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2 accountancysa.co.za August 2018

IN THIS ISSUE
CONTENTS UPFRONT
6 UPDATES
Environmental, local, economic and political
news updates
AUGUST 2018
SPECIAL FEATURE
9 THE STATE OF THE PROFESSION
THIS MONTH’S FOCUS:
FEATURES
44 HOW TO LOSE YOUR BEST EMPLOYEES
46 WE ARE ALL DECISION-MAKERS
ADVICE
50 WHAT MOST PEOPLE GET WRONG 64 VIEWPOINT
ABOUT MEN AND WOMEN

RECOMMEND
54 WHY 2018 MUST BE THE YEAR
FOR WOMEN TO THRIVE 70 CPD: Transparency reporting: a health check
58 NUDGING WOMEN INTO TECH 72 CPD: Fraud: an occupational hazard
60 SHE WORKS HARD FOR HER MONEY

SO PAY HER ON TIME INTEGRITAX
76 A NEW BEPS PERSPECTIVE: THE
62 I BELIEVE I CAN FLY! INHERENT UNCERTAINTY IN THE RACE TO
CREATE CERTAINTY
79 RESIDENCY: PRACTICAL CONCERNS WITH

THE IDEA OF RESIDENCY
81 TAX ADMINISTRATION = SLEEPLESS

NIGHTS? − PART 2
INDULGE
84 INDULGE: Motoring
ON THE COVER
These eight incredible women have found their truest purpose
in life and are boldly gaining ground. And while they are about
it, they have not forgotten to pull others up along with them,
particularly women. Page 26
August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 3

EDITORIAL
THE STATE OF THE CA(SA) PROFESSION
In this issue, we did an in-depth article about the state of the

CA(SA) profession in South Africa and interviewed various
stakeholders to get an accurate view. While only some individuals
and firms have been implicated, the repercussions have been
EDITOR
extensive. You can read the article on page …. Gerinda Engelbrecht
ART DIRECTOR
This once again brought up the issue of integrity. John Maxwell Ashley van der Merwe
wrote that ‘The true measure of leadership is influence – nothing ASSISTANT EDITOR
Lynn Grala
more, nothing less.’ So, a leader's ability to influence others starts PUBLICATIONS ADMINISTRATOR
with integrity. Mpho Netshivhambe
COPY EDITOR
In an article in Forbes magazine, Amy Rees Anderson offers a Sarie Moolman
compelling truth: success is temporary, but integrity is forever. ILLUSTRATOR | WEBSITE EDITOR
Liézel Els
She writes that if she could teach one value to live by, it would SOCIAL MEDIA
be this. Integrity is doing the right thing – at all times and in all James Sibia
WEBSITE ADMINISTRATORS
circumstances – even when nobody is watching. And it takes André van der Merwe and Marcelle Blignaut
courage to do this no matter the consequences. Anderson writes
that building a reputation of integrity takes years but can be lost
in seconds. And in this crisis that the profession is facing it has PUBLISHER
Willi Coates
never resonated more – as a leader and a CA(SA) nothing is more ADDRESS
important than being known as a person of unwavering integrity. 17 Fricker Road,
Illovo, Sandton, 2196
Things come and go, but character not. TEL
Local 08610 SAICA (72422)
Don’t allow yourself ever to do something that would damage not International +27 11 621 6660
only your reputation but −more importantly − also your integrity. FAX
+27 11 622 3321
When engaging with members on the issues around the state of EMAIL
journal@saica.co.za
the CA(SA) profession, there are mixed feelings – some positive,
more are negative. Sometimes one cannot help to feel despondent.
ADVERTISING SALES MANAGER
We had the judging of the Top 35-under-35 competition the past Matt Knight
week, and all the judges and everyone involved were greatly Cell +27 71 785 7205
Email mattk@saica.co.za
impressed by how proud these youngsters are of their profession
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… by how positive they are and how ready they are to stand up for Michelle Baker
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what is right. They epitomise what it means to be a CA(SA): they Email michelle.baker@mediamarx.co.za
use their skills to drive change in their organisations, they use their
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these are the future leaders: leaders who stand up for what they
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GERINDA ENGELBRECHT
EDITOR
4 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

WWW.ACCOUNTANCYSA.ORG.ZA
WHAT’S HAPPENING
ON OUR WEBSITE
THIS MONTH?
DAVE ROBERTS THABO
CA(SA) TO PHOKANE
LEAD THE OOH CA(SA) NAMED
BUSINESSES FOR SERVEST CFO
PRIMEDIA
https://bit.ly/2HndW2k https://bit.ly/2jEdf9I
ACCOUNTING FIGURE THAT! SAICA

SAICA launches Figure That!
A book about the story of SAICA Chairman’s statement
Massive changes made the Chartered Accountancy on allegations against SAICA
to insurance accounting profession Executives
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FIND YOUR FAVOURITE

EXPERTS ONLINE
BUSINESS ADVISOR PUBLIC SPEAKING TRAINER WEALTH ADVISOR FINANCIAL CONSULTANT & LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT
Kevin Phillips CA(SA) Dineshrie Pillay CA(SA) Mike Lledo CA(SA) COACH PROFESSIONAL
http://bit.ly/KP_07_18 http://bit.ly/DP_07_18 http://bit.ly/ML_07_18 Ronel Jooste CA(SA) Paolo Giuricich CA(SA)
http://bit.ly/RJ_07_18 http://bit.ly/PG_07_18

UPFRONT | UPDATES
COLLABORATION CONS OF
OPEN PLAN 44%
Aa new study from Harvard has found and they start using email and messaging THE PERCENTAGE BY
that open plan offices don’t always more often. Previous studies of open plan WHICH NEW
necessarily encourage employees to
interact. Instead, the opposite happens,
offices have showed trends of diminished
productiveness. HIV
INFECTIONS
IN
SOUTH AFRICA
SA RANKS
HAVE FALLEN
FIRST
IN SUB- $5
SAHARAN BILLION
AFRICA IN
INNOVATION
The Global Innovation Index (GII) 2018 theme
AMOUNT
was ‘Energizing the World with Innovation’. South
Africa proudly leads Sub-Saharan Africa, followed
GOOGLE
by Mauritius and Kenya. South Africa ranks 58th
globally with Switzerland taking first place.
South Africa’s 58th position shows strengths in
its sophisticated market and business sector. FINED BY EU
IN ANDROID
Other strong indicators are: access to credit,
market capitalisation, university and industry
research collaborations, cluster development,
and intellectual property payments. ANTITRUST
South Africa is improving in the quality of its
science papers and its universities, especially the
CASE
University of Cape Town, the University of the
Witwatersrand and Stellenbosch University.
For several GII editions, a number of Sub-
Saharan African economies performed relatively
well on innovation when comparing performance ONE-
to the level of economic development.
THIRD
JUPITER’S 12 NEW
PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN
BETWEEN THE AGES OF
MOONS 15 & 24
During a quest to find Planet Nine, a mysterious planet believed ACCOUNTING
to be on the edge of our solar system, astronomers discovered FOR NEW HIV
something else: 12 new moons around Jupiter. The discoveries
bring the number of Jupiter's known moons to 79, the most INFECTIONS
around a single planet in our solar system. NATIONALLY

UPFRONT | UPDATES
MANDELA’S HOUSE
TURNS INTO BOUTIQUE
HOTEL
The first presidential house of the late president will
be renovated to a world-class boutique hotel. Nelson
Mandela lived in this Houghton residence from 1992
until 1998.
ASIA’S NEW RICHEST MAN

When India's Mukesh Ambani’s worth reached $44,3
billion in July, he overtook Alibaba’s Jack Ma. Ambani
controls 40% of Reliance Industries, owner of the
world's largest oil refining complex. The billionaire
also owns a residential property worth more than
$400 million and the Mumbai Indians professional
cricket team.
ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES’
SEVENTH SUCCESSIVE WIN
Ethiopian Airlines, the largest aviation group in Africa
and certified Four Star Global Airline, won the 2017
Airline Reliability Performance Award for the seventh
year in a row.
BILL GATES
57,9% INVESTS $30
MILLION FOR
ALZHEIMER’S
PERCENTAGE THE TEST
SOUTH AFRICAN RAND Besides a cure, what do those afraid of Alzheimer’s need
IS UNDERVALUED, most? According to entrepreneur and philanthropist Bill
ACCORDING TO THE Gates, a key need is a ‘reliable, affordable, and accessible’
diagnostic test. To jump-start that research, Gates
ECONOMIST’S LATEST BIG announced that he has joined a coalition of philanthropists
MAC INDEX who are investing $30 million to create a venture fund
called Diagnostics Accelerator.

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As a recruiter, you want a professional with the underlying skills and technical
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SPECIAL FEATURE | STATE OF THE PROFESSION
THE STATE OF THE CA(SA)
PROFESSION
A number of shocking accounting irregularities have brought to light

instances where members of the profession have not lived up to the
profession's reputation of integrity, ethics and independence. The
repercussions have been wide and detrimental. There is now a dire
urgency for public trust and confidence of CAs(SA) to be regained.

STATE OF THE CA(SA)

PROFESSION IN
SOUTH AFRICA
South Africa’s accounting and auditing profession has a credibility crisis and needs
to move more quickly to restore the public’s trust, industry professionals said
Words Marcia Klein
NONKULULEKO GOBODO CA(SA)

CEO and head of leadership ARCHBISHOP THABO MAKGOBA
consulting at Nkululeko DEON ROSSOUW CA(SA) Archbishop of The Anglican
Leadership Consulting CEO of the Ethics Institute. Church of Southern Africa
JAYSON THERON ANDILE KHUMALO CA(SA)

Director of executive recruitment Chief Investment Officer of AJEN SITA CA(SA)
company Outside Capital MSG Afrika CEO of EY Africa

For professionals working independently audited. This is an incredibly important relationships, specifically with KPMG,
and in smaller firms, the crisis has not role in giving us confidence in financial McKinsey, SAP and others, so as not
necessarily spilt over. Wuanita Moore, a statements and in the whole economic to be seen as endorsing or supporting
director of Boshoff & Moore, a smaller system. certain practices.’
practice in Worcester, said it is easier ‘Our biggest challenge is to reconnect To Theron, whose company represents
for smaller businesses who have strong all of this. I am not saying burn the clients in the professional services space,
relationships and reputations with clients rulebook, but the moment rules are the cloud over professional services is
and are trusted. disconnected from cardinal values and resulting in talented experienced industry
professional role and responsibility, then experts in specialised niche disciplines
THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE we sit with the problem.’ wanting to leave the industry and go
Theron said the immediate challenge is into commerce because of the way the
The biggest challenge right now is working out how to get back credibility, profession is currently perceived. ‘It is
restoring trust, Gobodo said. ‘When you but also looking at how to ensure a not the profession itself, it was checks
look at some instances related to state CA(SA) qualification becomes more and balances in some of the institutions
capture, or when you look at African business relevant, not just in terms or too much power being given to certain
Bank or Steinhoff, you can see the issues of qualification and experience, but individuals, but nevertheless lots of
that we as a profession need to look at, also other factors that inform ethical people are wanting to leave.’
including the difference between what behaviour. Tromp said that among CFOs, ‘there is a
we are expected to do in terms our own definite sense of concern and worry that
and international standards and what the Discovery Health CFO Brett Tromp said
people are deeply wounded and angry by the brand has been tainted by a small
public expect from us.’ number of people having an impact on
some of the things that have happened,
Mirroring the sentiments of Khumalo, and there is now a brand and a trust a large group of us. In my view, 99% of
she said that as an example, it is not a issue. the CAs(SA) I deal with work with a lot
requirement for auditors to find fraud, of integrity,’ he said, adding they have
but when there is fraud, ‘the first thing The profession is built on the stature, a wide spread of senior roles in a lot of
they ask is, where are the accountants?’. ethics and integrity of its members, and businesses and firms which have not
recent events have cast severe doubt, been affected.
While financials are the responsibility Cassim said. Once the trust level is gone,
of and require the combined assurance it is difficult to get back, and there need The industry has, however, been soft
of the board, management and internal to be reforms to make it credible again. on dealing quickly and harshly with poor
and external audit functions, auditors are performance and ‘rogue’ individuals,
‘taking the full flak’. As for the public, ‘all For Moore, the biggest challenge is not and this has affected the profession in
they know is that there are auditors that one of credibility but getting staff with general.
give them the assurance that financials the right skills as smaller firms cannot
compete with salaries. For Gobodo, who is a member of audit
are fair and are what they say they are.’ committees, extra processes have been
The profession’s biggest challenge is The quality of students remains introduced and are sometimes frustrating
to provide reassurance that the same problematic. ‘This is not a problem with the whole process of auditing. ‘I pray for
type of thing does not happen again and the textbooks, but the training.’ Smaller a time when things go back to balance
to restore its credibility, said Rossouw. firms also experience challenges with when the audit can be trusted.’ There
‘But that is quite reactive,’ he said. ‘The ethics, specifically with young people is hardly a meeting she attends where
industry also needs to communicate entering the profession, as ‘people are the issue does not come up, and she is
what it has done to prevent recurrence becoming more comfortable with fraud having to defend the profession all the
and to instil the correct values among and a bit numb to issues of manners, time.
its members. What we often see is confidentiality, ethics and discipline’.
For Carrim, in his own skills space, if
professions responding to complaints someone has proven himself or herself
against their members, but being THE IMPACT and has relationships where they have
reactive is not good enough. They acted with professionalism, there has not
need to positively instil the cardinal The crisis has made Rossouw as an been any effect, ‘but in a wider context,
values of the profession of objectivity, independent director on other boards where I speak to people and advocate to
independence and integrity.’ question the quality of an audit report. people, I can see the damage is done.
He makes the point that initially, auditors ‘We are having longer conversations with
‘I work with young people a lot, and
performed a role but over the years, our auditors to make sure they provide a
millennials have a strong ethical and
there has been a shift from role and quality audit, and it takes more time now
social focus and want to be seen to be
responsibility to rules. The profession to ensure we select the right auditor, and
doing the right thing,’ he said. There
has been focused on the rules in that they will provide a quality audit report.’
should be purpose around profit, and
isolation from the bigger role those rules At the Ethics Institute, this crisis has there is a perception that CAs(SA) chased
are supposed to serve. ‘The role is to taken up a lot of time. ‘We are consulted profits above purpose.
provide assurance to the public that they on a regular basis by companies wanting
can trust a statement that has been ‘We are spending additional time with
to know how they should manage their
clients giving comfort and confidence,

providing additional assurances around consequences − which should not be time and we don’t have that time. We
independence and ethics which we done in secret − to prevent recurrence. need rapid introspection and then actions
would not previously have done to the ‘There should be a shift in how they to take us forward.
same level of detail,’ Sita said. While EY deal with the ethical behaviour of their While there is no quick fix to restoring
has not been caught up directly in the members, with disciplinary action public confidence, some things can be
challenges facing the profession, it has processes in place, but a proactive attended to immediately while others
indirectly as a member of the profession. approach focused on their duty to society may take time and others may not even
Makgoba said the wider challenge and the associated cardinal values should be in the hands of the profession itself.
when one criticises corruption and state be emphasised to members and aspiring “But we do need the profession taking
capture, is how to hold people and members.’ Professional ethics training ownership and not waiting for outside
institutions accountable if the profession should not be focused on rules but on bodies.” This is already starting to happen,
undermines the trust of people. responsibility and cardinal values. with the support of the Auditor-General.
Theron said the regulator had been found This is an opportune time to look at
ACTION wanting and needs to take accountability all societal issues that perhaps in the
and look at the role it plays in the past weren’t there, said Khumalo. Now
‘We cannot be in denial that something industry. ‘We also need to act faster there is more activism which requires
is wrong somewhere and has to be as an industry and get factual findings introspection and correction about those
attended to as a matter of urgency,’ out to avoid a lot of speculation in the issues, and the profession needs to do a
Gobodo said. ’We have to try our best markets. Those that are guilty need lot more and a lot quicker in addressing
to restore the public trust because to be prosecuted and struck off their these issues. Typically, accountants want
we are custodians of a lot of things as professional body.’ to do things thoroughly and cautiously,
CAs(SA) and people put their trust in our Tromp said the profession needs to but they need to take steps in the interim.
signatures on financial statements.’ establish whose clear role it is to act Khumalo said the profession has to
Gobodo said the profession needs to swiftly against people that act outside respond to and share the concerns of
self-reflect. At Steinhoff, irregularities of the profession’s ethics. ‘The industry the general public, readers of financials,
were not picked up even though they should also highlight that the vast government, regulators, ‘and anyone that
were notched up over many years. Either majority can still be trusted and are still puts trust in our signature has to see we
there are gaps in methodologies or doing good work, and perhaps there are doing the right things’. Khumalo said
standards do not go far enough to cover should be a marketing campaign around he was disappointed by SAICA’s inability
the gaps, she said. ‘The smart ones are that.’ to be seen to be doing something. ‘There
always ahead of us.’ While there is continued professional is a difference between understanding
development, the industry should also how important reputation is and taking
This does not just happen in South
look at how to check, on a regular basis, deliberate steps to deal with it. My fellow
Africa. ‘All over the world there are these
that there is adhered to its ethics. professionals are overly concerned with
issues accountants were not able to pick
the process.’
up, so it is important accounting bodies Concern over the SAICA board structure,
internationally should come together to which is dominated by the big four He continued: ‘We don’t live in a world
find solutions.’ firms, should be taken seriously, Cassim where all professionals act professionally.
said. ‘You can’t have CAs(SA) looking at What we can control is how to deal with
The public would want to see perpetrators
CAs(SA) − you need other professionals it when those things occur. There needs
brought to book, but investigations are
and third parties.’ He added that SAICA to be a better way of dealing with these
taking a long time and people are losing
took a strong stance on audit by rotation. things. We need to look at how quickly we
patience, Gobodo said. At the same time,
‘In light of some of the auditing scandals, react and how to maintain the trust of the
punitive measures seem weak to the
that becomes important and the public in the statements we sign.’
public and not necessarily a deterrent.
Individuals in the profession need to go implementation date of 2023 is way too Makgoba expects the profession to use
back to basics, applying due care and far,’ he said. this opportunity to pay back to society.
skills. ‘In terms of our independence, we Overall, he said, the industry has taken a ‘The profession needs to be trusted
do have relationships with our clients, but self-searching approach, but this has not to show compliance with laws and
we need to be objective and sceptical resulted in changes. regulations and, in symbolic and sacrificial
of issues. If we see a red flag and don’t ways, show it is trustworthy.’
question it, it can blow up in our face. We Sita agreed, saying the profession
“must hold a mirror up to ourselves,” As custodians guarding company assets,
also need to stabilise the situation by not he said, ‘they must stop falsification of
having more scandals.’ talk to a broad range of stakeholders
and take their inputs and expectations, information and company records which
The industry first and foremost needs benchmarked against what is happening enables others to steal money which
to respond to what went wrong, on a global level, into practice. “The should be used to uplift the poorest of the
said Rossouw. ‘There should be very biggest work is to hold up a mirror to poor’.
unambiguous action on their behalf and itself and ask what went wrong here.
when members transgress their own AUTHOR l Marcia Klein
Investigations, commissions and reviews
professional standards there should be are on the go, but are taking too much

