Finweek UK 20 February 2014

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MONEY. POWER.
M
Start-up
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SHABBA:
AND YOUR MONEY
RICH
KIDS
A SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE
entrepreneur
LESSONS IN
Life hacks for ANY money personality
MONEY
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ONELOGIX
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finweek
MONEY. POWER.
M
Start-up
feature
Meet the team from
Weaver
SHABBA:
AND YOUR MONEY
RICH
KIDS
A SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE
entrepreneur
LESSONS IN
Life hacks for ANY money personality
MONEY
STANLIB BOND FUND
EXXARO
ONELOGIX
MAKE
money
WITH
www.finweek.com

20 February 2014
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08937
Cover story: Tandisizwe Mahlutshana
Cover concept and layout: Beku Mbotoli
Photo: Gallo images/ Getty images: Drum/
Lubabalo Lesolle
P10
LIFE HACKS FOR
ANY MONEY
PERSONALITY
P56
Road Test:
Sony PS4
Inside
4 Feedback From our readers
6
Rewind & Fast Forward News review and preview
8
Context Corruption in South Africa
10 Cover Life hacks for any money personality
18
Insight Entrepreneur turned activist
22 Right of Reply A view from SA’s accounting body
24 The Gab Why I banned brainstorming
30
Investment Industrials present risk, resources & banks
32 opportunity; Windows of opportunity for miners

34
Killer Trade: Exxaro Resources selling momentum is
36
slowing; Mining’s evil triplets
37
Invest DIY Understanding the retailer sector
38
Pro Pick Simon Property Group
39
House View Punts
40
Traders Analysts giving you the low-down
41
Simon Says Adapt IT, BSI Steel, Satrix
42
Small Cap Steady growth for OneLogix
43
Fund Focus Stanlib Bond Fund
44
Entrepreneur Six ways to raise our kids to be entrepreneurs
48 Start-ups: Understanding Kiril Dobrev
50 Money Born rich; Lessons from death
54 Goodwill in valuation
56
Technology Road Test: Sony PS4; Al to improve Africa
58 Life H
ow we spoil ourselves (and how we afford it)
60 Directors & Dividends D
ealings and payouts
62 In Brief Crossword; Sudoku; Tweets

P44
Six ways
to raise our
kids to be
entrepreneurs
P24
Why I
banned
brainstorming
P18
Entrepreneur
turned activist
FEEDBACK
4 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
Feedback
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EDITOR NICOLE BOUCKAERT JOURNALISTS AND CONTRIBUTORS SIMON BROWN, SIMON
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IN COMPANIES,
UNITY IS VITAL
Good to read Finance for non-financial sorts
and to agree with some, but not all of what
Paul Maughan writes.
However, he is correct in detecting my

irritation, irritation that he still peddles the
accountant versus marketers (and every-
one else) argument. As a lecturer I would
suggest he should know better. This is an
argument that sadly still exists in some
companies, and is debilitating to their per-
formance. Not an argument that exists in
top global FMCG (fast-moving consumer
goods) companies. Writing as long ago as
1997 in the publication Brand Valuation,
published in London by Interbrand/Pre-
mier Books, I refer to the issue and to the
harm internal strife does to external per-
formance of a company.
Fast-forward to last month and the
chief marketing officer (CMO) of Deloitte
(where accountants are grown) was telling
a Corporate Citizenship Conference at the
Harvard Club in New York that 85% of all
corporate value creation comes from intan-
gibles. That is worth repeating: yes, 85%.
But your writer would be quick to
point out this would not apply in the min-
ing sector!
Just as in any rugby side you have the
specialist skills of a hooker, prop (both loose
and tight head) and that is only three of the
fifteen players, so in business you require an
array of skills. But the bottom line is that
you all play for the same team, and teams

that play as one are the most successful.
Jeremy Sampson
Visiting Professor at the UCT Graduate
School of Business
COMMENTS ON ETFS
In reference to Top40 ETFs: All things aren’t
equal (13 February edition), great article! I
have a question related to costs: if I were
to go the route of using a broker instead of
buying an ETF through one of the pro-
viders, I would obviously incur brokerage
as a one-off cost. Subsequently, I would
only incur annual charges related to the
TER but not the annual platform fee. This
would amount to a saving of 0.65% per an-
num if I use the Satrix platform. Am I cor-
rect in this?
I guess the only downside to going this
route is that if you buy and sell regularly,
brokerage costs would be much higher
than the 0.1% transaction charge that Sat-
rix would charge.
Kind regards,
Michael Gers
THIS WEEK’S
CONTRIBUTORS
Marc Ashton
marca@finweek.co.za
Tandisizwe Mahlutshana
tandisizwem@finweek.co.za

Blair Burmeister
blairb@finweek.co.za
Lisa Illingworth

Gavin Symanowitz

David Mckay

Moxima Gama

Simon Brown

Warren Dick

Colette Symanowitz

Gregg Sneddon
gregg@thefinancialcoach.co.za
Glenda Williams
glendaw@finweek.co.za
Kristia van Heerden
kristiav@finweek.co.za
Simon Dingle
simond@finweek.co.za
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INVESTMENT
OPPORTUNITiES
SPAN THE GLOBE.
SO DO WE.
R
ecently Janet Yellen was sworn
in as the new chairperson of the
US Federal Reserve. With the
global economy still fragile,
there are some interesting parallels to be
drawn between the role that Yellen will ful-
fil and the pressures on South Africa’s own
Reserve Bank Governor Gill Marcus.
Could they be a force to shape global
finance over the next few years if they

worked closer together?
Vunani Securities economist Ilke Smit
describes the waters Marcus is navigat-
ing: “South Africa is an economy currently
struggling with below-potential economic
growth with inflation expected to breach
the upper limit of the target band (3%-6%)
soon.”
Isaac Matshego, an economist at Ned-
bank, says that one of Yellen’s major chal-
lenges, which is different from Marcus’s, is
ending the massive monetary stimulus that
has been implemented in the US over
the past four years.
The US GDP growth rose to
just over 4% in the third quarter of
2013 as both consumer spending
and business investment strength-
ened. Yellen therefore has to
normalise US interest rates
as the US recovery gains
momentum and unem-
ployment continues to
drop, says Matshego.
Another differ-
ence between the
two countries is the
savings rate. The US
enjoys a positive sav-
INSIGHT

6 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
Rewind
lights that there is another economic factor
the two could work together on and learn
from one another.
Says Smit: “A macro-economic conun-
drum especially rife in South Africa, which
is starting to plague the US economy in
ever greater terms, is inequality in income
distribution. Unequal income distribution
does not affect monetary policy in the short
term, but does lower the potential level of
economic growth in the long term, which
could be something rising the complexity of
US monetary policy making in due course.”
Flow of advice is therefore another poten-
tial benefit, says Lings, because no central
bank has all the answers. “That interaction
between the Sarb and the US Fed can be
extremely helpful for SA as it can help as
well when it comes to policy formulation
and studying other models.”
SA’s current Monetary Policy Commit-
tee (MPC) framework was adopted from the
Bank of England MPC, and was strength-
ened by former member, Ian Plenderleith.
Plenderleith was appointed deputy governor
of the Sarb in 2003 under former Governor
Tito Mboweni and worked with Marcus
and Xolile Guma as joint deputy governors.

