Altech COO Laurence Savage: For the brave, nothing is too

MAGAZINE for the employees of the Altron group
Altech COO Laurence Savage:
For the brave, nothing is too difficult!
issue 1/2013
IN THIS ISSUE
FROM OUR EDITORS
16
Regulars
Change is the only constant
Editorial1
News in brief
2
Ally’s Tech Corner
4
On a high note
5
People Profile
12
CSI Profile
26
8
30
Feature
Business
Wellness
6
Sustainability is in our blood
10
A shot in the arm for local
content
26
The joy of moving
8
The shape of success
20
Powertech System Integrators
28
The team with the
green dream
16
Changing the power picture
22
Smarter spending sets the
savings scene
30
Ethics can be child’s play
24
Bytes Namibia
PROFILE is printed on TOP ART paper, supplied and partly sponsored by NOR Paper, a Bytes Document Solutions
subsidiary. TOP ART is a triple-coated, environmentally friendly art paper. It is also wood-free, made with cellulose
pulp that is chemically treated to obtain a high level of whiteness. The treatment uses no chlorine gas.
The saying “the more
things change the more they
stay the same” is a cliché
because it is so true. At
Altron, we are used to the
unpredictability of business.
It is constantly changing,
both by chance and design.
In this regard, the past three
years have been a pivotal
period of transformation for
our group.
Fortunately, the
seemingly immovable
constants remain ever
present. These include,
inter alia, our loyal and
hardworking employees,
our proven sound policies,
our unique culture and our
solid grasp of technology
and the many markets
we serve. Add to this our
amazing ability to create
value for our stakeholders
and to uphold the many
values we hold dear as the
Altron family, such as our
diversity, our community
development and our
sustainability.
Sustainability will be one
of our key drivers this year
and we got off to a flying
start in late January when
our senior group executives
witnessed the launch of our
Sustainability Strategy. The
event and the significance
of the strategy are recorded
pictorially on pages 5-7 of
this issue, while Robbie
Venter expresses his views
on it in his column, On a
High Note.
We are especially pleased
Grant Rogerson and Liezl Kruger
to feature recently-appointed
Altech COO Laurence
Savage in our cover story.
Although Laurence only
joined Altech a few months
ago, he has been associated
with the group for more
than 10 years. We welcomed
the opportunity to get to
know him better, and know
that you will as well.
This issue also features
four pages of employee
entries in our Ethics
competition. As editors
we were amazed by the
quality and quantity
of entries – employee
engagement is certainly
alive and well at Altron!
Please continue to
participate in Profile by
sending us your feedback or
story suggestions and may
we take this opportunity of
wishing our readers a great
year ahead!
Regards
Grant and Liezl
Editorial information
Profile is co-edited by Grant Rogerson and
Liezl Kruger of the Altron Group Corporate
Communications Department.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:
http: //www.facebook.com/AltronGroup
@Altrongroup
The Profile editorial committee members are:
Michelle Doyle – Altron
Regula Niehus – Powertech
Marius Venter – Bytes
Evette Wessels – Altech
Direct all queries to:
Tel: 011 645-3600
Email: [email protected]/[email protected]
Profile is also available on the Altron internal
website (Alix): www.altronprofile.com
Design and production:
Words’worth (www.words-worth.co.za)
On the cover Laurence Savage, Altech’s new COO
2
B U S I N ES S P R O FILE
BU S I NE S S PR O F I L E
3
NEWS IN BRIEF
How to go for gold
Altron’s directors concluded 2012
on a golden note when the Directors’ Conference hosted South
Africa’s Olympic rowing team.
The purpose of the conference
was to give directors an overview
of recent developments in the legal arena. Michael Katz and Ross
Alcock from law firm Edward
Nathan Sonnenbergs (ENS) discussed company law, labour law
and the recent industrial action,
and the Protection of Personal
Information Bill.
Counterbalancing the legalese
was the rowing team who won
gold in London last year. Their
inspirational and motivational
message to directors emphasised the need to trust your
team, remain focused and work
together to achieve not only the
company’s goal, but each team
member’s goal as well.
Sharing nuggets of wisdom and inspiration at the Directors’
Conference were Olympic rowers (from left) John Smith, Sizwe
Ndlovu, James Thompson and Matthew Brittain. Robbie Venter,
Altron CE, is pictured with them.
Bytes hosts Cisco Expo again
Bytes is one of the best
Bytes’ status as a good employer was confirmed when the
company achieved the excellence
standard for the first time in the
Deloitte’s Best Company to Work
For survey. Less than 30% of the
participants in the 2012 survey
managed this achievement.
“Bytes is extremely proud to
have scored near the very top
in the large companies section
of the survey,” says Skip Franzsen, Bytes talent manager. “All
the Bytes companies met the
excellence standard, although
the scores varied in the different
sections.”
Overall Bytes employees
expressed confidence in the company’s management and leadership. But the survey revealed that
more work needs to be done to
create a positive career development environment in which all
Bytes employees can achieve
their full potential.
Skip notes that significant
progress is already being made
in this regard. “The outcomes
of the effort we are currently
putting in to develop Bytes as
an excellent talent management company, will certainly be
reflected in the Best Company
to Work For survey results in
future years.”
Bytes Systems Integration was
once again the official sponsor
of the annual Cisco Expo 2013
South Africa which took place
at Sun City on 3-5 March.
As official sponsor, Bytes Systems Integration co-hosted the
event and demonstrated its
pre-eminence in the Cisco
world. It also offered Bytes
an opportunity to showcase
real-world business solutions
created using Cisco
technology.
Leon Viljoen joins ABB in top position
Leon Viljoen has resigned from
his position as Powertech’s chief
operating officer to join ABB in
the key position of president, ABB
South Africa. Leon’s last day at
Powertech was 31 January 2013.
“I am truly sorry to see Leon
go,” says Powertech CEO Neil
Kayton, “but it is a consolation
to know that with him moving
to ABB the relationship between
our two companies can only grow
and develop.” The technology
agreement between the two
companies for transformer design
and manufacture has been to the
benefit of both over the years. In
January 2013 ABB also awarded
Powertech Transformers a R20,7
million contract to supply power
transformers to the Soutpan and
Witkop solar power projects.
Leon joined Powertech in
2001. Since his appointment
as COO in July 2012, he has
championed Project Align that
resulted in the formation of
Powertech System Integrators.
Awards aplenty for Bytes
Altech sells to Liquid
Two Bytes Technology Group
companies recently received
awards from suppliers and partners. Bytes Connect was named
Partner of the Year at Eqstra Fleet
Management’s annual supplier
day, while Bytes Document Solutions in the UK won the Xerox
Premier Partner of the Year 2012
award.
Bytes UK’s award followed a
year in which the company increased its market share by 12%
and retained its position as the
UK’s largest Xerox Partner.
Eqstra IT manager, Edward
Macfarlane, nominated Bytes
Connect for this year’s Partner
Award based on the company’s
stellar service. “I lean heavily
on Bytes Connect to maintain
Altech has sold its loss-making
East African operations to Liquid
Telecommunications. As part of the
transaction, Altech acquires
an 8.6% stake in Liquid for
$16.5-million. “In effect, we are
exchanging our losses for returns,”
said Altech CEO, Craig Venter.
