Good morning bloggers - sorry no posts for a couple of days, I have been a bit under the weather. Feeling much better now, so I will play catch up.
THE POWER OF NETWORKING
PART 55
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Networking for me is also about building the right people around me. Let me explain.
Part of adding value, when I refer someone or add someone to my data base, is to have a selection of people who do not do what I do, but rather do what I don’t. I need people who will do the things that are not my strengths.
Let’s explore this for a moment. I am an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and the fact of the matter is that I am very good at what I do – now that’s not a boast, it’s a fact. I have the accolades (and the clients) to prove it.
One of the areas that I check when I am doing an assessment, is whether the client has got contracts in place and if so are they the correct contracts. Now I am not a lawyer and I don’t profess to know too much about the law (other than it can get really confusing), so instead of that becoming a weakness (because I know that you have a problem, but I cannot solve it for you), I turn it into a strength (for me) and a value add (for both you and the specialist that I refer), by referring you to the correct lawyer for your problem. Notice I said the correct lawyer – not just a lawyer. You see there are many different aspects to the law, so many lawyers choose to specialize. The result is that I have a Contractual Lawyer, a Litigation Lawyer, a Trust Lawyer, a Labour Attorney and a Generalist Attorney. I also have a Tax Advocate and if pressed, I am sure I could find you a really mean Divorce Lawyer as well.
Just by knowing these people, I have increased my value and therefore the value to my Company. I have provided a solution to a problem that my client had (notice had – the problem is now resolved), I have given work to a colleague who will now ‘remember’ me if anyone of their client’s needs the kind of help that I can give and I have increased and added to my ‘Circle of Influence’ How awesome is that?
So, although it appears that I work totally alone, I am actually a very small part of a very large team! That’s not the end of the story either because, I tend to work with other individuals who are entrepreneurs and SMME’s, so I work with Specialists rather than generalists, which is what you usually find in the Corporate environment. What does this actually mean though? It means that you get assistance from people like me – people who are passionate about what it is that they do, rather than just people who work to put food on the table.
People who are determined to make a difference in your life and your business. People who deliver what and when they say they will deliver. Now that for me is the biggest value add of them all!
Where do I get these people from, I hear you ask – well that’s simple to answer – from networking of course!
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
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Friday, April 04, 2008
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
CUSTOMER MIX & VALUE
Hello Bloggers
Here's some really good advice from Mark Corke of Suitegum (www.suitegum.co.za). Mark is a Business Broker who runs seminars on how to get your business ready for sale and keep it that way. Have a look on this site to see when the next one is.
Businesses change hands every month. Sometimes the price paid is good, and other times the seller is left wondering how he's going to make ends meet in the aftermath. The value of a business should not be determined at the time of the sale, but rather in the months and even years leading up to the event. If a business sale were planned in advance as an end in itself, the value of the sale would be much higher than the resulting pittance of an ill prepared affair. Let's see how we can improve our chances of successfully selling our businesses, shall we?
Spread 'em wide - sell with pride
The seller sat in front of me and proudly displayed his list of customers: "Just look at the business Sasol gives us each month", he proudly intoned. "These guys need our product, and they pay within seven days of statement", he went on. "Sure we have another 100 odd customers, but these guys average about 40% of our turnover every month".
The seller sat in front of me and proudly displayed his list of customers: "Just look at the business Sasol gives us each month", he proudly intoned. "These guys need our product, and they pay within seven days of statement", he went on. "Sure we have another 100 odd customers, but these guys average about 40% of our turnover every month".
The proud boast was based on the mistaken belief that turnover drives the value of businesses, even if it means discarding the risk inherent in a concentrated group of customers. Oh, sometimes you feel so good because you have this really big customer, and he pays on time, and he orders every month, and he's the guy that covers all the bills, making all the others "pure profit". Well don't sleep too comfortably because you may be only a few months from being broke. And most buyers of businesses are quick to identify that narrow spread of customers, and walk away.
Buyers walk away, not because the profit is not there, but because the narrow source of income is too risky. An ill advised statement from a salesman, or a better product appearance could turn your business from a profitable concern to a loss maker over night. You can run the exercise yourself:
Take your financial statements or management accounts; the income statement in particular. Calculate the percentage of turnover attributed to your biggest customer, and remove this percentage from your gross profit. Subtract your fixed expenses (unchanged) from the recalculated gross profit. Is your business still profitable? Will you be able to survive? If the answer is painful, but do-able, you have some value in your business, but you have a warning. If your answer points to imminent bankruptcy, you know that you have some work to do on your customer base to strengthen the value.
Your guidelines should be as follows: No single customer should provide more than 5% of your turnover (although most buyers only start to worry at about 15%), and the collective amount brought in by your top 4 customers should not exceed 30%, regardless.
Do you look to tone down these large accounts? Obviously not! What you need to understand is that as long as your smaller customers remain undeveloped, your money spinner is at risk, and is not mature as a business. Rework your marketing plan to either bring in more customers or increase the spending of your smaller customers. In other words - get more sales!
Other related issues which mature business buyers will look at are: Any personal relationships which may exist between the seller and his customers, seller - customer relationships based on verbal promises, old boys networks and church groups making up a customer base. If seller - supplier relationships are not at arms length, but based on cosy buddy-buddy relationships, chances are that you own a job, rather than a business. And when it comes time to sell, any savvy buyer will look with grave distrust on any enterprise in this position.
Cheers
Mark Corke
Monday, March 31, 2008
MOTIVATION - PROFOUND SUCCESS
MOTIVATION – PROFOUND SUCCESS
By Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting CC
The quote or rather piece today comes from Ralph Marston, who says:
“Real success is not merely a matter of getting what you want. After all, a newborn infant with a loud cry can accomplish that.
Real success comes from fully being who you are. Real success comes from giving your own unique value to life.
The less you need, the more fulfilled and powerful and effective you are. As your peacefulness increases, so does your energy level.
Choose not to let the small things anger you, or annoy you, or distract you. And keep in mind that most things are small things.
Stop fretting so much about whether or not you're getting your way. Seek instead to relax your judgment, and to find the unique value that is in each moment.
You cannot ever fully control everything that happens, and in fact you would not want to do so. Enjoy true success by learning how to take whatever happens, and to make it work for the good of all concerned.”
Wow! Powerful words indeed and I read through them, I can see once again, that I really need to work on my anger around small issues and control issues. I seem to be getting angry all the time and it’s over things that I really should be walking away from – such a time waster – anger over silly things.
I think however, that it is important to examine ourselves from time to time to see where we are at that point in time. To try and find the root or cause of what it is that is making you react in the way that you are currently reacting.
For me at the moment, I am aware of the spurts of anger, and then usually get annoyed with myself for being angry at silly things! So it is really time to ascertain what is at the cause of the anger – a time for self examination – a time to deal with issues, so that I can move forward.
So, tell me – do you know what is impeding your advancement towards your own personal success?
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
By Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting CC
The quote or rather piece today comes from Ralph Marston, who says:
“Real success is not merely a matter of getting what you want. After all, a newborn infant with a loud cry can accomplish that.
Real success comes from fully being who you are. Real success comes from giving your own unique value to life.
The less you need, the more fulfilled and powerful and effective you are. As your peacefulness increases, so does your energy level.
Choose not to let the small things anger you, or annoy you, or distract you. And keep in mind that most things are small things.
Stop fretting so much about whether or not you're getting your way. Seek instead to relax your judgment, and to find the unique value that is in each moment.
You cannot ever fully control everything that happens, and in fact you would not want to do so. Enjoy true success by learning how to take whatever happens, and to make it work for the good of all concerned.”
Wow! Powerful words indeed and I read through them, I can see once again, that I really need to work on my anger around small issues and control issues. I seem to be getting angry all the time and it’s over things that I really should be walking away from – such a time waster – anger over silly things.
I think however, that it is important to examine ourselves from time to time to see where we are at that point in time. To try and find the root or cause of what it is that is making you react in the way that you are currently reacting.
For me at the moment, I am aware of the spurts of anger, and then usually get annoyed with myself for being angry at silly things! So it is really time to ascertain what is at the cause of the anger – a time for self examination – a time to deal with issues, so that I can move forward.
So, tell me – do you know what is impeding your advancement towards your own personal success?
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
Friday, March 28, 2008
WHAT TO DO WHEN ....... YOUR EMPLOYEE GOES AWOL - PART 2
ARTICLE 3
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . STAFF GO AWOL!
PART 2
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
So here we are back with the dilemma that Mike finds himself in. A staff member who is AWOL, that cannot be contacted – too much work for one person, and the possibility of falling foul of the law if he just dismisses said employee and hires another one! Mike is pretty much between a rock and a hard place.
So here is what not to do:
· Don’t immediately take the employer off the books and record that they have dismissed themselves.
· Don’t immediately hold a disciplinary hearing in the employee’s absence and them fire them.
If George has not formally and clearly resigned, Mike cannot just assume that he has resigned. If there is no letter from George stating that he has resigned – well he hasn’t and if George hasn’t said “I hereby tender my resignation (or words to that effect”, packed up his worldly possessions and left, never to return again - then he hasn’t resigned. George has done neither of these, therefore he has not resigned and he is still legally employed by Mike.
What Mike needs to do now, is to send a telegram to George’s home address saying something like – “you have been absent without leave for the last 5 days, you have not contacted the office to advise the reason for your absence and I have been unable to contact you at all. This is a formal request for you to contact me on 083 702 8849 or 011 672 3456 or mike@abcspecials.co.za by 2nd April 2008. If by that date, I have not heard from you, I will have not option but to hold a disciplinary in absentia, for being Absent without Leave and if you are found guilty, you may be summarily dismissed.”
Mike of course, needs to give George a ‘reasonable’ amount of time to respond to the telegram, 3 working days is more than reasonable for the telegram to be delivered and for George to contact the office to explain his absence.
If George does respond, depending on the reason for his absence, a disciplinary should be held.
If George does not respond by the stipulated date, a disciplinary must be held and Mike is well within his rights to dismiss George at this time.