Despite being different, economic
growth and job creation are top priorities for
both central banks. The Fed pursues a dual
mandate of price stability and job creation
while the Sarb only pursues one mandate,
price stability. Lings, however, says that
Marcus’s policy suggests that she assumes
a dual mandate and takes into account the
growth rate and job creation.
Tandisizwe Mahlutshana

A Gill and Janet affair for SA
ings rate, whereas SA consumers are
traditionally “dis-savers”.
Says Smit: “When interest rates rise
consumers do not have a buffer in the
form of savings to assist consumption
and drive economic growth, and in an
environment of positive savings, stimu-
latory monetary policy has not driven
current account deficits wider and
encouraged dis-saving – where in SA,
these dynamics have adversely impacted
the currency, which is currently the main
risk to the inflation outlook.”
Both Yellen and Marcus face different
challenges as their macro-economic con-
ditions vary vastly. But does that mean
that SA should not pursue a relationship
with the US Fed or vice versa?

Kevin Lings, chief economist at Stan-
lib, says that a close working relationship
with the US Fed could be valuable to SA
in a number of ways. One is the poten-
tial for flow of research and infor-
mation between the two central
banks.
The economic research unit at
the US Fed is made up of three
teams, the Division of Research
and Statistics, the Divi-
sion of Monetary
Affairs, and the Divi-
sion of International
Finance, together
employing approx-
imately 450 staff
members, about
half of whom are
PhD economists.
Smit, too, high-
Image: Reserve Bank
Gill
Marcus
INSIGHT
FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 7
ROBOTIC, DRIVERLESS CARS
might
sound like inventions from the distant
future (or a science-fiction film) but

they could be arriving sooner than you
think. Vehicles capable of driving them-
selves already exist (believe it or not)
and could be driving you to your des-
tination sometime in the next 10 years.
PIONEERS
Google has been working on self-driv-
ing t
echnology since 2010, including
testing a fleet of self-driving cars along
California roadways. The project is cur-
rently being led by Google engineer
Sebastian Thrun, director of the Stan-
ford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
and co-inventor of Google Street View.
Nissan has also joined Google in the
race to make driverless cars a reality
and announced in July last year that it
will be ready with multiple, commercial-
ly-viable Autonomous Drive vehicles by
2020.
Nissan’s team of engineers has
been carrying out intensive research
on the technology for years, alongside
teams from the world’s top universities,
including MIT
and Stanford.
Ford, Audi, Mercedes, Toyota and
Volvo have also expressed their inter-
est in developing the technology, as the

cost comes down.
Elon Musk, the South African expat
billionaire who is CEO and chief prod-
uct architect of electric vehicle com-
pany Tesla Motors, is trying his hand,
too, and has made the promise that his
company will produce a driverless ve-
hicle within the next three years.
However, his three-year timeline is
more ambitious than those set out by
other car makers. Analysts say that it
will take 10 to 15 years before self-driv-
ing cars become a reality.
BENEFITS OF AUTONOMOUS
D
R
IVING
For businesses, th
e most exciting pro-
spect will be the savings that could be
made using driverless delivery vehicles
that would cut out the cost of employ-
ing drivers.
Not having to concentrate on driv-
ing could also make the car yet another
extension of the office, opening the
possibility of efficient remote working
while commuting by road.
From a societal point of view, fully
autonomous vehicle tech-

nology has the potential to reduce
crashes, ease congestion, improve
fuel economy, reduce parking needs,
bring mobility to those unable to drive,
and dramatically change the nature of
travel over time.
Road accidents are one of the top
three leading causes of death globally.
On average, there are 13 802 fatalities
per annum in SA; the estimated cost
of these road crashes (per annum) is
R307bn, which is 7.8% of SA’s GDP.
Thrun helped build Google’s driver-
less car, powered by a personal quest
to save lives and reduce traffic acci-
dents. As he repeatedly mentions in his
TED Talk, the mass adoption of a self-
driving car may lead to more efficient
and accident-free roads.
SELF-DRIVING TECHNOLOGY
EX
P
LAINED
Thrun explained to The Hu
ffington Post
in an interview: “The car technology we
have been working on at Google uses
radar, GPS, cameras, a rapidly spinning
Lidar laser, and other devices to navi-
gate properly and understand a com-

plex driving environment.”
Google hopes its driverless cars
will reduce traffic accidents by 90%,
reduce wasted commute time and
energy by 90% and reduce the number
of cars on the road by 90%.
Potential benefits are substantial but
significant barriers to full implementa-
tion and mass-market adoption still
remain. Of course, along with individu-
ality, privacy would be sacrificed, since
each car or pod would now be a piece
of data with its movements constantly
being tracked.
Blair Burmeister

Step into the driverless future
Trend ing
Nissan’s
Autonomous
Drive vehicle
INSIGHT
Context
www.finweek.com
CORRUPTION IN
8 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
PROVINCIAL
CORRUPTION
CONCERNS
With 38% of total corruption

allegations reported in 2013,
Gauteng topped the provincial
charts. Reports of corruption
in the Free State increased
from 7% in 2012 to 14% in
2013. The Eastern Cape and
KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) followed
closely at 13%.
38%
Gauteng
5%
1%
13%
14%
5%
4%
7%
13%
18%
48%
16%
3%
15%
Local
government
Provincial
government
National
Government
State-owned

entity
Other*
CORRUPTION IN GOVERNMENT

*’Other’ includes corruption within municipal owned entities, NGOs and charities, unions, or unknown.
The landscape of corruption in Government shifted significantly this year. Reports
on corruption in local and national government make this an area of concern for
Corruption Watch. At roughly 33% each, local and provincial government shared
similar volumes of reports. Notably, the dramatic increase in reports, which focused
on provincial government, was driven by our focus on schools in 2013.
Schools were the source of the highest percentage of corruption concerns reported to Corrup-
tion Watch in 2013. Across all categories, the most prevalent type of corruption was abuse of
Government resources by a public ocial, which increased from 32% to 43%. Cases in which cor-
ruption in procurement processes was confirmed decreased by 7%, comprising 16% of the total
number of corruption cases. Bribery was confirmed in 13% of cases and incidents of corruption in
employment also decreased, taking place in 8% of cases in 2013 versus 12% the previous year.
RAISING RED FLAGS
TOP FOUR SECTORS FEATURED IN CORRUPTION REPORTS IN 2013
38%
Schools
10%
Trac & licensing
3%
Healthcare
2%
Water
SOUTH AFRICA
INSIGHT
R
SOURCE: Corruption Watch

44%
Financial
mismanagement
24%
Theft
of goods
and funds
16%
Corruption in
procurement
processes
HOT SPOTS IN
SCHOOLS
The most prevalent types of
corruption reported in 2013
were financial mismanagement,
theft of goods and corruption in
procurement.
CORRUPTION UNDERMINES THE DELIVERY OF BASIC SERVICES. It destroys public trust and
confidence in leadership and in our key public and private institutions. It also threatens economic
stability and investment. South Africa is grappling with corruption, and in 2012 it was ranked 69th
of 176 countries surveyed in terms of corruptness. Below, Finweek takes a look at a Corruption
Watch report on the statistics on corruption and how everyone can contribute to its prevention.
COVER
10 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
Life hacks for ANY money
Getty Images/ Gallo Images
COVER
FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 11
personality

