable BEE! The transition will be difficult, and it is happening faster than many thought possible.