Bobby Madhav With the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) having revised its economic growth outlook to 0.6% from 0.8% for the year, it is evident that the economy will continue to contract. For SMEs, this means that doing business will be even harder as profit margins get squeezed and consumers start cutting back on spending.  “However, this may also be the perfect time for small businesses to expand their offerings to foreign markets, in order to grow, while diversifying and minimising the risks of a weakening domestic economy,” says Bobby Madhav, Head of Trade and Collateralised Trade Finance at FNB Business . Notwithstanding the challenges associated with exporting, there are many benefits for SMEs that can get this right. Madhav says the common question that SMEs often ask is ‘when is the right time to start exporting?’, the simple answer is now; considering that the entrepreneur has a solid business concept and management structure, consistently grows revenue and i...

Chris Veegh, Head of Consulting at 10X Investments For most people, the idea of running the Comrades marathon is as absurd as it is scary. If you can barely manage to circle the block, then the idea of a 90km footrace is as far-fetched as flying to the moon. Clearly, this challenge is not for ordinary people. And yet, every year thousands of very ordinary people take it on and finish before the 12-hour cut-off. The trick is commitment and perseverance, rather than athletic ability. Saving for retirement may appear just as daunting to some: circumstance, financial or personal, might make this goal as improbable as finishing the Comrades. But the same principles that get you over the line at the Comrades will get you to a comfortable retirement. 1. Prime goal: beat the cut-off Other than elite and sub-elite runners, the primary goal for every Comrades runner is to at least finish within the 12-hour cut-off. Many might hope to do better, but getting a medal is the first obje...

David Marobe One of the surest ways to grow an inclusive economy and realise the goals set out in the 2030 National Development Plan is by investing in entrepreneurs, who are critical to the development and well-being of any society. Government and the private sector need to work together to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and can best do so by not only having procurement set-asides but efficiently implementing these as well and providing targeted technical assistance. This is according to David Morobe, Regional General Manager at Business Partners Limited (BUSINESS/PARTNERS) , who believes that SMEs have the ability to scale up to Government’s and private sector’s procurement demands when given the opportunity and necessary guidance. “Procurement preference is a well-recognised source of SME support, however, there is a perception that SMEs are risky and unreliable suppliers, or that they don’t have capacity or the capabilities to supply according to set requireme...

Yudhvir Seetharam As the business environment continues to evolve, bringing a new set of challenges and threats to organisations, risk managers across the globe are beginning to harness the power of Big Data to accurately predict and manage risks more efficiently. Yudhvir Seetharam, Head of Analytics at FNB Business , says stricter regulatory requirements and compliance penalties have prompted businesses in the financial services sector to find new ways to effectively evaluate and manage risks. Consequently, Big Data is now being actively used as a key risk management indicator to identify problems and address them quickly before they impact on the reputation and bottom line of businesses. “It is therefore not surprising that more and more organisations are investing in Big Data to enhance the predictive power of their risk models to enable business leaders to make more informed decisions,” says Seetharam. Moreover, the ability to manipulate historical records, to detect hidden ope...

Kobus Engelbrecht With recent predictions that South Africa’s economic growth is set to slow even further this year, business opportunities and consumer spending will continue to be strained, especially in light of last week’s Monetary Policy Committee stating an unchanged interest rate, but alluding to potential rate hikes later this year. Kobus Engelbrecht, spokesperson for the Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and Business Partners , says that entrepreneurs therefore need to change their outlook when managing their business, analysing the economic landscape and identifying opportunities in their industries. Engelbrecht says that entrepreneurs should plan accordingly to prepare their business for the prolonged period of slow economic growth that the country is experiencing. The IMF’s World Economic Outlook report released in April 2016, titled Too Slow for Too Long, reported that it expects lower growth of 0.6% and 1.2% for South Africa in 2016 and 2017 ...