• Professional behaviour – to last few years compared with the total also have access to video recordings,
comply with relevant laws and membership base of 46 000, it is a webinars and information on the
regulations and avoid any conduct small number, yet it is still a black mark SAICA member website. The members
that discredits the accountancy on a white sheet. Those responsible for making up the institute should play
profession bringing our profession into disrepute a role in exposing any bad behaviour
The Code further requires that the need to be dealt with appropriately. of fellow CAs(SA) to ensure the
greater the public interest in the The ongoing scandals involving SAICA institutional reputation is sustained and
outcome of the accountant’s or members has brought into focus the the public interest is always served in
auditor’s service, the more important need to communicate how the Institute doing so.
the transparency around threats to deals with those members who have SAICA also has its own disciplinary
independence, and an increased breached the Code. Some changes mailbox, discipline@saica.co.za, which
application of thought into judgements have already been made in this regard, is monitored by the legal team.
made will be demanded from the as we need to be open about how we The communications team also
professional. deal with unethical behaviour and be monitors the media for any exposure
Therefore, not only is the Code based seen to be adopting a zero-tolerance which might allude to the misconduct
on the abovementioned principles, approach to those who breach the of members – these alleged incidents
but those adhering to it also need to Code. are shared with the legal team.
consider the reasonable and informed In 2017, 229 complaints received SAICA’s formal complaints submission
third-party test when deciding on what against members and trainees were process allows the public or other
to do. investigated. 109 were then cleared CAs(SA) to submit confidential
A professional accountant acting in an of any wrongdoing, 9 members were affidavits that address complaints
audit capacity, for example, will always suspended for 6−12 months, 77 were against members accused of breaching
need to ensure that the client does not fined, and two were excluded from the Code.
shower the accountant with expensive, SAICA membership. With regard to the
remaining cases, members were either All complaints are referred to the
lavish gifts or treatment beyond legal team, who will engage with
what would be the expected norm. cautioned, reprimanded, or disqualified
from applying for membership or complainants to clarify uncertainties
The client may not pay for any of the or ambiguities. Members of the
accountant’s or his/her close relatives’ associateship.
disciplinary panel remain anonymous
accommodation or other large expenses Based on the above statistics, with to outsiders to protect the integrity of
as this will create perceptions. 120 members and trainees being the disciplinary process.
One should ask questions, for example: disciplined in 2017 and 265 members
currently in the disciplinary process Every complaint goes through a
‘Could any behaviour or actions displayed gather-and-collate-evidence phase and
infringe on perceived independence pipeline, it is unfair to paint all
chartered accountants with the same thereafter to the Professional Conduct
between the professional accountant Committee (PCC), an independent
and the client that might cause dismay if brush.
committee separate from SAICA for
exposed publicly?’ Some internal questions worth examination and analysis, and where
It is important to be open with those deliberating are possibly: What does found appropriate, a sanction is
charged with governance − in other the public expect in relation to what applied. If the complaint is complex
words those representing the public SAICA expects of its members? Is and difficult to deal with, it flows up
interest, like the audit committee − about training in ethics up to scratch? Are through to a Disciplinary Committee for
any potential conflicts that may exist and we disciplining members that have examination.
that may impact outsider perceptions. breached the Code and ensuring they
are appropriately dealt with in an SAICA undertakes to deal with each
At all times the relationship between efficient and transparent manner that breach of the Code in a professional
an auditor or assurance provider and the public trust in the profession is not manner, ensuring that ethical
the client must remain professional and being damaged? Are people aware professional conduct and the value of
never cross an important line where there is a place where whistle-blowers the CA(SA) designation are sustained.
a reasonable and informed third party can make a complaint against an Read more on SAICA’s stance on ethics
would be in a position to accuse the unethical SAICA member? Is the public and discipline by clicking here.
accountant of being compromised by informed about the robustness of our
having benefited unduly from the client. disciplinary processes?
In response to these questions, it is AUTHOR l Michael Dorfan CA(SA),
DO CHARTERED important to communicate that SAICA MBL, CIPM, Life Healthcare Group
ACCOUNTANTS STILL HAVE does regular training of members Privacy Officer and chairman of the
around ethical standards and the SAICA Ethics Committee
VALUES? application of ethics. Newsletters
and other resource tools are regularly
Looking at the number of SAICA issued to guide members on new
members that were disciplined in the standards and requirements. Members

Receipt of complaint
01 (email, fax, telephonic, enquiry
form)
02
Lodging of formal complaint
(affidavit required)
03
Accused notified of complaint
/ draft charge sheet (21 days
to respond)
Accused response or
04 non-response
Complaints response
05 (21 days to respond)
Publication of the details as allowed

Professional Conduct Committee per by-law 21A if CEO deems
06 (PCC) for adjudication (no legal
representation)
necessary
(see sub-process)
No reasonable prospects for success Reasonable prospects for success
Response provided. Matter Not guilty Guilty

disposed of
Parties notified • Caution

• Reprimand
• Fine
• Suspension up to 12 months
• Refer to Disciplinary Committee (DC)
Matter closed
Matter closed
Draft/charge sheet
Disciplinary Committee
(DC)
(Legal Representation)
Not guilty Guilty
Parties notified • Reprimand • Disqualify

• Fine • Removal
• Suspend • Publication
Matter closed Matter closed
SECTION 21A PROCESS: PUBLICITY OF THE DISCIPLINARY COMPLAINTS, INVESTIGATIONS, ACTIONS AND PROCEEDINGS
By-law 21A1.1 states:
The Chief Executive Officer may, at any time, make such public statements as s/he thinks fit concerning:
• any matter relating to or connected with the institute’s performance of its regulatory obligations; and
• any complaint or investigation or action instituted against a member, once a charge sheet or draft charge sheet has been issued to an accused member
By-law 21A1.2 states that this power is subject to certain requirements.
Is this a matter No No publication

which, in the CEO’s
opinion, is a matter
of public interest
or a regulatory A member who is the Publication of
requirement? subject of a complaint the details as
or investigation or allowed per by-law
action will be named: provisions listed
No publication EXCEPT in instances where below shall include:
urgent action is required to be taken by the 21A1.2.2.1 – where
Chief Executive Officer to maintain public the failure to name 21A1.2.5.1 – the
confidence in the profession, the institute or such member would name of the member
the matters. See By-law 21A1,2,4 defeat the purpose and membership
Yes No for which the public number;
statement is made, for 21A1.2.5.2 - the case
example, it would not number;
be possible to relate 21A1.2.5.3 – a
No public statement to summary of the
the subject of public charges preferred
interest; and against the member
21A1.2.2.2 – where (the complaint);
the name of the 21A1.2.5.4 – the date
Should the member is already of the disciplinary
Has a complaint name of the a matter of public hearing;
Has the accused been
or investigation or Yes Has a charge sheet Yes accused be knowledge 21A1.2.5.5 – the time
given at least 48
action been instituted been issued included of the disciplinary
hours to respond
against a member in the hearing; and
publication? 21A1.2.5.6 – the place
where the disciplinary
hearing will be heard

SAICA AND ACADEMIA

TAKE HANDS TO ENCOURAGE
GROUND-BREAKING RESEARCH
SAICA and academia in Departments of Accounting are working closer together

to enhance the research activities within universities and, at the same time,
ensuring that the needs of the profession are met in this regard by undertaking
relevant research
A workshop was held on 29 September • Phase 1 will determine the whether the international integrated
2017 bringing together more than 40 current ethical culture in the reporting framework is ‘fit for purpose’.
accounting academics from across South African public and private Future planned studies include:
the county to establish a number sectors. • Whether integrated reporting
of collaborative research projects. • Phase 2 will identify the meets its original intent and what
(Collaborative research projects have challenges experienced. role does the IR plays in corporate
many benefits including building governance
research capacity and sharing the load • Phase 3 will address how to
among a larger group of researchers.) incorporate ethics into curricula, • Whether integrated reporting
Professor Stella Nkomo, one of training and mentoring. ensure accountability within
South Africa’s top-rated researchers, • Phase 4 will develop strategies organisations
facilitated the workshop. Following and policies for accounting and • What industry-specific guidance
an analysis of current research being auditing firms. is needed in the preparation of
undertaken and comparing this to integrated reports
• Phase 5 will develop a sound
current needs in the accounting
governance structure for • Integrated thinking, and
profession a number of topics were
the accounting and auditing • Assurance on integrated reports
identified and then narrowed down to
profession, including ethics.
the following six themes.
The team leader is Professor Ilse
Lubbe from the University of Cape The team leader is Janine Christian
STATUS OF ETHICS WITHIN THE from Nelson Mandela University and
Town. She is supported by Professor
01 PROFESSION Kato Plant (University of Pretoria), she is supported by Dr Cornelie Crous
Faeeza Jaffer (Unisa), Sharon Webb (University of the Free State), Anina
The overall aim of the theme (a master’s student at Unisa), Kobus Marx and Anneke Moolman (both from
is to identify and describe the status Joubert (Unisa) and Gerrit Penning North-West University), and Liandi van
(and challenges) of ethics in accounting (University of Pretoria). Wyk (Monash University).
professionals in South Africa and to
provide guidance and strategies to
02 INTEGRATED REPORTING PERFORMANCE
the accounting profession regarding 03
policies, monitoring, oversight, and REPORTING
education and training for the benefit of The aim of this first project is to
the South African society at large. The determine whether integrated reporting This project deals with how companies
following phases are planned: adds value to organisations and understand, define and report on

performance. The aim is to develop estimated total cost to comply with

an accounting framework to assist tax administration in South Africa is,
organisations with the identification, across all taxes and in respect of all
quantification and management of compliance activities undertaken by
material social, environmental and individuals as well as small, medium
economic challenges/risks as part and large businesses. This is only the FOLLOWING AN ANALYSIS OF
of the broader process of managing first phase and further research in this CURRENT RESEARCH BEING
and reporting on organisational domain will follow. UNDERTAKEN AND COMPARING
performance. The framework is intended
to complement existing guidelines on
The team leader is Professor Sharon THIS TO CURRENT NEEDS IN
Smulders (Unisa) supported by THE ACCOUNTING PROFESSION
integrated reporting and provide a basis Professor Amanda Singleton (Nelson
for managing relationships between Mandela University), Karen Stark A NUMBER OF TOPICS WERE
organisations, the responsible investor (University of Pretoria) and Heinrich IDENTIFIED AND THEN
community and NGOs. Dixon (Tshwane University of NARROWED DOWN TO SIX
The team is headed by Professor Technology). The study is supported
Warren Maroun from Wits University financially by SAICA’s tax department.
THEMES
and Professor Jill Atkins from the
University of Sheffield. It is supported 06
by a multidisciplinary research team
ACCOUNTING EDUCATION
including postgraduate students from
Although this theme has taken longer
both institutions.
than anticipated to establish, Alet
Terblanche from Unisa has agreed These collaborative research
04 PROFESSIONALISM to head up the team. The first focus projects are being done in addition
area will be on the development of to a big project looking at the future
The aim of the first project within this non-technical skills, and in particular competencies required for the
theme is to explore whether brand critical thinking skills for entry-level accounting professional to remain
perception and trust influence potential accountants. This area has a number relevant (CA2025). The outcomes of
employees in the audit profession to of academics very interested and the CA2025 project will be released
choose or avoid specific audit firms as there are many educational matters for comment by the end of 2018
future employees. The study is being that become critical as the role of the and include significant changes in
undertaken by Professor Karin Barac accountant is challenged and academia relation to topics like technology
from the University of Pretoria. need to look at how better to prepare and data analytics, citizenship and
students for the future world of work. entrepreneurship. The outcomes of
these research projects will have
05 TAX COST Further information or new themes
a significant impact on the future
requiring research can be obtained
accounting profession.
The aim of this study is to develop a from Professor Philna Coetzee (Unisa)
model of a rand amount of what the at coetzgp@unisa.ac.za.
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UPFRONT | TOP 35-UNDER-35
SAICA proudly announces the 2018

Top 35-under-35 finalists. These 35
phenomenal youngsters stand out from
the crowd. They all boast exceptional
achievements, and they are busy RIKUS DE VILLIERS LUNGILE NTSALAZE
changing their communities for the Associate Professor at Associate Professor and
better. The next exciting stage of the North-West University Chair of Department at
competition is the judging process … UNISA
WADZANAI MABUTO NESTENE CLAUSEN VINCENT BERENDS

Senior Lecturer at Founder and Owner at Managing Partner / Founder
University of Johannesburg The Audit Pro at Optima Financial and Tax
Solutions Mpumalanga
MEET THE 2018 FINALISTS

In the meantime just click on their profile and read more about their story to success or visit:
https://www.accountancysa.org.za/top-35-under-35-profile-page/

WIHANN RABE LÉAN BOEZAART BENJAMIN DEEB
Senior Audit Manager at Co-Founder of Managing Director of
Mazars South Africa Freedom of Movement Yooh Media (Pty) Ltd
MARC DAVID SEVITZ HASHVEER SINGH REFILWE MATENCHE

CFO and Director of Head Of Operations of Founder and President of
Human Robot (Pty) Ltd t/a Enable E Africa (Pty) Ltd African Women’s Movement
TaxTim
CHRIS VAN ZYL

ANDREW MCKAY Founder & Managing YASEEN ISMAIL
Managing Director of Director of Walworth Director of
Andrew Hector Interiors Consulting and Y Ismail Group
Professional Rugby Player

ASHLEY-JUAN VAN DER

DAMIEN WESTERMAN JACK THONISSEN HOOGEN
Managing Director at Founder of Business Development
Valemount Trading (Pty) Ltd Princess Sports, SportWays Director at Ranzo Trading
SA and The Hockey Shop and Olbro Logistics
MITAN NANA LOUISE LE ROUX SCELO MAKHATHINI

Medical Intern at Change & Integration CEO and Co-Founder of
George Hospital Manager at Weir Minerals LinkdPro
Africa (Pty) Ltd
EXCEPTIONAL. WITHOUT EXCEPTION

LYLE MALANDER
Director of Malander NATHANIEL JAPHTA LIENTJIE MARAIS
Advisory, Malander FAM Consulting at Cipla, Financial Manager and
Placements, Malander Founder: Pro226 Africa, Co- Acting IDP Manager at
Digital, Malander UK owner: Easylife Kitchens Sol Plaatje Municipality
ZAMANGWANE KHANYILE
Fund Manager at National
RICHARD LOYSON SHERYLEE MOONSAMY Empowerment Fund and
Director of Chief Financial Officer President of African Women
Loyson Consulting of Johannesburg Chartered Accountants
Development Agency
TEBOGO MOVUNDLELA CHRISTOPHER COMMIN NEAL REYNOLDS

Chief Executive Officer of Group Financial Manager Group Financial Controller
Aurora Wind Power of National Renal Care (Pty) Pan African Resources PLC
Ltd