It must be noted however, that a full ‘audit/document trail’ must be kept. Should George crawl out of the woodwork at some point and decide to take Mike to the CCMA for unfair dismissal (or anything else that he might come up with), if Mike has a clear record of when he tried to contact George (telephone records are good), a copy of the telegram and the disciplinary records and don’t forget the attendance register to evidence that George did not come to work, and that Mike explored every opportunity to make contact with George – chances are that it will be thrown out of court.
It is always a good idea however, to get hold of a Labour Attorney to discuss the facts of the case and to make sure that steps that are taken are within the requirements of the law. It is also a good idea, if you need to go to a CCMA hearing, to get the sound legal opinion of a good Labour Attorney to assist you.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . STAFF GO AWOL!
PART 2
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
So here we are back with the dilemma that Mike finds himself in. A staff member who is AWOL, that cannot be contacted – too much work for one person, and the possibility of falling foul of the law if he just dismisses said employee and hires another one! Mike is pretty much between a rock and a hard place.
So here is what not to do:
· Don’t immediately take the employer off the books and record that they have dismissed themselves.
· Don’t immediately hold a disciplinary hearing in the employee’s absence and them fire them.
If George has not formally and clearly resigned, Mike cannot just assume that he has resigned. If there is no letter from George stating that he has resigned – well he hasn’t and if George hasn’t said “I hereby tender my resignation (or words to that effect”, packed up his worldly possessions and left, never to return again - then he hasn’t resigned. George has done neither of these, therefore he has not resigned and he is still legally employed by Mike.
What Mike needs to do now, is to send a telegram to George’s home address saying something like – “you have been absent without leave for the last 5 days, you have not contacted the office to advise the reason for your absence and I have been unable to contact you at all. This is a formal request for you to contact me on 083 702 8849 or 011 672 3456 or mike@abcspecials.co.za by 2nd April 2008. If by that date, I have not heard from you, I will have not option but to hold a disciplinary in absentia, for being Absent without Leave and if you are found guilty, you may be summarily dismissed.”
Mike of course, needs to give George a ‘reasonable’ amount of time to respond to the telegram, 3 working days is more than reasonable for the telegram to be delivered and for George to contact the office to explain his absence.
If George does respond, depending on the reason for his absence, a disciplinary should be held.
If George does not respond by the stipulated date, a disciplinary must be held and Mike is well within his rights to dismiss George at this time.
It must be noted however, that a full ‘audit/document trail’ must be kept. Should George crawl out of the woodwork at some point and decide to take Mike to the CCMA for unfair dismissal (or anything else that he might come up with), if Mike has a clear record of when he tried to contact George (telephone records are good), a copy of the telegram and the disciplinary records and don’t forget the attendance register to evidence that George did not come to work, and that Mike explored every opportunity to make contact with George – chances are that it will be thrown out of court.
It is always a good idea however, to get hold of a Labour Attorney to discuss the facts of the case and to make sure that steps that are taken are within the requirements of the law. It is also a good idea, if you need to go to a CCMA hearing, to get the sound legal opinion of a good Labour Attorney to assist you.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
Thursday, March 27, 2008
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 54
THE POWER OF NETWORKING
PART 54
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Do you love your work? Are you passionate about what you do? Does it show? Can people see how you feel about what you do?
If you have answered “No” to any of the above – well quite frankly you are in trouble!
I understand that there are some folk out there who have not yet found their passion, and on a personal level, that is one of the saddest things. What is even sadder is that some people don’t know that they haven’t found their passion. A quick test for me is to answer the following question – honestly!
If you had to win the lotto – say 50 million rand – once you have had the holiday and bought the dream house and car, what would you do? For me it’s a ‘no brainer’ – I would continue to do exactly what it is that I do now. The only difference would be that it would not be financially driven. In other words it wouldn’t matter if payments were late, because I would obviously be financially stable, so I wouldn’t need to ‘chase’ money the way that I do now.
I am often told that my passion and joy of living is infectious! Well if I’m going to be ‘infectious’, I would rather it be with my love of life than any other strange lurgy. Actually I really don’t understand those around me that live in a perpetual state of ‘doom and gloom’. Seriously, what’s the point? Walking around with the world on your shoulders, being constantly sad or angry or both. Sounds like too much hard work to me.
Think about it seriously for one moment – would you rather do business with someone who is obviously in love with life and who has a positive attitude towards life or would you rather do business with someone who is forever predicting a future that has . . . well no future?
I know which one would attract my business!
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
PART 54
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Do you love your work? Are you passionate about what you do? Does it show? Can people see how you feel about what you do?
If you have answered “No” to any of the above – well quite frankly you are in trouble!
I understand that there are some folk out there who have not yet found their passion, and on a personal level, that is one of the saddest things. What is even sadder is that some people don’t know that they haven’t found their passion. A quick test for me is to answer the following question – honestly!
If you had to win the lotto – say 50 million rand – once you have had the holiday and bought the dream house and car, what would you do? For me it’s a ‘no brainer’ – I would continue to do exactly what it is that I do now. The only difference would be that it would not be financially driven. In other words it wouldn’t matter if payments were late, because I would obviously be financially stable, so I wouldn’t need to ‘chase’ money the way that I do now.
I am often told that my passion and joy of living is infectious! Well if I’m going to be ‘infectious’, I would rather it be with my love of life than any other strange lurgy. Actually I really don’t understand those around me that live in a perpetual state of ‘doom and gloom’. Seriously, what’s the point? Walking around with the world on your shoulders, being constantly sad or angry or both. Sounds like too much hard work to me.
Think about it seriously for one moment – would you rather do business with someone who is obviously in love with life and who has a positive attitude towards life or would you rather do business with someone who is forever predicting a future that has . . . well no future?
I know which one would attract my business!
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 54
THE POWER OF NETWORKING
PART 54
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Do you love your work? Are you passionate about what you do? Does it show? Can people see how you feel about what you do?
If you have answered “No” to any of the above – well quite frankly you are in trouble!
I understand that there are some folk out there who have not yet found their passion, and on a personal level, that is one of the saddest things. What is even sadder is that some people don’t know that they haven’t found their passion. A quick test for me is to answer the following question – honestly!
If you had to win the lotto – say 50 million rand – once you have had the holiday and bought the dream house and car, what would you do? For me it’s a ‘no brainer’ – I would continue to do exactly what it is that I do now. The only difference would be that it would not be financially driven. In other words it wouldn’t matter if payments were late, because I would obviously be financially stable, so I wouldn’t need to ‘chase’ money the way that I do now.
I am often told that my passion and joy of living is infectious! Well if I’m going to be ‘infectious’, I would rather it be with my love of life than any other strange lurgy. Actually I really don’t understand those around me that live in a perpetual state of ‘doom and gloom’. Seriously, what’s the point? Walking around with the world on your shoulders, being constantly sad or angry or both. Sounds like too much hard work to me.
Think about it seriously for one moment – would you rather do business with someone who is obviously in love with life and who has a positive attitude towards life or would you rather do business with someone who is forever predicting a future that has . . . well no future?
I know which one would attract my business!
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
PART 54
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Do you love your work? Are you passionate about what you do? Does it show? Can people see how you feel about what you do?
If you have answered “No” to any of the above – well quite frankly you are in trouble!
I understand that there are some folk out there who have not yet found their passion, and on a personal level, that is one of the saddest things. What is even sadder is that some people don’t know that they haven’t found their passion. A quick test for me is to answer the following question – honestly!
If you had to win the lotto – say 50 million rand – once you have had the holiday and bought the dream house and car, what would you do? For me it’s a ‘no brainer’ – I would continue to do exactly what it is that I do now. The only difference would be that it would not be financially driven. In other words it wouldn’t matter if payments were late, because I would obviously be financially stable, so I wouldn’t need to ‘chase’ money the way that I do now.
I am often told that my passion and joy of living is infectious! Well if I’m going to be ‘infectious’, I would rather it be with my love of life than any other strange lurgy. Actually I really don’t understand those around me that live in a perpetual state of ‘doom and gloom’. Seriously, what’s the point? Walking around with the world on your shoulders, being constantly sad or angry or both. Sounds like too much hard work to me.
Think about it seriously for one moment – would you rather do business with someone who is obviously in love with life and who has a positive attitude towards life or would you rather do business with someone who is forever predicting a future that has . . . well no future?
I know which one would attract my business!
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
WRAP YOUR HEAD AROUND THIS AS A CAREER
This is absolutely fantasic news! I remember as a teenager growing up in the 70's (ok now that has got to have given my age away! :)) how glamourous it was for the guys and gals to become apprentice hairdresses! The pay, believe me was dreadful, but they had these dreams and what dreams they were. My cousin Kate and her brother Ian, both followed their mother's footsteps and whilst Kate doesn't practice anymore, having married an Accountant - Ian is in London, still following his dream!
Gosh, this really brings back memories of us youngsters, all bright eyed and bussy tailed, all empty pockets, starry eyes and huge dreams.
Well, I have followed and attained my dreams - have you?
Wrap your head around this as a career
20 December 2007 at 11h00
After some time in decline, the career of hair-dressing is back with a glam bang. That's according to Terenzo Hairdressing School, the first such institution to be accredited by the Services Seta. "It's enlightening to see private providers coming to the fore to train up hair-dressing professionals," says Priscilla Davids of the Services Seata. "An entrepreneurial and professional spirit will galvanise this service industry."
The Services Seta provides students with a bursary of over 20% of their fees for students who spend one year on the full time diploma course at Terenzo Hairdressing "The School" in Cape Town or Johannesburg, following which they conduct a year's apprenticeship at Terenzo and other Hair Salons. "The idea behind the establishment of the schools is also to re-invigorate the profession of hairdressing with a sense of style, glamour and professionalism," says Shane Enslin, education director of the Terenzo school.
There are two Terenzo schools, located in Fourways in Johannesburg and Gardens in Cape Town, featuring cutting edge, salon-style training areas. "What was once perceived as a somewhat artistic profession went through a slump of confidence in the past few years, but we aim to re-establish the fact that, along with the Services Seta, not only is it a creative vocation also a profitable career," says Enslin.