T
he other day I was asked if I was able to put a
guestimate to my investment portfolio in five
years’ time and I said: “Provided that there wasn’t
a complete economic collapse, I think R3m is my
number.” That wasn’t always the case and is quite a long
way behind my original goal, but considering my penchant
for adopting children and trying to fund businesses off my
credit card, it is a reasonable improvement. The number
itself is not so much a boast as it is a mental goal that I have
set myself, but there was a period where that goal seemed
a long way off. I believe that the single biggest light-switch
moment for me was knowing what my strengths and weak-
nesses were when it came to my money and then working
out how to cash in on them.
Colin Long, a Certified Financial Planner at Consoli-
dated Financial Planning in KwaZulu-Natal, says that there
are five main types of money personalities and each per-
son will fit into two of them, one a primary and one a
secondary personality:
■ THE SAVER
■ THE RISK-TAKER
■ THE SECURITY-SEEKER
■ THE SPENDER
■ THE AVOIDER
Long says: “Identifying your money personality can pro-
vide some interesting insight into how you view and handle
money. Fortunately, there is no wrong or right money per-
sonality, and once you and your spouse become aware of
each other’s money personalities then you are empowered

to help each other in the areas where each person may be
weak and this may help resolve a number of issues that you
and your spouse have about managing money."
Over the next few pages, we have taken the various
money personalities and tried to identify easy 'hacks' that
could help you master your finances.
One 'hack' which we believe should be applied to all
personalities is finding a financial adviser that fits your
profile. A good question for your adviser is to ask them
what their personality is and find somebody who contrasts
with your own to give you a good balance.
Enjoy!
Marc Ashton

COVER
12 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
THE RISK-TAKER – YOU ARE A RISK TAKER IF:
t :PVSFBMXBZTMPPLJOHGPSXBZTUPNBLFNPOFZBOEZPV
TFMEPNHFUIVOHVQPOUIFEFUBJM
t "SJTLUBLFSXJMMBMMPXUIFJSJOUVJUJPOUPCFUIFJSQSFEPN
JOBOUHVJEFJOUIFJSEFDJTJPONBLJOHQSPDFTT
t *OWFTUNFOUPQQPSUVOJUJFTHFUZPVWFSZFYDJUFEBOEZPVUFOE
UPNBLFEFDJTJPOTJOBIVSSZ
t :PVBSFWFSZUSVTUJOHPGQFPQMF
The downside to this personality is that:
t :PVEPOUTFFUIFXPPEGPSUIFUSFFTZPVEPOUMJLFUPHFU
DPOGVTFECZUIFGBDUTBOEBTBSFTVMUZPVPGUFONBLFQPPS
JOWFTUNFOUEFDJTJPOTUIBUDBONBUFSJBMMZJNQBDUZPVSGBN
JMZTGJOBODFTJOBOFHBUJWFXBZ
t 4JODFZPVHFOFSBMMZNBLFRVJDLEFDJTJPOTZPVPGUFOEPOPU

DPOTVMUZPVSTQPVTFXIJDIMFBETUPDPOGMJDU
THE SAVER – YOU ARE A SAVER IF:
t :PVGFFMFYDJUFEBOEFOUIVTJBTUJDXIFOZPVTBWF
t :PVIBWFBCVEHFUBOEZPVTUJDLUPJUSFMJHJPVTMZ
t :PVTFMEPNTQFOENPOFZJNQVMTJWFMZ
t :PVTQFOENPOFZXJTFMZBOEEPBHSFBUEFBMPG
SFTFBSDICFGPSFTQFOEJOHNPOFZPOHPPETFTQFDJBMMZ
FYQFOTJWFHPPET
t :PVIBUFEFCUBOETFMEPNJGFWFSIBWFBOZEFCUPO
ZPVSDSFEJUDBSETPSPUIFSDSFEJUGBDJMJUJFT
t :PVTFMEPNTQFOENPOFZPOZPVSTFMG
t :PVTBDSJGJDFTPNFPGUIFHPPEUIJOHTJOMJGFJOPSEFS
UPTBWF
The downside to this personality is that:
t :PVSSFTJTUBODFUPTQFOEJOHNPOFZDBONBLFZPV
WFSZCPSJOHBOEQFSIBQTOPUWFSZQPQVMBS
t 4BWFSQFSTPOBMJUJFTDPNFBDSPTTBTDIFBQBOETUJOHZ
BOEPGUFOOPUGVOUPCFBSPVOE
LIFE HACK: BUY A CAR AT THE END OF A MONTH
OR YEAR… AND, IF POSSIBLE, PAY CASH.
Finweek contributor Simon Brown puts this one to
good use and while it might not win you too many
friends at a car dealership, you have to do what you
have to do. A car is an extravagant purchase, and one
of the worst mistakes that you can make is to fall in
love with one and rush to buy it. Many dealers work on
commission and targets fall due at the end of a month,
so aim to keep them sweating until late in the month
when you can get the best deal possible. The allure
of a cash purchase without waiting for bank approval

can swing a decent saving your way.
LIFE HACK: YOU CANNOT FUND A BUSINESS OFF A
CREDIT CARD. This kind of personality will believe it can
beat the odds and fund a business off a credit card and
beat the 18%-21% interest repayments. Odds are you can’t
and you will simply run up a big long-term debt, which
will stop you cashing in on other investments. You don’t
have the discipline to manage this kind of funding line,
so don’t use it.
LIFE HACK: SEGREGATE YOUR INVESTMENT
ACCOUNTS. As a risk-taker, you are at your happiest
when taking risks, so don’t try to cut this facet out of
your personality because making use of it can pay off
handsomely. Rather segregate your accounts into aggres-
sive and defensive portfolios and give yourself some 'risk'
money. The idea should be to move profits from your
riskier assets into more secure portfolios.
LIFE HACK:FIND SOMEWHERE TO HIDE MONEY.
Almost every trading floor or stockbrokerage across the
country has a story to tell you about the client who made
R1m in one year and then lost it again the next. Find a
vehicle where you can hide the money from yourself and
won’t be able to extract it. A tax-efficient retirement annu-
ity (RA) is ideal here.
LIFE HACK: MAKE IT HARD FOR YOURSELF.
A risk-taker will watch Bloomberg and see that the price of
sugar is going to the moon because a market commenta-
tor like Jim Rogers passionately talks up its fundamentals
in a 90-second interview. By having a trading app linked
to your phone or easy credit available with cards linked to

their bank account, it is easy to make an impulsive decision.
Rather make it hard for yourself.
FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 13
THE SPENDER – YOU ARE A SPENDER IF:
t :PVBSFWFSZDBSFGSFFXJUIZPVSNPOFZBOENBZCFPO
UIFWFSHFPGBGJOBODJBMDSJTJT
t :PVIBWFBHSFBUEFBMPGEFCUBOEZPVPGUFOVTFPOF
DSFEJUDBSEUPQBZPGGBOPUIFS
t #VZJOHUIJOHTHJWFTZPVTNBMMBNPVOUTPGKPZUIBUMJGUT
ZPVSTQJSJUBOEQVUTBMJUUMFCPVODFJOZPVSTUFQ*UJTOPU
UIFDPTUPGUIFJUFNCVUUIFNFSFBDUPGUIFQVSDIBTF
UIBUQSPWJEFTUIFTFOTBUJPO
t :PVUIJOLCVEHFUJOHJTKVTUBDVUFJEFB
The downside to this personality is that:
t :PVBSFBOJNQVMTJWFTQFOEFSBOEXIFOZPVGJOEB
HPPEEFBMZPVTJNQMZCVZNPSFPGUIFTBNFJUFNFWFO
JGZPVEPOUFWFOOFFEUIFJUFNT
t :PVPGUFOMJFUPZPVSTQPVTFBCPVUZPVSJNQVMTJWFQVS-
DIBTFT
LIFE HACK: LEARN THIS ONLINE SHOPPING TRICK.
You have accepted that you are a spender, the trick now
is to shop smartly. Online retailers from fashion to holiday
booking sites are increasingly making use of artificial intel-
ligence and your web-browsing history to target you with
products and content designed to make you buy. While this
is mainly an overseas phenomenon on the big retail sites
like Amazon, it is coming to South Africa. An easy hack
is simply to clear your web browsing history and delete
'cached' files, to avoid targeted specials being thrown your
way.