With this transaction, Liquid
Telecommunications gains ownership of Altech’s 61% stake in Kenya
Data Networks, Data Networks,
Swift Global, Stream and InfoCom.
“Altech’s East African operation
has built the largest fibre network
in the region, which has huge
potential. I strongly believe that its
people, its network and its customers will all add value and opportunity to our current operations,” says
Liquid CEO, Nic Rudnick.
Members of the Bytes UK team celebrate their Xerox Premier Partner of
the Year award. They are, from left: Darren Spence, Graham Mann, Donna
Marley from Xerox, Simon Gardner, Steve Howlett and Chris Stokes.
and build our call centres. Our
systems run on Alcatel, and they
are the Alcatel specialists. I have
not found another Alcatel dealer
that can come to the party like
they can.”
Strike renews ABB agreement
Eqstra runs fleets for numerous
major clients, and employs over
60 call centre agents at four different call centres. A fifth call centre is currently being built to meet
growing demand from clients.
Towards the end of 2012, Strike
Technologies renewed a manufacturing agreement with ABB South
Africa to manufacture the ZORC®
surge suppressor for a further
three years. Strike has since been
merged into the new Powertech
System Integrators division, a
change that does not influence
the agreement with ABB.
The ZORC® Surge Suppressor
James Calmeyer, then MD of
Strike Technologies (left), and
Johan Redelinghuys, power
products group manager,
ABB, sign the manufacturing
agreement renewal.
will be produced under licence
from Powertech System Integrators at ABB’s high-voltage capacitor manufacturing facility, based
in Longmeadow, Modderfontein.
The capacitor factory, owned by
ABB since 2009, has manufactured the ZORC® for the past
20 years.
Speaking at the signing
ceremony, James Calmeyer, then
MD of Strike Technologies, said
that the manufacturing partnership proves that South African
companies can collaborate to
produce globally attractive and
competitive products.
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T E C H P R OF ILE
BU S I NE S S PR O F I L E
ON A HIGH NOTE
ALLY’S TECH CORNER
Is there a tech question
you’ve been wondering
about but didn’t know
who to ask? Wonder
no more. Ally is willing
and able to explain the
jargon and acronyms in
laymen’s terms. You can
send your questions to
[email protected].
Questions and answers
will be published on Alix,
and a select few in Profile.
Dear Ally, I've been hearing the
acronym LTE a lot recently. It sounds
fantastic, but my internet is still as slow
as ever and I still drop as many mobile
calls as ever. Does LTE really exist?
Technophobe
Dear Technophobe.
LTE, or long-term evolution, definitely
exists! In the simplest terms, LTE is a
faster cellular network technology. It
allows you to download and upload
information from the Internet at very high
speeds. It works in exactly the same way
as 3G, except that it delivers more data,
faster and often cheaper. As a result, it
should be more fun to browse websites.
You can share photos faster and at a
higher resolution because a large file
uploads quicker. Sending and receiving
emails with bulky attachments will be
faster and easier.
What do I need to
share in the LTE fun?
You need two things: access to an LTE
network and a phone or mobile device
that is LTE-enabled.
Both Vodacom and MTN started rolling
out commercial LTE networks late last
year. Depending on where you live, LTE
may already be available on the part of
the wireless network near you. Contact
your service provider to find out what the
situation is in your area.
Turning to the phone or mobile device,
there are very few LTE-enabled phones
in South Africa. The most popular is the
iPhone 5. But there are many brands of
router or modems that you can buy for the
various mobile operators and resellers.
How do I link my home
wireless network into LTE?
It depends on what home wireless you
have. If you are using 3G at home with
a router, you can upgrade your router to
one that supports LTE and continue as
normal. If you are on ADSL, you cannot
connect to LTE.
When will LTE be everywhere?
It will take many years for LTE to be
everywhere. While mobile operators are
rolling it out now, they are also waiting
for the Department of Communications to
finalise its broadband plan for South Africa.
2013 has launched itself at
us with some force. On the
social front, South Africa is
most unsettled. Intense labour
unrest and horrific instances
of violence against women
have rocked our country.
Environmentally, the planet
has been lashed by floods,
storms and even a meteor
strike in Russia. The global
economy seems to be recovering, but is still fragile. On
all fronts, our world is crying
out for a new dispensation.
Against this backdrop,
Altron launched its Sustainability Strategy a few weeks
ago. The event reminded me
of a time capsule – the kind
school children will fill with
objects that define their current reality, and then bury for
future generations to discover.
Similarly, I know that the
true impact and real value
of the processes we set in
motion this year, will only be
experienced by future generations of Altron stakeholders.
The essence of the Sustainability Strategy is not something new. The document
we now have has merely
crystallised and formalised
the way in which we have
been operating for almost
five decades. But a company
as big and as aggressively
growing as ours, cannot rely
on unwritten rules – we need
the formal structure for the
next phase of our journey.
This Sustainability Strategy is going to differentiate
us as a group from the rest
of the industry in the years
to come. All our stakeholders, in particular our big
investors, customers and the
government, are increasingly
focusing on sustainability.
And they are not alone. In
2011, Michael Porter and Mark
Kramer published an article in
the Harvard Business Review.
The article, which won the
McKinsey Award as the year’s
most influential business article, argued that capitalism has
wasted its full potential by
narrowly focusing on shortterm profits without much
regard for its impacts on communities. They wrote: “The
purpose of the corporation
must be redefined as creating
shared value, not just profit
per se.” I couldn’t agree more.
Now, more than ever
before, we have to think differently and act decisively to
embrace the challenges we
are faced with. Let us not
squander the opportunity to
build a company that not only
leads its market today and
tomorrow, but one that will
leave the world a better place
for having done business in it.
Robert Venter
Chief Executive
5
6
S U S TA I N AB IL IT Y P R O FILE
S U S TA I NA BI LI TY PR O F I L E
Sustainability
is in our blood
On 23 January 2013
the Altron Sustainability
Strategy was introduced
to the group’s top
leaders. Altron’s
executives were left
in no doubt as to the
importance of the
strategy for the group’s
future wellbeing in the
context of contributing
to society’s health,
wealth and happiness.
This was not another
“green” event for
another “green”
initiative.
The Altron Sustainability Strategy
launch was held at Katy’s Palace in
Kramerville, Sandton.
Financial Sustainability
Core objective: improve profitable
revenue growth through expansion.
Jannette Horn, Altron group
sustainability manager, delivers
the key note address.
Altron board member Myron Berzack(left) with Jannette Horn and Robbie Venter.
Altron board member, Dawn Mokhobo
(left) and Seara Macheli-Mkhabela,
Altron’s group executive for human
capital and corporate affairs.
Rob Abraham, Bytes CEO, with
Altron board members Dawn Mokhobo
and Dr Penuell Maduna.
Altech group executives in deep
conversation.
Human Capital
Core objective: invest in our
biggest asset – our people.
Products and Services
Core objective: lead through
innovation by embracing
technology and market shifts.
External Relationships
Core objective: build and
maintain strategic alliances
and key partnerships.
Powertech group executives and senior staff at the at the strategy launch.
Bytes Technology Group executives pledge their support.
