SIRDAR SOUTH AFRICA
LISA GERING - REGIONAL DIRECTOR - GAUTENG, SOUTH AFRICA
February 2nd, 2012
Sirdar South Africa Group Chief Executive, Carl Bates, was interviewed for Summit TV’s new programme, Big-Small Business. The show will be aired for the first time on Monday 16 February 2012.
Carl was asked a range of questions regarding his experience as an entrepreneur. He discussed the highlights and lowlights of his career, and provided invaluable advice for entrepreneurs. His insights will be aired at various times throughout the series, along with those of other well-known South African entrepreneurs.
Do not miss out on this show, as it is sure to be a good programme for all entrepreneurs! Watch Big-Small Business on Summit TV, Channel 412, on Monday evenings at 21:10.
We will also let you know the exact date and time of the full in-studio interview they are doing on Carl during February.
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SIRDAR SOUTH AFRICA
LISA GERING - REGIONAL DIRECTOR - GAUTENG, SOUTH AFRICA
February 2nd, 2012
If you want to grow your business, do not miss out on the following events.
| Date |
Title of talk |
City |
Time |
Read More/Register |
| 8 Feb |
How to be an Effective Business Owner |
Midrand |
07:00-09:30 |
gerhardbarnard@sirdargroup.com |
| 24 Feb |
Wealth Dynamics Day |
Midrand |
08:30-16:00 |
gerhardbarnard@sirdargroup.com |
| 1 Mar |
How to be an Effective Business Owner |
Pretoria |
07:00-09:30 |
gerhardbarnard@sirdargroup.com |
| 7-9 Mar |
Sirdar Business Summit |
Pretoria |
Various |
https://www.quicket.co.za/ViewProduct.aspx?productid=372 |
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SIRDAR SOUTH AFRICA
LISA GERING - REGIONAL DIRECTOR - GAUTENG, SOUTH AFRICA
February 2nd, 2012
This month we would like to welcome to one of the newest additions to the Sirdar South Africa Group – Amanda Tshaya, our new business development executive in Cape Town.
Amanda Tshaya
Amanda has over eight years of experience in the financial industry, with a focus on personalized short-term insurance and banking. She has worked for large companies such as First National Bank, Investec Bank, Aon and Nedbank Private Bank. Working for these organizations provided her with invaluable organizatonal and relationship management skills, and taught her to interact with a wide range of clients. She is a member of the South African Network Alliance.
Amanda joined Sirdar in 2012 because she believes in the Sirdar vision of empowering business owners and communities through sustainable enterprise. She is currently based at the Cape Town Expedition Base of Sirdar South Africa where she works as a business development executive. Amanda is passionate about making a difference in SMEs, and about transforming them into sustainable enterprises.
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SIRDAR GLOBAL GROUP
BELINDA DOVESTON - GLOBAL EXPEDITION DEVELOPMENT
February 2nd, 2012
Carl Bates’ new book, The Laws of Extreme Business Success, was recently released. This inspiring book provides invaluable advice for SMEs and business owners who are open to looking at their businesses in a whole new way.
The book takes us on a journey through the 12 Laws of Extreme Business Success, as Carl shares his visionary understanding of what SMEs need to take their business to new heights in an easy-to-read and inspiring way.
Here is a short excerpt from Law Six – The Law of Rhythm:
Extreme Business Success thrives in an environment of effective timing and rhythm, which builds momentum over time and drives the team forward without the ongoing effort it initially takes to get started. Rhythm also requires you to become conscious of the stage your business is at, and to work in a way that is appropriate for that stage.
Sound interesting? If you want a copy of The Laws of Extreme Business Success with a personalised message from Carl, contact Sirdar South Africa on southafrica@sirdargroup.com for more information or go to www.carlbates.com and order a copy today! To purchase the Amazon Kindle version, click on the following link: http://astore.amazon.com/sirdpres-20/detail/B005P0AM0I
Tags: Carl Bates, corporate governance, entrepreneur, Extreme business success, laws of extreme business success, SME
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SIRDAR SOUTH AFRICA
JANINE SMITH - EXPEDITION SERVICES MANAGER
February 2nd, 2012
“People don’t want to communicate with an organization or a computer. They want to talk to a real, live, responsive, responsible person who will listen and help them get satisfaction.” Theo Michelson, State Farm Insurance.
Nothing short of outstanding customer service should be acceptable in any business. Virtually every day we experience bad customer service. Rarely do we encounter truly outstanding service. Outstanding customer service does just that… it stands out. If you can master the art of serving the customer, you have the opportunity to differentiate your company, or stand out, from your competition and gain a competitive advantage. Good customer service is all about giving your customers the opportunity to express their opinions, then doing everything reasonable to assist in ensuring that it gets completed swiftly and accurately, and constantly giving them feedback.
Outstanding customer service requires several things:
- a sincere and powerful commitment to serving customers and prospective customers at the highest level possible;
- train staff to be knowledgeable about the business, and to be able to assist with every challenge;
- stringent expectations and policies regarding how customers are served, along with a high level of accountability for enforcing those expectations and policies;
- have discipline about serving customers consistently in a manner that not only meets customer expectations, but often exceeds them;
- if you cannot help a customer, transfer them to someone who can and see that it gets completed; and
- honesty and transparency at all times.