LIFE HACK: DISCONNECT YOUR CREDIT CARDS FROM
YOUR INTERNET BANKING AND START WINDING THEM
DOWN. If you are honest with yourself, the reason your
credit cards are linked to your bank account is to give you
a source of credit to tap. You won’t change your spending
patterns until they are taken away from you. Ask your bank
to either disconnect your cards from your Internet bank-
ing profile or, if you can’t go 'cold turkey', ask it to start
reducing your facility by R500-R1 000 each month. Bet-
ter to be proactive than to have the bank take the facility
from you.
LIFE HACK: COMPARE YOURSELF TO THE RIGHT
PEOPLE. A key criticism of Generations X and Y is that
instead of comparing themselves to their peers, they elect
to live like their parents while being fuelled by credit. Get
real. The average age of a bondholder in South Africa is 31,
and if you’re earning more than R30 000 per month, you
are amongst the top 1% of earners in the world according to
the World Bank. The financial crisis and recession of 2008
should have changed the way you think about these issues.
LIFE HACK: DOING NOTHING IS NOT SMART.
As we highlight in the Traders section of the magazine
(page 40), a leading investor made a bet with some
hedge fund operators (supposedly the smartest money
managers in the business), wagering that he could gain
greater returns simply by buying the index through a low-
cost savings product than they could with all their finan-
cial know-how. He has been proven right by a comfortable
margin. You don’t need to be that slick investor who calls
up their stockbroker every few minutes with trading ideas,

but with 80% of South Africans unable to retire, you want
to be building up your savings as quickly as possible.
THE SECURITY-SEEKER –
YOU ARE SECURITY-SEEKER IF:
t :PVBSFHFOFSBMMZXFMMSFBEPONPOFZNBUUFST
t :PVSBSFMZUBLFBOZSJTLXJUIZPVSNPOFZ
t :PVIBWFBDMFBSVOEFSTUBOEJOHSFHBSEJOHUIFEJGGFSFODF
CFUXFFOXBOUTBOEOFFETBOETQFOENPOFZBDDPSEJOHMZ
t :PVQBZZPVSCJMMTPOUJNFBOEZPVIBWFBOPVUTUBOEJOH
DSFEJUSFDPSE
t :PVBMXBZTIBWFBOFNFSHFODZGVOEBOEBSFPGUFOPWFS
JOTVSFE
The downside to this personality is that:
t :PVUFOEUPPWFSBOBMZTFBGJOBODJBMEFDJTJPOBOEBTB
SFTVMUDBOUNBLFBEFDJTJPOUIVTPGUFOMPTJOHPVUPO
HPPEPQQPSUVOJUJFT
COVER
Getty Images/ Gallo Images
COVER
14 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
THE AVOIDER – YOU ARE AN AVOIDER IF:
t :PVEPOUUIJOLNVDIBCPVUNPOFZBOEGFFMUIBUUIFSFBSF
PUIFSNBUUFSTUPDPODFSOZPVSTFMGXJUI
t :PVEPOPUIBWFBGJOBODJBMQMBOBOEIBWFOPEFTJSFUPPCUBJO
POF
t :PVBSFWFSZDPOUFOUXJUIMJGFBOEIBWFWFSZMJUUMFPSOP
BNCJUJPO
t :PVQSPCBCMZEPOUIBWFBXJMMBOEIBWFMJUUMFPSOPJOTVSBODF
PSSFUJSFNFOUTBWJOHT
t "OBWPJEFSPGUFOQSFGFSTUPMFUTPNFPOFFMTFMJLFUIFJSTQPVTF

IBOEMFBMMUIFNPOFZNBUUFSTJOUIFIPNF
The downside to this personality is that:
t 4JODFZPVIBWFOPGJOBODJBMQMBOBOEMJUUMFPSOPTBWJOHTZPV
XJMMFOEVQJOEFCUFEXIFOBNPOFZDSJTJTBSSJWFT
t 8IFOZPVHFUDMPTFUPSFUJSFNFOUZPVSMBDLPGTBWJOHTXJMM
DBVTFZPVUPBDUJSSBUJPOBMMZBTZPVUSZUPNBLFUIFNPTU
BNPVOUPGNPOFZJOUIFTIPSUFTUQFSJPEPGUJNFXIJDIXJMM
ESJWFZPVJOUPHFUSJDIRVJDLTDIFNFTTVDIBT1PO[JPSQZSB
NJETDIFNFTBOEUIFOZPVXJMMMPTFBMMZPVSNPOFZ
t :PVBSFWFSZEJTPSHBOJTFEXIFOJUDPNFTUPNPOFZNBUUFST
BOEIBWFBQPPSSFQVUBUJPOPGLFFQJOHBOZGPSNPGNPOFZ
SFDPSET5IJTCFDPNFTBNBKPSQSPCMFNXIFOZPVIBWFUP
CFBVEJUFECZQFPQMFMJLFUIF3FDFJWFSPG3FWFOVF
LIFE HACK: JOIN AN INVESTMENT CLUB WITH A WINE
PROBLEM. Let’s be honest, the idea of investing is hard
work. Rather get a stickler for admin, a saver and a risk-
taker together and host a monthly meeting where you
deposit a few hundred rand, and you bring the wine. You
probably won’t secure your retirement with it, but you
will start taking an interest in regular meetings.
LIFE HACK: BUY PROPTRAX EXCHANGE-TRADED
FUND (ETF). Love it or hate it, property does give
investors access to three very unique characteristics
somewhere over a 20-year cycle: leverage, income and
inflation-linked asset appreciation. An avoider will reach
their mid-thirties and not ever have enjoyed these bene-
fits, but if they are smart enough to buy the PropTrax
ETF, they will at least cover two bases and potentially
give themselves enough cash to be able to take a lever-
aged purchase should they mature as investors.

LIFE HACK: SCHEDULE AN ADMIN DAY ONCE A
MONTH. If your life is defined by avoiding Metro Police
roadblocks because you haven’t bothered to renew your
licence or if you never file tax returns because you don’t
have the inclination to collate the documentation, then
you are actually making your life more stressful. Face up
to the stress, allocate a day and get it done.
COVER
FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 15
MONEY HACK #1:
SHOP FOR A BANK
Bank charges have a way of stealthily
depleting wealth. If you are paying
more than R100 in bank charges on a
cheque account, you are paying too
much. Take your latest bank state-
ment and add together all the costs
from your bank. If you don’t know
what that inconspicuous R3 charge
was for, assume it’s from the bank.
If you are paying transaction costs
on debit or cheque card purchases,
you need to move. If you’re paying
to draw money every time, you’re
paying too much. Shop around for
a bank with the lowest bank charges
for your financial needs, move your
accounts across and put the money
you save towards a monthly ETF
debit order.