DION MHLABA MPOLAI LIAU LOUISE CHUNNETT

Chief Financial Officer of Senior Audit Manager – ALICE Founding Member at
RH Bophelo Limited Internal Audit at Bidvest Advisory Services
Standard Bank (Pty) Ltd
FRANS GELDENHUYS THAPELO KUZE JANINE JACOBS

ALICE Founding Member at Founder & Executive Client Accounting (Senior
Bidvest Advisory Services Chairman at Thapelo Kuze Financial Manager) at
(Pty) Ltd Foundation NPC Glacier Financial Solutions
EXCEPTIONAL. WITHOUT EXCEPTION

STATISTICS FROM THE FORTUNE 500
LIST HAVE SHOWN THAT BOARDS WITH
MAJORITY OF WOMAN REPRESENTATION
OUTPERFORM COMPANIES WITH LESS
FEMALE REPRESENTATION. THIS STATISTIC
ALONE SPEAKS VOLUMES OF WHY WE NEED
WOMEN AND PARTICULARLY CAs(sA) WHO
ARE A DRIVING FORCE IN THE FINANCE
DEPARTMENTS IN A DIFFICULT CURRENT
ECONOMY
WOMEN
WITH BOLD
INTENTIONS
These eight incredible women have found
their truest purpose in life and are turning
their dreams into reality. They are boldly
taking ground and while they are about it,
they have not forgotten to pull others up
along with them, particularly women.
View the interview with all 8 women

by clicking on the video link icon
Words Lynn Grala – Photos André van der Merwe

COVER STORY | WOMEN WITH BOLD INTENTIONS
BORN IN THE RURAL EASTERN CAPE, ‘We aim to walk the career journey with our Life-Long
learners until they join the employment market where they
BABALWA GOVA (29) IS SMALL, can contribute towards the next generation of learners in the
BUT A DYNAMITE OF AMBITION. AT MLL fund through sponsorship and mentorship.’
THE AGE OF 17 SHE HAD ALREADY ‘Being a CA(SA) does not come easy; it requires hard work
and dedication, even though you might not have a life at
OPENED HER OWN HAIR SALON some point, but at the end of the day it pays off. The moment
DURING SCHOOL HOLIDAYS you have those four letters CA(SA) behind your name
BECAUSE SHE FELT HER PART-TIME opportunities will start coming one after another. I still believe
there is a great need for female mentors and coaches, I
JOBS PAID TOO LITTLE FOR HER want to mentor more young females. I want to reach more
HARD WORK. SHE THEN USED THE disadvantaged children through the MLL fund,’ she says.
FUNDS TO ASSIST WITH VARSITY 'Starting and running a business is very demanding and you
REGISTRATION have to put in more time in its early stages. This can easily
consume you, but I always make sure that once a week I take
a day off to focus on ways to improve our process and what
value we can add to our client moving forward. I also try to
avoid working on the weekend and use this time for friends
‘It is through these childhood struggles that I learnt to work
and family.’
hard, never complain, and always trust that God will make a
way, even when there seems to be no way,’ she smiles.
‘In 2014 a friend of mine told me a story about a
businessman who ran a very successful business. This man
only took 1% of the profits for himself and his family and
the other 99% he shared with his employees and helped
the community around him. This was the first time I saw BEST PIECE OF
business as a tool to serve others. I decided that like this ADVICE FOR WOMEN:
man, I too wanted to serve others and I wanted my skills as
a CA(SA) not only to benefit me and my family but to help
TRUST YOURSELF IN EVERYTHING YOU
others. That’s when the idea of opening MaJali Chartered DO, TRUST YOUR ABILITY, STAY TRUE TO
Accountants started,’ she says. YOURSELF, SAY YES TO EVERY OPPORTUNITY
MaJali Chartered Accountants was founded in 2015. THAT YOU COME ACROSS.
The firm focuses on servicing small businesses by
providing cloud-based accounting solutions and real-time
accounting. It currently services clients in the medical, FAVOURITE ITEM:
mining, manufacturing, petroleum, retail, security and NPO A WATCH ... I LOVE WEARING A BEAUTIFUL
industries. TIMEPIECE.
‘We aim to help small businesses become sustainable and
scalable through financial modelling, tax planning, business
coaching and financial literacy. The firm is founded on the
values of servant leadership where we put our people before
profits. What I love most about my job is adding value to
small business.’
The most amazing experience for Babalwa is to see her
client’s financial position stabilise due to the systems and
processes her firm has helped implement and witnessing as
the client grows through the advice they have provided.
‘The environment we work in is believed to be a man’s world
− women have to work twice as hard to be recognised. I
wanted women to have the same opportunities as men if not
more. I believe that we as women are stronger together.’ Her
accounting firm would challenge the status quo. It would be
100% female owned hiring only females from the junior roles
up to executive roles – and a great portion of its profits would
go to helping others.
As a firm, Babalwa and her team have started the ‘MaJali
Life-Long Learner (MLL) fund’ which they use to assist
previously disadvantaged children. Every year they select
children from as early as primary school and provide them
with funding, career guidance and mentorship.

HER FRIENDS DESCRIBE HER AS has been a great source of support in identifying successful
international models and I have received expressions of
AN OPTIMIST, WORLD TRAVELLER interest from multiple professional resources in other
AND STRATEGIST. PRIYA SAYS countries in Africa (specifically East and West Africa) that
want to either assist in the establishment of such an
SHE IS ADVENTUROUS, WITTY accelerator that be scaled across the region. Drawing on my
AND FRIENDLY. AND WE TOP experience in internationalisation strategy, I will be focusing
THAT SAYING SHE IS ONE SMART, on resources that are available in South Africa which can be
readily deployed to help solve some of the most pressing
INTELLIGENT FEMALE WITH A social issues government has struggled to address,’ she
PASSION FOR UPLIFTING FEMALE says.
ENTREPRENEURS AND WHO HAS ‘One of the countries which impressed me was Israel, as
GREAT DREAMS FOR AFRICA they have achieved excellence in the area of technology
start-ups and the ability to create a thriving ecosystem in
which entrepreneurs were able to easily access funding.
Many features contributed to their success, but the most
significant pearls of wisdom shared by the experts I met
After much contemplation and soul searching, in 2016 Priya during an educational trip to Israel was having an aversion
decided to resign from her CFO position at the Human to risk, using failure as a stepping stone to success, and
Sciences Research Council and pursue her studies whole- infusing innovation into the culture of a country.’
heartedly. In the last two years, she has acquired her MBA Priya often jokes with her friends and family that she has
in the UK, followed by a second master’s degree at Harvard never achieved anything without a struggle. ‘But honestly,
University. Her exposure to a community of lecturers and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Each failure has taught
world leaders in their respective fields and a group of me a lesson and exposed flaws in the way I approached a
insightful, professional international colleagues enabled problem or the way I viewed a situation. In hindsight, I am
her to grow academically and personally beyond her thankful for those challenges, because they have made me
expectations. She has returned to South Africa completely grateful for the success that I have achieved.’
re-energised about South Africa’s potential to be a global
player in the world.
‘I have travelled extensively (more than 35 countries),
including recent trips to the Middle East region on
educational trips led by my Harvard classmates. These
experiences have served as a reminder of the complexities
of international relations. I am very optimistic about Africa.
FAVOURITE ITEM:
We have so much to contribute and offer the world.
A PAIR OF EARRINGS MY GRANDFATHER
Economies and countries in Africa are not monolithic. There GAVE TO MY GRANDMOTHER BEFORE HE
is great diversity on the continent, and this diversity needs DIED. SHE PASSED THESE ON TO ME ON MY
to be exploited,’ says Priya.
17TH BIRTHDAY.
‘As far as I am concerned, education remains the key to
tapping Africa’s full potential. In their world population
report 2015, the UN projected that Africa will likely account BEST ADVICE FOR WOMEN:
for more than half of the world’s population growth BE YOURSELF – LIVE YOUR OWN LIFE, WRITE
between 2015 and 2050. Simultaneously, the concentration AND TELL YOUR OWN
of population growth in the poorest countries will widen the
inequality gap, making it more difficult to eradicate poverty
UNIQUE STORY.
and pursue the sustainable development goals,’ she adds.
On her international travels, Priya looked at various business
models and is constantly seeking new ways to ‘right-fit’ a
model to the South African cultural context.
Currently, Priya is in the exciting process of establishing an
accelerator for female entrepreneurs − using technology to
solve a societal issue. She is drawing from her extensive
professional network to provide critical services needed
in the early stages to assist entrepreneurs that don’t have
the legal, financial or accounting skills to help them design
business plans, negotiate contracts and apply for funding.
‘Unfortunately, funding start-ups remains a problem in
South Africa – there is limited domestic investment,
and my goal is to see how best I can work to create the
ecosystem. One of my professors at Harvard University

THE STRIKING AND VIBRANT with people with different views, managing expectations,
writing strategies for the firm and implementing them and
ANDREA BENKENSTEIN THRIVES project management with many moving parts,’ she says.
IN HER ROLE AS HEAD OF ‘But when you get overwhelmed in the moment, it is usually
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AND good to take a deep breath, take it one task at a time,
prioritise what is most urgent, and make a list of the rest.
MARKETING. HER DYNAMIC TEAM Always remember that you are part of a team and that the
INCLUDES DESIGNERS, EVENTS team shares the load. Do your best and communicate if you
COORDINATORS, BUSINESS need help. With all challenges in life, communication is key,
also outside work.’
DEVELOPMENT MANAGER AND
Work/life balance means different things to different people.
MARKETING ASSISTANTS WHO For Andrea, it means coming in early and leaving at 16:00
ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR PRIORITY to catch some sunlight during a run, or quickly climb Lion’s
ACCOUNT PROGRAMMES, Head after work, or taking part in a play at night and over
weekends. If extra work is needed, you’ll find her logging on
MARKETING, BUSINESS again at 18:00. But she finds that taking a break helps clear
DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES AND her mind and be more productive.
CORPORATE SOCIAL INVESTMENT ‘I am busy rehearsing for an opera at Artscape that is
showing the end of July. The first opera I did at Artscape
FOR THE WESTERN CAPE. ANDREA was in my second year of articles. It was such a great stress
ENJOYS IT THAT NO TWO DAYS ARE reliever. I would perform on stage and as I go off, I would
THE SAME. SHE IS ALSO A FAMILY study for my Board 2 exam backstage. It might sound a
bit chaotic, but I found that if I don’t take a break and do
BUSINESS CONSULTANT something that takes my mind off studies, you get tired
much quicker. The breaks allowed me to “rest” and have
renewed energy.’
Andrea still wants to study to become an executive coach
and help other people achieve their dreams. She would also
‘I think women bring a different dimension and view. It is want to become a partner at PwC.
the same for working with different cultures and people ‘On my bucket list is to see the Northern Lights and take a
with different backgrounds. Women bring more colour and hot-air balloon flight in Turkey.’
different solutions.’
Part of Andrea’s work is also to present proposals to various
prospective clients that can range to CFOs and CEOs
of companies. She believes the best way of presenting
successfully is to keep to the facts and remain focused on
how you will be able to add value to your client.
‘Keep it short and punchy, as too many words will make you BEST PIECE OF
lose your audience. Be positive, enthusiastic and energetic
– nobody wants to listen to someone with little enthusiasm,’ ADVICE TO WOMEN:
says Andrea. YOU NEVER LOSE, YOU WIN OR LEARN.
When Andrea is not hard at work, plays and theatre AND ANYTHING IN LIFE CAN BE OVERCOME,
productions are a great passion of hers, and this is where ANY HARDSHIP OR CHALLENGE – THERE
you’ll find her artistic personality truly coming alive on stage.
At 11 years of age, she was given the exciting opportunity of
IS ALWAYS A WAY OUT OR A SOLUTION
touring the world annually in a choir. Here she learnt the art TO A PROBLEM. HAVE FAITH IN GOD AND
of being independent and building relationships with people YOURSELF.
from various cultures and backgrounds − a skill that she has
found to be a great asset in building her career at PwC.
Taught by her parents from a young age that nothing
FAVOURITE PERFUME:
worthwhile in life comes easy, Andrea and her sister used to
NINA RICCI.
sell things they had made to make pocket money. During her
summer holiday at varsity, she even signed a loan agreement
with her father to buy her a plane ticket to Aspen, Colorado.
Once in Aspen she worked as a waitress during the day and
made salads at night for three months. The money she saved
she used to travel to Boston and New York.
‘I have faced many challenges, as I am sure everyone has −
from learning how to cope with multiple deadlines, working

BONISWA MADIKIZELA LIVES HER ‘There is meaning to what I do. I believe I am making a
difference to the man on the street through educating mostly
MAGNETIC LIFE TO THE FULL. SHE students that are first-generation graduates in their families.
TURNS 40 ON 28 AUGUST AND Further, I am not only an educator I am also a mentor, a
life coach, a cheerleader, a comforter, and sometimes a
WON’T ALLOW ANYTHING OR disciplinarian to my students. My playing these different
ANYONE TO HOLD HER BACK FROM roles to me means that I create an environment that nurtures
ACHIEVING SOMETHING SHE HAS love and support for the students that result in them feeling
comfortable and safe when engaging with me. Being of
SET HER MIND ON. IN JUST A FEW service in this manner is what gives meaning and fulfilment
WEEKS’ TIME SHE GIVES BIRTH TO to life.’
HER SECOND CHILD, AND WITH THE Boniswa believes women add texture and bring a different
ENERGY SHE RADIATES, SHE MAKES perspective to issues on the table. In her experience and in
the environment she operates in, especially on the boards
EVEN LAST TRIMESTER PREGNANCY that she sits on, she has found that she is more of an
APPEAR ABSOLUTELY EFFORTLESS implementer.
Dreams Boniswa would still like to achieve? ‘To launch a
financial literacy clinic at UJ at the Soweto campus that
would service not only the students and employees of the
university but the community as a whole.’
One can understand why her students love her, enjoy her Boniswa has been married 12 years and has a 10-year-old
lectures, and even confide in her when they need a mother’s daughter. Her new bundle of joy, a little girl, arrives in August.
wisdom on more personal issues. Interestingly, the very
subject she lecturers in today – accounting - is what she
struggled with as a student. The only difference was that her
lecturer did not have the patience or show interest in making
sure that the gaps in her understanding were filled. This
made her feel like she wasted her time in coming to consult
and that she was a complete failure. BEST ADVICE FOR WOMEN: KNOW
In November 2011, Boniswa left her highly lucrative bank job YOUR STORY, KNOW WHO YOU ARE, SPEAK
as head of finance in the investor services division to pursue
her passion of making a difference − a move that included a
YOUR TRUTH AND DON’T SEEK VALIDATION
40% salary cut and forfeiting the many perks it had offered EXTERNALLY. REMEMBER ALWAYS THAT THE
her. LORD IS YOUR PROTECTOR AND PROVIDER
‘As much as I love numbers, I really do not like the financial AND THROUGH WHOM THAT PROVISION
reporting side of the numbers. Most CAs(SA) are assumed COMES IS NOT FOR YOU TO DICTATE.
to love only engaging with their numbers and paper. The
job felt lonely and was mainly about meeting reporting
deadlines. I found myself more attracted to engaging with FAVOURITE CLOTHING ITEM:
other employees about their jobs, challenges and how I MY PYJAMAS.
could be of assistance and also enjoyed working on short-
term projects meant to fix issues. In a nutshell, what I was
doing was not fulfilling me at the heart level. I felt something
was missing and thus went in search of meaning, which I
found in academia.’
However, she says working in the world of students has
added another kind of richness to her life that has been far
more rewarding. Her ‘goosebump moments’, as she calls
them, are experiencing and seeing the impact she has
had on her students. Boniswa lecturers in the non-CA(SA)
stream and most of her students are pursuing careers as
specialists in accountancy as internal auditors, tax specialists
or accounting specialists.
‘My line for motivation whether you want to be a CA(SA) or
not is that you need to pursue that which makes your spirit
leap, as when you follow your passion you can’t go wrong.
Our aim is to be of service and our careers are meant to be
a prophetic platform. Use your talents and skills where there
is a need. And believe you me, there is a huge need in our
country for accountancy/financial skills,’ she says.