On the course, students cover all aspects of hair-dressing - from international styling trends to business management, colouring and cutting techniques - and also receive a full hair-styling kit to last a lifetime. "Hair stylists are the arbiters of style, trends and fashion - and what woman, or man for that matter, could not live without them?" asks Enslin.
Call Terenzo Hairdressing "The School" on 011-325-6094.
Monday, March 24, 2008
ATTITUDE
ATTITUDE
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Today’s article is based on a whole piece rather than just a one liner, by an unknown author – but what a piece of work it is!
“There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs on her head.
Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today?"
So she did and she had a wonderful day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head.
"H-M-M," she said, "I think I'll part my hair down the middle today?"
So she did and she had a grand day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head.
"Well," she said, "today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail."
So she did and she had a fun, fun day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head.
"YEA!" she exclaimed,
"I don't have to fix my hair today!"
Attitude is everything.
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
Live simply,
Love generously,
Care deeply,
Speak kindly.......
Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass.
It's about learning to dance in the rain.”
I have been engaged, in several conversations about being positive, of late. Some of these discussions have turned into extremely bitter arguments, some have ruined friendships, some have been taken in the spirit that they were intended and lifted spirits – all have had a profound affect on me in my personal capacity. They have left their mark and in short made me more determined to see the good in life.
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
Today’s article is based on a whole piece rather than just a one liner, by an unknown author – but what a piece of work it is!
“There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs on her head.
Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today?"
So she did and she had a wonderful day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head.
"H-M-M," she said, "I think I'll part my hair down the middle today?"
So she did and she had a grand day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head.
"Well," she said, "today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail."
So she did and she had a fun, fun day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head.
"YEA!" she exclaimed,
"I don't have to fix my hair today!"
Attitude is everything.
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
Live simply,
Love generously,
Care deeply,
Speak kindly.......
Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass.
It's about learning to dance in the rain.”
I have been engaged, in several conversations about being positive, of late. Some of these discussions have turned into extremely bitter arguments, some have ruined friendships, some have been taken in the spirit that they were intended and lifted spirits – all have had a profound affect on me in my personal capacity. They have left their mark and in short made me more determined to see the good in life.
That’s not to say that I walk around with a blinkered view of what is happening around me, it just means that although I see the pain, the poverty, the crime and all the nasties that surround my life, I have made a conscious decision to see the good that has come out of these sometimes impossible situations.
Not only have I chosen to see the good, but I have also made a decision to make a difference where I can.
Don’t worry folks that does not mean that I will don flowing robes and headgear and become the next “Mother Theresa”, I am still “Nikki” and the Nikki that those who know me have grown to love – as far as that is concerned, things will remain the same, but I have chosen my attitude.
I challenge you all to look around you and see what is before you, really look and you too will see the good that has grown out of the bad! Choose to laugh with me, choose to see the view that I see, choose to make a difference in someone else’s life by merely changing your mindset about how you view your life.
Choose to have the right attitude!
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or
Friday, March 21, 2008
WHAT TO DO WHEN ....... YOUR EMPLOYEE GOES AWOL
ARTICLE 3
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . STAFF GO AWOL!
PART 1
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
Most employers rely rather heavily on their employees to get the job done, not only in the Corporate world, but also in the world of the SMME. Unfortunately, it’s the SMME, who shoulder the biggest burden of ‘growing’ the economy and who have the greatest difficulty in ‘wading through the red tape’, who with ultimately foot the largest of all bills, when they try and dismiss AWOL staff without following the correct procedures! How sad is that?
Let’s face it, employers need their staff to be present at work in order for the deliverables to take place. In a Corporate environment, a staff member who doesn’t pitch for a day or two can become a minor irritant in the grand scheme of things simply because there is usually another person who can ‘step up to the plate’. Whilst this is not ideal in the long term, in the short term it is something that can possibly be lived with.
This however is not the case with a typical Small Business. Usually there is the Business owner (lets call him Mike) who is the CEO, MD, HR Manager, IT Manager, Sales Manager, Administration Manager, Operations Manager, Counselor and general dogs body, and then there is one staff member, who shall we say is the driver who delivers everything. Let’s call him George.
Let’s take a typical scenario – it’s been the Easter weekend. The Company is in a state of animated suspension, because being this time of the year there are 3 or more public holidays during the month, which means that productivity has to be increased for the other 19 or less working days in order to meet the targets set for the month. The Tuesday morning after 4 days off – George does not pitch for work, and not only does George not pitch, he does not phone in or get anyone to contact Mike.
Now what! Torn between wanting to throttle George, because there are 50 urgent deliveries to make, Mike still has to continue with his work, meetings, sales, meeting of targets and so on, Mike is also concerned about George’s well being. What if he has been in an accident – we all know what the roads are like over Easter and we all know what kind of condition the taxi’s are in as well. Mike calls George’s cell phone number and the call goes straight to voice mail. The home telephone number that Mike has for George, just rings. George’s girlfriend hasn’t heard from him for months and in fact want nothing to do with him at all! The cold reality of the situation is that Mike cannot get hold of George at all.
Mike decides to just get on with the job at hand and hopes that George will either call in or come back to work the next day.
The next day dawns bright and early and an exhausted Mike eagerly awaits the arrival of his driver – no George, no phone call, no nothing! Again Mike gets on with what needs to be done in order for his business to continue operating. Mike at this point is still torn, but more on the side of ‘What the hell is George playing at’!
The next day sees Mike dragging himself into the office. He is fit to drop because in order for his company to meet the targets, deliverables etc, Mike has had to work through the night and the strain is more than beginning to tell! Again he is faced with an impossible amount of deliveries, as well as all the appointments that he has made in order to promote and make his sales targets. Most of these appointments were really difficult to get and would be impossible to re-schedule, without him losing credibility – needless to say, if the deliveries are not made, he will also lose clients and his income will suffer, not to mention cash flow and all the other realities that come with owning you own business. Mike is now no longer even the slightest bit interested in finding out what George’s problem is – all he wants to do is get rid of him!
Sounds familiar – doesn’t it?
Well here’s not what to do – don’t just fire the guy! This action will sure as hell come back to bite you in the rear end and when I say bite you – it will take chunks out!
Let’s have a look at the facts – take the emotion out of the whole thing and just look at the facts.
On the one hand
· George is absent without leave and/or any kind of authority
· George has not contacted the office to let Mike know what (if any) the problem is.
· No-one has called in on George’s behalf.
· Mike has not been able to contact George in any way.
· Mike has no way of knowing when or indeed if, George is ever coming back and clearly Mike cannot cope on his own.
On the other hand
· The law necessitates that a disciplinary hearing needs to take place, in order for Mike to dismiss George, in a legally compliant manner.
· The law states that George is entitled to participate in a disciplinary brought against him because he has the right to know what the charges are against him, and he also has the right to defend himself.
· Mike cannot get George to a hearing because he cannot locate George.
The bottom line is that the very offence of being absent without leave is preventing Mike from disciplining George.
Next week we will have a look at how to resolve this dilemma.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
WHAT TO DO WHEN . . . . STAFF GO AWOL!
PART 1
By Nikki Viljoen – N Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
Most employers rely rather heavily on their employees to get the job done, not only in the Corporate world, but also in the world of the SMME. Unfortunately, it’s the SMME, who shoulder the biggest burden of ‘growing’ the economy and who have the greatest difficulty in ‘wading through the red tape’, who with ultimately foot the largest of all bills, when they try and dismiss AWOL staff without following the correct procedures! How sad is that?
Let’s face it, employers need their staff to be present at work in order for the deliverables to take place. In a Corporate environment, a staff member who doesn’t pitch for a day or two can become a minor irritant in the grand scheme of things simply because there is usually another person who can ‘step up to the plate’. Whilst this is not ideal in the long term, in the short term it is something that can possibly be lived with.
This however is not the case with a typical Small Business. Usually there is the Business owner (lets call him Mike) who is the CEO, MD, HR Manager, IT Manager, Sales Manager, Administration Manager, Operations Manager, Counselor and general dogs body, and then there is one staff member, who shall we say is the driver who delivers everything. Let’s call him George.
Let’s take a typical scenario – it’s been the Easter weekend. The Company is in a state of animated suspension, because being this time of the year there are 3 or more public holidays during the month, which means that productivity has to be increased for the other 19 or less working days in order to meet the targets set for the month. The Tuesday morning after 4 days off – George does not pitch for work, and not only does George not pitch, he does not phone in or get anyone to contact Mike.
Now what! Torn between wanting to throttle George, because there are 50 urgent deliveries to make, Mike still has to continue with his work, meetings, sales, meeting of targets and so on, Mike is also concerned about George’s well being. What if he has been in an accident – we all know what the roads are like over Easter and we all know what kind of condition the taxi’s are in as well. Mike calls George’s cell phone number and the call goes straight to voice mail. The home telephone number that Mike has for George, just rings. George’s girlfriend hasn’t heard from him for months and in fact want nothing to do with him at all! The cold reality of the situation is that Mike cannot get hold of George at all.
Mike decides to just get on with the job at hand and hopes that George will either call in or come back to work the next day.
The next day dawns bright and early and an exhausted Mike eagerly awaits the arrival of his driver – no George, no phone call, no nothing! Again Mike gets on with what needs to be done in order for his business to continue operating. Mike at this point is still torn, but more on the side of ‘What the hell is George playing at’!
The next day sees Mike dragging himself into the office. He is fit to drop because in order for his company to meet the targets, deliverables etc, Mike has had to work through the night and the strain is more than beginning to tell! Again he is faced with an impossible amount of deliveries, as well as all the appointments that he has made in order to promote and make his sales targets. Most of these appointments were really difficult to get and would be impossible to re-schedule, without him losing credibility – needless to say, if the deliveries are not made, he will also lose clients and his income will suffer, not to mention cash flow and all the other realities that come with owning you own business. Mike is now no longer even the slightest bit interested in finding out what George’s problem is – all he wants to do is get rid of him!
Sounds familiar – doesn’t it?