MONEY HACK #2:
TRY PREPAID FOR A MONTH
Buying prepaid airtime is a good
way to determine if you’re paying
too much in telephone charges.
When your cellphone contract
comes up for renewal or before
taking out a contract at all, switch
to prepaid for a month. Buy R100
airtime and R100 data and use until
you run out of money before buy-
ing more airtime. See how much
you spent on airtime and data in a
month before taking out or renew-
ing your contract. If you spent R200
on airtime and data during your pre-
paid experiment, you shouldn’t be
paying more than R200 for your
cellphone bill. Remember, there’s
no shame in remaining a prepaid
customer. No one will ever ask.
MONEY HACK #3:
HAGGLE FOR INSURANCE
Here’s a little secret: the insurance
industry is highly competitive. If
you’re not phoning your insurance
provider once a year to negotiate
your premium, you’re paying too
much. When negotiating a better
premium, ask for the highest pos-

sible excess amount. Make R1 000
excess the goal and negotiate with
that in mind. Also ask to have a
courtesy vehicle included so you
have wheels if something happens
to your car. Now phone insurance
providers until you find one that is
cheaper than your insurance and
request a quote. Phone your exist-
ing insurance provider, tell them
about the cheaper quote and ask
them to lower your premium. Most
of the time your current provider
will try to accommodate you. If not,
move.
MONEY HACK #4:
UNDERSTAND UNIT COSTS
Comparing prices when grocery
shopping is a very easy way to save
money every day. To really save,
however, you have to be sure to
compare apples with apples. The
easiest way to do this is to break a
product down into its smallest part.
Let’s say, for example, you’re buying
toilet paper. Baby Soft 2 Ply White
Toilet Paper costs R53.99 on Pick n
Pay’s online store. The way to work
out if this is cheap or expensive is to
work out how much the toilet paper

costs per roll. Divide the price per
pack by the number of units in the
pack – in this case nine – to get the
price per unit. In this case it works
out to just under R6 per roll. Now
work out the price per roll for dif-
ferent brands and quantities to tell
whether you are really getting the
best value for money. Compare the
price per 100g for foodstuff, price
per litre for liquids, price per kilo-
gram for cheese and meat and price
per egg for eggs.
MONEY HACK #5:
GET MARRIED
Getting married is an awesome
way to save money. Consolidating
the cost of two households essen-
tially cuts expenses in half. Marriage
means you share the cost of rent,
electricity, insurance, shopping and
housekeeping. If you’re not into mar-
riages of convenience and not cur-
rently in love, consider other types
of money-saving marriages. Move in
with a friend who shares your money
values, advertise for a roommate
online or even consider moving in
with a colleague to save on transport
costs to work.

MONEY HACK #6:
BRING YOUR OWN
Bringing your own instead of buy-
ing is a good rule of thumb for most
things. Going to work? Pack your
own lunch. If you save R20 a day on
buying lunch, you can save R5 200
per year, which means you could take
a trip to the coast on lunch money.
Paying a corkage fee at a restaurant
means you can bring your own wine.
A bottle of Haute Cabrière Pinot Noir
costs R80 per bottle when you order
in bulk from the estate. The average
price for the same wine at a restaur-
ant is R170 per bottle. If you pay R50
corkage fee at a restaurant, you save
R40 per bottle of wine by bringing
your own. Going to a concert? Pack a
picnic. Eat before you go into the sta-
dium and pack a sandwich for after
the show, save on the price of how-
ever many boerie rolls you consume
at a time and avoid the frustration of
standing in line for food.
Kristia van Heerden

Six ways to be more frugal in 2014
Getty Images/ Gallo Images
COVER

16 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
H
e put his name in the history books
when he scored the first goal of the
2010 FIFA World Cup the first time
it was held on African soil. With
that dramatic goal, Siphiwe Tshabalala also
became South Africa’s darling and an inspi-
ration to many.
Subsequently, the soccer ace became a
sought-after name as numerous brands vied
to cash in on his prominent status. As a result,
his bank balance would swell well beyond his
imagination, but the Kaizer Chiefs FC star was
determined to approach money management
in a different manner than one would typically
expect from local football players.
Finweek deputy editor Tandisizwe
Mahlutshana finds out more about the
player’s money personality.
Siphiwe Tshabalala celebrating
his 2010 FIFA World Cup goal
Gallo images/ Getty images: AFP
COVER
FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 17
IT IS SAID THAT THERE ARE FIVE TYPES OF MONEY
PERSONALITIES, NAMELY: THE SAVER, THE RISK-
TAKER, THE SECURITY-SEEKER, THE SPENDER AND
THE AVOIDER. WHICH DO YOU THINK YOU FIT INTO?
Honestly, I am first and foremost a security-seeker. I

ensure that I get as much information about a particular
investment as possible. Not only the good things but the
ugly stuff as well.
I am also a risk-taker in that I like to spot opportun-
ities that some people may not see. I have taken some
risks that have paid off well and some that have not. But
that is all part of life.
DO YOU HAVE A FINANCIAL ADVISER AND HOW DO
YOU UTILISE THEM? DO YOU DEAL WITH THEM ON
A REGULAR BASIS AND WHAT DECISIONS DO THEY
HELP YOU WITH?
Not really. I prefer to manage my own financial affairs
and have been doing so, sometimes with the assistance
of my manager, but I am the man in charge.
However, over the past year I have engaged the pro-
fessional services of a financial adviser and I meet with
her twice a year to go through all my investments and
she helps me decide on whether to keep certain invest-
ments or change my position on them. Even though I
go to her for advice, I still make the final decision.
WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTIC
OF A GOOD FINANCIAL ADVISER?
Honesty! Nothing beats honesty when money is
involved. People can’t easily be trusted but when they
deal with you in an honest way, you can begin to build
that trust.
WHICH INDIVIDUAL DO YOU BELIEVE HAS HAD
THE BIGGEST INFLUENCE ON THE WAY THAT YOU
APPROACH MONEY?
It’s not a person, in actual fact. It is the fact that since

growing up I have always wanted to play football pro-
fessionally, and for many years a lot of football players
in this country had not been investing their money for
a rainy day.
The eye-opener for me was that a football career
can be short-lived and if you did not invest your money
wisely, you will be left with nothing. So I make sure
that even when I don’t play football anymore, my
investments will take care of me and still help me to
grow as a person.
IF YOU WERE GIVEN R100 000 TODAY AND TOLD
YOU HAD TO PROTECT THAT R100 000 FOR THE
NEXT FIVE YEARS, WHERE DO YOU THINK THE
MONEY WOULD BE SAFER – IN THE BANK, IN A
BUSINESS OR INVESTING IN THE JSE?
As the security-seeker that I am, I would invest it in
my property to extend it and make other renovations. I
know my money would be safe there. I wouldn’t neces-
sarily put R100 000 in a business.
WHAT IS THE BIGGEST MONEY MISTAKE YOU HAVE
EVER MADE?
I wouldn’t like to give details but I made some bad
investments that went horribly wrong. I did not do
the research or speak to any relevant people and I got
my fingers burnt.
Right now I am still recovering from those loses,
but personally I am over the pain. The thing about
getting into business is that it is a journey and one has
to be patient. It is not for the faint-hearted. Sometimes
you can make it and sometimes you will lose. It’s the