SHAVEERA JOHN IS AN AMBITIOUS, easily see that this type of confidence is lacking in females
and I try, daily, to uplift woman and make them see that
CONFIDENT AND AN EXTREMELY they are capable of greatness,’ she says.
HARDWORKING INDIVIDUAL. AS ONE ‘I am currently sitting at a client that has two women in
OF THE FOUNDING DIRECTORS AT their finance team. In this age of equality, there is still a
mismatch in gender equality that we need to overcome.
MALANDER GROUP OF COMPANIES Statistics from the Fortune 500 list have shown that
THAT WAS LAUNCHED IN 2015, boards with majority woman representation outperform
SHE HAS WORKED HARD TO HELP companies with less female representation. This statistic
alone speaks volumes of why we need women and
BUILD THE COMPANY TO WHAT IT IS particularly CAs(SA) who are a driving force in the finance
TODAY. THAT INCLUDES MALANDER departments in a difficult current economy. Most CFOs
ADVISORY, MALANDER PLACEMENTS, are chartered accountants and we need to also drive more
female CFOs that are making strategic decisions and
MALANDER DIGITAL AND MALANDER ultimately a contribution to the future positive growth of
UK. TO HER, THE JOURNEY OF the economy.’
ENTREPRENEURSHIP HAS BEEN Shaveera has also mentored a few females that she has
had the privilege of working with. Working with these
EXCITING, CHALLENGING AND women has helped her understand the individual and their
UNPREDICTABLE. AND SHAVEERA background better and ultimately enabled her to provide
LOVES EVERY MINUTE OF IT! the best advise possible to uplift them.
‘I think the highlight of mentoring some of these ladies is
seeing them break out of their introvert personalities and
show them ways of how to showcase their talent and skill
and become strong leaders in the workplace,’ she says.
Through the Malander Advisory business, Shaveera
Her family consists of her very supportive husband, three
oversees the team that provides chartered accountant and
dogs and a cat. ‘I don’t think that I have even touched the
finance resource solutions to an array of large and listed
dreams that I want to achieve. I do believe that being an
clients in various sectors and industries. She has created
entrepreneur and a CA(SA) makes it easier to achieve those
employment opportunities for more than 70 chartered
dreams but I do not believe that I will ever stop dreaming
accountants and finance professionals.
of greatness … not anytime soon,’ she says.
‘My role at Malander allows me to deal with people of all
ages and assist them in solving their short-term problems.
Besides meeting newly qualified CAs(SA) and mentoring
or advising them on their careers, I am in constant contact
with companies’ financial managers, CFOs and CEOs to
troubleshoot the best strategy for their finance problems,’
she says. FAVOURITE PERFUME:
Shaveera is also actively involved in Malander Placements, SI BY GIORGIO ARMANI.
which consists of a team of trained professionals who
provide recruitment solutions, particularly within the fields
of finance, law and IT, to various clients. Although involved BEST ADVICE FOR WOMEN:
in the strategic decisions, she also interviews candidates, BELIEVE IN YOURSELF AND TAKE CHARGE OF
specifically in the finance field. With her the knack of being YOUR OWN DESTINY.
able to understand the intricacies of finance, Shaveera
is able to find the best candidate for her clients’ specific
requirements.
‘We recently expanded into the United Kingdom through
the opening of a London-based office. This is pursuant to
the companies’ international expansion strategy to gain
international exposure and gain the ability to service our
clients with both their local and offshore financial advisory
and resourcing requirements, as well as provide our
finance and recruitment professionals with international
exposure.’
Shaveera is passionate about uplifting women in the
workplace. ‘I was fortunate enough to have my mum set
an example for my sisters and I. Through her, I learnt to be
independent and self-sufficient and ultimately that allowed
me to grow in confidence. In the workplace, I often can

DURING HER ACADEMIC ARTICLE ‘My “youth” was initially seen as a challenge, but it has
turned out to be my biggest advantage as it allows me to be
YEAR IN 2011, KARABO REALISED more relatable to students and gives me the opportunity to
THAT HER TRUE PURPOSE IN be an inspiration and role model to those I lecture,’ she says.
LIFE WAS TO TEACH. TODAY HER ‘Diversity is very important to the functioning of society as a
whole. I like using the illustration of the body. We need men
CHARISMATIC AND ENERGETIC and women just like the body needs the arm, legs, head,
PERSONALITY PLAYS TO HER neck, etc, to function to the fullest capacity it was built for.
ADVANTAGE, AS SHE IS ABLE TO BE There are certain powerful characteristics and perspectives
that women bring to the table that allow the body of any
AN ENGAGING LECTURER TO HER organisation to function fully and at its peak,’ Karabo explains.
STUDENTS PROPELLING THEM TO She particularly admires the way her CA(SA) qualification
STRIVE TO ACHIEVE THEIR TRUEST has allowed her to network and build relationships with key
CALLING AND CAREER ASPIRATIONS. people who have in turn allowed her to achieve her own
dreams.
HER PASSION IS TO INFLUENCE THEIR She keeps her students motivated emphasising that there
YOUNG MINDS FOR THE GOOD AND is a need for ethical professionals and leaders in business,
TO SHOW THEM THAT IT IS POSSIBLE and chartered accountants in particular, to return to the
fundamentals of the CA(SA) profession.
TO ACCOMPLISH WHATEVER YOU
‘We all, particularly the students who are the future leaders,
PUT YOUR MIND TO. KARABO GIVES need to rise up to the challenge and be the change that we
CREDIT TO HER OWN LECTURERS FOR want to see,’ she says.
THE POSITIVE IMPACT THEY HAVE Her short-term goal? ‘I am in the final phase of my master’s
HAD ON HER CAREER degree specialising in international accounting (hopefully to
be completed at the end of 2018). In the longer term, I would
like to pursue sitting on boards of listed companies so I can
contribute more directly to ensuring the big corporates in
South Africa adhere to ethical leadership.’
An inspiring story Karabo shares is that in primary school
she struggled with a form of dyslexia which means she
would confuse numbers. This challenge continued right
through to high school. When it came to exams, she had
to be intentional when writing numbers, and this resulted
in her being slower than other learners. This did not stop
her from working with numbers, however, and she faced
the challenge head-on. As a result of her determination
and persistence in overcoming this challenge, she ended
BEST PIECE OF
up getting distinctions in high school for mathematics and ADVICE FOR WOMEN:
physics. BE TRUE TO WHO YOU ARE, YOU BRING
Today Karabo Kekana is a senior lecturer at the University A LOT TO THE TABLE JUST BY BEING
of Johannesburg and has been lecturing since 2014. Karabo YOURSELF. BE AUTHENTICALLY AND
also lectures on the Gauteng board course that prepares
students for their initial test of competence (ITC). Besides UNAPOLOGETICALLY YOU!
lecturing, she is a senior reviewer for the JSE proactive
monitoring project, as well as a board member for two non-
profit organisations, namely Nal’ibali and the Johannesburg
FAVOURITE CLOTHING ITEM:
Parent and Child Counselling Centre.
PAIR OF PURPLE HEELS FROM ALDO.
‘I come from an academic family and I think that also
influenced my decision to lecture. My dad is an education
specialist and is currently completing his PhD in
mathematics, while my mom lectures at a nursing college in
Limpopo. My sisters and I are polar opposites of each other
− while I am the numbers person they are the creatives of
our family,’ she says.
As a lecturer, she has experienced her own set of challenges
but has managed to turn them to her advantage. For one,
being a fairly young woman and lecturing third-years and
most recently postgrad students, she felt that there was
pressure from students and others to prove that she was
competent enough to handle the job.

PETRO STEYN WAS CROWNED Next month, in September, Petro will again compete in the
provincial competition. And if everything goes according
MISS FREE STATE IN 2011. AFTER to plan, she will be travelling to California for the WFF
ARRANGING A FASHION SHOW AND World Championships in November 2018. Her eye is on
the gold and receiving her pro card that will qualify her as a
A CHARITY AUCTION TO COVER professional athlete.
COSTS, SHE WAS ON HER WAY TO ‘I want to inspire an overall positive message associated
SOUTH CAROLINA TO COMPETE with the fitness industry, especially for young girls who
IN THE MISS WORLD UNIVERSAL see misconstrued images on social media. It is about being
healthy, to love and accept yourself, not to be narcissistic.’
PAGEANT. SHE PROUDLY WON THE
Petro is also passionate about motivating women to believe
OVERALL TITLE AT THE PAGEANT in themselves. ’One of our continual struggles as women
AND WROTE THE CREED OF WHAT is to believe in our value in spite of our pain. God created
WORLD UNIVERSAL STANDS FOR you for a purpose and sees you as a pearl of great value. The
pearl is the only gem that emerges from nature requiring no
cutting or sculpting to enhance its splendour. Like a pearl,
you entered into the world as God created you; man cannot
She completed her articles at PwC in 2012 and was take credit for your magnificence.’
promoted to audit manager. In 2013 she enjoyed a In 2014, Petro made the move into the banking sector,
secondment to Texas, USA. After returning to South Africa, where she currently works as a credit analyst at Absa
she decided she needed to shake off the excess ‘deep-fried Business Bank. She enjoys the fact that she can help make
everything’ that she had lived on for the past four months. a difference in someone’s life, be it to grow an existing
‘I was never one who enjoyed exercising. I was a dancer my business or realise the dream of a new one.
whole life, but other than that the idea of sweating was less
than exciting. Not to mention, I have a serious sweet tooth.’
Over time Petro started to enjoy exercising and her fitness
trainer at that time introduced her to the world of fitness and
competitions.
‘I still remember looking at the excessively tanned girls in
beautiful bikinis and thinking I will never be able to look like BEST ADVICE FOR WOMEN:
that. However, in some unexplainable way I ended up with STOP COMPARING YOURSELF TO OTHERS.
my current trainer who believed I had what it took to stand
on stage. In 2017 I prepared for my first competition. I had
STOP TRYING TO DETERMINE YOUR
no clue what I was doing and relied on my stage experience WORTH BASED ON WHAT THE WORLD
from my dance and beauty pageant days.’ TELLS YOU.
She was placed second in the bikini model line-up, and Petro
was hooked: ‘What I love most about competing is the fact
that it is extremely challenging. It takes mental toughness
FAVOURITE ITEM:
and perseverance to the fullest. It tests your character and MY GYM TIGHTS.
shines a spotlight on any insecurities that you might have.
I have always struggled with self-doubt and the fear of not
being good enough.’
That fear almost kept Petro from competing at the NABBA
World Fitness Federation (WFF) SA National Championships
last year. ‘Even when you are in your best physical condition
it will not make you suddenly believe in yourself. After
the Free State and Northern Cape provincial competition
I had some soul searching to do. Like most CAs(SA) I am
extremely competitive. I hate losing and when I did not place
in the top three, I wanted to quit. Even though I qualified to
compete at Nationals I almost let that one moment of failure
define me.’
True to her nature she came back fighting and in October
2017 Petro competed at the national championships, but
this time in a new line-up − the sports model category.
Petro just wanted to enjoy the experience and much to her
surprise, she was placed third and also qualified to represent
South Africa at the WFF World Championships in Cyprus.
Unfortunately, she did not manage to attend the latter event.

LIKELELI MONYAMANE, 29, IS leadership positions, the world would be a better place
because I believe the current construct of the world to
TRULY A BOLD AND COURAGEOUS be the result of an under-representation of women in
WOMAN. BORN IN BETHLEHEM leadership and in positions of influence. To quote myself,
“If more women were heads of states, poverty would be
IN THE FREE STATE, SHE AND HER a myth.”’
SISTER TRAGICALLY LOST BOTH Likeleli admits to having battled with depression for
PARENTS AT A YOUNG AGE. FIRST ten years as a result of her parents’ loss. ‘My coping
HER FATHER WAS KILLED IN AN mechanisms were to bury myself in my studies and
play sport, but that was something that I had to silently
ACCIDENT AND THEN, SEVEN overcome. To this day, I am very vocal about issues of
YEARS LATER, HER MOTHER WAS women abuse as well as mental health and I hope I
A VICTIM OF INTIMATE PARTNER can do more to be involved in ensuring that women are
supported in this regard,’ she says.
VIOLENCE. SHE AND HER LITTLE She describes being a mother as being the most
SISTER WERE THEN RAISED BY rewarding and fulfilling part of her existence. Her son,
HER GRANDMOTHER IN MASERU, Tśepang, is energetic and bubbly and keeps Likeleli on
her toes. She has learnt to be efficient in her personal
LESOTHO life as well as to be intentional about making play-time
with her son a part of her daily schedule. This means after
After attending boarding school, Likeleli completed her work you will find her setting aside time to play outside,
undergrad at the University of the Free State and her taking him to the beach or to just laughing with him.
honours at Unisa. She completed her articles at PwC
Bloemfontein and qualified as a CA(SA) in 2014. ‘This has made me a much more balanced person!’ she
laughs.
Today she lives happily in Ireland with her husband
Stephen and their 16-month-old son and works in
assurance at PwC Ireland. Likeleli is also enrolled for an
MBA from the African Leadership University in Rwanda.
Throughout her career, Likeleli has served in various
governance and oversight roles. She was the youngest
council member to be appointed to the council of the
University of the Free State. She has also been the FAVOURITE ITEM:
chairperson of ABASA Free State, curator of Global
Shapers Maseru Hub, and co-founder of the Lesotho
BEING A SENTIMENTAL PERSON, IT IS A
Young Professionals Forum. In 2016, Likeleli was selected BLUE SESHOESHOE DRESS I WORE AT THE
as a Mandela Washington Fellow and attended the MANDELA WASHINGTON PRESIDENTIAL
Business & Entrepreneurship Institute at Cambridge SUMMIT WHERE WE WERE ADDRESSED
College, Massachusetts.
BY PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA IN
‘I joined ABASA in 2011, in the first year of articles at
PwC Bloemfontein. There I met young CAs(SA) who
AUGUST 2016. I’M SO GLAD IT STILL FITS!
were passionate about uplifting each other and making a
difference in the community and this rubbed off on me.
I started being involved as a tutor for matric students. A
year later I was nominated and elected as the treasurer
of the Free State branch. Thereafter, I volunteered to
take on the role of ABASA Leadership Programme (ALP)
coordinator, launching the ALP mentorship programme in
our branch and forming a partnership with the University
of the Free State for ABASA to mentor their Thuthuka
students. A year later, in 2015, I was elected as the first
female chairperson of the Free State branch, a role I
served in until 2017,’ Likeleli explains.
‘As a woman, I saw the impact that being uplifted by other
women had on me. Through my own experience of having
a coach at work, Celeste Britz, truly believing in me and
actively contributing to my success, I was inspired to
pour myself out into other women. Working in a training
environment also compelled me to ensure that I develop
and uplift others as I progressed in my career,’ she says.
‘I am of the view that if more women were in key

FEATURE | EMPLOYEES
HOW TO LOSE YOUR BEST

EMPLOYEES
INSTEAD OF LETTING
THE ENGINES OF YOUR
EMPLOYEES SIT IDLE, a new position at the low end of the
learning curve, with challenges to
build an A team by optimising these
individual curves with a mix of people:
CRANK THEM: LEARN, overcome in the early days. Moving up 15% of them at the low end of the
LEAP, AND REPEAT the steep slope of growth, you acquire curve, just starting to learn new skills;
competence and confidence, continuing 70% in the sweet spot of engagement;
to a place of high contribution and and 15% at the high end of mastery.
eventually mastery at the top of the As you manage employees all along the
curve. curve, requiring them to jump to a new
But what comes next, as the potential curve when they reach the top, you will
for growth peters out? The learning have a company full of people who are
Words Whitney Johnson curve flattens, a plateau is reached; engaged.
a precipice of disengagement and You and every person on your team
declining performance is on the near is a learning machine. You want the
horizon. I’d estimate that four years is challenge of not knowing how to
about the maximum learning curve for do something, learning how to do
When your employees (and maybe
most people in most positions; if, after it, mastering it, and then learning
even you, as their manager) aren’t
that, you’re still doing the same thing, something new.
allowed to grow, they begin to feel that
you’re probably starting to feel a little
they don’t matter. They feel like a cog
flat.
in a wheel, easily swapped out. If you
aren’t invested in them, they won’t be The human brain is designed to learn, not AUTHOR l Whitney Johnson is
invested in you, and even if they don’t just during our childhood school years an executive coach, speaker, and
walk out the door, they will mentally but throughout our life spans. When we innovation thinker
check out. are learning, we experience higher levels
of brain activity and many feel-good
How do you overcome this conundrum?
brain chemicals are produced. Managers
It starts with recognising that every
would do well to remember that. © 2018 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL
person in your company is on a learning PUBLISHING CORP
curve. That learning curve means that Every organisation is a collection of
every role has a shelf life. You start people on different learning curves. You

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~ Aisha Lewis, Finance Executive
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FEATURE | DECISION-MAKERS
WE ARE ALL
DECISION-MAKERS
DECISION-MAKING
NEEDS TO TAKE If you ask people who the decision- staff and more efficient business
PLACE AT EVERY makers are in their organisation, it’s processes.
likely that they’ll point towards the CEO
LEVEL OF A and other senior executive directors.
EMPOWERING PEOPLE TO
BUSINESS. WHEN The truth is, however, that each person
TAKE DECISIONS
THAT DOESN’T HAPPEN, in the organisation takes decisions that
have the potential to affect not only
COMPANIES STAGNATE. themselves but the entire company. People shy away from taking decisions
INSTEAD OF BEING Every person is a decision-maker.
for a variety of reasons, from fear of
punishment for making a poor choice
AGILE AND ADAPTIVE, Realising that empowers employees
to a lack of confidence, ineffective
and builds a culture of ownership and
THEY BECOME accountability, which in turn benefits the
organisational structures, bureaucracy,
INEFFICIENT AND business.
or even plain old laziness.
EVENTUALLY GET LEFT Obviously, senior leadership positions

