I-Fundi’s Community of Experts’ event on the 30th of September was an event not to be missed. But if you did happen to miss it, we want to highlight a few key points within this article.
Our Speaker was Mr Trevor Tshabangu, Executive Director of Transcend Corporate Advisors, and the topic for the day was “How to Improve Your B-BBEE Scorecard by Understanding the EAP.”
The event itself was packed with indispensable information such as the amended BB-BEE codes, the five elements of the BB-BEE scorecard, how to understand the Economically Active Profiles, and how to apply them to the BB-BEE Scorecard.
Mr Tshabangu emphasised that the new BB-BEE codes are harder to achieve now than in the past. Every company will go through a steep learning curve from now on. For example, a company that previously scored 68% and achieved a Level 4 on the old scorecard will drop to a Level 7 with the same 68% score. Instead of trying to follow a ‘level strategy,’ Mr Tshabangu recommended following a ‘point’s strategy.’ He said that the new aim should be to improve on the total number of points.
One of the more important observations made by Mr Tshabangu at the event was the fact that BB-BEE concerns are generally only addressed by companies at the end of the year when they realise that their certificate is about to expire. He advised that, in order to avoid the chaos at the end of the year, BB-BEE must be interwoven into the overall corporate strategy and budget. “Take BB-BEE and fit it into the business and not the other way around,” Mr Tshabangu said.
We spoilt our attendees with ample information, and we plan to deliver the same information to you in a short series of articles.