Electricity + Control June 2017

COMMENT

I meet regularly with friends from industry. Obviously there are common themes to our discussions, but education and the fu- ture come up regularly. And (some may say surprisingly) so do conversations about successes and gains, and how industry has in many cases reinvented itself to respond to the changed environment in South and southern Africa. Equally, there are those who hanker for the good old days – days that I have come to recall more as a mirage than a reality. Frankly, in the cold light of day, when were the old days really good? Many still believe they were. Allow me to reflect on some of the positive engagements I have had recently. These relate particularly to actual interactions I have had with leaders of our industry, whose companies continue to grow and prosper – largely because of the self-belief that their leadership has in the company. As a mere aside, I note that all of these interactions have included an affirmation that the company has toward the upskilling of staff – and of its customers. This resonates with me, because an informed client is the best client; and the more you can upskill your own staff, the better off your company will be. It seems almost bizarre, after the above comment, that I still engage with people who think that to upskill staff – and then see them leave – is the end of the world. Obviously, one would like to retain all skilled employees but sometimes that is not possible. I have seen a wonderful comment where the CFO remarks on the risk of investing in the training of staff – and they leave. The CEO responds: “What if you DON’T train the staff – and they stay?”

The second point I would like to make is that these companies share a fundamental belief in their own brand. This is a belief engendered by the executives of the company – and seemingly a reality taken on board by the staff. This is an obvious point to make – but I find many companies where the discussions are invariably about how bad things are, and how difficult it is to succeed. And I fully appreciate that. The trouble is that this tendency to see all the obstacles ends up being the establishment of a rather defeatist attitude amongst the staff – to the extent that the company begins to decline, rather than the rise above it all. Nobody living and working in South African right now can imagine that it is all a walk in the park. Of course it is not. The way you balance the obstacles and the opportunities has a significant bearing on how your company responds. I am overwhelmed by the positive attitude and the sheer grit and determination – of many with whom I interact – to succeed. Their success impacts on far more people in our economy than on their employees alone.

Ian Jandrell Pr Eng, BSc (Eng) GDE PhD, FSAIEE SMIEEE

The reality is – you cannot retain everyone – but the movement of the skills back into the pool can only be a positive thing for the economy.

A common thread in the discussions with really successful companies is that they are committed to investing in training – for everyone. I like that.

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Quarter 1 (January - March 2017) Total print circulation: 4 702

June ‘17 Electricity+Control

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