Often, the issue is not limited to a few
individuals, but is an organisational
BEHIND come with large responsibilities,
including making far-reaching decisions.
culture that needs to shift. And
sometimes it starts with the small
But decision-making doesn’t only
things. For example, when Mary Barra
happen at the top – it happens at
became CEO of General Motors, one
every level. For example, an HR
of first changes she made was to the
manager might recruit someone in
company’s dress code. She narrowed
a junior position, and that person
it down from 10 pages to two words:
might eventually rise through the
dress appropriately.
ranks to become the CEO. An articles
clerk might pick up a mistake that It may seem like a strange thing to
exposes risk in the company’s financial focus on, but at the Wharton People
reporting processes, which can then Analytics Conference, Barra said, ‘What
be addressed. An IT systems specialist I realised is that you really need to make
might recommend a new software sure your managers are empowered −
Words FR (Rhys) Robinson program that optimises workflow, because if they cannot handle “dress
resulting in happier and more productive appropriately”, what other decisions can

FEATURE | DECISION-MAKERS
they handle? And I realised that often, but are not punished for making This means:
if you have a lot of overly prescriptive them. Instead, reward honesty and • Taking initiative. Instead of waiting
policies and procedures, people will live initiative. to be told to do something, leaders
down to them.’ • Get rid of dead wood. Start by see a gap and fill it.
Barra realised the importance of hiring for cultural fit first (skills can • Speaking up (respectfully).
empowering others to take decisions, always be taught), but also learn to Leaders speak out against
and thereby to lead. ‘I want [managers] let go of people who are unwilling misconduct, they speak up for their
to take ownership of the rules and say, to pull their own weight. In the teams and they share their thoughts
“You're accountable to lead your team,”’ long term, they will cost you time, for the benefit of the organisation.
she said at the 2015 Catalyst Awards, money and frustration. Of course, the best leaders are also
explaining the policy. humble and treat those they interact
For senior management, empowering TAKING INITIATIVE AT EVERY with, with respect.
employees to take decisions requires a
few things:
LEVEL • Taking ownership. True leaders
don’t try to pass the buck (or
• Leading by example. Be prepared For people who are not part of the senior the work). They take complete
to take decisions and own them, management team but who aspire to be ownership of their tasks and are
which also means shouldering leaders, you can lead at any level in an accountable for their successes and
responsibility when they don’t pan organisation, or wherever you are in life. their failures.
out. In fact, this is the idea behind LeadSA, Whether you’re on the board at your
• Allow for mistakes. If your an initiative that calls every person in company or you’re just beginning in your
employees are scared to take South Africa to lead. ‘We all have a career, you can lead from where you are,
decisions for fear of retribution if responsibility to make the world a better and you can help to build a leadership
things go wrong, they will either place,’ the website says. culture within your organisation.
be paralysed or they will try to shift The same is true in business – each
the decision that needs to be made person has a real responsibility to make
to someone else’s desk. Focus on the organisation the best it can be, and AUTHOR l FR (Rhys) Robinson PhD is
building a culture where mistakes to lead in whichever position they find Executive Director, Infinitus Reporting
are allowed, and people are themselves. Solutions (Pty) Ltd
expected to fix their own mistakes,

CAs(SA)
ARE KEY
TO SMME BUSINESS SUCCESS,
PROVIDING GROWTH THROUGH
BUSINESS ADVISORY SERVICES
THE SECRET TO BUSINESS GROWTH IS HAVING AN EXPERIENCED

ETHICAL CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT WHO KNOWS HOW TO ADD
VALUE TO YOUR BUSINESS.
Business experience is core to how CAs(SA) approach business advisory services. It stems from years of business
insights, ongoing skills training and dedication, which makes them trusted responsible business leaders.
As an SMME, achieving your objectives is a primary source of value, whether it’s access to finance, cash flow or
differentiation from your competitors. When you partner with a CA(SA), you get a host of services to drive success
as well as a rich diversity of knowledge to help you navigate your business to reach new heights.
Partner with a CA(SA) today, visit www.findacasa.co.za

MortimerHarvey 61375
responsible leadership. develop.influence.lead.

FOCUS | WOMENS MONTH
BREAKING
THE GLASS-CEILING
This year at the World Economic Forum the challenge of female empowerment was on the
agenda, because giving women and girls the opportunity to succeed is not only the right thing
to do, but it can help transform societies and economies. Leaders are increasingly becoming
more vocal about a greater commitment to gender parity. In this feature, we take a look at
issues that give women the recognition they deserve.

FOCUS | WOMENS MONTH
confidence to excel in the job. But

those narratives did not ring true to
Sarah, a regional head, because a
THE POWER OF META-
handful of women were performing
and advancing at par. So she got
ANALYSIS
curious.
• Generate a plausible alternative
explanation: Sarah investigated
the factors that might have helped
women in her region succeed
and found that they received
more hands-on training and more
attention from supervisors than
did women in other regions. This
finding suggested that the problem
lay not with women’s deficiencies
but with their differential access to
the conditions that enhance self-
confidence and success. BA meta-analysis is a statistical technique used to combine
• Change the context and assess the the results of many studies, providing a more reliable basis
results: Once a plausible alternative
explanation has been developed,
for drawing conclusions from research. This approach has
companies can make appropriate three advantages over a single study.
changes and see if performance
improves. First, it is more accurate, because it is based on a very
• Promote continual learning: large sample − the total of the samples across all the
Partners at the firm now meet studies − and because it contains data collected in many
regularly to discuss what different contexts. Any single set of findings may reflect
they’re learning. They also hold
one another accountable for idiosyncrasies of the study’s sample or context and thus may
questioning and testing gender- not yield conclusions that are truly generalisable. A meta-
stereotypical assessments as they analysis in essence averages across these idiosyncrasies to
arise. As a result, old narratives
about women’s limitations are give us a truer answer to the research question (in this case,
beginning to give way to new ‘Are men and women different with regard to a particular
narratives about how the firm can trait or behaviour?’).
better support all employees.
Second, a meta-analysis is more comprehensive. Because it
AUTHORS l Catherine H Tinsley is the contains studies conducted in many different contexts, it can
Raffini Family Professor of Management tell us in which kinds of contexts we are more or less likely
at Georgetown University’s McDonough to see sex differences.
School of Business and the faculty
director of the Georgetown University
Third, a meta-analysis is more precise: it can tell us just
Women’s Leadership Institute. Robin
J Ely is the Diane Doerge Wilson how different men and women are. For any given trait
Professor of Business Administration at or behaviour, there is variability among men and among
Harvard Business School and the faculty
women; typically, those within-group differences are
chair of the HBS Gender Initiative
distributed around some “true” average for each group.
Using the averages and the variability within each group, we
can calculate an ‘effect size’ that can be thought of as the
impact that sex has on a particular trait. When testing for a
sex difference, we are in essence asking the question ‘How
much overlap is there between women and men, or, stated
© 2018 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL
PUBLISHING CORP another way, how far apart are their respective averages,
relative to the variability within each sex?’

FOCUS | WOMEN'S MONTH
Countries at earlier stages of economic In these efforts, organisations like governments must do all they can to
development typically have other the IMF are committed to working sustain this momentum and lay the
gender-related challenges. The most with governments around the world foundations for long-term growth.
fundamental of these include access to to help women realise their potential. Helping women make the most of their
water and greater sharing of household IMF-supported programmes in Egypt potential is a key part of this equation.
tasks between men and women. and Jordan, for instance, contain
Time is up for discrimination and abuse
Education is also a key challenge − specific measures to empower
against women. The time has come for
despite progress in reducing school women economically, including
women to thrive.
enrolment gaps in primary education investment in public nurseries and
in many countries, gender gaps persist better public transport safety. And AUTHORS l Christine Lagarde,
at secondary and tertiary levels. Girls’ given its importance for growth, IMF Managing Director, International
education is crucial if women are to hold policy advice to member countries Monetary Fund; and Erna Solberg,
political and economic power in society increasingly includes recommendations Prime Minister of Norway, Office of the
on an equal footing with men. That to support women’s labour market Prime Minister of Norway
is why, for instance, girls’ education participation.
is a priority in Norway’s international
Beyond policies, much of today’s
development efforts. Another key in
conversation is about the wider social
many developing countries is to ensure
that women have access to finance,
change that is also needed. And from THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THIS
enabling them to participate fully in the
#equalpay to #metoo and beyond, it ARTICLE ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS
economy, including as businesswomen
looks like it’s coming. ALONE AND NOT THE WORLD
ECONOMIC FORUM
and entrepreneurs, which can, in turn, Leaders from around the world this
drive innovation and help societies to year met in Davos at a time of global © WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
prosper. economic recovery, a time when

Gender equality is an ever-growing to celebrate these role models and bring

imperative. To remain relevant, attention to them, especially for girls at
businesses will need to have a clear a young age. It is hard for young girls to
strategy to retain the right employees, aspire to something they cannot see, and
customers and partners. Increasing the mantra applies ‘seeing is believing’.
the number of women graduating in WE ESTIMATE SIZEABLE
We can cultivate an early interest in
STEM fields is critical to enhancing the STEM-related fields by bringing attention
ECONOMIC BENEFITS IF WE
talent pool available to governments and to female role models in STEM careers. CLOSE THE GENDER GAP IN
businesses alike. Furthermore, to help
plug the leaky pipeline of women leaving
Research shows female learners are SOUTH AFRICA IN BOTH PAY AND
more likely to continue their studies in a REPRESENTATION BY JUST 10%.
their careers, hiring processes must shift STEM subject when they had a female
to allow talent to speak for itself. STEM teacher. Students’ attitudes can
Gender equality is more than a moral also be affected by subtle and simple
imperative changes, for example, when directors platforms of recruitment activities, with
diversify the portraits on the walls of a sense of belonging presenting a major
We estimate sizeable economic benefits concern for female job seekers.
if we close the gender gap in South their organisations. Further increasing
Africa in both pay and representation the fraction of counter-stereotypical Nudges in career development and
by just 10%. Our calculations suggest people in positions of leadership solves a progression
economic growth spin-offs of additional chicken and egg problem − it can change
In career development, gender
3,2% in GDP growth and a 6,5% men’s and women’s beliefs about what
differences in self-confidence play
reduction in the number of unemployed an effective leader looks like and address
a crucial role. Many firms ask their
job seekers. Enormous economic many of the biases that hinder gender
employees to evaluate themselves and
opportunity lies in promoting gender equality.
then to share these self-evaluations with
workforce equality. Nudges in hiring their supervisors. Self-assessments
The benefits extend to the emerging tech In the hiring process, gendered language entrench gender biases through
industry as well. Emerging tech is only in job ads can preselect applicants, anchoring, where women will generally
as well-rounded as the people who teach denying firms the possibility of exploiting underrate their performance, which
it. It is a crucial field for women to help the full potential of the talent pool. A serves as an unconscious low reference
shape, as every day, our dependence job ad for a teaching role at a primary point for evaluators. The easy solution
on the speed and efficiency of new school that refers to the ideal candidate is to do away with self-assessments
technologies grows. If primarily half as ‘warm and caring’ will likely attract wherever possible, or at least to avoid
of the population designs technology, fewer male applicants than if the ideal sharing self-assessments with evaluators
users are missing out on the insights, candidate had to offer ‘exceptional ahead of performance reviews.
innovations and solutions of the other pedagogical skills’. The same principle
half. Fostering inclusivity, and therefore applies to emerging tech jobs. In a NUDGING FOR PROSPERITY
bringing more women into emerging small sample of 20 job ads for ‘data
tech and the workforce in general, will scientist/analyst’ and ‘UX/UI developer’ We can bring more women into tech by
help introduce new viewpoints and new positions in South Africa, 85% of the realising that an interest in these fields
ideas to emerging tech. ads were masculine coded, while 10% should be cultivated from an early age
were feminine coded and 5% neutral. and understanding why women opt out
WHAT CAN WE DO This likely reflects the language used in of careers in STEM. Simple nudges like
emerging tech job ads in South Africa bringing attention to female role models,
TO ADVANCE GENDER and represents a barrier women face in purging gendered language from job
WORKPLACE EQUALITY? partaking in the emerging tech revolution, ads and avoiding self-assessments can
as well as throws a spanner in the works change the context in which we make
Biases exist in our daily lives and for organisation looking to benefit from decisions and sustainably correct gender
behavioural measures, or ‘nudges’, are the full breadth of available talent. imbalances in the workplace.
one instrument in our collective toolbox The simple solution is to purge gendered
to correct for gender imbalances in The benefits are clear: economies and
language from job ads. First impressions businesses can thrive by deploying the
education and work. Nudges change the also matter in recruitment sessions,
context in which we make decisions. full potential of their workforce, women
where the presence of women speaking and men alike, to drive prosperity in the
They offer low-hanging fruit to promote on technical subjects are crucial drivers
female representation in emerging face of the next digital revolution.
of female audience engagement. These
tech and establish new foundations for nudges are especially important as
inclusive economic growth. women consider more factors than
AUTHORS l Maura Feddersen and Nina
Nudges in school and higher men when screening jobs – in particular
Kirsten are economists at PwC South
education cultural fit, values and managerial
Africa
The tech industry boasts many style. The importance of relatability
exceptional female leaders. It is crucial furthermore extends across various

at and silently thinks, ‘Eish, girl, maybe its best you get
one of those at-home exercise DVDs?’
This class was like no other class I had been too. I thought
this was supposed to be fun! 1 567 jumping jacks, 567
burpees, four hours running, 3 890 pushups and all in a WHEN SELF-DOUBT REARS ITS UGLY HEAD AND
span of 60 minutes! I had a serious out-of-body experience QUESTIONS MY RESOLVE ASKING ME ‘CAN YOU
that day. I watched myself literally dying and I called out
to myself: ‘Stay away from the light, Wadzi! You are too FLY?’, I APTLY RESPOND, ‘YES, I BELIEVE CAN FLY!’
young to die!’
But, somehow, even though I almost died that morning,
I found myself going back to every class. There was just
something about this class. I couldn’t quite pinpoint it. meant to be solved. I am fitter and I am stronger. For the first
Was I an undercover sadist? Addicted to pain? Why did I time in my life, I truly believe that I can fly. When self-doubt
keep going back? It was because for the first time in my rears its ugly head and questions my resolve asking me ‘Can
life, I was surrounded by a standard so high that I also you fly?’, I aptly respond, ‘Yes, I believe can fly!’
wanted to achieve it. I too wanted to one day be like these
soldiers. I too wanted to be ripped. I wanted my body to
also move in unison and not in ripple effects! AUTHOR l Wadzanai Mabuto CA(SA), PGDA (UCT) is a Senior
The first three months were amazing, the results were Lecturer at the University of Johannesburg
showing almost immediately. I was getting fitter, I was
making new friends. I was in a happy place!
COMMIT
Commitment can be defined as ‘Staying true to what you
said you were going to do, long after the mood you said it
Do you hold the CA (SA)
in has left you.’
Fast forward to October 2016, close to 35 kg down, six qualification?
dress sizes smaller, and a clean bill of health. The mood,
however, had left me now. The speed at which results Become CIMA qualified by
came was slower. People whom I started the journey with
were no longer there. I was spending so much time at the sitting just one exam*
gym and not enough time with my non-gymmers. I was in
a no-man’s land. Too thin to be fat, but too fat to be thin. I
did not quite know where I fit in anymore.
My non-gym friends thought I was obsessed and spent
too much time at the gym. On the other hand, the levels
in class kept increasing to that I never felt like I could ever
achieve. I thank God for my husband, because he never let
me stop. He would tell me to get back up and keep going.
Every time I would be overwhelmed by guilt of spending Contact us now for
so much time at the gym, he would reassure me that this further information
was for us (even though we both knew it really was for
me).
However, I needed to find a bigger reason for continuing
this journey. I needed to figure out what was my why. Why
was I doing this? Was it all worth the time away from my
family? Was all this pain worth it? I pushed through the
final months of 2016 literally on autopilot, going through
the motions. I would get compliments here and there,
but they went flying over my head because I had become
stuck. Nothing made sense to me anymore. But I kept on
going.
Fast forward into the first few months of 2018 ... I still e: rsa@harleyreed.com I t: +27 (0) 11 312 8411
have not found my why, but I am content. Maybe my why
is just to be! I live each day as it comes. I do not try and
www.harleyreed.com
solve everything at once, because somethings are just not *Contingent upon attending a compulsory 1 week training programme and successfully
passing the strategic level case study

ADVICE | VIEWPOINTS
LEGISLATING
THE DIGITAL GOOSE
A crucial part of digital transformation is doing business in
an entirely new way. And the fallout from the Protection
of Personal Information Act (POPIA) and the General Data
Protection Regulation (GDPR) could limit our ability to build
nimble, flexible, digital organisations.
Business Advisor
KEVIN PHILLIPS CA(SA)
CEO of IDU Group
We’ve had to navigate the introduction of POPIA as well as the European

Union’s GDPR in the last few months. I think that both these laws which
look at how personal identification data is collected, stored and handled
could have an impact on a company’s ability to succeed in the Fourth
Industrial Revolution − partially because in many cases they are blunt
instruments, and also because they don’t always seem to understand the
digital landscape.
Of course, I agree that protection of personal data is essential: we’ve
seen enough data breaches and unethical behaviour to know that they are
a genuine threat. In addition I, like most of us, am annoyed by constant
unsolicited marketing calls and direct mail.
But a couple of things have caused me to raise a sceptical eyebrow and
wonder how the outcome of compliance gels with running a future-fit
company.
For instance, some of the POPIA requirements that have been passed on
to us from our clients include locking down information to such an extent
that the only way to do your job is sitting at a desk, in your office. This is
completely opposite to a digitally empowered, mobile, flexible, project-based
workplace and the benefits of working in this way. We wouldn’t be able to
pull together the best team for the project, or access real-time data via the
cloud while on the go. Nor would we benefit from our team bringing their
mobile devices into the workplace.
IN SUMMARY And GDPR has its own red flags, one of them being an individual’s ability
to request, within a month, all the personal identification details a company
holds on them, and also ask for amends or complete erasure. Think about
There’s always a fair bit of muddling
the logistics of doing that. I’m not even sure it’s entirely possible given the
through during times of massive
change, as we see now at the dawn
knock-on impact this might have, in a set of reports, for instance. But also, it
of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. potentially heralds a return to big slam-dunk ERP systems, whether they are
The trick is not to carry over old-school best for the job rather than best-of-breed services that do exactly what we
thinking into a new realm and limit your need them to do.
opportunities. I think we are facing a
While I agree with the need for data security, too many things about these
real risk of doing just this, looking at the
impact data privacy legislation can have corporate ‘belt and braces’ approaches to data protection make me feel like
on a company’s ability to transform for a this could be quite a big step back for our digital futures. Perhaps we need a
digital future. bit more common sense and forward-looking thinking when tackling these
challenges.