nature of business.
One must just keep on taking lessons along the
way. You will also meet different people that can make
or break you. You will meet good, relevant people and
sometimes you will meet crooks as well. You must
learn not to trust easily but you must also learn to
move on because life goes on.
OVER THE LAST 15 YEARS, A LOT OF EFFORT HAS
BEEN PUT INTO EDUCATING YOUNG SOUTH AFRI-
CANS TO MANAGE THEIR MONEY. IF YOU LOOK AT
YOUR PEER GROUP, DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THIS
EDUCATION HAS PAID OFF?
Yes, definitely. These days, players invest in good
properties and some have financial advisers. So it was
a good thing to have that kind of education because I
can see that it is now paying off.
WHAT IS YOUR FINANCIAL MESSAGE TO THE FIN-
WEEK READERS?
There’s a piece of advice I got when I started playing
professional football: “If you look after the cents, the
rands will look after themselves.” I still live by that
today. If you understand the value of money, you will
look after the small change as well.
"Shabba", as the soccer player is affectionately
known, also let slip that he’s working on adding
further investments to his wealth portfolio. Among
those is another Taste Holdings franchise The Fish
& Chip Co. He currently owns one store.
■
INSIGHT

18 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
Insight
INSIGHT
FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 19
LIFE IN THE PALESTINIAN WEST BANK
Entrepreneur
turned activist
WANTING MORE OUT of life, South African entrepreneur Sarah Robinson took
time out of her role as an entrepreneur to experience firsthand the political
conflict in the H1 and H2 zones of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank,
Palestine. Hebron is known as one of the more volatile areas in the Palestinian
West Bank, where Israelis are trying to force Palestinian residents out of the
area by force.
As part of a group of international visitors, Robinson hoped to use her pres-
ence at the Israeli checkpoints and in the streets to record the many undocu-
mented human rights violations against local Palestinian residents by Israeli
settlers and soldiers. By threatening to expose the atrocities via social platforms
and releasing the material to the international media, she, along with the group
that she was travelling with, hoped to quell the violence at least somewhat.
R
obinson was stationed in
Hebron to act as a human
rights observer with the
World Council of Churches
run Ecumenical Accompaniment Pro-
gramme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI).
Her reception by the Palestinians was
not your average welcome as she found
that being South African made the reac-
tion to her arrival different to that of oth-

ers. The Palestinian cause was supported
by the late Nelson Mandela and on hear-
ing that Robinson was South African the
Palestinian people automatically felt that
she was aligned with their cause. On the
announcement of the passing of Mande-
la, Robinson received notes of condolence
from the Palestinians she had met.
BEAN THERE COFFEE
Company established: 2005
Founders: Sarah and Jonathan
Robinson.
Mission: To source and roast the
best beans that Africa has to offer.
Notable achievements: The
company was the first roaster of
certified Fairtrade coffee in
South Africa.
Goal: It strives to make a
sustainable difference in the lives
of African coffee produces by
personally sourcing quality coffee
through direct fair trade.
As an operations director in her start-
up business, Bean There Coffee Compa-
ny, she learnt how to understand, manage
and motivate people − how to actively
listen to those around her and respond
appropriately to get the job done. These
lessons were crucial in Hebron, too,

where as a member of a group of four in
life-threatening situations, listening and
responding appropriately with almost no
time to think was necessary to stay alive.
As an entrepreneur in South Africa,
Robinson enjoyed certain freedoms of
conducting business in a relatively safe
environment that is conducive to grow-
ing the company she has worked so hard
to establish and was struck by how dif-
feren the situation was for those in simi-
lar positions in Hebron.
“There is very little entrepreneurial
freedom in the H2 section of Hebron.
Approximately 25 000 Palestinians and
700 Israeli settlers live in the Israeli
military-controlled H2. At any given
time there are 2 500 soldiers in the area
protecting the Israeli settlers, controlling
access through checkpoints, and provid-
ing security of sorts.
“Twenty years ago this part of
Hebron was the commercial centre of
the city and many of the markets and
businesses were located along Shuhada
Street. In 1994, after the Goldstein
Massacre at the Ibrahimi Mosque,
where an Israeli settler gunned down
29 Palestinians during prayer, Shu-
hada Street was shut down, businesses

closed, and all access was denied for
Palestinians. This action severely dis-
rupted commerce in Hebron. The heart
of Hebron became a ghost town and
any hope of entrepreneurship was suf-
focated. The movement of people and
goods are intensely controlled reducing
any hope of new businesses developing.
“A local NGO, the Hebron Rehabili-
tation Committee (HRC), is partnering
with interested Palestinians in Hebron
to bring them back to the old city and
the souk [market] to encourage business
development and the rejuvenation of this
beautiful part of the city. However, even
when new shops open, they struggle to
survive because so many Palestinians
are restricted from entering H2,” explains
Robinson.
The role of the EAPPI and Robinson in
Hebron was to create the threat of interna-
tional exposure and one of their daily tasks
was to monitor the checkpoints near a
school to make sure that the children were
able to attend school without the harass-
ment of officials as they passed through the
checkpoints. “Clashes, tear gas and sound
grenades were a regular occurrence and on
one occasion a 12-year-old boy was hit by
a sniper in the leg with live ammunition,”

says Robinson.
“We conducted tours with international
guests to open their eyes to the situation
that most of the world doesn’t know about.
In one instance, I drew the attention of a
tour group to a young Palestinian boy being
assaulted by Israeli soldiers and encouraged
the group to take photographs of the inci-
dent. Immediately the abuse stopped and
the boy was released as the assailants feared
being identified by their faces appearing in
photographs.”
ECONOMIC PRESSURE
Robinson is not alone in her quest for peace
wi
thin the volatile country, the cause for
the rights of Palestinians is fought on a
larger scale by an organisation called Boy-
cott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS),
which calls on South Africans not to
ignore what is happening to Palestinians
and bring awareness of the human rights
atrocities. Robinson came into contact with
the organisation in her orientation ses-
sions before leaving for Hebron. Its aim is
threefold: end the Israeli occupation of the
West Bank and Gaza, the right of return
for refugees that currently reside in refugee
camps and for Palestinians living in Israel
to be treated equally and have equal rights.