Well here’s not what to do – don’t just fire the guy! This action will sure as hell come back to bite you in the rear end and when I say bite you – it will take chunks out!
Let’s have a look at the facts – take the emotion out of the whole thing and just look at the facts.
On the one hand
· George is absent without leave and/or any kind of authority
· George has not contacted the office to let Mike know what (if any) the problem is.
· No-one has called in on George’s behalf.
· Mike has not been able to contact George in any way.
· Mike has no way of knowing when or indeed if, George is ever coming back and clearly Mike cannot cope on his own.
On the other hand
· The law necessitates that a disciplinary hearing needs to take place, in order for Mike to dismiss George, in a legally compliant manner.
· The law states that George is entitled to participate in a disciplinary brought against him because he has the right to know what the charges are against him, and he also has the right to defend himself.
· Mike cannot get George to a hearing because he cannot locate George.
The bottom line is that the very offence of being absent without leave is preventing Mike from disciplining George.
Next week we will have a look at how to resolve this dilemma.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
YOU CAN WORK WITH A DISABILITY
What an opportunity to make a difference in the life of someone who would really, really appreciate it.
If you have an opening available an it could be filled by someone with a disability, why not go that route - you would be making such a difference in the life of someone who would really appreciate it!
You can work with a disability
09 November 2007 at 06h00
South Africa's constitution is one of the few in the world that recognise the rights of people with disabilities.In addition the Employment Equity Act, the Equality Act and Section S of the Building Regulations Act endorse the rights of people with disability to live, work and play in South Africa. But the realities are more sobering: people with disabilities make up 10 percent -15 percent of the population. This translates into over 5-million South Africans with disabilities, of which 95 percent are unemployed. Most buildings, facilities and public transport remain inaccessible to the disabled, and job opportunities remain largely limited and stereotypical.
The goal should be the natural and unhesitant inclusion of people with disability into society by viewing people with disabilities as citizens who can learn, earn, spend and pay taxes.The JumpStart career guide and life skills manual provides the following tips for job seekers with disabilities:
Don't allow yourself to be pushed into a stereotypical career path.
If you're studying further, ensure that your course is relevant and that the skills you acquire are of value in the workplace.
Few recruitment agencies successfully specialise in disability placement. Use "normal" agencies. They too need to learn about disability.
Know that, like everyone else, you'll have to prove your value. Ensure, for example, that the format, content, grammar, spelling, focus and professionalism of your CV are perfect.
In your CV, feel free to mention your disability under personal details. But draw attention to your abilities, competencies and experience your disability should be largely irrelevant.
Understand that there may be those in the job market who are reluctant to hire you. Be assertive enough to recognise that reluctance is largely based on ignorance and challenge it.
Be confident. You have the same rights as any other job seeker.
The Star Workplace and JumpStart publishers are giving away copies of the handbook every week for the following five weeks. To receive a copy for yourself or a loved one, e-mail your postal details to info@jumpstarthandbook.co.za with JumpStart Give Away in the subject line. You can also access an electronic version of JumpStart on www.jumpstarthandbook.co.za
Clearly this last part is no longer applicable, but I am sure that they are still selling copies if you want one.
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 53
THE POWER OF NETWORKING
PART 53
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
One of the greatest rewards for me, from networking is that I get to build a reputation.
My reputation (and yours should be exactly the same) is of the utmost importance, not only on a personal level, but also from a Business perspective. You see your reputation is an integral part of your Branding. Word of mouth or referral is the quickest way in which to Brand yourself and believe it or not, perception is the quickest way to destroy it!
Some people say that your face is one of the biggest ways to build your reputation – by your face you are instantly recognizable. I am constantly amazed by the number of people who come up to me and greet me by name and I have no idea who they are. You see my face (and therefore my brand) is up on every profile that I am on, all over the web!
That in itself however, is not enough. Everything you say and/or do is part of your branding too, whether you like it or not. In short, YOU, the individual are your own brand both from a personal prospective and so too from a Business one.
During the course of this week I was paid a huge compliment by a very new client, who has just outsourced their payroll and Accounting. They mentioned to the Accountant, that they had just undergone a compliance and administration audit and that there was a great deal to be done. The individual who will be doing their books and payroll asked if by any chance the audit was done by “Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting” and when they confirmed that it was, this person apparently answered “ok that’s fine then, everything will be sorted out and resolved!”
Fabulous - don’t you agree? Now here comes the clanger! I have never, ever even heard of this individual or the Company!
That’s my reputation!
A lesson I learnt as a very young child, under the age of 8 years old actually, was from my father who said “You cannot be held responsible for the name that you bring into this world, because it is the name that I gave you – but the name that you take out of this world is the one that you make for yourself!”
These words have stood me in good stead all of my life, and clearly they have made a difference to me and the manner in which I have built my reputation. This is evident in the way that people view me – my reputation appears to precede me.
What about yours? Ask yourself – what is your reputation? What is your Brand and if you don’t like what you see or what you have answered, how are you going to change it and turn it around?
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
PART 53
By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC
One of the greatest rewards for me, from networking is that I get to build a reputation.
My reputation (and yours should be exactly the same) is of the utmost importance, not only on a personal level, but also from a Business perspective. You see your reputation is an integral part of your Branding. Word of mouth or referral is the quickest way in which to Brand yourself and believe it or not, perception is the quickest way to destroy it!
Some people say that your face is one of the biggest ways to build your reputation – by your face you are instantly recognizable. I am constantly amazed by the number of people who come up to me and greet me by name and I have no idea who they are. You see my face (and therefore my brand) is up on every profile that I am on, all over the web!
That in itself however, is not enough. Everything you say and/or do is part of your branding too, whether you like it or not. In short, YOU, the individual are your own brand both from a personal prospective and so too from a Business one.
During the course of this week I was paid a huge compliment by a very new client, who has just outsourced their payroll and Accounting. They mentioned to the Accountant, that they had just undergone a compliance and administration audit and that there was a great deal to be done. The individual who will be doing their books and payroll asked if by any chance the audit was done by “Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting” and when they confirmed that it was, this person apparently answered “ok that’s fine then, everything will be sorted out and resolved!”
Fabulous - don’t you agree? Now here comes the clanger! I have never, ever even heard of this individual or the Company!
That’s my reputation!
A lesson I learnt as a very young child, under the age of 8 years old actually, was from my father who said “You cannot be held responsible for the name that you bring into this world, because it is the name that I gave you – but the name that you take out of this world is the one that you make for yourself!”
These words have stood me in good stead all of my life, and clearly they have made a difference to me and the manner in which I have built my reputation. This is evident in the way that people view me – my reputation appears to precede me.
What about yours? Ask yourself – what is your reputation? What is your Brand and if you don’t like what you see or what you have answered, how are you going to change it and turn it around?
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
YOUTH GIVEN A CHANCE TO LIVE THEIR BUSINESS DREAMS
Man oh man! I love these stories! The opportunities abound - all we need is the determination to succeed and the will to do it!
Well done SAB! I salute you.
Youth given chance to live their business dreams
Katleho Khoaele
04 October 2007 at 11h00
Katleho Khoaele
04 October 2007 at 11h00
When one thinks of South African Breweries, (SAB) the first thought that comes to mind is beer, beer and more beer.
On a serious note though, many of us are not aware of social upliftment programmes that most corporates are involved in.
SAB is in my good books because they have contributed to the economy of our country in so many ways and for that reason I will continue to be a proud consumer of their products.
The SAB Kickstart Awards were held recently in Johannesburg.
The Kickstart programme is funded and developed by SAB and it's a programme that is open to previously disadvantaged youth aged between 18 and 35 who want to start and grow their own businesses.
Since 1995, SAB has invested nearly R40-million in grants funding in the programme, which promotes businesses awareness, helps participants develop business skills and provides start-up grants.
So far, 2 500 people have under gone business training and 64% of all the businesses set up under the scheme are still operating.
At last week's Kickstart Awards evening, Zongamele Tshikana, who owns Ubuhle Trading, a steel and metal business, was named the winner in the development category.
"This award is a validation that I'm doing things right," says Tshikana. "I've got a strategy, and now with more capital I can expand my business in the Eastern Cape"
Ernest Maponyane's jewellery repair business was named business of the year and was given a grant of R180 000 The SAB Kickstart event was a night filled with inspiration and positive testimonials that were inspirational, encouraging one to think bigger and to use opportunities that are available.
It was certainly great to see people on a journey to success and to witness what lies ahead for all those who were part of the programme.
One of the guest speakers, Gayton McKenzie, who is part of the Kickstart alumni, touched many hearts.
Many admired him for his bravery and courage that changed his life, from being a gangster to becoming one of the most profound motivational speakers in the country.
His journey began four years ago, when he was released following a 15-year jail sentence. It was in jail that he made a decision to make a difference in people's lives.
He looked for a job everywhere, and approached many companies, but was always turned down because he was just released from jail.
He did not, however, allow this to stop him from wanting to succeed.
He applied to go on the SAB Kickstart programme and persuaded them to accept him.
However, he was taken on one condition - that he will not get any reward from the programme, but that made him even more enthusiastic and pushed him in the right direction. All he needed was a chance to learn.
"People can take your money but not your knowledge. I am who I am because Kickstart gave me an opportunity"concludes McKenzie. I left the kickstart event being inspired and I was reminded about learning to embrace and utilise opportunities that are given to one, wisely.
Monday, March 17, 2008
MOTIVATION - I THOUGHT AFRICA WAS NOT FOR SISSIES
Good morning Bloggers
There were no articles submitted this weekend, I took it off - needed to rest after the last two incredibly hectic weeks.
Todays article comes from my brother's friend and colleague Miles Crisp. Miles used to work with my brother Tommy at Deloittes, but he has recently (and I mean in the last two months or so) gone out on his own. Miles has been reading my blog and sent this article to me.
"I Thought Africa Was Not For Sissies
Let me confess right at the outset that I am a terminal optimist. I have never been inclined to any other way of seeing the world, mainly because, as I see it, if even a tiny fraction of all of the things that people spend their time and energy worrying about ever came to pass, we would have got to the end of the world a long, long time ago.