ADVICE | VIEWPOINTS
PREPARING FOR YOUR

AUDIENCE
If you have to ask great speakers for their secret to their
success on stage, one common factor would be the amount
of preparation that they conduct on understanding their
audience. In this article, I will share some of the factors that
to consider when tailoring your speech to your audience.
Public Speaking Trainer
DINESHRIE PILLAY CA(SA)
Business Owner and Public Speaking Trainer
There are four requirements to understanding your audience:

• Pain: Before you present, identify exactly what is the pain that your audience is
going through and how your product or service can assist to alleviate that pain.
• Problem: Your audience has a challenge that needs to be solved. You must be able
to define the problem that your product or service solves in a cost-effective way.
• Need: Your audience has a need that your product or service fulfils. They are
looking for some improvement in their lives, or the way things get done.
• Goal: Determine how your product or service enables your audience to achieve
their goal in a timely and cost-effective way.
Audience demographics and characteristics
The following factors impact the types and complexity of the examples that you
use. It also impacts on the types of analogies, stories, videos, group activities,
discussions, visuals, sound clips, and any audience participation games, that you
ADVICE
might incorporate within your presentation.
Age and age range Listed below is a series of questions
Younger audiences have different understandings, cultural knowledge and that you can use to understand your
backgrounds. audience better:
Gender and family status

• What are their goals and
• A split of 50:50 males/females requires different planning and execution if there aspirations?
is a majority males or a majority females in the audience.
• What are their hopes and fears as
• Married, dingle, divorced, widowed, children or not – all are essential facts for it relates to your subject?
tailoring your content appropriately.
• What needs do they have that you
Income can fulfil with your comments and
Knowing the audience’s income age, income range and how they earn their income your ideas?
can help you to refer to money and income-related topics in a way that is more • What are their values and beliefs?
acceptable to your audience.
• What are their worries, concerns
Education/occupation or problems?
• Knowing the type of education your listeners have helps you choose relevant
examples, illustrations, analogies and vocabulary.
Trust is an important factor to your
• Trends in the industry; latest news concerning certain types of careers all help audience listening to you. If you can
in scripting of your speech. show them that you have conducted
your preparation in a way to really know
Audience’s familiarity with your subject them, they will trust you enough to
Beginners’ or expert-level knowledge requires different approaches to content, work with you.
interaction, and level of complexity and engagement.

ADVICE | VIEWPOINTS
WOMEN
AND INVESTING
‘According to the Boston Consulting Group, between
2010 and 2015, private wealth held by women grew from
$34trn to $51trn. By 2020 women are expected to hold
$72trn, 32% of the total’ – The Economist, 8 March 2018.
Wealth Advisor
MIKE LLEDO CA(SA) Why this dynamic?
Independent Women are:
Financial Services Consultant • Increasingly participating in the workforce
• Earning more as the gap on gender inequality and pay closes
• More conscious of and getting a better education
• Increasingly head of the household and often single parents
• More financially literate
• Inheriting more from their spouses or their parents
Are women good investors?
Research by Fidelity Investments, a global giant in fund management, showed that:
• Women earn higher returns than men when it comes to investing by 40 basis
points (0,4%). Compound this and the difference is startling.
• Women save more than men at every salary level − an annual average of 9,0%
compared to an average of 8,6% saved by their male counterparts.
Other factors they identified were that women will generally plan with purpose, think
holistically. Women often build financial plans in terms of life goals for themselves or
their families rather than focusing on performance alone. Women tend to hold a more
IN SUMMARY
long-term, conservative view with their investments. In addition, they found that
women take on less risk and are more likely to invest in target date funds, ensuring
they are well diversified. And women are patient − men are 35% more likely to make
trades than women.
• Take control of your finances – a man
is not a financial plan. Are women good fund managers?
• Don’t underestimate your skills – the Morningstar tackled the hypothesis that men produce superior performance when it
research shows that you’re more than comes to managing funds. However, they found clear evidence to reject this hypothesis.
capable of getting the results. They tested this theory in three ways, which all point to this same conclusion: they do
not find a performance difference based on a fund manager’s gender.
• Play to your strengths, especially your
better investment behaviours. Gender lens investing?
With a greater focus on sustainability and socially responsible investing, the value of
• Improve your financial literacy – there
is a wealth of literature, tools and
female leadership roles in companies is also becoming better understood.
seminars. A 2012 study from the Harvard Business School showed that companies with an
• Get sound financial advice − don’t be average of three women on the board of directors have a higher return on equity
scared to choose your advisor carefully invested (by almost 60%) compared to companies with absolutely no women on the
and ask the tough questions. board.
• Women play a meaningful role in Research by the non-profit group Catalyst found that companies with higher
every aspect of the investment cycle representation of women on boards outperformed those with the least number of
– investor, investment manager, and women, on average, increasing return on equity by 53%, return on sales by 42%, and
corporate leader. return on invested capital by 66%. The study was based on a four-year average of 520
companies, using data from Standard & Poor’s.

ADVICE | VIEWPOINTS
IS RESPONSIBILITY YOUR
DOWNFALL?
Any employer value characteristics like responsibility,
dedication and loyalty in an employee, but if not
managed properly by the employee, burnout, illness,
obesity and unhappiness can occur.
Financial Consultant & Coach

I spent more than ten years after qualifying as a chartered accountant at
a large listed corporate. I was in a senior position on group level with a
RONEL JOOSTE CA(SA)
Is a director at FinanciallyFiTLife and a blogger,
strong team and many subsidiaries reporting into me. The adrenaline of the speaker and radio talk show host
rollercoaster rides during reporting periods was exhilarating and made me
strive for more.
I performed best under immense pressure. Working seven days a week
non-stop for three months during year-end was my ‘normal’. Then there was
the merger, which is still considered to be one of the biggest mergers ever
in South Africa. We were repeatedly told that to experience a merger of
this extent is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that few accountants ever get
to experience. It was intense, it was big, it was exciting; but the extreme
working hours and constant pressure also started to take its toll.
I loved my job for most part of my corporate career, but in 2014 I realised
I was no longer happy and content. I started to ask myself important life-
changing questions: ‘what is my purpose in life?’; ‘do I really want to do
financial reporting for the rest of my life?’; ‘what would I do if I could do
anything in life?’; ‘how can I make a bigger impact?’; ‘what should I do to
realize my bigger dreams for my life?’.
I was often sick and constantly struggled with running or cycling injuries,
because I wasn’t in a position to exercise consistently. During training for
the Amashova and Momentum 947 Cycling Challenges in 2014, shortly after
another tough year-end, I experienced dizziness and black spells. The results
from all the medical check-ups came back clean. It was when the one doctor
asked: ‘When last did you take a break?’, that I realised my body and mind
IN SUMMARY
were crying for help.
My sense of responsibility became my downfall. I gave too much of myself
and didn’t take proper care of myself, my health and my needs. I never said
‘No’. I was nearing burnout. I knew I had to walk away and put myself first for Responsibility, dedication, loyalty are
a change. I used the opportunity to start my own businesses - − something I trademarks of an accountant. These are the
will forever be grateful for. qualities that differentiate us from the pack and
contribute to our success. In a deadline-driven
We often push too hard to meet deadlines and be successful, losing
environment, these qualities help us thrive.
ourselves in the process. Our physical and emotional wellbeing is just as For many years these were the qualities that
important as our financial wellbeing and we need to take care of it. Going for helped me to climb the corporate ladder at a
regular health checks, exercising on a regular basis, and eating healthy meals young age. At one point in my career I started
should be part of our lifestyle. As accountants, we work under enormous to question these qualities though and I
pressure and we need to find ways to manage our stress levels. We need to realised my sense of responsibility, dedication
make time to do those things that we love and make us feel alive. Spending and loyalty started to become my downfall.
time with our loved ones should be our priority. I gave everything for my employer but lost
myself in the process.
Don’t wait until it is too late … take care of yourself.

ADVICE | VIEWPOINTS
EMERGENT
AND TRANSFORMATIVE
LEADERSHIP
Working ways have changed. Our workforce is dominated

by a transformed, gender-balanced and super-energised
younger generation. Our critical leadership attributes have
Learning and organisation
not kept pace and a leadership culture of ‘command and
development (OD) advisor control’ still exists. These days are over.
PAOLO GIURICICH CA(SA)
is founder and owner of Smart EQ
The emergent and transformative leader will be the survivor of this

leadership race. Recently I attended an epic celebration at a former employer.
We were celebrating the development and growth of CAs(SA) over the last
twenty years and being pioneers of the non-audit qualification route. Leaving
the celebration that evening feeling a real sense of achievement and pride,
I reflected further on my leadership journey and how important culture and
CRITICAL context are when participating and leading in a group of people.
LEADERSHIP ROLE My leadership ability to ‘command and control’ has been weak as I have
always valued the diversity of thought and possibility of individuals in any
team I have worked in (even when I was the de facto ‘leader’ of an area).
Being the ‘boss’ was never important to me, and this is possibly why I
Four critical leadership roles that
emerge in the evolution of the group* ascribe to this model of emergent leadership and its continued applicability in
the world today.
• Task leader role: Knows the most In the early 1980s Donald T Brown wrote about the developmental phases of
about task required, influences work groups/teams and emergent group leadership, based on the research
goals, norms, procedures and finding of Ariadne Beck and her colleagues. Brown’s approach to leadership
connects with stakeholders was not overly concerned with the designated and formal leadership role,
• Emotional leader role: Concerned but more with the emergence of functional leaders in a group as the group
with relationships and smooth relationships and tasks developed over time. Brown also intimated that
running of the group and models leadership roles could be played by all group/team members and could
collaboration and cooperation. change over the lifecycle of the team as needed and when the context
• Divergent leader role: Facilitates continually shifts.
clarification of limits and boundaries, Brown’s model has really resonated for me, as this has always been my
considers negative feelings and
natural leadership inclination. Being the boss (or more technically the ‘leader’)
competition, sensitive to differences
and invested in the task.
is overrated. I am fortunate to have worked in many high-performing groups,
and the common attribute for these groups was not my leadership light, but
• Boundary conscious leader role: rather the emergence of leadership from each individual at the right inflection
Facilitates testing of commitment,
point of group development, and comfort with this emergence.
dependency and distance issues,
sensitive to inconsistencies and Beyond the twenty-year celebratory event, my personal celebration
ambivalent about tasks. catalysed, which is the sincere gratitude I have for the many opportunities in
my career to be a transformative leader and champion others to emerge as
*Adapted from NTL handbook of leaders better than myself.
organisation development and change, What are you celebrating in your career journey and where do you see your
second edition, Jones/Brazzel.
leadership skills developing further?

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more, it gives you the flexibility to choose the deployment that best suits your unique business needs
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If you’re looking for ERP your way, on your terms, let’s discuss the infinite possibilities of
SYSPRO ERP. For more information or to arrange an appointment, please contact us on
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SYSPRO AFRICA @SYSPRO_Africa za.syspro.com
Copyright © 2018 SYSPRO (Pty) Ltd. All rights reserved. All brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
OSFF 714744

RECOMMEND | TRANSPARENCY
30 MIN
TRANSPARENCY
REPORTING
A HEALTH CHECK
Current levels of fraud and corruption in South Africa have resulted in calls for
greater transparency and accountability by businesses. Transparency reporting is an
opportunity for audit firms to demonstrate their commitment to audit quality
Words Ciara Craul Reintjes
Transparency reports issued by South Africa, there is a corresponding at and compare more than just prices of
audit firms to assist stakeholders in move toward greater transparency and the tendering firms. With transparency
understanding how the systems of the accountability by businesses. Businesses, reports in place, the audit committee
firm are functioning can be likened to including audit firms, are keener than ever will be able to compare practices of
medical reports. to show a healthy scorecard, that they competing firms, assessing the state
are free of illness, and have healed any of the various organs within the firm’s
injuries. systems, and thereby determining the
THE HISTORY OF fitness of the firm to perform a high-
Transparency reporting is an opportunity
TRANSPARENCY REPORTING for audit firms to reflect on their audit quality audit engagement.
quality (their fitness level) and report on
The production of a transparency report
is mandatory for certain audit firms in the
the processes to achieve audit quality KEY ELEMENTS OF
(health). With current exceptionally high
European Union (since 2006), Australia
levels of public scrutiny of audit firms
TRANSPARENCY REPORTS
and New Zealand (since 2013), the United
in South Africa, voluntarily preparing
Kingdom (since 2008) and Japan (since Transparency reports contain information
transparency reports can indicate to the
2008), among others. The requirement on the systems of the firm, such as the
public the introspection and diagnosis
typically applies to those firms that audit firm’s:
that the firm has undergone in order to
public interest entities (PIEs). • Legal and governance structure
improve on its wellness.
Transparency reports are also issued, on • Shareholding
Additionally, with mandatory audit firm
a voluntary basis, in some other regions,
rotation and audit tenure disclosure • Measures to foster audit quality,
including here in South Africa.
requirements now in place, an increase and quality monitoring and remedial
in audit tendering is expected. Audit systems
THE PURPOSE OF committees will now be faced with
making a selection of an audit firm on • Network structures
TRANSPARENCY REPORTS
a more regular basis. There is a danger • Financial information, for example
The world is awash with an interest in that in procurement processes, audit revenue from assurance and non-
transparency and accountability. This, committees focus on price to the assurance services
some say, is triggered by the ailing exclusion of quality. Transparency reports
• Continuing professional education
political and business environments can play an important role in preventing
policy
in some countries. With the pervasive the commoditisation of the audit by
encouraging audit committees to look • Basis for remuneration of the firm’s
disease of fraud and corruption in