The main tool which the organisation uses
is to create awareness of the human rights
abuses among students at university level.
Muhammed Desai, the national coordi-
nator of BDS, explains why. “We follow the
same strategy of how apartheid was fought
and conquered, with day-to-day activism
that starts with those that are most likely
to change themselves and then become the
future leaders – those at university level.”
The organisation does not follow any spe-
20 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
INSIGHT
Sarah
Robinson
cific ideology but unites various societies, Chris-
tian, Jewish and Muslim alike to put economic
pressure on Israel to address the current situation.
“The projects are aimed at local and interna-
tional businesses to stop indirectly funding and
perpetuating crimes against others. These pro-
grammes include boycotting SodaStream prod-
ucts manufactured in the settlements, Dead Sea
beauty products being sold in shopping centres
and there is even an investigation into Wool-
worths products that are being imported from
Israel and sold locally,” comments Desai. To date,
the group has some landmark successes in the
divestment of Dutch, Swedish and Norwegian
state pension funds withdrawing from Israel and

recently the UK government issued a statement
to all companies in Britain urging them not to do
business with Israeli companies in settlements or
those operating in Israel.
THE ROAD FORWARD
Robinson has recently returned to SA after suf-
fe
ring from an undiagnosed medical condition.
“While in Palestine it became clear to me that
human rights, justice, and conflict-related causes
are where my heart is. I fell in love with the
tension, the stress, and unpredictability. I felt
the immense importance of sharing the story
of others’ suffering and hardships in order to
instigate change.
“I want to be on the frontline and I feel that
my experience in Palestine made that exception-
ally clear.
“I am not pro-Palestine or pro-Israel but pro-
justice, pro-fairness and pro-peace.
“I want to make a difference on the ground.
I want to give a voice to those caught up in
injustice and are either unable or unwilling to
tell their stories. I don’t want to sit on the side-
line when my heart is screaming for hands-on
involvement. Many people think I’m crazy to
consider giving this all up to start from scratch
in a war zone. But nothing excites me more.
On a Skype call with my mother while I was in
Hebron, I was telling her about a devastating

child arrest I had witnessed. In the conversation
she commented that she had never heard me
sound so alive before. Maybe I am a risk seeker
or adrenaline junkie? But I know, without a
doubt, that my place is on the frontline, stand-
ing shoulder to shoulder with the oppressed and
the victims of injustice.”
Lisa Illingworth

FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 21
FACT BOX
IN 2009, the Human Sciences Research
Council released a report, which found
that Israel was practising both coloni-
alism and apartheid according to the
legal definition in occupying Palestinian
territories.
There are 19 Palestinian refugee
camps in the West Bank, which shelter
741 409 inhabitants.
The World Bank issued a report on
the economic effects of the restricted
land access in the West Bank, stating:
“The effects on the Palestinian econo-
my of the current territorial distribution
extend much beyond its most obvious
manifestations. The physical access
restrictions are the most visible, with
38% of the land area reserved by the
government of Israel to serve settle-

ments and security objectives and a
system of checkpoints, road closures,
the separation barrier, and permit
requirements for access that constrain
movement of people and goods within
and out of the West Bank. Recurrent
destruction of trees, private homes and
public infrastructure, as well as settlers’
encroachments on private land create
a permanent state of insecurity that
deters Palestinian investment.”
Israel’s wall in the West Bank,
according to a new report by the
United Nations Conference on Trade
and Development, has caused a direct
loss of more than $1bn to Palestinians
in Jerusalem, and continues to incur
$200m per year in lost opportunities.
■
INSIGHT
RIGHT OF REPLY
22 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
Reply
A view from SA’s
accounting body
This is in response to the
opinion piece (Why you
should think twice before
going for that accounting
degree) by economist

Johan Fourie which was
published on 20 January
on Finweek.com
T
he model used for educating
chartered accountants
[CAs(SA)] in South Africa
was developed over many
years and the process was one in
which the universities participated
fully on a voluntary basis. The aca-
demic programme together with the
training programme has remained
dynamic and responsive to the needs
of the economy, seeing many minor
and major changes over the years.
CAs(SA) have enjoyed an enviable
reputation throughout the world for
many decades. SA has a very strong
accounting and auditing profession
(The World Economic Forum has
rated SA number one for auditing and
financial reporting in its world com-
petitiveness report for the last four
years) and there is a strong demand
for CAs(SA). We live in a dynamic eco-
nomic environment, which requires
that education and training remain
responsive to the needs of the econ-
omy – the South African Institute of

Chartered Accountants (SAICA)
together with the universities ensures
that the education, training and
assessment processes remain relevant
to the needs of SA.
It is our view that many of the ‘alle-
gations’ are unfounded, inaccurate
and one sided. While we welcome
constructive criticism, it is important
that prospective students are not mis-
informed.
Allow me to elucidate:
“Accounting degrees should not
be
a default option for most of SA’s
brightest kids.” South African learn-
ers are the ‘new generation’ of young-
sters who are smart and they are
mostly aware of the career paths that
are open to them. It would be grossly
erroneous to underestimate their
intelligence, especially as far as career
choice goes. SAICA uses a targeted
marketing strategy to attract talent-
ed learners to the profession, given
the chronic shortage of chartered
accountants. SAICA is competing to
secure a share of the limited pool of
candidates who achieve over 60% in
core maths (only about 15.6% of the

2013 matrics who wrote the maths
paper met this requirement).
“Accounting departments in SA
are perfectly positioned to deliver
students capable of thinking outside
the box.” I couldn’t agree more! But
there are many challenges being faced
in the tertiary environment today,
despite academics being passionate
about their calling to the academe,
their best intentions, well-designed
programmes and courses. Academics
are torn between fulfilling university
requirements for research and having
little time to do so because of these
other challenges. SAICA agrees that
appropriate research and scholar-
ship are critical to a high-performing
accounting department and SAICA
continues to encourage universities
to find ways to meet both objectives.
“The current accounting syllabus
does not allow students to develop
the skills necessary for top-level
managers.” Qualifying as a CA(SA)
requires more than just complet-
ing four years at university (three-
year undergraduate degree and the
postgraduate year that follows). The
subsequent three-year training pro-

gramme that follows the four years of
academic study is a period in which
prospective CAs(SA) further develop
and garner experience that enhances
the building blocks that have been
developed through the university
degree. Further than that, as profes-
sionals, CAs(SA) are required to con-
tinue to develop and enhance their
competence through appropriate
continuing professional development
relevant to the role they undertake,
post qualification. The ability to
be a life-long learner is one that is
entrenched through the initial seven-
year qualification process.
Qualification as a CA(SA) is not
solely related to competence. It is
also the culmination of education,
training and assessment processes
aimed at assessing the combination
of intellect, aptitude and the ability
to respond to demanding situations.
It is clear that the accounting profes-
sion is a dynamic one and once these
skills are entrenched in the persona


To read the
article, visit

finweek.com
RIGHT OF REPLY
FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014 23
of the CA(SA), success is the end
result. It is these skills that enable the
CA(SA) to be successful in a wide
range of demanding work environ-
ments. It is intuitive to note that over
30% of CEOs of listed companies are
CAs(SA).
Some university programmes have
challenges in teaching students to be
creative thinkers – the extent of the
challenge however differs from uni-
versity to university. It would be crit-
ical to point out that this is a feature
of most university programmes – not
just accounting programmes. SAICA
recognised this problem many years
ago and has been working together
with interested universities to find
ways to address this. Changes include
the introduction of a competency
framework and a new final assess-
ment (the Assessment of Profes-
sional Competence to be introduced
in 2014).
Introduction of the competency
fram
ework:

■
SAICA has had a competency
framework in place since 2009. This
framework sets out competencies
(or more broadly: outcomes which
include knowledge, skills and attrib-
utes required of CAs(SA) at entry-
level into the profession – the point
at which they register to become
CAs(SA)).
■
This was developed after research
on international trends and significant
input from the academic community.
■
The competency framework places
significantly more emphasis on the
pervasive skills which are categorised
into three broad areas: ethics and pro-
fessionalism, personal attributes and
professional skills.
■
The competency framework has
been of great benefit to the so called
previously disadvantaged universities
where SAICA is successfully engaged
with its university partners in assisting
such programmes in capacity-building
projects. (The University of Limpopo,
which obtained SAICA accreditation

in 2011, the University of Zululand and
Walter Sisulu University, which are part
of a capacity-building project and the
University of Venda, which will shortly
join the capacity-building project.)
■
The competency
framework should be
viewed as a guideline.
“The accounting pro-
fession follows a narrow
rule-based compliance
philosophy in educa-
tion, whereas univer-
sities generally follow
a broader principle-
based approach.”
Accounting departments are encour-
aged by SAICA on an ongoing basis
to ensure that their teaching and
learning models speak to a more prin-
ciple-based approach. The university
has the final say.
“To sum it up: SAICA runs
accounting departments.” Uni-
versities have full control of their
programmes and structure them in
any way that they choose. SAICA’s
approach to the accounting depart-
ments who offer programmes leading

toward the CA(SA) is simply this: to
maintain the appropriate standards
of the CA(SA) qualification route so
as to ensure the delivery of compe-
tent CAs(SA) with relevant skills to the
market place. This is done by:
■
Developing a competency frame-
work with the input of both academ-
ics in the accounting departments
and profession.
■
Implementing an accreditation
and monitoring process in line with
requirements set out by the Council
for Higher Education. (It is absolute-
ly voluntary for universities to seek
SAICA accreditation.)
■
Setting and administering the two
standard-setting assessments, which
allow a broad range of candidates
from multiple accredited programmes
to be assessed against standards
required of the profession.
“Why don’t scholars in account-
ing departments resist this influ-
ence? Because SAICA pays.” The
SAICA philosophy is simple – in order
to run high-quality programmes

and produce the most competent
accounting graduates, universities
require excellent people. As CAs(SA)
typically have the opportunity to earn
higher salaries in commerce, SAICA
uses its subvention fund to attempt
to retain key staff on the CA(SA) pro-
gramme. It is by no means a salary;
it is an annual amount that is based
on current year performance and
contribution. While the lump sum
attributable to each department of
accounting is determined by SAICA,
the individual amounts are deter-
mined by the head of each depart-
ment of accounting and ratified by
a local subvention committee. The
subvention, once divided by the large
number of participants, is often not a
significant amount.
SAICA is convinced that it plays a
critical role in developing world-class
accounting professionals who will
continue to serve SA and international
economies in a variety of roles.
To blame SAICA for generations of
accountants being trained without a
broader understanding of complex-
ity, problem-solving or trends in the
global economy is myopic.

Yes, with the advent of com-
puters there are many jobs that will
need to evolve including the role of
an accountant, and I quote Sizwe
Nxasana [CA(SA)] in saying that:
“Accounting and auditing of the kind
done by CAs(SA) requires a lot of
analysis and decision-making which
computers will never do in a million
years.” It is intuitive to note that over
21% of CAs(SA) are economically
active outside of SA. The world-class
quality of CAs(SA) remains a non-
negotiable objective for SAICA.
In our opinion, it is scandalous
to encourage the youth not to con-
sider qualifying as a CA(SA) given the
career choice and leadership oppor-
tunities which the designation affords
to the youth of SA.
■
Mandi Olivier CA(SA)
Senior Executive: Professional
Development at SAICA
Why I banned
brainstorming
INSIGHT
24 FINWEEK 20 FEBRUARY 2014
The Gab
B

rainstorming is the oldest
and most widely used crea-
tivity technique in business
today. So if everyone uses
it then it must work, right?
Wrong! Brainstorming might work
reasonably well for generating medio-
cre ideas with incremental impact, but
it is completely useless for coming up
with truly innovative breakthrough
ideas. I’ve banned brainstorming in
my business – here is the reason why.
IT’S A NUMBERS GAME, OR IS IT?
“Come up with as many ideas as you
can. Focus on quantity, not quality!”
This is the first fundamental rule of
brainstorming and on the surface it
seems to make sense. Nobel prize-
winning scientist Linus Pauling said:
“The way to get good ideas is to get
lots of ideas, and throw the bad ones
away.” A bit like picking strawberries
– the way to go home with a good bas-
ket is to pick lots of strawberries and
then just throw away the rotten ones.
Pauling also said: “When an old
and distinguished person speaks
to you, listen to him carefully and
with respect – but do not believe
him . . . Your elder, no matter whether

he is a Nobel laureate, may be wrong.”
I’m afraid in this case, he is. Ideas are
BY DR GAVIN SYMANOWITZ
Gallo Images/Thinkstock
INSIGHT
20 FEBRUARY 2014 FINWEEK 25
not like strawberries.
HERE COMES THE BRIDE
Let’s say your wedding is coming up
next month. You’ve been dreaming
about the big day since you were a lit-
tle girl and you want everything to be
perfect – especially your hair. You’ve
done your research and have narrowed
it down to two hairstylists, each with
a very different approach.
So the first hairstylist says, “I can do
70 different hairstyles for you!”
“Okay,” you say, “but are you any
good?”
“Well, that’s not really important
to me, it’s much more important that
I can do a lot of different styles, who
cares what they look like?”
She hands you a book with exam-
ples of her work. You go through it and
can’t believe what you see. Each photo
looks worse than the one before, now
you’re feeling quite depressed.
Then you go over to the second

hairstylist. She says: “Look, I don’t do
a lot of different hairstyles; in fact, I
specialise in only three. It’s not a wide
variety, but they’re immaculate, done
to absolute perfection.” She holds up
a card with just three photographs,
each displaying one of the three styles
she specialises in. Your mood changes
instantly. You can’t decide which of the
three photos is the most beautiful.
Now the question is which hair-
stylist is going to do your hair for your
wedding? Obviously it’s the specialist.
Who cares how many styles a hairstyl-
ist can do if she does all of them badly?
Who cares how many ideas you’ve
got if none of them are good? The real-
ity is, asking people to forget about
quality and focus on getting as many
ideas as possible is a sure-fire recipe for
rubbish. Do you really want 70 rubbish
ideas? I don’t. I want one great one.
It reminds me of the old joke about
two friends discussing business. The
one says, “I’m really excited, I just
opened up a hamburger joint.”
“Fantastic” says his friend. “How
much are you selling the burgers for?”
“R10.”
And how much does each burger

cost you to make?”
“R20.”
“Hang on. It’s costing you R20 to
make a burger but you’re selling it for
R10. That means you’re making a loss
of R10 on each burger that you sell.”
“Oh, don’t worry,” says his friend.
“I’ll make it up on volume.”
No, he won’t – no matter how many
he sells, he’ll still on the losing end.
And the same with brainstorming – if
you come up with 70 loser ideas, at the
end of the day, whichever one you pick
– you’ll still end up with a loser idea.
You can’t make up for it on volume.
A DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH
In reality, most great ideas don’t start
out great. They start out as seeds that
need to be developed and nurtured in a
structured approach. And brainstorm-
ing ensures that the seeds of great ideas
are not given the attention that they
deserve. There simply isn’t the time to
devote to building that one great idea
when you’re focused on generating as
many (bad) ideas as you can.
In addition, your company is unlike-
ly to have the resources to properly
pursue more than one or two big new
product ideas a year. If that’s the case,

why would you want 70 ideas? The
unfortunate truth is that as we increase
the number of ideas we pursue, the
odds of any one idea being successful
declines.
ARE YOU JUDGING ME?
The second fundamental rule of brain-
storming is that we are not allowed to
judge other people’s ideas. Again, this
Gallo Images/Thinkstock