7
8
B U S I N ES S P R O FILE
BU S I NE S S PR O F I L E
The shape
of success
Knowing that perfection
is a journey and not
a destination, Bytes
Technology Group is
restructuring to make
the most of the assets
it has acquired and
developed over the
years.
T
he Bytes business, one of
Dr Venter’s earliest acquisitions,
has grown both organically
and through a number
of significant acquisitions. Fast
approaching the R7-billion mark in
profitable revenues, there is no doubt
that Bytes Technology Group is a
champion business with much to
be proud of.
However, several factors have
combined to give rise for the need to
reorganise the seven Bytes companies
into six and to merge some of
the underlying service functions.
Implementation has started in March.
Change for the better
Rob Abraham, CEO of Bytes, explains
the business is run on a federated
CEO of Bytes, Rob Abraham.
“We anticipate that Bytes will become more
cohesive and productive, while largely retaining
the advantages of our federated model.”
Rob Abraham, Bytes CEO
model. “This means that control is
decentralised and that each of our
group companies is managed in an
entrepreneurial way. Although the
model continues to serve us well, it has
resulted in some inefficiencies that we
are now streamlining.”
In the first instance, Bytes is mostly
a reseller of technologies and not a
developer. It therefore has little say
over how technologies change. In some
cases, software or systems that had
started off as distinct offerings sold
by different group companies, have
matured to the point where they are
now similar. “In fact, we have found
instances where businesses in Bytes
would compete against each other
for the same client,” explains Rob.
“The federated model underpins this
competition, but it is obviously bad
for the group when Bytes companies
compete against each other and push
prices down to get the contract.” The
restructuring will realign the business
to avoid unproductive competition. Secondly, and again driven by the
federated model, some businesses had
bolted on facilities to make them selfsufficient and increase their offering.
“Such functions that are not part of a
company’s core business, will be moved
into other group companies where
they can add more value,” says Rob.
An example is the call centre in Bytes
Connect. In the new structure it falls
under Bytes People Solutions where it
fits better.
Elimination of duplication is the
third change driver. In this regard, a
shared services facility is being created.
It will gradually take full responsibility
for delivering financial, HR, payroll,
marketing, IT, legal, facilities and
security services to the entire group.
Bytes will develop standards and best
practices across these functions that
will not only be efficient but cost
effective too.
The future in the making
Andrew Holden, in his new role as
operations and strategy executive,
is leading the changes necessary to
introduce a solid, cost effective shared
service organisation. “Given his
excellent and expert understanding
of IT, Andrew will also be active in
improving our overall value propositions
for our customers by helping to guide
the group’s new product development,
strategic thinking and acquisitive
direction,” elaborates Rob.
All the technical support teams in
the group will be consolidated into
Bytes Managed Solutions, while the
software and solutions interests will
be amalgamated under Bytes Universal
Systems.
Together with the networking
and IT infrastructure sales, the IT
outsourcing businesses will be driven
out of Bytes Systems Integration. Bytes
People Solutions will be responsible
for growing the already successful
outsourced contact centre division.
Bytes Document Solutions, Bytes
Healthcare Solutions and Bytes UK
operations will not be impacted by any
changes for the foreseeable future.
Key focus areas
Bytes will continue to focus on a
number of key improvement areas,
each guided by an executive who
coordinates the group’s efforts to
achieve certain objectives:
l Rob Griggs, MD of Systems
Integration, in addition to his
current duties, is the African
Market Growth Plan programme
manager.
l Allan Currie, MD of Universal
Systems, in addition to current
duties, oversees the Government
Market Growth Plan.
l Shaun Cochrane, cross sell
programme manager, coordinates
and aligns the marketing
committee’s efforts and manages
the newly formed Sales Forum
and Sales Academy.
l Skip Franzsen, the group HR
executive, continues to coordinate
the HR community activities to
ensure that Bytes retains and
attracts the best talent.
l Peter Riskowitz, CFO, continues
to lead acquisition negotiations
and processes.
9
10
I N DU S T RY P R O FILE
I ND U S TRY PR O F I L E
11
A shot in the arm for local content
P
ublic procurement is one of
the key drivers in government's
Industrial Policy Action Plan
(IPAP). The regulations that give
effect to the plan, empower the Minister
of Trade and Industry to designate
industries, sectors and sub-sectors for
local procurement at specified levels of
local content.
At the end of January this year,
Minister Rob Davies released the
latest list of designated products.
In addition to valves and electrical
and telecommunications cables, the
list includes manual and pneumatic
actuators and components for solar
water heaters. In December 2011,
power pylons, rolling stock, buses,
canned vegetables, clothing, textiles,
footwear and leather products, as well
as set-top boxes, were designated for
local production with minimum local
content thresholds.
Seara Macheli-Mkhabela, Altron’s
group executive for human capital and
corporate affairs, says that both IPAP
and the Preferential Procurement Policy
Framework Act (PPPFA) regulations are
aimed at boosting the local manufacturing
sector. "Illegal imports and imported
goods with no value-add to South Africa’s
employment, skills development and
infrastructure improvement are making it
difficult for some of our local products to
compete fairly.”
The government is using its comprehensive, high-value infrastructure
development programme to boost local manufacturing and technology.
This is really good news for several Altron group companies.
What it means for Altron
Seara points out that particularly
Powertech and Altech stand to benefit
from the PPPFA regulations. “Powertech
is traditionally a major supplier into
the power distribution and transport
markets. The main contributors
are Aberdare Cables, which is the
biggest manufacturer and supplier of
electrical cables in the country and
our joint venture with CBI-electric
which produces telecommunications
cables. Altech UEC is a leader in the
manufacturing of set-top boxes. We
already have the factories to produce
locally, and can therefore make the most
of government’s new regulations.”
In January government also issued a
15% tariff on imported finished set-top
boxes. This reinforces the drive that settop boxes should be bought locally.
Seara Macheli-Mkhabela
An investment
in home-grown
solutions
Powertech Transformers is one of the first
local companies to qualify for a technology
assistance package from the Department
of Science and Technology’s (DST) Technology Localisation Programme. The funding
will be used for a collaborative research and
development project with the Department of
Mechanical Engineering at the University of
Pretoria and the CSIR.
“The research relates to the short-circuit
withstand ability of transformers,” says Bernard Meyer, CEO of Powertech Transformers.
“Through this project we will establish and
develop a local knowledge base.”
Beeuwen Gerryts, chief director: Technology Localisation and Advanced Manufacturing at DST, explains the department’s goal
for the Technology Localisation Programme:
“Through the technology assistance funding,
we increase South African companies’ access
to new technologies, skills and innovations. The
ultimate aim is to increase local manufacturing
capabilities and activities, and reduce the reliance
on imports, resulting in increased skills development and sustainable work opportunities.”
Bernard concludes that for PTT to prosper
and grow it must do more than keep up with
its competitors. “Getting ahead means innovation which hinges on R&D. Working with the
CSIR, DST and University of Pretoria provides
us with an opportunity to excel and to boost
local transformer engineering design and
manufacturing capabilities.”
Partners in research and development.
From left: Masande Dlulisa, TLIU
project manager CSIR: SIIU; Bernard
Meyer, Powertech Transformers
CEO; Ashley Bhugwandin, TLIU
manager CSIR: SIIU; Bonisani Nzama,
deputy director: DST - Technology
Localisation; Lorraine Shikwane,
TLIU project coordinator CSIR: SIIU;
Beeuwen Gerryts, chief director:
Technology Localisation; and
Bongani Memela, strategic initiatives
coordination manager CSIR: SIIU.