RECOMMEND | TRANSPARENCY
partners or the company’s directors transparency reports mandatory. Reports • Technology and its impact on audit
• Policy concerning the rotation of key could be required for the public, audit • Non-audit services
audit partners and staff committees, or only for the regulator. The
proposed ISQC 1 (Revised) is expected to • Reporting on performance against
• Independence practices be issued on exposure during 2018. key performance indicators for
• External review results assessing the effectiveness of
quality control processes
• The PIEs for which the firm has SPECIALISTS’ OBSERVATIONS
carried out statutory audits during • Incentives and remuneration in
the preceding financial year, and The following high-level observations relation to KPIs
• The firm’s internal indicators of audit were made on performing a check-up of

quality the most recent local and international CONCLUSION
audit transparency reports:
The IRBA is currently undertaking a While transparency reporting is still
separate project on the firm’s internal • There appears to be an increased
focus on transparency of client voluntary in South Africa, in other
audit quality indicators (AQIs). AQIs are jurisdictions it is mandatory for certain
qualitative or quantitative thermometers, acceptance and retention processes.
audit firms. As such, voluntarily preparing
or measures, of audit quality (for example • Transformation (in the South African transparency reports could indicate to the
measures such as the extent of training context), diversity and inclusiveness public the introspection and diagnosis
undertaken per person in the assurance are emphasised. the firm has undergone to improve its
practice, and internal or external • Tone at the top, values, firm culture systems. Until such time as transparency
investigation results) which allow a and independence practices are reporting becomes mandatory in
stakeholder to assess and compare these accentuated more by some firms South Africa, audit firms are strongly
indicators year-on-year and across firms. than by others. encouraged to prepare these reports.
In the United Kingdom, six of the largest
audit firms voluntarily disclose AQIs. • A thread of commitment to audit
quality, together with the tools and AUTHOR l Ciara Craul Reintjes CA(SA),
processes to make this sustainable, RA, Senior Professional Manager:
REQUIREMENTS FOR SOUTH is found in all the reports. Standards, Independent Regulatory
AFRICA • One international firm included a Board for Auditors (IRBA)
list of risks that the firm faces, with
Transparency reporting is currently activities to manage and monitor the
voluntary in South Africa. Where risks. As proposed ISQC 1 (Revised) SOURCES
transparency reports are prepared, it is to be structured in the format of • The following transparency reports were
is usually by firms that audit European quality objectives, quality risks and referred to: BDO Australia and LLP 2017,
Union PIEs. Where reports have not been responses to quality risks identified Deloitte US and LLP and Zimbabwe 2017,
prepared, this may be as the relevant EY SA 2016, EY SA and UK and US 2017,
for each component of the system Grant Thornton International (2017), KPMG
information is incorporated into the global of quality management, this may SA 2013, KPMG International and LLP 2017,
firm’s report. be a model upon which to base the KPMG Thailand 2018, PwC Australia and LLP
2017.
format of the transparency report.
ISQC 1 BEING REVISED • An extended commentary was
• Australian Securities and Investments
Commission (ASIC), Information Sheet 184,
provided by the CEO and assurance Audit transparency reports, 2013.
The International Auditing and Assurance leader of a local firm, expanding on • Canadian Public Accountability Board (CPAB),
Standards Board’s (IAASB) International the firm’s response to the South CPAB exchange: Transparency into the Audit
Standard on Quality Control (ISQC) 1, African environment. Of interest here – Audit Quality Indicators and Transparency
Reporting, 2016.
Quality Control for Firms that Perform is that the firm explicitly disclosed its
Audits and Reviews of Financial • Directive 2014/56/EU on statutory audits of
process to identify high risk entities annual accounts and consolidated accounts,
Statements, and Other Assurance that have been affected by the South amending Directive 2006/43/EC on statutory
and Related Services Engagements, African state and business capture audits of annual accounts and consolidated
issued in 2009, is undergoing revision. situation, and its response about accounts.
It is anticipated that the revised ISQC doing business with any of these • Financial Reporting Council (FRC),
1 will refer to the communicating of entities. Transparency Reporting by Auditors of Public
Interest Entities – Review of Mandatory
information about the firm’s system of
The specialist suggests that there could Reports, 2015.
quality management to parties external
be more on: • IAASB meeting of 12 March 2018, agenda
to the firm, as appropriate, taking item 7A, Draft Exposure Draft ISQC 1,
into consideration factors such as the • Root cause analysis on internal and Revised.
communication requirements set out in external review findings • International Organization of Securities
law, regulation or professional standards. • AQIs − these are disclosed in the UK Commissions (IOSCO), Transparency of
This may provide the framework for Firms that Audit Public Companies Final
(LLP) transparency reports, but not in Report, 2015.
the IRBA to make the publication of the South African ones

RECOMMEND | FRAUD
30 MIN
FRAUD
AN OCCUPATIONAL
HAZARD
Fraud and corruption is real and results in actual financial loss to entities. It
is important for all parties involved in the conduct of business to understand
occupational fraud to be in the best position to respond appropriately, thereby
mitigating the potential financial loss
Words Jana Lamprecht
Fraud and corruption have escalated into made up 28% of the total cases, 22% median loss of $200 000 − almost
a way of life, causing entities to lose an of the cases were at entities with double the loss compared to larger
estimated 5%1 of their annual revenue. between 100 and 999 employees, entities (>100 employees), who
Entities do not only face attacks from 26% at entities with between 1 000 suffered a median loss of $104 000.
external parties but also from their own and 9 999 employees, and 24% of the The survey classified occupational fraud
employees, managers, executives and total cases occurred at entities with into three primary categories,2 namely
even the owners of the business. This more than 10 000 staff members. With corruption, asset misappropriation and
is referred to as occupational fraud. respect to smaller entities, a concern financial statement fraud, as depicted in
Understanding occupational fraud was noted in that they suffered a figure 1.
schemes can assist entities in improving
their anti-fraud controls to prevent or
detect this type of fraud. This article Figure 1 Occurrence and median loss of primary categories
based on the Association of Certified
Fraud Examiners’ (ACFE) survey results
as published in the 2018 Report to Occurance* Median loss (USD ’000)
the Nations aims to shed light on
occupational fraud schemes. 10% 114
ANALYSIS OF THE SURVEY 38% 250

RESULTS
89%
800
The survey analysed 2 690 international
fraud cases, which included 267 Sub-
Saharan and 87 South African cases.
This survey also included an analysis of *Some cases involved more than one primary category.
entities of all sizes. Occupational fraud
at smaller entities (<100 employees) Corruption Asset misappropriation Financial statement fraud

RECOMMEND | FRAUD
The total percentage of occurrence These schemes can be explained as of the entity. This can be achieved
per category amounted to 137% follows: through timing differences, fictitious or
because certain individual occupational • Skimming is the act of stealing understated revenues, concealment or
fraud cases involved fraud being from an entity before the incoming overstatement of liabilities and expenses,
committed in more than one primary payment has been recorded in the improper asset valuations, and improper
category by a single perpetrator. Asset entity's books. disclosure.
misappropriation schemes was the Corruption occurs when the perpetrator
most common (89%) but had the • Cash larceny is when money is
stolen after it has been accounted misuses his/her authority in a business
lowest median loss ($114 000). On the transaction in a way that breaches his/her
other hand, financial statement fraud for.
fiduciary duty to the entity in order to gain
schemes were the least common (10%) • Billing schemes involve the creation a benefit. It can occur when there is a
but had the highest loss, with a median of invoices either for fictitious goods purchasing or sales scheme that creates a
of $800 000. Corruption lies in the and/or services, or at inflated prices. conflict of interest, bribery that can occur
middle at 38% with a median loss of through invoice kickbacks or bid rigging,
• Payroll schemes involve false claims
$250 000. illegal gratuities and economic extortion.
for compensation, for example
claiming for overtime that was not
OCCUPATIONAL FRAUD worked, or the creation of ghost IN CONCLUSION
SCHEME: ASSET employees.
MISAPPROPRIATION • Expense reimbursement schemes Entities of all sizes must be committed
involves claiming for fictitious or to the development, implementation
Asset misappropriation as depicted inflated expenses. and maintenance of anti-fraud controls
in figure 2 involves schemes in which • Cheque and payment tampering is to address this ever-lurking occupational
the perpetrator steals or misuses the committed through intercepting, hazard.
entity's resources. forging or altering payments.
Asset misappropriation schemes involve • Register disbursement scheme AUTHORS l Jana Lamprecht CA(SA) is
either non-cash or cash schemes. involves employees making false Senior Lecturer: School of Accountancy at
Non-cash misappropriation is any entries on a cash register to conceal the University of the Free State
scheme where the perpetrator steals or the fraudulent removal of cash.
misuse non-cash assets of the entity.
Cash schemes involve three methods,
namely theft of cash on hand, theft of OTHER OCCUPATIONAL
receipts, and fraudulent disbursements. FRAUD SCHEMES
Theft of receipts can be committed
NOTES
through skimming or cash larceny, Financial statement fraud is committed 1 Report to the Nations, 2018 Global study on
occupational fraud and abuse, issued by the
while fraudulent disbursements can be when the perpetrator intentionally causes Association of Certified Fraud Examiners
committed through billing, payroll and a misstatement or omission of material (ACFE).
expense reimbursements schemes; information in the entity’s financial 2 Occupational Fraud and Abuse Classification
cheque and payment tampering; and reports. The goal can be to either over System, also called the Fraud Tree.
register disbursements. or understate the net worth or income
Figure 2 Occupational fraud schemes

Skimming
Theft of cash
on hand
Cash larceny
Theft of cash
Non-cash receipts
Asset misap- Billing schemes
propriation
Cash
Occupational Financial state- Payroll
fraud ment fraud schemes
Expense
Corruption reimbursement
schemes
Fraudulent dis- Cheque and

bursements payment tam-
pering
Register dis-
bursements

AUGUST 2018
A NEW BEPS PERSPECTIVE
76 THE INHERENT UNCERTAINTY IN

THE RACE TO CREATE CERTAINTY
PRACTICAL
79 CONCERNS WITH THE

IDEA OF RESIDENCY
TAX ADMINISTRATION =
81 SLEEPLESS NIGHTS? −
PART 2

A NEW BEPS PERSPECTIVE
THE INHERENT UNCERTAINTY IN THE RACE TO CREATE CERTAINTY
BEPS Action Plan 15, which assists in to create immense certainty by updating an entire DTA network by the mere
modifying numerous bilateral double signature thereof but taxpayers will have no certainty on any given day as to which
taxation treaties (DTAs) without the articles in a particular DTA actually apply until both jurisdictions have ratified the
need for countries to renegotiate every MLI (which means that taxpayers will need to constantly check the status of the
DTA in force. On 7 June 2017, 67 MLI in their own jurisdiction, as well as the other applicable DTA jurisdictions).
countries, including South Africa, signed Therefore, the only thing that is certain in our new BEPS landscape in South Africa
the MLI and South Africa’s reservation is that taxpayers with a global footprint are going to require the assistance of
and notification statement was issued reputable international tax experts for the foreseeable future to help them navigate
on the same day. The MLI adopts their intragroup dealings. This is probably the only way to obtain a measure of
certain of the BEPS action plans and certainty in the application of South Africa’s DTAs going forward (since merely
updates DTAs, as follows: downloading a DTA from the SARS website without considering the impact of the
• Action 2 on the introduction of anti- MLI entered into with the other jurisdiction may result in an incorrect interpretation
treaty abuse provisions in relation and application of the DTA) and in the appropriate application of OECD-based
to hybrid mismatch arrangements transfer pricing principles in order to be certain (or at least on a ‘more likely
• Action 6 on the introduction of anti- than not’ basis) that the penalties5 imposed by section 31 of the Act have been
treaty abuse provisions successfully avoided.
• Action 7 on changes to the

definition of a permanent
establishment, and
NOTES
• Action 14 on improvements to
1 In the DTC’s final report on base erosion and profit shifting, September 2016, page 6.
dispute resolution procedures
2 BEPS Action Plan 13 focuses on transfer pricing documentation.
The MLI will coexist with the majority of
3 Released on 6 August 1999.
South Africa’s DTAs,4 since the MLI will
only update a particular DTA when each 4 South Africa has 81 DTAs, of which five have been excluded from the MLI (probably since they are
about to be re-negotiated in any event).
country’s reservation and notification
statement is agreed to by both parties 5 Both a primary adjustment (an adjustment in the tax return which makes the transaction arm’s length)
and a secondary adjustment (by treating the primary adjustment as a donation (taxed at 20%) for
and then ratified in its own jurisdiction. individuals or as a dividend (taxed at 20%) for companies, which is payable six months after the end of
Therefore, the MLI has the potential the year of assessment in question).

INTEGRITAX
RESIDENCY AUTHOR | CARMEN WESTERMEYER CA(SA),

PRACTICAL CONCERNS WITH THE IDEA OF RESIDENCY DIRECTOR – MAITLAND & ASSOCIATES
for natural persons due to their mobility and relatively light compliance
requirements.
THE IDEA OF RESIDENCY, AS WELL For tax purposes, the definition of resident is very clearly defined in the
AS HOW TO DETERMINE IT, IS A Income Tax Act. The issue, however, is that once you start to apply this
CORE ISSUE FOR ANY TAXPAYER definition in practice, you run into a number of issues. At its core this is a
problem of education although it’s exacerbated by the fact that different
bodies use different definitions for the same terms. The media storm last year
about the proposed changes to the section 10(1)(o)(ii) exemption highlighted
this perfectly. It seems that in the greater South African populace, the term
No concept is more important in tax than ‘resident’ takes on any variation of its dictionary meaning, the meaning given
that of residency. After all, any revenue to it by the South African Reserve Bank, the citizenship rules issued by the
service will only ever have the right to tax Department of Home Affairs, or some rough understanding of the definition
items that occur within its jurisdictional given in the Income Tax Act. This is further compounded by the fact that the
border or any person who resides within Income Tax Act definition can be overridden by the requirements of double
those borders. This makes the idea of taxation agreement (DTA) so-called ‘tie breaker’ rules. This has resulted in
residency, as well as how to determine it, statements such as:
a core issue for any taxpayer. As a general • As long as you own a house, you’re still tax resident in South Africa.
rule, this is not really a contentious issue
for legal entities but is hugely relevant • Unless you let SARS know that you’ve left, you’re a tax resident in South
Africa.

RESIDENCY
PRACTICAL CONCERNS WITH THE IDEA OF RESIDENCY
• Changing your tax residency status

means giving up your South African
citizenship.
Not one of those statements is true.
SARS has issued two interpretation notes
(IN3 and IN4) to try and provide some
guidance on how the legislation should be
applied, which is welcomed. However, the
‘ordinarily resident’ requirement is still a
fuzzy concept with no cut and dried rules
that can be applied by laypersons. It is also
an outdated concept given how mobile
people have become.
This problem is exacerbated by the fact
that SARS currently has no coherent
system for notifying it of your residency
status, either due to a change of intent or
application of a DTA. The 2017 IT12 was
the first time that SARS actually included
a tick box on the wizard that asked about A further concern is the deemed ‘exit charge’ that is levied under section 9H
the residency status of the taxpayer. when a resident becomes a non-resident. It is accepted that many of those
This means that any tax return that was who are leaving are doing so with all their assets – for them this charge is
completed before then was done on a semantic. It is, however, a disincentive for those who may have wished to
basis purely determined by the taxpayer or keep some assets behind – at least they will be compensated later by not
their tax practitioner. This has led to some having to pay South African capital gains tax (CGT) on those assets. But a
of the following issues: group that is far more at risk, with no clear guidance being issued by SARS,
• It is difficult to determine on what are those whose residency status has changed due to the application of a
basis (that is, worldwide income DTA. Under the tie breaker rules, it is certainly possible that an individual
versus South African source only) the who has accepted a two-year contract in an offshore destination could have
tax return was completed if this ever a change in residency under those conditions. This would mean that the
has to be reviewed. individual would have to pay CGT on all their assets on the day their residency
changes. Then, once their contract ends, they become resident again and
• Does SARS have a ‘default setting’ on
could become non-resident again as soon as the next opportunity arrives –
which taxpayer numbers are issued?
imagine having to account for the CGT each time!
Or put differently, how is SARS
keeping track of the residency status Some of these issues can be fixed simply by improving or changing the
of taxpayers? administrative processes at SARS. Others, however, will require a more
comprehensive overhaul of our income tax system. The following proposal
• If there is ever a verification or audit of
could possibly help to significantly reduce the confusion and frustration
a tax return, what proof would satisfy
experienced by taxpayers:
SARS that someone has truly become
non-resident? • Implement an educational programme explaining to taxpayers what it
means to be resident.
• Many taxpayers are just not bothering
to notify SARS, as there is no formal • Provide a clear administrative process for declaring residency status with
process. SARS.
• Some taxpayers believe that simply • Provide an exemption to the section 9H deemed disposal if the change in
deactivating their tax number serves residency is simply due to the tie breaker rules in a DTA.
as notification. • Overhaul the residency definition by:
• The Tax Compliance Certificate for o Rethinking the concept of ‘ordinarily resident’ in a mobile global
Emigration which is used by the South society
African Reserve Bank to process
its emigration process is seen as o The inclusion of a negative test – if you have been out the country
notification of a change in residency. for a set number of years, you will by default be considered non-
resident
• In many instances where individuals
have tried to notify SARS, SARS • Australian tax law allows for a temporary cession of residency, under very
won’t accept the change in status strict rules and requirements.
without a residency certificate from If nothing else, it is time that National Treasury and SARS accept that we live
their new home. Not all jurisdictions in a mobile world, and it’s time our law and administrative processes reflected
issue these certificates. that.