It also strikes me that we are inclined to worry about the wrong things. George Bush launched an entire nation into a war based on the threat of terrorist strikes after the twin towers thing. Imagine if, instead, he were to have received the statistics of the number of Americans who died of obesity in the same year. (Do Americans require larger burial plots today than they did before? I know that they can now get bigger toilet seats.) The point is, USA public funding may have been much better spent fighting the Battle of the Bulge than fighting the Taliban – who now simply grow cocaine for a living. At least Americans can feel safe from Al Qaeda while they happily die from other things, possibly even more easily preventable. In fact, millions of them deliberately live in Los Angeles and San Francisco which are going to fall into the sea, so it also seems to me that they are not as risk averse as their President seems to think they are. They are even rebuilding New Orleans - as the Americans say, “Go figure.”It seems to me that very little is actually predictable, and the things that are, are quite boring anyway.
Back at home in South Africa we have had Polokwane. This was apparently a disaster because we witnessed a serious vote of no confidence in our president, and a vote for a man with a shower rose on his head. Dinner party and braaivleis conversation topics have now returned with a vengeance to talk of emigration, doom and gloom, and general dark pessimism. Optimists like me are drowned out by cries of “Open your eyes, and get into the real world! In fact….” I am told, “It will not help to open your eyes anyway because it is so dark after Eskom dropped all of the balls!”
The country has gone to dogs. Manto is still charge of hospitals and vegetable patches, Eskom has failed, matriculants can’t read or write, you cannot get a driver’s licence without paying a bribe and the police are being run by the mafia. Soon the Scorpions will be disbanded giving free rein to corrupt politicians. So Clever Trevor reassures us, and allocates even more money to the soon-to-be-disbanded Scorpions. (It seems that no-one told him to cut their budget. They can’t even get that right.) Have you seen the potholes on the road? The criminals are running the show. And then, as we quaff our fifth beer at the braai, and turn to watch the sun go down on one side, and the full moon come up on the other, some philosophical character says, “Another shit day in Africa!” and his best mate chimes in, on cue, “Ja man, Africa is not for sissies.”
Exactly.
I say, “Get a life!” I also say that it seems like Africa is now full of sissies.Where are the descendants of the warriors who defended El Alamein, and trudged behind the trek wagons? Where are the descendants of the 1820 Settlers who scratched a living from their patch with no water, no electricity, no petrol and no cell phones? And for my black brothers, where are all the descendants of those magnificent leaders, Kings Shaka and Moshesh?
Imagine explaining to Piet Retief, Cecil Rhodes or to Mzilikazi, “The country has really gone to the dogs now! There is no paint on the tar roads, and we had only twenty-two hours of electricity yesterday. Our tap water might become polluted sometime in the future, and my cell phone keeps dropping calls. I wiped out a tyre on my brand new BMW in a pothole last week, and I now have to have a reason to fire my staff. My flight to London was delayed by two hours last week because we had to change flights after the engine fell off, and my gardener bought his code 10 driver’s licence for R1000.”
Piet Retief would have pointed out that this all sounds much better that his last meeting with Dingaan, Mzilikazi would have pointed out that he walked from Durban to Bulawayo with all of his people and Cecil Rhodes would have pointed out that he still pays for bursaries today. It is extremely unlikely, by the way, that any of these three heroes were everything we remember them for. They all had serious blots on their copy books, corruption, bad debts, murder and other delightful activities that kept them very busy.
People ask me, “Are you going to stay in South Africa?” “Are you going to invest in South Africa?” “Are your kids going to stay in South Africa?” (Now here is a great one! I know people who have emigrated from SA with their whole families because their kids may leave the country one day!) “Will the Rand depreciate?” “Will I be able to get first world schooling for my kids, and first world health care for my family?”
I say, “I expect so.” “I hope so.” “I don’t know.” “Probably.” “Sure.” It is not about whether these things come to pass or not. It is about how you react to them. You could just as easily lose your health, either by accident or by disease. You could lose family members or close friends. Or they could lose their health. Your house could burn down after a Highveld lightning strike, or you could drive your car into a Putco bus.
I say, “We are here now. I am surrounded by family and friends who know me and trust me. I have been able to afford everything I could ever have wished for, and more. I have been able to help people who have not been so lucky. Every day I encounter passionate, smiling people, almost all less privileged than I am. I have been able to contribute to the livelihoods of dozens of people in one way or another, and every day I am reminded of how lucky I am. I have descended from some amazing people who survived all sorts of trials, none of whom had what I have.So don’t whine to me about Eskom, and Jacob Zuma, and the Scorpions, and the ANC, and the Rand and……
Rather go and do what you can to help yourself and the people around you.
And when we get together to braai, tell me that you are not a sissie, and that the sunset is just beautiful. Tell me who you helped today, and what you did to make your ancestors proud!”
Then you can add with real passion, “Another great day in Africa!”
Miles Crisp
There were no articles submitted this weekend, I took it off - needed to rest after the last two incredibly hectic weeks.
Todays article comes from my brother's friend and colleague Miles Crisp. Miles used to work with my brother Tommy at Deloittes, but he has recently (and I mean in the last two months or so) gone out on his own. Miles has been reading my blog and sent this article to me.
"I Thought Africa Was Not For Sissies
Let me confess right at the outset that I am a terminal optimist. I have never been inclined to any other way of seeing the world, mainly because, as I see it, if even a tiny fraction of all of the things that people spend their time and energy worrying about ever came to pass, we would have got to the end of the world a long, long time ago.
It also strikes me that we are inclined to worry about the wrong things. George Bush launched an entire nation into a war based on the threat of terrorist strikes after the twin towers thing. Imagine if, instead, he were to have received the statistics of the number of Americans who died of obesity in the same year. (Do Americans require larger burial plots today than they did before? I know that they can now get bigger toilet seats.) The point is, USA public funding may have been much better spent fighting the Battle of the Bulge than fighting the Taliban – who now simply grow cocaine for a living. At least Americans can feel safe from Al Qaeda while they happily die from other things, possibly even more easily preventable. In fact, millions of them deliberately live in Los Angeles and San Francisco which are going to fall into the sea, so it also seems to me that they are not as risk averse as their President seems to think they are. They are even rebuilding New Orleans - as the Americans say, “Go figure.”It seems to me that very little is actually predictable, and the things that are, are quite boring anyway.
Back at home in South Africa we have had Polokwane. This was apparently a disaster because we witnessed a serious vote of no confidence in our president, and a vote for a man with a shower rose on his head. Dinner party and braaivleis conversation topics have now returned with a vengeance to talk of emigration, doom and gloom, and general dark pessimism. Optimists like me are drowned out by cries of “Open your eyes, and get into the real world! In fact….” I am told, “It will not help to open your eyes anyway because it is so dark after Eskom dropped all of the balls!”
The country has gone to dogs. Manto is still charge of hospitals and vegetable patches, Eskom has failed, matriculants can’t read or write, you cannot get a driver’s licence without paying a bribe and the police are being run by the mafia. Soon the Scorpions will be disbanded giving free rein to corrupt politicians. So Clever Trevor reassures us, and allocates even more money to the soon-to-be-disbanded Scorpions. (It seems that no-one told him to cut their budget. They can’t even get that right.) Have you seen the potholes on the road? The criminals are running the show. And then, as we quaff our fifth beer at the braai, and turn to watch the sun go down on one side, and the full moon come up on the other, some philosophical character says, “Another shit day in Africa!” and his best mate chimes in, on cue, “Ja man, Africa is not for sissies.”
Exactly.
I say, “Get a life!” I also say that it seems like Africa is now full of sissies.Where are the descendants of the warriors who defended El Alamein, and trudged behind the trek wagons? Where are the descendants of the 1820 Settlers who scratched a living from their patch with no water, no electricity, no petrol and no cell phones? And for my black brothers, where are all the descendants of those magnificent leaders, Kings Shaka and Moshesh?
Imagine explaining to Piet Retief, Cecil Rhodes or to Mzilikazi, “The country has really gone to the dogs now! There is no paint on the tar roads, and we had only twenty-two hours of electricity yesterday. Our tap water might become polluted sometime in the future, and my cell phone keeps dropping calls. I wiped out a tyre on my brand new BMW in a pothole last week, and I now have to have a reason to fire my staff. My flight to London was delayed by two hours last week because we had to change flights after the engine fell off, and my gardener bought his code 10 driver’s licence for R1000.”
Piet Retief would have pointed out that this all sounds much better that his last meeting with Dingaan, Mzilikazi would have pointed out that he walked from Durban to Bulawayo with all of his people and Cecil Rhodes would have pointed out that he still pays for bursaries today. It is extremely unlikely, by the way, that any of these three heroes were everything we remember them for. They all had serious blots on their copy books, corruption, bad debts, murder and other delightful activities that kept them very busy.
People ask me, “Are you going to stay in South Africa?” “Are you going to invest in South Africa?” “Are your kids going to stay in South Africa?” (Now here is a great one! I know people who have emigrated from SA with their whole families because their kids may leave the country one day!) “Will the Rand depreciate?” “Will I be able to get first world schooling for my kids, and first world health care for my family?”
I say, “I expect so.” “I hope so.” “I don’t know.” “Probably.” “Sure.” It is not about whether these things come to pass or not. It is about how you react to them. You could just as easily lose your health, either by accident or by disease. You could lose family members or close friends. Or they could lose their health. Your house could burn down after a Highveld lightning strike, or you could drive your car into a Putco bus.
I say, “We are here now. I am surrounded by family and friends who know me and trust me. I have been able to afford everything I could ever have wished for, and more. I have been able to help people who have not been so lucky. Every day I encounter passionate, smiling people, almost all less privileged than I am. I have been able to contribute to the livelihoods of dozens of people in one way or another, and every day I am reminded of how lucky I am. I have descended from some amazing people who survived all sorts of trials, none of whom had what I have.So don’t whine to me about Eskom, and Jacob Zuma, and the Scorpions, and the ANC, and the Rand and……
Rather go and do what you can to help yourself and the people around you.