12
F EAT U R E P R OF ILE
F E ATU R E PR O F I L E
A view
from the
other side
of the table
“I am very passionate about my work. If you’re going
to do something for 12 hours a day and spend about
half your life doing it, it’s worth doing it well.”
Having been an Altech customer before,
Laurence Savage, the group’s new COO,
believes its future is rooted in sustained
and sustainable relationships.
13
14
F EAT U R E P R OF ILE
F E ATU R E PR O F I L E
15
“I don’t like receiving surprises and I don’t like
delivering them. Invariably issues can be either solved or
mitigated long before they become major challenges.”
L
Laurence, the family man, with his wife Karin. They have been
married for 24 years.
Laurence at leisure
Laurence and Karin have been married for 24 years (after meeting in
true savage-style in a cave!) and are the proud parents of Patrick (17)
and Andrew (15).
When not working, Laurence thoroughly enjoys playing golf and
expanding his saxophone repertoire. “It started as a bit of a joke four
years ago when I was given a saxophone as a birthday gift. It’s a difficult
instrument to master and I can only play 12 songs, but it is great fun.”
Laurence has an engineering background and an MBA, and
completed an executive programme at Northwestern University in
Chicago. “I loved the Americans’ focus, drive and project mentality.
They almost live life like a project.”
aurence Savage believes in
directing his efforts by setting
himself goals. In his 20s it was
sporting achievements: “It was
important to me to run sub-2.45-hour
marathons and paddle in 10 Dusi’s.”
Professional success took precedence
in the following decade as Laurence
turned his focus to directorships of listed
companies and ways to extract top-notch
financial results. “During the last 10 years
or so, I’ve refocused again, this time
on taking companies with significant
challenges and returning them to stability
and profitable growth.” He feels that the
broad spectrum of experience he has
accumulated thus far positions him well
for his new portfolio.
“I’ve known Altech for more than
10 years, not only by reputation but
through the first-hand experience of
doing business with it,” recollects
Laurence. “The one thing that has
always stood out for me, was that
Altech keeps its word. As the primary
contractor on a job that required a total
solution for a client, I could always
commit to deadlines based on Altech’s
promises. I was never disappointed or
embarrassed.” Some of the contracts
Laurence had concluded as long as 12
years ago are still running. “It is rare
to come across such sustainability in
this day and age. To me this speaks to
Altech’s core values.”
This experience with and confidence in
Altech prompted Laurence to accept the
position as Altech’s COO. He was aware
of the company’s challenges in East and
West Africa, but believed those paled in
comparison to solid bedrock businesses
and sound fundamentals that provide
substantial runways into the future.
Reputation makes the difference
One of the fundamentals that convince
Laurence of Altech’s bright prospects,
is its reputation “In my experience, the
industry sees Altech as a trustworthy
and long-term-relationship kind
of business. People are fairly dealt
with and we take pride in exceeding
customer expectations and delivering
quality products. Whenever problems
occur, management is prepared to deal
with the situation and believe me, for a
customer that makes all the difference!”
A cornerstone of Altech’s reputation
is its entrepreneurial spirit and
willingness to challenge the norm.
Combined with technical excellence, the
company has what is needed to offer
truly integrated solutions to its market.
“Many people talk about integrated
solutions, but few get it right,” says
Laurence. “Two or three products
bundled together are not a solution.
You need at least five or six and, most
importantly, link them into the client
business in such a way that productivity
and efficiency improve. Only when
you establish a strategic partnership
with a customer can you talk about
a solution.” The aim is to reduce
customer churn rate, increase the
barriers to entry and reduce the costs of
acquiring new customers. The reality is
that delivering solutions is essentially
the highest level of delivering what the
customer wants and a bit more than
what they had asked for.
In addition to reputation, Laurence
regards people and intellectual property
(IP) as business differentiators.
Anybody can go out and buy
equipment or programmes or systems,
he says, but creating solutions depend
on people and their IP. Once the
latter have worked their magic, scale
is achieved by having processes and
procedures supported by systems.
Guiding Altech to delivering
integrated solutions that can be scaled
is one of the key objectives Laurence
has set for his tenure.
16
S U S TA I N AB IL IT Y P R O FILE
S U S TA I NA BI LI TY PR O F I L E
17
Altron’s Sustainability Strategy is all about
growing the business while contributing to
society. Powertech’s pursuit of renewable energy
projects is an example of the strategy in action.
The South African government
is planning to invest billions of
rands in renewable energy projects
over the next decade or so. In fact,
the target is that by 2030, 42% of
new electricity generation must
be from renewable sources.
“Government’s renewable
energy programme is a wonderful
opportunity for Powertech to supply
both project management skills and
a basket of electrical products to
these projects,” says Gary Venter,
Powertech’s general manager:
business development renewables.
Gary’s statement is not a pipedream.
Powertech has already won contracts
of more than R53 million for wind and
solar projects that were part of the first
round of bidding in the Department of
Energy’s Renewable Energy Independent
Power Producer Procurement
Programme (REIPPPP). In this
first round, independent power
producers (IPPs) competed for some
1 425MW of renewable energy projects.
Executing these projects will require
a mix of foreign and local expertise.
All the international companies with
renewables experience are coming in,
but according to government’s local
content rules, they have to have local
partners. The international suppliers
will import the main technical
equipment, such as the solar system
or the wind turbines, but the so-called
balance of plant will be sourced locally.
And that is where Powertech enters
the picture. On a wind turbine project,
for instance, the split is usually 60%
technology and 40% balance of plant.
The REIPPPP is not the only
source of projects in Powertech’s
sights. Eskom’s Integrated Demand
Management (IDM) programme for
sub-1MW commercial plant, as well
as the largely untapped private sector
renewable energy power generation
market, also offers opportunities.
The Powertech focus
Kobus Morgan, general manager
for renewable energy in Powertech,
explains that Powertech has a threefold focus to grow its share of the
renewable energy market. “Firstly,
Powertech System Integrators (PTSI)
offers a turnkey, one-stop-shop service
to main contractors to help build the
projects. Secondly, group companies
18
S U S TA I N AB IL IT Y P R O FILE
Powertech’s general manager for business
development renewables, Gary Venter (left)
and Kobus Morgan, general manager for
renewable energy in Powertech.
Renewable energy sources
Renewable energy (RE) is the collective term for energy that comes from sources that
are continually replaced. These include the sun, water, wind and organic material.
By using RE, societies reduce their carbon footprint, stop the depletion of fossil fuel
resources and make sure that energy remains affordable and available in future.
Sun
The sun, in the form of photovoltaic (PV), concentrated
PV (CPV) and concentrated solar power (CSP)
Wind
Wind, in the form of wind turbines
Water
Water, in the form of hydro-electric power
plants, wave power and ocean currents
Organic
matter
Organic matter, in the form of biogas (gas that forms
when plants decompose) and biomass (plant material
that is burned for fuel)
S U S TA I NA BI LI TY PR O F I L E
such as Powertech Transformers and
Aberdare Cables, supply specific
products. Thirdly, we are also pursuing
projects where Powertech could be a
co-developer with an equity stake.”