INTEGRITAX
TAX ADMINISTRATION AUTHOR | SOMAYA KHAKI CA(SA),

TAX ADMINISTRATION = SLEEPLESS NIGHTS? − PART 2 PROJECT DIRECTOR: TAX
30 MIN
DISPUTE PROCESS
IN THE FIRST PART OF THIS Where one is aggrieved by an assessment issued by SARS, the dispute process
ARTICLE, I NOTED THAT TAX is available as a means to remedy the grievance. The dispute resolution process is
ADMINISTRATION AND dealt with in chapter 9 of the Tax Administration Act 2011 (TAA), which must be
read with the dispute resolution rules promulgated under section 103 of the TAA.
OPERATIONAL ISSUES ARE
BECOMING AN INCREASING For some time now, members have experienced many challenges with the
dispute resolution process despite the rules being set out relatively clearly.
SOURCE OF FRUSTRATION FOR Given that this is a legal process, it is of utmost importance that the resolution
TAXPAYERS. ONE OF THE MAIN of these issues be prioritised. It is also important that taxpayers and tax
CHALLENGES RELATES TO practitioners study these rules to ensure that they follow the processes
correctly in all respects, especially keeping within the relevant timelines
SARS’S PROCESS OF ISSUING provided for in the rules.
ASSESSMENTS The first, preliminary step in this process is to request reasons for the
assessment where none were provided or those provided are felt to be
inadequate, leaving the taxpayer unable to formulate his or her grounds of
objection.
Assuming SARS issues an assessment in
the correct manner and the tax practitioner Reasons provided by SARS, especially for individual taxpayers, are often felt
or taxpayer is aware that it was issued, to be insufficient, both from a factual and legal interpretative perspective, to
the next question is – what should one enable a taxpayer to properly formulate grounds of objection. SARS believes
do if there is disagreement with the that this will be addressed by a change whereby the assessments now
assessment made by SARS, on the basis allow for more detailed reasons to be inserted upfront. Reasons may still be
that the grounds of assessment are not in requested where these provided are still considered inadequate.
line with the taxpayer’s own interpretation Once adequate reasons are received (hopefully, within the timelines provided
of the relevant law. for in the rules), one may then lodge an objection via eFiling where this is

TAX ADMINISTRATION
TAX ADMINISTRATION = SLEEPLESS NIGHTS? − PART 1
available or manually at a SARS branch, for making an application to the court in terms of Rule 56 of the rules. In terms
example for trusts where disputes are not of this rule, after the notification to SARS to remedy the default within the
available on eFiling. Also remember the prescribed time frame, the Tax Court may order SARS to either remedy the
tip in part 1 regarding the suspension of default or failing which, may be able to set aside SARS’s decision. This and
payment requests! other dispute resolution aspects were covered in SAICA’s Dispute Resolution
Once the objection is lodged, SARS is workshop in June 2018. For those who missed it, please access the relevant
required to consider it and respond within recording.
specified timelines either requesting more
information or making a final decision to DEBT MANAGEMENT
allow, disallow or invalidate an objection.
Clear grounds for the decision made, must Debt management continues to be of concern especially in the period leading
be issued to the taxpayer. up to 31 March, as is the case every year. Given the fact that last year’s filing
There are very restricted circumstances season closed towards the end of November for non-provisional eFilers and
in terms of which an objection may 31 January for provisional taxpayers, perhaps the pressure will ease up going
be considered to be invalid. If the forward with the proposed filing season ending a month earlier for non-
requirements as set out in Rule 7(2) provisional eFilers.
of the rules are not met, namely the SARS has again appointed third-party debt collectors to collect long
formal requirements, those are the only outstanding amounts below certain limits. Concerns have been raised
circumstances in terms of which an regarding the level of personal information requested by these debt collectors
objection may be invalid. without any means of verifying their identity. In this regard, SARS have
However, it appears as though invalid requested taxpayers and tax practitioners to rather call the SARS Contact
objection decisions are being issued by Centre to request details of the outstanding debt directly from a SARS source.
SARS with reasons which seem more Suspension of payment requests was discussed in detail in part 1 of this
aligned to a disallowance rather than the article. While the provisions in this regard are clear, demands for payment are
limited criteria applicable to an invalid being sent even after a suspension of payment request has been submitted.
objection and this could be prejudicial to in some instances. SARS has noted that there is a backlog with suspension
the taxpayer as the consequences for requests and that where these are filed electronically, the system has been
an invalid objection differ to that for a set up to automatically send a notification to debt management to alert
disallowed objection. One may only lodge them to the request. Where collection steps are still being taken after the
an appeal in respect of the disallowed suspension has been granted (or is assumed to be in place), these must be
objection and by invalidating it incorrectly escalated to SARS via the correct channels within SARS or externally via
(and requiring re-submission) this delays SAICA’s online operational query register where the SARS channels have
the entire dispute process. In some yielded unsatisfactory results.
instances in the past, taxpayers have
Third-party agent appointments appear to have increased in the first quarter
even been told that they’re out of time
of 2018 and what is more concerning is that they are sometimes based on
to submit the objection when having to
‘default’ assessments – that is, an assessment issued on the basis that no
resubmit due to the initial objection being
or insufficient supporting documents have been submitted for deductions
regarded as ‘invalid’. This is because the
claimed and all deductions are then disallowed. As noted earlier, this
SARS system refers back to the initial date
practice will not continue in future. However, refunds will be withheld where
of assessment without taking into account
documentation is not submitted timeously.
additional time allowed to resubmit –
which is 20 days from the date of the
invalid objection notice. DELAYED TAX REFUNDS
I have mentioned repeatedly the
importance of adhering strictly to the The delay in the payment of tax refunds continues to be of great concern.
relevant timelines. Many of you reading The Tax Ombud issued a detailed report in this regard during 2017 and the
this will shake your heads and say, but Acting Commissioner again acknowledged the issue at the recent SARS/RCB
SARS doesn’t stick to the timelines, so Leadership meeting.
why should we? There seem to be a multitude of reasons for the delays. In some instances,
SARS have acknowledged the deficiencies the refund delays are caused by repeated requests for bank verification for
regarding timelines and have noted that the same taxpayer even where banking details have not changed. Regarding
the new SARS service charter, which was this, SARS is relooking at their business rules to ensure that taxpayers are not
issued on 3 July 2018, will be incorporated unnecessarily forced to go to a SARS branch to verify details when nothing
into the service charter. has changed. Furthermore, tax practitioners may now action bank verifications
on behalf of clients. What is important to bear in mind though, is that through
Should the procedural timelines still not the bank verification request, SARS has managed to hamper many efforts to
be met, one always has the option of

INTEGRITAX
defraud SARS, preventing significant

losses to the fiscus.
Special stoppers have reared their head
again, although in SARS’s view, the
term is being used incorrectly. Certain
refunds are stopped where risks are
identified, and SARS has committed
to working on resolving these more
efficiently in order to release the refund
timeously.
Tax practitioners have noted that their
taxpayer clients often receive demands
for payments while in the objection
phase, the payments are made and
then when the dispute is successful,
the refunds do not materialise. This is
also the case where tax court decisions
find in favour of the taxpayer and
there is a delay in issuing a revised
assessment and paying any refund due.
With respect to this aspect specifically,
a process is being put in place whereby
the tax court will hand over decisions to
the audit department to ensure timeous
issuing of assessments and refunds of
amounts due.
Another top cause for refund delays is
as a result of delays in the finalisation
of audits. SARS have noted that cases
are dealt with in line with the order in
which information is received. It was
further noted that, given the proposed have experienced the TCC being denied However, as noted above, taxpayers
shortened filing season, auditors would due to bank verifications and delays and tax practitioners are not always
have additional time to finalise audits as in audit (or in any other circumstances blameless, and they too need to
tax returns would be submitted almost where the taxpayer is not at fault), take responsibility for their actions or
one month earlier than prior years. members must escalate these via inactions in some circumstances.
Members must ensure that they submit SAICA’s online operational query
relevant documentation timeously and Furthermore, various remedies are
system. already available in the TAA. Taxpayers
in the format required in order to avoid
additional delays. and tax practitioners therefore need to
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER! ensure that they educate themselves
on the provisions of the TAA and the
TAX CLEARANCE Clearly, steps are being taken to rules to better understand the roles and
CERTIFICATES address the many SARS administrative responsibilities of SARS and taxpayers
and operational challenges, but as well as the remedies available to
Members have noted recent problems the going is slow. Given capacity taxpayers.
with securing tax clearance certificates constraints, some issues obviously As the old saying goes, ‘Knowledge is
(TCCs). For example, where taxpayers have to be prioritised over others and it power’. Therefore, seek the relevant
have submitted an application for is left to all parties to determine what knowledge and take back your power!
suspension of payment, this does not the high priority issues are and what
always reflect on the SARS system, can be done in terms of long-term and
and the tax clearance certificate is short-term measures to address these. AS THE OLD SAYING GOES,
then incorrectly denied. SARS noted
that the request for suspension and
In our engagement with SARS, it ‘KNOWLEDGE IS POWER’.
is clear that they are committed to
tax compliance status are not linked
resolving the ongoing issues, no doubt
THEREFORE, SEEK THE RELEVANT
and that they are currently working on
also motivated by the inquiry into SARS KNOWLEDGE AND TAKE BACK
addressing this issue. Where members
initiated by President Cyril Ramaphosa. YOUR POWER!

INDULGE | MOTORING
AUDI
Q5 2.0 Tdi choosing an SUV, but Audi has a petrol air intakes on either side of the grill.
TSi motor that seems to be gaining The bonnet is smoother with more
momentum, especially with people subtle lines running from the grill to the
who do not tow. A-pillar.
The new Q5 looks a bit bigger, but From the side, the silhouette has not
thanks to the more square edges, the changed at all, but Audi has cleverly
new version looks a lot sportier that its added a new look by squaring the
THE NEW Q5 IS A WORTHY predecessor while still exuding a touch lower door carve-out and making the
of executive class. The overall weight waistline more prominent. The rear
CONTENDER IN THE of the car has decreased by about end has not changed drastically, but
MIDSIZED SUV MARKET, 90 kilograms while the overall size of again with clever use of prominent
BUT THE S-LINE IS AN the vehicle has grown. The Q5 now
shares the same platform that is used
lines, the rear end looks refreshed.
The rear light cluster also has a new
ALMOST MUST FOR THE UP- on the A4 and Q7, and this means that look. The small exhaust tips have been
AND-COMING EXECUTIVE the wheel base is longer, making the replaced by large square fake tips that
interior more spacious. are incorporated into the bumper. This
The look of the car has also changed hides the actual exhaust and gives the
in keeping with the new Audi face. look of a sports exhaust.
The second-generation Q5 was The front-end grill is now larger and The new Q5 definitely has a refreshed
launched late last year in South Africa. has a more angular shape as opposed look, but the bigger changes are
The test vehicle we had was the two- to the older, more square shape. The inside the vehicle. To start with, as you
litre diesel model, which is normally headlights have been trimmed down open the door you see the quality of
the popular choice of motor when adding to the sporty look, while the materials used to improve look and
larger bumper now has more defined feel of the vehicle. As you jump into

INDULGE | MOTORING
ENGINE
2.0L TURBO DIESEL
POWER
140 KW
TORQUE
400 N.M
0–100 KM/H
7,9 SECONDS
PRICE
R704 000
the driver’s seat, you feel a sense that incorporates the navigation. This element of body roll due to the high
of comfort with the larger seats. makes it easy for the driver to have centre of gravity. I am sure this will be
The dashboard has been drastically all information in front of them while better in the S-line versions. There is
changed − gone is the bulky look they are driving, so there is no need to ample power from the diesel motor,
and in with the new minimalistic look at the centre display. The fuel and but don’t expect to run many cars away
look. The new centre infotainment temperature gauges have also moved off the line. On the highway the car
screen is larger and sits just above to the sides and again in keeping with is more at home, and with the huge
the air vents, but this time there is the design, there is no longer circular torque overtaking is a lot easier. The
no back or cover around the screen. dials but rather angular dials. other positive is the fuel consumption
The infotainment controls have also The rear seat spacing has improved that was good even though I did not
been moved lower down and the and the cabin feels a lot more get to the claimed 4,9 l / 100 km. My
new electronic ventilation controls spacious. There are also rear controls overall average was around 7,2 l / 100
are more easily accessible. The gear for the ventilation of the rear seats, km. That said, I did sit in traffic a lot,
box has been moved back to make which is a nice touch. The boot size has which is not good for the consumption
space for the trackpad control, which gone up by almost 100 litres and with as I switched off the auto off feature.
sits just in front of the gearbox. The the large opening, this makes it easy Overall the new Q5 is certainly a step
information cluster now has a more to load. up from its predecessor. Its quality feel
square covering and the steering- has been taken to the next level and
wheel centre hub also has been On the road the vehicle feels
composed and easy to drive. The new the ride quality has also improved.
squared, unlike the original circular
one. The biggest change for me on the gearbox is super smooth and gear
inside is the new digital display for the changes are not felt unless you put AUTHOR l Torque Talk is a member of
speedometer and other readings. This the vehicle into Sport and drive it hard, SAGMJ
new display was originally put on the and then too it is very subtle. The road
Audi TT and is a fully electronic display holding was good, but there is an

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R750K - R680K. This interesting opportunity within business banking product knowledge. Lead and manage a team of audit R650K – R600K Recent CA(SA) / CFA candidate with an excellent
banking offers an opportunity for CA(SA), CIMA with 2-3 yrs professionals in investment banking. Provide assurance on the academic track record required to support senior team members
post articles exp pref financial services to assist the CFO adequacy and effectiveness of the internal control environment with origination, structuring and implementation of mergers and
and Exco with interesting value add and strategic projects. within various business units. Ensure the efficient utilisation acquisitions, private equity, BEE and capital raising transactions.
melanie.smit@thepc.co.za of tools such as CAATs, ADR/Google and analytical reviews. Unsurpassed opportunity to learn the full spectrum of deal making
FINANCIAL MANAGER lori@thepc.co.za from a team of industry specialists, who pride themselves in
INTERNAL AUDIT SPECIALIST – AA teamwork, quality and excellence. jann@thepc.co.za
R720K - R600K neg. Boutique private equity house seeks
financial manager to take ownership of the accounting function role R900K - R800K + bonus. Performance driven CIA / B.Com GLOBAL MARKETS: PRODUCT CONTROLLER
within the holding company and various SPVs. Responsibilities (Hons) / CA(SA) with proven leadership ability and 6 yrs+ R650K - R550K. CA(SA) / B.Com / BBusSci with FIST articles or
will include visiting subsidiary companies and assisting with internal audit exp, gained ideally in a listed commercial an interest in financial services and an understanding of global
investment transactions, including due diligence support pre-deal company. Work with a collaborative team, demonstrating your markets traded products. Join a team that assists
and accounting / operational involvement post-deal. CA(SA) with expertise in managing complex technical audit assignments in the daily production of PnL and accounting for
min 1-2 yrs post articles exp in accounting function outside of the for well performing company. Leading South African corporate. the balance sheet. Excellent opportunity to join a
firm. melanie.smit@thepc.co.za lori@thepc.co.za forward thinking team. jann@thepc.co.za
For all our positions please visit our website: www.thepc.co.za | 011-244-5380
RECRUITMENT: CLASSIFIEDS
CONTACT US ON TEL: 011 621 6696. ALL
ADVERTISEMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED TO E-MAIL:
CLASSIFIEDS@SAICA.CO.ZA
PARTPARTNERSHIPS & PRACTICES

WE BUY
Accounting, auditing and tax practices or
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FOR SALE
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Practise in existence for many years. Senior
partner wishing to retire. Please contact
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Accountancy

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2 accountancysa.co.za August 2018

46 WE ARE ALL DECISION-MAKERS

ABOUT MEN AND WOMEN

58 NUDGING WOMEN INTO TECH 72 CPD: Fraud: an occupational hazard

60 SHE WORKS HARD FOR HER MONEY

79 RESIDENCY: PRACTICAL CONCERNS WITH

81 TAX ADMINISTRATION = SLEEPLESS

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 3

In this issue, we did an in-depth article about the state of the

4 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

ACCOUNTING FIGURE THAT! SAICA

https://bit.ly/2N2lNnR https://bit.ly/2m4Nlxn https://bit.ly/2N18KTp

FIND YOUR FAVOURITE

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 5

6 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

ASIA’S NEW RICHEST MAN

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 7

Hire an AGA(SA) today.

An AGA(SA) has the expertise to drive financial and

Hire an AGA(SA) today and accelerate

Hire an AGA (SA) today and take your

8 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

THE STATE OF THE CA(SA)

A number of shocking accounting irregularities have brought to light

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 9

STATE OF THE CA(SA)

Words Marcia Klein

NONKULULEKO GOBODO CA(SA)

JAYSON THERON ANDILE KHUMALO CA(SA)

10 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

12 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 13

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 15

Publication of the details as allowed

No reasonable prospects for success Reasonable prospects for success

Response provided. Matter Not guilty Guilty

Parties notified • Caution

Not guilty Guilty

Parties notified • Reprimand • Disqualify

Matter closed Matter closed

Is this a matter No No publication

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 17

SAICA AND ACADEMIA

SAICA and academia in Departments of Accounting are working closer together

18 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

performance. The aim is to develop estimated total cost to comply with

XBRL Lite www.casewareafrica.co.za

Validation and export to ensure Entering of mandatory

SAICA proudly announces the 2018

WADZANAI MABUTO NESTENE CLAUSEN VINCENT BERENDS

MEET THE 2018 FINALISTS

20 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

MARC DAVID SEVITZ HASHVEER SINGH REFILWE MATENCHE

CHRIS VAN ZYL

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 21

ASHLEY-JUAN VAN DER

MITAN NANA LOUISE LE ROUX SCELO MAKHATHINI

EXCEPTIONAL. WITHOUT EXCEPTION

22 accountancysa.org.za August 2018

TEBOGO MOVUNDLELA CHRISTOPHER COMMIN NEAL REYNOLDS

August 2018 accountancysa.org.za 23