And when we get together to braai, tell me that you are not a sissie, and that the sunset is just beautiful. Tell me who you helped today, and what you did to make your ancestors proud!”
Then you can add with real passion, “Another great day in Africa!”
Miles Crisp
"Enabling others to transform themselves"
Friday, March 14, 2008
IT'S ALL ABOUT CONSISTENCY
ARTICLE 2
IT’S ALL ABOUT CONSISTENCY
By Nikki Viljoen – Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
Perhaps the best place to start would be to define ‘consistency’. My Concise Oxford Dictionary says:
“Compatible, not contradictory, constant to same principals.”
In the working environment it means, quite simply – that the employer treats all the employees in the same manner. That the expectations for work performance, work output, attitude, attention to detail, attendance (and any other measurable’s that you can think of) are the same for each of the employee’s irrespective of what their position, race, gender etc is. That people are all treated fairly and with respect, again irrespective of their position, race, gender etc is.
Let’s have a look at some of the area’s where this may be a problem.
1. In the instance where an employee is related to Management and/or they have a relationship other than a Business Relationship.
We’ve all had one of these I am sure – either ourselves or we’ve been on the receiving end. This is one of the reasons why it isn’t always such a good idea to work with family and/or friends or have an intimate relationship with someone in the workplace. The perception is always and will always be, by the rest of the staff, that they get preferential treatment. So you have to be extra careful to ensure that you don’t ‘play the favorite’! Make sure that everybody has a Letter of Employment and all the other relevant documentation that staff are required to have. Make sure that if the other staff have to say, sign the attendance register, so too does the family member/friend/lover.
2. Consequences
Should it be necessary to hold a disciplinary or a counseling or reprimand an employee (irrespective of who they are and/or their position in the Company), it must be done in the same manner and carry the same consequences as any previous instances. If there are no previous instances – be careful how the ‘new’ one is conducted as this will set a precedent for all future transgressions of this nature!
Here’s an example. When you hire an employee – if you check references for one, you must check references for all. If it is found, at a later stage, that the bookkeeper you hired because you were having a relationship with her at the time, was actually dismissed from her previous company for theft. Your relationship, in the meantime has come to an end and life at the office is uncomfortable and quite frankly it would be better for you if she just left. So you charge her with misconduct in that she “deliberately failed to disclose material information upon employment”. You hold your disciplinary, find her guilty and dismiss her – lovely – end of problem! Actually not hey – you see, if she goes to the CCMA you could come unstuck because of an “Unfair Dismissal because the Employer (yes that’s you) failed to apply discipline consistently.”
This is another reason why you should have documented policies and procedures on how you do things, like interviewing the staff member and checking of references or as it is more commonly known - a staff procurement policy.
At the very least, you may be forced to accept the staff member back at work or face huge monetary payouts. Not too good either way.
So the bottom line here is to be consistent in how you treat your staff. If you have a rule about anything it must apply to everyone, not just the person who happens to be irritating you at the moment.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
IT’S ALL ABOUT CONSISTENCY
By Nikki Viljoen – Viljoen Consulting CC - March 2008.
Perhaps the best place to start would be to define ‘consistency’. My Concise Oxford Dictionary says:
“Compatible, not contradictory, constant to same principals.”
In the working environment it means, quite simply – that the employer treats all the employees in the same manner. That the expectations for work performance, work output, attitude, attention to detail, attendance (and any other measurable’s that you can think of) are the same for each of the employee’s irrespective of what their position, race, gender etc is. That people are all treated fairly and with respect, again irrespective of their position, race, gender etc is.
Let’s have a look at some of the area’s where this may be a problem.
1. In the instance where an employee is related to Management and/or they have a relationship other than a Business Relationship.
We’ve all had one of these I am sure – either ourselves or we’ve been on the receiving end. This is one of the reasons why it isn’t always such a good idea to work with family and/or friends or have an intimate relationship with someone in the workplace. The perception is always and will always be, by the rest of the staff, that they get preferential treatment. So you have to be extra careful to ensure that you don’t ‘play the favorite’! Make sure that everybody has a Letter of Employment and all the other relevant documentation that staff are required to have. Make sure that if the other staff have to say, sign the attendance register, so too does the family member/friend/lover.
2. Consequences
Should it be necessary to hold a disciplinary or a counseling or reprimand an employee (irrespective of who they are and/or their position in the Company), it must be done in the same manner and carry the same consequences as any previous instances. If there are no previous instances – be careful how the ‘new’ one is conducted as this will set a precedent for all future transgressions of this nature!
Here’s an example. When you hire an employee – if you check references for one, you must check references for all. If it is found, at a later stage, that the bookkeeper you hired because you were having a relationship with her at the time, was actually dismissed from her previous company for theft. Your relationship, in the meantime has come to an end and life at the office is uncomfortable and quite frankly it would be better for you if she just left. So you charge her with misconduct in that she “deliberately failed to disclose material information upon employment”. You hold your disciplinary, find her guilty and dismiss her – lovely – end of problem! Actually not hey – you see, if she goes to the CCMA you could come unstuck because of an “Unfair Dismissal because the Employer (yes that’s you) failed to apply discipline consistently.”
This is another reason why you should have documented policies and procedures on how you do things, like interviewing the staff member and checking of references or as it is more commonly known - a staff procurement policy.
At the very least, you may be forced to accept the staff member back at work or face huge monetary payouts. Not too good either way.
So the bottom line here is to be consistent in how you treat your staff. If you have a rule about anything it must apply to everyone, not just the person who happens to be irritating you at the moment.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
Thursday, March 13, 2008
THE POWER OF NETWORKING - PART 52
THE POWER OF NETWORKING
PART 52
By Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting
Dr. Renate Volpe, in her nugget cards entitled “Networking Tips” says:
“Benefits of networking include:
· An enhanced power base
· Broader access to resources
· Expanding your sphere of influence
· Supportive mentorship of peers
· Successful new business transactions and relationships.”
Let’s have a look at these individually.
An enhanced power base.
Every time you get a referral from someone, or someone new comes to a networking meeting, your own database increases. As you increase your data base, so your power base increases and your own personal ‘value add’ increases exponentially.
Broader access to resources.
Now this is a really important one – with the broader access to resources, comes a much bigger value add. One of my jokes that I tell at some of the networking events is that I pretty much have a contact for most requirements – that includes a brain surgeon! That has always brought out the chuckles and often nervous giggles. Last week I actually had to use that contact for a friend who has been in considerable pain for a very long time and who needed a reputable neuro-surgeon. Imagine for a moment, how she must feel right now?
Expanding your sphere of influence.
Man oh man! This is such a fabulous concept and so simplistic as well. Let me give you some more detail – I have a friend and colleague by the name of Mirriam Zwane. For those of you who don’t know her or of her, she is a multiple winner of the “Woman of the Year” award as well as numerous other accolades that she has picked up along the way. Mirriam often sends me a mail, or someone will call me and say ‘Mirriam has asked me to contact you”. I don’t question it, I don’t ask for motives or try and analyse why – I just set up a meeting at the soonest possible opportunity. You see every time Mirriam sends someone to me, its guaranteed work for me and/or the other individual irrespective of whether it comes from each other or from our databases. Mirriam for me, is a wonderful sphere of influence. Go on – google her and see what comes out – she is a woman amongst women!
The powerful thing here is that Mirriam is known for her integrity and her credibility and I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that when she asks me to interact with someone, something very exciting is going to come out of that meeting. So I often sit in the first meeting and say “I have no idea why I am here – Mirriam sent me, so tell me how can I be of help?”
Wouldn’t you like a ‘sphere of influence like mine’ – I am pretty sure that you would!
Supportive mentorship of peers
I often hear people (especially in the SMME environment) say how lonely it is in business. This is often because they work on their own, often the only source of interaction is with their clients. Having a network of people and attending networking sessions allows for interaction with those people. It is good for the soul – you will find that the problems that you encounter are usually the same problems that they too encounter. The result of this of course is that you get to ‘brainstorm’ with like minded people and find practical solutions to the issues at hand.
Suddenly you are not so ‘lonely’ in business, you have a sounding board (well several really) and you have a multitude of expertise and experience available on tap.
Successful new business transactions and relationships
Don’t you just love meeting people? Don’t you just love talking to people? Oh about all sorts of things – and as the conversation meanders through business expectations and then through personal transactions and as you get to know that individual more and more, you get to learn more about their dreams, their hopes and their wishes and so in return to share your dreams and hopes and aspirations and they learn more about you as an individual and so a relationship is born. As that relationship grows, so too does your trust and commitment to that individual and as that grows, so too will the business referrals. You don’t have to become personally involved with the individual – you can just maintain a professional relationship and just as a good friendship is grown and maintained on solid honest foundations so too is a good business relationship. They both feed and nourish the soul.
So when are you off to your next networking event? Don’t you think you should start going, for your own sake and for the sake of your business?
For more information on Renate, please visit her website at www.hirs.co.za
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
PART 52
By Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting
Dr. Renate Volpe, in her nugget cards entitled “Networking Tips” says:
“Benefits of networking include:
· An enhanced power base
· Broader access to resources
· Expanding your sphere of influence
· Supportive mentorship of peers
· Successful new business transactions and relationships.”
Let’s have a look at these individually.
An enhanced power base.
Every time you get a referral from someone, or someone new comes to a networking meeting, your own database increases. As you increase your data base, so your power base increases and your own personal ‘value add’ increases exponentially.
Broader access to resources.
Now this is a really important one – with the broader access to resources, comes a much bigger value add. One of my jokes that I tell at some of the networking events is that I pretty much have a contact for most requirements – that includes a brain surgeon! That has always brought out the chuckles and often nervous giggles. Last week I actually had to use that contact for a friend who has been in considerable pain for a very long time and who needed a reputable neuro-surgeon. Imagine for a moment, how she must feel right now?
Expanding your sphere of influence.