Gary elaborates: “From the product
perspective, we will sell a Powertech
package to an engineering, procurement
and construction (EPC) contractor.
This could include transformers,
switchgear, joints, termination and
cabling, to name a few.” For the
time being, Powertech’s product
focus will be wind and solar only.
On the project side, however, Kobus
will pursue all opportunities. “How
it works, is that I will put a project
together by first finding a technology
partner to supply the main equipment.
PTSI will then be appointed as the
EPC contractor and through Gary the
operations will supply the products.
We have taken the rather radical
decision that, should it be necessary,
PTSI will source non-Powertech
products to complete a project.”
Powertech’s focus for now is South
Africa. “Once the country’s projects
are on the go and we are more settled
and experienced, we will look at SADC
and the rest of Africa,” says Kobus.
“However, should Powertech Africa
bring in renewable energy leads, we
will be very happy to participate.”
Renewables are not only the way
forward for the world’s energy needs;
it is also an exciting and sustainable
growth path for Powertech. Opportunities
on the horizon include the possibility
of Powertech building, owning and
operating independent power generation
plants within the next 10 years. For
now, however, the focus is on getting
a sustainable foothold in the market.
19
Once the country’s
projects are on
the go and we are
more settled and
experienced, we will
look at SADC and the
rest of Africa.
Powertech’s renewable
energy products and services
Cables and cable accessories
Transformers and mini substations
Switchgear
Batteries
Standby power
Meters
Circuit breakers
Energy management and other
systems that complement primary
plant such as substations and
transmission lines
20
B U S I N ES S P R O FILE
BU S I NE S S PR O F I L E
1+1+1= 1
Powertech’s new division, Powertech System
Integrators (PTSI), is proof that the whole is
more than the sum of its parts.
P
Hennie du Plessis was the
Project Align project manager.
roject Align completed its work
to consolidate Powertech IST,
Strike Technologies and TIS
into a single business in only
seven months. But the need for this
restructuring had been three to four
years in the making, says project leader
Hennie du Plessis.
“The process gathered momentum in
mid-2012 when the departure of leaders
such as Harry Coetzee and Norbert
Claussen coincided with Powertech
realising that future growth depends
on a business model that provides the
market with integrated solutions, not
only manufactured products.”
In August 2012 Project Align was
announced. Its objective was to create one
organisation out of Powertech IST, TIS
and Strike. “Our vision was that the new
business would steer away completely
from function or product-based structures
and instead be driven by a strong business
development function,” explains Hennie.
“Strike, TIS and Powertech IST had all
been formed around specific intellectual
properties rooted in specific technologies,
and we wanted to bring those together to
offer our customers coherent, end-to-end
solutions, which may or may not include
manufactured products.”
Seven months later, on 1 March 2013,
PTSI opened its doors for business
under the leadership of Dr Herb
Chikwanda.
The new company consists of three
divisions:
1. Business Development, which has two
legs, one concentrating on the Large
Power User market segment and the
other on the Utilities market segment.
2. Engineering and Technology, which
houses the engineers, technologists and
technicians.
3. Operations, which manufactures,
delivers and maintains a product,
manages project execution, and is
also responsible for billing and
21
We are realistic in our expectations of how
soon the benefits of synergies and cooperation
will push through in the numbers.
revenue collection.
Manufacturing and warehousing are
based in Midrand, while the bulk of the
PTSI staff will work from Menlyn where
the new offices are currently being built.
Consolidating three companies
into one is never easy, regardless of
how much sense it makes or how
much planning goes into the effort.
Notwithstanding, Hennie is optimistic.
“We are confident that the transition
will be seamless. There should be no
disruption to our customers as far as
service levels or production capacity is
concerned. Certainly no projects will be
compromised.”
Project Align ceased to exist on 1 March
when the PTSI start button was pushed,
but all involved can look back on a
job well done to help bring about the
change that will secure a sustainable
future for Powertech.
The members of the PTSI exco are (back row, from left) Sarvasen Naicker, GM: SHERQ;
Etienne Toerien, CFO; Johan van der Merwe, operations executive; Dr Herb Chikwanda,
CEO; Donald McKechnie, engineering and technology executive; Denver Bolton, GM:
human capital; (front row) Hannes Snyman, business development executive: large
power users); and James Calmeyer, business development executive: utilities.
What PTSI offers the market
Powertech System Integrators is in the solutions business. Its core competence of system
and technology integration gives its customers
access to a unique combination of engineering
specialisation, industry knowledge and project
execution skills. It delivers integrated solutions
and services for the developers, owners and operators of energy infrastructure in the fields of:
Software Engineering
l Enterprise asset and facilities management
lM
obile workforce management and
mobile data solutions
l Geographic information solutions
Application engineering
lO
ff-gas filtration, fuel gas cleaning and
pollution control
lW
ater recovery and fluid systems
engineering
lP
ower generation, standby power and
co-generation
Infrastructure management
lT
elecontrol, test systems and ICAPS/
substation automation
lP
rotection, leakage, surge suppression
systems and cable accessories
l SCADA/DMS/EMS/OMS
Energy management
l Energy management systems
lE
nergy and demand metering
(EMS/AMR/AMI)
l Demand-side management
Telecommunications
l Wireless access/core networks
lD
C power backup, fuel cells,
chargers and battery systems
l Cabling solutions
22
B U S I N ES S P R O FILE
BU S I NE S S PR O F I L E
Smarter spending
sets the savings scene
The Altron Group Procurement
Committee members are (from left)
Stuart Carter, Aberdare Cables; Peter
Hodgkinson, Willard/ Powertech
Batteries; Roger Sedlmaier, Altron;
Alex Smith, Altron; Willie Oosthuysen,
Altech; Pieter van der Walt, Altron;
Deon Botha-Richards, Altech
Multimedia; and Richard Wingfield,
Altech.
Andrew Johnston, Altron; Dirk
Eksteen, Bytes Managed Solutions; Tim
Runnalls, Bytes; and Robbie Venter,
Altron CE, were not present when the
photograph was taken.
I
n January 2012 Project Fusion entered the Altron landscape. Its objective was to save money and eliminate
duplication as far as below the line
procurement is concerned.
“In a group as big as ours, and
one that consists of as many separate
companies, it is easy for people to
only focus on their corner of the business,” says Andrew Johnston, group
company secretary and coordinator of
Project Fusion. “For example, hundreds
of Altron employees travel on business
every month, but up to now each company has made its own travel arrangements. As a consequence, there was no
way for us to negotiate preferential rates
based on our collective spend.”
This situation has now changed,
thanks to the work of the group-wide
procurement project office set up by
Project Fusion. Commodity experts and
representatives from across the Altron
group have been working together to
identify opportunities for savings, while
bearing in mind that a one-size solution
may not fit all.
Now, a year after its inception, Project
Fusion can proudly report on tangible
progress. “We have appointed a number
of preferred suppliers within the commodity streams identified by the group
procurement committee at the start of
the project,” says Andrew. “These were
travel and accommodation; marketing,
advertising and media placement; and
consulting fees for recruitment, IT, credit
insurance and debt collection.”