Achieving outstanding customer service means hard work and attention to detail. In order to deliver outstanding customer service consistently, each and every facet of your business must be fine-tuned. Because each part of a business is interconnected, each has the ability to create either favourable or unfavourable impressions with customers.
Ensure that all employees fully understand what their roles are in providing outstanding customer service, and that they are held accountable for delivering it. Outstanding customer service must become a way of life for employees. They should have a healthy fear about delivering anything less than outstanding service.
Take the opportunity for your company to truly stand out from your competition by delivering the best customer service. It will make a significant difference in how customers perceive your business and what they tell others about it.
Tags: accountability for performance, Carl Bates, entrepreneur, KPIs, laws of extreme business success, SME
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SIRDAR GLOBAL GROUP
CARL BATES - MANAGING DIRECTOR SIRDAR GLOBAL GROUP,
GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE SIRDAR SOUTH AFRICA
February 2nd, 2012
An independent director should be independent in character and judgement and there should be no relationships for circumstances which are likely to affect, or could appear to affect, this independence. Independence is essentially the absence of undue influence and bias.
One of the King III principles around board composition requires that a board consist of a majority of non-executive directors, the majority of whom should be independent. In reality however, when it comes to board composition, many SMEs reserve this right to the shareholders or their representatives. This practice is generally used as a way of keeping control over the direction of the business. Unfortunately, the absence of outside independent directors might make it difficult for an SME board to gain the knowledge and expertise that it requires in order to expand its business in a very competitive market. As SMEs wish to grow their businesses, we believe that it is equally important for them to be poised for such growth in terms of their governance.
The benefits to SMEs of having one of more independent directors are:
- they bring an objective viewpoint to the board;
- they can cast a critical eye over the business without preconception or prejudice as they do not have ties to the business;
- they introduce a fresh and innovative perspective;
- they bring a level of business knowledge and experience in many areas;
- the challenge the current thinking;
- they may add more discipline and focus to the board meetings;
- they add new skills and knowledge that might not be available within the existing board;
- they bring an independent and objective view;
- they may act as a balancing element between the different shareholders and, in some cases, serve as objective judges of disagreements among shareholders;
- they could bring benefit from their business and other contacts and connections.
SMEs (particularly those that aim to expand their businesses) should therefore seriously consider having one or more independent directors on their boards.
Tags: board of directors, independent directors, King III, SME
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SIRDAR SOUTH AFRICA
GEORGE ZACHARIAS - SIRDAR LEGAL
February 2nd, 2012
Customers and suppliers are key stakeholders of any enterprise. Active legal management of the operational relationships with these significant stakeholders will ensure clarity regarding the agreed terms of the relationship, which in turn leads to long-term sustainable relationships. Legal management entails the negotiation and securing of agreements, the implementation of internal policies as well as the development of a legal system for the enterprise which ensures that the business complies with all relevant legislation such as the Consumer Protection Act, which could have a material impact on the terms and conditions of relationships with both customers and suppliers.
Examples of agreements which an enterprise should ensure are in place with these stakeholders include:
- Service level agreements
- Terms and conditions of business
- Supplier terms and conditions
- Product and service warranty conditions
- Product indemnification agreements with suppliers
- Applications for credit terms
The relevant internal policies would relate to aspects such as the following:
- Credit terms for customers
- Procurement and tender procedures
- Product and services quality control policies
- Product recall policies
- Product labelling and safety warnings
Managers and directors of successful enterprises should ensure that they have access to legal experts such as Sirdar Legal, which specialises in providing solutions for fulfilling the specific legal requirements of SMEs. The active legal management of operational relationships is essential if the key revenue and cost elements of the enterprises business model are to be clarified, protected and secured. The entering into of agreements with customers and suppliers, supported by clear internal policies which employees commit to adhere to, should accordingly be a priority legal management activity for all enterprises.
Tags: Consumer Protection Act, George Zacharias, operational relationships, Sirdar Legal
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SIRDAR GLOBAL GROUP
CARL BATES - MANAGING DIRECTOR SIRDAR GLOBAL GROUP,
GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE SIRDAR SOUTH AFRICA
February 2nd, 2012
Welcome to 2012! All the best for an outstanding and successful year, both personally professionally!
In the last few newsletters we have been examining the Sirdar Management Compass. Let us now focus on the fifth segment of the Compass, Delivering to Expectations. This aspect relates to the activities of our enterprises in ensuring delivery to the expectations that we have set for our clients. We achieve this through effective operations management, development of the markets in which we operate and working to ensure customer retention.
In all aspects of business, it is critical to set standards against which performance can be measured, and to ensure that these standards are continually met. When ensuring that the foundations are in place in your enterprise for a successful 2012, it is important that your service delivery standards are clear and that your strategies to improve customer retention are agreed upon and are measurable.
But where do you start? I suggest that you begin by looking at your results in 2011 in terms of operations management and customer retention. Take the three biggest areas of weakness, and put an immediate plan into action to address them.
From a Sirdar South Africa perspective, we are committed to continually improving our service offering and service delivery in 2012. Throughout 2011 we learnt a significant amount from your feedback, and are currently translating this into improvements to support you in your business growth activities and the implementation of governance in your enterprise.
The Sirdar team, including the number of new faces we have across South Africa who have joined us since the last newsletter, wish you all the best on your journey to achieve Extreme Business Success throughout the year.
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