Man oh man! This is such a fabulous concept and so simplistic as well. Let me give you some more detail – I have a friend and colleague by the name of Mirriam Zwane. For those of you who don’t know her or of her, she is a multiple winner of the “Woman of the Year” award as well as numerous other accolades that she has picked up along the way. Mirriam often sends me a mail, or someone will call me and say ‘Mirriam has asked me to contact you”. I don’t question it, I don’t ask for motives or try and analyse why – I just set up a meeting at the soonest possible opportunity. You see every time Mirriam sends someone to me, its guaranteed work for me and/or the other individual irrespective of whether it comes from each other or from our databases. Mirriam for me, is a wonderful sphere of influence. Go on – google her and see what comes out – she is a woman amongst women!
The powerful thing here is that Mirriam is known for her integrity and her credibility and I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that when she asks me to interact with someone, something very exciting is going to come out of that meeting. So I often sit in the first meeting and say “I have no idea why I am here – Mirriam sent me, so tell me how can I be of help?”
Wouldn’t you like a ‘sphere of influence like mine’ – I am pretty sure that you would!
Supportive mentorship of peers
I often hear people (especially in the SMME environment) say how lonely it is in business. This is often because they work on their own, often the only source of interaction is with their clients. Having a network of people and attending networking sessions allows for interaction with those people. It is good for the soul – you will find that the problems that you encounter are usually the same problems that they too encounter. The result of this of course is that you get to ‘brainstorm’ with like minded people and find practical solutions to the issues at hand.
Suddenly you are not so ‘lonely’ in business, you have a sounding board (well several really) and you have a multitude of expertise and experience available on tap.
Successful new business transactions and relationships
Don’t you just love meeting people? Don’t you just love talking to people? Oh about all sorts of things – and as the conversation meanders through business expectations and then through personal transactions and as you get to know that individual more and more, you get to learn more about their dreams, their hopes and their wishes and so in return to share your dreams and hopes and aspirations and they learn more about you as an individual and so a relationship is born. As that relationship grows, so too does your trust and commitment to that individual and as that grows, so too will the business referrals. You don’t have to become personally involved with the individual – you can just maintain a professional relationship and just as a good friendship is grown and maintained on solid honest foundations so too is a good business relationship. They both feed and nourish the soul.
So when are you off to your next networking event? Don’t you think you should start going, for your own sake and for the sake of your business?
For more information on Renate, please visit her website at www.hirs.co.za
Nikki Viljoen is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist and she can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
RECRUITMENT COMPANY TAKES JOB OPPORTUNITIES TO COMMUNITIES
Now this is what I am taking about - the opportunities and the good things that are being done for the various communities.
Recruitment company takes job opportunities to communities
04 December 2007 at 11h00
Based on the success of this pilot project, Quest Flexible Staffing Solutions will now roll out a nation-wide programme of community employment recruitment drives. In October and November drives were held in Cape Town and Pretoria. According to Matheena Ismail, the national co-ordinator of these events, the drives are in response to a shift from a national shortage in employment positions to a shortage in the supply of staff in contact centres, and the financial, retail and cellular communication industries. The robust growth of the South African economy over the past decade, the implementation of affirmative action and the trend towards outsourcing business processes has led to this increased demand for human capital, says Ismail.
Well done Quest!
Recruitment company takes job opportunities to communities
04 December 2007 at 11h00
Earlier in 2007 Quest Flexible Staffing Solutions held a pilot community employment recruitment drive in Johannesburg to attract job seekers from specific communities, offering job opportunities, career changes, career path assistance and access to learnerships for further skills development.
The event attracted over 2 000 applicants from the suburb of Bosmont, a number of whom have now registered for work through Quest. "The response from the Bosmont community was excellent, with requests emerging from other communities for similar drives," said Jacqui Koopman, organiser of the Bosmont event. "This model has proved to be extremely effective for job seekers, the community and the recruitment company."
Based on the success of this pilot project, Quest Flexible Staffing Solutions will now roll out a nation-wide programme of community employment recruitment drives. In October and November drives were held in Cape Town and Pretoria. According to Matheena Ismail, the national co-ordinator of these events, the drives are in response to a shift from a national shortage in employment positions to a shortage in the supply of staff in contact centres, and the financial, retail and cellular communication industries. The robust growth of the South African economy over the past decade, the implementation of affirmative action and the trend towards outsourcing business processes has led to this increased demand for human capital, says Ismail.
Human resources and business process outsourcing firms have been hurt by these shifts. "The process of drafting a CV, applying for a position and being interviewed can be intimidating for job seekers who may believe they lack the necessary skills and experience," says Ismail. "Through these drives, we hope to create an informal, less intimidating, one-on-one context in which job seekers can investigate their options and sign up for employment in a fun environment."
Monday, March 10, 2008
CHOICES
CHOICES
By Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting CC
The quote today comes from William Arthur Ward, who says:-
“We can throw stones, complain about them, stumble on them, climb over them, or build with them. "
More and more, as I look around me on a daily basis, and I see the challenges that we as South Africans have to face in order to live, to work, to be safe – I understand that choices have to be made in order for us to even meet the day.
Sure, there is a lot of negativity that is going around. People whining and whinging, wringing their hands and crying woe is me, but look around you – I mean really, really look and you will see many, who against all odds are making a good living.
Why is that do you think? Well because they have chosen to. They have made the right choices and instead of wasting their time and energy on the negative in the situation and “I can’t” mentality, they have turned it around in their lives and made it an “I can” situation.
We are our own biggest stumbling block, we can be our own mountains to climb or head up our own negative fan club, or we can get on with the business of living life. We can stand in front of the brick wall and cry because there is no doorway to go through or we can walk around it, climb up over it, tunnel under it or simply build our own doorway.
Please believe me, that once we have shown the way – the crying masses will try and follow, so why wait in line for someone else to do it for you?
I’m off to live my life – what are you doing with yours?
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
By Nikki Viljoen of Viljoen Consulting CC
The quote today comes from William Arthur Ward, who says:-
“We can throw stones, complain about them, stumble on them, climb over them, or build with them. "
More and more, as I look around me on a daily basis, and I see the challenges that we as South Africans have to face in order to live, to work, to be safe – I understand that choices have to be made in order for us to even meet the day.
Sure, there is a lot of negativity that is going around. People whining and whinging, wringing their hands and crying woe is me, but look around you – I mean really, really look and you will see many, who against all odds are making a good living.
Why is that do you think? Well because they have chosen to. They have made the right choices and instead of wasting their time and energy on the negative in the situation and “I can’t” mentality, they have turned it around in their lives and made it an “I can” situation.
We are our own biggest stumbling block, we can be our own mountains to climb or head up our own negative fan club, or we can get on with the business of living life. We can stand in front of the brick wall and cry because there is no doorway to go through or we can walk around it, climb up over it, tunnel under it or simply build our own doorway.
Please believe me, that once we have shown the way – the crying masses will try and follow, so why wait in line for someone else to do it for you?
I’m off to live my life – what are you doing with yours?
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
NO MATTER WHERE YOU WORK - DO IT PROPERLY
Enough said. I know for myself, that if I am not sitting correctly bad back and neck pain will result. It's not fair on yourself or your staff and ultimately, the work and therefore the business will suffer.
No matter where you work, do it properly
To be productive, your staff need to be comfortable
Workplace staff
20 February 2008 at 11h00
The advent of the personal computer and breakthroughs in voice and data communication have resulted in more and more people operating from small or home offices (Soho). Businesses which employ from between one and 10 staff cite lower overheads and increased flexibility as the primary benefits of working from home. However, whether working from a large multinational office block or a home study, effective ergonomics is paramount to increasing and maintaining best productivity.
Sit as far back into the seat as possible and is comfortable. Place feet firmly on the floor. Adjust the seat height to ensure your knees are bent at right angles to the thighs (90º to 95º). Legs must fit comfortably under the desktop, with sufficient space to allow for movement and stretching. Raise the height of the arm rests towards the base of the elbows (bent at a 45 degrees angle).
No matter where you work, do it properly
To be productive, your staff need to be comfortable
Workplace staff
20 February 2008 at 11h00
The advent of the personal computer and breakthroughs in voice and data communication have resulted in more and more people operating from small or home offices (Soho). Businesses which employ from between one and 10 staff cite lower overheads and increased flexibility as the primary benefits of working from home. However, whether working from a large multinational office block or a home study, effective ergonomics is paramount to increasing and maintaining best productivity.
So says Gerald Steyn, regional managing director, Gauteng, of CN Business Furniture, who points out that while home-based businesses have particular design requirements, ergonomics basics still apply. "Essentially, ergonomics is the applied science of equipment design intended to maximise productivity by reducing operator fatigue and discomfort," he explains. "Office workers spend more than 95 percent of their working time in a sedentary position. "Incorrect sitting postures are responsible for many muscular ailments resulting in reduced motivation and work output." As a result - through its understanding of the importance of good seating solutions from an ergonomics perspective - CN Business Furniture is increasingly sourcing, designing and manufacturing more ergonomic-centred desks and seating.
These product ranges allow individuals to adjust furnishings to their optimal specification. "Through education on effective ergonomics, individuals are empowered to utilise their work spaces and furnishings correctly. "This prevents the cumulative cycle of ailments such as fatigue, discomfort and, ultimately, pain resulting from musculoskeletal disorders and repetitive stress syndromes that can manifest in the workplace as a direct consequence. "Incorrect sitting postures are responsible for many muscular ailments resulting in reduced delivery."Ergonomic solutions can be simple and straightforward to apply. Often small changes, such as altering the height of a chair, are all that is needed to make a considerable difference to an individual's comfort. CN Business Furniture's best practice ergonomic recommendations to Soho offices include:
Sit as far back into the seat as possible and is comfortable. Place feet firmly on the floor. Adjust the seat height to ensure your knees are bent at right angles to the thighs (90º to 95º). Legs must fit comfortably under the desktop, with sufficient space to allow for movement and stretching. Raise the height of the arm rests towards the base of the elbows (bent at a 45 degrees angle).