In all cases, Altron requested
proposals from prospective service
providers. Based on what they could
offer to meet the needs of different
companies in the group, the preferred
suppliers were appointed.
Andrew emphasises that the success
of Project Fusion is ultimately in the
hands of all Altron employees. “As we
continue to identify new commodity
areas, we will be drawing on the expertise and experience of many people
throughout the group. We need them
to assist us in identifying stakeholder
needs and potential suppliers, and to
engage with these suppliers in the selection process.”
Project Fusion does not only draw
on the group’s companies. All savings
that are realised are returned to the
operations.
23
The principle of saving when you buy in bulk is well known, whether you
are a housewife, the corner café or, indeed, a multi-national corporate.
Who are the preferred suppliers?
Travel & Accommodation
A number of preferred car hire, accommodation
and air travel service providers, as well as two travel
management companies (TMCs) were appointed
to service the group.
Air travel
l South African Airways
l Comair (British Airways)
l Mango
For the group to benefit from the corporate rates
negotiated, all travel requirements have to be booked
through the applicable TMCs. Both TMCs use a webbased booking portal that is extremely user-friendly. In
future it will therefore be easier to book a business trip
and save money while doing so.
Marketing and advertising
Creative agencies for advertising and marketing
l J. Walter Thompson (JWT)
l Ireland Davenport
l Mortimer Harvey
Vehicle hire
l Avis
l Hertz
Media placement
Media
Accommodation
Lodge
l Protea Hotels
l African Pride Hotels
l Holiday Inn
l Tsogo Sun
lH
oliday Inn Express Group
(under negotiation)
l Aegis
l City
Consulting fees
The recruitment suppliers have been appointed.
Their details will be announced as soon as the
corporate rates and contractual documents
have been finalised.
Travel management companies
Travel and Tours
(for Altron, Altech, Bytes and Powertech)
l Travkor (for Altech only)
lA
mex
The credit insurance suppliers should be appointed
by the end of March, after which the focus will
shift to debt collecting.
For further information on the project and the commodities, send an email to:
[email protected]
Roger Sedlmaier
Pieter van der Walt
[email protected]@altron.com
I N T E R N AT ION AL P R O FILE
I NTE R NATI O NA L PR O F I L E
2013 marks Bytes
Namibia’s 10th year of
operation – and a decade
of servicing customers
in a country where, on
average, less than three
people populate every
square kilometre.
Namibia has the second-lowest
population density of any sovereign
country in the world. Only in Mongolia
do people have more elbow room. It
should therefore not come as a surprise
to learn that Bytes Technology Group
Namibia’s technicians in the remote
north and south of the country, easily
drive between 6 000km and 10 000km
per month to service their clients.
JC Krüger, managing director of
Bytes Namibia, explains just how far
and wide the customer service net
is cast. “We have customers from
Noordoewer and Aussenkher on the
southern South African border, to
Oranjemund on the western border, to
Oshikango on the northern Angolan
border, Katima Mulilo on the eastern
Zambian border, and Buitepos on the
eastern Botswana border.”
The company has points of presence
in Windhoek, where its head office is,
as well as Walvis Bay, Swakopmund,
Tsumeb, Oshakati, Ondangwa, Katima
Mulilo, Rundu, Keetmanshoop and
Luderitz. “We call these points of
presence, because in most instances,
there is only one Bytes person in a town.
Oshakati and Ondangwa each have two
people and we are 23 at head office,”
explains JC.
Where it all started
Bytes Document Solutions (Xerox),
Bytes Managed Solutions (NCR), Bytes
Communications Systems (Alcatel)
and CS Holdings were four separate
operations up to 10 years ago. In October
2003, it was decided to merge and
consolidate the four companies. The
new entity was named Bytes Technology
Group Namibia (BTGN).
Despite a fairly small market –
Namibia has only slightly more than
two million citizens – Bytes Namibia
continues to grow. “During 2012, after
Bytes Technology acquired Unisys, we
took over the Unisys Africa contracts,
which gave us our first foothold in the
petroleum industry,” says JC. “We are
really proud to now have Shell on our
client list.”
Over the past three years, the company
has also increased an already dominant
market share in the printing industry.
In 2010, around 85% of the production
printers in Namibia’s biggest print shops
had been Bytes machines. Today, that
number exceeds the 90% mark.
25
The majority of Bytes Namibia’s 34 staff members pose outside their head office
building in Windhoek.
Blue chip clients
BTGN lists Namibia’s most prestigious
companies among its customers.
For instance, all the ATMs belonging
to First National Bank, Standard Bank
Namibia and Nedbank Namibia are
operated by BTGN, either directly
or through outsource contracts.
The company also manages the
cheque processing machines for
all the commercial banks on
behalf of Namclear.
In the retail sector, Pep Stores,
Namibia
Service delivery
that fills the gaps
Altron in
24
the Edcon Group, Mass Stores, Ellerines,
Bears, Dunns and Cape Union Mart are
all in the Bytes stable. Other big names
making use of BTGN’s services include
De Beers Marine, Internet Technologies
Namibia and Telecom Namibia.
BTGN’s main activities are document
management, ATMs (both NCR and
Diebold), point of sale equipment, data
storage solutions, networks and cabling,
computer services, desktop, servers and
printers, managed services and software
licensing.
Altech:
l Altech Netstar has a branch in Namibia.
Powertech:
lS
wanib Cables is the largest cable distributor in Namibia and is run
by Norbert Thiel.
lP
owerbat supplies Powertech Batteries’ range of automotive,
industrial, leisure batteries and solar applications under the
leadership of Johan le Roux.
lC
rabtree’s salesperson, Chris von Solms, provides the full range of
Crabtree services and holds stock for customers in Namibia.
26
C S I P R O FILE
P E O P LE PR O F I L E
Young Presidents talk shop
The joy of moving
About 15% of the world’s population
suffers from some form of disability
that limits their functioning. Although
many devices exist to assist people with
disabilities, they are often expensive
to buy, operate and maintain. Take a
wheelchair, for instance. According to
the Quadriplegic Association of South
Africa (QASA), power wheelchairs cost
between R20 000 and R100 000 each.
In an attempt to make life a little
easier for quadriplegics, Powertech’s
SABAT Batteries sponsors a set of
batteries per annum for each QASA
member’s electric wheelchair. “This
project, which started in 1997, saves
quadriplegics hundreds of rands per
year and enables them to remain
mobile,” says Ari Seirlis, national
director of QASA.
The starting line of the 2012 Quad Race Day in which 21 wheelchair racers competed.
Sabat’s involvement with QASA is not
limited to batteries; it also sponsors a
unique sports event.
Held at the Kyalami race track in
Midrand, the Quad Race Day crowns
the fastest quad in South Africa. Top
speeds of up to 16km per hour are
clocked as the participants whizz
around the 1km-track. The Quad Race
Day is the only one of its kind in the
world. The event is open to men and
women who use Sabat batteries to
power their appropriately prepared
wheelchairs.
Altron sponsors cyclist with a purpose
From January to May this year, a group of
cyclists are crossing the African continent
from Cape Town to Cairo. The 11 718km
expedition, called Tour d’Afrique, will traverse
10 countries along the way.
