Whenever I consult on matters BEE I am always at pains to state to each client that it is vital that they allow (what my good friend Howard Rybko likes to call) the "greed gland" to operate. In other words, always ask the question "what's in it for me". You see I come from the school of thought that thinks that if you get something beneficial out of anything then it is likely that you'll stick it out for longer.
I believe that the problem facing enterprise development is that it is viewed as a tax or a donation with companies reluctantly shelling out cash for the 15 or 25 points or part thereof. What bullshit is this!!! If your company is not getting a tangible benefit from your enterprise development then don't bother. I am being serious about this - handing out money for the points is not good for your business.
Nor is it good for the recipient. If a recipient takes the cash and does not appreciate the risks associated with the money then no one wins. I was told by a company that they now have to try and force their enterprise development projects to conform to a certain standard through SLAs. The beneficiaries are quite happy to plod along in their mediocre fashion and take whatever aid they get.
Another problem with enterprise development is going about it. If you want to do it properly then get some help. Get in an organisation that is going to take a look at your business and see how an ED strategy is going to benefit your business directly. Unfortunately for me I am not the right person - but I know of some fantastic companies that do the most amazing work and yield results. I'll list them.
Enterprise Development Alliances (EDA). Run by Rienzo Colpo (Rienzo has left Caird to concentrate on this aspect of empowerment). He's good at this stuff - I watched him work on a project for a church group and the concept was quite brilliant an innovative. I've attached their corporate profile.
Social Advantage. Kim Marr's company. It's been going for a few years now and Kim is definitely someone you want on your team. She's a straight talker who believes in what she says and delivers the results that she sets out to achieve. She has many years of experience in this field going back to her time with the Shuttleworth Foundation. Here's her corporate profile.
The Third Line. I have not spoken about Mel Lewis and her company before and this is an omission. I have enjoyed working with Mel. She also comes from a NGO background and like Kim and Rienzo believes in the work she does, the results reflect this. I haven't got Mel's corporate profile but as soon as I do I'll post it.
Marisa Buitendag. Marisa is one of the few BEE "implementors" in corporate South Africa who actually knows what's going on (I can list a few more people but I fear they might get embarrassed). She has a solid knowledge of all aspects of empowerment and the most incredible network of people that she can call on to assist her in these projects. She has committed half of her time to her old company and she's rapidly running out of the balance of the time. I recommend you contact her soon. Send me a mail and I'll give you her contact details.
All four of the above companies have worked together on projects before and use each other to share ideas and roll out projects. You cannot go wrong with any of them or all four of them.
Raizcorp. Allon Raiz is a major celebrity in South African business circles. For good reason - he is passionate about what he does (this word gets bandied about so often, but it does apply in his case). He knows about incubation and producing sustainable enterprises. He's looking for all the help he can get in achieving this goal. He has my endorsement.
AND FINALLY... WIIFY
Yes, what's in it for you. I am talking to a major financial institution about an ED system that everyone can get involved in. And there will be a tangible benefit for those companies that take part.
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