For height-variable desks, adjust the desk height to the level of the chair arms, making them "flush" with the worktop surface, enabling the armrests to act as an extension to the worktop, thus ensuring that your arms are adequately supported and your shoulders are relaxed. Position the monitor and keyboard squarely in front of you, allowing for adequate focal distance of 50 to 70cm between yourself and the screen; without leaning your head, neck and trunk forwards. Adjust the height of the seat back to obtain the correct lumbar support relative to your stature. Adjust the seat pan angle and set the tension of the mechanism to facilitate effortless "to and fro" movement of the seat proportionate to your body weight. Avoid direct glare from the window onto your monitor. Correct this by changing or shielding the light source or repositioning the workstation.The work surface should be large enough for the user to perform the required duties, comfortably. Ergonomics is not just about comfortable chairs and suitable desk set-ups; it encompasses the air we breathe, the chair we sit in, the lighting in the immediate work space and our cognitive response to our environment. Accordingly, when conducting an ergonomic health check, all these factors should be considered.
For further information, visit www.cnonline.co.za
For further information, visit www.cnonline.co.za
WHO IS AN EMPLOYEE - PART 9
Sorry for the Friday post being done on Sunday - it's been a hectic week.
ARTICLE 1
WHO IS AN EMPLOYEE – PART 8
By Nikki Viljoen – Viljoen Consulting February 2008.
The code also has a look at ‘when’ a person becomes as employee. This should be of particular interest to those among us who hire staff and then change our minds.
Let’s take this example – A person applies for a job (let’s call her Brenda). Brenda gets the job and her new boss (let’s call him Alan), is really on the ball and the result is that Brenda receives her letter/contract of employment even before her starting date. She resigns from her previous employer and is in the process of working her notice period in, when she gets a call from Alan to say – the job no longer exists for whatever reason, and he wants to cancel the employment contract.
Let me put it this way – this can and will put Alan in a problematic situation.
You see, it is not necessary for Brenda to have started working at the new job to be regarded as an employee, in terms of Labour Legislation. Section 26 of the code states clearly that “the definition of an employee” includes a person who has concluded a contract of employment to commence work at a future date.
Brenda could take Alan to the CCMA and/or the bargaining council for ‘unfair dismissal’.
There is also a process to distinguish the difference between an employee and an independent contractor.
Let’s explore the reality of this situation as I am sure that most ‘employers’ would be particularly interested in this.
We know for sure that even though a contract or letter of employment may state that a person is an independent contractor, this is not necessary so and will not necessarily make it so.
Section 27 of the code says that the courts follows a procedure called the “dominant impression” test, when they make this type of decision. These are:
1. All of the aspects of the contract and/or relationship between the employer and the person needs to be evaluated and a decision then made on the dominant impression formed during the course of that evaluation.
2. As an added precaution it is also noted that all the different factors do and would not carry the same weight. This is because there is no single criterion that will determine whether an employment relationship exists or not.
3. The true relationship between the employer and the person needs to be discovered, as the wording in the contract may not be a true reflection of this relationship. So the court would need to look at the reality of the relationship rather than just the contractual nature.
There are obviously many instances where the employer treats an individual as a contractor, when in fact they are an employee. One of the most common ones is:
Conversions – the employer claims that a person who was ‘previously’ employed has now become a contractor. If the person is still performing exactly the same or even similar work as they did when they were “employees”, chances are they are actually still employees.
So in closing, the employer needs to be aware of the differences between an employer and an independent contractor and of course make sure that they are within the scope of what the law requires.
It can be an extremely costly exercise, if an employer is taken to court or the CCMA, and it is discovered that they have not followed the law and are therefore in contravention of the Code.
Make sure that you know what it is that you want and then make sure that you follow the letter of the law – it is much easier (and cheaper in the long run) to start off in the correct manner than to try and sort it out afterwards.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
ARTICLE 1
WHO IS AN EMPLOYEE – PART 8
By Nikki Viljoen – Viljoen Consulting February 2008.
The code also has a look at ‘when’ a person becomes as employee. This should be of particular interest to those among us who hire staff and then change our minds.
Let’s take this example – A person applies for a job (let’s call her Brenda). Brenda gets the job and her new boss (let’s call him Alan), is really on the ball and the result is that Brenda receives her letter/contract of employment even before her starting date. She resigns from her previous employer and is in the process of working her notice period in, when she gets a call from Alan to say – the job no longer exists for whatever reason, and he wants to cancel the employment contract.
Let me put it this way – this can and will put Alan in a problematic situation.
You see, it is not necessary for Brenda to have started working at the new job to be regarded as an employee, in terms of Labour Legislation. Section 26 of the code states clearly that “the definition of an employee” includes a person who has concluded a contract of employment to commence work at a future date.
Brenda could take Alan to the CCMA and/or the bargaining council for ‘unfair dismissal’.
There is also a process to distinguish the difference between an employee and an independent contractor.
Let’s explore the reality of this situation as I am sure that most ‘employers’ would be particularly interested in this.
We know for sure that even though a contract or letter of employment may state that a person is an independent contractor, this is not necessary so and will not necessarily make it so.
Section 27 of the code says that the courts follows a procedure called the “dominant impression” test, when they make this type of decision. These are:
1. All of the aspects of the contract and/or relationship between the employer and the person needs to be evaluated and a decision then made on the dominant impression formed during the course of that evaluation.
2. As an added precaution it is also noted that all the different factors do and would not carry the same weight. This is because there is no single criterion that will determine whether an employment relationship exists or not.
3. The true relationship between the employer and the person needs to be discovered, as the wording in the contract may not be a true reflection of this relationship. So the court would need to look at the reality of the relationship rather than just the contractual nature.
There are obviously many instances where the employer treats an individual as a contractor, when in fact they are an employee. One of the most common ones is:
Conversions – the employer claims that a person who was ‘previously’ employed has now become a contractor. If the person is still performing exactly the same or even similar work as they did when they were “employees”, chances are they are actually still employees.
So in closing, the employer needs to be aware of the differences between an employer and an independent contractor and of course make sure that they are within the scope of what the law requires.
It can be an extremely costly exercise, if an employer is taken to court or the CCMA, and it is discovered that they have not followed the law and are therefore in contravention of the Code.
Make sure that you know what it is that you want and then make sure that you follow the letter of the law – it is much easier (and cheaper in the long run) to start off in the correct manner than to try and sort it out afterwards.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Sound advice as usual from the guys at LabourNet. Remember though, if you are not 100% sure about something, contact a labour attorney - not someone who thinks that they know what's going on, but rather someone who actually does know what's going on!
Where do workers stand in case of a merger?
Ivan Israelstam04 February 2008 at 11h00
The takeover of an entity or part thereof by a new owner or a new management often causes loss of jobs and employees are often desperate to stay on with the new enterprise. On the other hand, the new owner/management very often already has its own staff and wants to avoid the expense of taking on additional employees. The law relating to takeovers of going concerns has been expanded and is no longer confined to situations where one business buys another or where two entities merge.
The Labour Relations Act (LRA) was amended in 2002 to include a "service" in the definition of an entity that may be taken over as a going concern for purposes of section 197 of the LRA. The LRA states that:
1. A "service" includes even internal services of a business insignificant to the service provided by the business to outsiders (for example, non-core departments such as cleaning and gardening)
2. Outsourcing of services (be they internal or external) to contractors normally constitutes the takeover of a going concern for the purposes of section 197 of the LRA. In view of this, section 197 of the Labour Relations Act comes into effect when outsourcing occurs and forces the new operator of the service to take over all the labour law obligations of the old undertaking. However, not all transfers qualify under this legislation because not all are transfers "as going concerns". It is vital for employers to know which transfers do and do not fall under this legislation because they need to know:
whether the new employer will be forced to take over all the old employer's employees and
whether the new employer will have to recognise and preserve all the benefits, remuneration, working conditions, years of service and other rights of the employees.Unfortunately, the statutes are not clear enough to tell the parties whether the new entity must or must not comply with section 197 of the LRA. We have therefore offered below our view as to what circumstances would be likely to characterise a merger or takeover as the transfer of a going concern.
If the new undertaking continued the running of the business as a going concern in much the same way as it had been run before the takeover, this would point to the takeover of a going concern.
Such a takeover would also be likely to qualify if the new undertaking served the same client market as did the old undertaking.While the sale of a business as an operating entity has normally been considered to qualify under the heading of a section 197 transfer, it was initially unclear whether the outsourcing of an enterprise to a contractor without selling the entity constitutes the transfer of a going concern.
This uncertainty sprang primarily form the contradictions in court decisions on this issue. For example, in the case of Schutte and others v Powerplus Performance and another (1999, 20 ILJ 665), the Labour Court found that the takeover of a company's motor workshop by a contractor did constitute the takeover of a going concern and forced the contractor to take over all the workers attached to the motor workshop. However, in the case of Nehawu v University of Cape Town and Others (2000, 1 BLLR 803) the Labour Court found that the outsourcing of the university's cleaning, maintenance and gardening functions did not constitute the takeover of a going concern. This was because the university did not transfer its equipment and other assets to the contractor and because the outsourcing was not of a permanent nature. Again, in Samwu and others v Rand Airport Management Company (Pty) Ltd and others (2002, 12 BLLR 1220), the court found that the transfer of part of an employer's structure that did not comprise a recognisable entity did not constitute the transfer of a going concern.However, the Labour Appeal Court in Samwu and others v Rand Airport Management Company (Pty) Ltd and others (2005 3 BLLR 241) overturned the earlier Rand Airport case decision and the Constitutional Court, in Nehawu v University of Cape Town and Others (2003, 24 ILJ 95) overturned the earlier University of Cape Town decision.The legal pendulum has thus swung far in favour of the view that outsourcing of services constitutes the take over of a going concern. Due to the complex nature of the section 197 legislation and the powerful constraints on contractors and other employers, nobody should enter into takeovers or outsourcing agreements before consulting reputable experts in the labour law field. Our experience is that employers have found, to their cost, that going it alone is far more expensive than getting the right advice.
Ivan Israelstam is chief executive of Labour Law Management Consulting.
He can be contacted on 011-888-7944 or 082-852-2973 or via e-mail at labourlaw@absamail.co.za Visit labourlawadvice.co.za
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