Altron is involved in the Tour through
sponsoring Alan Knight, an experienced
Little ones need a big hand
The Altron YPC is collecting newborn baby items for the
Shandukani centre in Hillbrow. Baby clothes, nappies,
blankets and the like (either new or used items in a good
condition) are most welcome, says Wayne Munilall, Altron
YPC chairman. “Hundreds of babies are born every month at
Shandukani, the Altron group’s flagship CSI project. Although
the mothers and babies now receive world-class healthcare,
long distance cyclist. Alan, who will turn
60 during the ride, has committed his
efforts to support the work of the Sickle
Cell Foundation of Tanzania.
Profile will report on the Sickle Cell
Foundation and Alan’s experiences in
our June edition.
sadly, most of them do not have much else. We would like to
ensure that newborn babies leave Shandukani with at least
one or two items of clothing.”
If you have baby items collecting dust in your cupboards,
please deliver them to either Arno Geldenhuys or Liezl Kruger
at Altron Head Office in Parktown or any YPC member in your
organisation.
Email [email protected] for details.
The Altron YPC held its annual general
meeting on 22 February at Altech’s new
head office complex in Woodmead.
Once the official club matters had
been dispensed with, Helen Nicolson
addressed members on the importance
of creating a personal brand and how to
network effectively.
A notable development at the AGM
was the launch of a YPC Toastmasters’
Club. “The aim of the Club is to develop
the communication, presentation,
management and leadership skills of
27
Off the
beaten track
Members of the Altron Young
Presidents Club at their 2013 annual
general meeting held at Altech’s new
headquarters in Woodmead.
our members and to further enhance
collaboration between the various
companies within the group,” comments
Arno Geldenhuys, exco member and
charmain of the Toastmasters’ Club.
Starting on 10 April, the YPC
Toastmasters will meet on the second
Wednesday of every month.
The Altron Young Presidents Club
concluded its 2012 activities with a trip
to Soweto. The day’s itinerary included
visits to the famous residences on
Vilakazi Street, the Hector Peterson
Memorial and, of course, lunch at
Sakhumzi restaurant in Orlando West.
Thank you for the years
Two of the Altron corporate office’s bestloved stalwarts recently celebrated 50 years
of long service with the group between
them. Anne van Zyl and Jabu Maseko
received their long service awards at a lunch
held in the Vilamoura Restaurant in Sandton.
Jabu joined STC (SA) as a company
driver in 1982. Over the years Jabu has
undertaken many important trips for Altron
executives and often drives the chairman,
Dr Venter, and CE, Robbie Venter “at the
double”. He is married to Joyce and they
have two children and two grandchildren.
Anne joined the corporate communication division at Altron in 1992 and is
known for her ability to accomplish the
near-impossible in most things. Anne,
who reports to Michelle Doyle, is married
to Hennie and they have a son, Deon.
Dr Venter and
Robbie Venter present Jabu Maseko
with his long service certificate.
Anne van Zyl receives her 20-year
certificate from Dr Venter and Robbie Venter.
28
G R E EN P RO FILE
G R E E N PR O F I L E
29
In 2010 we decided to get volunteers from
different departments to join forces and start
a team to motivate staff members to become
more sustainable. We called ourselves
the Green Team.
We had two sets of shirts printed to identify ourselves on the premises. We wear the kit on
environment days, such as Arbour Day, or when we have an event of our own. Our prime
purpose is to make staff members more aware of the shortage of resources that we use every
day. We send out reminders on a regular basis to remind our colleagues of what they can do,
for example, to waste less water when they brush their teeth or when the men shave in the
morning. We distribute articles about the advantages of CFL light bulbs and how to dispose of
the used ones safely. We encourage staff members to bring their electronic waste to the office,
and we arrange for an e-waste company to collect it.
You don’t have to chain
yourself to a nuclear
power station or chase
Japanese whalers on a
ship to be an activist for
the environment. Eddy
Gordon and the Green
Team are turning over
new leaves at the Bytes
Document Solutions
(BDS) offices in Isando
every day in many small
and innovative ways.
Here is their story.
Be warned: it will
inspire you.
We have organised for a glass bank, battery
recycling tubes, and paper, can, plastic and
polystyrene collection points at our offices.
Now staff no longer have to drive to other
collection points – they can recycle simply by
coming to work!
We encourage staff members at customer
sites to also adopt green ways. We visit their
sites throughout the year, select the best of
the lot and give them an award.
We have adopted a tract of land across
the road from our head office. We planted
12 indigenous trees there and with the
support of Technical Services placed bins for
pedestrians to put their litter in. The bins
have a BDS logo on it and encourage people
to put their litter in it. We have participated
in clean up days where we selected an
area that needed cleaning up and collected
paper, plastic and other rubbish.
In 2011 we were thrilled to receive the
Altron Environment Award at the Altron
Annual Awards. Here Eddy Gordon (left)
poses with Hennie du Plessis.
On a recent environment day we asked staff
to bring recyclable items from home. We
built a tree with everyone’s rubbish.
At the end of 2012, the Green Team planted
vegetables in special earth boxes. We placed
the boxes strategically near the entrance to
our office reception area. The objective of
this project is to show our customers that
we are a green, sustainable company, as
well as giving our staff the opportunity to
do something similar at their own homes.
We planted what we thought were suitable
vegetables, including tomatoes, green
peppers and spinach. With sufficient water
and natural fertilizer our vegetables grew in
record time.
We have orchestrated a collection of books.
This helped staff get rid of their old books
and provided an opportunity to share their
reading material with those around them.
This reduced the need to print extra books,
so we saved some paper. We then sold the
books to other staff members for a small
fee. This money is being used to grow the
interest in sustainability in the branch.
We harvested our crop and sold it to the
staff. The funds raised were used to buy
new seedlings for a fresh crop in the new
year. To date we have inspired 25 staff
members to buy their own earth boxes. The
boxes have also led to interesting discussions
between staff members as to what grows
well or where the boxes should be placed.
30
C O M PET I T I ON P R OF ILE
C O M P E TI TI O N PR O F I L E
31
Ethics can be child’s play
The ethics competition in the November 2012 edition drew the largest
number of entries ever for a Profile competition. From across the group
people sent in their ideas on how to explain ethics to a child. From
short stories to cartoons, the editorial team was blown away by the
creativity and effort. For this reason we have added two runner-up
prizes. The next two pages contain a snapshot of the entries. The ethics
competition is part of Altron’s ongoing initiatives to build an ethical
culture. Over the years this has included training, poster campaigns
and the creation of an ethics office.
Our Winner!
Breakfast is the most
important meal of the day.
Similarly, ethics gives you
what you need to achieve
a successful future.
Charles Adams, senior HR officer, Distribution, at
Powertech Transformers in Cape Town, won the iPad 2
in our ethics competition lucky draw. He compared the
foundation that ethics builds to the energetic start a
healthy breakfast provides.
View Charles' complete entry on Alix
Louie Moonsamy (Altech Netstar)
A mix-up with the delivery of a bed he had
bought, presented Louie with the opportunity to get two beds for the price of one
in a dishonest manner. He chose to alert
the shop to the mistake.
“My six-year-old daughter observed the
whole scene and questioned me as to why
I did not just take the second bed. I told her
if it was buy-one-and-get-one-free I would
have taken it. In this case it would have
meant I bought one and stole the other,
which is not honest and not ethical. I said
to her: ‘We don’t want to be thieves, do
we, my sweetheart?’ She replied: ‘Never
thieves, Dad. I want to be honest and
ethical just like you.’”
Read Louie’s full story on Alix
Robert Kotzee (Bytes)
Parents love to tell children to do the
right thing, but often kids are left wondering what the right thing is. Here is an
example:
You’re the parent of a 13-year-old son,
but he could easily be mistaken for an
11-year-old. He spends the night at a
friend’s and while he’s there the other
mom takes the two boys to a movie. At
the box office there’s a sign that says
’12 or under, half-price’. The mom takes
a look at your son and says: “Well, you
look like you’re 11, I’m buying a half-price
ticket”. What’s your son to do? What is
the right thing?
Agueda Nunes (Bytes)
Thabo’s Choice
It had been a long day at school.
WOOLWORTHS
Thabo felt as if his chest would burst
VOUCHER
WINNER
and all he could do was watch the
minutes on the clock…1, 2, 3, 4, 5…
and the bell rang!
Thabo raced out the classroom,
grabbed his schoolbag, stumbled down
the stairs, into the car park and jumped
into his mom’s waiting car. As he slammed
the door shut, he felt a sense of having
escaped. Escaped what? He didn’t know.
The drive home was silent and when
they arrived, Thabo ran into his room,
closed the door and started playing with
his favourite toys. Mom noticed that
something was worrying Thabo but like all
wise mothers, she knew there would be a
time and place to talk.
Read the full story on Alix to find
View more of our entries on
out what’s bothering Thabo and how
www.alix.co.za/ethicscompetition
he solves the problem.
R500
Darrean Moodley
(Bytes People Solutions)
Have a look at Darrean’s
beautiful PowerPoint
presentation on Alix.
Gwen Smal (TIS)
32
C O M PET I T I ON P R OF ILE
C O M P E TI TI O N PR O F I L E
Lalisha Singh (Bytes Connect)
EExpress gratitude: say please, thank
you and it’s my pleasure
TTake time to be nice to everyone, eg,
say hello
HHonesty is the best policy: don’t lie,
steal or cheat
IInvoke love and friendship with everyone
C Care for others, and have compassion
SSharing with others is fun, give to
people who are less fortunate
Annelee de Vries
(Bytes Systems Integration)
Marlan Iyer (Bytes)
Yeah Im new, name
is Rob Berry and you
can help, I don’t have
my access card so I
need you to let me
out so I can put
these in my
car…uh…they need to
go for repairs.
Hi There, Im Moe
Rall, you must be
new contractor.
Do you need some
help carrying
those laptops?
Where you
carrying them to?
How did you get
in without your
access card?
Why will they
need repairs?
They look new!
What’s with the 20
questions? If you help
and keep quite, one of
these sweet laptops
could fall and you
could have it.
Not a
chance.
Suit
yourself,
bub.
Team, before you leave we have
some news. Laptops have gone
missing over the past week. We
have caught the person thanks
to a tip we received. It was Rob
Berry, one of our contractors.
All that is needed for crime to
happen is for good people to do
nothing.
Hmm, Rob seemed awfully
fishy. I could report this
to my manager but I don’t
have facts and don’t want
to wrongfully accuse Rob
Berry. I think I will
contact the tip off line,
they will conduct a fair
investigation, and I will
remain anonymous
Hey bub, any
chance you can
open the door
with your
access
card…Im new
here...and
uh..left my
card at home
Hmmm ok, Im taking these new laptops
for uh hmmm formatting, help me out
and I will drop one of these laptops when
I load them in my car coz I have to take
them to get formatted at the IT shops.
And the name is Rob Berry
…Drop hey…I
like the way
you talk Rob.
Freeware
never hurt
nobody.
Listen noob, don’t make your
problem my problem. That’s the
problem with youngsters today –
too lazy to do anything for
themselves. Maybe if your access
card was an app you wont be so
careless. So why should I help
you? Nothing for nothing noob.
Bryn John (Aberdare Cables)
Ethics – the real world
“BENJAMINNNN!” The harsh sound of his
name sent shivers down Benny’s spine as
he tried to make himself small in the dusty
playground of his school.
This cry had come from Richard Head,
a burly Neanderthal-like creature…he was
the school bully. “I want you to do my
homework for tomorrow, so you had better get stuck in immediately, or else.”
Benny knew that if he refused, he
would have a few more bruises to accompany the ones that were concealed by his
uniform. Headless knew where to punch!
As he walked away from his tormentor,
a tear in his eye and shoulders slumped,
he felt a hand on his shoulder and a kind
voice whispered in his ear. “What is wrong,
Benny? You look as if you’ve lost a rand
and found a cent!”
Who is the kind person and how
will she help Benny? Find out on Alix.
To me ethics is very simple: If what you
have done were to be published on the
front page of the Sunday newspapers,
would you be proud of that fact?
Chris Murray (Bytes Connect)
Trini Krishnan
(Aberdare Cables)
Enjoy the rest of Trini’s
cartoon story on Alix.
Elmien Pretorius
(SAP)
He He, what a noob just
giving me a new laptop
and he had so many the
company wont miss one.
He must be feeling
pretty silly right about
now.
R500
WOOLWORTHS
VOUCHER
WINNER
Joe Kerr!!!, you left early again.
Laptops have gone missing over
the past week. We have caught
the person thanks to a tip
received by someone in another
company. He named a partner in
crime who also took one stolen
laptop and helped with exiting the
building.
Jackie du Plessis
(Altron)
33
Bytes People Solutions continuously adds to and
refines the qualifications offered to people who want
to advance their careers. We are therefore excited
to announce three new qualifications for 2013.
1. National Certificate in Business Analysis Support Practice:
NQF Level 5 (SAQA ID 63769)
● The competencies of business analysis have been identified as a
scarce skill.
● This qualification develops competencies to elicit, analyse,
communicate and validate requirements for changes to business
processes, policies and information systems.
● Key concepts and practices enabling learners to support business
analysis are introduced.
2. National Certificate in Generic Management:
NQF Level 5 (SAQA ID 59201)
● A person acquiring this qualification will be able to manage team
leaders, supervisors, junior managers, section heads and foremen in
an organisation.
● Concepts covered are leadership, managing the environment, managing
relations, managing knowledge and the practice of management.
3. FET Certificate in Generic Management:
NQF Level 4 (SAQA ID 57712)
● This qualification is intended for junior managers including team
leaders, supervisors, foremen and section heads.
● Competencies acquired include management relating to planning,
organising, leading, controlling and ethics.
These three learnerships support Altron’s initiative to create opportunities
for unemployed people. Close to 300 people use learnerships every year
as a stepping stone towards employment in the Altron Group.
Bytes People Solutions offers opportunities for career advancement,
not only for newly employed learnership graduates, but also for existing
employees who want to further their careers. This is achieved through
various skills programmes and international qualifications which are
not learnerships.
Look no further than Bytes People Solutions
to advance your career.
Need more information?
Contact Alwyn van der Linde, Business Unit Executive –
Skills Development at Bytes People Solutions.
Tel
011 205 7000
Email
[email protected]
Website www.bytespeoplesolutions.co.za
Your career
is a work
in progress.
That’s why
our work is
never done.